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Category: Encouragement

No Way!

No Way!

What do all of the following have in common?

The 2020 pandemic, rioting in the Pacific Northwest and in Washington DC, the presidential election, and war in Ukraine.

Garbage removal, yard care, snow shoveling, obnoxious music blaring loudly from car speakers, semi-truck drivers, commercial airplane pilots, championship trophies and cell phones.

Fishing, hunting, hiking, vacationing, flying in a plane, treasure hunting, and driving a Mustang GT.

The cosmos, mountains, oceans, lakes, sunshine, rain and snow.

Wolverines, dogs, giraffes, rabbits, rats, eagles, crows and hummingbirds.

Falling, tearing muscles, homesickness, an escaped dog, stolen plums, priorities, goodbyes, moving, unpacking and settling.

Memorial Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Lent, Good Friday, and Easter.

Christian numerology, spiritual warfare, spiritual health, self-esteem, faith, trust, hope, peace, joy, providence, angels and heaven.

What could all these disparate items have in common?  There’s no way there could be a connection between so many different things!

Well … actually there are several.

The first connection is that over the past four years I have written about each of these at least once in this blog. 

Monday, April 22, marks the 4th anniversary of Heading to Heaven.  It seems incomprehensible that four full years have passed since I timidly and tentatively began this venture.  In complete honesty, there was no way that I ever would have imagined beginning such an endeavor!  It wasn’t even “on my radar.”  I only tackled it because the Lord laid it on my heart to do so during the many restrictions of COVID. 

And there’s absolutely no way that this blog continues to exist and prosper.  No way I’ve covered so many different topics.  Yet this is my 212th post – a new offering almost every Saturday over the past 48 months.  Almost 20 of the posts were original stories on spiritual matters.  (If interested in reading or re-reading them, you can find them in the sidebar of the site under the Archive category called “Allegories and Stories.”  In fact, all of the posts can be found there under various categories.)

The other connection … the much more important connection … that all the different topics mentioned at the top of this post share is this: our God is over them all and in control of them all.

This is no small thing!  Our loving Lord is fully aware of and actively involved in every detail of our personal lives – physically, materially and spiritually.  And not only our lives, but our family’s lives, our church’s ministry, and our city and world’s welfare!

“The Son [Jesus!] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him …” (Colossians 1:15-19)

There’s no way we can wrap our minds around this, but it’s true nonetheless.  And it demonstrates the magnificence of our God.  This fosters awe in us.  This is also the source of tremendous comfort.  The awesome, unimaginably supreme and magnificent God loves us, died and lives again for us, and is intimately involved in our day-to-day well-being.

No way!  Yes, way!

Thank you, dear Lord!

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It is my prayer every week that “Heading to Heaven” will bless someone somewhere at some time in some way.  As the byline states, my goal is that the words shared provide “encouragement now until we get where we’re going.” 

I pray this blog has blessed you at some point.  I know I have been blessed through my preparation and writing each week, and I have been encouraged by everyone who has read a post, and especially by those who have subscribed and those who have commented.  A sincere thank you to you all.

And thanks be to our gracious God.  Truly, all glory goes to Him for anything good that has come from this endeavor!  There’s no way this blog exists or encourages anyone without Him and his comforting truths. 

If you don’t already subscribe to the blog, please consider doing so.  Subscribing is free, and brings each new post directly to your email box.  Perhaps something I share will arrive at just the right time and encourage you?  Every new subscriber really is an encouragement to me.  If you are inclined to follow this blog, I would be honored.  The info on how to do so is immediately below.

Embarking on year 5?  No way!  But yes, here we go.  I invite you to share the journey with me.

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Psalm 89:1-2, 5-8
I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations. I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you have established your faithfulness in heaven itself.

The heavens praise your wonders, Lord, your faithfulness too, in the assembly of the holy ones. For who in the skies above can compare with the Lord?

Who is like the Lord among the heavenly beings? In the council of the holy ones God is greatly feared; he is more awesome than all who surround him.

Who is like you, Lord God Almighty? You, Lord, are mighty, and your faithfulness surrounds you.

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Home?

Home?

It was five of the strangest days I’ve ever experienced. 

I knew where I was technically (Tacoma, Washington), but was constantly confused about my location (Washington or Michigan?).  I knew the area extremely well, but found myself repeatedly feeling out of place.  It seemed like I was where I was supposed to be, but it also seemed like I didn’t belong.  I was at home with my surroundings, recognizing everything, but I wasn’t home at all.

If that all sounds confusing, I understand!  It was profoundly confusing and uncomfortable to me as I lived it.  

The week after Easter, my wife and I flew back to Washington state to tie up some loose ends, to spend time with our family members still living there, and to check in with a few friends.  It was a delightful few days … except for those out-of-place feelings I tried to describe earlier.  (Perhaps you’ve experienced a similar feeling after having your own place for a while, and then returning to your parents’ house to visit.)

I’m sure traveling thousands of miles in post-Easter exhaustion, (typical for a pastor following Holy Week), didn’t help the situation.  But I’m convinced I would have felt the same even if less tired.

We resided in Tacoma for 33 years – 30 of those years in the same house.  So, of course, I felt “at home” there.  Not much need for a GPS; I’d driven those streets countless times over the past three decades. 

