A Different Pharisee

There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. John 3:1

We meet the Pharisees many times in scripture, and in nearly all cases they present as opponents of the Messiah they had spent years watching for. In the first verse of John 3, we find nothing to indicate this will be anything but another story of Jesus versus the Pharisees. That Nicodemus is a ruler of the Jews leads us to expect a stronger antagonism. But as the story unfolds before us in the chapter, this one Pharisee is quite different from his colleagues. Nicodemus exemplifies the seeking and asking we hoped to see from the Pharisees in all those other confrontations.

If you feel a little different today, perhaps God's Spirit has you at the seeking and asking place. Be sure to seek out Jesus and ask of Him!

Bucky

He Knows You

The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.”
Jesus said to her, “You have well said, ‘I have no husband,’ for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly.”  John 4:17, 18

Watching a show last night, I made the observation that this executive of a large organization had something we might call 'professional nice'. He spoke politely, but I could tell that he was not really interested in the person. In the nature of such high-level executives, he wanted to get the job done and move on to other important tasks. Now this is not to lay any blame on the man, in his position he will have to meet a great many people. To keep his sanity, the executive will have learned to categorize them quickly and move forward to the next meeting. Only a few friends, competitors, and people important to his job will get more than the 'professional nice' of his trade. Which makes it all the more remarkable when the highest executive to ever visit the Earth knows you or me. 

The King of kings and Lord of lords had time for this woman. And there he was in our verse today telling this woman at a well near Sychar all about her life. That this woman would go on to testify that Jesus knew everything she ever did shows us that the husbands fact was only a high-level summary. He knew her.

And He knows you too!

Bucky

Sneakily Obvious

For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Matthew 24:38-39

We live in that time, the one of eating and drinking plus arguing over how it should be done. We are marrying and giving in marriage, and then divorcing and marrying again. Add to all that the army of distractions we have in the world, and one can see why the next coming of the Son of Man could sneak up on most everyone. Yet, it shouldn't because we have all been warned by the prophetic word to be ready. As with the guard on duty, we must watch out for the distractions that leave us unprepared and unready to respond. It would be a sad thing to be left behind because the Son of Man returned...and walked right by us when we weren't paying attention.

Pray, read the Word, and watch!

Bucky

Comforting His Flock

Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. John 14:1

Jesus awaits His arrest and at the same time comforts His disciples. The man who will soon go to His execution, gives a final teaching, prayers, and comfort to those who will soon run away into the dark night and desert Him. Jesus had spoken before this verse of the horrors awaiting Him in Jerusalem. And still our Lord was concerned for His flock, comforting them with a future none of those deserters could merit. And we would do no better. The entire circumstance of the Savior's distress and the arrest was just too much for anyone but the Lord Jesus. Let not your heart be troubled.

Bucky

Home With Imperfect People

Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him."  John 14:23

So today we remember a man who had a flawed idea of how large the Earth was, landed in a place where he misnamed the people, and gets credit for discovering entire continents though he was by no means the first to arrive there and hadn't quite made it to either continent. Details, details, Mr. Columbus would likely be the CEO of a large corporation today. So, can God love a man such as ol' Christopher? 

We had better hope so, for not one of us is perfect either. In the religion of the day, we need to be right and correct at all times, plus strong, fit, rich, and pretty too. Which I think leaves me at zero out of five, though I may have miscounted. Thank the Father that when Jesus comes to look for a home, He will be looking for love and a keeping of His word. A word that has love in both of the greatest commandments, and love in His new commandment. 

So love on this day in Christ, and maybe forgive poor, flawed Christopher too. 

Bucky

What About Those End Times?

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15 KJV

One morning, I decided to take up a pursuit of the knowledge of the end times. Am I even qualified for such an undertaking? My morals have shown a rather common ability to compromise with most any temptation throughout my life, darn them, so exemplary morality provides no basis. My education tended toward information technology, so that wouldn't seem to fit the bill. I have no degree in divinity, not even the candy concoction, so that also leaves me out. And yet, each of us who believe in Jesus feels the call to study His word, the Bible. In that word, we find a great many prophecies of the end of this world and the return of our Savior. And I feel an urge to know more!

So, let us therefore exercise the freedom to study God's Word!

Bucky

The Curse At The End Of The Word

For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book.  Revelation 22:18

Last night I noticed the early morning dew was already doing its thing on my truck, long before it was due. So of course we are bound in by the fog of painful writing along with the atmospheric fog this morning. 

While it may be many years too late for me, I wondered this morning at the curse at the end of the word John gave to us. To take it literally is to stop all preaching, writing, and singing in church or outside it for the past couple thousand years, since it is all, we hope, adding to the words of this book we hold called the Bible. Did John really mean to put that sort of chill on the spreading of the good news when His Lord told him quite the opposite at the end of Matthew? Do we voluntarily curse ourselves each time we try to explain or expand on the word of God? Is prayer adding to the words of this book, since so much of the Bible holds the prayers of Jesus, David, and many others? For goodness sake, have we ruined our chance at the Rapture by singing a hymn, and we must all now endure the plagues of the Revelation?!!  Wait, what does John mean by 'these things'?

Before we run to tell the preacher that he cannot preach this weekend, I should think we would be in more danger to say something like, Rev 8:9, "And a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed, and the seashore was covered with blue Lego blocks." That last bit after 'destroyed' would clearly be adding to these things as revealed by the Christ to John. Don't do that. But go ahead and write, preach, sing those hymns and songs of praise, and spread the good news of Jesus Christ!

Bucky