Tough One To Obey

But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:44-45a

Reading our scripture passage this morning, you likely do not need me to tell you how tough this one will be for us to obey. It goes against our nature to do any of those things for those particular people. If someone curses me, my first reaction is not a blessing. As for praying for the spiteful persecutors, I'll send up a prayer about them; Jesus might need to add me to the list of those sons of thunder! It was no different for those gathered there on the mount as our Lord spoke those words for the first time to them. I'll bet there was an odd sound of many jaws dropping as the people heard what they weren't sure they heard right. Jesus was not speaking these words simply to stun the crowd or gain their undivided attention. They were then and we are now called by our Lord Jesus to something completely different from the world. Yes, this one will be tough for us to obey. But, we have good help by faith in Jesus our Lord to do what is right by Him.

He has called, and it seems we will need to call on Him for constant help in that calling,

Bucky

Hard To Imagine

Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry.  Luke 4:1,2

Some find it easier to believe in Jesus as God than to believe in Him as a man. They may read the story of the temptation of the Christ and sort pass over it as God not being really inconvenienced by the struggle. However the testimony Luke gathered has what I consider one of the great biblical understatements ever written down, 'He was hungry.' After forty days of eating nothing that just seems a bit bland for us in our day. 'Starved almost to death' might seem closer to the state of Jesus after that long fast. When we see that, then we see the man who lived and died for us on the cross. 

And yet, we also see the authority of God in the man who walked across the waves and then told the storm to knock it off. So, yes, He is God and human. 

Love in Christ Jesus,

Bucky

P.S. For more on the divine Word of God, see my sister's message today at: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CdLLc87fT/

A New Month

Fruit trees of all kinds will grow along both sides of the river. The leaves of these trees will never turn brown and fall, and there will always be fruit on their branches. There will be a new crop every month, for they are watered by the river flowing from the Temple. The fruit will be for food and the leaves for healing.” Ezekiel 47:12 NLT

We made it! It's October at last. Hmm, trying to inject cheerfulness with just another day on the calendar that arrives each year as the only reason doesn't seem to do it for me. Each day that comes is one day closer to the great promises of the Bible. Okay, now we're talking! Some days it seems such a long slog to the end, which we cannot see on our personal calendar anyway. Yet, each day does not come back again, and the world is one day closer to the end. So, what does this promise of fruit trees in our verse for today do for us? I want to see you there. Yes, you, me, and Jesus with a picnic spread under the trees of that life-giving river.

Bucky

A Greater Need

And when they could not come near Him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where He was. So when they had broken through, they let down the bed on which the paralytic was lying. Mark 2:4

Those persons in law enforcement might call this a crime. Others might call it rude. The homeowner might interject a word or two. But those carrying the paralytic had a greater need and knew by faith that Jesus held the solution to their friend's problem. The scripture story does not tell us whether the four remained behind to repair the roof or not. The paralytic walked away with his bed as Jesus told him to do. The scribes and Pharisees present? Well, they griped and complained about Jesus, and of course refused to believe even as they marveled at what they had seen with their own eyes. Some people will not be saved no matter what they observe. We can only pray that their greater need will one day become known to them. For the greatest need we all share is to be redeemed by the sacrifice of Jesus the Christ.

Bucky

A Prayer For Action

Though our iniquities testify against us,
act, O LORD, for your name’s sake;
for our backslidings are many;
we have sinned against you.
  -- Jeremiah 14:7

Oh, here we go again, another wanna-be preacher calling us to the door knocking thing. Nope, this call to action by way of prayer came from the prophet Jeremiah to the Lord God. And with three lines of sin confession to one request for action, Jeremiah admits that it isn't for anything righteous he or his people have done. Our calls to the Lord for His action must be of similar format since we are by no means any more deserving than Judah was back in Jeremiah's day. While we are quite proficient in prayers for the Lord's action, perhaps we have come up a wee bit short on the confession parts? Let us confess our sin to the Lord, and then we can enjoy the mercy of Christ Jesus and live!

Bucky

A Reminder

In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.  John 14:2

Jesus is on a mission, and it is to our benefit! We have passed this way before. Our verse for today is both famous and sometimes debated. But this morning I asked of the Lord and He sent this reminder to us. His Son is on an important mission to prepare something great for you and me. Yes, this very morning someone will likely remind you of some rule of the law or prophets that you have failed. I didn't include myself because I have already failed even before getting to the morning writing. It's that easy to fail and sin before the law. That is why we are saved by the One who has gone to prepare a place for us, and not by our efforts at law keeping. So, believe in Jesus and prepare to see a grand new place in God's house one day!

Bucky

Do You Believe This?

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?”   John 11:25-26

Lazarus lay dead in the tomb, and Jesus asked Martha this question. But first she had to show off her knowledge of the last day. Jesus took her a step further, do you believe this now? In other words, do you believe Me? Do you believe that Jesus, the man standing before you, has authority over life, death, and everything? The question is not just for Martha, but has come down to each of us through the Word of God. Do you believe this? Would it help your belief if someone dead four days was raised up from his tomb? Martha was asked to believe before Jesus raised Lazarus. And credit to her for answering with a positive 'Yes!' We also face that same test. Before you, me, or any of our beloved are raised from the dead, we must believe this. 

We must believe Him!

Bucky

Autumn of Reconciliation

And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight. Colossians 1:21-22

A loved one may have passed on before you or I had a chance to reconcile with him. We hold faithfully to a hope in Christ that we will have our chance in Heaven. However, do we have a time, perhaps a brief time, to reconcile with someone here on the earth? Yes, as long as we are alive here and the earth keeps on turning, we have time. We have one superpower that Christ our Lord grants to all who believe in Him, forgiveness. But reconciliation requires both sides of the conflict to do their part. The transgressor must sorrow over the sin and express that sorrow to the victim. That may not always happen, and then reconciliation may have to wait. Our forgiveness can start a reconciliation, but cannot force it to completion. So then we pray.

Please start a prayer with me for a season of reconciliation in our land,

Bucky

Pete's Contradiction

But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed. 1 Peter 3:15-16

Explanation time for the apparent contradiction? Nope! Today we have the Jesus Rules Party on one side and the party For Pete's Sake on the other. In place of asking for an explanation from Peter, seeking wisdom from Jesus in prayer, or knocking on Paul's door to get some teaching, the two parties have squared off on social media. One might expect that with such rapid communication available to them, the two parties would seek further understanding of one another. But no! They like holding opposing positions. The Jesus Rules party is no longer interested in following Jesus nearly so much as they are in ruling. The election of Peter to First Pope has inflamed the For Pete's Sake party to new levels of political rhetoric. With this latest writing the Jesus Rules party is certain beyond any reason that the so-called First Pope should be excommunicated forthwith!

That all sounds so ridiculous, dear Bucky. Why didn't you just try to explain the apparent contradiction? You might ask.

Yes it does, but you can also see how I simply took events from the past few years and stirred them into a rough story that never happened. Sadly, our current story has become inflamed to the point of murder. And commentary on the murder has become a sort of backlash culture that has organizations terminating jobs left and right...uh, oops, sorry about that. (Left and right pun, good grief, the guy never stops!) However, the nation whose constitution guarantees freedom of speech is once again perilously close to ending that right, and not so long after a thing called cancel culture threatened it so severely.

Prayer for our nation is in order!

Bucky

Fantasy Call

Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say. For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say. Luke 12:11-12

This morning as I dillied and dallied, I saw myself rising up, as another ceded the pulpit, and speaking words that were received as wise and good. Yes, it is the older feller's version of the boy's fantasy about that touchdown in the big game. If a person thinks that his own words are wise and good, that is not a call to the ministry but a temptation to start a cult. So important is the teaching of the Holy Spirit to us that we read of Jesus telling those who were to be grabbed and brought before the authorities to not rehearse what they might say in the moment. It would seem that if given the chance to speak to the official inquisitor, Jesus did not want either His disciples or us to get in the way of His word.

But wait, contradiction time! Did not Peter tell us to always be ready to give a defense? Yes, he did, in 1 Peter 3:15. It seems we have a subject for another day!

Go with God this day,

Bucky

Did He Say Reward?

And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last. Revelation 22:12-13

Reward, He said? Is this where the meek inherit the earth? No, an inheritance is not a reward for work. We have seen some get an inheritance in this life who deserved nothing but a kick in the backside. The final paycheck maybe? If it were payment for work performed, then we don't usually call that a reward. Also, one would have to wonder where such payment would be spent with the world as we know it gone and fled away. The reward of our Lord's Christ also does not bring to mind bags of gold or gift cards to our favorite big box stores. Even lands and property won't work as an answer because of the meek inheritance thing. So what could this reward be? Salvation? No, much was said earlier in the New Testament regarding salvation by faith and not of works. Plus the apostle mentioned the boasting thing, and surely the Lord would not want an eternity with a bunch of boasters. So, what could this reward be that the Lord brings with Him?

Some may have answers they hold dear, but as for me, I'm not too proud to say that I do not know. By faith in Jesus though, I know that it will be something awesome!

