challenges – Alaska Bible Teacher

Failure, Fish and Forgiveness

“Simon Peter said, “I’m going fishing.” “We’ll come, too,” they all said. So, they went out in the boat, but they caught nothing all night.”

John 21:3

This verse has always got me thinking. I can’t help but wonder why Peter pulled that move. Jesus had put so much effort into His disciples, and still, they just disappeared back to the boat and nets. I guess they just went back to what they knew best—fishing.

I’ve always wondered why. Why return to their lives after Jesus called them from their old lives?

Now there are two views: one suggests Peter acted wisely, while the other sees him as compromised and shaken by his denial and failure as a disciple, buckling under challenge from a servant girl.

So, Simon Peter, and seven others pile in a boat and returned to what Jesus called them from. They revert to their old ways. That’s understandable, but that doesn’t make it right. I think Peter was a little singed when he denied Jesus by the fire.

Peter was about to be restored by Jesus around another fire.

Since Peter had publicly denied Jesus three times, he was now required to respond to three equally public questions. It is noteworthy that this exchange took place openly, reflecting the very nature of his previous denial. Furthermore, it is reasonable to believe that from this moment onward, Peter would lead not from a position of strength, but from a place of profound vulnerability.

Luke 5

In Luke 5, we read of the beginning when they caught absolutely nothing, a moment that embodies the frustration and despair often faced by those who toil without reward. Peter and his crew had fished all night long, diligently casting their nets into the dark waters, yet they had zero to show for it, each failed attempt serving as a reminder of their limitations.

John 21

Pretty much the same thing happened in John 21, where once again the disciples returned to the beach empty-handed after a long night of labor. These stories resonate deeply with us, illustrating the struggles of persistence in the face of apparent failure, while ultimately leading to a greater revelation of hope and fulfillment that follows such trying times.

God’s grace homes in on Peter’s heart.

Both Peter’s calling and Peter’s reinstatement involve a miraculous catch of fish. Luke 5 and John 21 become a fascinating pivot-point for Peter’s walk. Both reveal Jesus’ power and love. Both declare His commitment to Peter.

Man has one desperate need. That is for forgiveness.

Are you frustrated with your discipleship? Are you tempted to return to the things of the past?

Jesus is patiently waiting for you on the beach, full of love and commitment. His promises hold strong and are ever true. Through His own sacrifice and the precious gift of His blood, He has already paid the ransom for you—a deep, unbreakable covenant of love.

He is still your Savior. He knew all your sins, and dark failure. He knew all of this before you were even born.

“Jesus Christ became Incarnate for one purpose, to make a way back to God that man might stand before Him as He was created to do, the friend and lover of God Himself.”

Oswald Chambers

Three Hard Verses, Understood

I’m an ordained Bible teacher. I’ve developed study resources and was a teacher at the Alaska Bible Institute for years. I served as an evangelist in San Francisco and worked as a missionary to Mexico. I’ve have been a pastor serving in Alaska.

And yet there are many verses that I really don’t understand. I may have taught them, but I still haven’t fully grasped them. Here are three that I’m starting to work through.

1) Ecclesiastes 7:16

“Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself?”

How can you be overly righteous? Isn’t being righteous a good thing, after all, isn’t that God really wants from us?

But in this verse, it seems that there exists a form of destruction that comes when we try too hard to please God.

The best I can come up with is that this verse speaks of “self-righteousness.” I suppose this attitude comes from a desire to achieve and excel outside of the righteousness of Jesus. Reflecting on this dynamic of self-effort I can see how offensive it is to God. To strive to approach God by my personal goodness is utterly impossible.

2) Matthew 24:34

“Verily I say unto you, this generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled.”

Basically, the apostles will see the end times entirely on their lifespan. Before they physically die, Jesus will return. This is disturbing because it never happened like I thought it should. Why didn’t He return?

Again, what is Jesus talking about? Are the end times contingent on this sign? And if so, are we deceived by a “non-returning” fake messiah?

