Pastor Brian's Blog

The Bible tells us that the Lord is watching over His word to perform it.

There is nothing God loves more than keeping His promises. He is actively watching and waiting for us to simply take Him at his word.

He is watching over Matthew 18:18.

He is watching over Isaiah 59:21.

He is watching over Luke 7:23.

He is watching over each and every promise, and if that doesn't fill you with holy confidence, nothing will.

I think I got the joy of gift giving from my dad. I also picked up a little idiosyncrasy. Typically, children beg their parents to open gifts before the designated date, whether it is birthday or Christmas. Not my dad.

My dad would give me a gift for my birthday or Christmas and he couldn't stand for me to wait until the designated time,  so he would encourage my brother and I to open them early.

And now looking back, I see where I did that with our two girls. I wanted them to see the gift, present, or blessing that I had for them. I got more joy out of buy and giving than the girls did in receiving, don't mistake me, my two girls LOVE getting gifts, as do all children.

Parents begging their children to open their gifts early may seem a little dysfunctional, but this is the heart of our heavenly Father.

He can hardly wait to keep His promises.

He can hardly wait to perform His word.

He can hardly wait to answer our prayers.

And when we simply take Him at His word, He can hardly contain His joy.

My favorite sentence in the twenty-third Psalm is this: "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life." The word follow isn't a strong enough illustration.

It's a hunting term in Hebrew. It's like God is hunting you down - but not to harm you; God is hunting you down to bless you. He wants to show you His goodness and His mercy, but too often we run away from it. Why? Because we doubt His good intentions. We can't believe that God is for us. This is why God reminds us so many different times in many different ways and with many different words."

GOD LOVES YOU!

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The Story: On Sunday Bubba Watson, one of the most untraditional golfers on the PGA Tour, was the surprise winner of the 2012 Masters Tournament. However, golf is not Bubba Watson's top priority. What he considers most important can be gleaned from the description on his Twitter account:"@bubbawatson: Christian. Husband. Daddy. Pro Golfer. Owner of General Lee 1."

The Back Story: In an interview with Trevor Freeze of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, Watson tells how he uses his Twitter account---along with his PGA platform--- to share about his faith in Christ. Here's the Link:

http://www.billygraham.org/articlepage.asp?articleid=8573

"For me, it's just showing the Light," said Watson. "There's people who want to put down Christians. I try to tell them Jesus loves you. It's just a way to be strong in my faith."

Last month Watson's Tweeted before his third round: The most important thing in my life? Answer:  Later that day he posted on his account, "Most important things in my life- 1. God 2. Wife 3. Family 4. Helping others 5. Golf"

"Lecrae said it the best," Watson said of the Christian rapper he listens to on his iPod. "He doesn't want to be a celebrity. He doesn't want to be a superstar. He just wants to be the middle man for you to see God through him."

Why It Matters: Christians have always been involved in professional sports, so why is the faith of superstars like Tim Tebow, Jeremy Lin, and Bubba Watson suddenly getting the public's attention? Perhaps it's because these athletes are open and unapologetic about their willingness to share the Gospel. They also keep their priorities in order, winsomely admitting that their life's callings are secondary to serving the Creator who has called them. To a culture that is both obsessed and disillusioned with fame and fortune, the centered perspective of these superstars provides a refreshingly countercultural witness.

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The meaning of Easter is Jesus Christ's victory over death. His resurrection symbolizes the eternal life that is granted to all who believe in Him. The meaning of Easter also symbolizes the complete verification of all that Jesus preached and taught during His three-year ministry. If He had not risen from the dead, if He had merely died and not been resurrected, He would have been considered just another teacher or Rabbi. However, His resurrection changed all that and gave final and irrefutable proof that He was really the Son of God and that He had conquered death once and for all.

