Alaska – Page 7 – Alaska Bible Teacher

How to Die Well

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

Psalm 23:4, ESV

“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.”

Psalm 116:15

“Death is like my car. It takes me where I want to go.”

Pastor John Piper

Our generation simply doesn’t know how to die well. There are many conflicting messages and attitudes which have steered us away from the reality of dying. Much of it is the natural development of unbelief. Our pop culture develops this and gives it momentum. We are trying to convince ourselves that “death is impossible, my life will not end.” But we’re escaping into a delusion. And it only intensifies as we age.

We are running from what is real.

There is a Latin phrase, Ars moriendi (“The Art of Dying”) which the Church practiced in past generations. In the past, Christians would be buried as close as possible to a Church building. Many would be interred within the very walls of the Church. The understanding was that the dead were part of the congregation. That there was only a thin veil that stood between the living and the dead.

The dead didn’t just vanish. They still live. We just don’t see them.

Our generation is confused. We have forced death to wear a mask. We insist on a significant camouflage to hide the reality of sickness and death. No one really ever talks about it, and so no instructions are given on how to die well. So we don’t, and we die poorly–often in ICUs. We die sedated, separated and unable to process dying. We never help our families process it.

For many, the fear of dying is intense and paralyzing.

It’s time for the Church to step up and guide us to our next step. Our pastors and elders have got to prepare us to die well. It is a part of being a disciple. It is discipleship, and dying is inclusive. We need somebody to prepare us for the inevitable and the certainty that is approaching us. I need someone that will help me face my own death.

You know what? No one escapes.

And the reality of that drives some of us mad, or addicted, or psychotic. The idea of filling a casket up for forever is incomprehensible. We cannot live with this sick idea of dying. It disturbs us on the deepest level possible. It is completely evil.

Psalm 23 has been pure comfort and healing for generations. And it is an excellent starting point for us. Verse 4 develops the idea of traversing death. The writer has incredible insight of passing through death. This verse alone is worth billions of dollars in gold.

Psalm 23 has been pure comfort and healing for generations. And it is an excellent starting point for us. Verse 4 develops the idea of traversing death. The writer has incredible insight of passing through death. Psalm 23 has made me a very wealthy man. His Word has become my rich treasure.

“Some day you will read in the papers that D.L. Moody of East Northfield, is dead. Don’t you believe a word of it! At that moment I shall be more alive than I am now; I shall have gone up higher, that is all, out of this old clay tenement into a house that is immortal- a body that death cannot touch, that sin cannot taint; a body fashioned like unto His glorious body.”

D.L. Moody

But God…

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ — by grace you have been saved.”

(Ephesians 2:4–5)

But God. Short words with a powerful meaning, used over 4100 times in the Bible (every 7 verses). It’s used to imply intervention and change, typically a holy interruption of some kind. This verse in Ephesians 2 describes the Father getting involved in a tangible way.

We were terribly lost–actually the Bible says, “dead.”

But He is rich in love and mercy, and it’s grace (and only grace] that makes us alive. Now we’re not reformed or rehabilitated. These are good words, but the verse describes a resurrection–a revivification. The dead live!

Jesus actually resurrects each believer.

“But God.” Joseph learned that “all things work together for good.” His brothers cruelty sold him into slavery and even though he endured prison, he would become the prime minister of Egypt. After many years his wicked brothers come before him. Revenge? Not on your life.

“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.“

Genesis 50:20

“Joseph’s early life was filled with severest adversity. Sold into Egypt, thrust into prison, he might well have decided that all his early dreams were brainstorms. He might have asked, “What’s the use?” But God turned the evil designs of men to the good of many. One cannot say, “All these things are against me,” if he believes that all things work together for good to God’s people.”

Vance Havner

Let God have His way with you. Acknowledge His sovereignty by allowing Him to interrupt when He wants to. He is active in our lives. Having resurrected us from the dead, the Holy Spirit becomes actively involved in our lives (and He brings us grace and beauty).

If you do this, I expect great things for you.

