March 14, 2025

Job 12: 11 “Does not the ear test words as the tongue tastes food?” (NIV)

If a man is not to judge at all, how shall he know which teachers to follow and which to reject? If a man is not to judge at all, how will he discern what is truth and what is a lie?*

When I renewed my membership in Weight Watchers, it reminded me of a sad fact about food: the food that tastes the best is not usually the food that is best for us. So while my tongue has – shall we say – discriminating taste, it is not the best judge of what I should be eating. Likewise, our ears hear sounds that our brain translates into words but our ears aren’t very reliable in helping us to discern truth. Our tongues may be able to distinguish between fresh food and food that has passed its sell by date; and our ears may be able to pick up on the insincerity of another’s words, but decisions about wholesome food and the truth of words require input from other sources.

But perhaps ears and tongues weren’t Job’s point at all. What those body parts have in common is their ability to make judgments. For some, being called “judgmental” is like a curse. But the truth is, we are all judgmental in some way or another. We have to be. How else will we know what tastes good, where it is safe to go, who we should associate with? Every decision we make is preceded by a judgment call. A fine tuned sense of discernment is crucial for the Christian as we distinguish between truth and false doctrine; good and evil; God’s will and selfish desire.

We may think we shouldn’t make judgments about other people but Jesus said otherwise. He warned us that judging others was dangerous; that we would be judged by whatever measure we used on others (Matthew 7: 1 and 2). But he also went on to say that we shouldn’t give what is sacred to dogs or throw pearls to the pigs (Matthew 7: 6); to watch for false prophets (Matthew 7: 15); and that we will recognize people by their fruits (Matthew 7: 20). You can’t do all that without being judgmental!

Yes, Job. We use our senses to determine what tastes good, or what others are saying, but precise discernment comes from knowing the truth. Jesus, of course, is the Truth who has shown us by what measure we should judge others. 

God never gives us discernment that we may criticize, but that we may intercede.*

March 13, 2025

Ezra 3: 3 Despite their fear of the peoples around them, they built the altar on its foundation and sacrificed burnt offerings on it to the Lord, both the morning and evening sacrifices. (NIV)

Safety is not the absence of danger but the presence of the Lord.*

Imagine living on a piece of property that has been in your family for 50 years. You may not know the history of how your family came to own the property but it’s the only home you’ve ever had. Now picture a horde of refugees showing up there, claiming it as their homeland and beginning a huge construction project on it. How happy would you be about your new neighbors?

For 50 years, the nation of Israel had been exiles in Babylon. When the Babylonian empire was conquered by the Persians, their king let the Israelites go “home.” After half a century, how many of the original captives were still alive? Of those, how many were healthy enough to make the trip and then to participate in rebuilding the ruins of Jerusalem?

So, now we have settlers who believe they are entitled to the property and invaders who claim it as their God-given homeland, even though they had never set foot on it in their lives. It most certainly was a recipe for conflict in the neighborhood. Nevertheless, the newcomers had arrived with authorization from King Cyrus and the blessing of God, so in their first act of defiance against their neighbors, they built the altar on the original foundation in the temple ruins. As one commentator has suggested, perhaps they couldn’t feel confident of God’s divine protection until their offerings went up. “Near the altar they were strong,” the writer says.*

The Israelites’ combination of courage and prudence is an example for Christians today. Around the world, corporate worship of God is risky business. Even in this country, we fear that the inconveniences of our politically correct and litigious society are the first wave of attack on our freedom of religion. More and more, we find that we obey God despite our fear of the people around us. In times like these, we must stay “near the altar” where we will be strong and confident of God’s divine protection.

