“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal live, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.”

We all know that life can throw many difficult events and situations at us. Sometime one might even fear that it is too much, that one might get swept away by the tidal wave of trouble and trials. But Jesus promises that no matter what, no one or nothing can snatch us out of his hand. The Greek word that is translated as “snatch” can also mean “take by force”. Jesus is saying that no one and no thing is powerful enough to grab us and take us by force out of his Kingdom and his protection. In days that can be uncertain and challenging, this is a great comfort.

{Note: Yes, I am back to writing after a bit of a break.]


“All I have is yours, and you have is mine, and glory has come to me through them.”

Today’s profound chapter of John 17 has long been a “pillar” in my spiritual walk. Many sermons and even books could be written on it. What struck me in this reading were Jesus words, “and I am glorified in them.” Jesus claims that his disciples – an inconsistent motley band of nobodies that followed him around Israel – bring glory to him. How can Jesus be glorified by this?! After all these same disciples were going to abandon him and even deny him in the next 24 hours making Jesus’ claim look foolish.

Today it is not so hard to believe that his disciples glorified Jesus. After Pentecost they changed the world. But it is hard to believe that these words also apply to us. Can we really bring glory to the co-creator of the universe and the Savior of the world? How? We just so often struggle to get through situations in daily life; how can we be so special as to bring glory to the Lord?! Yet, Jesus takes us where we are just like he did with the disciples. And when we are willing to follow him, albeit imperfectly, as impossible as it is to believe, we do bring glory to Jesus. What an amazing thing.

\"But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built! Yet give attention to your servant\'s prayer and his plea for mercy, O LORD my God.”

In ancient times magnificent buildings were built for the God / gods of one’s nation. No expense or effort was spared. One such incredible structure was the temple that Solomon built in Jerusalem. Splendid materials were imported and the best craftsmen employed. The amount of gold and silver used was staggering. When the temple was finished, many probably thought, “What a wonderful temple. Surely this is a worthy house for our God.” But Solomon rightly saw that the temple could not begin to contain God – to be his true home. So at the prayer at the dedication of the temple, instead of acting like he had done God a favor by building this magnificent temple, he humbly asked that God would be willing to listen when he and the people of Israel prayed.

While Solomon certainly had his faults, the attitude that he displays here is instructive for today. The attitude of the modern western culture often seems to be that we are doing God a favor if we pay attention to him -- that we are doing God a favor if we give some money to charity or a church or if we give some of our valuable time to go to a worship service or similar. The attitude seems to be that God should be happy if we find some time to fit him into our busy schedules.

Whenever such an attitude starts to creep into our thinking, we should remember this prayer by Solomon. Even after spending a literal fortune on building the temple, he realized that God did not owe him any favors. Yes, God blessed Solomon greatly, but that was out of his grace and not because Solomon build a nice temple. Neither Solomon nor we can buy God’s favor. Instead we can only worship him for who he is and come into his presence in humility.

“One who is faithful in very little is also faithful in much, and the one who is dishonest is a very little is also dishonest in much. If then you have not been faithful in deceitful wealth, who will entrust you with true riches?”

This verse is at the end a difficult parable. This parable of Jesus is hard to understand. But the concluding verse drives home the lesson. Several things.

1. It is note worthy that Jesus says that wealth / money is a very little thing. The world says that money is one of the most valuable things one can get. Yet Jesus says that it does not compare to true riches.

2. How we handle money reflects our priorities. In verse 9 Jesus is teaching that we should use worldly wealth to bring people into the kingdom of God. Sure, we need money for food, clothing, and shelter, but we should always think about how we can use what God has given us for bringing people into his kingdom. To only think about how we can spend it on ourselves is to be unfaithful in a little thing.

3. Being faithful in the little things is important. Often we think that being honest in little things is not a big deal as long as we are honest in the big things. But Jesus rightly points out that if a person is not faithful in the little things, that person cannot be trusted with big things because when a person is unfaithful in the little things, it leads to being unfaithful in bigger things. Take the famous Wall Street example of Bernie Madoff. I doubt if in the beginning he planned to misuse millions and billions of dollars. When he first borrowed from an account, it was a small amount and he probably intended to repay. But one action led to another and eventually the whole thing came crashing down. Now, even if Mr. Madoff were not in jail, no one would trust him with their money.