Bucky

Dealing Before The Disaster

So it came to pass, when they had brought them outside, that he said, “Escape for your life! Do not look behind you nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be destroyed.” Genesis 19:17

Tuesday? Yes, I'm sneaking one in on you. Usually our Bible study group meets early this morning, but this year for the first time since I joined in 2013 our group has struggled to gather for the past couple of months. It is a season of vacations, illness (mine), internet outages, and some goofing off that has prevented our study at times. This sort of thing is not unusual except in the concentration of the challenges we have faced as a group. Now, as we are going about our usual life, imagine that two angels show up and issue the words shown in our verse for today.

Escape? From what? If one believes the words, then he will hot foot toward the nearest mountains as commanded. If one happens to be named Lot, then he might try to cut a deal even as angels are warning of impending destruction. And Lot did. Lot claims in his dealing that he cannot escape to the mountains lest some evil overtake him and he dies. Which is a bit humorous in that just a few verses later, Lot leaves Zoar, because he was afraid to stay there, and goes up into the mountains to live. From the story it is easy to see that Lot dealt in fear, the same way many of us live today.

Trust in the Lord Jesus, let His love drive out your fear,

Bucky

There Is Hope

Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.  Genesis 6:5

A casual glance at the news might make it appear that the world is in the same state as our verse for today, but not so fast there! It is hard for us to imagine a world where every intent and thought was only evil...continually. Even for one of us to pause and wonder about it means that one thought is not given over to evil for that moment. Even this morning many people are going to work determined to do a good job for their employer, which we should do according to the scriptures. Others are hoping to simply endure another Monday. That's a lot of not-so-evil thoughts going on there. Of course there can be more than just enduring a day, and more than doing a good job, we can embrace a higher calling in loving our neighbors as ourselves. 

Jesus confirmed that the loving of the person next to us was indeed the second greatest of commandments and like the first, which was to love God with our all. There is hope for us when even one of us will keep that love alive. 

Love to you in Christ our Lord,

Bucky

Waiting On Him

And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.  Revelation 21:4

It is no easy walk to live life waiting on this verse to come to pass. And yet, yesterday evening came and the prayers of thanksgiving and sorrow were prayed to God our Father. Somehow Jesus walked each of us through another day of mourning while we also worked, learned, taught, and performed many other daily tasks. And it still bothers me that I am writing another message much like so many that have come before. This is not a day to give up though. While social media makes it apparent that the love of some has grown ice cold in this age, keeping the love of Christ active in the heart remains a primary concern for those who believe in Him. 

To love, and Jesus who makes loving possible!

Bucky

Comfort Them

Blessed are those who mourn,
For they shall be comforted.
  -- Matthew 5:4

Before yesterday I was not familiar with Charlie Kirk and his work. Before yesterday I might have hoped for a time to mourn for those closest to the man after his death. Social media put my naivety to rest rather quickly on that! What do I learn from this? That Jesus gave to us a potential response to the bereaved in His great sermon, those mourning shall be comforted and we have a great opportunity to be among the comforters. Some will choose something else, especially on social media, but we are only responsible to the Lord Jesus for our response. And that is to love and comfort those hurt by the actions of evil in this world. 

May the Lord Jesus Christ comfort us all,

Bucky

Then You Will Know

Then Jesus said to them, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things.  John 8:28

Wait, what? After Jesus was lifted up on the cross and rose again from the dead, the Pharisees still did not know or admit that Jesus was the Son of Man. Even as Peter, James, and the other apostles spread the Gospel of Jesus, the Pharisees threw them in prison, killed them, and refused to know. So, when does this knowing take place? It may be one of those things where one, Nicodemus, began to know, then another, Joseph, and still another in Paul some years later came to know that Jesus was who He said. It may be that in the final years of this age the Pharisees become the largest force of our Lord's evangelists the world has ever seen, when they lift Him up as the Son of God and the Son of Man all at once. It happened with Paul, it could come once more. 

Rejoice in the Lord Jesus, He has this!

Bucky

Casting Doubt

I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. Revelation 1:9

These days it is popular to cast doubt at any group other than your own. If you do not feel this in your life, run for public office and you will soon have all the doubt you can wish for cast right at your door and yourself. John wrote a letter to the seven churches which are in Asia, and from the get-go doubt has been cast. Some doubt the revelation happened, others doubt that it will have any literal fulfillment, and one book I began last week even cast doubt on poor John himself. Why all this doubt? Well, it is right there in our verse for today, "for the testimony of Jesus Christ." Yes, state your testimony of Jesus and you too will have doubt cast at you. It might even come more quickly and with more force than any political position one may take.

Who knew that your testimony of Jesus or mine could be so divisive? Well, Jesus did of course. Even His people voted Him out before the Roman governor.

Bucky

The Prince Of Division?

Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division. Luke 12:51

This morning with but a few words I can become to some a flaming liberal Christian, while with those same words become an intolerant fundamentalist Christian to others. I will not attempt to write those words lest I break apart from the strain of conflicting opinion this morning! It may seem a little funny that some of us may have thought that these words of Jesus in our verse today would somehow pass over the Church, maybe even our particular little church. Division, we don't want no stinking division; the Lord Jesus is supposed to be the Prince of Peace, not division! And yet, from what may be the most recent writing of the Bible, if AD 95 can be called recent, John wrote to seven churches in Asia Minor, and they were all different. What! Already? Ha, Mary Magdalene met the risen Jesus outside the tomb that first morning, and the disciples did not believe her story. Yes, division came that quickly.

And still, the Lord will bring us all back together in Him, and He will be the Prince of Peace, Isaiah foretold it! (9:6)

Bucky

Not In Despair

We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair.  2 Corinthians 4:8

Despair is an easy thing to slide into, but entirely inappropriate for those who believe in Jesus our Lord! Paul reported being hard-pressed, in that proverbial space between the rock and a hard place, and yet he was not in despair. He confessed to being perplexed, but still not in despair. I don't have to guess that at some point in your life, you have been perplexed and hard-pressed just as Paul was in his time. But did you despair? That may have happened, Paul may not have succeeded in remaining despair free his first time either. In fact this may have been the 76th time he faced a tough test before he remembered the Lord Jesus and did not fall to despair. We sometimes think that Paul always got it right the first time out, but that is likely not the case. 

I pray that none of these are in despair now, dear Lord Jesus. And if they are, please rescue them quickly!

Bucky

The Easy Part

This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him. John 2:11

Heyo! The disciples have believed and the journey begins. So, why did the disciples have so much trouble with belief later on? Well, ya know friends this miracle may seem tame or easy to our fledgling belief. As for the disciples, they may not have seen the water, or they may have enjoyed a bit too much of the really good wine. If belief in Jesus came easily to them at the first, it would also depart easily later when challenged by His words and other actions. Wine could be left behind, walked away from, even eliminated from the body. "You must be born again," challenges the faith to remain faithful to the One who does the rebirthing. And as adults, like Nicodemus, they had reason to doubt that to be born again was even possible. However, this rebirth must be faced and decided on, to believe in Jesus or not. And the disciples had not even heard the drinking His blood and eating His flesh part yet, the old vampire-cannibal thing that would strain their new faith to the max!

The beginning of His signs was the easy part, and then He kept going on about dying and rising up again.

Bucky

Come To God And Pray

Assemble yourselves and come;
​​Draw near together,
​​You who have escaped from the nations.
​​They have no knowledge,
​​Who carry the wood of their carved image,
​​And pray to a god that cannot save.
  -- Isaiah 45:20

You may wonder at my choice of a verse for today and the title. And yet, that is where we began: outside the assembly of believers in Jesus, having no knowledge of the Lord and His salvation, and praying to idols that cannot save us. We had no knowledge of how to come to God and pray, but the Spirit of God moved us, parents and preachers taught us, and then there was Jesus.

Praise God, Jesus lives! So, come to God and pray.

Bucky

Ask Until You Receive

Who is the Almighty, that we should serve Him?
And what profit do we have if we pray to Him?
  --  Job 21:15

Job said that? Oh, yes, he did. Had Job given up on the Lord then? We know from the story that Job wanted a discussion with God, but no, the man did not sin by giving up on God. The argument had been made that Job suffered the consequences of his sin. And one of Job's responses was to invite his mockers to look at how the wicked prospered and grew strong in the world. The wicked in Job's example even said things such as those two questions in our verse for today. By their argument, the wicked should be in much worse suffering than Job, yet they were not.

Someone, somewhere may well be asking those two questions this morning as they look at the news from Minneapolis. Encourage that person to continue in prayer. Yes, we should continue in service to the Almighty. Why didn't the Almighty protect those children by stopping that person yesterday? Ask God in prayer!

And keep on asking until you receive His answer,

Bucky

Fighting The Sickness

As for God, His way is perfect;
The word of the LORD is proven;
He is a shield to all who trust in Him.
  -- 2 Samuel 22:31

As I had another practice session with sickness the past four days, I wondered in amongst the self-pity if there wasn't a way to praise God even in such a condition. Praising God for the sickness while griping about it seemed a bit hypocritical. Evidently the self-pity would have to go since, as we read in our verse for today, His way is perfect. It would seem that self-pity is of itself a sickness to be fought with praise to God. You will understand that I had to recover some from the worst of it before this sort of thought would take root and grow since, well, the wallowing in self-pity can be hard to stop. And as all know, men are such babies when it comes to being sick!

