'Look before you Leap". Matthew 14-22-33.

Text: For Moses wrote that if a person could be perfectly good and hold out against temptation all his life and never sin once, only then could he be pardoned and saved. But the "salvation" that comes through faith says, "you don't need to search the Heavens to find Christ.and bring him down to help you,' ' you don't need to go among the dead to bring Christ back to life again." For salvation comes from trusting Christ, which is what we preach,it is already within easy reach for each of us ; in fact, it is as near as our own hearts and mouths. For if you tell others with your own mouth that Jesus Christ is your Lord and believe in your own heart, that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in his heart that a man becomes right with God; and with his mouth, he tells others of his faith; confirming his "salvation." Through his "confession" is made unto salvation. 'Grace through faith in Christ". For the scriptures tells us that no one who believes in Christ will never be disappointed. How can anyone be saved unless they believe in him? Or never heard about him? How can you love him, If you don't know Him? We must step out and proclaim Him in this troubled world.
 Their are two paths to the Gospel text today.
" One in which we see Jesus as the stiller of the storm; as the one who brings peace to those who sail through life in the boat called the Church.
 "  Two" in which we see Jesus as the one who bestows power; to those who as a part of his church, are willing to take a chance. to leap.  We can leap Because we have a God who is sure to save. The way has been prepared. The invitation to God has been extended. Reach out, we need only to draw near him through our faith.
 Immediately he challenge the disciples get into the boat and go ahead to the other side while He dismissed the crowds. And after He had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray.  When evening came Jesus was there alone. But, by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from land, for the wind was against them. And early in the morning Jesus came walking toward them on the sea. But when the disciples saw him, they were terrified saying, "It is a "ghost!" and they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them. and said, " Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid. Peter answered him, " Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.
 Jesus said:  Come." So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and began sinking, he cried out, "Lord, save me." Jesus immediately reached out His hand and caught him, saying to him, " You of so little  faith, why did you doubt?" When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat, said    " Truly you are the Son of God." (Matt14:22-33).
 There is another side of a man's modern day story, who wanted to show his courage, after reading Peters story in Matthew's Gospel.    (14:22-33). Their was a young man who was as brash as Peter.
  This young man wanted to be a lion tamer. He read books on lion taming, He talked to lion tamers
every chance He got, He visited the Zoo to look at the lions. Then one night after the zoo closed, The young man with the lion tamer book in his hands, scaled the fence and landed in the lions den. Well, you know what happened. The next morning they found some bones, bits and  pieces of clothing, and a torn up book on lion taming. Jesus would have told him, what He probably told Peter, " Look before leap!






 

Prayer and Fasting Story of Judith.

 The figure of Judith- one of the heroines who saved her people- is not one with which we are very familiar; indeed, some churches no longer even print the book of Judith in their Bibles. But, the story was very popular around the time of Jesus, and part of the popularity was derived from the fact that it is a very good story. While the storyline is religious- how good Jews should behave- it tells the story with all the elements of a thriller movie with the women in the lead role. Looking at Judith in the story ( the plot is set in the sixth century BC., but the story was written sometime between 150 and 100 BC.), we see the ideal of religious behaviour regarding fasting and prayer. that would have been deep inside the religious culture of those who first followed Jesus. The story is set just after the exile and king Nebuchadnezzar- a proverbial bad-guy- has  sent his army led by "Holefernes-another bad guy- to destroy the people and carry away all that they have. Faced with all this calamity,the High Priest in Jerusalem orders prayer and fasting. Meanwhile in the enemy camp, Holofernes is told that, so long as Israel serves God, God will defend them- this is the basic covenant- and so if he marches against them, he will fail. (Judith 5. 20-21). But this does not scare him and he sets off with a massive army confident Israel will not be able to resist our mighty army. Holofernes  then decides that he will lay siege to the first of their towns, " Bethulia"  ( a fictional place chosen so that no town could claim Judith as one of its own, and hereby distract any attention from Jerusalem), and drive its inhabitants to surrender through hunger and thirst. Eventually, the people decide they have had enough. and say they want to give.: God has abandoned them and is punishing their sins. Uzziah their leader asks them to hold on for just five days more, because by that time the Lord our God will turn his mercy towards us again, for he will not forsake us utterly. Then enters Judith.
Judith was both rich and beautiful ( the story gives many details about her clothes and  ; all spoke well of her. and knew she 'feared' God with great devotion. Three years and four months earlier she had been widowed and from the death of her husband Manasseh she had dressed as a widow and  she spent the nights in prayer. and fasted all the days of her widowhood, except the day before the sabbath and the sabbath itself,  the day before the new moon., and the festivals and days of rejoicing of the house of Israel. When she heard what Uzziah had said she was furious: she saw it as putting God to the test with an ultimatum- save us in five days or we will give in.! She then gives out a key piece of teaching about prayer.
       " Do not try to bind the purposes of the Lord our God; For
         God is not like a human being, to be threatened
          Or like a mere mortal, to be won over by pleading
          Therefore, while we wait for his deliverance, let us call
          upon him to help us, and He will hear our voice, if it
          pleases him.                                                    (Judith 8:16-17 [nrsv]
She then tells the people that God would deliver Israel through her hand.: she will be the savior sent by God.  To prepare for the task she begins to pray at ' the very moment when the evening incense  was being offered in Jerusalem and pleads with God to hear her tears. Then she dresses up to entice men who might see her, leaves the city, an is apprehended by an enemy patrol. asked who she is she says that she is fleeing the Hebrews and wants to see Holofernes and give him information about his enemies . Amazed by her beauty the patrol brings her to his tent and she declares that she will tell him when the people have sinned and therefore the right time to attack. Holofernes decides to seduce her; she accepts his advances and drinks with him until he is drunk; then they go to bed and he sleeps. Then praying for strength, Judith decapitates him, places his head in a bag, and with her maid on the pretense of going out to pray- makes her getaway. You can guess the outcome; when the Israelites see Holofernes head on Bethulia's wall, his army is in despair, Israel is triumphant and Judith sings a great thanksgiving song in Jerusalem.  
                                                                                                                                                                                                       

God speaks to Elijah 1 Kings 19:7,11-13

 Then the angel of the Lord came again to Elijah and touched him and said eat some more, for their is a long journey ahead of you. So he got and ate and drank, and the food gave him enough strength to travel forty days and forty nights to Mount Horeb, the "Mountain of God", where he lived in a cave.
 What are you doing here Elijah?" He replied, " I have worked very hard for the Lord God of the heavens; but the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you and torn down your altars and killed your prophets, and only I am left; and now they are trying to kill me too."
  " Go out and stand on the mountain," the Lord told him. and as Elijah stood there the Lord passed by, and a mighty wind storm hit the mountain; it was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose.After the wind their was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. and after the  earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire, their was the sound of a gentle whisper.  When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his scarf and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. and a voice said, " Why are you here, Elijah?"
  In the Old Testament reading (1Kings) we are on Horeb, it is another name for Mt. Sinai. It's a sacred place, associated with Moses and the law. Remember the powerful displays of God with Moses? Now there is another great figure on the mountain and God is there to meet him. but, this is an encounter of another kind. Elijah is scared, running away from Ahab and Jezebel. He was rather spectacular  confronting hundreds of prophets of Baal in a test of their god against his. His God won. He was fiery prophet; Gods fiery tongue. He had in confrontation with the priests, confronted the nation's superstitions and false religious practices.
For his boldness he was under threat and was on the lamb, hiding from the pursuing forces. He is afraid and has fled to a cave on Horeb. God calls him out. But God is not in the terrible wind that crushes rocks. The prophet does not need that kind of God at this stage of his life! Nor is God in the earthquake, or lighting. Maybe the prophet would have been overwhelmed by all that. Instead,God
 is in the tiny whispering sound. In the quiet of the eye of the hurricane he was facing, Elijah heard the still voice of God at this stage of his life and that was enough for him to Go back to his prophetic task. A voice strong enough to strengthen frightened prophets comes in a whisper. God knows how and when to speak to us. And we need to hear this voice if we are to persevere in the prophetic tasks to which we have been called. We may have spoken out on our behalf of someone who is victimized at work or on the playground. We may be showing God' care for someone who is dependent on our being there for them. We may be teaching the young to be honest and fair in their dealings with all people. Whatever the prophetic witness, we all grow tired, doubtful, and, at times afraid. Here is a God who knows how to come and meet us and takeaway our weakness in our determination to serve God and God's people. Christ has spent a lot of time doing Good; but He prayed a lot. he had to get away for awhile. How do we hear this God of Elijah? Maybe in the midst of our own storms, but in disguises, in what appears to be so ordinary and commonplace.   At this time we discover our strength, when we take a moment of quiet time in our lives. We sense the presence  of the strong God of Horeb who has seen our need, and responded appropriately. Even though Christ had to get away for a while from all his hectic activity someone was waiting for him, and in this place of meeting he was renewed. He prays on mountains, out in the desert, on the other side of the lake as in the (Text: Matt.14: 22-33.) prayer at the important moments seem to have given him resolve and direction. We must find our own place to pray.  God may be waiting to enter our life in a whisper and, if so, we will have to listen intently to hear. Storms also come to good people, Struggles doing what we think God   wants us to do, are not a sign we are doing something wrong. Guided by the troubles  Elijah has gotten himself into, we might say, doing what God wants us to do will cause trouble. Then that is the time for "Good News", of Jesus to come to our aid in the midst of our crisis.