But it wasn’t home.  Not anymore.  I’ve been negotiating the streets and roads in mid-Michigan for almost a year now.  So while I’m intimately familiar with the Tacoma streets, they weren’t my streets anymore.  They felt comfortable, and at the same time strange.

Of course, we drove by our former house.  I didn’t know how I’d feel about that.  It was certainly weird and disconcerting, but I found myself mentally and emotionally detached at the sight.  We cruised by our former church as well.  Same result. 

Both places hold wonderful memories; both will always be entrenched in my heart.  I dedicated over half my life to both, so both will always be a significant part of me.  But neither is my place anymore; they’re no longer where I belong.

Do I still love the people at my former congregation, care about them and pray for them?  Of course!  I always will!  But I’m not their shepherd anymore.  I have a new pasture to occupy and a new set of “sheep” to tend, and I love them just as dearly.  I know being with them is where I am supposed to be … for the time being. 

And while our new house in Michigan is our new home, and although I feel very at home in the congregations I am now serving and the area I now live … these are not my forever home. 

I’ve always realized this.  But temporarily leaving our new home for our old home and not feeling at home there at all, but rather being confused at where I was and where I should be, really drove this point home to me.

I don’t truly belong anywhere in this world.  Rather, my home is in heaven.

Yours is too!

Are we tempted to get caught up in our current situations and think of them as “home?”  All the time!  But our current residence is not our forever home.  The Lord has a different home … a better one … waiting for us!

The wise Christian recognizes this truth.  And the wise Christian who does, finds himself or herself more content and at peace … even while realizing they aren’t really settled into their real home yet.

The writer to the Hebrews describes this very thing in his chapter on faith.  In the midst of listing many of the men and women of faith and what they did in faith and endured through faith, he makes this aside:

“All these people were still living by faith when they died.  They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.  People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own.  If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return.  Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them” (Hebrews 11:13-16).

Home?  For me, it’s not Tacoma.  Nor is it Clare.  It’s not our previous house nor our current one.  It’s a home my loving Savior has prepared for me after supplying his all-sufficient sacrifice for me on earth and returning again to heaven in absolute victory. 

And I know when I get to that eternal salvation, I’ll finally feel fully at home.  And I’ll finally be where I belong.

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2 Corinthians 4:18
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Revelation 7:13-17
“These in white robes … are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.  Therefore, “they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.

‘Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst.  The sun will not beat down on them,’ nor any scorching heat.  For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; ‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’  ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’” 

How to Interact on This Blog

To Comment – Please share your thoughts!  (Commenting is the fun part!)  To do so, click on the “Comments” tag under the title and start typing.  I, and many others, would love to benefit from your insights!

To Subscribe – Go to the “Follow This Blog Via Email” column.  If you don’t immediately see that box, click on the “Comments” tag under the title, and scroll to the very bottom.  You should find it there.  OR simply comment you want to follow and I can add you!

Prioritizing Priorities

Prioritizing Priorities

We’re just back from a wonderful post-Easter trip to Washington.  So this week I’m resharing a post from several years ago.  I pray it is thought-provoking and beneficial to you.  It’s certainly a great reminder to me!

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We all recognize that priorities are important, but few of us actually prioritize our lives.  At least, that’s the way it seems to me.  (And I count myself among the guilty!)

If asked what is truly important in our life, we could provide excellent answers: God, family, health, home, security, freedom, etc.  Yet often our day-to-day decisions don’t line up with the top items on our self-proclaimed priority list.

Why is this so?  We’re logical, practical people; why are those key items we deem critical so commonly neglected and even downright disregarded – overshadowed by so many lesser things?

There are many factors, of course.  But ultimately the root causes are brought on by the unholy trio of the devil, the world, and our sinful nature (flesh).  Satan enthralls our sinful natures with the wonders, pleasures, and responsibilities of the world, leading us effectively and easily away from pursuing the truly significant things.  Satan is the ultimate deceiver and distractor, and sadly we are easily dissuaded.

Consequently, we are constantly chasing after the “urgent” in our lives instead of devoting ourselves to the “important.”  Typically the “urgents” overwhelm us, receiving tremendous attention, while the “importants” quietly recede into the background.

Or to say it another way, we focus a tremendous amount of time and energy on “nick-nacks” rather than on true “treasures.”  And this leaves us frustrated and somewhat discombobulated.  We realize innately that our focus is misplaced and our emphasis off.

Thankfully, our Lord never mixes up his priorities.  And we are one of his top treasures!  The One who created the cosmos and orchestrates the world’s events – both great and small – made our salvation a top priority.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).  “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

Furthermore, our loving Lord is with us every second of our lives.  He provides for us, protects us, guides us, and blesses us (Jer. 17.7).  How fortunate we are to be at the top of God’s priority list!

So how do we recognize the highest priorities in our lives?  And a more challenging question: how we do we live properly prioritized lives?

Here’s an exercise to evaluate our top priorities, and the order of those priorities.  It’s a variation of a process someone shared with me once.

Think of your priorities as personal treasures.  Now imagine yourself ruled by a king.  The king is powerful, and he is greedy.  He demands all your treasures … except for 10 items. 