Therefore, let us be faithful in all things in life: money, use of time, talents, or resources, and to do so in the little things as well as the big things.

"See how the siege ramps are built up to take the city. Because of the sword, famine and plague, the city will be handed over to the Babylonians who are attacking it. What you said has happened, as you now see. 25 And though the city will be handed over to the Babylonians, you, O Sovereign LORD, say to me, `Buy the field with silver and have the transaction witnessed.' "
Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: 27 "I am the LORD, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?’” (verses 24 – 27)

I know that I am strange, but I follow economic and international news more closely than I follow sports news. The big sports news last week was the New Orleans Saints upsetting the Colts in the Super Bowl. It was an exciting game and most people seemed to like the Saints victory, but the next day it was back to work as usual. The big financial news last week was the financial problems in Greece and how that might affect all of Europe – and therefore the USA. (Remember the collapse of Lehman Brothers?)

While watching the Super Bowl is fun, if our team loses it does not make a big difference in our daily lives. We get up and go to work the next morning and talk about the game over coffee and lunch. But if the financial world goes through Lehman Brothers II, it is likely to affect us significantly. Just the possibility of Greece defaulting on its bonds put the whole financial world on edge. No one wants repeat of a year ago.* How should one live in the face of such a possibility? Live in fear? Hoard everything that one can?

In this light Jeremiah 32 really hit home to me. Things were totally falling apart in Israel – far, far worse than they are today. Israel was about to be conquered by Babylon. But God says to Jeremiah, “Go buy some land.” Jeremiah says, “WHAT?! That makes no sense at all” After all, why would someone spend scarce money for land that is about to be taken by an invading army anyway? That is like buying a house that an arsonist is about to burn down. But God is telling Jeremiah that he is still in control and that there is a future for Israel in spite of the situation, and that he is to keep on living his life in faith.

Our situation today is very different. This passage does not mean that we have to go out and buy a foreclosed house. But the lesson remains – God will never forsake his people or his Kingdom. Difficult times and even suffering might come because of the mistakes and sins of a nation, but in the midst of it God’s people must continue to live their lives in faith and look forward to God fulfilling his promises. For Jeremiah and Israel that meant that some day (after 70 years) God would bring the Jews back to the land of Canaan. For us it means that even if we get Lehman Brothers II or III or even IV, that God will still be faithful to us and his Kingdom will come. In the meantime we live our lives faithfully in all situations and not fear the future.

*Note: It now looks like some other countries are going to bail Greece out, so the immediate fears have diminished until the next issue flares up.

“And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord’s Spirit.” (ESV)

I puzzled over this verse a for long time yesterday. I find one of the benefits of using the devotional is that it usually assigns rather small portions of Scripture. I read the passage several times and think about each verse, particularly the verse(s) I chose as my verse for the day. Yesterday I chose two verses from the passage. First I chose the phrase, “For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life,” from verse 6, and I chose the verse above (verse 18). However, just because I chose a verse, that does not mean I understand it.

I understand the reference to the unveiled face as Paul explained that in detail in the preceding verses. But what did Paul mean by the next words? What was referring to in beholding the glory of the Lord? How does Paul expect Christians to behold the glory of the Lord? I mean, it is a great phrase, but specifically, how can I behold the glory of Christ each day?

Second, what does Paul mean when he says that we are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another? I certainly have a hard time picturing myself as being glorious. It is not an adjective I use to describe myself, nor does it usually pop into my mind when I meet people on the street. The words normal, average and mundane seem more fitting than “glorious”. I mean, when is the last time you said, “Isn’t he/she just glorious!”? True, the human body is an amazing thing. But so is the body of the pheasant that comes to my bird feeder, and in fact in my opinion the pheasant looks much more glorious with all of his splendid colors than I ever looked! Of course, Paul is not talking about outward looks.

So I took out the Greek for some help, but I found the Greek to be even more challenging than the English. In the original Paul uses the word for mirror, and the word “mirror” did not make it into the NIV, the TNIV or the ESV translations. If I understand it correctly, Paul is saying that now that the veil is lifted from our faces so that we can see clearly, we now behold “the Lord” as if we are seeing it in a mirror. This brings up another issue. Are we seeing Christ as if in a mirror through eyes of faith because he is not here to see directly, or are we seeing the Father being reflected through the mirror of Jesus Christ?