So, from one sickness baby to all the others, Praise God for once again pulling me out of the Slough of Despond. Praise and glory to God our Father, and healer, savior, redeemer, and friend!

Bucky

Contrition Needed

I said, “LORD, be merciful to me;
​​Heal my soul, for I have sinned against You.”
  -- Psalm 41:4

Some may have said that we do not have to pray things like this after going down to the altar to be saved. David, writing this psalm, was a man after God's own heart, a man blessed with the Spirit of God, and yet he also wrote this verse for today to us. Jesus, a man who was and is God, wrote to us to pray like this, "And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." (Matt 6:12) Those would seem some strong encouragement for us to pray with contrition: a feeling of remorse and penitence. We need God's mercy all the time, and if David needed to pray it and Jesus gave it to us as a model of prayer, well there we go!

Lord, be merciful to me!

Bucky

Psalming

The LORD is my strength and song,
​​And He has become my salvation;
​​He is my God, and I will praise Him;
​​My father’s God, and I will exalt Him.
  -- Exodus 15:2

Sometime back, way back, in the day, Israel began psalming. Whether it was poetry or song lyrics, the writing down of what they said and sang to the Lord became a thing. Perhaps they had sung songs for years before some bright bulb decided to start writing down the lyrics so that they sang the same thing more than once. Given the length of the song in Exodus 15, one would think this was not their first time. Some of us can blurt out a few clever lines here and there, but to compose an entire song takes effort and practice, which some say is the same thing repeated many times. Singing praises to the Lord our God has a strong tradition, and we should do it often.

Grab a psalm and sing along!

Bucky

Also The Whole World

My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world. 1 John 2:1-2

The whole world? Yes, before we exclude anyone from the Lord's salvation we may want to review that last part of our scripture for today. Now does this mean that everyone is automatically saved? It does not appear to be so by the words of our Lord Jesus, wherein we find many references to Hades or Hell, and ways to end up there. However, for our part we see by John's letter that the Way to the Father is open to the whole world.

Therefore, do not be afraid to pray for anyone, for even us allergy sufferers can believe in Jesus!

Bucky

What A Promise!

And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life. 1 John 2:25

The weather folks promise us a drop in temperature on Friday. What a promise! Always a welcome change in August, but if one can get excited over that little promise, what about the one in our verse for today? It began in another writing from John, the gospel written down by him, and in that most famous verse: 3:16. God loved, He gave His Son, and we believe in Him to eternal life. So, if we like even the little promises, then surely we must rejoice in Christ Jesus and the much bigger one!

Be faithful in Jesus and rejoice in His eternal life!

Bucky

Start With Prayer

For whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.  Romans 10:13 from Joel 2:32

It seems too easy that someone should be saved merely by calling on the name of the Lord. And yet, would we be so mean as to forbid salvation to someone who suffers such a stressful moment in life that one name is all they are able to call on? I certainly agree that if we have the time, and most of us have, that we should confess our sins, repent of them, believe in the Lord Jesus with earnest prayer, and be baptized for our salvation. However, as we read and study the prophecies of the end times, we must come to know that not everyone in those (these?) days will have the luxury of hours or days for quiet reflection and comparison of the Lord's way and the way of the world. Of course we hope that no one waits for the terrors of the apocalypse as the Lord's name is not "Aaaugh!" or "Aiiieee!" 

Start with prayer now, when times are easier.

Bucky

Victory In Jesus

You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.  1 John 4:4

There is a hymn to sing it, but the reason we like to proclaim victory in Jesus comes from what He did for us and this verse we read for today. With the many great and powerful things the world has to overcome us, it is wonderful to know that there is one greater than he who is in the world. As seen yesterday, I can be defeated for a time by a blankety-blank recording device. How will little ol' fumbling me overcome the powers of the world? Nothing in this world can overcome my God and Savior though! It is comforting to know that the Good Shepherd who saved you and me also rules by the mighty power of His command. (Hebrews 1:3). 

Have a comforted day in Christ Jesus!

Bucky

Blasted Time-Period Recording Devices

I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, saying, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,” and, “What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.” Revelation 1:10-11

You will be able to relate to this one: a device arrives, the instructions are followed, time period configuration completed, the 'record' button is pressed, and afterward the device smugly reports no recording took place. That period of time is gone. Not one of us can get it back. It is almost as if some gnome-like programmer deep in the bowels of a multinational corporation chuckles evilly every time an event is missed forever by their device. Well, you and I are in good company as Moses got so mad at his first recording device that he smashed it to bits, and God had to provide a new copy of the Ten Commandments. The difficulties we have with recording devices also make it all the more remarkable that any of the Bible scriptures made it to us these thousands of years later. We know by experience that copies of copies of copies are fraught with peril every step of the way, especially since we have so much trouble obtaining that first one. Yet somehow, we can read the Revelation and 65 other books of scripture from a long time ago.

I guess God was a lot better with His recorders over thousands of years, than I was with one blasted recording device on just one little night. Sigh! As Mr. Coyote says, "Well, back to the ol' drawing board."

Bucky

A Babe's View

In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. Luke 10:21

Do you have a baby's view of the Bible? Good! We are often called in the Bible terms that the proudly educated would not approve of, such as lost sheep, little ones, and babes. It is among these simple folk that Jesus finds His treasures to bring home with Him. The educated Pharisees struggled to accept Jesus, and few of their number ever followed Him. Therefore, if that sort of thought comes to you that a person must be really educated or highly smart to believe in Jesus, doubt the source of that thought and just believe in Him!

Faith may not make sense to the sensible,

Bucky

Feeling Powerless?

The God of my strength, in whom I will trust;
My shield and the horn of my salvation,
My stronghold and my refuge;
My Savior, You save me from violence.
  -- 2 Samuel 22:3

So, a meeting Friday between the presidents of the USA and Russia in Alaska. This week the boss is gone on vacation...to Alaska. Oh, no!

If you are feeling powerless for being left off the guest list for the presidential meeting in Alaska this week, then imagine how Ukraine feels. Perhaps President Trump shows wisdom though in that nothing has been accomplished by meeting with the war leaders together, so he chose to start with one of them. And perhaps I am trying to make an excuse for someone who has not asked.

2 Samuel 22 is a psalm from a powerful leader, a king, who chose to give the glory for his victories to God. Living in a time when most leaders and other famous persons sing the song of themselves, David's psalm is refreshing to read.

Read it, and rejoice in the Son of David!

Bucky

Sometimes We Ask

They said to Him, “Grant us that we may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on Your left, in Your glory.” Mark 10:37

A well-known example of asking without knowledge comes in our verse for today when John and James, the Sons of Thunder, asked for special places with their Lord Jesus. We know from our scripture studies that it wasn't a request for two places at the dinner table, or even two honored places at a feast, but in His glory. Words can flow out from us with no regard for any but ourselves, and the two disciples appear to stand in for us in this case. You and I have probably asked our Lord Jesus for something that was inappropriate or set aside for others. Our denial right now comes from that same lack of knowledge that James and John had in their moment of grieving our Lord Jesus. His first words in response tell us all: "You do not know what you ask."

Praise God for the Holy Spirit who makes intercession for us in our requests!

Bucky

Practicing Love

You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.  Deuteronomy 6:5

A piece of advice sometimes given to us has a cute roll to it, and that is 'fake it till you make it'. However when it comes to approaching the Lord to learn love, that just does not seem like good advice to me. Practice till you become proficient seems like a better way to go. If I do not yet understand love fully, then I can go to the teachings of the word of God and practice. Faking love would certainly be obvious to God, and likely to everyone else as well. Practicing, on the other hand, will show that I am far from perfect at loving, but that I have a desire to improve at it. I believe the Lord can work with practicers, but fakers? Uh, not so much.  

May the love of the Lord, who is of course 100% good at it, go with you this day! 

Bucky

Attention Derailed!

But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.  1 John 1:7

Plastics crisis, nuclear accident, global temperature abnormality, hurricane #542, and the sky is falling!  Any number of things demand that our attention to the word of God be derailed right now and most immediately. And by the way we are being fogged this morning. Whatever comes next, seek some comfort in the Word. Each day will present some sort of crisis to test us from little bitty personal ones to the big international news spectacles. We have plenty to pray over and many people to pray for, but we also need to see to our mental health in the word of God. As our Lord said, love your neighbor as yourself. 

Love me and love you, and God said love both of us too...

Bucky

Sinstincts

But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid.
And He said, “No, but you did laugh!”  -- Genesis 18:15

Since Adam and Eve took of the forbidden tree and ate, we have lived in a state of fear. To this fear are added those instincts of self-preservation that we can easily recognize: lying, cheating, stealing, and many others. These all seem to be sins according to the law of Moses. And if one thinks that doing one by thought alone will excuse a person, Jesus assured the disciples that thinking the sin was sin too. So, we have an inherited 'sinstinct' reaction to perceived danger, even if it is merely the danger of being found out. We see a famous example in our verse for today. Clearly then we need to be saved and reborn somehow, which Jesus addresses with the teacher of Israel in chapter 3 of John's gospel. 