When we live in fear we are forgetting who we are.*

March 12, 2025

II Kings 6: 16, 17 “Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” And Elisha prayed, “O Lord, open his eyes so he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” (NIV)

We have an army of help just beyond the realm of our senses.*

As the movie, Quigley Down Under, draws to a close, we are certain that our hero is done for. He has been dragged behind a horse by one of the minions of the villainous rancher, Marsden; and a raggedy band of Redcoats has come to arrest him. A pause in the action becomes ominous as the wind picks up and stirs the dust in the Australian Outback, accompanied by some appropriately moody background music. Slowly everyone begins to look up and all around them as the camera pans to the hills surrounding the ranch where hundreds of Aborigines have gathered to come to the aid of Quigley, the man who was hired to exterminate them but who became their champion when he realized Marsden’s nefarious plan.

I can visualize the reaction of Elisha’s servant when the Lord opened his eyes. Like Quigley, he thought all was lost, until he looked up and saw that he was surrounded by an army more formidable than that of the enemy. Unlike Quigley’s adversaries, the Arameans were blind to their peril and were easily led to their defeat.

Elisha’s declaration that “those who are with us are more than those who are with them” doesn’t just apply to the Israelite army on that day. It is a promise that any follower of Jesus can claim. We may not be able to see our source of help with our eyes, but sometimes we only have to look up from our despair to see that we are surrounded by an army that stands ready to come to our defense. Our army of help is spiritual but it can take on human form. In the community of believers, prayer warriors can marshal the unlimited power of the Holy Spirit on our behalf. Brothers and sisters are eager to live their love for God by loving those who are in need.

Quigley’s deliverers would have still been there for him even if he had not looked up and seen them. But he would have missed out on the hope that came from knowing they were there. Don’t deprive yourself of that hope in your life. Look up and see. Let God show you why you have no reason to fear.

Jesus did not try to do it by himself. Why should you?*

March 11, 2025

Exodus 14: 14 “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” (NIV)

God does not open paths for us before we come to them, or provide help before help is needed. He does not remove obstacles out of our way before we reach them. Yet when we are at our point of need, God’s hand is outstretched.*

In this verse we read Moses’ words to the Israelite people as they are being pursued by Pharaoh’s army. They are - not surprisingly - terrified by the sight of the Egyptians’ horses, chariots, horsemen, and troops advancing on their vulnerable position by the Red Sea. Was Moses being ironic when he told them to be still? They had nowhere to go! And was his irony double-edged, followed as it was by God’s next words? “Tell the Israelites to move on.”

I don’t think Moses meant, “Don’t move.” I think he was urging the people to be still in their thoughts; to adopt an attitude of waiting for God’s instruction. How are we to hear the still, small voice of God if we are running around in panic? The Lord will fight for you if you will just wait. He will come through for you – in the nick of time and in amazing fashion! Could any of the Israelites have imagined what form God’s deliverance would take? When Pharaoh’s army is upon you, and the Red Sea is behind you, what else can you do besides be still?

God will never arrive too late nor with too little for our needs.*

March 10, 2025

Genesis 6: 5, 6 The Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. (NIV)

“I wouldn’t go around preaching it. But don’t you think there’s more evidence, sometimes, of evil everywhere, than of goodness?”*

Satan is famous for being a deceiver, a tempter, and a shrewd manipulator. He is so twisted and full of hate that when God condemned him to hell, he made it his mission to take all mankind with him. We look at the world around us and we see evidence of his success. The world is as evil today as it was in the days before God decided to destroy mankind with a world-wide flood. The thing is, based on this passage, God doesn’t seem to blame Satan. Men and women were responsible for their own wickedness and evil inclinations.

Don’t get me wrong. I believe that Satan is the source of all evil in the world – but he doesn’t force us to make sinful choices. He has put temptations in place; he knows our weaknesses; he is diligent in exploiting our weaknesses. But there seems to be a point at which Satan can leave a person to his own devices. There is no purpose in tempting someone who is already full of hateful intentions. Those parents who do horrific things to their children; those terrorists who blow up churches; that dictator who tortures Christians – Satan didn’t tempt them to perform their atrocities. They were already drowning in their own evil natures. No. Satan isn’t concerned about them. They are already on the road to hell.

