Meditation 19: The Gospel in Laughter

“You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.” -- 1 Thessalonians 1:6. 

One of the things I love most about my wife is her stentorian and orotund laugh.  I cannot count the number of times that crowds in churches, movie theaters, or comedy shows have gotten to know me and my wife because of her inimitable laugh.  She has one of those turn-your-head-and-strain-your-eyes-to-find-out-where-that-thunderous-sound-is-coming-from kind of laughs -- one of those laughs that cannot be ignored, even if you try (and, believe me, I have). When she finds something funny, she throws her head back, braces her diaphragm with her hands, and lets loose a raucous torrent of booming guffaws, which she ultimately concludes with a dainty and tasteful tee-hee. 

For many years, she tried to control her intractable laugh, or at least make it more melodious and musical.  But she never succeeded!  So, today, she embraces her laugh and allows herself to communicate those spontaneous and raucous moments of joy without restraint.  And I have come to embrace her laugh, as well. I love it! Yes, it often embarrasses me. But I love how that cacophonous tsunami of joy bursts forth from deep within her soul and floods the ears and hearts of everyone around her.  Her laughter is so emphatic, and the joy it expresses is so pure and primal, that it compels people to turn their heads, looking for the answer to an unspoken question they all share -- namely, What’s so funny?

Today, I was struck by the realization that my wife’s laugh, and how people respond to it, is a beautiful illustration of how the Gospel is communicated most effectively in laughter and joy.  As a follower of Jesus, I am a herald of the best and happiest news in the world. I have every reason to be filled with joy and hope because I know that Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, has secured salvation and the forgiveness of sins for all mankind. Never will there be better news than that! Never will there be more reason to rejoice than to know that we all can be saved by God’s grace, if we place our faith in Jesus! 

I have the best and happiest news in the world; it follows that my life and demeanor should reflect that truth.  My mien should express the same kind of joy my wife communicates through her laughter. My countenance should be so loud and raucous with unrestrained joy that people are compelled to stop, turn their heads and ask, “What’s so funny?”  This is the Gospel in laughter.

Meditation 18: A Different Gospel Is No Gospel At All

If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ. . . . We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might remain with you. (Gal. 1:10, 2:5).

It matters how I proclaim and live out the Gospel! What I say about the good news of Jesus (and how I live what I profess) either will lead non-believers away from Him, or draw them to Him; by the same token, my words and deeds either will undermine or will strengthen the faith of my fellow believers.

As a pastor, a husband, and a father, what I say about my faith in Jesus, and how I live that out, will affect those whom the Father has given me to shepherd. If I want the “truth of the [G]ospel” to remain with my wife, my children, and my church, I cannot allow myself to be misled by the man-made philosophies of this age, or by the perversions of the Gospel that are infiltrating and infecting the Church today. Like Jesus (and Paul), I must have the wisdom and boldness to speak out against the distortions of the Gospel that are leading God’s people astray. If I do not, I will be complicit with the enemy in his work of perverting the “truth of the [G]ospel” in the hearts of God’s Elect. It is an awesome spiritual responsibility to be a husband, or a father, or a pastor, or a teacher of God’s Word.

Peter learned this the hard way (as he did most of his lessons)! When he allowed himself to be influenced by the Judaizers and their false gospel (viz., that we are saved by placing our faith in Jesus and by obeying the law), he began to pull away from the Gentiles -- people God had been using him to reach with the Gospel. In Peter’s cowardice, disobedience, and hypocrisy, he even began leading other respected church leaders, like Barnabas, astray. (Gal. 2:11-13).  

How do I avoid the same mistake Peter made? Paul gives some great advice. First, he cautions me not to pay attention to any other teaching or re-framing of the Gospel that contradicts the already revealed Word of God.  Anything that conflicts with or is inconsistent with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, as declared in Scripture, should be rejected and refuted, even if it is taught by a seemingly angelic being or a respected leader in the Church:

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ.  But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse!  As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse! (Gal. 1:6-9).

Second, I cannot please both God and man. That is why Paul writes that if he “were still trying to please men, [he] would not be a servant of Christ.” (Gal. 1:10).  I must remember that my sole purpose and goal is to please Jesus, not my fellow man; I worship Jesus, not man; I am a slave of Christ, not of man.  

Peter’s character, faith, and ministry were compromised for two reasons: He cared more about pleasing man than he did pleasing Jesus; he feared man more than he did his Lord.  As a result, he allowed himself to give more credence to the doctrinal convictions of an influential religious sect within the Church than he did to what Jesus had taught him.