However, Easter did not always symbolize Christ's resurrection from the dead and the meaning of Easter was quite different than what Christians celebrate today. The feast day of Easter was originally a pagan celebration of renewal and rebirth. Celebrated in the early spring, it honored the pagan Saxon goddess Eastre. When the early missionaries converted the Saxons to Christianity, the holiday, since it fell around the same time as the traditional memorial of Christ's resurrection from the dead, was merged with the pagan celebration, and became known as Easter. The meaning of Easter was also changed to reflect its new Christian orientation.

Today, the meaning of Easter, for millions of Christians, is that of honoring and recognizing Jesus Christ's resurrection from the dead, and His glorious promises of eternal life for all who believe in Him.

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So, how do we truly present ourselves to God as a living sacrifice? In a nutshell, we must die to our prior selves (Shelve in 2012). This concept is wonderfully presented in the following......

When you are forgotten, neglected, or purposely set at naught, and you don't sting or hurt with the oversight, but your heart is happy being counted worthy to suffer for Christ;

That is dying to self.

When your good is evil spoken of, when your wishes are crossed, your advice disregarded, your opinion ridiculed, and you refuse to let anger rise in your heart or even defend yourself, but take it all in patient, loving silence;

That is dying to self.

 

When you lovingly and patiently bear any disorder, any irregularity, any annoyance; when you can stand face to face with waste, folly, extravagance, spiritual insensibility, and endure it as Jesus did;

That is dying to self.

 

When you are content with any food, and offering, any raiment, any climate, any society, any solitude, any interruption by the will of God;

That is dying to self.

When you never care to refer to yourself in conversation or record your own good works or itch after commendation, when you can truly love to be unknown;

That is dying to self.

 

When you can see your brother prosper and have his needs met, and can honestly rejoice with him in spirit and feel no envy, nor question God, while your own needs are far greater and you are in desperate circumstances;

That is dying to self.

 

When you can receive correction and reproof from one of less stature than yourself and can humbly submit, inwardly as well as outwardly, finding no rebellion or resentment rising up within your heart;

That is dying to self.

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Bethel Church's Theme for 2012

Let me explain, We need to say NO to self and take self off the throne of our heart, and place Christ there forever. So in essence we are "Shelving our self" (Deny ourselves)

To DELVE into something means to (dig, look into, dig and explore) into something. We must get into God like never before, we must get a hold of the Lord and never let go.

Therefore the Theme: Shelve & Delve Yourself in Twelve

I really anticipate, maybe even foresee 2012 being very interesting in many ways, both positively and negatively.  

Jesus says in Mark 8:34 "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me."

      1. Deny themselves = SHELVE

"He must increase and I must decrease" (Shelve)

       2. Take up the cross and follow = DELVE

"Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth." (Delve)

Back to Mark 8:34

This message of our Lord has lost some of its punch in our modern world today.

This is a Message of total surrender to God.

This is a Message of Obeying God and Walking by Faith.

This is a Message of presenting yourself to God as a living sacrifice.

This is a Message of saying to God:

"Lord, I am bought for a price. I am Your purchased possession. You redeemed me. I am Yours. Use me. Do with me as You want. I am totally and completely Yours. All I am, and all I have belongs to You. I will no longer walk by sight but will walk by total Faith and Trust in You for all things, no matter how difficult things appear to get. I am ready to do what You want. I am ready to go where You say. I am nothing of myself. My trust is totally in You, Lord Jesus."

Think on This:

Consider a person that comes to Christ by Faith. He takes out a large piece of paper and begins to write everything that he possesses on it. He makes a promise to God; he will forsake all these things for God. He signs the paper.

God then speaks to him, telling him to tear up the paper. He doesn’t understand but Obeys. God then speaks to him to take another paper and sign it. He asks God, "What shall I put on it before I sign it?" The Lord tells him, "Write nothing. Just sign the blank paper. I the Lord will fill it in." As time passed, little by little, God did fill it in. This man became a Missionary. One day he found himself sick and dying on a road in Africa, a long distance from any doctor or hospital, but God rescued him. He found himself in many, almost impossible situations during his walk with Jesus. He was tried, he suffered, he was beaten, destitute, facing many fears, but God brought him through it all. He learned to walk by Faith. He learned Obedience by the things which he Suffered. He learned Patience.