From tempting Jesus in the desert to enticing you with your favorite vice, Satan has his hands full with the good people – and the marginally good people. He is victorious if he can cause a Christian to give in to the temptation to sin, but he does his best work when he can get an individual to believe a lie. Believers of false doctrine are just as lost as the remorseless serial killer.

I would never purposely mislead my readers, but if you don’t check my words against scripture, Satan has two potential victims – me, for perpetrating false teaching; and you, for believing it. We have a responsibility to seek the truth for ourselves. We are blessed to have God’s word so readily available to us and we have no excuse if we neglect to search out its truths. The Holy Spirit’s power is activated when we open our Bibles. Satan has no defense against us then.

We blame things on the devil that are actually the result of our own undisciplined natures.*

March 9, 2025

James 5: 13 Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. (NIV)

Worship is the truest and best expression of both sorrow and joy.*

If someone had asked the Apostle Paul what to do if he was in trouble, Paul might have replied, “I thank God for you. I have heard of your troubles and my heart is sad for you. When your heart is troubled, you should pray.” James, on the other hand, just barely says more than, “Duh! Pray.” Paul did a lot of his writing from prison so perhaps he had time to be wordier. James, on the other hand, did not have Paul’s education or the time to be subtle. As someone said of him, “He was a simple, homespun preacher, perturbed at people who were not living right.”*

James’ advice to the troubled is pretty much the same as he offers to the happy: worship. For the non-Christian, life’s problems prompt negative responses. Depression. Blame. Retaliation.  A non-believer’s expression of happiness may resemble that of a Christian’s, but it is a shallow sort of celebration when you have no one to whom to direct your joy. Meanwhile, we Christians can become arrogant when we fail to acknowledge God as the source of our happiness.

Because James is succinct in his advice, we might miss the subtext. The first is that praying in times of trouble is the appropriate response, not a solution. Your troubles may or may not go away - God may have a purpose for them. The second subtext is personal responsibility. The appropriate response to trouble or happiness requires us to be proactive – to take the initiative. James reminds us that prayer and praise don't always occur spontaneously, arising out of our feelings. We must be intentional. 

In good times and bad, God wants us to turn to him in worship. He is worthy of our praise and his Spirit is our Comforter. He multiplies our joy and divides our sorrow when we bring them to him.

May praise and worship of You be my first response to every circumstance.*

March 8, 2025

Matthew 5: 21, 22 “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.” (NIV)

Jesus revealed the true intent of the Old Testament law, rather than its legalistic interpretations.*

In a court of law, a person cannot be convicted of a crime he thought about. He can’t even be held responsible for one that he planned and dreamed about. Until he commits the crime, he is not guilty under the law. The same was true under the law of the Old Testament. Through the Law, God provided a code of conduct for the Israelite nation and included appropriate punishment and penalties for violations. The Law made no provision for inappropriate thoughts, but it clearly revealed God’s feelings about how people should treat each other. Anyone who was paying attention should have realized that merely being a law-abiding citizen was not all it took to please God.

When I worked in elections, I often found myself in the position of weighing what the law said against the law’s intent. The purpose of every election law on the books boiled down to: ensuring the voters’ rights; protecting the privacy of each person’s ballot; and making sure each vote was counted as the voter intended. I recall several occasions when strict adherence to the letter of the law conflicted with our ability to comply with the intent of the law. When deciding how to proceed, I would ask myself: If I had to explain myself to a judge, which position would I rather defend?

There is no doubt that society is protected and improved by unambiguous and enforceable laws, but Jesus presents a radical new perspective on the Law: God’s intent. The Law serves not as a mere civil function but as a personal (spiritual) one. God doesn’t want us to murder each other because he wants us to love each other. 

If you had to explain yourself in God’s courtroom, would, “I didn’t kill him,” be an acceptable defense if you also didn’t love the person?

The Christian should regard obedience, not as an onerous chore, but as an evidence of Christ’s nature within him.*