“My flesh and my heart may fail, But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

Psalm 73:26

No Doctor Could Heal Me

A woman suffering from bleeding for twelve years, who had spent all she had on doctors and yet could not be healed by any, approached from behind and touched the end of his robe. Instantly her bleeding stopped.

⁴⁵“Who touched me?” Jesus asked.

When they all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the crowds are hemming you in and pressing against you.”

Luke 8:43-45

(Matthew 9:20-22)

I just had to touch Him. I had to reach out and somehow get His attention. It was no longer an option. I bled all the time and it wouldn’t stop. It was constant, and it had been 12 miserable years. No one or nothing could cure this, no doctor, no medicine. I was so desperate. It had to stop, you must understand, I was dying.

I had spent so much money on so many doctors.

I had nothing left. Each doctor promised a cure and my hopes were always dashed. But then I heard about a teacher named Jesus, I was told He had the power to raise the dead and heal every disease He encountered. I don’t really know why, but instantly I knew only He could heal me.

I had an issue of blood, that meant I was ritually unclean and all that I touched became unclean. The temple was off-limits to me, I had been cut off from sacrifice and any kind of personal forgiveness for my sins. In my darker moments, I really wondered if God really had forsaken me? Was I damned?

After all, it had been 12 long years.

What I had to do must be done secretly and quietly. I knew I just somehow had to touch this man. I would have to wriggle my way through the crowd to get close enough. I would be violating ritual law and if I got caught and I’d be harshly censured and condemned. I was unclean and I knew only He could change that.

And I was always tired. Sometimes I barely could walk without feeling faint.

The crowds were packed all around Him, but honestly, I knew all I needed was just a simple touch. I knew Jesus had the power. I just knew it. I needed somehow to get close enough; I knew that everything depended on me somehow connecting with Him.

So I waited and watched. I tried to jockey myself and get in the right position. The crowds were tightly surrounding Jesus, I had to push, drive and squeeze. Sometimes I had to get on my hands and knees. But in that split second when He passed, I just managed to grab just the very outside corner of the tassel of His head covering.

And immediately the flow stopped. Just like that! I felt it inside, and immediately knew what happened. Finally I knew, deep down, I had been healed! I was clean.

_____

Please understand dear one, only Jesus can free you. If you can only reach out and touch Him, He will change you– forever.

“Christ is the Good Physician. There is no disease He cannot heal; no sin He cannot remove; no trouble He cannot help.”

James H. Aughey

The Leper Meets Jesus

“When he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him. ²And behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” ³And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.”

Matthew 8:1-4

It was a wild scene, we can’t forget this. But it’s funny, Jesus through all this sees and hears this leper. He doesn’t respond to the crowd but to the diseased man. The text tells us that the leperous man was on his knees and he was “praying.” His pleas were directed at Jesus.

But remember, the end of the previous verses explains exactly what’s happening. Matthew 7:28-29, (MSG) explains their excitement–

“When Jesus concluded his address, the crowd burst into applause. They had never heard teaching like this. It was apparent that he was living everything he was saying—quite a contrast to their religion teachers! This was the best teaching they had ever heard.“

The crowds responded wildly to the marvelous teaching of Jesus, and that was awesome. We really shouldn’t minimize that. However, in the Gospels, the “crowd” is pretty much a bad term, or at least a neutral one.

I suppose that Jesus seems to ignore the multitude’s extremely positive reaction. He knows it won’t last. The fickle crowd will soon cry out and demand His crucifixion.

But I understand, I’m that leper and He sees me.

Scripture tells me that Jesus now sits in heaven and makes intercession for me. He focuses on just me, I’m the center of His care–but I also know that attention is also on you, and others, and yet I’m assured that He sees me and each of His sheep. This should be a comfort. He concentrates and ministers to the person, and never to the multitude.

Jesus loves you, and He loves me too.

“So he told them this parable: ⁴“What man among you, who has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open field and go after the lost one until he finds it? ⁵When he has found it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders, ⁶and coming home, he calls his friends and neighbors together, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, because I have found my lost sheep!’”