Many years passed. He thought back to the time when he was at the altar with a blank paper that he had signed, and God had told him, "I the Lord will fill it in." He had no idea what that had meant at the time, but now he did.

He gave up everything he had. However, that was only the beginning. He had now learned what it meant to "Follow Jesus." He had now learned that satan (sorry, I don't like to capitalize satan) would often try to deceive him in his submission to Jesus, by causing him to go to the left hand or the right hand with things that did not line up with the Scriptures. In addition, satan tried to convince the man that he should sit on the throne of his own heart. It had been a rough journey. It had been a tiresome race, but Jesus was with him all the way, as Jesus sat upon the throne of the man's heart.

What God expects from each of His saints is this. Paul spoke these words before he was martyred:

·         2 Tim. 4:7 "I have found a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith."

At the Judgment, he can expect to hear, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."

What God ultimately expects of each saint is to be totally SOLD OUT TO JESUS in every way with an UNCOMPROMISED LOVE. Jesus is to be totally the center of our thinking and of our universe.

 

Shelve & Delve Yourself in Twelve

 

·                     Mark 12:30 "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength."

·                     1 John 2:15 "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him."

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Honestly, did Almighty God put us on this planet to devote 99% of our energy and efforts to being a slave to this world? Was the purpose of God that humans should devote TWO hours per week to worshipping Him while willingly giving the other 166 hours to selfish and/or worldly causes?

From the time God placed man in the Garden, his purpose was to give Praise to God, work and love. Nothing much has changed from God's perspective. Our purpose even now is to praise God both through worship and living our lives in such a way as to glorify Him. Our purpose in life is not to please others or ourselves but Him who has called us with a holy calling.

People wrestle with these issues every day. Millions of dollars are spent daily on therapy and drugs as people try to understand who they are and why they are here. Couple this with total ignorance of why things happen as they do and you have people who are pretty much lost in a maze with no way out.

Some Christians get caught up in "causes" and forget what our faith is really all about. When too much energy and effort is devoted to lifestyle issues. It turns our faith into a religion; Christianity is not a religion but rather our very life.

I saw a T-shirt that read "I am a heart donor in that I gave my heart to God." The reality of our faith lies in our willingness to give God our heart and not a few minutes of our time. The truth of who we are in Christ and what we are here to do is found in our loving service to Him instead of devoting our lives to ourselves.

Let us "SHELVE OURSELF" and put "God" on the throne of our heart. Let us "DELVE" into God with all our heart.

Anyone who makes the leap from reluctantly giving God two hours per week to freely giving Him their very heart has tapped into what our Christian faith is all about.

Are you a heart donor? If not, I pray you will in 2012.

Theme for Bethel Church this year is:

"Shelve & Delve Yourself in Twelve"

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The 12 days of Christmas refers to the 12 days of feasting and celebration originally designated in the sixth century as a time to honor the incarnation of Christ. (God becoming Flesh)  The 12-day period began on December 25 and ended January 5.

 

The carol dates to the 16th century when Catholics were experiencing religious persecution in England. From 1558 until 1829 it was illegal for them to practice or express their faith in any form in public.

 

If fact, to be caught in public with any material about the Christian faith brought imprisonment and death. Out of this intense persecution, "The 12 Days of Christmas" emerged as a kind of coded message affirming belief in Christ and in the Bible.

 

Each of the 12 days represents some important aspect of the Christian faith that the disciple was to learn and adhere to. Below is the hidden meaning behind this clever Christmas carol.

 

First day: The "partridge in a pear tree" represents the birth of Christ on Christmas day. Christ is portrayed as a partridge because of the instinctive behavior of the mother partridge; she would pretend to be injured in order to decoy predators away from their helpless young. Jesus hung on the tree for us.

 

Second day: "Two turtle doves" refers to the Old Testament and the New Testament, which together bear witness to God's self-revelation in history and the creation of a people to tell the Story of God to the world.