What 10 treasures would you keep?  Take your time and think this out.  You must be specific, and you can only retain 10.  Recognize that treasures can also be spiritual or non-tangible.  Write your choices down.

Now imagine that this greedy king decides he wants more, so you have to give up another treasure.  Now you’ll be down to 9.  What will you give up?  Record your decision.

Repeat the process until you whittle your treasures down to one item.  (This process becomes increasingly agonizing as you go along!)  But after making your final decision, you are left with the top priority in your life!  The rest of the order of your treasures/priorities has also been established in descending order by the choices you made along the way. 

I trust that the Lord, his Word, and your faith rank highly on your list in some manner!  As Jesus himself reminded us, “Seek first [God’s] kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33).

If you don’t care for my suggested approach, do an online search for setting priorities.  You’ll find many other alternatives.  The key is that you identify what your top priorities are.

Well done!  Your priorities are established.  But now the real challenge begins.  How do you live your life properly reflecting your top priorities?  How do the treasures you identified receive the daily recognition they deserve?

Here are a few suggestions to maintain course:

1. Print your list of priorities and display it in prominent places where you will see it and be reminded of what is truly important to you.

2. Commit to necessary changes. Simply noting your priorities won’t automatically translate into keeping those priorities; deliberate adjustments are needed.

3. Organization and self-established structure will help safeguard your priorities. Ranked sub-categories under your main points will help clarify your focus even more.

4. Set a schedule and routine that incorporates and supports your top priorities. Set times for specific key tasks, and hold to them.

5. Routinely address the most important things (your “treasures”) first. If less important things don’t get done, they don’t get done.  But you will still have given due attention to what’s most important to you.

6. Share your priorities with others who will encourage you and will hold you accountable.

7. Recognize that priorities can change over time, so reevaluate occasionally.

Establishing priorities … and living according to them … really should be a priority for all of us.  Because our “treasures” need to be properly treasured!

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Here are some wise Biblical words from an exceptionally wise man named Solomon.  The point of sharing these words is not to demonstrate that everything in this world is meaningless, but that many of the things to which we devote our time and energy are actually not so important.

Ecclesiastes 1:12-14
I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens. What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind! I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

Ecclesiastes 2:10-11
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 2:22-26
What do people get for all the toil and anxious striving with which they labor under the sun? All their days their work is grief and pain; even at night their minds do not rest. This too is meaningless. A person can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in their own toil. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment? To the person who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness …

How to Interact on This Blog

To Comment – Please share your thoughts!  (Commenting is the fun part!)  To do so, click on the “Comments” tag under the title and start typing.  I, and many others, would love to benefit from your insights!

To Subscribe – Go to the “Follow This Blog Via Email” column.  If you don’t immediately see that box, click on the “Comments” tag under the title, and scroll to the very bottom.  You should find it there.  OR simply comment you want to follow and I can add you!

The Dead Stay Dead, Don’t They?

The Dead Stay Dead, Don’t They?

Growing up in rural Michigan, I was accustomed to seeing roadkill.  In fact, through the years I accidentally contributed to it.  The overgrown ditches along the roads, and the farm fields interspersed with occasional woodlots, produced plenty of critters to meet untimely deaths along the highways.  The most common casualties: opossums, raccoons, squirrels, and the dreaded malodorous skunks. 

In urban Tacoma where we lived for three decades, roadkill was much less common.  Though there was much more traffic, there were far fewer potential victims. 

Now that we live in central Michigan, we are once again surrounded by fields and woods.  Actually, more woods than fields.  Which means that animal corpses litter the freeways that cut through the forested country.  Unfortunately, many of the dead are a larger version of mammal than what I would see as a youth – deer. 

Now obviously, the collision that killed them wasn’t beneficial to the deer.  But neither was it beneficial to the vehicles that hit them!

Around here, this is cause for healthy concern.  And rightfully so!  In just the 9 months we have lived here, at least six people from the two congregations I serve have hit deer.  Each time, it meant thousands of dollars of repairs.  At least once, the deer totaled the vehicle. 

I did a quick online search, and found that in 2022, almost 60,000 vehicle-deer crashes occurred across Michigan.  Obviously, some areas of the state (like where we live) are more conducive to such incidents.  Which is why I have actually been advised by members to pay extra for zero deductible collision insurance since it is almost a given that sooner or later my wife or I will have an unexpected and undesired run-in with a deer around here.

This is certainly a significant reason that deer hunting tags are so readily available and reasonable in this state.  The herd keeps growing, creating an epidemic of deer-vehicle collisions.  Hunting is one of the most effective curbs of the population.  (To put this in perspective, well over a quarter-million deer were harvested in Michigan this last season!)  And it barely seems to have made a dent in the numbers.

In the eleven miles of freeway I travel between my congregations, I am comfortable stating that there is an average of at least one dead deer per mile lying alongside the road.  Now they aren’t along every mile, but some miles have multiple corpses.

Which actually is what sparked the idea for this post.  As I was driving to the Good Friday service at the more northern church I serve, I was once again noting all the deer bodies strewn along the shoulders.  Some of those animals are more recent casualties.  However, I realized that I had seen some of those dead deer already last fall before the snow fell and covered everything.

Those animals were dead in 2023, and they’re still dead!