It is possible Peter compromised for reasons that seemed justifiable at the time. After all, he was an apostle to the Jews, not to the Gentiles. Perhaps he thought he was being shrewd in being careful not to offend the group of people to whom God had sent him as an apostle of Jesus Christ.  Of course, the irony and the tragedy in that decision was that he no longer was preaching the Gospel of Jesus to those people; he effectively had ceased to operate as an apostle of Jesus Christ and now was the apostle of a false gospel. 

The gravity of Peter’s offense cannot be over-stated: By his words and actions, he had led his followers into embracing another gospel, which really was “no gospel at all.” (Gal. 1:6).  Peter effectively was preaching that “righteousness could be gained through the law,” and that the Christ had died for nothing. (Gal. 2:21). It is no wonder, then, that Paul felt compelled to rebuke Peter in front of all the people he had led into error. (Gal. 2:11-14).  While it may have seemed harsh to Peter at the time, I believe Paul’s boldness in publicly challenging Peter’s heresy helped to ensure that the true Gospel “remained with [Peter]” and his ministry. (Gal. 2:5). I wonder if Paul had this incident in mind when he later counseled young Timothy to: “Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.” (1 Tim. 4:16).

Meditation 17: A Fully Trained Disciple

In Luke 6:40, Jesus gives a clear, concise and practical metric for determining when someone has been fully trained and well-discipled.  He says, “The student is not above the teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher.”  In other words, when I look at someone I have been discipling and can honestly say that the person’s life and character remind me a lot of Jesus, then I know the individual has been fully trained. The key, however, is to remember that I am not trying to make people look like me, but rather like Jesus in me. It can be easy to confuse wanting people to look like me with wanting their lives to reflect the life of Jesus in me.

Of course, no one is going to look exactly like Jesus on this side of eternity.  But when someone has grown to look more like Jesus than not, it probably is safe to say that s/he has been fully trained. This is not to say the person has nothing left to learn, but rather that s/he is ready to be launched in much the same way that Jesus sent out His disciples before He ascended into heaven.  Even though His disciples still had much to learn, Jesus considered them fully trained by that point.  Otherwise, He would not have commissioned them as His messengers!  He would send His Holy Spirit to continue instructing and counseling them. But their training was complete!

Are you fully trained? Can you point to anyone in your life who you personally have fully trained such that s/he looks like our Teacher, our Rabonni, Jesus?  You and I look the most like Jesus when we help others (by our words and by our example) to live as He did.

Meditation 16: On The Way!

Jesus told His disciples: "There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?  When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am. And you know the way to where I am going.” (John 14:2-4) (NLT).

There is room for each and every one of us in our Father's house.  He offers each of us a place, a purpose, and a position of eternal significance in His Kingdom! “Come one, come all,” He calls.

The only thing required of us is to do what all of us naturally and instinctively do when we travel somewhere: Follow the prepared way -- the predesigned route -- to our destination.  Today, most of us use MapQuest, a Garmin, or some other GPS device to guide us to our destination.  Jesus is the divine equivalent of the predesigned road systems that enable us to reach our travel destinations.  And He also is the spiritual analog of the GPS devices that guide us to those destinations! 

In John 14:6 (NLT), Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me."  In other words, Jesus is The Way to our final terminus.  He is the divine road that leads to Heaven -- there is no other path, there is no other way!  Pretty straightforward!  And His travel directions are equally elementary: “Follow Me,” He says. “Follow The Way!” (Cf. Matthew 9:9; John 14:6). 

The roadway to heaven is a person, Jesus Christ, not a constellation of rules, regulations, and rituals.  Our directions simply are to place our faith in the Way, Jesus, and follow it/Him all the way to our final destination, our heavenly abode.  That God has designed such a simple path (and such simple directions) to His heavenly Kingdom is yet another testament to His unfathomable love for us.

I am on The Way! I am headed Home and looking for some more travel companions.  I know my Heavenly Father will have a radiant residence for me and for anyone else I bring along with me.  Anyone interested in joining me on this glorious journey? . . . Anyone?

Meditation 15: To Be or Not to Be?

Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” (Luke 5:10).

Jesus had vision for His disciples.  As a pastor, I get really excited when the Lord gives me insight into how He is working in someone’s life, and who He is shaping that person to become. It is exhilarating to catch a glimpse of the wonderful things my Heavenly Father has in store for someone I love.  Today, however, when I read this passage of Scripture, I was reminded of the sobering and profound responsibility that comes with this tremendous privilege.