I can't save me, and you can't save you, but Jesus can save us both, it's true,

Bucky

Read The Word

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.  1 John 1:5

Strange things go across social media feeds, and I saw one of those hidden word ones today that try to tell you the first word you see will be your day. Only certain words are hidden in the puzzle, and why should my day be determined by some stranger or AI making up something like that? Some people read the Bible in a similar way, like it's some sort of hidden word puzzle or a code game. While there may be passages that I do not yet understand, I believe the word of God was not given to baffle me. Those parts I don't understand yet? Well, that's there to bring me back to try again! 

Read the word, and learn from the Word!

Bucky

A Higher Standard

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.  Romans 3:23-24

Are those who believe in Jesus held to a higher standard? I wrote it in the affirmative last night, looked at it again this morning, and realized that I was wrong. No, we all have one standard, we have all failed to meet it, and we all fall short of the glory of God. Faith in Jesus is where we gain the ability to reject the sin by the grace of God in Christ Jesus. That does not mean that we will successfully negotiate the temptation traps every time, but that failing may tempt us to believe we now have a higher standard. The disciples saw the perfect example of the sinless life each day, and they soon realized how far they were from the standard. As we walk in grace by faith, we also get to know more of how far short of the standard we began the journey. Forgiven in Christ we are, but perfect sinless behavior we are still working on with Jesus our Lord. 

Remember the key words of the second part of our verse today: justified, grace, redemption, and Christ Jesus!

Bucky

Not Seeing Enough Miracles?

Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves. John 14:11

Or else believe? The works or miracles that Jesus did seem to be His second preference for the faith of His disciples. When the religious leaders demanded signs, Jesus refused them. Many may think that there are not enough miracles to believe in anything these days. But if a person already believes in Jesus, why do we need signs again? Asking to see more miracles of the Lord puts us in a place similar to those religious leaders of so long ago. Sounds like kind of a backward sliding sort of thing. Eek! Backsliding, we don't want to do that. So, yes the word of the Lord has more than enough miracles for us.

Let us go forward with Jesus in faith!

Bucky

Prodigals On The Way Home

And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. Luke 15:20

How did that father see the prodigal so far off? He was looking for him of course! I see all those who believe in Jesus as prodigals on the way home to our father. We have spent our time in sin, living for ourselves and our pleasure, and now we each journey toward home and the Father. At some point in life we hit bottom in some fashion and looked back toward our heavenly Father and the home promised by His Son. The Father, though letting us go our way and indulge in all manner of sin, also had His eye on us all that time. The Father waited expectantly for that day we would turn around and come home to Him.

If you have not begun that journey yet, look up, repent, and start on the way home. Jesus opened the way for every prodigal to come home to His Abba.

Bucky

Asking - With Motive

Now when He had departed from there, He went into their synagogue. And behold, there was a man who had a withered hand. And they asked Him, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”—that they might accuse Him. Matthew 12:9-10

The account of Matthew clearly ascribes a motive to a question in this scripture passage. In most cases, we would ask a question with the motive of wanting to learn something. Here these Pharisees had already decided the answer for themselves, and used the question to set a trap for Jesus. An easy target from this passage would be to come down on those Pharisees, but Jesus already took care of that and they are long gone anyway. Instead, let us look at our own asking and see if any underhanded motives are present in our prayers. The Pharisees make a good example of what not to do. So as we get with God in private prayer, we want to make sure we didn't join their band by accident or worse, intent.

As Jesus showed us, "Not My will, but Thy will be done."

Bucky

One In The Father

Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. John 14:10

In our age we have these celebrated persons who come as a package. One is their screen persona presented to the world, and the other is their private self which is often more hidden. Then social media came along. No doubt the pressure on these celebrities is greater than ever to be like what is seen on the screen. Which could be difficult if the actor's claim to fame is a comic book superhero character.

Imagine though what it was like for the disciples of Jesus to understand that here was God, in the form of a man, standing, sitting, eating, and being human in front of them. The Father, God, dwelt in Jesus and did the works they had all seen. Not an actor, nor a madman, just a baby born in Bethlehem grown up to present God to them in a form they could see and touch. Amazing!

Have a faithful day in Christ Jesus!

Bucky

A Bad Apple?

I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the preeminence among them, does not receive us. 3 John 1:9

John the beloved apostle wrote to Gaius a short letter with an important complaint, there was a person in the church who did not receive the brethren. It seems that within a short period of time from the church beginning at Pentecost, there was already one who did not want anything to do with hosting the traveling apostles. And that wasn't all, as John tells of malicious words from this Diotrephes. Now short in this case might mean 30 years or more, but it kind of shatters my wishful illusion of a new church growing by leaps and bounds with harmony among all the saints. Sometimes that did happen, but other times we read of people just being darn poop heads too!

Praise God that Jesus brought redemption to us all,

Bucky

A Marvelous Work

For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? Romans 11:15 LSB

Good morning to you on this day! Most people I know are what the Israelites called Gentiles. This was a term that included everyone who was not of Abraham by way of Isaac and Jacob, that is Israel, hence the Israelites. Therefore, Gentiles as a term includes a lot of people who can be quite different from one another. We have all one thing in common though, as the Jews rejected Jesus as their Messiah, we get to reconcile with God through Jesus! God has taken a rejection by His chosen people and turned it into a marvelous work of salvation for us.

Great are the works of our Lord God!

Bucky

A Kingly Figure

So it was, when they came, that he looked at Eliab and said, “Surely the LORD’s anointed is before Him!” 1 Samuel 16:6

Eliab, firstborn of Jesse, must have been built with a kingly figure. Samuel certainly thought so when he came to him first among Jesse's sons. Samuel was familiar with Saul, the Lord's choice for first king of Israel. Samuel had a good look at Eliab, and could see the man as the next king of Israel. The Lord shut Samuel's wrong-way train down though, telling His prophet to quit looking at appearance and stature. So glad we have taken that lesson to heart in our time and no longer judge on appearance and stature...right? Dream on, sonny!

May God strengthen us to look past appearance and stature,

Bucky

For That Reason

Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will rest in hope.
  -- Psalm 16:9

As a child, asking why may be our most common question. Therefore, the Bible uses 'therefore' a lot for the children we must become in God's Word. Therefore means, for that reason or consequently. You may have seen the word a lot in your Bible study, and your imagination is not playing tricks on you. The New King James Version of the Word holds a mere 1,356 usages of, therefore in 1,340 verses. Therefore, there is a good chance that if a 'why?' occurs to us in the Word, then a reason may follow a therefore for us quickly thereafter.

For this provision of reasons to our questions, we rejoice in our Father God.

Bucky

We Need One

My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 1 John 2:1

When John wrote this letter, he probably knew quite well that the 'if' conditional here would likely be met many times as we strive to live a sinless life. We need one advocate, and we need Him a lot... no, we need Him constantly. When all it takes is the mere thought of a sin, then we are in it more than we think. Repentance may have begun at the altar back in the day, but it is something we must practice and pray for as we walk with the Savior. It seems this is one Advocate we need to keep on a prayer retainer.

In Christ alone!

Bucky

If You Love One Another

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. John 13:34

A friend, even a brother or sister in Christ, has lost a beloved one from mental illness. You hear their story and later find out they may have said the wrong thing at a critical moment. The source of your knowledge has expertise in the subject, a doctor or anesthesiologist perhaps. (I just wanted to see if I could spell that second word there - blew it, forgot the 'h' the first time through.) Now, as the beloved of your friend has already passed, what good would it do for you to blurt out your new knowledge? Will your words be received with appreciation? I think we can see that a good dose of the ol' silence may be the more loving thing to do in a case like that.

This thought came to me while doing the dishes one night. The Lord sometimes gives me a devotion to write at the oddest of times. The key to those odd times is of course to dry the hands and go write it down before a distraction comes along and, poof, it's gone.

Give thanks to God this great Monday morning!

Bucky

What Is In The Middle?

Bless the LORD, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits.
  -- Psalm 103:1,2

While the word of God is centered on His Son, Jesus, I wondered what verse was in the middle of the text. The answer according to the Google is the two verses we read for today. What an appropriate passage too! The middle of the word of God calls upon what is within us to bless the Lord. And as an answer to the anxiety so present in our world of this day, we are called to not forget the benefits of the Lord. 

From experience, I can tell you that anxiety and forgetting the Lord are quite the same activity. When I have anxious thoughts, they are not centered in the Lord. A session of anxious rumination is so unlike prayer that they must be polar opposites. So, when anxious fears come, bless the Lord O my soul!