Maybe both are correct, but I am focusing on the first choice – that today we see Christ as if an imperfect mirror. (Note: The mirrors in Paul’s day did not reflect very clearly being made out of pieces of semi polished metal.) However, that image of Christ that we see, in spite of it not being direct and not being a perfect reflection, still has the power to transform us. That is, it has the power to change broken people, who are still in the image of God and therefore “glorious”, into a much closer reflection of the image of Christ. We are being transformed continually into the image of Christ when we continually look at him. And here is the key, in spite of all of my ramblings and struggles with this verse. The transforming process is a continuing one as we continually stare in the mirror. The more we stare in the mirror, the more we are transformed into the image of Christ by focusing on the reflection of Jesus Christ. There is nothing more glorious than that!

Verse 25 & 26 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters--yes, even his own life--he cannot be my disciple.

Verse 33 “In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.”


No, I did not forget to make a journal entry yesterday; I just did not know what to write. I still don’t. I don't want to water the passage down, but I don't want us to give up either. I thought about the passage a lot and did write some things down about it my personal journal – mostly my struggles with the passage. This is a very difficult passage. Like Mark Twain said, “It ain’t the parts of the Bible that I don’t understand that bother me; it’s the parts that I do understand.” Maybe he had Luke 9:33 in mind when he said that.

We can theologize away verse 26 when Jesus says, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters--yes, even his own life--he cannot be my disciple.” We know that Jesus did not mean that we should hate relatives as this goes against everything else taught in the Bible. Instead he was saying that our love for him and God’s Kingdom must be greater than our love for those closest to us and greater than our love for our own life.

Verse 26 is difficult enough is difficult enough. But when Jesus adds in verse 33 “any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple,” it makes me want to throw up my hands and say, “Then, Lord, who can be your disciple?!”

Honestly, I struggled with discouragement from this verse. After all, I struggle with giving up some pretty petty things for the sake of the kingdom – and I am sure that I am not alone. A verse like this makes me want to think in terms of two types of Christians; the 99% plus of ordinary Christians for us the masses and the less than 1% for those saints like Mother Teresa. Yet I do not find that kind of division in the Bible. Additionally Jesus clearly was not talking to just the 12 disciples or his closest followers here because verse 25 says “Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them…”

So, what do we do with this teaching of Jesus? Bluntly, most Christians ignore it. That is an understandable and tempting response. We cannot measure up anyway, so why try? But this obviously is not the response that Jesus desires. So what do we do with this teaching?

First, thankfully, we are saved by grace and not by works. This verse does not negate that fundamental truth.

Second, we must continually evaluate our lives. What things in it are hindering our relationship with God? What things in it our harming our commitment to God’s Kingdom?

Third, we must commit again day by day to make the Kingdom of God the most important thing in our lives. This will be a life long “work in process.” We must seek God’s help and strength in this because on our own, it is impossible. But with God all things are possible.

“As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’
Jesus replied, ‘Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.’”


This week is the week for disciples. Disciples are fanatical about something. They will pay a huge price and go to extreme measures for their cause. The cause in focus this week this week is the Super Bowl – and all of the “fan”atics will be out in force. (The word “fan” is simply the shortened form of the word “fanatic”.) Hundreds of thousands of people, if not more, surely claim to be fans / disciples of the New Orleans Saints or the Indianapolis Colts. Though is has not been that difficult to a disciple of the Colts through the years, the Saints are another matter. Having a very marginal history, they have never been to the Super Bowl, let alone won it. But suddenly throngs now claim to be their loyal fans. However, the true disciples of the Saints know that most of today’s “disciples” are simply caught up in the excitement of the moment. If New Orleans would fade back to its old ways, these new “disciples” would simply wander off.

Jesus encountered this phenomenon too. As he traveled, people reacted in many different ways to him. Some were angry with him because his new teachings; others wanted to hear what he had to say. Some came to see him out of curiosity; others ignored him. Some wanted him to leave their village; others begged him to stay and help. But some, like the person in Luke 9:57, were so caught up in the excitement of the moment, that they wanted to be his disciple. But talk is easy; living out one’s words through the ups and downs is another matter. Therefore, Jesus confronts the person with the reality of being a disciple of his: “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” And he apparently decided that it was too tough and went back to the comfort of his home.