They’re maybe a better translation and meaning. Perhaps Jesus was speaking of the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD, about 40 years after Jesus spoke these words. Jesus was acting like a prophet and spoke of the destruction of the Temple within the lifespan of the apostles.

3) John 14:12

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.”

How in the world are we going to do more miracles what Jesus did? Was Jesus overstating things and promising something that could never happen; or maybe our faith deficient? As I read of the miracles that Jesus did. There is no way I can achieve this.

But maybe I’m really misinterpreting things? Maybe my works will never be as sensational as Jesus did; but there will be something of a magnitude about them. Jesus set in motion the kingdom of God on earth. It was like a rock thrown into a still pond. The waves will stretch out and reach the uttermost.

I may never raise the dead or walk on water. But if I share the gospel with my neighbor the kingdom advances. From my home it’s about 6,000 miles to Jerusalem. I’m practically on the other side of the earth. But, His kingdom advances.

These three are just the beginning.

There are other verses or passages that are hard and difficult to interpret. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you, humbly turn to your church elders. Buy a good commentary. (Contact me if you need guidance.)

And if you find that you encounter something that totally mystifies you, (and you will,) I counsel you to approach it with faith, knowing that the Holy Spirit will teach you. That is what He does.

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”

John 14:26

When Pain is All You Can Think About

Sometimes we live in darkness. We suffer and it’s hard. We mentally accept God’s grace and His love for us, but in our heart we remain untouched. Pain saturates everything it seems. We seem to go through the motions, but deep down we’re convinced that we’ll never find the light that so many claim to have.

Since I have a disability I realize I learn things others won’t grasp. I’m learning to embrace the waves that push me to the rock–the Rock of ages. I suppose when I meet Him I’ll understand why it had to be so.

My hope is real. Heaven is home. My pain will be healed.

There is a language of heaven spoken, and those who have suffered speak a dialect of that. Just as someone from Georgia communicates English, their dialect is obvious. The same for those who live in pain. We speak the same, but differently.

Pain sometimes saturates our lives.

We live with something that is persistent, and our hope is a day when it’s all over. Psalm 88 becomes our Psalm. Nothing here is sugar-coated. It is raw and unabridged. It puts our pain under a microscope. That Psalm is entirely yours.

“For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol. I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am a man who has no strength,”

Psalm 88:3-4

“I am certain that I never did grow in grace one-half so much anywhere as I have upon the bed of pain.”

Charles Spurgeon

Giving Flowers to Jesus

“And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.”

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. ³²Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.”

Ephesians 4:30-32, NLT

Sometimes we understand God’s gift of joy to us, it seems wonderful and truly remarkable. We realize that our lives would be quite hollow without it. But have we ever stopped to consider that we have the ability to give Him grief or joy? Is that really possible?

I believe we can bring Him a bouquet of flowers by just obeying!

I believe that the combination of obedience and worship absolutely thrills Him. This passage points out that when our faithfulness to His Spirit gets combined with our praise it’s a powerful combination.

This passage focuses on our obedience.

Verse 30 explains what happens when we obey (and when we won’t). The Holy Spirit goes into mourning when we make our wrong decisions. Our choices, our way of living, determine His sadness (!) or His happiness.(!) That fact should inform and direct us.

We’re now clearly marked people, given a written guarantee by all who understand, resulting in a definite salvation.

But we must respond properly. We’re called to renounce these sins that grieve Him. We can’t continue to be morally and spiritually ugly to Him, and to others around us.

At least if we don’t want to see His tears because of us.

What’s now open to us is this–-kindness, a tender heart, and forgiveness. The forgiveness angle is one that has a special depth. It’s forgiveness that plunges us into all that we’ve been given ourselves. He’s poured out all the wrath on Jesus, enabling us to walk away from the terrible punishment of our sins. We’re fully forgiven because He has absorbed our penalty.

We’re called to be gracious and loving. No matter what comes our way.