Luke 15:3-6

The Great Sculptor’s Shop

“Written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.”

Romans 9:20, ESV

“Christianity is a world that is a great sculptor’s shop. We are the statues and there a rumor going around the shop that some of us are some day going to come to life.”

C.S. Lewis

Scripture describes the process of becoming like Jesus in different ways. But one is a potter fashioning something beautifully useful. He works to bring out something good from that which is formless. Both the potter, and the sculptor, fully intend to create something out of improbable clay or hard marble.

What sculpture is to a block of marble, so is a person who is being shaped into the image of God.

“For we are his workmanship.” Ephesians 2:10

The word used for workmanship is ποίημα, poíēma, and this word strongly suggests something that a creator does, and it’s also used in Genesis 1 to describe God making the earth. I suppose that it’s His “work” that goes into the reality of all we see. He designs it all.

God is also a sculptor, but not one limited to granite or marble.

Instead, He sculpts our characters. He can take a sinful human being and mold and chisel and hammer away until that person reflects something of heaven’s glory.

The Sculptor must do with us as the sculptor did with the stone. He must bring to bear upon us the sharp chisel of circumstances, of disappointment, of trial. These are tough, and sometimes painful. It seems that these things will destroy us.

The marble is chosen by the artist to meet the need. He becomes aware of the stone–you might say that he looks for the image hidden in the marble.

God is a sculptor, but not one limited to granite or marble. Instead, He sculpts our character. He can take a sinful human being and mold and chisel and hammer away until that person reflects something of heaven’s glory.

I beseech you to accept the chisel.

Let Him do the work of the Spirit in you. As He chips away it may seem like destruction. But the sculptor is a master, he has studied the marble and knows exactly what it takes to shape out what He wants.

Trust in His wisdom and love. He knows what He is doing. Of that I have no doubt.

Can you accept God’s tools? Do you trust Him?

Do You Really Love the Master?

How much do you love Jesus? This parable looks at the heart of the believer, the person who has been incredibly forgiven of everything–past, present and future. And it’s here we see a woman whose heart is broken by her sin, and she discovers Jesus’ grace, and tremendous mercy.

“A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. ⁴²When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” ⁴³Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.”

⁴⁴“Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. ⁴⁵You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. ⁴⁶You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.”

⁴⁷“Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.”

Luke 7:40-47

Jesus has been invited to Simon’s home. He’s a Pharisee, and at this point they haven’t quite banded together to attack Jesus, it seems that there were still some Pharisees who were true seekers.

The text jumps right in and we see Jesus reclining at a table (the Jewish people didn’t use chairs–pillows were used instead.) At a feast like this people who weren’t officially invited could come in to stand in the back and listen in on the conversation. (That seems awkward.)

Suddenly a woman enters the room.

She’s described as “a woman of the city,” which is a code word for “a sinner, or a harlot.” (Let your imagination roll that one around.) She comes with a definite purpose, for she brings a jar of quite expensive perfume with her.

The passage reveals that she’s on her knees, weeping on Jesus’ feet, and rubbing her tears with her hair, and pouring out the perfume. She’s kissing his feet. She’s obviously a broken person—someone who knows who Jesus is, and who understands who she is, and how deep sin has destroyed her.

At this point Simon is deeply offended, and probably embarrassed by what’s happening. But he also assumes that Jesus isn’t who he’s saying he is. “How dare does this man let an unclean person even touch Him!” But Jesus understands everything. His parable is short (just two verses) and it’s directed at Simon; and it’s a no-brainer.

The interpretation is obvious: the man who owes the most will love the most.

Jesus accentuates Simon’s breach of protocol. The Lord deftly explains the entire situation and Simon is busted. He’s put on the spot and Jesus has made his point. It’s all so obvious. The essence of the story is clear. How much do you love the Master?

Do you fully fathom how much sin Jesus has forgiven you?

(Or maybe you’re a Simonite?)