After His Heavenly Father gave Jesus this insight into what Simon would do, Jesus dedicated the rest of His earthly ministry to transitioning Simon from being a fisherman to becoming a Fisher of Men. He spent three years teaching and modeling for Simon what it meant to be a Fisher of Men, and releasing him to apply what he was learning. (Cf. Mark 6:7). If that is where Jesus had stopped, I think I (and most other pastors) would find discipling and shepherding challenging but manageable.  Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, however, record that Jesus also gave His life so that Simon could become a Fisher of Men, so that he could become Peter -- the rock upon which Jesus would build His church. (See Matthew 16:18).  Jesus gave all that He had, even pouring out His own life, so that Simon could become Peter, a Fisher of Men.

The implications for my own life and ministry are clear!  When the Lord grants me the privilege of receiving spiritual insight into who He has made (and is shaping) someone to be, that privilege is granted with an attendant responsibility: personal sacrifice. Like Jesus, more is required of me than teaching or modeling the things of the Kingdom.  I also must be willing to sacrifice all that I am in Christ so that someone else can become all that God has purposed for him or her to be in Christ! I must be willing not to be (to die) so that another might become! 

To be or not to be! That is indeed the fundamental question for anyone who serves as a shepherd for the Most High!

Meditation 14: God’s Word Will Never Fail

The stories of Zechariah and Mary teach us the importance of faith.  Zechariah doubted God’s word when Gabriel promised him that he and his wife, Elizabeth, would conceive and give birth to a son. They had prayed for years that God would give them a child. Yet, in that glorious moment when God told Zechariah that his prayers would be answered, Zechariah succumbed to doubt and asked Gabriel how he could be “sure” of God’s promise. (Luke 1:18).  One would think that if God’s word were not evidence enough, certainly the means by which it was delivered should have sufficed. How could Zechariah doubt a promise of God that was declared to him by an angelic messenger who stood “in the presence of God”? (Luke 1:19).  

We often think that if we had a supernatural encounter with the Lord, it would be easier for us to believe in Him or to believe a promise He has made to us.  Zechariah’s story, however, proves otherwise!  Scripture says that he was “righteous in the sight of God.” (Luke 1:9).  But even an angelic encounter was not enough to overcome Zechariah’s doubt -- a doubt that likely had grown like a weed in his soul each day his prayers had gone unanswered, and slowly had begun to strangle his faith.  

In response to Zechariah’s doubt, God silenced him, rendering him mute until John’s birth.  At first blush, this might seem like a pretty harsh form of discipline.  But God was doing more than disciplining Zechariah, He was protecting him.  Silencing Zechariah for the next nine months shielded him from further dishonoring God with his lips by continuing to question the reliability and veracity of His promise.  Even after Elizabeth conceived, it is possible that Zechariah continued to struggle with doubt, wondering if his aged wife could carry the child full-term. 

In short, Zechariah’s discipline was a reflection of God’s love and mercy! It also teaches us, however, that when God makes a promise to us, He wants us to speak and respond in faith, not in doubt, as Mary did.  When Gabriel visited Mary, she did not question if God would do what He had promised; she simply asked how He would. It was a question born of a reverent curiosity and a holy wonder (“How will this be[?]”), Luke 1:34). In many ways, God’s promise to Mary was harder to believe than His promise to Zechariah.  At least God’s promise to Zechariah had precedent in Scripture (e.g., Abraham and Sarah).  Never before, however, had a virgin conceived, much less given birth to the Son of God!

Mary’s response to God’s promise was three-fold. First, she believed it. Second, she received and embraced it -- she submitted her will to the Lord’s, aligning her heart to desire for herself what God desired for her.  And, finally, she worshipped the Lord and gave thanks to Him for His promise, an outward sign and overflow of her inward work of believing:

 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” . . .

And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant.” (Luke 1:38, 46-48. See also John 6:29).

When Zechariah’s son was born, he followed Mary’s example. He believed and embraced God’s promise, and worshipped Him for it: “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel . . ..” (Luke 1:64, 68).  The difference, however, is that Zechariah believed God after the fact, while Mary believed Him even before the promise was fulfilled. Her faith expressed itself in a “confidence” of what she hoped for, and in an “assurance” of what she did not see. (Hebrews 11:1).

May we respond as Mary did, when the Lord makes a promise to us: May we believe His word; may we receive and embrace His word; and may we thank and praise Him for His word. 

God fulfilled the seemingly impossible promises He made to Zechariah and Mary, and He will do the same for you and me. “For no word from God will ever fail.” (Luke 1:37). Between the declaration of the promise and its fulfillment, however, we must together do the hard work of believing and declaring that which is not as though it were!