And so it is with all mortal creatures.  When the body dies, physical life comes to an end.  Eventually death always wins.  And when death wraps its tentacles around something for the final time, it doesn’t let go.

The animals that lose their lives along the highways never find them again.  The bodies so reverently and ceremoniously laid to rest in the cemeteries never wake up.  The dead stay dead.  There is no exception to this rule. 

Except one. 

Observing all those deceased deer on Good Friday, the day that Jesus died and his dead body was laid in a tomb, was striking.  Those deer, like all other creatures that die, remain dead.  Jesus also actually died, but death’s horrific grasp could not hold the Son of God!

When the third morning arrived, Jesus threw off the shackles of death, and emerged from a condition no other person can break, and from a tomb no other corpse could exit.  But then, he wasn’t a corpse anymore.  He was the living, almighty, immortal, and victorious Lord of all, and the Savior of sinners.

And he still is!

Easter is such a joyful morning because the Lord who took on our iniquity and paid for it – horribly but wonderfully – is alive again.  His task is done; full forgiveness is won; salvation for sinners is secured. 

And once – just this once! – the Dead did not stay dead.  The One who was dead is now alive!

But Easter is also joyous for another reason.  The fact that Jesus did not stay dead means that you and I and all believers in Him won’t stay dead either!  Amazing, yes.  But true nonetheless! 

When Jesus returns on the Last Day, death’s bond will finally be fully broken … for all the dead!

The earth will yield the countless bodies deposited in it through the millennia.  The bodies of believers will be joined with their souls and welcomed into God’s presence forever; the bodies and souls of those who rejected the Savior banished from him.

The principle that the dead stay dead holds true.  At least, for everyone besides Jesus.  And at least, for everyone until Jesus returns.  But thanks be to Him, the Living One established a new principle.  Because Jesus did not stay dead, you and I won’t stay dead either. 

Amazing!  Astounding!  Wonderful!  And absolutely true!

The One who was dead is now alive … forever and ever!  And because he lives, we live too.  Not only now, and not only spiritually, but spiritually AND physically forever and ever with Him who defeated death!

How comforting and encouraging to know our future is not death … but life!  And all because of Jesus, our living Lord. 

Happy Easter, everyone!

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(Acts 2:22-24) – from Peter’s Pentecost sermon
“Fellow Israelites, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know.  This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 

But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. 

(1 Corinthians 15:20-22, 54-56)
But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.  For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.  For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.  But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.

54 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”  The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

How to Interact on This Blog

To Comment – Please share your thoughts!  (Commenting is the fun part!)  To do so, click on the “Comments” tag under the title and start typing.  I, and many others, would love to benefit from your insights!

To Subscribe – Go to the “Follow This Blog Via Email” column.  If you don’t immediately see that box, click on the “Comments” tag under the title, and scroll to the very bottom.  You should find it there.  OR simply comment you want to follow and I can add you!

The Greatest Of All Time

The Greatest Of All Time

“Who’s the greatest of all time” is a question often asked and always debated.  It surfaces in every facet of our world.  And lists offering views on the greatest are easy enough to uncover. 

Consequently, as I pondered who might be referenced in a summary of the greatest people in history, I was confident that I would find multiple rankings.  What I wasn’t certain about was who would be on the lists, and especially who would be at the top of them.

While he wasn’t the first to compile a list, it seems that Michael H. Hart’s book, “The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History” took the exercise to another level.  Published in 1978 and revised in 1992, his work is still regularly referenced on this subject. 

‘“Unlike various other rankings at the time, Hart was not attempting to rank on “greatness” as a criterion, but rather whose actions most changed the course of human history.  … Founders and shapers of successful religions were among the most influential in Hart’s view, as these shaped many people’s lives quite strongly over a long period of time.”’ (Wikipedia).

Sure enough, the person occupying the number one spot on his list is a religious person … Muhammad.  He gets the nod because Hart regarded him as extremely successful.  Not only did he start a new religion, but he gained great power and oversaw significant military conquests which unified Arabia.

The next highest religious figures on Hart’s list are Jesus at number 3, and Gautama Buddha at 4.

Of course, there are other lists.  A more recent one (2013) was compiled by TIME Magazine via a “data-driven” process.  In their list of the 100 most significant people in history, “a quarter of [their selections] are philosophers or major religious figures.” (Steven Skiena and Charles B. Ward – TIME).  Their top figure was Jesus; Muhammad came in third.

In fact, on most such lists, Jesus is indeed listed as the most important person in history.  But his ranking comes from a secular perspective and acknowledges his “secular” and “spiritual” contributions to the societies of the world. 

Biography Online provides a nice summary of the rationale for listing Jesus first:  (Buddha placed 4th on their list, and Muhammad 7th.)

“Jesus Christ (c. 4 BC – c. AD 30) was a spiritual Teacher, who preached a gospel of faith, love and forgiveness.  His life and teachings led to the emergence of a new religion – Christianity, which became the dominant religious force in the western world.  The Christian religion reveres Jesus Christ as the Son of God.  Jesus is also an important prophet in Islam, and his teachings are widely admired by other religious traditions.” (Biography Online).

As expected, the various lists all vary a great deal – not only in the ranking of those on the lists, but even of those who make the lists.  However, there is one fundamental, overriding assumption regarding all of the individuals mentioned on all the compilations: they are just human.