The Old Testament has 39 books total.

Pentateuch - 5 books
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy

Historical Books - 12 books
Joshua, Judges, Ruth, First Samuel, Second Samuel, First Kings, Second Kings, First Chronicles, Second Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther.

Poetic books - 5 books
Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon

Prophetic books - 17 books
  Major Prophets - Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel

  Minor Prophets - Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.

The New Testament has 27 books total, which consist of...

The Gospels - Matthew, Mark, Luke, John,

Acts of the Apostles - Acts

Pauline Epistles - Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon

Other Epistles - Hebrews, James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Jude,

The Revelation Jesus - Revelation

 

Third day: "Three French hens" stands for the three virtues written about in 1 Corinthians 13:12-13  Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. 13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

 

Forth day: "Four calling birds" symbolizes the four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, which proclaim the Good News of God's reconciliation of the world to Himself in Jesus Christ.

Matthew - Presents Jesus as the Messiah. 

Mark - Presents Jesus as the Servant.

Luke - Presents Jesus as the Son of Man.

John - Presents Jesus as God in flesh, the Savior.

 

Fifth day: "Five golden rings" points to the first five books of the Old Testament, which gives the history of humanity's sinful failure and God's response of grace in the creation of a people to be a light to the world.

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.

 

Sixth day: "Six geese a-laying" stands for the six days of creation and the affirmation that almighty God is the creator and sustainer of all things.

Day 1: The heavens, the earth, light and darkness.

Day 2: Heaven

Day 3: Dry land, the seas, and vegetation.

Day 4: The sun, the moon and the stars.

Day 5: Living creatures in the water, birds in the air.

Day 6: Land animals and people.

Seventh day: "Seven swans a-swimming" represents the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit (prophecy, serving, teaching, exhortation, giving, leadership, and mercy)

 

Romans 12:5-8 In Christ we who are many form one body,.... We have different gifts,...

If a man's gift is prophesying, let him prophecy in faith.

If it is serving, let them serve;

If it is teaching, let them teach;

If it is encouraging, let them encourage;

If it is giving to the needs of others, let them give generously;

If it is leadership, let them govern diligently;

If it is showing mercy, let them do it cheerfully.

 

Eighth day: "Eight maids a-milking" stands for the eight beatitudes Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount (see Matthew 5),

"Blessed are" the poor in spirit;

"Blessed are" those who mourn;

"Blessed are" the meek;

"Blessed are" those who hunger and thirst for righteousness;

"Blessed are" the merciful;

"Blessed are" the pure in heart;

"Blessed are" the peacemakers; and

"Blessed are" those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake.

 

Ninth day: "Nine ladies dancing" represents the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22-23:

Love, Joy, Peace,

Longsuffering, Kindness, Goodness,

Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-control.

 

Tenth day: "Ten lords a-leaping" symbolize the Ten Commandments

1. You shall have no other gods before Me.

2. You shall not make for yourself a carved image and bow to it.

3. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.

4. You shall remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.

5. You shall honor your father and your mother.

6. You shall not murder.

7. You shall not commit adultery.

8. You shall not steal.

9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

10. You shall not covet.

 

Eleventh day: "Eleven pipers piping" refers to the 11 faithful disciples. Because Judas Iscariot, the 12th disciple, betrayed Jesus, he is not included among the faithful.

The eleven Faithful Apostles: 1) Simon Peter, 2) Andrew,

3) James (half brother of Jesus), 4) John, 5) Philip, 6) Bartholomew,

7) Matthew, 8) Thomas, 9) James son of Alphaeus,

10) Simon the Zealot, 11) Judas son of James.

 

Twelfth day: "Twelve drummers drumming" emphasizes the 12 doctrinal points of the Apostles’ Creed, which outlines the core beliefs of the Christian faith.

The twelve points of doctrine are:

1) I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.

2) I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.

3) He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.

4) He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell [the grave].

5) On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

6) He will come again to judge the living and the dead.