                                     

  

Baptism of Our Lord: Luke 3:15-17,21-22

Who knows your name? Who calls you by name? When we leave the security of our friends and family we often have to prove who we are. This is the case when staying in a hotel or boarding a plane.
 Isaiah reminds us that God is the one who calls us by name and claims us. In the gospel of Luke, Jesus is claimed as " Beloved son of God, before He has healed anyone or performed any miracles. This naming comes as a gift to Jesus. For us, too, before we do anything, before we can be faithful, God lays claim on our lives. In a world where no one knows your name, the church is the one place where everyone knows everyone's name, for we are all children of God, marked by the cross of Christ forever, even without a proper I.D. TO PROVE IT. But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: " fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. (Is. 43:1-7).
  TEXT:  The people were full of anticipation, wondering in their hearts whether John might be the Messiah. This popular conception concerning John the baptizer, closely resembles that in John (1, 20,25). "And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ).  And they asked him, and said unto him, Why are you baptizing then, if thou be not the Christ.Are you Elijah? I  am baptizing with water, but there is one who is mightier than I. I am not fit to loosen His sandal strap. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and in Fire. When all the people were baptized, and Jesus was at prayer, after likewise Jesus being Baptized, the skies opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in visible form like a dove. A voice from Heaven was heard to say:" You are my beloved Son. On you my favor rests. Remember, Luke traces the genealogy of Jesus to Adam in order to identify Jesus with all humanity, and Matthew (1-16) traces it to Abraham to identify Jesus with Israel.
 The Baptism of our Lord cannot help  but recall our own and all baptismal blessings. we recall and celebrate our adoption as daughters and sons, the Gift of the "Holy Spirit" and the promise of almighty God when we "pass through the waters"... the rivers... fire. On this day the heavens will open again, for this assembly, and we receive the gift of the beloved Son of God in bread and wine.
 The servant of the Lord is a person like Jonah.
 For many years this Pastor needed someone to Identify to sustain and inspire him. For many years he identified with a man by the name of Jonah. The word of the Lord came to Jonah and ask that He go to Nineveh, which was the capital of the Assyrian empire. He was to go and proclaim the word of the Lord at this place. Jonah went down to Joppa where he found a ship which was about to depart for Tarshish, which was located in the opposite direction. Out in the Mediterranean Sea a storm came upon them. The crew believed that someone was responsible for this tragedy. They cast lots and it fell upon Jonah. The sailors asked him, " who are you"? He replied, " I am a Hebrew and I Fear the Lord who created the heavens and the earth." Then the sailors asked a further question: " What shall we do with you?" Jonah suggested that they cast him into the sea.  This they did and the storm began to subside. A monster devoured Jonah and from its belly he cried unto the Lord, for he had been in the belly for three days,
He experienced deliverance when the monster spewed forth Jonah  at the place from which they had departed. The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time. ( You bet he listen). Jonah went to Nineveh and proclaimed the message about impending judgment. The King and people of
Nineveh covered themselves with with sackcloth and sat in ashes. God repented and the dramatic judgment did not take place. Jonah was disappointed, He did not like the people of Nineveh, He wanted them destroyed. He did his work, and now He was kicking against the purpose of God which expressed itself as "Grace rather than Judgment."
 In his despondency, Jonah sat near Nineveh  in a booth, and a plant grew up which shaded him. In this comfort, Jonah's spirits were revived. Then a worm destroyed the plant, and Jonah began to feel sorry for himself; he wanted to die. The Lord spoke this word of rebuke to him: " You feel sorry for the plant; ought not I the Lord, have have mercy on Nineveh."
Jonah had taught the word of the Lord correctly and it had worked. At the same time he grumbled and kicked against the purpose of God.  This was a contradiction in his existence, and this is why this "Pastor" found it easy to identify with Jonah. This pastor seek to do the Lord's work, and at the same time seek to rebel against him. In this gospel text, we meet John the Baptist, Jesus and the author Luke. John the Baptist was the last of the prophets. He stood at the end of one age and was involved in one kind of time. We might call it B.C. time, It is the kind of time which which began with Adam in his rebellion and is continued by this "Pastor" caught up in his rebellion. John the Baptist spoke to a man caught up in B.C. time This kind of time is still with us. We are all caught up in it. John sensed the mystery of the person in whose presence he stood. He went so far as to say he didn't feel worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. This means that he did not feel worthy to receive Jesus as his guest.
 John had a intuition  that this Jesus would initiate  a new kind of time called A.D. (year of our Lord).
Luke believed that something new was at hand in the person of Jesus and was breaking in upon them. Luke also believed that there was something ultimate about this new reality. John the Baptist expressed this conviction in terms of fire and winnowing fork. The farmers in Palestine would toss the broken strands of wheat in the air with his fork. The heavier grain would fall to the ground and the wind would blow the chaff to the edge of the threshing area. The chaff would be gathered and burned by fire. There is something about these expressions which suggests that our whole self must be involved with this new reality. Our Lord is the speaker in Luke 12:49 and 50 with the selection of these words: "I came to bring fire to the earth and how I wish it were already kindled." I have a baptism with which to be baptized, and what stress I am under until it is completed. Luke relates this new reality to a fire which is cast upon the earth and to the "Baptism of Jesus".Upon the end of the age.
 We might ask when and how did Jesus identify himself with his mission and his servant from Isaiah.
 At his baptism, there was a theophany ( divine revelation) and disclosure to the people who were struggling to understand what was happening. A dove descended from heaven as a sign and symbol of the Holy Spirit, and a voice was heard from heaven. The words of this voice are a quotation from the book of Isaiah (43:1-7). The Hebrew phrase in whom " my soul delights is translated in Greek by the words in whom " I am well please." This is my beloved Son is a quotation from "Psalm 2" and also reflects Isaiah, at the moment, the new and struggling community did not know what was happening. It was not until after the resurrection that the significance of these events became clear.
 At His baptism, our Lord identified himself with the servant people of God. Jesus believed that He must die now as this servant, to become part of this servant people. Because the Lord identified himself openly  and fully at His baptism, we can become part of the community which formed around the risen Lord. This  is confirmed from the book of (Acts 10). It is a portion of a  sermon which Peter spoke in the home of Cornelius at Caesarea. God's work in Christ began at His baptism. This is why our "Baptism" is so important. It is God's act of incorporation into into this new reality. It becomes the basis for the exhortation  which is abundant in the "New Testament." This exhortation which is rooted in the act of God. This act and new reality when we put on "Christ". The Lord wants your full commitment full time and will take nothing less!
  We began with Jonah. He was very human. He did the Lords work and at the same time kicked against God's purpose. The Lord never settled for this. He engaged Jonah in an endless struggle. This is what Christ's baptism did for him. Edmund Schlink in his book," the doctrine of Baptism, points out, that the Baptism of Jesus led to the cross and the resurrection. This is what your baptism is intended to do for you.  When God called you it was His act of incorporation into the new reality which has come upon us, in striving to become what we are already in Christ". But He will not let us remain as we are, like Jonah, we like to feel sorry for ourselves and have our own way. As we live out our baptism, we must die to self and be raised with "Christ" in newness of life. He did not let Jonah remain as he was.  He will not let us remain as we are.

A TRUE PROPHET AND HIS MESSAGE. Amos. 3:8

 Amos 3;8 says,  "The lion has roared, who will not fear? The Lord God hath spoken, who can prophesy?" As one walking in a jungle fears to hear the lion's roar, so much more should one fear the words of Almighty God spoken in judgment.  Lets see how the people were to identify, Gods spokesman or prophet? How was it possible for hearers to determine whether or not the one speaking was a true prophet.? The land was filled with false prophets and not all of them used various heathen methods of divination. Some would prophesy in the name of the Lord and claimed to have received His message through a dream or vision. However, The Lord provided several biblical tests for  validating the claims of a prophet.
 First, the prophet only spoke in the name of Yahweh. This is the validation used in Amos 3:8.
 Second, the prophet spoke only by revelation. If a prophet claims to speak on behalf of Yahweh, but  practiced sorcery or divination, he was rejected as false.
 Third, the true prophet of God could be identified by his personal testimony.
 His moral character was such that his life style marked him as a prophet of God. The false prophet was a mercenary who prophesied for money ( Micah 3; 5, 11).
 He was often a drunkard (Isa. 28:7). He could be profane and wicked (Jer. 23:11). He sometimes  conspired with others to deceive and defraud (Ezek 22:25). He often committed adultery, walked in lies, and supported evil-doers (Jer. 23:14). His overall lifestyle was one of immorality and misconduct (Jer 23;15). In addition, more than all else, he was a religious opportunist.
 Fourth, the true prophet was conscious of a definite call experience. We  will see that Amos recognized this in giving his personal testimony in 7:14-15.
 Fifth, his message was always in harmony with all previous revelation.
  Sixth, whatever the prophet prophesied, eventually came to pass. There would be a event in subsequent history that would confirm and authenticate the fact that he spoke for God.  
  We see Amos Judgment on Bethel, as he continued God's impending judgment on Israel by looking to the future through the Assyrian conquest. On that day, God said, (vs.7: 14-15). I will also visit ( or punish) the altars of Bethel.'  Bethel you recall was the sight of one of Jeroboam's golden calves. Is it not ironic that Bethel, which means " house of God" and which had such a sacred history in connection with the patriarchs, especially Jacob and his vision of the ladder, should have been a place defiled by sin of Jeroboam? God said, " The horns of the altar shall be cut off and fall to the ground. (3:14).  " I will smite the winter house with the summer house; and the houses of ivory shall perish, and the great houses shall have an end, saith the Lord." Their was at that time a indication of great misuse of prosperity of the time. Their is evidence from archaeology, of the opulent lifestyle during that time, by the discovery of wall panels inlaid with ivory. Many people had second home in the hills from which to escape the summer heat. Remember their was no middle class, and as a result the poor and the needy were crushed.  Now chapter 4, Amos addresses the overweight women of high society saying" Hear this word, ye kine (Cows) of Bashan, that are in the mountain of Samaria. " These women would recline on ivory beds, drinking wine and nagging their husbands for even more riches.
 What a picture we have here of the blatant social injustice being perpetrated  by the Israelites. There was the elitist group, the wealthy and powerful people; and the Lord swore in his holiness that, " the days will come upon you, that He will take you away with hooks and your posterity with fishhooks" This was a reference to the  Assyrian practice of putting hooks through the lips of their captives before leading them away. The next verse describes them being led out single file through a hole in the city wall. Historically, we know that this exactly what happened when the Assyrians invaded.
 Now with sarcasim, the Lord spoke through Amos:" Go ahead and do what you love to do, for the Lord knew Israel was not going to repent. Go to Bethel, where I learned to hate you. Go to Gilgal. Take your tithes and your thank offerings of leavened bread." Evil had completely permeated the nation of Israel,  Everything was leavened, and in Scripture leaven is always a symbol of evil (Matt. 16:6; 1 Cor. 5: 6-9). These things were what Israel loved to do, because they ritualized the outward show of worship, sacrifice, and the licentious activities  that went with the system. Personally, I praise God for the concept chastisement. If it was not for chastisement, we would not beware that we were beginning to stray away from the path God has planned for us (Eph. 2:10). The Old Testament  (Jesus Bible) is designed by God and presented to us in a manner we can understand, and it becomes for us the guide for faith and practice, As Paul says in Romans 15:4: "For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience  and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope; P.S. Most scholars don't believe Jesus read the New Testament!    
  

