Have you heard the saying “if it doesn’t kill you, it will make you stronger?   It is similar to the saying “No pain No gain”.   Well believe it or not, that is actually a very Biblical principle.  God uses the difficult times, the pains and the suffering to build us up but just as importantly to help others and to do ministry,    This is exactly what James, the brother of the Lord says, in the first chapter of James, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."

Jesus never said, "I have come that you should be happy." Actually, God is much more interested in making your life holy than He is in making you happy.    Happiness is fleeting; holiness has eternal value.   No pain, no gain is particularly relevent in building character.  We shouldn't expect that we can avoid pain and suffering as it is inevitable.   Embracing hardship and allowing God to use it to build us up and advance Godly purposes in our life makes us "mature and complete, not lacking anything." (James 1:4)

When We All Get To Heaven

I've been teaching each Sunday on some of the traditional hymns of the Church and recently had the opportunity to talk about "When We All Get to Heaven,” a Christian hymn written by Eliza Hewitt and met Emily D. Wilson in 1898. Hewitt praises the wondrous love of Jesus:

When we all get to heaven

What a day of rejoicing that will be

When we all see Jesus

We'll sing and shout the victory

If we are going to talk about ‘getting to heaven’ two sections of scripture immediately come to mind.  The first is 1 Thessalonians 4:16 & 17 

“For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord."

There is a companion verse as well. Companion verses are often the same wording found elsewhere or a similar recollection or event.   1 Thes 4:16 is a prophetic verse of a future event so a companion prophetic verse speaks to and provides additional insight into the same prophetic event.  That verse is 1 Corinthians 15:51 & 52 

"Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, on a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed."

So how do we learn from these verses?  

First – notice that in these two verses, the word that is used for those that died by the Apostle Paul is sleep.  The prophet Daniel affirmed that those who “sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake” (Dan. 12:2). This obviously is a reference to the physical body.

Jesus once said to his disciples: “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep but I go that I may awake him out of sleep” (Jn. 11:11).

I prefer thinking of the dead as being asleep.   When you sleep you are peaceful.   The anxiety of the day, the stress of life, all of our aches and pains, they disappear in the bliss of a good nights rest.  Yes, sleep is good.

The early church used the same term; they thought of death in the same way.  They even called their burial grounds koimeteria, or “sleeping places,” and from this term derives our modern word, “cemetery,” a place to which the bodies of our loved ones are kept until they awaken.

The term sleep refers to the body….the body is said to be asleep.  It does not say the same about the soul.  We are both SOUL and BODY.  

HOWEVER,  At the same time, we have very little in the BIBLE about what heaven is LIKE PRIOR to this event, that we are reading about in 1 Thes 4:16

Second, in these verses, Does Paul really describe what many call the "rapture"? That word “RAPTURE” has many fans and just as many detractors.  Many look forward to what is called the rapture but may not know where it comes from. Others, may argue that the word "rapture" is nowhere to be found in Scripture.

Well, let me settle that argument once and for all, the word ‘rapture’ is certainly in the Bible, you just have to use the Latin Vulgate version which was the primary Bible translation utilized for one thousand years preceding the Reformation. In our English version we read that we are to be “caught up” which is the English translation of the Greek word harpazo which was translated "rapturo" in the Latin Vulgate that derives the English words "Rapture" or "raptured". Setting aside the argument that the word rapture is not found in modern translations, the more important question is what does the original Greek word harpazo actually mean?

Well, in Greek, harpazo means to snatch up or take suddenly and vehemently, often with violence and speed or quickly and without warning.

So, this teaching of a ‘rapture’ is part of the broader teaching of the second coming of the Lord or what’s know as the Day of the Lord or the END TIMES.

There are many Bible scholars, pastors and teachers and I am included who believe that the second coming of Jesus Christ will be in two phases. First, Jesus will come for believers, both living and dead, in the “rapture”.  We see that these verses in 1 Thes 4 and 1 Cor 15 that show the transformation and catching up of all Christians, dead or alive, to meet Christ in the air—it will be sudden, and in secret, no one knows the day or the hour and it will be unknown to the world of unbelievers at the time.

I believe that it is amazing event, this removal of a countless millions of people that will usher that which is known as the seven years of tribulation and that at the end of this seven years, Christ will return to the earth with His church, the saints who were raptured along with those that are known as the “Tribulation Saints” (all of them martyrs).   There are many verses that substantiate this second coming including Matthew 24:30, 2 Thessalonians 1:7, 1 Peter 1:13, Revelation 1:7, Revelation 19:11-14).

Christ will be victorious over His enemies and will reign on the earth for 1,000 years (Revelation 20:3) with His saints, the church.