Heavenly Father, I pray that you would encourage us, reminding us of the promises You have made to us and that not a single word You have spoken to us will ever fail.  May Your promises no longer overwhelm us with a bitter disappointment and cynicism that is fueled by doubt.  Instead, may Your promises fill us with a joyous anticipation, an unshakeable hope, and an unwavering assurance that is sustained by our faith in You. Amen.

Meditation 13: Does God Really Care?

Yesterday, I learned that a college classmate of mine, Melissa Ketunuti, was brutally murdered in her home. Melissa and I were not close friends in college, but our social circles sometimes overlapped. So, we spent time together on occasion, whether at college parties or during meals at our college cafeteria. She was a brilliant, beautiful, and incredibly warm-hearted person.

When I learned of her death, I was sitting in my parked minivan, feeding my three-month-old his late afternoon bottle, listening to my three-year old son playing in the back seat, and waiting to pick up my daughter at her bus stop. For a moment, as I sat in the car with two of my four beautiful children, the news of Melissa’s tragic death was inconceivable.  But as I imagined what her final moments on this earth may have been like, and her family’s tremendous grief, the reality that she indeed was gone pierced through my self-protective denial.  As I sat in my car, praying for her and her family, I returned to questions I have asked God countless times, in the midst of tragedy and suffering: Why? Why, Lord, do you allow death to stalk and claim the life of every living thing? Why, Heavenly Father, do you allow such rampant evil in this world? 

How could God, who is Himself the fullness of all that is holy and good, allow a beautiful person like Melissa to suffer such a brutal and senseless death?  Of course, as a minister, I knew all the theological answers to those questions. But those answers offered little comfort, because the questions I was asking were not academic, they were personal -- deeply personal. I was not a student catechizing his teacher on an esoteric subject. I was a child crying out to my Heavenly Father, demanding an explanation that would make sense of an incomprehensible tragedy. 

With all the violence, murder, and suffering in this world, it may seem rather puzzling that I do not bring these cries to our Creator more often. But I discerned something yesterday that I previously had not consciously recognized.  I realized that throughout my life, I have had an unspoken, subconscious pact with death and tragedy: I will pretend they do not exist and will live my life in willful denial of their existence, so long as they pretend I do not exist and their shadows do not darken my sunny skies. It is, admittedly, a selfish and naive artificial construct, a fabricated detente.  But it has been my way of insulating myself from the grief that I fear would consume me if I truly took the time to absorb and contemplate the tremendous agony and suffering so many people face every day.  Invariably, however, death and tragedy break our little “pact.”  And, as I was yesterday, I am once again compelled to grapple with the cruel and recondite contrast between the reality that I live in a broken and suffering world, and my faith in a good, perfect, just, and loving God who created it. 

I know God is aware of every single detail of every single event of every person’s life on this planet. Indeed, Jesus Himself said that our Heavenly Father even knows the number of hairs on our heads: “[T]he very hairs of your head are all numbered.” (Luke 12:7) (NIV).  And, as the Apostle Paul wrote, God knows that His “creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together[.]” (Romans 8:22) (NASB).

And so, last night, I returned to asking God those vexing questions I previously managed to suppress, until death and tragedy found Melissa. 

. . . But God was silent!  And in that silence, as I reflected on how much I hate suffering, death and evil, I was filled with an intoxicating, self-righteous and prideful indignation at the thought that perhaps God does not hate those things as much as I do.  It was in that moment that God finally answered my questions.  But He answered with a few of His own: 

Niki, do you hate death so much that you would be willing to sacrifice your own life to end death for everyone else? Do you hate evil so much that you would be willing to suffer the guilt and consequence of every sin that has ever been (or ever will be) committed, in order to save humanity and redeem creation?  Would you be willing to suffer the agony of crucifixion?

With those gentle, convicting questions, the Lord gave me the personal answers I had sought in my prayers: He hates sin and death so much that He died on our behalf, taking upon Himself the guilt and consequence of every sin and evil that has ever been committed or ever will be, including Melissa’s tragic murder. (Cf. Isaiah 53:4-6; John 3:16; Romans 6:23; 2 Corinthians 5:21).  He hates murder far more than I ever will. And having been murdered Himself, He understands its pain, agony, and ugliness far more than I ever could. 

I mourn Melissa’s tragic death.  She will be missed greatly by all who knew her, and by every life she touched and blessed with her kindness, compassion, and warmth.  But I take comfort in the knowledge that God is good, that He remains sovereign over the affairs of Man, and that He grieves with all of us who knew her.  And I find hope in my faith that our Heavenly Father does indeed hear creation’s “groans,” including yours and mine, and is actively in the process of “making all things new.” (Revelation 21:5) (NASB).