Love to you in Christ our Lord, 

Bucky

By Twos

So they came to Noah into the ark, by twos of all flesh in which was the breath of life. Genesis 7:15

While it may have appeared in the previous writing that nothing could be worse than two consenting adults, we have a great deal of evidence in the Bible that a pair can also be a great blessing. After the four pairs of humans entered the ark, then came the beasts and birds by twos in our verse for today. We also saw in the gospels how Jesus sent His disciples out in pairs. Two can encourage one another in the Way, or help to keep each other accountable in moral bearing. And of course we have the word from Jesus on marriage where a man and a woman join and become one flesh. (see Matthew 19:4-6). So, over the past couple of days, we have seen how a pair can go toward the light or down into darkness. What can we learn from this? Let Jesus be your Savior first, and from there walk with Him in the light. Then let the Lord help you with those other pairings, such as friends and spouses.

May the Lord Jesus guide us in all things,

Bucky

Decided By Two Consenting Adults

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.  Genesis 3:6

While blame has been laid upon Eve, it is clearly seen in this verse for today that her husband was there with her. And therefore, we can see that the first sin against our Lord God was decided by two consenting adults. Many Bible stories tell us of two consenting adults deciding to commit a sin, sometimes more than one. It would seem that two can get into sin trouble at least as fast as one. So perhaps the best indicator of whether something is a sin or not would not be the decision of two consenting adults?  

Of course we cannot leave it there. Tomorrow, if the Lord is willing, we will see what a partnership can do when it is centered in Christ Jesus. 

Grace and peace to you in Christ Jesus!

Bucky

Look At My Heart?

But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the LORD does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”  1 Samuel 16:7

But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.  Matthew 15:18-19

So, in order to meet the One who was, and is, and is to come, there must be a fix for this heart problem. Reading the two scriptures passages for today, one may easily think that there is no hope for us at all: God sees into the heart, and Jesus reports what He found there. However, with a bit more reading in the Word, we find that God, who sees the heart, sent Jesus, who knows the heart, to be the sacrifice to cleanse that evil heart and redeem us for God. Therefore our hope is in Him!

As the hymn says: I once was lost, but now am found!

Bucky

Who Is To Come

Knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.”  2 Peter 3:3-4

'He was' and 'He is' each have their problems for those who will not believe in the Christ. But if the past tense is easier and the present one more difficult, then the third separates the faithful from the fallen with the sword of the Word. Many in this world would rather continue on as before until somehow fallen humans achieve some sort of utopian-ageless-evolved paradise on Earth. (You may estimate for yourself how well we are doing on that!) The Revelation 1:7 tells of tribes mourning when Jesus returns (also Matt 24:30). Perhaps that will happen just after they think aging has been stopped. As for me, I think I have aged one day for each day I've been alive. (I guess that makes sense.) What the promise of our Lord's return grants to those who believe in Him is, well, the promise of His return! Like the aging thing, it just sort of makes sense to us. Since I cannot point to the hour, day, month, and year of His return, and neither can anyone else, many refuse to believe this appointment will ever arrive. And so they scoff, and may be scoffing at the moment of our Lord's return. 

Pray for those who refuse to believe, while there is still time for repentance,

Bucky

He Is

God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds. Hebrews 1:1-2

In the early part of the first of what would come to be known as the Anno Domini centuries, Jesus was in Galilee and Judea growing up and preaching the good news of the kingdom of God. With the evidence of their eyes, the disciples of Jesus along with a great many others were quite comfortable with 'He is'. The scribes and Pharisees were somewhat less comfortable, but they did not believe in Him. Belief of course brings us to faith, and by faith we speak of Jesus of Nazareth as a 'He is' even now, about 2,000 years after he began the ministry that changed the world. While the execution by Rome of this same Jesus gave all those who refuse to believe in Him a comfortable 'He was', we by faith know of the resurrection on the third day. We do not have the evidence of our eyes yet, but from John 20:29, we have this assurance:

Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

Bucky

He Was

“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” Revelation 1:8

Not many people, I think, will have a problem with the 'he was' part when speaking of the man who lived in the first century A.D. Jesus is known through the Bible record and by other historical records such as Josephus. However, to some of those people during what we would consider the 'he was' time, Jesus said that he was from a time before their time, way before their time:

Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.” John 8:58

Properly freaked out by this, they stooped to gather some rocks to make him a 'he was' right there and then. But His time had not yet come.

Rejoice in Christ Jesus!

Bucky

Wait On the Lord

Wait on the LORD;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD!
  -- Psalm 27:14

David, the youth who found the king's army waiting in fear, because of that giant fellow, and acted in courage, would later write psalms of waiting on the Lord. As it was time for him to act in one circumstance, other circumstances taught David the value of waiting on the Lord. Wisdom comes from the Lord to teach us also when it is time to act and when to wait in prayer for the Lord.

Of course to the world around us, it will often look like acting quickly equals rash foolishness and waiting in prayer appears to be doing nothing. And the voice of temptation will be there to help us know how the world sees us in those times too. This is why we need the strengthening of the heart only our Lord can provide!

Have a blessed day in Christ Jesus,

Bucky

New Speech, Please!

He who would love life
And see good days,
Let him refrain his tongue from evil,
And his lips from speaking deceit.
  -- 1 Peter 3:10

The verse today looks like a psalm, and it is as Peter wrote from Psalm 34 in his letter. And it still addresses issues we have today. So a psalm of David from about 1,000 years before Jesus, came to a letter from Peter written about 2,000 years before our time, and still we struggle with those two lips and one tongue.

May God grant us mercy, and clean, loving, and encouraging speech.

Bucky

An Unlikely Gospel

As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” So he arose and followed Him.  Mark 2:14

Each of us may recall back in those days of our youth when we were caught in that hard place where experience came from jobs, but jobs were closed to us by that same lack of experience. Many of the jobs we ended up taking we would have easily given up to follow a traveling rabbi, if we had  such a thing in our time. However, let's say we each had a job that paid really well, as in destined for great wealth kind of well paid, and there was personal security in that job from the governing authority, and performing well in that job directly benefited our savings accounts. Sounds too good to be true! The tax collectors in Levi's (Matthew's) time had it that way, and they liked their jobs. Their only problem was that their nation and people hated them for doing those jobs. No doubt counting their money in the evening helped them get over their most-hated status. What could be more unlikely then for a travelling rabbi with no money to call one of the most hated men of Galilee to follow him and give up that lucrative job? I guess it would be for the tax collector to drop everything and take off following that same rabbi! And so from a couple of highly unlikely choices, we have the wonders of the Gospel of Matthew. 

Praise Jesus for choosing the unlikely ones,

Bucky

A Prayer For Jesus

Help us, O God of our salvation,
For the glory of Your name;
And deliver us, and provide atonement for our sins,
For Your name's sake!
  --  Psalm 79:9 

Centuries before the Christ came to Bethlehem, Asaph wrote a psalm praying that the Savior would come and deliver them. This prayer for Jesus asked God for just what His Son did for us as told in the gospels. What an awesome answer to this prayer God gave to us in His Son Jesus!

Bucky

Servant He Is

You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. John 13:13

After one of His great examples of serving by doing, Jesus sat down with His disciples having washed their feet like the lowest household slave. And then He acknowledges titles of honor the disciples had used for Jesus the Christ. Rabbi or teacher of us the students and learners, and master or lord, as in we belong to You. It was a strange thing the disciples witnessed: the teacher and master had just taken up the lowest slave position and done the dirtiest job available. And in the next verse, Jesus told them to do the same. Even today we are encouraged to strive for the highest position in the corporation or government. And at some point in life, most of us join in that game with enthusiasm. Imagine achieving that high position of CEO, president, or king, and then going out back to do the lowest and dirtiest job. The disciples were freaked out a bit, I'm sure, just as we would be.

So, are we okay as servants yet?

Bucky

Fearless All Day

You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.
  -- Psalm 91:5,6 

Night, day, darkness, and noonday, we have the day covered in these two verses. Terror, arrow, pestilence, and destruction covers all our fears as well. But it's that promise from the start that gives the assurance needed to be fearless through every day. "You shall not be afraid..." Of course I seem to be still working on that. Nope, cannot claim to have stood fearless all day of pretty much any day yet. Call it anxiety, PTSD, nervousness, trepidation, or any other term, it remains and has always been plain ol' fear. Even worry has its basis in fear. Worried about that? Then you might be afraid God won't. Worried about this? Then you may be afraid God will. Worried the world will soon be blown up? Then maybe you're afraid God ain't. Read Psalm 91 sometime this weekend and see that God is, and that God loves, and rejoice!

Yours in Christ,

Bucky

No Other Burden

Now to you I say, and to the rest in Thyatira, as many as do not have this doctrine, who have not known the depths of Satan, as they say, I will put on you no other burden. Revelation 2:24

Thyatira had some sin problems, including sexual immorality, but there were those in the church who did not fall into this sort of thing. And the Lord Jesus remembered them too as He promised to put no other burden on them. Is that even possible? We might ask because we gain this impression from certain preachers in our past or present that this life but one burden after another piled on us until we drop. Whatever problem that preacher had, or whatever misunderstanding we jumped into from their teaching, we should not have gained that from the Son of Man who said, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28)

From the story of the church at Thyatira, we understand that it is sin that burdens us, along with the chastening that must take place for that sin. Avoid the sin, and no further burdens will be put on.