THEN After 1,000 years, living unbelievers and the wicked dead now raised to life will be judged at the great white throne judgment. They will then be cast into the lake of fire, while the saved will live forever with Christ in a new heaven and earth (Revelation, chapters 20-22).

The primary teaching of these verses in 1 Thessalonians 4 and also 1 Corinthians 15 is that 1) this event is sure, it will happen just as all other prophecies regarding the first and second coming of Jesus has and will happen 2) it is for God’s people, for those that know Jesus, for the SHEEP of his pasture,  we want to make sure that we are included in that group of true believers and 3) HEAVEN (or what we know of the ultimate heaven) is exclusively a gathering of ALL BELIEVERS of ALL AGES and ONLY BELIEVERS and the Bible teaches that this resurrection is a transformation of the same bodies we had on earth.

This teaching by Paul ends with this encouragement.  18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.

The hymn, “When We All Get to Heaven,” by Eliza Hewitt and Emily D. Wilson is one great encouragement as well:

When we all get to heaven

What a day of rejoicing that will be

When we all see Jesus

We'll sing and shout the victory

While we walk the pilgrim's pathway

Clouds will overspread the sky

But when trav'ling days are over

Not a shadow not a sigh

Purgatory

Through the Flames…

The official Roman Catholic teaching regarding purgatory is rooted in historical Jewish prayers for the dead. History records that as early as the second and third centuries, Christians often made reference to prayers for the departed. The argument that Catholics, therefore, have historically given for purgatory is “why pray for the dead if there isn’t some benefit in the prayers?”

One of the common scriptures used in connection with this doctrine is from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, chapter three, verse fifteen: “If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.”

It was St. Augustine of Hippo (AD 354–450) who first used the term purgare in referring to the need for the departed to be purged or cleansed of their sin. While the idea that the Christian departed may still need to be cleansed from their sin was ancient, a place called purgatory was most likely brought into common knowledge by the fourteenth century.

Italian poet Dante, who wrote of the seven terraces of Mount Purgatory in the epic Divine Comedy. Unlike the more modern Roman Catholic teaching regarding purgatory, in the late Middle Ages it was portrayed as a horrible place of torment, punishment, hellfire, despair, and anguish. It became a popular teaching of the church at that time that indulgences would be granted for individuals who were alive as well as those who had died. These indulgences ranged from simple prayers and good works to gifts of money and property. People who gave substantially to build churches and monasteries would receive years of indulgences that could benefit them or departed relatives suffering in purgatory.

By the time of the Reformation, the sale of indulgences had become a major financial boon for the Catholic Church, and a German monk by the name of Johann Tetzel was charged with the task of raising money for the rebuilding of St. Peter’s in Rome. Martin Luther saw the selling of indulgences as not only nonbiblical but another obvious example of the corruption in the Catholic Church, which included the office of the pope. Martin Luther made Johann Tetzel famous—or infamous— because of Tetzel’s nondisputed quote: “As soon as the gold in the casket rings; the rescued soul to heaven springs.”

Today the Roman Catholic Church continues to embrace both purgatory as well as indulgences. However, since the time of the Reformation, when Martin Luther and others strongly objected to the obvious abuses in the church, including the sale of indulgences, the Roman Catholic Church has modified its teachings so that purgatory is not so frightening. It is not thought to be a place of torment but rather a holding place where venial sins or minor transgressions are purged primarily through time as well as by the prayers of others and through the sacrifice of the altar, meaning the saying of a Mass for the departed. The Catholic Church denies that indulgences were ever sold. It claims people thought they were buying the indulgence where in fact they were just making financial contributions, and the church was providing the spiritual merit from their treasury of merit.

text above from pages 99-101 in Purgatory - Chapter 18 of "Roaming Catholics"

Was Peter the first Pope? Should Christians pray the Rosary?  Should priests be married?  These are among the provocative topics addressed in Roaming Catholics: Ending the wandering to embrace the wonder" 

This thoroughly researched book presents the development of the Catholic Church in an engaging way to help Christians understand their common history shared by all.  The apostle Paul referred to the church as the "Body of Christ," not the "Body of Christians."   Rather than Jew and Greek, slave and free, male and female he proclaimed we are to be one in Christ. 

Pastor and theologian Kenneth Behr shares his own religious evolution from a Catholic altar boy to an evangelical pastor and engages readers with a parallel story of the evolution of Catholicism. 