Jesus still seeks disciples today. While we are not likely to be called leave our home, if we commit to being a disciple of Jesus, there will be things that we will need to leave behind. There will be uncertainties, maybe not of where one will sleep the next night, but the life of discipleship is a walk of faith, and not by sight. (II Corinthians 5:7) In the coming years many of the fanatics for the Colts and the Saints are likely to fade away as new teams rise to the top. May that never be true of us when it comes to the Kingdom of God.

“In the beginning, God…” “And God said, ‘Let there be…’”

A story: Some scientists were very proud of their incredible inventions. In fact they were so proud that they said to each other, “Even God would be impressed with this!”

At that moment a monk was walking by and heard their comment. He told the scientists to follow him and they could meet with God directly. In spite of their skepticism, they followed the monk to his little hut. To their astonishment, when they entered they heard a voice say, “Well, show me what you can do?”

The scientists were pleased and excited to show off their creative skills to God, so they quickly answer answered, “The first thing we need some are rare earth metals.”

“Well, go ahead and make some,” the voice answered – and the deflated scientists soon left the hut for home.

*********

Genesis 1 is such a familiar story that we fail to be astonished by it. However, outside of the story of God’s Son coming to earth to die for us, in my opinion Genesis 1 is the most amazing story in the Bible. Two phrases: The first one, “In the beginning, God…”

This alone is beyond my comprehension. So many in the Western world assume the existence of the universe to be just natural and question the existence of God. But for anything to exist, something must be self-existent and must have always existed with no beginning. Since I cannot comprehend anything being self-existent, I am amazed that anything exists at all. But something does exist and therefore something must be self-existent – either matter or God.

While I know this is much more philosophical, let me also say for me that fact that life exists proves that there is a God/god. My reasoning is that for life to exist, life must be self-existent. In other words, even without the Bible or any religion or theology, I have to believe in an ultimate self-existent life form (God) as I don’t believe that life could evolve from non-life. So I am astonished that there could even be an “in the beginning”.

Second, startling phrase is, “And God said, ‘Let there be…’” and whatever he said came to be. The most popular series of books in history is the Harry Potter series. Many people wish that they could have just a smidgen of the magical powers of Harry Potter. But even the most powerful magicians in the Harry Potter world, as Hermione is so wont to say, cannot produce food with the shake of their wand. But God just spoke and what never existed before suddenly exists. It is too bad that we are so familiar with this chapter that we forget to stand in awe of it.

Reflection on John 1:1 – 13 (Reading for January 25)

“In him was life, and that life was the light of all people.”

Life! Something that virtually everyone wants. Some of the early conquistadors explored the new world extensively searching in vain for the “Fountain of Youth”. Now we look to the medical field to prolong life as long as possible. Even when someone seems to go against this desire for living by ending their life, it is usually not a desire to end their life, but a giving up on finding the life that they had hoped to attain.

John writes: “In him (Christ) was life.” It is right there in front of us. Jesus wants to give us a full life. Ironically, so many people are afraid that following Jesus will take away their “life”. No fun, no opportunity. Only struggle and sacrifice. Please don’t misunderstand me; the Christian life is not a life of ease. There is struggle and sacrifice. But that does not take away life. All we have to do is to look at the current NFL playoffs to see that. The teams that are still competing have had months of struggle and sacrifice. Yet literally thousands of men would be happy to change places with any player in the upcoming Super Bowl.

So out of fear of losing life many look “for all of the wrong things in all of the wrong places.” The world around us seduces us. Yes, the creation is good. But as Paul writes in Romans 1, so often people worship the things that God created instead of the creator. End the end is the loss of life.

Another way that so many of us miss out on life is to live in the past or to live in the future. When we live in the past, we focus on our mistakes and have guilt and regret, or we over sentimentalize the past – “Oh, for the good old days” – and are discontented with the present. Or looking to the future we live in fear of what might happen – “Everything is falling apart!” – or in hope of something better – “When I get this or that, then I will have made it” – to the point that one is discontented with today. There is nothing wrong with planning and working for the future, but that is different that is different than living “in the future”.

I have made and continue to make all of these mistakes – and I doubt that I am alone in this. But all of these things rob us from experiencing the life that Christ wants to give us today. We can only live today. We cannot live yesterday again. We cannot live tomorrow today. We can only live today today. And if we are going to truly live today, we have to live it by walking with Christ each hour and each minute. “In his was life, and that life was the light of all people.”