And, of course, this is absolutely true.  Except for one individual on the lists – Jesus.  Yes, he was also completely human; but he wasn’t just human.  He was also completely God.  That sets Jesus apart from every other person listed.  It sets him apart from every other person who ever lived!

Every “greatest” list includes people from every aspect of life.  As already mentioned, religious figures hold prominent positions.  But political and military powerhouses are also featured.  As are scientists, chemists, biologists, inventors, philanthropists and philosophers.  The arts are represented too, with writers, painters, composers, musicians, and even singers making the cut.

But no matter the list or the ones who happen to be on a list, each of those individuals started life at a certain time, and were given life by the Lord Jesus.  Furthermore, every one of them made mistakes; they all were imperfect; they all sinned.  And most significantly, no matter their contributions to history or society, they all died and were done … even if their teachings or advances live on.

Jesus is on a totally different level.  He is the eternal God; he always was, and he always will be.  His birth on earth was just a continuation of his existence.  He never ever sinned – his holy life a perfect sacrifice for the sinners of all time.  (Including everyone else on the top 100 lists!)

Though he had boundless power, he excelled in and exemplified humility and love instead.  To the point that he, the almighty God, offered himself to be tortured by humans he had created … suffering and dying even for his tormentors (and for you and me!). 

And yes, as true Man he did die … willingly giving up his life in atonement.  But unlike all the other “greats,” death could not hold him; on Easter morning Jesus exited his tomb – his daunting task of redemption completed.  He lives on in victory, and he always will! 

No one else on any list did that.  No one else who ever lives will either.

Our sins are paid for!  Our salvation is secured!  Our hope is a certain hope!  Our lives are immeasurably better than we could have ever dreamed they could be.  We are loved by God himself!  

Jesus is the greatest of all time.  No one else even comes close!

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Philippians 2:6-11
Christ Jesus, … being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death — even death on a cross!

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Colossians 2:9, 13-15
For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form … When you were dead in your sins …, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

John 20:30-31, 21:25
Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. … Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.

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The Punishment Doesn’t Fit the Crime

The Punishment Doesn’t Fit the Crime

In a certain city lived a life-long criminal.  He was the true definition of the scum of the earth – a person who never did a proper thing if he could gain what he wanted improperly.  His perspective was a totally self-absorbed one, with no care or compassion for anyone else.  Consequently, he had no qualms about hurting anyone if it got him what he wanted.

This thug was a liar … a thief … an abuser … a rapist … and a murderer.  And since he lived out on the streets, he was filthy, smelly, and unkempt in every way – disgusting even to look at, much less to be around.

Outside of the city was a lovely palace where a wonderful king and his dearly-loved son resided.  They cared deeply about the people of the city and were constantly striving to serve them and help them to the best of their ability. 

When the King heard about the increasing crime in the city, he sent his son into the heart of it to look into the problem and to try to make a difference.  Since they were looking for unfiltered information, the prince set out without his usual guards.

The prince was a good man; wise yet humble, kind, loving and gracious.  He entered the city with pure intent – eager to associate with the people there, assess the situation, and to help those in need.

While walking down a street he happened to unknowingly approach the life-long criminal who was hovering in the shadows of an alley, waiting and watching for his next opportunity.  The evil man spotted the prince’s fine clothes and jewelry, and he coveted them.  They would bring him an abundance of coin from the backstreet dealers.

So the hidden predator pounced without warning … pulling his prey into darkness of the alley. The prince was brutally beaten.  But no, it wasn’t enough for the thug to incapacitate his victim; he didn’t stop until he had killed him.

A couple of town constables on their rounds happened to be nearby and heard the prince cry out.  They shone their lanterns into the alley to investigate and caught the murderer (literally) red-handed, as the brut was stripping the body.  The wicked man was so intent on gathering his new-found payday that he was slow to react.  The constables were not; they swooped in and tackled the murderer. 

The constables were horrified that someone’s life had been snuffed out so casually and cruelly.  And even more so when they realized whose body it was!  The prince had been killed!  The king would be devastated.  Oh, what a terrible day for the kingdom! 

They quickly gathered help to transport the son’s body to the palace while they escorted … none-too-nicely … the terrified and trembling criminal there to face the monarch.  They were immediately brought before the king, where they threw their prisoner on the floor.  Then with halting tongues and downcast eyes, they reluctantly revealed what had happened.

The King was heartbroken and sobbed that his son was dead.  “My dear son!  My only son!  The focus of my heart and my hope for the future!”  The entire court cried with him.  Not for show but with sincere grief; the prince was dearly loved by all. 

Every person present wanted and expected the harshest judgement to be levied, and not a single one among them would have questioned it when spoken – no matter how severe.   In their profound grief, they were almost eager to see the horrific punishment the King would pronounce upon his son’s lowlife murderer.  They wanted proper vengeance!

Finally the king steadied himself.  Then he spoke … tears still streaming down his cheeks.