Click here to buy (via Amazon) the book

Click here to buy (via Amazon) the study guide;   Study guide is available free via Kindle for Amazon Prime users

   

Being Intentionally Intentional

I always enjoy seeing intentionality.   I think most of us enjoy clarity and intentionality is one of the best ways to communicate clearly.   Over time, intentionality is one of the traits or skills I’ve tried to master.

When I’m talking with organizational leaders, I often suggest that intentionality is one of the key factors of success.  In fact, without being intentional, it’s difficult to even know when you have achieved success.   Over time, I’ve joined the adverb to the adjective and often talk about being ‘Intentionally intentional’.    This is not all that unusual to combine words for emphasas as I’ve I have seen other consultants talking about being committed to commitment or being earnestly earnest just for example.

Intentionality however is the granddaddy of them all. People that are non-intentional go through life just bouncing from one activity to the other and filling their days with activity.   While that is a lazy way to live, it’s a horrible way to lead an organization.

I’ve upset the applecart often, perhaps that is why I do consulting. While “leadership” is in vogue for many good reasons, I remind organizational leaders that great leaders understand that they need managers to be productive and achieve results.   Management is ‘intentional’ about planning, directing, controlling and organizing the company.  

‘Intentionally intentional’ is a skill that once mastered, begins to be useful in so many ways.   Meetings that are meaningful are intentional.  No one wants to attend meetings that have no agenda, no goal, no intentionality.   Organizations that are intentional about everything from monthly sales to product launches to service and process improvements will not only rise quickly to the top of the class but also easily be able to measure the relative success of their efforts.

Here are some suggestions for all leaders:

• Be more intentional—identify objectives and direction and specify intended results
• Demonstrate intentionality by staying focused on desired results and being accountable for the results. 
• Become more intentional in your personal growth.
• Inspire others to become more intentional. 

‘Intentionally intentional’ is a catchy little phrase that can go a long way into turning regular activities and daily routines into purposeful actions that deliver intended results.

The Twelve Days of Christmas

To many the Twelve Days of Christmas is just one of the many Christmas songs that are played on radio and has no further significance.   Contrary to popular belief, the Twelve Days of Christmas begins on Christmas Day, December 25^th and not before Christmas and also has a fun and important history.

The Twelve Days of Christmas actually refers to the days between December 25^th, Christmas Day (celebrated originally in the Western-Latin churches) and January 6^th, the Epiphany (celebrated originally in the Eastern-Greek churches).  Today, Christmas is one of the longest-celebrated holidays as it begins for the shoppers on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, and for many of the faithful, officially includes Advent, embracing the four Sundays prior to the 25^th of December. While the Epiphany was originally celebrated by the Greek churches as multiple revelations of God in Christ to the world, today it is primarily remembered as the celebration of the visit of the three wise men (or kings) to the baby Jesus.   

The origin of the 12 Days according to many sources was an attempted reconciliation between the Latin and Greek churches in the 6^th century as a fitting celebration of the birth of Christ.  Bill Federer, bestselling author and president of Amerisearch Inc. and producer of “Faith in History” tells the story that in 567 AD, at the Council of Tours, the church tried to reconcile the dispute between East and West by defining the days between December 25th and January 6th as officially and inclusively as the 12 Days of Christmas.   Bill Federer goes on to say that these 12 days were declared to all be “holy days” so when someone wishes you happy holidays, they are just using the new pronunciation of holy days as ‘holidays’!

Getting Unstuck

All of us have had the experience of getting stuck. Recently we experienced that in simply assembling a puzzle.  It started off just fine putting together the borders and then we separated some of the colors. We were excited when we found that there were a specific colors and designs that quickly fit together. But then we got stuck. 

Some are up to a challenge of a 5,000-piece puzzle but for others, it’s just too much of a challenge and we find ourselves stuck, We start wondering if we should continue or just put it all back in the box.

Sometimes getting stuck is a bigger issue. Perhaps it’s financial….We lose a job and the next thing we know we are about to lose our car or our home. We go to the doctor for a checkup and he says, “oh oh”….What do you mean oh-oh? Those are words we don’t want our physicians to say.

Perhaps some find themselves in a bad marriage, a bad job, or a bad neighborhood.  God wants us to have peace in these situations and can give us that peace.  Regardless of our situation, the scriptures remind us that we can be content for God has said, "I will never leave you, nor forsake you." (Hebrews 13:5)

But sometimes being stuck ends up becoming a true crisis.  How are we to find peace in the midst of a crisis? The Apostle Paul tells us that first of all, we need to focus on God instead of the situation. That's easier said than done, but that's what Paul means when he says, "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say rejoice" (Philippians 4:4). Paul's not saying that we're happy about what we're going through; he's not even saying to rejoice in our difficulties. He's saying rejoice in the Lord, and that's something altogether different.