Ask anything in my Name. John 14: 23-29.

Yes, ask anything, using my name and I will do it! Because I will only reveal myself to those who love me and obey me. The Father will love them too, and we will come to them and live with them.
 Anyone who doesn't obey me doesn't love me. And remember, I am not making up this answer to your question! It is the answer given by my Father who sent me. I am telling you these things now while I am still with you. But, when the Father sends the comforter instead of me, and by the Comforter I mean the Holy Spirit- He will teach you much, as well as remind you of everything I myself have told you. He will teach you much, as well as remind you of everything I myself have told you. I am leaving you with a gift-peace of mind and heart!
And the peace I give isn't fragile like the peace the world gives. So don't be troubled and afraid.  Remember what I told you- I am going away, but I will come back to you again. If you love me, you will be very happy for me, for now I can go to the Father, who is greater than I am. I have told you these things before they happen so that when they do, you will believe in [me].
  Our text starts out with Jesus talking of returning to the Father. He promises to send the advocate;  the "Holy Spirit" who will teach Jesus followers and remind them of what Jesus taught. Even more, those in whom God makes a home with, will experience a peace that overcomes fear. Set your troubled hearts at rest, trust in God always. This is the traditional language of faith. It seemed strange that Jesus would show himself to the disciples, but not to the world. Based on their expectations of the Messiah, the world would need to see him. The disciples no doubt expected Jesus to establish an earthly kingdom.
 The  word, translated here as "teaching" a more encompassing term than " commands." This term is the name of Jesus in chapter one: (Logos) in the Greek which has a creative meaning to it.
                                      By the words of the Lord were the
                                      Heavens made; all of the host
                                      Of them by the breath of his mouth (Ps. 33:6).
But Jesus goes on, 'trust' also in me. Jesus himself is a decisive new factor in a man's faith in God. He effects one's belief  in life after death. In a sense, the, anyone who loves Jesus, will hold to Jesus, guarding and keeping him in our lives. We will keep Jesus' word, through which we know him. we will obey his teaching.
 When we love Jesus, the Father shows his merciful, caring love to us. And the Father and the and Son dwell at our sides. Where two or three are gathered in my name he is there with us ( Matt. I8:20).
  In contrast, those who do not love Jesus who do not keep his words and, by inference, do not have Jesus or the Father on their side. let not your hearts be troubled. You are trusting God, trust in me. There are many homes up there where my Father lives, In my Father's house are many mansions (Rooms): If it was not so, I would have told you, I go to prepare a place for you. and if I go and prepare a place for you, when your ready I will come again, and take you where I am, there you may be also. (Jn.14). Thomas said unto him, Lord, we know not where you go; how can we know the way? Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by me.  If you had known me, you should have known my Father also: From henceforth you know him and have seen him. Philip said unto him, Lord show us the Father, and it will satisfy us.
 Jesus says: Have I been so long a time with you, and yet have you not known me, Philip?  He that has seen me , has seen the Father, how say you then, show us the Father? Believe I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words I speak unto you I speak not of myself, but the Father that dwells within me, He does the work. (10:38-5:19; Deut. 18:18).Solidarity with Jesus is the guarantee of being with him hereafter. Jesus was telling his disciples profound truths. They were puzzled and perplexed. how could they sought all this out? How could they remember everything?  Jesus knew their state of mind., but he had to tell them these things in the short time he had with them. He had to prepare them for the unthinkable trial and execution about to happen. True they wouldn't understand everything then. But the Father in Jesus name would send the Holy Spirit to teach them everything and remind them of all Jesus had said. The sending of the Spirit from God on Pentecost had that special purpose.
  On the eve of the most violent day of Jesus earthly life and the most heart -wrenching day for his disciples, since he called them, Jesus gave them peace. Jesus peace is not the same as the world's peace. It isn't fragile as the next temper flare-up or grab for power.
 Jesus peace calms troubled hearts and makes fearful hearts confident. His peace keeps us at one with God and serene in our salvation. We need not be afraid or overcome by troubled hearts.
 Into the midst of anxiety and alarm, God offers visions of a glorious future filled with promise. In the 2nd readings from revelations, John, turning from the lake of fire, is carried up in a vision and sees the "New Jerusalem' coming down, centered on the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb. Into the anxieties and uncertainties of our everyday life, Christ offers a vision of a glorious future and issues a promise that radically changes our present: Peace I leave, with you, My peace I give to you. AMEN!  

Why Jesus Christ died?" John 12 :32.

 And When I am lifted  -up [ on the cross], "I will draw everyone to me." Jn. 12;32. The Father answered Jesus' prayer aloud from heaven. That  by sending His son in the flesh and through His son' miraculous signs, the Father received the glory.
 Jesus said,  This voice was for your benefit, not mine. Now is the time for judgment on his world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself. He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.
 Very few of us have any understanding of the reason why Jesus Christ had to die. If sympathy is all that human beings need, then the "Cross of Christ is a farce, there was no need for it. What the world needs is not a " Little bit of love ," but a surgical operation. When you are face to face with a soul in difficulty spiritually, remind yourself of Jesus Christ on the cross. If that soul can get to God on any other line, then the cross of Jesus Christ is unnecessary. If you can help others by your sympathy or understanding, you are a traitor to Jesus Christ. You have to keep your soul rightly related to God and pour out for others on His line, not pour out on the human line and ignore God. The great note today is amiable religiosity.
  The one thing we have to do is to exhibit Jesus Christ crucified, to lift him up all the time. Every doctrine that is not embedded in the "Cross of Jesus" will lead astray. If the worker himself believes in Jesus Christ and is banking on the " Reality of Redemption,", the people he talks to must be concerned.  The thing that remains and deepens is the worker's simple relationship to Jesus Christ;
the usefulness to God depends on that and that alone. The calling of a New Testament worker is to uncover sin and to reveal Jesus Christ as Savior, consequently he cannot be poetical, he must be surgical. We are sent by God to lift up Jesus Christ, not to give beautiful discourses, but, through the scriptures bringing truth straight home, and to apply that truth fearlessly.

From Creation to Christ.

A women goes into a shop to buy a hat. The assistant suggests first this one, then that one, and then another one. until finally she produces one she insists " suits madam perfectly." The assistant is suggesting that the hat expresses her clients personality. We as humans do the same thing to Jesus, by putting a variety of " personality hats on God's head. Some put an academic hat on him, after all, He knows every thing, John 21:17.

 Some put a policeman's hat on Him, they think of him as One who constantly spies on them from heights of heaven to catch them when they do wrong, Psalm 139: 1-12; Genesis 3:8-10.

 There are those who put a chef's hat on God. they believe He exists merely to provide them with ample supply of food and drink. Psalm 145:15,16. Some complain when they feel He is not generous as he might be.

  Others think  of God as a kind of Father Christmas, or Santa Claus, whose Job it is to supply them with all kinds of pleasant things to own and enjoy. Some get a little peeved with him when they have to go short of something, Matthew 6:31,32 

 Many look on a magicians "hat" a "must" for the divine wardrobe, For they  think of God as the Great miracle worker, Exodus 7-10; 14: 10-31. 

 Many believe that a crown is an appropriate hat for God. The Bible often uses words like "King" and "Kingdom when referring to Him, 24: 7-10; Mark 1:15.

   Because many uninformed people view the Christian faith and life merely as a matter of "do" and don't," they think of a Puritan's hat as suitable garb for God, Mark 10: 17:22.

  Some think about God only when they are sick., Psalm 103:3; Mark 5:21-43. 

 Remarkably, many people are quick to ask, " What have I done to deserve this?" when they are sick, but slow to ask this same question when they are well.

 There is an element of truth in the messages of all these hats. Each reflects something of what the Bible has to say about God and his attributes. It is essential, however, to keep in mind God's-all embracing quality is love. This binds like a cord together the stalks of  in a sheaf of hay.   

 God is what He is- no matter what people think of him.  

Hats: "the image."

In the person of His incarnate Son,, Jesus Christ once wore a crown of Thorns. The approximate shape of a crown of thorns is circular. thorns protrude from it. with this in mind, we construct a symbol fro God. The symbol consists of a circle with four arrows protruding from it. The Church has long used a circle as a symbol for God. The circle expresses the truth that god is one., and that He has no beginning and no end. The significance of the arrows going out from him, I God is always one who acts, and His actions go out from himself. he acts consistently in love, kindness, and mercy, and these always flow out from Himself. God made man to be a creature who loves. It was to flow out from himself to god and others.

NO TIME!