Meditation 10: On Hebrews 6:10

For God is not unjust. He will not forget how hard you have worked for him and how you have shown your love to him by caring for other believers, as you still do. (Hebrews 6:10) (NLT).

This passage of Scripture provides wonderful insight into the character of God, profound instruction about one of the many ways in which we demonstrate our love for Him, and great encouragement concerning the service we perform in His Name.

First of all, Paul reminds us of our Lord's matchless mercy and boundless grace: He does not forget our faithfulness, but remembers our sins no more! Our Heavenly Father blots out our transgressions, consigning to oblivion even our darkest of sins, but remembers and rewards even the smallest act of kindness we show His children: "I—yes, I alone—will blot out your sins for my own sake and will never think of them again. . . . Truly I tell you, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to the Messiah will certainly not lose their reward." (Isaiah 43:25 (NLT); Mark 9:41 (NIV)).

In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul provides a comprehensive definition of love, in terms of its fundamental nature -- viz., love is patient, love is kind, love does not envy, etc. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7). In Hebrews 6:10, however, Paul gives us a very helpful and practical example of how to love God -- by caring for our fellow believers. Put differently, we love God by loving each other! Every act of kindness we show another believer is an act of kindness to the Lord! Every act of service we perform for another believer is an act of service to the Lord! When we demonstrate our love for each other, we demonstrate our love for the Lord.

Finally, Paul encourages us to persevere in serving God, by caring for one another, because God will not forget a single act of love and service we perform in His Name. He is a just God who rewards the hard work we do for Him and the care we show His children. Not a single sacrifice of love for the Lord and His saints is done in vain! One day, our faith, love, and hard work will be rewarded with an inheritance that far exceeds anything our minds can conceive. And this hope serves "as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure." (Hebrews 6:19).

Meditation 9: A Tale of Two Appetites

"All man's efforts are for his mouth, yet his appetite is never satisfied." (Ecclesiastes 6:7).

In this passage of Scripture, Solomon personifies our flesh -- our carnal nature -- by describing it as a "mouth," and observing that Man spends all of his days and expends all of his energy seeking to fill his "mouth." The problem, however, is that our "mouth" (that is, our flesh) will never be satisfied. It is like a bottomless pit, an open grave that cannot be filled.

Solomon had personal experience with this unfortunate truth. In the second chapter of Ecclesiastes, he says that he tested himself with pleasure to see what was good, but found that this endeavor "proved to be meaningless." (Ecclesiastes 2:1). He writes that:

I tried cheering myself with wine, and embracing folly—my mind still guiding me with wisdom. I wanted to see what was good for people to do under the heavens during the few days of their lives.

I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards. I made gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. . . . I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces. . . .

I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my labor, and this was the reward for all my toil. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 2:3-5, 8, 10-11).

Solomon spent his life seeking to satiate his carnal appetites, denying himself nothing. But in the end, he found it was a wasted and meaningless pursuit! He possessed great wisdom, but the appetite of his "mouth" controlled him and caused him to live as a fool. The many addictions with which people struggle in the West reflect a brokenness like Solomon's. Our addictions to money, power, gambling, drugs, pornography, physical beauty, and food all reflect our own futile (and foolish) attempts to satiate an appetite that will never be satisfied. Our existential angst -- the overwhelming sense that "everything [is] meaningless, a chasing after the wind" (Ecclesiastes 2:11) -- is the inevitable fruit of our efforts to fill a void that will always remain empty. And that is why, for example, "[w]hoever loves money never has enough" and "whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income." (Ecclesiastes 5:10).

Like Solomon, I struggle with my own fleshly cravings, chief among them is a desire to be accepted, respected, and powerful. Fortunately, Paul's Epistle to the Romans explains a simple and effective way for me to overcome those carnal cravings:

Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. (Romans 8:5-6).

In other words, the most effective way to combat the appetite of my "mouth" is not to fill it, but rather to starve it. And I do that by feeding my spiritual hunger for the Lord, rather than my fleshly appetite for sin. The more I feed my flesh, the greater its cravings become. The less I feed it, however, the less I am controlled by its ravenous appetite and the more I am directed by my hunger for the things of God. And in those things I find unparalleled fulfillment, joy, and peace!

Jesus promises us that if we pursue our spiritual hunger and thirst for Him, if we are driven by our appetite for Him, we will be filled to overflowing and we will live "rich and satisfying" lives:

“I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. ... My purpose is to give [you] a rich and satisfying life." (John 6:35;10:10) (NLT).

Purpose, peace, and fulfillment in our lives is just one meal away. It simply depends on which appetite, which "mouth," we choose to feed!