It’s possible to have joy in our lives not only when we are stuck but even in the midst of a crisis. True joy is the knowledge that God is in control of our circumstances and allows only that which He permits into our lives.  That's why the Apostle and brother of the Lord, James says to consider it joy when a trial comes our way. (James 1:2) 

It's not that the trial brings joy. Instead, it is what God is doing for us and in us through the trial. He is involved in our lives and is working through these situations. When we truly believe that God is involved, we will consider the trial joy and can find peace and rest in the Lord. In truth, our joy is in the Lord and is completely independent of our circumstances. That is why even in the midst of the worst situations we still worship God. That's what Job did when he lost his possessions and his family; he said, "Blessed be the name of the Lord" (Job 1:21)

Joyful in the midst of struggles

“Joyful Joyful” is a hymn written by Henry van Dyke, a US born, Presbyterian minister from Pennsylvania.  Van Dyke was born in 1852 and during his lifetime he was considered by many to be one of the leading Presbyterian preachers and religious leaders in the country.  

In addition to achieving fame as a preacher, he was a professor of literature at Princeton University, became a Navy chaplain during World War 1, and represented his country as an ambassador to Holland and Luxembourg under an appointment by President Wilson. He was a prolific writer of devotional material with many of his books being best sellers.

The hymn, “Joyful Joyful,” written by van Dyke was written to Ludwig van Beethoven’s, Ninth Symphony for the song called “Ode to Joy.” It was Beethoven's last symphony, took him six years to complete and is generally considered to be his greatest.

Many know that Beethoven by thirty years of age, had become completely deaf. It’s amazing to think that this Ninth Symphony and many others were written without his access to hearing what he composed.  A story is told that when the audience erupted with applause at the conclusion of the initial performance of the Ninth Symphony in Vienna, Austria, the singers on the stage had to turn Beethoven around so that he could see the audience standing and applauding.

Joyful Joyful is the best-known of van Dyke's hymns. The Hymn is based on Psalm 71.  The key verse is Psalm 71:23 which reads:

My lips will shout for joy

when I sing praise to You

because You have redeemed me. (HCSB)

I like to look at the context of the verse before I begin to teach.  In Psalm 71, the psalmist (David) is looking for deliverance.  While he is waiting for God to answer him, he reflects on the wonder of God and then shouts for Joy.

I wonder if this song was being written today it could be called  “Happy, happy, we adore thee?”

Today, people will want you to believe the words “joy” and “happy” are interchangeable, when in fact, they are not.

We may not always be happy, which is subject to my emotions and external stimuli; but, as believers, if we have faith in God, we can always be joyful in the Lord.

Here are some distinct differences:

1. Happiness is a feeling, but joy is not.
2. Happiness is fleeting, but joy is everlasting.
3. Happiness depends on circumstances or other people, but joy is a gift from God.
4. ‘Happiness’ comes from the root word that we get ‘happening’, as from the circumstances.  Joy is from the Greek GAIO meaning to ‘rejoice.’
5. Joy is internal. Happiness is external. You may have a happy time at Disneyworld however when you leave you may lose that happiness.

The Bible answers the question of how we may have joy despite what is going on in our lives.

The Apostle Paul faced some very unhappy circumstances. However, in the midst of his struggles he wrote (Phil. 1:18b)“…I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice.”

Paul wrote this to the believers in Philippi while Paul was locked up in prison and facing an uncertain future.   The previous four years of Paul’s life were miserable. He spent two years in prison in Caesarea, and then he was put on a ship to go to Rome to appear before Nero (aka, the Caesar known for his cruelty against Christians).

On the way to Rome Paul is shipwrecked, stranded on an island, bitten by a poisonous snake, survived the winter there, continued on to Rome and spent another two years in prison awaiting trial to be executed.

Yet in spite of all of these situations, Paul says in Phil. 1:18b “…I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice.”

What was Paul's secret? How did Paul remain so positive in prison, riding above his troubles, and being joyful in spite of the fact that everything has not turned out the way he planned it?

The secret I believe was that Paul knew not only knew who he was but more importantly he knew whose he was …..He was loved by God, called to be an Apostle, a messenger, an Ambassador of God.

Do you know whose you are?   You are called to be a child of God.  Because of God, because of whose we are, the Bible says that we are to consider even our trials to be joyful.

James, the brother of the Lord, wrote in James 1:2-4 Consider it a great joy, my brothers, whenever you experience various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 But endurance must do its complete work, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.

As we persevere through trials, with God’s help, our faith strengthens and matures. By God’s grace we can be happy despite our circumstances.