The idea of “get rid” makes these truths possible. A full pail can never receive another drop, and we can’t be filled unless the old one is dumped out. We can only receive it if we’re ready. But that decision is ours to make. (Choose wisely.)

This passage clearly reveals the outrageous grace of God that is focused on us.

If our disobedience in this results in God’s grief, then our obedience must bring Him joy. It seems we now have the freedom to walk godly. In a way we can bring a delivery of a fresh bouquet of flowers right into His throne room. But it’s our choice and our decision.

“Forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.”

Ephesians 4:32

You Need to Pray Hard

“Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,

and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.”

Eph. 6:18-20, ESV

I’m convinced that our most challenging work is learning to pray. Whenever we experience revival, whenever we rediscover our true calling and purpose for living, we do so by prayer.

Prayer is the way we become like Jesus.

Satan’s primary focus is to destroy our prayer lives, he works to eliminate our communion with our Father. He detests that, and he and his demons (and the world system) work overtime to tear down our walk. The enemy concentrates everything on our prayer life.

There are four “alls” in verse 18!

All times
All prayer
All perseverance
All the saints

With this in mind we see that Paul stresses the complete effort of prayer and its focus. All the time, every kind, no matter what and for your brother and sisters in Christ. It’s work, spiritual work. It seems that once we put the armor on (verses 10-17) we can stand in God’s own strength.

It’s not enough to wear your armor.

If we’re clothed it’s for the purpose of prayer. Yes we must dress for war and protection, but its ultimate purpose is prayer and intercession. Don’t just wear it but pray out of it. You must strive in prayer, so much is counting on you. You can make a difference.

He’s waiting for you to ask. He wants you to intercede for others.

It will not be easy. The enemy wants to suppress your prayer life. He absolutely hates it. Satan wants to see us passive and dull and you cannot let him do this. You have a very critical part and place in God’s kingdom. Perhaps others are waiting for you, and perhaps you’re the only one who can step up in the gap for them.

You’ve been given a part of God’s field to care for, you have your own sphere of influence. No one else has it, but you.

There many different ways to pray:

On your knees
walking
standing or sitting
vocally, or in your thoughts
with others, a group
using a prayer list
“arrow” prayers (shot up with 1-2 sentences)
using the Psalms or reading the many prayers in the Bible

There’s a “school” of prayer and the Holy Spirit intends to teach you.

Don’t play hooky. You will make mistakes or lose focus. The Spirit will teach you stanima. You might pray for one or two minutes at first, but it’ll grow and you’ll learn endurance. Remember though–you’re most like Jesus when you start to intercede for others.

Maybe your sanctification comes when you pray?

“You need not cry very loud; he is nearer to us than we think.”

-Brother Lawrence

You Are Under Attack

“With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.”

Isaiah 12:3, ESV

One of the clearest explanations of a believer’s salvation is a well of clear sweet water. A well is a combination of effort and grace. A well must be dug, but it’s nothing without water. It’s work but it’s grace. You can dig 1000 feet, but without hitting water it’s all in vain.

The walk of a disciple depends on the Holy Spirit. When we’re filled with Him, our life becomes supernatural. Without the presence, we stagger through the arid desert, and that means desperation. We get terribly thirsty when we can no longer draw from the “wells of salvation.”

And of course, there is a twist when our enemy attacks.

Our wells must be protected. We dare not get complacent. The Word takes us back to when the sworn enemy, the Philistines came against Isaac, but not with spears or chariots. They had a tactic, and it seemed to work surprisingly well.

In Genesis 26, we can read how it all goes down.

“So, the Philistines filled up all of Isaac’s wells with dirt. These were the wells that had been dug by the servants of his father, Abraham.”

Gen. 26:15

Isaac’s wells are filled with dirt. They’re unusable, and the water was no longer available to water his flocks. Now water is everything. Without water, Isaac was forced to move to another location. His flocks needed a well.

