Who is Jesus?

“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways,  but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.  
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.  
So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs. 
For to which of the angels did God ever say,
 “You are my Son; today I have become your Father’” ? Or again, “I will be his Father, and he will be my Son” ? "
                           Hebrews 1:1-5
Who is Jesus?
He is the very Son of God. “
”The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being.” states the writer of Hebrews.
It is he who provided purification of our sins. Sitting down at the right hand of God.
Over the years I have heard of some religious groups saying Jesus was an angel. The writer of Hebrews here puts that argument to rest by saying
“he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs. 
For to which of the angels did God ever say, 
“You are my Son; today I have become your Father’” ? Or again, “I will be his Father, and he will be my Son” ? 
Angels are flawed. An angel could not have paid the price for our sins. The only one who could come to earth and live a perfect life despite all the temptations and could pay the price for our sins is the very Son of God. The second person of the trinity.
The writer of Hebrews noting that it was “through whom he made the universe.” Again angels did not create the universe they themselves are created beings.
John wrote,
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  
He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” John 1:1-3.
Jesus was there on the day of creation. He took part in the very creation of the universe. Therefore it is obvious that he was God.
Genesis 1:26a states, “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness,...” the “in our image” is a further reference to the trinity of which Jesus is a part.
He had part in creating man.
The facts with respect to who Jesus are very clear, Jesus is God incarnate. The whole New Testament testifies to this. John 1:14 stating,
“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
The apostles and the various writers of the New Testament all agree on this.
Jesus himself stating “I and the Father are one.” John 10:30.
There is therefore no room for us to question who Jesus is. The Bible makes it clear that He indeed is God and asks us to believe also.
Think about it.

Pray, Pray, Pray

“Then he said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and he goes to him at midnight and says, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread,  
because a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have nothing to set before him.’ “Then the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children are with me in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’  
I tell you, though he will not get up and give him the bread because he is his friend, yet because of the man’s boldness he will get up and give him as much as he needs. 
“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  
For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” 
       Luke 11:5-10.

Here Jesus gives a simple statement of truth about prayer. He urges believers to be persistent in their prayers to God. Assuring them that their prayers will be answered by God.
I think however there must be a caution here.
When we pray we must pray for the right things and we must pray in accordance with God’s will.
All too often I have seen Christians praying to be millionaires or for fancy cars or luxuries they don’t need. And when God doesn’t answer their prayers they wonder why.
Don’t get me wrong there is nothing wrong with asking God to provide a good income for us. It’s when we get greedy and start asking for things in excess.
The Lords prayer states, “Give us each day our daily bread” (Luke 11:3). 
What Jesus is saying here in Luke 11:5-10 is that we need to pray continually asking for what we need. Keeping the lines of communication open between ourselves and God.
God knows if we need a Rolls Royce. He also knows that most times all we need is small sub compact  or for that matter no car at all, allowing the extra money to go into ministry or other things of importance in our life.
  God  also knows what we can handle. All one has to do is listen to the horror stories of some people who won millions in the lottery, only to find themselves unable to handle the money and end up broke.
We serve a good God. Who answers our prayers according to His will.
And we as Christians need to draw near to God. Through prayer and studying the Bible. Thus when we pray it will be more in tune to God’s will than our own.
 “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  
For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” states Jesus.
So the lesson is this we need to be continually asking God for what is best for our lives. We need to seek after God’s perfect will for our lives, and we need to be continually knocking on heavens door in order that it will be opened and we will receive full measure of what God has for our lives.
Think about it.

Praise the Lord

"The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. 

He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 

he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 

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. 

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 

Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and

 I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever. "

                                                                                                         Psalm 23

Over the last couple of years my wife and I have gone through a lot with respect to our health. I had cancer surgery that was successful. However I developed to quote the doctor, “large blood clots on my lungs and in my groin” I should have died but by the grace of God I didn’t.
My wife already having some minor health problems ended up in hospital, in intensive care for a week then six more weeks in hospital. When she came out she couldn’t walk. Today she get around using a walker for short distances and a wheel chair for longer distances.
Someone asked me why would God let you go through such things. I told him that it was simply a part of life.
We live in a world filled with illnesses. I know over the years I’ve been exposed to carcinogens. And at times my wife and I don’t eat right.
The food we eat depending on where it comes from has been in contact with chemical fertilizers or pesticides. We over the years have breathed in our fair share of pollution. Such is life in the twenty-first century.
Still God has been good to us. He has been their for us in our darkest days.  
Years ago when our then eight year old son let go of my wife’s hand and dashed across a highway and was hit by a car doing eighty kilometres an hour God was their.
My son was in a coma for a week. All we could do was pray and have our friends pray.
The doctors told us the longer in the coma the worse the potential outcome. Today he’s in his mid thirties and normal. No one can tell that he was in such a serious accident.
My younger son earlier this year was helping build an orphanage in Kenya. He fell from a ladder and broke both bones in his left leg.
Amazingly he was near what some have called the finest hospital in Africa. Not only that there was a top bone specialist from England there for other reasons. He fixed my son’s leg.
The Canadian doctors telling him it couldn’t have been done any better here in Canada.
God is truly good and no one can convince me otherwise.
I know that as long as I continue to follow Him he will lead me by those still waters even in the midst of adversity.
As a result I will echo the words of the psalmist when he says,

“Praise the LORD. 

Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens. 

Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness. 

Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, 

praise him with tambourine and dancing, praise him with the strings and flute, 

praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals. 

Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.”

                                                                                           Psalm 150

November 11th

Today is remembrance day in Canada. The day when we remember not only those who paid the ultimate price in war, but those who served in the armed forces in two world wars, Korea, Afghanistan and as peacekeepers around the world.

On a plaque at a Korean War memorial in Peel County Ontario Canada there is a quote from Romans 14:19

“Let us therefore follow after things which make for peace.”

We remember them by wearing a red poppy.
However I noticed there are people out there passing out white poppies claiming to be for peace. Claiming the red poppy stands for war.
These people, as sincere as they are, are misguided and miss the true meaning of the poppy.
Any soldier will tell you they hate war. War brings about only suffering and death. No one in there right mind would want such a thing.
I would go as far as saying those involved with the white poppy campaign have done little more than protest about war and injustice.
The veterans on the other had put their lives on the line, some even giving the final sacrifice to ensure the freedoms we have today.
They by giving selflessly of their lives, have done more than any protest or letter writing campaign no matter how well meaning to further the cause of peace.
Hitler was not, nor could he be defeated by demonstrations. Many did demonstrate against him only to find themselves in concentration camps or murdered.
Neville Chamberlain the British prime minister of the day, with the best of intentions returned home with a piece of paper signed by Hitler and proclaimed "I have returned from Germany with peace for our time."  While behind his back Hitler is reported to have said it is only a piece of paper, and within a year had plunged the world into world war two.
Sometimes sadly there is no alternative than to go to war.
Can you imagine what it would have been like had those, then young Allied men and women refused to go to war against such evil or failed in their endeavour?
Winston Churchill the man that replaced Chamberlain put it this way,
“But if we fall, then the whole world, including the United States, including all that we have known and cared for, will sink into the abyss of a new Dark Age made more sinister, and perhaps more protracted, by the lights of perverted science.” 
 The ramifications of the Allies losing the second world war are almost impossible to comprehend.
Certainly those who are giving out the white poppy and indeed many of us born after the second world war may never have been born.
Dear reader,
 on this day let us give thanks to God for our freedoms and for the men and women who served and those who serve today in our armed forces.
For it is to them, every man woman and child in this country and every country that enjoys freedom owes an unimaginable debt of thanks.
May God bless them in all they do.

All to Jesus

Read Matthew 16:13-27

"He said to them,

 “But who do you say that I am?”

Simon Peter answered and said,

 “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus answered and said to him,

 “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you,

 but My Father who is in heaven.

“And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and  the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it....

Then Jesus said to His disciples,

 “If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, 

and take up his cross, and follow Me.

“For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, 

but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

“For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, 

and lose his own soul?  

Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”

“For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels,

 and then He will reward each according to his works."

                                                                                       Matthew 16:15-18, 24-27
There’s something important, here, to note.  When Jesus asked Peter who He was, Peter said Jesus was the Son of God.  To which Christ notes, it was God who revealed it to Him.
Jesus simply presented Himself to the disciples and those around Him, He went out and ministered the Word of God.  He let people make the decision on who He was.  They either accepted Him or rejected Him, the choice was always theirs.
That’s the way we are to be. We are simply to present the Gospel.  Present Christ to people, and let them decide on who Jesus is.
By accepting  Christ, we are becoming the church itself.  It is something we can’t take lightly. Which is the other point here.
We must consider the cost, that’s why I believe that Jesus said, "If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me."  (Matthew 16:24)
In some parts of the world when a person comes to know Christ and is taking the important step of baptism they ask the person “are you willing to die for Christ?”
It’s that serious because they are rejected by family and live within a very hostile environment.

Something to think about

Christ from the outset, made it clear that following Him would not always be easy; there would be persecution, even death, but the rewards would be great.
We in North America have it easy. We don’t have to fear death for becoming a Christian.
Frequently all we are asked to do is give up a few bad habits and to make a few lifestyle changes.
Yet still many people are not willing to give up even that.
We are called to take up the cross and follow Him.  No matter how much we have or how little, we must be willing to give it up. This is the call of Christ.
“All to Jesus I surrender all to Him I freely give.” states the words of an old hymn.
  Are you willing to do that? Are you if necessary willing to give up your life for Christ and stand up for the Gospel.

The Needy

“ ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field 

or gather the gleanings of your harvest.  

Do not go over your vineyard a second time 

or pick up the grapes that have fallen. 

Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God.” 