“You have been a brutal criminal all your life.  You have lied, stolen, beaten, abused, raped, and killed.  And to top it all off, you even murdered my son.  So this shall be your punishment:

“Since you have my son’s blood on you, I will clean you up.  I will dress you in the finest of clothes and feed you the finest of foods.  You will eat at my table, live in my palace and remain in my presence, enjoying the very best blessings I can give you.  Your future will hold great joy; my son gave his life for yours!”

The criminal collapsed in disbelief, and the king’s court gasped in shock.  Had the king lost his mind in his grief?  It was beyond comprehension for anyone in this world to give such a sentence after such a crime by a lifelong criminal!  Yet, the king remained resolute, and his son’s murderer was pardoned and pampered from that day on … something no one could ever understand.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

And it is beyond comprehension for such a sentence to be spoken in those circumstances, isn’t it?  I can’t imagine anyone doing what that king did in this world. 

However, there is a king in the heavenly kingdom who has done just that.  If you haven’t put it together yet, we (you and I) are the life-long criminal in that story.  And perhaps your reaction is, “Woah!  I’m not that bad!  I’ve got some faults, but I’m not as evil as that guy!”

But if you remember that the Lord, the Heavenly King, said, “Be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48).  And when you realize that we have broken every single commandment in one way or another, (if not with our body then with our mind), suddenly we recognize that we are every bit the life-long criminal that the man in our story was.

We tend to compare ourselves to other people, who are also sinful, so we come to the conclusion that we aren’t so bad.  But the reality is that we should be comparing ourselves to God, who is perfect in every way.  And when we do that, the conclusion is quite different: we are very, very bad.  We are every bit as evil in God’s eyes as the criminal.

In fact, one could properly say that we killed God’s Son.  It was our crimes that brought Jesus to earth.  It was our sinfulness that caused Jesus to die.  It was our wickedness that demanded proper payment.  It was in love for us that Jesus died on that cross.

If we properly recognize this, we …. like the criminal … stand before God’s judgement seat trembling and terrified.  We can’t expect anything but the worst.  Yet what does the King say?

“Since you have my son’s blood on you, I will clean you up.  I will dress you in the finest of clothes and feed you the finest of foods.  You will eat at my table, and live in my palace and remain in my presence, enjoying the very best blessings I can give you.  Your future will hold great joy; my Son gave his life for yours!”

How do we respond to that?

When we recognize the extent of our lostness, hopelessness, and our deserved punishment, but that instead of punishment we are given love … and grace … and forgiveness … and salvation … and peace … and joy through our Savior, we are overwhelmed!

How do we respond to that totally unexpected … and completely undeserved … blessing from our Heavenly King? 

Maybe we fall to our knees.  Maybe we cry.  Maybe we raise our arms above us and shout in victorious joy.  Maybe we do all of the above.  Almost certainly we immediately send up heart-felt and extremely emotional words of thanks to the Lord.

We cannot be unaffected by this amazing mercy from our God.  We must praise him!  And it’s not just an immediate and one-time praise, but praise that is on-going through our entire life.

The punishment Jesus suffered in our place was proper and necessary for full atonement for our sin to be made.  But the “punishment” we experience definitely doesn’t fit our crimes!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I fully recognize that there are some profound differences between the Father and Jesus, and the king and the prince in the story above.  First of all, Jesus knew that he was sent by the Father specifically to be killed.  Secondly, both the Father and the Son recognized that Jesus would not stay dead.  Finally, God’s spiritual blessings become ours through faith.  Where faith does not exist, the Lord justly judges and punishes.  He is a merciful God, but also a righteous God.

These are significant differences.

However, my intent with this story was to underscore how radical God’s mercy to you and me really was and is.  Even with the differences mentioned in the paragraph above, God’s mercy to us who know and love our Savior is truly profound, truly underserved, and absolutely unprecedented.  If the story accentuated these truths, then God be praised.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Ephesians 2:1-5
2 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions — it is by grace you have been saved.

Psalm 103:8-10
8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. 9 He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; 10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.

Lamentations 3:22
Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.

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Who Is Like Our God?

Who Is Like Our God?

The text was unexpected, as was the question posed in it.  I was stunned when I read it.  It was from my son, a new father for the fourth time. 

Here’s a paraphrase of his message: 

“Hey Dad, I’m catching up on things and saw that the blog you shared on February 24 was titled, “Hope Springs Eternal.”  If the date on it is correct, it would have been released on the day Hope (his newborn daughter) was born.  Was that coincidence or deliberate?”

And here was my reply:

“That was providential!  I knew you were at the hospital, but Hope wasn’t born yet.  Nor did I even know that was your chosen name for a girl.”

In fact, I didn’t even know she would be a girl!  Nobody but perhaps a few medical personnel who saw the ultrasounds knew the gender – by special request of my son and daughter-in-law.  The new parents wanted to be surprised.

And surprised they were.  A girl after three boys!

Then the wonder was compounded when it was discovered I inadvertently used her name in the title of that morning’s blog … AND discussed the very meaning of her name in the article!

Perhaps even more startling, no one made the connection – not even me! – until Hope’s father finally had a chance to pull up his email. But when noticed, it was striking.

God had done an extraordinary God-thing once again!

The internet isn’t big enough to contain all the examples of the Lord doing incredible things for me … and sending incredible messages to me … during my stumbling stroll through life. 