" THE DAYS OF OUR YEARS ARE THREESCORE YEARS AND 10; AND IF BY REASON OF STRENGTH; THEY BE FOURSCORE YEARS, YET IS THEIR STRENGTH LABOR AND SORROW; FOR IT IS SOON CUT OFF, AND WE FLY AWAY.... SO TEACH US TO NUMBER OUR DAYS, THAT WE MAY APPLY OUR HEARTS UNTO WISDOM." PSALM 90; 10,12.
   People speak of a "moment to remember" " Those who have fewest regrets," Mark van Doren once said, " are those who take each moment as it comes for all it is worth.
  Moses described as a  man of God, said pretty much the same thing with his eyes locked on God, The days of our years are three score and 10 and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labor and sorrow.; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away....So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.
  One of the saddest lines in history for someone who worked hard to accomplish great things is that time ran out. Time has a way of doing that, a fact of life that affects us all.
 Were does it go, all that time which people count on and treat as if it is never going to end and treat as if it is of  little or no importance?
 How often haven't you heard someone say, " I have no time." When you think about it, it is a strange statement to make. People who say,"I have no time" always have time!  Those who have no time are dead At least, they are not alive here on earth. Anyone who is here on earth has time.
 We all have the same amount of time.-24 hours a day. We may not have as much time as we like to think, or as others would like us to spend on some endeavor that may or may not  be important, but we all have time.
  When you say you have no time for something, it probably means that the " something" is not important enough to spend your time on it. You have to spend your time. It won't  keep in a bank, not even with a time lock on it. ( Back in 1993), Paul Rees in his magazine " World Vision," tells us the story of a young man  being sentenced by a judge for committing a crime. The judge tried to shame the young man by reminding him that he was the son of a distinguished lawyer. " Yes," replied the, youth bitterly, " when I went to dad for companionship or advice he would glance up from the law book he was reading and say ,'Run away boy, I'm busy,' My Father completed his law book and here I am. Time for the boy is more important than time for a book, even if you are the author of that book.
 "No time" is the classic excuse people give for paying no attention to God. He can keep on talking until He is blue in the face, but they have no time to listen. When you back them up in a corner somewhere, they will admit that this "no time" business  is probably senseless  and even foolish. Some how they will work things out with God when the right time comes around.
  The right time said the Psalmist, " is right now. Time is a-wasting and people who have no time for God the most precious commodity they have. What good is money-millions of it- if you have no time to use it?  What good is health and the enjoyment of family life if you have no more time?  With " no time" for God, people are busier than ants and less productive, just looking for ways to kill time by pure busyness. " Theirs a time to pray and a time to play."
The Psalmist was talking real life, coming from God and going to God He focused on God, as he had learned to do:' "Lord" he said, Thou has been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hast formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting. Thou are God. thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return you children of men.
 For a thousand years in Thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night. Thou carried them away as with a flood; they are  as asleep: In the morning they are like grass it flourishes, and grows up; in the evening it is cut down, and withers.
  " No time for God" is like saying, " No time for life.-no time for faith, no time for love, no time for ever saying, 'Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations.
    Jesus is for life. His life was productive of redemption for the world. He offers the world real life.

Final Discourse " Remembering the Bible!" O.T.

 It was before the Passover festival. Jesus knew that His hour had come, and he must leave this world. and go to the Father. He had always loved his own who were in the world, and now He was to show the full extent of his love. The devil  had already put into the mind of Judas son of Simon Iscariot to betray him. During supper, Jesus well aware that the Father had entrusted everything to him, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from the table, laid aside His garments, and taking a towel, tied it  around him. Then He poured water into a basin, and began to  wash His disciples feet and to wipe them with the towel.
 When it was Simon Peter's turn, Peter said to him, 'You Lord, washing my feet?'  "You don't understand now what I am doing, one one day you will.' Peter said, 'I will never let you wash my feet.'  'If I do not wash you,'Jesus replied, 'you ' you are not in fellowship with me.'  'Then, Lord,' said Simon Peter, ' not my feet only; wash my head and hands as well!
 Jesus said, ' A man who has bathed needs no further washing; he is altogether clean; and you are clean, though not every one of you.' He added the words'not every one of you'  because He knew who was going to betray him. After washing their feet and taking his garments again, he sat down.' Do you understand ,' he asked, ' what I have done for you? You call me "Master" and " Lord, and rightly so, for that is what is what I am. A "Servant is not greater than a Master."
   Before a plant of the field was in earth, before a grain of the field sprouted-Yahweh had not spilled rain on the earth, nor was there a man to work the land- yet from the day Yahweh made earth and sky, a mist within would arise to moisten the surface. Yahweh shaped an earthling from clay of this earth, blew into his nostrils the wind of life. Now look: man becomes a creature of flesh.
  Now Yahweh planted a garden in Eden, eastward, settled there the man he formed, From the land Yahweh grew all trees lovely to look upon, good to eat from; the tree of life was there in the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Then Yahweh sends out of Eden a river; it waters the the garden, then outside branches into four: one, Pishon, winds through the whole of Havila, land of fine, gold- where the bdellium is, the lapis lazuli. The second, called Gihon moves through the area of Cush; Tigris, the third, travels east of Asshur; and Euphrates is the fourth. So God puts man in the garden to care for it. He says to Eve, you may eat from of all the trees in the garden, He warns.  But one you can not eat from, or even touch, the tree of Knowledge; Of Good and Evil. If you eat it, "Death" arrives. Now Yahweh says;It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper, for his needs. So the Lord God took from the soil and formed every kind of animal and bird and brought them to the man, to see what He would call them. He caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep, because their was not a proper helpmate for him. he took one of his ribs, removed it, closed up the place where he removed it and made the rib into a women and brought her to Adam.  Adam says she is part of my own bone,and flesh! The two became one flesh which explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife.
 Now the 'serpent', better known as "Satan," craftiest of the creatures the Lord God had made. that old slicker then bubble gum on a doorknob confronts Eve, when he heard God say: you may eat any fruit in the Garden, except from the tree in the "Center."
 God says we must not eat or even touch it, or we will die. "That's a lie! hisses the serpent. You'll
not die" Death will not come near you said the serpent to  the women. God knows as soon as you eat it, your eyes will be open, and you will be like God, being able to distinguish good from evil! The women was convinced how lovely and fresh looking it was, She thought it would make her so  wise! She reached for the fruit, ate, and here's the kicker: "Gave it to Adam her husband, and both their eyes open, Suddenly thy became aware that they were naked and where embarrassed. The fruit from the tree of knowledge, gave them the word"" for naked as their condition, that they were naked.
 So they wound together fig leaves, to make covering for themselves. That evening they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden, Adam and Eve hid themselves among the trees when they heard Yahweh called to the man."Where are you hiding?"  I heard you coming and I didn't want you to see me naked, so I hid. Who told you you were naked Yahweh asked. have you eaten fruit from the forbidden tree I warned you about. The women you gave to me-she gave me the fruit of the tree, I ate."
 What is this you have done said Yahweh to the women.
"The smooth-tongued snake tricked me ,I ate."
"Since you did this," said Yahweh to the snake, " You are to be singled out from all the domestic animals of the whole earth- to be cursed. You shall grovel in the dirt as long as you live, crawling along on your belly." From now on you and the women will be enemies, as will all of your offspring and hers. An I will put the fear of you into the women, and between your off spring and hers.
 Then God said to the women, "You shall bear children in intense pain and suffering; even so, you shall welcome your husbands affections,  and he shall  rule over thee.(KJV). Because you listened to your wife and ate the fruit when I told you not to,  have placed a curse on the soil. all our life you will struggle to extract a living from it. All your live you will sweat to master it,  until your dying day. Then you will return to the ground from which you came; for from dust you are, to dust you shall return.

Time of miracles in the Land of Jesus!

 Their is a book entitled ("Journey to the Land of Jesus"). guides his readers through the entire Holy Land, just as Christ Himself traveled over it during His earthly life "from Dan to Beer-sheba.  he leads them from the paths followed on the flight into Egypt to the sources of the Jordan. But in this Palestine that was then more parceled and yet less divided than it is now.  Galilee remains a privileged region where every pilgrim loves to tarry. for it was there that "the carpenter'son" became Jesus of Nazareth, and the Master chose Capernaum as "his own town." (Mt. 9:1). It was on the Sea of Galilee and o its shores that the messiah worked many of the miracles that, in our own day as well as His, astonish some and shock others.
 For those who are inclined to rational thinking like Earnest Renan, the French "Philologist " and historian," the Gospel would be acceptable if only theology would  strip it of the miracles that accompany it.  It is not too paradoxical to say that  Christ's miracles prevent rationalistic critics  from believing in his supernatural mission. Unfortunately for them, from Nazareth to Capernaum, the road of the "Good News" is strewn with miracles; it is a constellation of wonders, a "Great White Way" of the extraordinary.
 Anyone can draw up plans for a reasonable Christianity sitting in a library. On the road to Capernaum, it is impossible. When Jesus passed by on that , he upset the natural order of things. so, if the supernatural doesn't frighten you, if you enjoy seeing the face of the universe change when Christ makes a little tour before drinking the "Chalice of his Passion, well then let's go! Off to Tiberias!
 From the hills of Nazareth to the sea of Galilee.  To begin with, Here's Cana, the Market town with its white houses, surrounded by  vineyards and olive trees. That's where the famous wedding was held: Jesus changed the water into wine at His Mother's request to spare His hosts the humiliation of offering empty wine jars to their guests. It's a pleasant omen. The Lord inaugurated  His mission with a celebration, perhaps even with a song. In any case He began His public life with a first miracle that would forever save him from being seen as a gloomy killjoy, as some stiff pietists  would like Him to  be. So here a small miracle happened: water to wine. And according to St. John it was an excellent wine, better than the wine they had before. For centuries now, commentators have been trying to reconvert this wine allegorically back into water. But something surprising happened, something that apparently does not surprise the the critics. The whole world has become a little dizzy with the generous flow at that village wedding. As we push on; we  have a heavy schedule. Here's Magdala, not far from beautiful Tiberias where people  go for expensive vacations- Tiberias with its perfumes, its Palm Beach, and its gambling casino, there's Mary Magdalene, the sinful, women, who suddenly canceled Her appointment  at the  beauty parlor and was instantaneously sanctified as the Lord walked by.  Strange and wonderful! Sin understands God more quickly than virtue. This is an event in the history of religions. A women of easy virtue became a servant of the Lord at a time when Priestesses periodically became women of easy virtue.
  Close by, the crowd gathers on the shore to listen to Jesus, as He speaks to them from a boat: Father, Lord of heaven and earth, to you we offer praise; for what you have hidden from the learned and the clever you have revealed to the merest children" (Mt. 11: 25). Soon He will come a shore and lead His audience, five thousand strong, up a mountain. There, the hungry will share endlessly multiplying
 loaves of Bread. But "not on bread alone is man to live but on every utterance that comes from the mouth of God." (Mt 4:4). This is the time to remember that Scripture is food and must be eaten at  once, like fresh bread, not like the stale bread of the exegetes or the indigestible food of the critics
who want us to eat the bread basket. First, let's come back to the waters edge where a waving fence of rushes, welcomes Jesus as He is walking along the lake and picking apostles. The blind fall to their knees, suddenly dazzled by the eruption of summer colors. All these miraculous cures also have a symbolic aspect. they are signs of the paralytic of the Jewish law who have finally by the liberating word. been freed from their fetters.  