Meditation 8: Do the Work!

Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you!

(1 Chronicles 28:20).

These were some of David's last words to his son, Solomon, who was a young man at the time, and was overwhelmed by the challenges before him. He was faced with the task of governing a large nation, a people who were "as numerous as the dust of the earth." (2 Chronicles 1:9). More importantly, he was charged with the responsibility of building a temple, a dwelling place for the Most High. His father had prepared all the plans for the temple, but the Lord chose Solomon to build it. It was both a glorious honor and a formidable undertaking. Solomon (understandably) was terrified and overwhelmed.

Apparently, David noticed his son's fear. So, he reminded Solomon that God would empower and equip him to do all that was required of him, and that the Lord would neither fail nor forsake him. David was sympathetic to the reality that Solomon had been charged by God to carry out an intimidating task. But that was not an excuse for him to cower in discouragement, or to govern in fear. Hence, David's admonition that Solomon be "strong and courageous, and do the work." God had given David the plans for the temple, it now was Solomon's privilege and responsibility to build what the Lord had designed.

You and I face an assignment that parallels Solomon's, but is superior in its scope and more glorious in its grandeur. Like Solomon, we have been charged with building a temple for our Lord. The difference is that the temple we are building is one made of flesh, not of stone. It is a temple comprised of people, not of bricks! The temple we are building is the body of Christ, the Church. We are called to build for the Lord a people on whom His glory will rest, and in whom His Spirit will dwell. (Matthew 28:18-20).

Like Solomon's, ours is both a glorious call and an awesome responsibility. The temple the Lord has empowered and commissioned you and me to build is the greatest wonder in all of God's creative order. It is the awesome power and matchless majesty of the Lord revealed by His Church, in whom His Spirit and glory dwell. May we "be strong and courageous, and do the work."

Soli Deo Gloria!

Meditation 7: On Becoming a Faithful Priest (1 Samuel 2)

Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phineas, served under him as priests of the Most High God. They held a privileged position in God’s Kingdom. But they dishonored the Lord, and used their priestly office to indulge their carnal cravings. We are told, for example, that they gorged themselves on the best parts of the meat offerings the Israelites sacrificed to the Lord, thereby treating His offerings “with contempt.” (I Samuel 2:12-17).

In addition, Hophni and Phineas regularly had sex with the women who served God at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. (I Samuel 2:22). These men, who were charged with the awesome responsibility of leading the Israelites down paths of purity and righteousness, were defiling the sheep they were called to shepherd, dishonoring the Lord’s offerings, and desecrating the Tent of Meeting by fornicating with (and rendering unclean) the women who served at its entrance. And because of their brazen rebellion toward God, He eventually put them to death. (1 Samuel 2:25).

Hophni and Phineas chose to feed their fleshly cravings. And those cravings ultimately consumed them, ruining their ministry, destroying their earthly lives, and resulting in the pronouncement of generational judgment upon their families. (1 Samuel 2:30-33).

As I thought about their appalling behavior, and about how that behavior resulted in the defilement of the Lord’s offerings, of His people, and of His Tent of Meeting, I said to myself: “Well, they deserved the judgment they received!” And then the Holy Spirit gently reminded me that so do I!

Like Eli’s sons, I am now a priest of the Most High. The Bible says that those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior are members of a “royal priesthood.” (1 Peter 2:9). And the Apostle Paul adds that we are now the temples of the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 6:19). In other words, each of us who are members of God’s royal priesthood are now the locus of the Lord’s presence. Every believer is now the functional equivalent of the Tent of Meeting, where the presence of the Lord once dwelt. His Holy Spirit no longer resides in a temple made of cloth or clay, but in a temple made of flesh.

In short, I am now the Lord’s Tent of Meeting, which means that my hands, my tongue, my ears, and my eyes are the new entrance -- the new door -- to the Lord’s sanctuary. Whatever I do with my hands, whatever I speak with my tongue, whatever I choose to listen to with my ears and wherever I focus my eyes (those windows to my soul) happens in the immediate presence of God, where His glory dwells.

As I meditate on this amazing truth, I am both horrified and humbled! I am horrified at the realization that my behavior is no less abhorrent to God than that of Hophni and Phineas. Like them, I often choose to indulge my flesh, rather than feed my spirit. In so doing, I defile my Father’s house, His temple. At the same time, however, I am humbled at the knowledge that God’s grace is unconditionally available to me, because the blood of Jesus washes away the sacrilegious acts I commit at the entrance to (and even within) the Lord’s Tent of Meeting.