Like the miraculous events – multiple times! – that kept me from inadvertently injuring myself seriously or snuffing out my life altogether during the false security of my youthful conviction that I was immortal.

Or the out-of-the-blue phone call offering me my dream summer job when I was a teen, which I subsequently worked multiple summers.

Or the time I nursed a struggling car into the first parking lot available on a trip many states from home, only to discover it was the parking lot of a mechanic who just happened to be there on a Saturday when he normally wasn’t, and who fixed the car in only hours.

Or the unsolicited phone call from a dear lady in the congregation made simply to thank me for being her pastor and to tell me I was doing a great job at a time when I was privately quite discouraged.  (Clearly she was moved by God to punch in my number and pass on that message that day!)

Not to mention the countless times the Lord sent me just the passage I needed … or an unexpected visual during the normal routine of life … to reassure me that He was with me and working for me and that all would be well.

The list could go on-and-on.  And I am confident that your list of similar experiences could too! With minimal thought, every believer can look back on a long list of God’s interventions – of times of miraculous provision and protection, of unexpected epiphanies and astounding blessings. 

It’s what God has already done for us; it’s what God will continue to do for us!

Which leaves us praising our Lord in awe, as did Moses, Miriam and the Israelites after the Lord brought them through the Red Sea on dry land, only to have the waters come crashing down on the Egyptian army pursuing them: “Who among the gods is like you, Lord?  Who is like you — majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders?” (Exodus 15:11)

Are you discouraged; disheartened; even despairing?  Exhausted to the extreme; weak and worn down?  Uncertain in current circumstances and searching for clarity?  Unsure how to proceed?  Feeling isolated or even abandoned?  Relationship quandaries?  Health issues?  Financial challenges?  Struggling in life in any way?

You have a wonder-working God who is always with you, who always loves you, who is always fighting for you, who is always working everything for your good, and who still does miracles!  Even today.  Even in your and my life! 

He’s a God who created and controls everything in the cosmos, yet who knows you personally and fully.  A God who is aware of every minute detail in this busy world, yet who is actively engaged in your life and who is intricately involved in caring for you … someone whom he loves with all his heart and blesses in infinite ways.  Sometimes even … (especially!) … through incredibly tough times!

Who is like our God – the God who brought Baby Hope into the world and the God of our hope?  The God who sees to it that an article about hope is unknowingly shared on a day Hope is born?

“There is no one like the God of Jeshurun, [a poetic name for God’s people], who rides across the heavens to help you and on the clouds in his majesty. The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms” (Deuteronomy 33:26-27).

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Isaiah 44:6-8
“This is what the Lord says — Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it. … Do not tremble, do not be afraid. … Is there any God besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.”  (Isaiah 44)

Micah 7:18-19
Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.  (Micah 7:18-19)

Psalm 89:1-2, 5-9
I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations. I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you have established your faithfulness in heaven itself. … The heavens praise your wonders, Lord, your faithfulness too, in the assembly of the holy ones. For who in the skies above can compare with the Lord? Who is like the Lord among the heavenly beings? In the council of the holy ones God is greatly feared; he is more awesome than all who surround him. Who is like you, LORD God Almighty? You, Lord, are mighty, and your faithfulness surrounds you. 

Psalm 113:1-6
Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord, you his servants; praise the name of the Lord. Let the name of the Lord be praised, both now and forevermore. From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised. The Lord is exalted over all the nations, his glory above the heavens. Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high, who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth?  (Psalm 113)

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Necessary Clean-Up

Necessary Clean-Up

As you may know, my wife and I now live in Michigan.  As you undoubtedly know, it snows in Michigan.  Sometimes a lot!

One of the remarkable things I have noticed since moving here is that the folks in central Michigan do not mess around with accumulated (or accumulating) snow. 

After the worst of the snow has fallen … and sometimes even while it is still piling up … armies of snow soldiers suddenly appear on the battlefields in front of their houses.  This isn’t just a few people in front of a few houses, but a massive force of troops.

Some (like me) are limited to basic weapons like shovels.  Many others have more advanced technology and go on the attack with snow-blowers. 

Then there are the calvary divisions.  They are the ones driving 4-wheel-drive pick-up trucks with mounted steel blades … most with a single blade.  (However, the really impressive ones carry v-blades that can be positioned in a number of different ways to clear the snow.)  These heavily armed vehicles come to the rescue of those who hired them, and in a few well-articulated passes clear an entire driveway in just moments.  They are also the ones paid to shove the snow into huge piles in the local parking lots.

And we dare not forget the heavy artillery!  The huge city and county trucks that grade the snow off the streets … typically pouring out ice-melting materials as they go.  (Unfortunately, they also tend to refill the bottom of driveways already cleared out!  And if the accumulation is significant, this occurs a number of times!)

Our city even has effective little special units which clean the white stuff off the city sidewalks!  I’d never seen that before, but I’ve been out of the Midwest for many years.

These many winter warriors are really an inspirational sight to behold, and they fight a battle that is repeated over-and-over-again every time the snow and ice make a local “attack.”

The last time I observed the conflict, (as I slowly fought a path out of my drive with my shovel), I remember once again being duly impressed by my fellow soldiers visible in the front yards down our street.  And I thought, “If only we were all so dedicated to spiritual warfare as we are to battling snow.”