7) I believe in the Holy Spirit,

8) the holy Church,

9) the communion of saints,

10) the forgiveness of sins,

11) the resurrection of the body,

12) and life everlasting.

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'Twas the night before Jesus came and all through the house
Not a creature was praying, not one in the house.
Their Bibles were lain on the shelf without care
In hopes that Jesus would not come there.

The children were dressing to crawl into bed.
Not once ever kneeling or bowing a head.
And Mom in her rocker with baby on her lap
Was watching the Late Show while I took a nap.

When out of the East there arose such a clatter.
I sprang to my feet to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash!

When what to my wondering eyes should appear
But angels proclaiming that Jesus was here.
With a light like the sun sending forth a bright ray
I knew in a moment this must be THE DAY!

The light of His face made me cover my head
It was Jesus! returning just like He had said.
And though I possessed worldly wisdom and wealth,
I cried when I saw Him in spite of myself.

In the Book of Life which He held in His hand
Was written the name of every saved man.
He spoke not a word as He searched for my name;
When He said "it's not here" my head hung in shame.

The people whose names had been written with love
He gathered to take to His Father above.
With those who were ready He rose without a sound.
While all the rest were left standing around.

I fell to my knees, but it was too late;
I had waited too long and thus sealed my fate.
I stood and I cried as they rose out of sight;
Oh, if only I had been ready tonight.

In the words of this poem the meaning is clear;
The coming of Jesus is drawing near.
There's only one life and when comes the last call
We'll find that the Bible was true after all!

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Today we head to the nation of Jordan.

Wow, what a contrast to Israel. It is hard to describe but there is a big difference in all areas including spiritual.

Here’s a thought that jumps into my mind.

(God’s blessing vrs. A lack of God’s blessing) There is an evident difference in the spiritual climate in Jordan.

Our first stop in Jordan was Mount Nebo. This was the mountain that God took Moses up to. This is where God showed Moses the “Promise Land”.  This is where Moses died and Joshua became the Leader of Israel. 

From the Mt. Nebo you can see the city of Jericho. Also, the smaller mountain where Elijah was taken up in the “Fiery Chariot”. Pretty cool spot. From Mt. Nebo you can see the Jordan Valley, Dead Sea, and the Promise Land.

From here we drove through Moab the land of Ruth and the land of Rueben.  This area has the fortress where Herod killed John the Baptist.

Then we arrive at Petra. Wow, oh Wow what a site.

More later.

 

Pastor Johnson

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We stated out the day with a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. As I looked at the Sea of Galilee, I started to remember all the highlights of Jesus and His disciples. Wow, what an experience it was to be out on the water where our Lord was. (I will share more at Bethel later about this event)

A few years ago they discovered a great find at a shallow spot at the Sea of Galilee. They found a boat from the days of Jesus. So they call it the “Jesus Boat” go to http://www.jesusboat.com/boat.php to read about it.

The next site we saw was the “Mount of Beatitudes”

Jesus gave the GREAT sermon on the mount here. The movie Ben Hur used this site for some of the movie. It is a natural amphitheatre.

Next site was “Peter’s Primacy”. John 21 - This spot on the Sea of Galilee was where Jesus restored Peter after he denied Him three time. This was a really special place. You could actually feel the “grace, peace, and mercy” of Jesus there.

Inside the church they had a large stone where Jesus was cooking the fish when He called the fishing disciples over from their boat. This is when Peter jumps out of the boat and swims to shore. (I will share more later at Bethel)

Then we went to Capernaum. This is where Jesus lived basically for Him ministry years and when Nazareth rejected Him. Capernaum is the north side of the Sea of Galilee.

½ of all of Jesus’ miracles took place within Capernaum. By the way we saw Peter’s house where Jesus healed Peter’s mother in-law.

Next stop was the town of Bethsadia, home town of Andrew and Peter also Phillip. Jesus cursed this town and two others because it would not hear His message. All three towns don’t exist.

More blog later.

Pastor Johnson

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