But I do not want to follow in Hophni’s and Phineas’ footsteps. I long to be a priest who honors the Lord by how I conduct myself at the entrance to, and within, His Tent of Meeting. I strive to be a man who hungers after, and desperately pursues, his Lord. I aspire to become a child whose spirit is nourished by every word that comes from His Father, and who overcomes the ravenous appetite of his fleshly nature. My hope and prayer is that the Lord one day will say of me what He said of Samuel -- that I am a “faithful priest, who [does] according to what is in [His] heart and mind,” and that He “will firmly establish [my] house, and [I] will minister before [His] anointed one always.” (1 Samuel 2:35).

Prayer: Father, help me to faithfully fulfill the responsibilities of the priestly office you have given me, by shepherding Your people well and bringing glory to Your Name. Forgive me for the ways in which I have dishonored You and Your new Tent of Meeting. Help me to pursue the things of the Kingdom and to focus on satiating my spiritual appetite with every word that proceeds from Your mouth, rather than the cries of my flesh. Help me to be a faithful priest in Your royal priesthood. And, by Your grace, please grant me the unmerited privilege of ministering before Your Anointed One always. I pray this on my behalf, and on behalf of all my brothers and sisters who are members of Your royal priesthood. Amen!

Meditation 6: Faith & Faithfulness

Over the last several months, the Lord has taught me a lot about the distinction between faith and faithfulness, and about the symbiotic relationship they share. In Hebrews 11:1, Paul defines faith as "the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." (KJV). In other words, faith is believing that which is not as if it already were!

Seems pretty straightforward! But how would we then define faithfulness? One way to put it is to say that faithfulness is simply persevering in our faith. But I think that definition is a facile one that doesn't really provide a clear enough picture of what faithfulness actually looks like. Developing a more well-rounded definition of faithfulness requires digging a little deeper! And the best way to do that is to take another look at the terminology Paul uses in defining faith, and to incorporate that terminology into our understanding of faithfulness.

Taking that approach, here is how I have come to understand faithfulness: Faithfulness is the series of tangible acts we perform in accordance with our declaration(s) of faith, until that which is not becomes that which is, ... until the substance of things hoped for becomes the reality of things attained.

Faith and faithfulness. May you and I abound in both!

Meditation 3: Finding Strength in Our Weakness

"Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand. Am I not sending you?" (Judges 6:14).

The Lord spoke those inspiring and adrenalizing words to Gideon, when Israel was straining under the yoke of Midianite oppression. And thousands of years later, the Lord used those same words to encourage me to answer His call to enter full-time ministry. Throughout the last year or so, I often have returned to those words in moments of doubt, reminding myself that God only asks that I serve Him and follow Him with the "the strength [I] have."

Recently, however, I found myself on my knees in prayer, and wrestling with something other than doubt--weakness. As I had often done before, I recited to myself the Lord's words to Gideon: "Go in the strength you have[.]" This time, though, the words did not bring me the same comfort and encouragement they had in the past. Instead, they helped me to distill the burning questions that were on my heart: "Well, what if my strength is gone, Lord? What if I haven't the strength to "go" anymore? What if all I want to do is to follow Elijah into his desert cave, and wrap myself in an enervating cocoon of self-pity, discouragement, and despair?"

I wanted to continue obeying God's call to "go." But I felt as though I had reached the end of my strength, and could not "go" any further. I was in the seemingly impossible position of wanting to serve God, but lacking strength to do it. Have you ever reached that point in your walk with God? Maybe you are there right now! If so, I want to share with you a few Scriptures the Lord used to teach me how to keep 'going,' when my strength is gone.

The first Scripture is in 2 Corinthians 12. The Apostle Paul tells us how the Lord encouraged him when he felt sapped of his spiritual strength, and how he responded to that encouragement:

[God] said to me,"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).

Paul teaches us that when our strength is depleted, and our energy reserves are exhausted, we should rely on God's grace and power. His grace is more than sufficient to keep us going, and His power is perfected in our weakness and lack of strength. We are at our strongest in the Lord when we are at our weakest in ourselves!

The second Scripture I found instructive is in 2 Timothy 2:

You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. . . . Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. (2 Timothy 2:1,3).

Once again, Paul reminds us that the grace of Jesus Christ has the power to strengthen and sustain us. And then he instructs us to "endure hardship like a good soldier." In other words, we are encouraged to persevere! The enemy may intensify his assaults against us, pommeling our shield of faith with his flaming arrows. But we can resist his onslaught, and continue our forceful advance, by: (i) relying on the grace and power of Jesus Christ for our strength; and (ii) persevering through the enemy's attacks, like good soldiers.

The third Scripture I found encouraging was given to me by a member of my congregation a couple of Sundays ago:

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:9).