Happy Juneteenth! Rejoice in Christ our Lord for the freeing of slaves to sin.

Bucky

Emergency Verses, Quiet Reflection

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
  -- Psalm 91:1

Sometimes the unexpected pounces upon us with tribulations we might rather not face on a particular day. In the Bible we have what have been called emergency verses for those sudden tough times. And one of the easier to recall is the reference for today's verse, 911, or Psalm 91:1. However, these verses are also quite suitable for a calm time of Bible reflection and study. Dwelling is a place where we live, but in this verse if we dwell in one special place, we get to abide in another. It may seem that to dwell in the secret place of God, the Most High, would be Heaven, but that is not secret. The secret place we all have is in our heart or mind, where even repressive governments cannot see what is going on in those thoughts. Much of the time they wouldn't want to, but that's a story for another day. When the seeker comes to believe in Jesus, the door opens to the Holy Spirit and we dwell from then on in the secret place of the Most High. Which grants to us an abiding under the protecting shadow of the Almighty. This is not to say that tribulations will not come, as our Lord Jesus has said, but now we do not face them alone. 

Have a heart safe day under the shadow of the Almighty!

Bucky

Working A Change

Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?  James 2:5

Last night I looked out a window after midnight, as I often do to see what is going on, and I saw something out of the ordinary. For a moment or two, my mind didn't want to believe what my eyes clearly saw. A branch had fallen onto my truck bed. That's what made the ordinary look odd. What does that have to do with a Bible-based message, you might ask? So glad you asked! 

When Jesus began his ministry, the disciples he chose, the people he preached to, and even his brothers looked and saw, but failed to comprehend all that he taught them. Here in our verse for today we see James presenting two faith arguments in the second chapter of his letter to the twelve tribes scattered throughout the world. This would not have happened in those early days when those known as James did not believe a brother, wanted to bring the thunder down on some scoffers, or simply did not understand the new covenant. Someone worked a change on James and he became as he says, "A bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ."

That is some change!

Bucky

Shining Light

In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.  John 1:4-5

So many thoughts this morning. That comes from looking into the darkness, I suppose. Looking at the life that was the light of men seems simpler, calmer, and a way to peace. The Son of God who lived that life shines through the darkness so well in such a time as this. How much greater did His light shine on that day His tomb was found empty? 

Shine on, dear Jesus, shine in me!

Bucky

Already Done It

You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. Matthew 5:27-28

For those sitting in the grass listening to this great sermon, thinking, "I have not touched, therefore it was just harmless fantasy." Jesus brought them up short by letting them know their guilt just by thinking of the sin. We have been brought up in a time when our thoughts and even our speech are protected freedoms. Hmm, so if I pass a law for myself that I can think of anything I want, then I'm good! Utter nonsense, that is simply restating what Adam and Eve did when taking from the forbidden tree. The government may not prosecute a person for thinking sinful thoughts, but challenging the judgement of God would not be a way to eternal life. So, how can I stop those thoughts? Prayer for a clean heart, and perhaps most immediately, quit feeding the beast!

Praise God, who can cleanse us from the lust in the heart!

Bucky

Whatever He Says

His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.” John 2:5

Mom knows. Without the rest of the story, we are left with a number of guesses as to what our verse for today tells us. From our Bible studies though, we know that this is Mother Mary telling the servants to do whatever Jesus says to do at the wedding in Cana where Jesus would soon perform His first miracle. It is a simple instruction to servants. And as we from other teachings of our Lord Jesus want to become servants, it seems that simple instructions are good for us as well. "Whatever He says to you, do it." And that is where the battle with our first birth begins as our sinful flesh immediately rebels, gripes, grumbles, and complains against following our Lord's simple instructions.

Praise God that Jesus His Son can overcome us too!

Bucky

He Sees You

I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, saying, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,” and, “What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.” Revelation 1:10-11

A penal island out in the Mediterranean Sea. And the Lord tells John to write what he sees in a book. Water will figure into this writing, we might expect. But no, the Lord Jesus is about to show John many things. So, 'write what you see' becomes much more than a description in words of a Roman penal island and the sea around it. In the first part of the Revelation, John sees many things about these seven churches that he could not see from the shores of Patmos. As the book or scroll reaches the churches, each church receives a specific message showing what they have been up to, some of it quite personal and perhaps surprising to many in that church. John sat on a rock in the briny deep, but Someone saw the churches and how they chose to behave.

This revelation is why we who believe continue to repent of our evil deeds and thoughts, while we also have the assurance that no good deed or thought is missed by our ever watchful Lord and God. Therefore, how do we want to behave today?

Love and joy to you in Christ the Lord!

Bucky

Who Is Worthy?

And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals. Then I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to loose its seals?” And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll, or to look at it.  Revelation 5:1-3

John, the disciple beloved of Jesus, sees a scroll, and a question is presented to everyone, everywhere. The simple part of the question trips up all of us: Who is worthy? In Heaven, Michael and Gabriel do not step forward. Under the earth none of the proud ones say anything. On the earth, not one of the kings or emperors has anything to say. What happened to those bearing that recent appellation of 'self-made'? Should not at least one of them be worthy to open that scroll? And yet even the strong angel who issues the question does not try to touch that scroll. 

As John turns to weeping, one is found worthy to open the scroll. And it is a lamb who was slain? 

Praise God for the Lamb who was slain!

Bucky

What Was Inside

But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man. John 2:24-25

Jerusalem, Passover, disciples ready to rock the new kingdom, but Jesus knew me. The time may have been a thousand and nine hundred or so years before my birth, but I would have fit right in with those in whom our Lord would not commit. It seems that even as I have believed in Jesus for longer with each passing day, the time is used to turn over rocks in my heart and show me the sin. This is not to say that change for the better has not taken place, but about the time I feel a bit of pride in myself, flip, then there's that hidden sin revealed.

Then faith has a word for me: forgiven! Praise the Lord Jesus!

Bucky

I don't usually key off another message, but this one from my sister may help us to understand the feeling.

https://www.facebook.com/kerri.nohr/posts/pfbid0362HmsAxhh5k4KpEcWAYtqLyuQBRbcFMxuqiWeY1Wr2uRCk6289UQamgEfLXrwwQEl

One Day He Made A Whip

When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers’ money and overturned the tables. John 2:15

Part of the temple of the Lord had become a livestock market complete with money changers. History and experience may tell us that some money taking was going on at the same time, over and above an honest profit on the sales. However, the text in John 2 simply states that these things were there. Our verse for today tells of Jesus making a whip of cords, but does not say that our Lord Jesus struck anyone with it. The whip certainly got the sheep and oxen moving though. He poured out the money and overturned tables, which sounds rather violent for this gentle teacher from Nazareth. A place of worship of His Father had become a place of merchandising, and it angered our Lord and Savior.

There may be a time or place for anger in our age as well, but prayer first!

Bucky

Reminded

Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said. John 2:22

At the time Jesus had said He would rebuild this temple in three days, the disciples no more believed Him than the Pharisees did. That just cannot be, we want to say. And yet here John admits years later that they needed a crucifixion, a resurrection, several appearances from Him, and finally a reminder in the outpouring of the Spirit of God before finally believing the word which Jesus had said. John only wrote of the resurrection in this verse, but with Jesus it all comes together like a package of heavenly blessings.

And by His Holy Spirit we are reminded (John 14:26).

Bucky

Taking Responsibility

So David said to Abiathar, “I knew that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul. I have caused the death of all the persons of your father’s house.  1 Samuel 22:22

David didn't literally kill anyone, Saul ordered it, Saul's guards refused to do it, and Doeg the Edomite carried out the order. And yet here is David taking responsibility for it. What was this terrible deed? The murder of priests of the Lord, the men and women of their city, and their children and infants, and their livestock. And David, anointed king but still serving Saul, takes responsibility for causing these deaths. What sort of faith does one need to have in the Lord our God to confess such a responsibility before Him? A man after God's own heart of course! 

May God lead us to take responsibility in faith,

Bucky

Has He Washed Your Feet?

Jesus answered and said to him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this.”  John 13:7

We may flatter ourselves to think that we know more than Peter did in this moment of scripture for today. However, that may not be the case for all of us, perhaps even none of us. There is in the verse a promise, "but you will know after this." If we can set aside what we think we know, then Jesus can teach us what we need to know. It may take a washing of the filthy parts for us to get to that point. It took three years and some days for the disciples to reach that point where Jesus washed their feet. What would be needed for the Savior to be able to wash their hearts? 

Glory to our Lord Jesus, and His washing of filthy hearts... and feet!

Bucky

A Different Third Day

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.  John 2:1

Of course it was on the third day! Here in our verse for today, we have a seemingly nothing verse on the surface - third day, wedding, mom was there. No big deal, right? Well, it wasn't just anyone's mother, it was Mary, mother of Jesus of Nazareth. The wedding at Cana may have gone down as a good time in the usual wedding way except for what follows soon after in the story. In fact it is this one little verse that sets the stage for the first miracle Jesus performed in His brief ministry. It was just such a miracle that allowed for the Pharisees to remain unbelieving by choice when they heard about it. For the servants who labored to fill the pots with water it was a time to testify of God's Son in action. For those who looked for the conquering Messiah, it was notice that they might want to look at the scriptures again. What sort of conqueror would stop to save his mother's friends from a little social humiliation? As we know, One who loved her and could make a little wine of course! 