Perhaps you’re someone who doesn’t quite accept what’s real? The Bible tells us repeatedly that no one is righteous. No one. Scripture has a very low opinion of the righteousness of men. (That should shatter your thinking.)

“But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.”

Isaiah 64:6, KJV

The Hebrew word for “filthy rags” is extremely graphic–literally it means “a menstruating cloth.” It was something that a woman used before Tampax came along. How very descriptive. Do we even have the slightest idea what that means? Are our good deeds that bad?

Yes they are. Isaiah announces that’s exactly how God sees our best attempts to find acceptance apart from grace. It often seems we try to please Him by doing the best we can, but that isn’t sufficient. We always fall short and mess up.

How does understanding this change our discipleship? I’ll let you be the judge on this on this one.

“He loved us not because we are lovable, but because He is love.”

C.S. Lewis

Love Wears Work Gloves

“But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him?”

“Little children, let us not love in words or talk but in deeds and in truth.”

1 John 3:17-18, ESV

Love is a noble idea, it’s admired and extolled by practically everyone–we see it in our music and poetry, ethics and religion. For the most part it’s a word for something decent and virtuous and honorable. It’s a good thing, but I’m afraid it’s not always scriptural.

You see, Bible love wears work gloves.

It labors and sweats. Bible love has chores to do, and it actively looks and sees what needs to be done. 1 John 3 tells us that we shouldn’t deceive ourselves and only see the world’s definition. That love that a believer has is to be different.

Love, in John’s eyes, is most assuredly “doing.” It burns spiritual calories as it labors to serve our brothers and sisters. Love finds things it can do–it doesn’t just talk but it gets busy. Love sees the need and then gets down to serve.

“You must show sincere love to each other as brothers and sisters. Love each other deeply with all your heart.”

1 Peter 1:22

Working (serving) has nothing to do with our salvation, that is a free gift. We’re saved by grace through the blood of Jesus–that’s a given. And this serving love isn’t drudgery, as a matter of fact, working and serving each other is a joy. The deepest kind of joy there is.

Our words, although important, are really an insufficient way of proving our authenticity. The love we serve another with isn’t “pretty poetry” kind of love. It’s so easy to just shout out truth and never ever show a working, serving kind of love.

That disconnect is a bit disconcerting. When do we suppose we figure out that His love is actually a verb?

The Snare: Psalm 91

“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
²I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”

Psalm 91:1-2, NIV

This psalm focuses on being intimate with our heavenly Father.

Throughout the entire chapter, we see personal pronouns used. In contrast to other psalms that are directed to the nation, this one is written to an individual. This personal focus makes this a favorite psalm for many.

Shelter and shadow, refuge and fortress.

These are the opening ‘word pictures’ and they’re used very adeptly. The psalmist writes what he knows, and it is apparent that he understands deeply the needs of the human spirit, and its protection. Each of these four words creates a common link between believers. Each of us needs a working understanding of all four protections.

I should ‘dwell’ in God’s sheltered care. All too often, I wander out past the security of the Lord (or maybe I’m lured out?) But there is safety in having God so close to us. His proximity is for my protection.

“Surely he will save you
    from the fowler’s snare
    and from the deadly pestilence.
⁴He will cover you with his feathers,
    and under his wings you will find refuge;
    his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.”

Psalm 91:3-4

V.v. 3-4, maintains its personal tone. ‘Save you’ (salvation) is far more than a theological term. The psalmist is not speaking ‘doctrine’ as much as the psalm describes a loving embrace. He is rescued from a deadly trap, and jumping from metaphor to metaphor, he engages our imaginations to ‘see’ God’s salvation. The writer knows his stuff.

The Lord is pictured as a protective bird that covers his chicks.

We have a sure confidence as we gather together in that warm and safe spot under His wing. Whatever is after us has to go through God first. His presence is formidable. In His company is found our only safety.

“What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.”

Romans 8:31, 33

All of heaven is rallying for your well-being. You are sure of this based on your faith in God’s own word. He has ‘busted us’ out of a dark cage, and now defends you against all your enemies.