Deeper in the Garden. Mat..26:39

We are in the upper room at Jerusalem. it is the hour of midnight. the Master stands surrounded by the eleven  apostles. Jesus had just spoken His final words of comfort.- let not your heart be troubled.... "Peace I leave with you.... In the world you may have tribulation: but be of good cheer; "I  have overcome the world." As His words end, the Upper room grows very still, ominously and oppressively quiet.
 The foreboding of tragedy like a cloud, swallows up the apostles,changing the moment to intensely black.. " He advanced a little and fell prostrate in prayer. " Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass me by. Still, let be as you would have it, not as I." ( Matt. 26:39).
 The Master rises, bravely sings a Hymn, and moves toward the door. He flings it open, steps out on the upper landing, and then pauses before he descends the outside stairway.  When He returned to his disciples, He found them asleep. he said to Peter, So you could not stay awake with me even an hour. Be on guard, and pray that you may not undergo the test. The spirit is willing but your nature is weak. Withdrawing a second time, He began to pray : " My Father, if this cannot pass me by without my drinking it, your will be done!" Once more, on his return, he found them asleep; they could not keep their eyes open. He left them again, withdrew somewhat, and He began to pray a third  time, saying the same words as before. Finally He returned to the disciples and said to them: " Sleep on now. Enjoy your rest!  The last feet that have walked out this door and gone down these stairs have  been those of Judas. "The hour of the Son of Man," is to be handed over to the power of evil men. Later Jesus says: "Get up!" Let us be on our way.! See my betrayer is here." When they left it was dark, but  as Jesus emerges, the soft light of the full moon falls about him. A moment He stands in its glow, and then turns and leads the apostles down the stairway.  They turn the corner and plunge into the narrow, twisting streets which is Jerusalem. The walls close in on either  sides . They went with Jesus to a place called Gethsemani  Mt. (26:36). Jesus called to his side under the olive trees the same men who had been present at the radiant hour of His transfiguration (Mat. 17:1-9). Now He wanted them close to him, during this tragic hour when His passion was to begin. However, Peter, James, and John, (26:37). abandoned  Him to His agony until the crowd seeking him arrived.  The Gospel tells us those very old olive trees in the "Garden of Gethsemani," are certainly less than 2,000 years old, but were already considered ancient in the fifteenth century, according to historical  chronicles. These in the garden must be those that witnessed Jesus agony.  They approach the gate in the wall. Here Jesus leaves eight of His companions as a guard of honor. He does not want His privacy to be prematurely disturbed, He wants  time for prayer; for this is the last moment He will be alone on  earth with his apostles, in which to brace His body and nerve, and His spirit from the ordeal that lies before Him.  Taking with Him, Peter, James and John, He passes into the recesses of the Garden, where the trees are closer, where their shelter promises a sanctuary of solitude and prayer. This is the place of the ultimate struggle of His  soul. He longs for the depth of the companionship of these three who are nearest to His heart. "My soul is exceedingly, sorrowful, even unto death."  He cries: 'tarry Here, and watch with me." He goes a little deeper into the Garden, becoming a figure who is lost in the dark night, then He falls on His knees, and then prostrate  on the ground.  "THIS ADVENT,"
 Let us set Jesus before our eyes. Let us in quiet meditation see him, hear him as He knelt in His soul- revealing prayer in this "Garden of love.Let us love him and adore Him in our "heart of hearts".
 Let us realize that this 'garden" is not only in far-off Palestine centuries ago. Christ is alive!  The "Garden" of our prayer, is anywhere we can enter spiritually, into His very Presence of the living Christ: " He will be kneeling by our side as we pray, and praying with us.
 

Jesus carrying out God's plan of Salvation!

 There is no fact in Gospel history more consoling or more conducive to the strengthening  of the Christian faith than that of the readiness and willingness of Jesus in carrying out God's plan of salvation. If Jesus had faltered at any time, if the weakness of His human nature had at any time caused an unwillingness to carry out the work of atonement, the Gospel history would be worthless, and the comfort of a Christian in relying upon the satisfaction of Christ's vicarious suffering would be vain.
  It had been prophesied concerning the "Messiah: "Then said I, Lo I Come: in the volume of the "Book," it is written of Me, I delight to do thy will, O my God," Ps. 40,7,8. This delight in carrying out the plan and counsel of God for the salvation of Man, is a prominent and a necessary feature of Christ's ministry. He had a clear and full conception of the extent and of the obligation of the work which He had come to perform, Heb. 10,5-10. He  knew exactly wherein the will of His heavenly Father consisted. " This is the Father's will which has sent me, that of all which He has given Me. I should lose nothing... And this is the will of Him who sent me, that every one which sees  the "Son" and believes on him may have everlasting  Life." John 6, 39, 40.
 In accordance with this situation and the full understanding of its nature and scope,  Jesus at all times kept the work of redemption foremost and in front of His mind, to seek and save that which was Lost, Luke 19,10. Even at the age of Twelve years He was fully conscience of the obligation resting upon him, when He told his mother; " Was I not to be about my Father's business?" Luke 2,49. To His disciples, who asked about the man that had been born blind. He briefly and succinctly stated His conception of his ministry; " I must work the works of Him who sent me while it is day; the night comes when no man can work," John 9,4. To the eager Zacchaeus He calls out;: " To-day I must stay at your house," Luke 19,5. That was part of His work, of the ministry of saving souls, which He therefore could not neglect.
When the time came that Jesus should enter into the glory of  His Father through the way of suffering and death, He did not falter or waver, but set His face steadfastly to go to Jerusalem, Luke 9, 51;  Mark 10: 32,33.  He told His disciples: " The Son of man must suffer many things," Luke 9,22;  Matt 16,22. He was perfectly aware of the fate that was awaiting Him at Jerusalem, and yet He announces: " I must walk today and to-morrow and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem." Luke 13,33. The chief aim and purpose of Jesus coming into the world was to work redemption of mankind by shedding His blood as an atonement for the guilt of all. He tells His disciples the night before his death:"This that is written must yet be accomplished in me, and he was reckoned among the transgressors, for things concerning me, has an end. Luke 22, 37. He rebukes the impulsive Peter:" How then, shall the scriptures be fulfilled that thus it must Be.?" Matt  is 26,54. The same truth  is emphasized so strongly in His discourses on the afternoon and evening of the resurrection day, as well as by the angels in their first announcement of the ."Should not Christ have  suffered these things and entered into His glory.
It was Easter evening And as they spoke, Jesus stood in the midst of them and said, " Peace be with you!" But, they were terrified and frighten, for they thought they had seen a Spirit. Why are you troubled, and doubt arises in your hearts?  Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I. touch me and see; "For a spirit has not flesh and bones as you see I have, Having said that, Jesus showed them His hands.
 While the Emmaus disciples were still recounting the happenings of the after-noon. Jesus him-self.
suddenly appears unexpected in the midst of the assembly as his departure from Emmaus had been a few hours before.Jesus greeted them with a greeting of peace, which should have put them at ease.
 His resurrection, as it had been announced through a number of witnesses, should have been accepted as a fact. He was now standing before the eyes of his disciples, alive and well. True, there was a difference. His body now took a nature of a spirit. With it He had passed through the sealed tomb and through locked doors. He was no longer subject to the natural laws governing time and place, and He brought them the wonderful gift of peace, peace in the highest and best sense of the term.  He has made peace through the blood of His cross.(Col, 1,20).  The wrath of the Father was satisfied through His suffering and death. And by the resurrection of Christ, this peace is sealed to all believers. We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Strange to say, this sudden appearance of Christ under unusual circumstances filled the disciples with the greatest fear and terror.
Only a few moments before, they were filled with Joy, That "HE HAD RISEN INDEED!" indeed, Yet, they had the idea they were looking at a ghost. Jesus gets a little upset and rebukes them for their unbelief. He invited them to look closely at  his hands and feet, with the marks of His crucifixion plainly showing, It didn't make them believers, even when he said put your fingers in the holes, and run their finger over His body, that it was no ghost standing before them, but their true Master and true friend.
 That same Jesus of Nazareth, that was born of the Virgin Mary, that suffered under Pontius Pilate, that was crucified and died, Stood before them. This Christ is also in a state of exultation true man according to body and soul, flesh and blood, our Brother in all eternity. In and with this body He is our Savior and Redeemer, with the nail-wounds in His hands and feet showed. This is a promise that He will change our vile bodies, like unto His glorious body, ( Phil. 3,21.). Therefore we should know that all false ghosts and visions that permit themselves to be seen and heard, especially with rattling and blustering, are not the souls of men, but certainly devils.  While the people still didn't yet believe and wondered;  Jesus said unto them, do you have any meat? They gave him some broiled fish and honeycomb. Jesus did eat them. These are the words I spoke while I was yet with you, that all things  must be written in the law of Moses and in the prophets, and in the Psalms, concerning Me! Then Jesus opened their understanding, that they might understand the Scriptures; saying, I must suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in my name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. I send the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city of Jerusalem until you are filled with the power from on high.
 Unbelievers jump for joy, in glorious assurance, but the reaction was to much for the disciples while they huddled in wonder and amazement, not knowing  weather to believe their senses. just as a great light,which bursts upon a person in a dark space for some times, blind him, makes it impossible to use his eyes and so it was with the disciples. Therefore Jesus makes use of all patient kindness toward them giving them time, to get their bearings, to let truth penetrate into their understanding. Jesus asked them if they had anything to eat. They brought him a piece of boiled fish and of a honeycomb.
 The fact that Jesus is eating before them, brought a sense of  nearness to them, and they were now ready to listen to him.
 This being the case, namely, that the chief aim and purpose of Jesus coming into the world was to work the redemption of mankind by the shedding of His blood as an atonement for the guilt of all.
 He emphasized this  one point to the exclusion of everything else. He tells his disciples on the evening before His death:" this that was written must yet be accomplished in me. And He was reckoned among the transgressors; for things concerning me have an end," Luke 22,37. And in the garden He rebukes the impulsive Peter: How, then shall, the Scriptures be fulfilled that must be?' Matt. 26,54. The same truth is spoken very strong, by Peter, echoed in the interval between Christ Ascension and the day of Pentecost, Acts 1,16,  We as Christians condemn all attempts to make the work of Christ  seem of a nature concerning this world only, we as believers firmly to the teaching, preaching, and confessing of Christs work: "Who has redeemed me, a lost and condemned sinner,  and taken the power of devil away... with his holy, precious blood and his innocent suffering and finally His death.