                                                                   Leviticus 19:9,10
Do you remember the poor?
Sometime ago I gave a ride to someone I know into downtown St. Catharines. She noticed a man who appeared to be drunk calling various people around him dirty names.
She commented “drunk and it’s only ten in the morning.”
On another occasion we were near a place that serves food to the needy, when she commented, “why don’t they get a job.”
On both occasions her comments disgusted me. The man on the street calling people names was schizophrenic and wouldn’t stay on his meds.
In his case it would be easy to say well it’s his fault that he doesn’t stay on his medication. But as someone with a mental illness I can relate.
Quite often especially when you’re first being treated the medications can make you feel like a zombie.
Or you take the meds, they make you feel good so you think you’re cured and get off them only to find yourself in worse shape and quite often unaware that you need those meds.
As for the people being served food in many cases had tried to get jobs but they were in a catch twenty-two situation.
Sadly many of them had some kind of mental illness or they had fallen so far down the social ladder that many of them didn’t have fixed addresses. No fixed address made it almost impossible to get a job even if they had the skills to do so.
The above quote from Leviticus nine reminds us that we need to make provisions for the poor around us.
I hear politicians say the social welfare system should be a way of giving a person a hand up not a hand out. Sadly at least where I live it only gives a hand out despite what the politicians say.
Now living in Canada is not as bad as the United States.
In Canada going to the doctor or hospital is fully covered but it’s the things the government doesn’t cover that’s the problem  
I know several people who are on government disability benefits here in Ontario. The benefits while they give the recipient drug, basic dental and eye glasses, they system does not give them much to live on. In some cases around seven hundred dollars a month.
This when the average cost of an apartment is five hundred dollars or more per month and there’s a waiting list for subsidised housing of five years.
So with a cheap apartment at a minimum of five hundred dollars you have to take into account the person needs bus fair to get around the city which can run around a hundred dollars for a monthly pass. That leaves precious little for food and other basics.
I once asked a disabilities benefit worker if there were any programs that the government run that would help those on benefits get skills needed to get into the work force.
The answer was no. So much for giving a person a hand up.
The same is basically true for those on welfare.
Many people I’ve met that are on welfare want to work the trouble is they don’t have the skills to get anything decent.
If they do take a low paying job instantly they loose their dental and drug plans. Which if you’re disabled is necessary.
I know several people who have to take large amounts of medications costing hundreds of dollars a month. Going off welfare or disability benefits means they’d have to pay all that themselves from a minimum wage job which in Ontario is ten dollars an hour sixteen hundred a month before the tax man takes his bite.
I think we as Christians particularly the big churches with several thousand in their congregations need to start looking for ways to help the poor more than just giving them simply food as noble as that is.
There is a saying that states.
“Give a man a fish and it feeds him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a life time.”
Think of all the positive things that setting up an adult training centre in a church in the name of Jesus would generate.
Centres that as far as possible train people for jobs that are needed within the community around them.
Acts 2:44-47 states,
“All the believers were together and had everything in common.
Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.
Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts,
praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”
                                     Acts 2:44-47
This portion of scripture tells me that the believers ensured everyone’s need was met. Not only that it was evident to the people around them that they were doing good and thus the early church enjoyed favour with those around them.
Think about the kind of favour it would bring if the very large churches or groups of small churches got together to offer job’s training free of charge to both those in need within the church and those outside the church.
What a witness!
Think about it.

Be Humble

Read Matthew 23:1-12

"Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples,

saying, “The scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.

“Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do,

 but do not do according to their works, for they say, and do not do...

“But all their works they do to be seen by men.  

They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.

“They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues,

“Greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.’...

“But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.

“And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

                                                                                                  Matthew 23:1-3,5-7,11,12
Jesus is referring to the scribes and Pharisees wanting to be seen by everyone.
They were arrogant, puffed up.  They lacked humility and a servant’s heart.
We need to look very carefully at our lives.  Do we have a servant’s heart?  Do we love the LORD our God with all our heart and soul?  If so, are we following Jesus’ example.
Jesus washed the dirty feet of His disciples.  When was the last time you washed the feet of anyone?
It’s normal in church to want to be in the high profile positions.  To be performing in the choir or leading worship.  There’s just something that appeals to one’s ego, about being at the front, visible to all.
Somehow compared to changing a diaper in the nursery, leading worship is just more appealing.  Yet, that child needs the help of someone perhaps more than the church needs a worship leader.
I worked for a large institution, one time, as a janitor.  When you started, the first thing they put you on was cleaning washrooms.  I cleaned thirteen public washrooms, which included thirty toilets for my first year there.  Most people didn’t last that long, they quit even though the money and benefits were excellent.
Those “who paid their dues on washroom duty” usually stayed with the company a long time and did an excellent job.  It proved a bonus for the company, because they found out who really wanted the job.  Who was really willing to serve the company.
Something to think about:

            Christianity is about service.
It’s about Christ leaving His thrown in heaven to become a servant. John 3:16 states it clearly “  "For God so loved the world that he gave...” God gave of himself that we may have eternal life.
God sent His only Son down from the security of heaven to die for our sins.
If we are to be effective as Christians we have to have that same servants heart. We have to be willing to do anything for Christ. Be it cleaning the church wash rooms, changing a dirty diaper in the nursery or ministering the word of God to our neighbour.
We must be willing to do those hidden, thankless jobs around the church and do them without hesitation or thought of reward.  Are you?