FEBRUARY EDITION- 2019- Wonderful Words of Life- By Dr. Keith J. Wise
Introduction: I looked at my February blog last year in which I began talking about aspects of this time of year. It is winter, and at the writing of this blog in 2019 we are in the grips of some cold temperatures and a storm this last week of January for February. A number of postings in the popular press sought to try and make us feel better by a little history lesson on the winter storm of of 1978. It was at that time, that the meteorologist were registering the lowest barometric number in the continental United States. Our son Aaron was a year old and the back of our neighbor's garage had blown off. WOW...what a night and day that experience was for a young couple in Northeastern Ohio.
That storm and that experience is now a faded memory and we fill our minds with the Springs and Summers and Falls since those eventful days. It is much as this life has been. Jesus told us that "...in this world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."
We have a new world coming with no sorrows or disappointments. Our temporary difficulties here will be substituted with glorious renewal and hope beyond our expectation. Let this February be a month in which you focus on our "blessed hope" even Jesus Christ our Lord. Thank God daily for small aspects of your life and you will have a healthy perspective and hope for the future.
II. Remembering Our Presidents...
A lot can be said about the qualities and preferences of our Presidents. February is Presidents month and Black History month. The model of the first President George Washington set the course of what some American Historians have called, The Common Bond. It usually goes something like this in its rendering. At Valley Forge in the American Revolution- they pledged their cause of human dignity- a rag-tag army was saved from military disaster. At Philadelphia it was saved from political disaster. More than a century later, at Ford River Rouge project, it was saved from possible economic disaster. This area near Detroit took over ten years to construct, (1917-1928)- It included 93 buildings and housed 120 conveyors over 900 acres.
The heroes at Valley Forge were George Washington and his small, frozen band of Continental soldiery. At Philadelphia the heroes were the members of the convention which gave birth to the United States and our revolutionary Constitution. At River Rouge the heroes were Henry Fort and his pioneer assemblers who demonstrated the revolutionary technique of mass production that made the automobile the envy of the world.
Each step in the progress of our great American Revolution has brought emancipation to people- more from the participating in and sharing. Said Washington: "I can clearly foresee that nothing but the rooting out of slavery can perpetuate the existence of our nation by consolidating in a common bond of principle." Lighted by these words, the pattern of our unfolding Revolution becomes clear- from the drafty cabins at Valley Forge to the crowded parking lot at River Rouge.
The key to our way of life is participation, partnership in human dignity. That is the meaning of freedom-military, political, economic- as we Americans have come to enjoy it. This is the "common bond of principle" we, as free men and women, must consolidate and carry into the future hope based on a living God.
III. Digging Deeper...Why Do We Appeal to Fulfilled Prophecy To Document Inspiration?
Over the years as a minister and a college professor, I have been asked to prove or present a defence for the scriptures being trustworthy as a reliable feature of faith. The sources have always been out there and have been noted over at least the last century. The Apostle Peter, after testifying that he had seen Jesus Christ in all His glory, said, "And so we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts..." (II Peter 1:19, NASB). Peter is here seeing to appeal to the position of fulfilled prophecy as a witness to the truth of Scripture.
The Bible itself gives the purpose of prophecy, "Remember the former things long past, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things which have not been done..." (Isaiah 46:9,10-NASB).
The New Testament spoke of the coming of Jesus Christ, "Which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures" (Romans 1:1-4, RSV).
The testimony of the scriptures is that the purpose of prophecy is to let us know that God exists and the He has a plan for this world. By the foretelling of persons, places and events hundreds of years before their occurrence, the the Bible demonstrates a knowledge of the future that is too specific to be labeled a good guess. By giving examples of fulfilled prophecy, the scriptures give a strong testimony to their own inspiration.
A good example of this would be the prophecy of King Cyrus the Persian.(Ish.44:28; 45:1). The prophet Isaiah, writing about 700B.C. prior, predicts Cyrus by name as the king who will say to Jerusalem that it shall be built and that the temple foundation shall be laid. What is truly remarkable about this prophecy is that at the time of Isaiah predicted this event, the city of Jerusalem and the temple were standing. About a hundred years later is when we have the record of King Nebuchadnezzar destroying the city and temple in Jerusalem and the seventy year exile of the southern Kingdom of Judah had officially commenced. (Approx.586B.C.)