            

The Walk To Emmaus: Emmaus Disciples. Luke 24. 13-35.

 And as they led him away, they laid hold upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and on him they laid the cross, that he might bear it after Jesus. So this man who had come to Jerusalem for the feast, (may have been at that time a disciple of Jesus), and there followed him a great company of people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented Him. But Jesus turning unto them said, daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves and your children. For behold, the days are coming in which they shall say, blessed are the  barren, and the paps which never gave suck. Then they shall begin to say to the mountains,fall on us; and to the hills, cover us. For if they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in a dry?  (Matt 27,31-34).
 In accordance  with the decision of Pilate, Jesus was led away from the Praetorium, out to a spot with out the walls, where the malefactors were crucified. Later on,
 however, Peter ran to the tomb to look. Stooping, he peered in and saw the empty linen wrappings; and then he went back home again, wondering what had happen. That same day, Sunday, two of Jesus followers were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven miles out of Jerusalem. As they walked along they were talking of Jesus death, when suddenly Jesus himself came along and joined them and began walking beside them. But they didn't recognize him, for God kept them from it. Jesus said you seem to be in deep discussion about something. " What are you so concerned about?" They stopped short, sadness written across their faces. And one of them, Cleopas, replied, " You must be the only person in Jerusalem who hasn't heard about the terrible things that happened there last week."
 " What things?"  Jesus asked.
" The things that happened to Jesus, the "Man from Nazareth," they said. " He was a Prophet, a
    prophet who did incredible miracles and was a mighty teacher, highly regarded by both God and man.
 But, the chief priests and our religious leaders arrested him and handed him over to the Roman Government to be condemned to death, and they crucified him. We had thought He was the glorified "Messiah" and that he had come to rescue Israel.
 And now, besides all this- which happened three days ago- some women from our group of his followers were at his tomb early this morning and came  back with an amazing report that his body was missing, and that they had seen some angels there who told them Jesus was alive!  Some of our men ran out to see, and sure enough, Jesus body was Gone, just as the women said.
 Then Jesus said to them, " You are such foolish, foolish people!"
You find it so hard to believe all that the prophets wrote in the scriptures! Wasn't it properly predicted by the prophets that the "Messiah" would have to suffer all these things before entering His time in glory.
 Then Jesus quoted them passage after passage from the writings of the prophets, beginning with the book of "GENESIS," and going right on through "Scriptures," explaining what the passages meant and what they said about himself.
 By this time they were nearing "Emmaus" and the end of their journey. Jesus would have gone on, but they begged him to stay the night with them as it was getting late. So he went home with them.
 As they sat down to eat, He asked God's blessing on the food and then took a small loaf of bread and broke it and was passing it over to them, when suddenly- it was as though their eyes were opened- they recognized him!  And at that moment he disappeared.
 They began telling each other how there hearts had felt strangely warm as he talked with them and explained the Scriptures during the walk down the road. Within the hour they were on their way back to Jerusalem, where the eleven disciples and the other followers of Jesus greeted them with these words, " The Lord has really risen! He appeared to Peter!" The two from Emmaus told their story of how Jesus had appeared to them as they were walking along the road, and how they had recognized as He was breaking the bread (Euchrist),  And Just as they were telling about it, Jesus himself was suddenly standing there among them, but the whole group was terribly frightened, thinking they were seeing a ghost! Why are you frightened?  he asked. " Why do you doubt that it is really I. Look at my hands! Look at my feet!  You can see that it is I. Touch me, and make sure that I am not a ghost. It was written long ago that the Messiah must suffer and die and rise again from the dead on the third day.
They had not properly attended to the description of the "Messiah" as given by the Prophets, and they had not looked upon His own teaching and miracles with enlightened eyes. It was a necessity  for Christ, the master in whose company they had been all these long months. Jesus now repeated the sermon of the afternoon, telling them, while He was with them, not once but repeatedly, He had pointed to  the nearness of His passion.  Happy Advent!
 The resurrection of Jesus, testified by the open grave and by the word of Angels, was not believed by the apostles, But Jesus appears to the Emmaus disciples and then to the eleven apostles, convincing them of His having risen from the dead, commissioning them to be His ministers for the preaching of the Gospel, and finally ascending before them from the Mount of Olives.

The Baptism of John!

When John the Baptist came into the wilderness of Judea with his message and Baptism of repentance, he was not foisting upon the people a new and strange ceremony of which they had never heard. On the contrary, divers (various) washing's, many different kinds of Levitical baptisms, had been known to the Jews since the time of Moses. The rite originated in the ceremonial lustration of the clean, Gen. 35, 2; Ex. 19,10; Num. 19, 7; Judith 7, and was soon extended to embrace every form of Levitical purifying that was done with water, Heb.9,10;
  One of the earliest forms of religious ablutions was the baptism of priests at their consecration, Ex.29, 1-9; 40,12. There is an allusion to this washing of priests in Heb. 10, 22. Any defilement of the body contracted by the priests after their installation, in the daily performance of their duties, especially by contact of their hands and feet with unclean things, had to be removed by washing these members when they entered the sanctuary, Ex. 30, 17-21; 40; 30-32. Two passages of the psalms refer to this custom, Ps. 26, 6; 73, 13. If an Israelite had touched the carcass of an animal or carried any part thereof, he was considered unclean and had to wash his clothes and his body, Lev. 11, 24-28. 39, 40; 5, 2; 22, 4-6.
  In the course of John the Baptist's ministry, during which he had occasion to administer a sharp rebuke to the Pharisees and Sadducees,  Jesus also received Baptism at his hands, whereupon there
occurred a marvelous revelation of the Triune God.
 There was a baptism of those who recovered from leprosy,Lev 13, 6. 34. On the great day of atonement the high priest performed very careful ablutions, both at the beginnings and at the conclusions of his ministrations, Lev. 16, 4, 24.
The man who led the scapegoat into the wilderness and likewise he who carried forth without the camp the bullock and the goat for a sin offering, were required to bathe their flesh in water,Lev. 26-28.  When Levites were consecrated, they were sprinkled with water, Num. 8, 5-7. 21.
  There were also  other ceremonial washing's or baptisms, with which the Jews were familiar, Lev. 15, 1-29; Num. 15, 1-9; 23,10. 11.
 But the most interesting of the Jewish religious washing's was the baptism of the proselytes, who, after bring instructed in certain parts of the law, and having fresh profession of their faith, were immersed in water, after which they were considered full-fledged Israelites in all things. It is this ceremony to which the baptism of John, in its outward form was related.
 Another interesting question is that concerning the difference, if any, between the baptism of John and that instituted by Christ. It must be noted, on the one hand, that there are many points of agreement. John baptized by divine command, Luke 3, 11; Mark 1, 8; Luke 3, 16; John 1, 26; 3, 23. it was finally, a Baptism unto repentance, for the forgiveness of sins,  Mark 1, 4; Luke 3, 3. In all these features it agreed with the Baptism of Christ.
  Nevertheless, there was a difference between the baptism of John and that of Christ. When Paul came to Ephesus and found certain disciples that had merely been baptized into John's baptism, he baptized them in the name the Lord Jesus, Acts 19,1-16 The chief points of difference between the two baptisms are indicated in this passage. John's baptism is consistently called a "baptism of repentance." It was administered to adults only, to such as confessed their sins, as had reached the age of discretion, Matt 3,6; Mark 1, 5, whereas the baptism of Christ is for all people, including the Children, acts 2, 39, 41; Col. 2,11. The baptism of Jesus works and transmits the forgiveness of sins as a gift which has been earned; The baptism of John points forward to the winning of this precious  
 boon through the redemption to be made through Jesus Christ. In short, the baptism of John was typical, preparatory, as was his preaching; the glorious fulfilment has come in and with Christ.
  

Christ confirms, law of Moses: Matt 5, 17-37.