Speaking to the Galatian church, Paul tells them not to grow "weary in doing good," and reminds them not to give up. But he also gives them some more great advice on how to maintain their strength and persevere. Specifically, he tells them to look forward to what their labors will accomplish: a plentiful harvest for the glory of God. When we are weary and our strength is gone, we need to remember the great cause for which we labor, and the life God will produce when we die to ourselves.

Finally, I was reminded of one of my favorite passages in Isaiah:

Though youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous young men stumble badly,
Yet those who wait for the LORD
Will gain new strength;
They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary. (Isaiah 40:30-31).

It is natural for us to grow weary. But if we strengthen ourselves with the grace and power of Jesus Christ, if we arm ourselves with perseverance and endure hardship like good soldiers, and if we keep our eyes fixed on the promised fruit of our labor, then we will "gain new strength." We will "mount up with wings like eagles," we "will run and not get tired," and we "will walk and not become weary."

So, onward, Christian soldiers!

Meditation 2: Where were you?

A couple of Sundays ago, during a pre-Church Bible study for our future small group leaders, I was shown the above photograph. When I saw it, my emotions ping-ponged between shock and compassion, horror and conviction. This Pulitzer-winning image was captured by a photographer in 1993, during a famine in the Sudan. The child in the picture is struggling to make it to a food center, but is being stalked by a vulture that senses he is close to death. It is a horrible, heart-rending photograph, the graphic nature of which is so harsh that it almost seems surreal.

The truth, though, is that this is a synecdochical image that depicts the plight of millions of children whose cries we do not hear and whose suffering we do not see. How do we respond to something like this? It is tempting simply to shake our heads in sadness and go on with our sheltered and (seemingly) safe lives, or to throw our hands up in despair because we do not think there is anything we can do to meet the tremendous need or to stem the swelling tide of such suffering. But Scripture says otherwise!

The prophet Jeremiah witnessed similar horrors, after Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians in 586 B.C. Jeremiah saw Israel's children dying of starvation. And in the midst of his deep anguish, as vultures and other scavengers doubtless descended upon the city, Jeremiah encouraged the people of Jerusalem to pray for the dying children--to "pour out [their] heart[s] like water" before the Lord. He called upon them to:

Arise, cry out in the night,

as the watches of the night begin;

pour out your heart like water

in the presence of the Lord.

Lift up your hands to him

for the lives of your children,

who faint from hunger

at the head of every street.

(Lamentations 2:19)

I have to confess that I have not done much praying for those who are suffering--for those who, like the child in the photograph, are struggling to survive but are dying alone. Their plight seems so distant compared to my own immediate (and less important) needs. But Jeremiah's plea struck me today, as I thought about the child in that picture: "pour out your heart like water in the presence of the Lord . . . for the lives of [these] children, who faint from hunger[.]" It is a call to intercede in prayer on behalf of the "least of these," because, if we do not, who will? . . .

Today, as I looked at the picture of that little Sudanese boy, I could not help but wonder: Why was he alone? Where were the aid workers? Where were his parents? . . . And then I felt the gentle voice of the Lord ask me a far more important question: "Niki, where were you?"

Now, obviously, the Lord was not asking me why I was not in the Sudan, with this child, 15 years ago. It was a gentle but firm admonition that when I witness human suffering, my reaction should not be, "Where is so-and-so? And why isn't he or she doing something for this person?" Rather, my response should be, "Where am I? And what could I be doing right now to help this individual?" It also was a sobering reminder of a question that each of us may be asked some day, when we stand before the Father . . . "Where were you?"

In Matthew 25:31-46, Jesus says that if we truly love Him, we will love them. If we really are His disciples, we will strive to meet the needs of those who are forgotten by the rest of the world--the poor, the oppressed, the unlovable, and the 'lepers' of our society. We not only will pray on their behalf, we also will act on their behalf. And then Jesus adds that whatever we do for those in need, we do for Him! Finally, He concludes this passage of Scripture by describing how He will rebuke those who claimed to be Christians but who were not, as evidenced by their failure to care for those in need. He will say to them:

"Depart from me . . . For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink. I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me." (Matthew 25:41-43).

In other words, Jesus will ask them, "Where were you? . . . Where were you, when I was being stalked by a vulture, as I struggled to the nearest food center? Where were you, when I was homeless and lying naked in the gutter--rejected by the world? Where were you, when I was left to rot in prison--abandoned by society?" . . .

Where were you? . . .

My prayer is that, if the Lord asks me and you that question some day, we both will be able to answer Him, saying: "I was right there with you, Jesus. I was right there!"