As we read the story of people, places and events in the seeming hopeless situation of the children of Israel, we know they would be rescued in a remarkable fashion. The last king of Babylon, Belshazzar, finds himself surrounded by a Persian army and the city of Babylon passing into the hands of Cyrus. Just as predicted by Isaiah, one hundred and sixty years after his prophecy, king Cyrus by edict, recorded on the Cyrus Cylinder, allow the Jews to leave Babylon and rebuild the temple. Later, under another Persian King Darius, the Cupbearer Nehemiah would rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
This is a small sliver of the many prophecies that predicted the will of God in the life of Israel in the preparation for the coming of the Messiah Jesus Christ to save the world. If you are a reader of the New Testament there is a marvelous testimony of who Jesus was and is to us. In the fourth chapter of John there is the wonderful story of the women at the well. She has a magnificent encounter with Jesus at Sychar in Samaria. However, it is most telling to us that the Samaritans of that area pleaded with Jesus to stay with them and for two days as he taught them because of the testimony of this women. In fact that two day Bible Study provoked a marvelous response that predicts the awesome expanse of Jesus' kingdom. The Samaritans say in verse 42 "...They (the Samaritans) said to the women, "We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world." (NIV)
Think about this, before the faith of the Apostles, the preaching of Pentecost, these Samaritans who were so despised by the Jewish community declare a Christian message of salvation with Jesus Christ in their presence. Certainly this is not the end of the story, for if you read on in the New Testament in Acts 8 in the first twenty five verses, you read about the great revival of Philip the Evangelist to the Samaritans.
IV. Did You Know? Luke is an Accurate Historian.
In his Gospel and Acts, Luke names 117 separate living people, 114 towns, provinces, islands, seas and other identifiable places, and 25 policatial, military, social religious events in history.
Luke's order of events and location of towns and provinces, his knowledge of Roman administration, censuses and regiments, his naming of national and local officials and of Jewish rituals, law and festivals, are all faultless.
Any number of noted historians and scholars with no particular ax to grind, have provided persuasive and noted sources for the historical, meaningful and reliable sources. Often noted as a celebrated scholar, Sir William Ramsay who after long detailed information said: "Christianity did not originate in a lie and we can and must demonstrate this."
It comes as a surprise to many that in the first century multitudes of adults were literate. For instance, every Jewish male was expected to be able to read and it was common for civil servants and other to use 'notebooks' for their work. Matthew, Zacchaeus, the centurion, and the estate workers in the parable of Luke 16:6 were each able to read and write. Archaeology has produced marriage and divorce documents, food lists, orders for merchandise, soldier's pay slips, legal documents and graffiti and so on. Moreover, texts were often written in more than one language. The text above the cross was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek (John 19:19-20).
The now discredited idea that the New Testament gospels and literature were not written until well into the second century, has been largely rejected. With a PhD in Greco-Roman studies, I can tell you that the culture of the first century in which Jesus appears was sophisticated, educated, and responsive to the Christian message that change its world and ours. We can speak and proclaim with confidence the truth of Christ and the events surrounding his life. We have an enduring message.
V. Nuggets of Nourishment... Sermon: Prayer-The Knowledge of His Will
Text: Colossians 1:9-15
Introduction: Paul, like Jesus, was a man of prayer. He was constantly praying for others. (Rom. 1:9; Phil. 1:4; and I Thess. 1:2). He asked the local congregations to pray for him. (Eph.6:19; I Thess. 5:25). He also noted that there were some universal elements of prayer. In short, the passage above presents these elements described as:
A. Spiritual Vision: (vs. 9 above)
1.)Receiving the truth- "asking God."
2.)Realizing the truth- "knowledge" and "spiritual wisdom."
3.)Relating the truth- "understanding."
B. Spiritual Vitality: (vs.10 above)
1.) In the walk ("live a life") of the Christian Life.
2.) In the work ("bearing fruit in every good work") of the Christian life.
3.) In the wonder ("growing in the knowledge of God") of the Christian life.
C. Spiritual Victory: (vs.11-15)
1. Its secret-(vs. 11-13) "...giving thanks..." (vs.11-13).
2. Its success- (vs.14) "redemption" (vs.14).
3. Its source- (vs. 15) Christ- "the image of the invisible God..."
Conclusion: A man once confessed he had trouble falling asleep. He asked his Christian friend if he ever had such a problem. He inquired, "Do you count sheep?" No replied the Christian man, "I talk to the Shepherd." So may we each one of us talk to the shepherd of our souls.
VI. Quotable Quotes... Some short but profound truths to live by...
Some thoughts on Laughter: by Wilfred A. Peterson
In the midst of a cold February have you taken any time to just laugh at yourself or read a humorous story? Take a tip from Will Rogers, who observed people with laughter in his eyes and love in his heart and declared: "I never met a man I didn't like." Learn laughter from little children by thinking their thoughts, dreaming their dreams, and by playing their games. Practice the advice of a the psychiatrist who gives his normal patients this prescription: "Don't take yourself too seriously." Remember the old proverb: "A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men." Inject laughter into tense situations to save the day; laughter calms tempers and soothes jangled nerves. Guard yourself against the gloomy outlook by recalling the wise statement of Henry Ward Beecher: "A man without mirth is like a wagon without springs...jolting so disagreeably by every pebble in the road." Most of all, learn to laugh at yourself; meet each day with a sense of humor, and be guided by the words of the poet who wrote: "I laugh, for hath happy place for me. If my bark sink, 'tis to another sea." Laughter is the best medicine for a long and happy life. He who laughs...lasts!