All men that come in contact with their works shall be forced to draw conclusions as to the power that inspires them. And so the glory, the honor will be placed where it properly and exclusively, will be given to the Father in Heaven. Faith is the lamp; love is the light; the good works are the illumination. as little as the lamp can pride itself upon its light, so little can the Christian glory in their good works; All glory must be God's.
  Your light, given to you from above, not to be used according to expediency, but to shine.
Jesus himself applies this parable: " Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works. Matt.5:16.  Good works Jesus has just urged. He now proceeds to give a definition of good works  from the law. He makes clear his position with regard to the law: Think not that I am come to destroy the Law and the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill the teaching of the kingdom,  the Gospel which he came to proclaim, is a doctrine radically different from the teaching of Moses, but it doesn't invalidate the demands of the moral law as taught by Moses, it does not substitute a new moral law. Whatever, in the revelation of the 'Old Testament', is type and prophecy, finds its completions, its realization in Christ the redeemer. (Col. 2,17).He fulfills the prophets. The whole Old Testament is a divine revelation and has religious significance, which should find recognition and proper understanding in the New.  So long as the earth shall stand, the sacredness of the scripture  of olden times, shall remain so absolutely unimpaired that not even an iota , the smallest letter of the Hebrew alphabet, nor a tittle, the slight projecting point on some of its letters, shall fall to the ground. Their is a story in the midst of of the proclamation, implying a fulfillment which was to be made, and was in fact made, in and through the person  of Jesus Christ. 'In Christopher J.H.Wrights book ," "Knowing Jesus through the Old Testament writes," these are the words Jesus read. These were the stories he knew. These were the songs He sang, these were the depths of wisdom and revelation and prophecy that shaped his whole view of 'life. This is where He found his insights into the mind of Father God. The further you go in the understanding the "Old Testament, he says," the closer you come to the heart of Jesus. He says" ( After all, Jesus never really "read"  New Testament). Which means the "Old Testament" was" Jesus " Bible."
 In the mean time all men should know: Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven; but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
 Here is a conclusion. Since the above is Christ's view, He is bound to take a stand with references to the transgressors  of that rule. He who sets aside even those commandments that seem small and of little import,he that disregards as much as one of the little horns or hooks, which change the meaning of an entire passage, falls under the condemnation, he is considered to be the least in the kingdom of heaven. For this teaching is essential in educating men as to the true righteousness of, life,, in holding up before Christians a proper rule of conduct: "Better known as Our "solid foundation' of our faith! we must stop, taking new members, Jamming  them in Gospels, when they first come,  and if they come back for three "Sunday's in a row, we put them on the board, as Church leaders, They couldn't tell Christ from Babe Ruth, if Christ was to come back, unless Ruth was wearing his Yankee hat! You know your "Church" is in trouble, if the Pastor, stops studying scripture, for the the next step, he stops praying, and then he involves the congregation in community outreach, to cover-up the real purpose of his ministry, the teaching of Christ!
 The minister himself there would be the perfect realization of teaching and doing.
The chief accusation which Christ brought against these people, is recorded in many passages of the Gospels; cp. Matt.23: For I  say :unto you,you  shall not see me henceforth, to ye shall say, "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"
 But if you bring your gift to the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave the gift and go on your way and make up with your brother, then come back and offer your gift. The forgiving attitude is pictured from a happening which was very frequent among the Jews, which was thoroughly familiar, a Jew might bring his "Corban," his gift used of every kind of bloody and unbloody sacrifice which was brought to the Temple, Matt.8:4; 15,5; 23,8. But the very act of handing it to the officiating priest at the altar there comes in remembrance. It suddenly flashes into his mind that he has been guilty of an act or a word which might provoke a brother. The way to deal with situation might seem to be to keep on with the worship, get through it right away, then hurry and make peace with you brother.
Christ tells us to interrupt our worship and go on  our way seeking forgiveness first, The implication of Christ is that the people were really kept under a false impression, by being permitted to draw the conclusion that they were listening to the exact words of Moses. The words here as stated are found in the law, Lev. 19, 12; Num. 30, 3; Deut.23,22. But the interpretation left much to be desired, it put no desire on inner truthfulness of the heart. Jesus insists that all hatred is contrary to all humaness, opposed to the spirit which he was striving to foster. His is a different law V. 44. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that course you, do good to them that hate you. and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you. Cursing is met with blessing; hatred, which leads to injuries, with well doing,  Abuse of all kinds, culminating from religious hatred, with prayer and intercession. For its object is always to find ways and means of of winning adversary and gain him for the Lord.    

 

 

New Testament: Honor of the living Christ! Matt. 5-7

 There came a moment somewhere around the year 30 in our era when a shout of victory which the whole world was destined to hear"HE HAS RISEN!" The glorious resurrection of Jesus from the dead,celebrating Christ's victory over all the powers of darkness, and Death. As that shout spread about the Mediterranean, which the whole world was destined to hear, eventually became the "Book"
called the "New Testament", declaring the life, death, Resurrection, of our Lord and Savior, " Jesus Christ." In the beginning was the event. Had the event consisted solely in the mournful death of the young prophet from Nazareth, we would have heard no echo, no shout of triumph. It is doubtful we would have even known  the name of Jesus as a part of world history, if He been left in the clutches of death. The fact that we know his blessed name, is do the act of the Father in "Raising him".
  From here the Good News was passed along by the word of mouth, and the women heard the news from a young man they found in Jesus tomb. Sadly enough, Mark's Gospel ends before these women have reported the news to anyone else.  In fact, Mark writes, they were so frightened that they said nothing to anyone ( Mark 16:8), but the other Gospel writers tell us that the news was conveyed to the disciples by the women.
 But there is one detail that catches our eye, when we have difficulty that many have had in believing in Jesus resurrection, that it was a product of the disciples wishful thinking, They wanted him to rise from the dead so badly, it was held, they manged to convince themselves that it had  actually happened. The gospels give quite a different impression. They show that Jesus resurrection took  them completely by surprise. their concern was that of any other bereaved people: to adjust themselves that their loved one had died. Had they been trying to persuade themselves that Jesus would soon be among them  again, the reaction to the news of His resurrection would have been quite different one!
 We have already mentioned that Mark's resurrection account describes the women as so paralyzed by fear that at first, they said nothing whatever. In Luke's Gospel is recorded a most curious reaction.
 After the women returned from the tomb to relate their fantastic news, the expected rejoicing did not take place.  The women's message was simply not believed. " Luke 24:11." Similarly curious is a statement in John's Gospel, which tells of Peter and another disciple actually visiting the tomb and taking turns looking at the grave clothes. Again, we expect a great deal of excitement. But the next statement is, "Then the disciples went back to their homes," John 20:10.' Our impression is that the disciples were stunned by the news, hardly knowing how to react, which is after all a realistic way of responding.
 But it is fair to ask whether Jesus had prepared them for His resurrection. It is plainly stated a
 number places (Mark 8:31; Luke 9:22; Matthew 16:21,for example) that Jesus spoke of being killed and raised on the third day. At the same time, it is clear that the disciples had difficulty comprehending this kind of talk. (see Matthew 16:22,23; Mark 9:32).
At the very heart of the first, Christian news-telling, then, was the proclamation that Jesus had been raised from the dead.
 As we have seen, this fact took the disciples by surprise, so we cannot charge them with inventing the story to fit their longings. This shows that the resurrection was not an obvious bit of information.
  Especially striking is the story of the two disciples walking to Emmaus ( 24: 13-35).  Although they had the factual data about the visit of the women to the tomb, they did not believe until the risen Christ in person made himself known to them.  It was a staggering new fact which the risen Christ had to interpret " beginning with Moses and all the prophets, " Luke 24:27. the Emmaus experience typifies the church's search for a fuller understanding of the resurrection and pondered in the light of what had happen on the third day.
One old Testament reference which must have been pondered in those days was Psalm 16:10, " for thou must not give me up to Sheol, or let thy godly  see the pit." Paul's summary of the Gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:4. one scholar suggests that Hosea 6:1-3, was probably used by early Christians as a prophecy of the resurrection of Christ. Part of this passage reads, after two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him, " Come, Let us return to the Lord; it is he who has torn us-He will heal us. He has been wounded-He will bind us up. In Just a couple of days or three at least, He will set us on our feet again, to live in His kindness.  Hosea 6:2,3,.
   Lets look at the "Book" closer: One day as the crowds were gathering, Jesus went up the hillside with his disciples and sat down and taught them there.
  "Humble men are very fortunate! " he told them, " For the kingdom of Heaven is given to them.
Those who mourn are fortunate! For they shall be comforted. the meek and the lowly are fortunate! for the whole wide world belongs to them. Happy are those who long to be just and good, for they will be completely satisfied. Matthew's Gospel,  complete's this part of the " Sermon on the Mount."  in Chapters 5-7. this section of Matthews Gospel is one of the most beautiful and impressive in the entire New Testament. In the simplest language, but with singular force, Jesus gave a summary of his moral teaching, the doctrine " Of the fruits and good works of a Christian", as Luther writes. For the "Sermon on the Mount," is not the proclamation of the Gospel, but the preaching of the law. to awaken and promote the realization and the sense of comparative weakness in spiritual matters, but of a total inability to think and speak and act in conformity with the Holy will of God, to bring about the humiliating, but incidentally the most blessed conviction as to one's being wretched, and miserable, and poor and blind,naked in spiritual things, Rev. 3, 17, that was why the object was to teach the regenerated, that with out Him, they could not be led to true sanctification:This is why Christ chose for this great lesson with particular care, the time and place. He had spent the night in prayer on a mountain and had then separated twelve of His disciples to be apostles, Luke 6,12-16. He was now on his way to  the valley: seeing the multitude, he went up into the mountain. The people were crowding Him in increasing numbers. They came to hear him, insisted on touching him, to be healed of various diseases, Luke 6, 17-19. To get away from the crowds below, whose eagerness threatened to overwhelm him. Jesus ascended once more. On the higher slopes of the hill, the people had no chances to throng him.
 A solemn and dramatic description awaited the throng, of the beginning of a weighty discourse: v.2. And He opened His mouth and taught them saying, In  a confidential, awe-inspiring communication of the great teacher which the evangelist records, Job 3,1; Dan 10,16; Ps. 78,2. A well prepared, carefully outlined discourse is given, in which reference to existing deplorable conditions  was made with utter fear-lessness. That also, as stated above belongs to the preacher of today, that he doesn't keep his mouth closed, and not only publicly  performs his office that every one must keep silence and permit him to come forth as one who has the divine right and command, to preach the truth, with  what is committed to him; not to keep silent, but without dread or terror, speaking plainly, without regarding any ones person, Jesus said let it strike whom or what it will. It was teaching that Jesus gave them, not preaching; In the "Sermon,"Jesus was not the "evangelist and "Prophet, but the "Teacher."
 His first words strike the key-note of the entire discourse.: " Blessed are the poor in Spirit; for theirs is the kingdom heaven. The reference of Jesus here is not primarily to temporal poverty, to earthly misery, as in other passages of the new testament,1 Cor. 1, 26-28; Jas. 2,5. He is speaking of the poor and miserable  " in spirit", those that shrink and cower with fear and dread, that are trembling alive to the wants and needs of their soul, that feel in their heart, so far as spiritual riches are concerned, nothing but a great void, a despair of their own abilities, Matt. 11,5,28; Is. 61,1;  62,2; Ps. 70, 5,
 Such as these, who are conscious, painfully aware of their moral deficiencies, the Lord calls blessed, happy! For the kingdom of heaven is the sum total of all the gifts of God in Christ Jesus as they are enjoyed here on earth in the Christian Church and finally above, in the kingdom of glory, the disciples here should strive daily in their ministry. Connected with this thought is the next v.4,
" Blessed are they that morn; for they shall be comforted. The disciples are subject to conditions and circumstances, which brings about, mourning, Luke 6,21,25;  John 16:20; Acts 14,22.
 at the loss of their spiritual possessions, lamenting the fact, that  their spiritual poverty separates them from the fountain of blessedness, because of their carnal nature. Its evil effects, however, shall be prevented lest they lead to despair. "Nor,  let their hearts joy be taken entirely, but mingle such mourning, abounding in consolation and gladness, Rom. 14,17. The very Messianic kingdom with its message of hope is called the comfort of Israel, Luke 2,25.      