A little background:

God had blessed Isaac in the middle of a severe famine. Genesis 26 explains the wealth of Isaac. What he planted he reaped 100-fold. His flocks multiplied, and all because of the Lord’s favor. (Gen. 26:12-14)

The account tells us that the Philistines were envious and jealous. They coveted his wealth. They hated Isaac, and that was filling up the wells of water with dirt. (Some suggest that these wells would be purposefully contaminated with rotting animals.)

The water-rights were constantly being challenged out of jealousy. At least four wells were filled up by the Philistines. Their efforts were disturbing but quite effective.

I’ve been thinking about my own “well.”

I know the enemy hates me; I’m certain of that. He wants to destroy me. My well of salvation is Satan’s target. I guess he works on shutting it down, and even works on contaminating my well.

The last two weeks I’ve started to doubt my salvation. Being 65 now I think about death and standing before the throne and being judged by the Lord. I hear the whispers of the accuser and I get frightened.

But I somehow keep standing.

I then think of God’s promises. And that’s when I break out my shovel and keep my salvation open. I regularly need to do this. I have encouragers who speak into my life, (if I listen).

God’s supernatural power is given, and I discern the enemy. I must keep my salvation open and full of water. I need a good shovel.

The living water of God will never run dry. It fully satisfies my thirsty soul.

“Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”

Our Miracle in Mexico

What happened was nothing less than a miracle. Let me explain and let you be the judge. Over the years of ministry I’ve heard the Lord speak clearly at different times. He has this tendency to overcome confusion and doubt to make His will super clear.

In 1995 we were sent by our church to Mexico to assist a church/mission station. We would be their first missionaries in Baja California. We knew we were called, and we also understood that it would definitely be challenging (and it was). We made a three year commitment.

We took Spanish at King’s Way Missionary Institute in McAllen, Texas. It was there we met another couple who would be working 40 miles south of where we were going. We agreed that once school was done we would travel together.

Now this is where it gets interesting.

We left south Texas and convoyed to San Diego. When we hit New Mexico the heat got terrible and my car didn’t have AC. The couple we were travelling with was pulling a trailer and couldn’t travel over 45 mph. It was over 100 F., I remember looking at our kids in the backseat and they were sprawled out, they were on the verge of heat stroke.

Now please bear with me.

Then something quite amazing happened!

There are several lanes available at the border crossing–they’re always backed up with 20 cars in each lane. So I pulled into one waiting for my turn to be inspected. Suddenly I heard honking behind me. I looked in my rear view to see what the deal was. It was our friends we had left back in New Mexico. They were in the car directly behind me!

My brain immediately started to calculate the odds.

It was then I heard Him speak to me.

Our three years were very difficult. We lived in a very old and very small “burned out” trailer, with no electricity or running water. We had a 55 gallon drum that was filled occasionally by a water truck. We had to boil it to kill the mosquito larva.

I killed rattlesnakes and battled with black widow spiders, and hundreds of tarantulas that wanted to nest on the property.

To know that God was taking care of us, had led us, and was using us was comforting. When things got very hard that experience at the border would comfort us repeatedly. It gave us confidence in His purposes for us being there. He put us there, and would not leave us.

When we left Mexico I was a little bit discouraged. “Where is the fruit?” About 6 months after returning to the Bay Area, I was in church when one of the elders came up to inform me that one of the leaders in our Mexico church had named their newborn son after me–Bryan Allen Rodriquez!

That news staggered me, it was like a 2×4 up the side of my head. They saw our steadfastness and wanted to name their son after me. That pretty much undid me. I admit that since then, I’ve struggled with this. I guess you can never fully understand your impact on others.

“You have multiplied, O Lord my God,
    your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
    none can compare with you!
I will proclaim and tell of them,
    yet they are more than can be told.”

Psalm 40:5, ESV

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The Parable of the Unmerciful

God is generous. We owe him an outrageous kind of debt. But what happens when we refuse to forgive another person? Jesus now teaches what happens–it’s frightening.