And that is a very good thing.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bryan.lowe

The Church is Collecting Sinners

The following excerpt is from the devotional book, “Living the Message,” by Eugene H. Peterson. This pastor-professor is probably the person I want to grow up to be like; he has a gentleness and eloquence that is seldom seen–and highly respected.

Dr. Peterson died in 2018.

***********

“When Christian believers gather in churches, everything that can go wrong sooner or later does. Outsiders, on observing this, conclude there is nothing to this religious business, except perhaps, business…and a distant one at that. Insiders see it much differently.”

“Just as a hospital gathers the sick under one roof and labels them as such, the Church collects sinners.”

“Many people outside are just as sick as the ones inside, but their illnesses are either undiagnosed or disguised. It is similar with sinners outside the church.”

“One way to define spiritual life is getting so tired and fed up with yourself you go on to something better, which is following Jesus.”

Some other quotes by Eugene Peterson:

“All the persons of faith I know are sinners, doubters, uneven performers. We are secure not because we are sure of ourselves but because we trust that God is sure of us.”
“Suffering attracts fixers the way road-kills attract vultures.”
“When we sin and mess up our lives, we find that God doesn’t go off and leave us- he enters into our trouble and saves us.”
“That’s the whole spiritual life. It’s learning how to die. And as you learn how to die, you start losing all your illusions, and you start being capable now of true intimacy and love.”
“American religion is conspicuous for its messianically pretentious energy, its embarrassingly banal prose, and its impatiently hustling ambition.”

More Eugene Peterson Quotes…

Disproportionate Suffering

“Some Christians are called to endure a disproportionate amount of suffering. Such Christians are a spectacle of grace to the church, like flaming bushes unconsumed, and cause us to ask, like Moses:

‘Why is this bush not burned up?’

The strength and stability of these believers can be explained only by the miracle of God’s sustaining grace. The God who sustains Christians in unceasing pain is the same God — with the same grace — who sustains me in my smaller sufferings. We marvel at God’s persevering grace and grow in our confidence in Him as He governs our lives.”

— John Newton, author of “Amazing Grace”

+++

All of us know a brother or sister who seems to be a target of an undue amount of suffering. It seems like they’re always in the furnace. All we can do really is to shake our heads and then give them double honor for their faith in God’s grace and providence.

Ministering to these extreme sufferers can be a real challenge.

What can we say to those who seem to be on “God’s anvil?” How can we bless those who are in unbelievable pain?

Perhaps a very simple word of calm encouragement is the only real way to touch their hearts. They often don’t need another teaching or a link to a website. In the midst of some awful difficulties, I once had a dear brother who gently and carefully quoted Philippians 1:6 to me over and over whenever we met and whenever we parted:

^“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”

Philippians 1:6

It was a precious thing that he did. I didn’t mind it all, as a matter of fact, I grew to like it. At first, I’ll admit it was strange, but my faith began to ‘mix’ with the Word and I began to believe it. It’s now my favorite verse in the Bible.

He refused to preach or counsel me. The light he carried was more than enough.

He had the maturity to see what God was doing and to make himself available to God on my behalf. Perhaps that patience he showed should become our own method of choice? I look forward to seeing him someday, someway. (If you hear someone quoting Philippians 1:6 in heaven, that will probably be Fred.) 🙂

“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.”

Romans 5:3

A keyword in this verse is “rejoice.”

It is a good reminder that the pain we feel is not the end. These trials have a limited duration (although admittedly it seems far away). There is coming a day when we can navigate through these issues and come out on the other side. “We will shine like the stars” (Daniel 12:3).

Much wisdom is needed in our ministry to disproportionate sufferers. We should have a fear of intruding on the work the Lord is doing. We must be patient and humble in this matter. There is no rushing God, after all, it’s His work. Most importantly we must be very much ‘present’ for our friend.

But not only that! We even take pride in our problems, because we know that trouble produces endurance,