.

"GOOD OLD DAYS."

If you are old enough... take a stroll with me.. close your eyes...Go back before the internet... before semiautomatics and crack... before Sega or super Nintendo... way back...
 I'm talking about hide and seek. Sittin' on the porch, Simon Says, Kick the Can, Red light Green light, lunch boxes with a thermos... chocolate milk,  going home for lunch, penny candy from the store hopscotch, butterscotch, skates with a keys, Jacks, Mother May I?  Hula hoops and sunflower seeds, Whist and old Maid and Crazy eights, wax lips and mustaches, Mary Janes, saddleshoes and coke bottles with the names of cities on the bottom,running through the sprinkler, circle pins, bobby pins, Mickey Mouse Club, Rocky and Bullwinkle, Fran and Ollie, Spin and Marty,... all in black and white.
 When  around the corner seemed far away, and going downtown seemed like going somewhere. Bedtime, climbing trees, making forts...backyard shows, lemonade stands, Cops and robbers, sittin' on the curb, staring at clouds, jumping down the steps, jumping on the bed, pillow fights, getting "company," ribbon candy, angel hair on the Christmas tree, Jackie Gleason, white gloves, walking to Church, walking to the Movie theater, being tickled to death, running till you were out of breath, laughing so hard that your stomach, being tired from playing... Remember that? Not stepping on a crack or you'll break your Mother's back.  paper chains at Christmas,,silhouettes of Lincoln and Washington... the smell of paste in school and Evening in Paris. What about the girl that had the bubbly handwriting, who dotted her i's with hearts.??  The stroll, popcorn balls & sock hops... Remember when... when there were two types of sneakers for boys and girls. (Keds and PF Flyer) and the only time you wore them was for "gym," And the girls had those ugly uniforms. When it took five minutes for the T.V. to warm up. When nearly every one's Mom was at home when the kids got home from school When nobody owned a purebred dog.  When a quarter was a decent allowance, and a another quarter, a huge bonus. When you reach into a muddy gutter for a penny(I still do!)
 When girls neither dated nor kissed until late high school, if then. When your Mom wore  nylons that
 came in two pieces. When your male teachers wore  neckties and female teachers had their hair done, everyday and wore high heels. Where you got your windshield cleaned, oil checked, and gas pumped. without asking, all for free, every time. And you didn't pay for air.
 And you got trading stamps to boot!  When laundry detergent had free glasses, dishes, or towels hidden inside the box. When any parent could discipline any kid, or feed him, or use him to carry groceries,  and nobody, not even the kid thought a thing of it. When it was considered a great privilege to be taken out to dinner at a real restaurant  with your parents. When they threaten to keep kids back a grade if they failed... and they did.  When the worst thing you could do at school was smoke in the bathrooms. ,flunk a test or chew gum.  And the prom was in the auditorium and we danced to an orchestra, and all the girls wore pastel gowns, and the boys wore suits for the first time,
 they stayed out all night.
 When a'57 Chevy was everyone's dream car... to cruise, peel out, lay rubber or watch submarine races, and people went steady and girls wore a class ring with an inch of dental floss or yarn coated with pastel frost nail polish so it would fit her finger.
 And no one ever asked where the car keys were 'cause they were always in the ignition, and he doors were never locked. And you got into big trouble if you accidentally locked the doors at home, since no one ever had a key. Remember lying on your back on the grass with your friends and saying things
 'like that cloud looks like a..."
 And playing baseball with no adults to help kids with the rules of the game. Back then, baseball was not a psychological group learning experience-it was a game.
 Remember when stuff came from the store came without safety caps and hermetic seals 'cause no one had yet tried to poison a perfect stranger,
 and with all our progress... don't you just wish...just once...you could slip back in time and savor the slower pace... and share it with the children of the 80's and 90's...
 So send this on to someone who can still remember Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, Laurel and Hardy, Howdy Doody and the peanut Gallery, the Lone Ranger, The Shadow knows, Nellie Belle, Roy and Dale, Trigger and Buttermilk... as well as the sound of a real mower on Saturday morning, and summers filled with bike rides, playing in cowboy land, baseball games, bowling and visits to the pool...eating Kool-aid powder with sugar.
  When being sent to the principal's office was nothing compared to the fate awaited a misbehaving student at home. Basically, we were in fear for our lives., but it wasn't because of drive by-shootings,
 Drugs,gangs, etc. Our parents and grandparents were a much bigger threat! But we all survived because their love was greater than the threat. Didn't that feel good, just go back and say.
  I remember that!
        
                       

Jehovah the Good Shepherd. Psalm 23.

A Psalm of David, a hymn written by David by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost (Spirit), an expression of not only of David's personal faith and trust, but of the confidence which all believers have in goodness, love, and grace of God and of their Savior Jesus Christ, brought out all the more strongly since it is spoken in the name of each individual Christian. The Lord Jehovah, the God of grace and faithfulness, the redeemer of mankind, not only God the Father, Gen.48, 15;  49, 24,, but also God the Son, Jesus Christ in particular, is "my Shepard", to whom every believer stands in relation of the most intimate fellowship, by whom and in whom he lives, through whose mighty power the life of his soul is sustained."I SHALL NOT WANT!" Being supplied with all gifts and blessings for this world and the world to come. The Psalms teach us to pray, to properly understand he psalms, the Isralite's attempts at expressing their experience of God. Bolt of lighting, the grandeur of a mountain , the warming of the Sun and the nourishing rain, all remaining them of abiding presence of the Lord. The psalms represent an effort to put into words their contemplative  experience of God. The psalm s are songs of the people who knew God as a personal God. We cannot Love a person we do not know. Praising God in the words of the psalms, and listening to what He is saying.
  He maketh me to lie down in "Green pastures"  where the best spirtual food is found in abundance; He leadeth me besides still waters, where the refreshing streams of His grace flow softly and gently with the beauty of the Gospel. The "Good Shepherd" gives food and drink, rest and peace. The gifts of love. for this world and the world to come. "He restoreth my soul, when my spirits droop, on account of sin and afflictions of this world. He leadeth me in paths of righteousness, where roads are straight, and there is no chance of stumbling: " for His name's sake. through these blessings nourish with true confidence of faith in our hearts as believers, for though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, where darkness and terror surround the believer, I will fear no evil in the proper defiance of death faith; for thou are with me. Thy rod and staff protecting me with,  the means of grace as in every trouble  affecting body and soul.
 Thou prepare a table before me setting a joyful and rich festival meal, in the presence of my enemies, for they are helpless in the presence of the mighty shepherd.
  Our privileged in life as Christians, is to praise God as sovereign Lord of heaven and earth. Our  whole life must be dedicated to this end. As we  behold the Lord in all his majesty and splendor, our natural response is to praise him.  One of the time honored methods of praising God as creator and king, as provider and protector, is by praying those inspired hymns of praise which makes up the Psalter. They are expression of adoration, worship, and honor to our glorious Lord and God.  Through the words of the Psalms we can voice gratitude. to our loving provident Father. In the Psalms we find prayers of petition. What ever is holding you back from getting close to Jesus, Finding peace in your faith, not trusting your own power, but, Jehovah's mercy in the means of grace. " For thou are with me, thy rod and staff they comfort me.
  Our privileged in life as Christians, is to praise and glorify God as sovereign  Lord of heaven and earth. One of the time honored methods of praising God as creator and King, as provider and protector, is by praying those inspired hymns of praise which makes up the Psalter.
 The Psalm are prayers that help us express the praise arising in our hearts. The humbled contrite heart he will not turn away," during our earthly life.  In the Psalms we find prayers of petition. Psalm 95 is a good place to start and end with the solicitous Good Shepherd (Christ), Psalm 23.
 With the psalmist, we come to the rock for strength and protection. Remember the Psalms are the songs of people who knew God as a personal Savior. They knew him with their heart. We can not love a God we do not know. Praising God in the words of the Psalms, and if we listen to what He is saying, it will help us know him better, which will increase our love for him. The Psalms are a record of salvation history. They are historical  as they relate God's dealing with his people in Old Testament times. The Psalms are also Christological. The are full of the incarnate word. Jesus prayed the Psalms. He confirmed the theology of the Psalms by quoting them in his own teaching ministry The Psalms have a ecclesial dimension they are used extensively in the liturgy of the church.
 Even though the psalms were composed in the Old Testament, they are deeply trinitarian. To the Father is attributed the work of creation. His on going providential care is praised and glorified in many psalms. The Royal psalms foretell the coming of the "Messianic King." (Christ).  In the songs of Israel, God's  work sanctification performed by The "Holy Spirit," is praised and glorified.
  This accent on praying with the Psalms is by no means new in the church. The psalms are the source of many different methods of prayer recommended by the church throughout the centuries. They play an important role in the sacramental liturgies , especially in the Eucharist (communion). They also form the main body of the church's daily prayer.
 One fundamental truth which the psalms can teach us is that real peace comes primarily from our submission to God's will, and our total trust and confidence in him as our Loving "Father!"
  As we pray the psalms, we expose our thinking to God's word. There we discover his will. As we rest in his presence, our will becomes gradually conformed to his. This is the source of great joy in our lives. Many of the psalms are particularly appropriate for time of suffering and trial. At some time we all fell short, being wounded, scarred, or broken by our sinfulness. The psalms show us how the suffering of the psalmist prefigured the agony of Jesus in the garden, his rejection and death, which eventually led to his glorification. We must submit to his will, Because prayer is a gift from God we must remain receptive to the kind of prayer in which he is leading us.
  Psalm 23, is probably the best known and most widely used of the whole collection of inspired prayers. It portrays, in beautiful  pastoral imagery, God as a shepherd caring for his sheep. His loving care as a shepherd covers all, protection, guidance, nourishment, and above all love.