No need too small for the coming King!

Bucky

The Word And The Tomb

For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Matthew 12:40

Why rise from the tomb, we may ask, would not resurrecting directly from the cross have answered the chief priests with their wagging tongues about coming down? Not after the Lord Jesus gave His word though, which we see in our verse for today. The word of our Lord and the tomb became linked right then, and the task of Joseph and Nicodemus, two secret followers of Jesus from the religious leaders, became critical to the resurrection. That body was going from the cross to the tomb, and our Lord Jesus would rise from there, just as He said.

And from the tomb Christ arose!

Bucky

Difficult Waiting

Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.”
They said to him, “We are going with you also.” 
They went out and immediately got into the boat,
and that night they caught nothing.
  -- John 21:3

The risen Lord Jesus had told His disciples to go up to Galilee and wait for Him there. By this time in the gospel accounts we have figured out that Peter is not much for waiting around. Reading the verse for today, we can infer that the disciples arrived in Galilee, waited, moved to the beach, waited some more, and finally Peter could no longer stand it. "I am going fishing," he says. And the other disciples join Peter since by now they too are in need of something to do. Where was Jesus? Oh, probably waiting for them to get in just the right place for His arrival.

While waiting may be difficult, perhaps it is time to go fishing.

Bucky

One Journey, One Lifetime

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.  John 14:6

Digging into the Greek in this favorite verse of many believers, I find that it could be stated as, "I am one journey...one lifetime." At this point in life, this is as comforting to me as the usual translation. So when the occasional nonsense comes up about time travel, then I know that with Jesus we only endure the one journey, and not several 'retries'. This boot camp to eternity will only be one lifetime and not several recycles. 

Recall the longest run you have completed, a marathon, half-marathon, or like me, quite a bit less, 5 or 6 miles. And it was a long time ago! Now imagine that someone came up beside you with most of that distance already run and offered you a restart, you know, go back and fix this thing or that way back near the beginning. You might consider the offer just a bit, but then you see the finish line. Nope and no way, ain't going back to the start now. That is how I feel about this life, my Lord Jesus and I have made it this far, let's just complete the journey. No more fantasies about going back to change those regrets, just walk with my Lord the rest of the way. 

Let us all finish the run with Jesus; one journey and one lifetime is just right. 

Bucky

Fast Cars or Slow Wagons?

The LORD is gracious and full of compassion,
Slow to anger and great in mercy.
  -- Psalm 145:8

When it comes to grace, mercy, and compassion from the Lord, we'll take the fast cars. However, for His anger we would rather have the slow wagons, preferably slow enough for us to get out of the way!

David wrote this psalm of praise to our Lord God from which our verse for today comes, and he would certainly be one to know about the slow wagon of the Lord's anger. David experienced both the fast delivery of the Lord's compassion and mercy, and from that one infamous trespass the slow arrival of the Lord's anger. So slow in arriving was the Lord's anger at one point, that David may have given in to thinking that the thing with Uriah and Bathsheba was no big deal to the Lord. But then Nathan the prophet arrived in David's court to tell the king a little story of a sheep.

Make no mistake, the slow anger of the Lord does not mean that He didn't see the sin. Take the fast car to forgiveness by way of repentance.

Bucky

What Is In Humans

But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.  John 2:24-25

A space alien dropping down to Earth might have some difficulty figuring us humans out. We help each other, we hurt each other; we give to each other and we take from each other. "What is in these humans that causes such opposite behaviors?" the alien wonders. The space alien connects to the Internet to do further research. Oh, no! 

Jesus in His time had knowledge of humans and what roils inside of us, and so He did not commit Himself as we read in our scripture today. Jesus knew those same humans who greeted Him with 'Hosanna!' on the ride into Jerusalem that day on a donkey's colt, would soon turn and shout, perhaps all the more loudly, for His crucifixion mere days later. 

You see that poor space alien might not be so flummoxed if one person hated while another loved, it is that one human can turn from hating to loving so quickly, or turn right around back the other way just as quickly. And all 8 billion or so of us have that same capability within us. 

Jesus has us figured out, while all us haters/lovers, givers/takers, makers/breakers, snakes and arrows (Oh my!) are still trying to figure ourselves out. I mean, snakes and arrows, where does that even come from?

Bucky

Many Have Followed

I made my works great, I built myself houses, and planted myself vineyards.  Ecclesiastes 2:4

Solomon tells the story of his great experiment; and in it he describes what many of us have followed. Our verse for today is but one small part of what Solomon did, but we recognize a life we dream of in our fantasies. Or, at least that is what the world tells us we are to seek in this life.  Between Solomon's writing and our own experiences, we have come to a similar conclusion. No? Some of us still want to pursue money and stuff? While Solomon did have a lot more to work with than you and I, we should still gain the same answer.

Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done
And on the labor in which I had toiled;
And indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind.
There was no profit under the sun.  
  -- Ecclesiastes 2:11

In place of worrying over 'great', let us look to grateful for the bounty of the Lord!

Bucky

Well, There's This

The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. Romans 8:16,17

A sin from the distant past came to mind this morning, and I regret it and hate it. But, the fact remains that I did it. Sometimes in a book or movie there is this fantasy of going back in time to change a romantic mistake. However, for many of us convicted of the Spirit, we might rather go back to eliminate those sins that cause us the pain of regret. What if that were to be made available though? Without the pain of regret, would that person then think of himself as a pretty good dude without need for the salvation of the Lord Jesus? Praise God that temptation is not available, instead we have this from Paul in our scripture for today.

The verses tell of great things for the undeserving. And Paul in other verses reminds us of how undeserving he was in his prior deeds and career as a persecutor of Christ Himself. It is amazing to me that these things are not reserved for those who have led a perfect life - no regrets! But that would leave Jesus alone among those who have lived, and He did not die to save Himself. Instead we have an adoption by the Father of those who are least deserving to be called children and heirs. We have salvation in Christ by faith, and not of those works which often show up in regrets.

So, there's that in the love of Christ our Lord,

Bucky

Every Pure Word

Every word of God is pure;
​​He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him.
  -- Proverbs 30:5

Our words can be a mess. We argue over what the author meant, or what the politician tried to say. We are victims of deception and tellers of the truth by words. By slang usage we even make words mean the opposite of their dictionary definitions. And then we add in homonyms, antonyms, and synonyms, oh my! But, every word of God is pure. What a relief! Which means...yes, we can take the second part of our verse for today just as it says, every pure word of it.

Put your trust in the Lord our God,

Bucky

Coming Quickly

He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly.” Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!  Revelation 22:20

These things sure take a long time... well, that was quick! While no one I think expected a pope to be elected on the first vote, it sure seemed to come about quickly on the second day. Of course, I wasn't waiting out there in the square of St. Peter's as the sun warmed my head. Many things appear to take quite a long time, until they happen and it suddenly seems so swift. Jesus told us much the same thing about His return all the way to the last verse of the New Testament, when He promises, "Surely I am coming quickly." The appearing of our Savior will seem long delayed until it suddenly doesn't. 

Look up! For your redemption draws near.

Bucky

Probably Not E-mouse

Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem.  Luke 24:13

Those familiar with the resurrection story in Luke or Mark will find this little village mentioned, Emmaus. In the day of our risen Lord Jesus this was most of a day's journey away from the big city. Why these two who were disciples, but not of the eleven, were traveling to this place called Emmaus is not written for us. The town according to the study guide is pronounced eh-mah-oos, probably not E-mouse, which is a bit of shame to an odd duck like me. Emmaus does not appear to have any significance in scripture other than to set up this fun story of two disciples who wonder that Jesus must be the only stranger in Jerusalem to not know of the things which have happened there. (Jesus, not know? Their conclusion boggles the mind!) It is the next story after Mary Magdalene, and then Peter and John at the tomb, when Jesus enters into what seems to be a period of fun where He pops into locked door meetings and vanishes from sight in front of these two traveling disciples. The fun has a serious purpose of course as our Lord is on a mission to break into hardened hearts and open blinded eyes...of His disciples no less! 

Pope watch: No joy yesterday, and no white smoke in the first half of today. They will have three or perhaps four votes today if a pope is not selected. 

Love in Christ,

Bucky

The Secret Chamber

Now the temple was full of men and women. All the lords of the Philistines were there—about three thousand men and women on the roof watching while Samson performed.  Judges 16:27

The big conclave begins today and many of us will be tuning in to the Vatican Live channel to watch. Nope, we know by now that it doesn't work that way. It is quite the opposite of the spectacle in our verse for today. 