Matthew 18:22-34

²³“For this reason, the kingdom of heaven can be compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. ²⁴When he began to settle accounts, one who owed ten thousand talents was brought before him. ²⁵Since he did not have the money to pay it back, his master commanded that he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt.

²⁶“At this, the servant fell facedown before him and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything.’ ²⁷Then the master of that servant had compassion, released him, and forgave him the loan.

²⁸“That servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him, started choking him, and said, ‘Pay what you owe!’

“‘Shouldn’t you also have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’”

“And because he was angry, his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured until he could pay everything that was owed.”

God is generous. All that he does is grace. It’s also grace when we really meet another. He loves us, and we need to siphon that love to everyone we meet. When we come before the Lord, we don’t get the justice we deserve. He has forgiven us—the ten thousand ones.

God is generous. We owe him an outrageous kind of debt. Commentators list the modern value of 10,000 talents would be $1 billion USD. Granted this is figurative, but that doesn’t mean it’s untrue. Grace is God’s extravagant for scandalous sinners.

That is an insane amount of money. To settle our debt would far, far more than we can repay; but isn’t that the point. God’s grace on us, is a precious thing.

When he gets off his knees, we realize that he really hasn’t changed by grace. His heart is teflon, and the mercy the father gave him doesn’t stick. His heart hasn’t really grasped his lesson in forgiveness. God forgave, the servant didn’t understand. His treatment of another proclaims this.

The parable directly speaks of grace, and ungrace.

The $10,000 guy meets the $100 talent guy and we see our own inability to forgive. We shake down our brother and sister for just small things. Notice verse 28, the text tells us that he actually assaulted him, “he started to choke him.” How bizarre and how disturbing. And yet, God sees, and responds.

Was the $10,000 guy really forgiven? Did he understand the spiritual transaction of what just happened? I don’t think so—and it scares me.

The other servants have seen the issue.

The key word is “distressed,” or lypeō in Greek, the word means “to throw into sorrow, to grieve or offend., to make heavy.” All that the forgiven servant did, was recognizable by others, and they reported what they saw to the master.

His behavior is clearly meant to disturbs us.

He’s called “wicked” in verse 32. What he did was awful, and again he’s brought in. Because of his mistreatment of the other who owed, he was now thrown into prison, owing a billion bucks. He gets what he now deserves. He gets justice instead of mercy. He is turned over the torturers.

“But if you don’t forgive others, your Father will not forgive your offenses.”

Matthew 6:15

What does all of this mean?

I’m pretty sure that God isn’t hammering us over our unforgiveness of others. I suspect it’s our sin that does that. When we consider our sin, how can we understand others who sin against us? We have been forgiven much (very much!) how can we not forgive others for sinning against us?

“Many people ruin their health and their lives by taking the poison of bitterness, resentment and unforgiveness. Matthew 18:23-35 tells us that if we do not forgive people, we get turned over to the torturers.“

J. Meyer

A Quick Discipleship

“We must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent us. The night is coming, and then no one can work.”

John 9:4, NLT

To be quick means that we move very fast; being slow often implies a reluctance or a mental delay. To hesitate while doing God’s will for us suggests a degree of ignorance or stubbornness. Our quickness is to be seen while doing “the tasks assigned to us.”

Urgency should be woven into our hearts. We need to have wings on our feet, fleet, and alacrity. A “double eagerness” as we carry out His work. It should be of no surprise that God sets before us an itinerary of work He wants us to do. We have a schedule to keep work that needs us to be diligent and sure.

So many brothers and sisters sleepwalk through their salvation. They snooze when Jesus desires they “watch and pray” with Him.

Jesus was on a timetable. He communicated with the need to do it. He is in tune with the work of God and is involved in the urgency of his present moment. Jesus knows this, and he clearly communicates the need to do. We are not called to be manic for Jesus; we are expected to be alert and aware. And busy.