In the age where it seems all meetings are available to watch on the Internet, this is one of those meetings that puts the 'almost' brakes on, as in almost every meeting can be watched. The word heard most lately has been conclave, which comes from the Latin for 'room that can be locked'. The cardinals electing the next pope, if there is one, will be locked in or the world locked out, depending on a person's point of view. The cardinals are even sequestered in Vatican accommodations and fed in a common dining room, no ordering Italian pizzas I guess. The first vote takes place on Day 1, but no one expects the next Pope to receive the 66% majority required on the first vote. 

For some reason, I have been fascinated with the process of the conclave this time around. I even watched the movie. The movie was dramatized of course, you might even say Hollywood-ized. There was an air of dramatic mystery around the Pope's passing and final meeting; a front-runner cardinal was found out to have benefitted from the passing and may have been demoted. Another couple of cardinals wanted the position, and so on up to the dramatic speech from the underdog, who, it seems... I'll not spoil the surprise. I watched a YouTube video by a priest who interviewed a cardinal from the last conclave, and the word on the movie was - very entertaining, but no, not at all. There is apparently no politicking involved, but lots of prayer, reflection, and above all listening for the voice of the Spirit of God. No one 'runs' for Pope, the one elected agrees to serve. 

It is almost hard to believe that such a meeting could happen in our world today. But there it is! 

And as always, you or I may not be Catholic in denomination, but we are part of Christ's church and we can pray. 

Bucky

The Big Conclave

A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach... 1 Timothy 3:2

The papal conclave begins this week, and from this list I can see that I am not well-qualified. I guess that not one of the cardinals even knows my name in any case. However, as the pope is an important position in the world, we can and will pray for God's will to be done in the selection. Even if God were to not want anyone in that position? Hmm, I'll guess again that won't be one of the considerations. Don't blame the cardinals though, about every nation, kingdom, tribe and tongue seems to like those pyramidal org charts with one person placed at the top.

And so we pray,

Bucky

Another Annual Er-day

For of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. John 1:16

Another year has passed and I celebrate another Er-day, as in the one day each year wherein I must confess to being old-er, close-er to the grave, weak-er in body, and feebl-er in mind. Fortunately for me, while I may be slow-er in memory recall, I can rejoice in the Lord's Christ and His fullness, of which I have received. And also His grace for the grace I need to be with Him. Being old-er, I also stand less chance of admonishment for a bunch of dumb-er jokes about words with 'er' in them.

Have a bright-er Er-day in Christ our Lord!

Bucky

Yesterday? Oh, I proved my feebl-er mind by fooling around with my keyboard configuration until I couldn't type. As you can see, I got it fixed last night.

A Quiet Morning In The City

And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me."  Acts 1:4

We can imagine ourselves there in Jerusalem on a quiet morning a couple of weeks after the man from Nazareth had been put to death. Those who did not want to believe the stories of the resurrection had the bought and paid for testimony of the soldiers; while those who believed were lying low even as they, strangely, refused to recant their testimony of the Son of God. And yet those reports of the living and risen Jesus kept rising up each day for forty days. It seemed that every time people got together somewhere, someone else had seen this man alive again! And those disciples of His were known by all to still be there in that upper room in Jerusalem. What were they waiting for? 

From the reading in the Acts of the Apostles, we know that the day would come when those disciples of Jesus would suddenly become lions of the Word, in quite a few languages at that. No more would they lie low in that upper room waiting, but ventured forth in an explosion of evangelical preaching such as the world had not seen before. It was a startling start of a new church! 

Loving one another we go on in Christ,

Bucky

A Practicing Plinth

And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues. 1 Corinthians 12:28

At the base of the column that everyone sees lies the humble plinth. People will generally notice the plinth only when stubbing a toe on its corner. Then derogatory terms are heaped on its already humble name. That is if the stumbling stubber knows its name at all. I like plinths, they labor quietly while the column gets the glory. As one person can be heard by many through the audio/visual media of our world, most of us will enter into the kingdom of Heaven by way of less noticed positions. Using Paul's list from our verse today, one apostle might need a great many 'helps' or helpers. While the apostle's name scrolls across the TV screen, the helpers may not even get a credit at the end. That's okay, the greatest of servants did not come for His own glory.

God's grace and mercy to you,

Bucky

One Active Dead Fellow

Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 1 Corinthians 15:6

He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. Acts 1:3

So, according to the Bible there was this period of forty days when a man raised from the dead appeared to more than 500 people. Paul tells us the numbers while Luke wrote in the Acts of the time period. That's a serious crowd and one active dead fellow! Of course, raised to life again, the resurrection, means that He was not dead, but alive. And just to take the tale a bit further out there, it was an angel who asked, "Why do you seek the living among the dead?" (Luke 24:5). And it is this story from the Bible that causes many to refuse to believe. So... the part they have the most difficulty with is not so much about faith, but about believing eye witness testimony? It does seem to all come in a package: if one believes in Jesus first, then one believes all the testimonies too. If another one believes all the witnesses first, then it follows that the one will also next believe in the One they bear witness of, Jesus the Christ.

And we pray for those who choose to believe neither of them!

Bucky

We Are But Sheep

Then Jesus said to them, “All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written:

‘I will strike the Shepherd,
And the sheep of the flock will be scattered.'
    --Matthew 26:31

Attacking the sheep has been popular among the principalities, powers, and rulers of the darkness of this age for a long time. We should expect no different in our time. Not only are we easy to strike, but we tend to go astray with but a slight puff of evil winds. As sheep we are afraid, weak, focused on feeding ourselves, and not always aware of the danger lurking nearby. We also have a Shepherd, and one who has been struck once. 

On the night of our Lord's arrest, His disciples were scattered like the sheep they were. The sheep still tend to scatter and be scattered, but the Shepherd will not be struck again. As the hymn goes, 'He is risen from the dead and He is Lord!' We look to the Lord Jesus our Shepherd to return us to His green pastures. And to those who would scatter us to be devoured we say, "Have you met my Shepherd?" 

Better than a stout big brother, the Lord Jesus our Shepherd!

Bucky

Running To Safe Ground

There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him.  John 12:2

A supper, or dinner for some, and Martha the servant does her thing. But this is some supper, for the man, Lazarus, had been dead for four days, buried in the family crypt, and is here alive to eat, drink, and tell us of life after the grave? Except that Lazarus is not the biggest elephant sitting down to this meal. Jesus, the one who raised Lazarus from the dead, is there with them. So, who do you really want to talk to and ask questions of?

Quite a few people would answer, "Martha!" Why? That is safe ground. No rising dead people involved, just serving a meal to some guests who dropped by.  Safe ground and safe, denying, explanations for things that shake the ground under our feet is the desire of many. Otherwise they must face a man dead for four days and raised to life again. Does Lazarus have to die again after that? What if he doesn't behave  himself according to the Law during that extra time he got? And what happened to the guy who had the power to raise a dead man to life again? Jesus and Lazarus raise questions of an uncanny nature, and for some it's just safe to go back to Martha serving an evening meal. 

Martha would of course point us back to Jesus, the One who is the Life and the Resurrection!

Bucky

Expectations

But they found the stone rolled away from the tomb. Luke 24:2

Those disciple men may have been slow to get going, but the women got up at the dawn burdened under a certain expectation. This is not surprising given the usual progression of death - funeral, burial, spice 'em up a bit for the smell, and eventually we move on from the dearly departed - had gone on since they were little girls. Then someone went and moved the body, and they were perplexed. And then that unexpected question came, "Why do you seek the living among the dead?" How does one answer a question like that?

It is at times like this that an old expectation meets the new wineskin of Jesus with a sort of wet splat. When the women ran to tell the disciples, they too would have one of those I'm-missing-something feelings. It was a strange morning all around, except that Jesus had told them repeatedly what was going to happen with Him. But that old what-we-think-we-know monster had them firmly in its jaws.

Have a great Easter week! Our condolences go out to our Catholic brothers and sisters on the passing of Pope Francis,

Bucky

Directionless Intention

And He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.
Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath.” Mark 2:27-28

A set of shelves needed to be moved from the garage, and as I finished disassembling them and stacked the pieces (after vacuuming off the creepy tenants that had survived our mild winter), I realized that I had an intention to move the shelves but no real direction. Shelves invite stacks of stuff, and I don't want more in my basement this year as one of my goals remains to simplify, simplify, and simplify. That is not redundant as this simplification involves garage, main floor, and basement. The goal must be broken up into three parts as I have through no fault of my own entered the first floor of that building known as Old. This lack of direction brought to mind the disciples again on this day.

In their time this week, this day would be the Sabbath after Jesus died on the cross and was buried by Joseph and Nicodemus. The disciples had made their way back to the upper room and probably barred the door and stationed their more capable members to stand guard. Not that any of them were old and weak like me, they having just followed their rabbi in a tramp of some three years over Galilee, Syria, Judea, and parts of Samaria. However, on this day they had no direction. The women were preparing spices and fragrant oils for the body of Jesus, but these eleven capable men were not sure what to do after the Sabbath. How can we know this? Well, the next morning it was the women who got things going by taking their grave mixture to an empty tomb. The Bible does not say it, but we would not be surprised if the Mary's did try to get some of the men to go with them. 

A bit chilly here this morning, I hope your Easter warms up!

Bucky