This is a cry for urgency to his disciples.

“The night is coming.” It is getting late. In response Jesus issues an order. Work at what the Father has assigned you. It is almost dark now. There is a “principle of spiritual velocity” calling us to an alertness and an awareness of needful things to do before “the time is up.”

In Acts 9 the disciples show a holy zeal in their day’s work. “We can’t stop speaking what we have seen and heard.” The Old Testament prophets carried this urgency–Jeremiah and Amos both declared to us this avidity placed on the believer. Jesus desires that we factor in this intense awareness of the approaching night.

“We should be holy people eager to greet our Lord when He returns, ready at any moment for the trumpet’s call, people of optimism, busy in evangelism, hands to the plow, eyes on the prize.”

David Jeremiah

I recently read about an evangelist in the last century. He had a watch made, and on the dial, he had a picture of a setting sun. And over it, the words, “the night comes.” Every time he looked at his watch, he would be reminded of the shortness of life and the need for the performance of his duty. That lesson should be transmitted to each zealous believer.

The key word I guess, in all of this, is zeal. Often the older we get the more this word becomes diminished, and distant. (I believe our Father understands this about us.) No matter what we do, He focuses His love on us. There will never be condemnation for us. But we can still waste our lives in a tragic way, which we will later regret.

But we have to ask ourselves this, will I just be an admirer, or can I become a zealous disciple of Christ?

The secret of the Christian’s passion is simple: Everything we do in life we do it as to the Lord and not to men.

Do You Have Dove’s Eyes?

Behold, you are beautiful, my love! Behold, you are beautiful! You have doves’ eyes.

Song of Solomon 1:15

Doves have a single vision. Because of that they can only see one thing at a time, which makes them unique. They are one of a kind. Doves are also the emblem of the Holy Spirit in scripture, and when they are mentioned we should be alerted that something spiritual is happening.

What the Shepherd is proclaiming is “she only has eyes for me, she sees no one else.” For the true believer, there isn’t anything that can take the place of Him. Political involvement, Eastern mysticism, vain philosophy, or stifling materialism should never take the place of the Lord Jesus. Never, ever.

We need “dove’s eyes.” We must see Jesus only.

There are a lot of noble things we can get involved in. Good things, yes, but not the best, we need to fix our eyes on Jesus. I have personally seen brothers, sisters, and whole churches lose their vision, and focus on something other than their “first love.”

Satan detests our intimacy with our Lord.

Every time we move into direct contact with our Savior the enemy goes crazy. He wants to diminish and erode our number one love. He detests that relationship, and he short-circuits our connection with Jesus. The devil diverts believers to take the good, and leave behind the best.

There are many preachers and teachers in the Church who no longer have “dove’s eyes. Satan has blurred their vision, and they have lost the intimacy they once had with Jesus. Most of the time, they don’t even realize it. This saddens me.

I remember a once blazing church in Pacifica, California that once closed down whole blocks in San Francisco. They worshiped Jesus intensely. They took the Church into the streets and brought with them a passion I’ve seldom seen. They were people on fire. It was a pleasure to work with them, they were in love with Jesus.

Within two years they lost it. They adopted a political stance that was quite commendable, but it diminished their first love for Jesus, and Satan was pleased. The church split in a dozen different ways. This isn’t a new thing, the apostle Paul saw it and was afraid for the church in Corinth.

“For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. ³But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.”

2 Corinthians 11:2-3

In the book of Revelation, chapters 2 and 3 emphasize the level of intimacy each Church possesses. “Angels” come and carry the message of repentance and turning to that “first love.” I have to think that “dove’s eyes” come as a result of being filled with God’s Spirit.

We’re finally seeing through the eyes of a dove–the Holy Spirit.

“Return dear one, come back to the Lord Jesus. Let your first love blaze again. Don’t allow Satan to sidetrack you into something that is good, but not the best. Have “dove’s eyes” that only see Jesus.”

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