But most of us don’t tend to attack our personal deficiencies nearly as actively.  Most don’t strive to clean up our spiritual messes nearly as aggressively.

Maybe they’re not as obvious as a pile of snow … at least to us.  Maybe they don’t cause us as many inconveniences or even shut us down like a half-foot of white can.  Cleaning up our spiritual issues definitely doesn’t seem quite as pressing as clearing out our driveway so we can get to work or the grocery store.  Certainly there’s not the peer pressure present as on a half-mile long street lined with houses.

And yet clearing our hearts of negative spiritual accumulation is far more important!  Which is why the Lord repeatedly urges us to clean up our hearts and lives! 

It’s a recuring theme in both the Old and New Testament.  Why?  Because, as the Holy Spirit inspires Paul to write, “I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3).

God in his mercy and grace has made us his own, and Jesus’ blood has washed us clean.  But we are infected with a sinful nature, we are constantly under Satan’s attacks, and we live in wicked world.  Which means that as long as we live in this world, we are at spiritual risk.

So regular spiritual clean-up is a necessary thing!  The Scriptures provide beautiful descriptions of this purifying process, worked by God through God’s Word: 

Ezekiel described it this way: “I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities …  I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you … I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. (Ezekiel 36:25-27)

Paul wrote, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.  Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:1-2).

In the Midwest, snow removal is a necessary and frequent task.  But for Christians anywhere, a frequent cleaning of the heart and mind is far more crucial, even if it may seem less pressing.  Thanks be to God, He does fantastic work in us whenever we hearing or reading God’s Word! 

Of course, the spiritual cleaning process has more involved in it than just being in the Word actively.  But that’s where it starts!

So it’s important we go on the spiritual offensive and immerse ourselves in the Scriptures, and let the Lord lovingly attack our spiritual messes!  It’s the best and most necessary clean-up of all.

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Hope Springs Eternal

Hope Springs Eternal

I am almost giddy with joy.

Baseball is beginning!  Major league players have reported to their spring training facilities and practices are under way.  Already the first games are being played and broadcast.  Along with the amount of daylight increasing daily and the daffodils stretching from the ground, baseball is one of the wonderful harbingers of Spring.

When “the boys of Summer” report for duty, it’s a sure sign Summer isn’t far away!

And who of us isn’t ready for some fun in the sun?  Some enjoyable distractions on the ballfield; the sounds, sights and smells of a ballgame; some social gatherings at the ballpark?

On top of just the exultation that baseball is back, there is the added excitement that this year my favorite two teams, the Seattle Mariners and the Detroit Tigers, are both going to make it into the playoffs!

At which any of you who are a little informed about either team might be rolling your eyes, shaking your heads, and possibly even guffawing out loud.  Neither team has exactly overwhelmed recently, though the Mariners have done better than the Tigers.  But the Seattle team plays in a tough division – the division that has produced the past two World Series winners.

Consequently some (many?) will take exception to my prediction of the Mariners and Tigers advancing to the playoffs.  To which I reply with the aged and sage proverb, “Hope springs eternal!”

And nowhere is that expression more true than in regard to one’s favorite baseball team!  (Especially perhaps if one’s favorite team happens to be either the Mariners or Tigers!)

But those who are a little more than just a little informed recognize that both teams have potentially excellent pitching, some solid experienced players, and a host of young players with tons of talent.  Furthermore, the Tigers play in a weak division.

So there is definitely hope!

“Hope springs eternal” is actually an abbreviation of a line written by Alexander Pope in “An Essay on Man” in 1732.  The entire phrase was originally “Hope springs eternal in the human breast.”

The concept, of course, is that humans long for, search for and even manufacture hope.  We need it, want it, and have to have it.  Our tendency is always to somehow, somewhere, in some way uncover some kind of hope.  We will cling tenaciously to hope against all odds because existence without hope is a shallow existence.

Unfortunately, this sin-shattered world excels at undermining hope.  Perhaps that’s why we are so desperately and constantly seeking a semblance of hope?  We recognize that hope tends to be frail, finicky and fleeting.

Which is why, I’m convinced, the Bible speaks so adamantly and repeatedly about hope.  Not about the uncertain hope this world offers, but rather about the certain, immovable, unchangeable, persevering, everlasting, rock-solid, count-on-it-no-matter-what hope that God gives.

If God says it, God must do it.  If God makes a promise, God must keep it.  If God offers words of hope, he must stand behind them.  Which makes the hopes that God gives us absolutely reliable.

The list of God’s hope-giving promises is long!  His assurances encompass his love for us, his redemption accomplished for us, his daily care of us, and his eternal reward for us.  And so much more!

“Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope” (Romans 15:4).  To which the writer to the Hebrews adds this encouragement, “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful” (Hebrews 10:23).

Wherever the Bible addresses the hope that God gives us, we should add the word “certain” to it.  Not only because it sounds more encouraging that way, but because it’s true!

Let’s try it and see what that sounds like.

“We wait in (certain!) hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.  In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. May your unfailing love be with us, LORD, even as we put our (certain!) hope in you” (Psalm 33:20-22).

Now that’s a (certain!) hope that truly springs eternal!

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The Greatest “Sports” Spectacle of All!

The Greatest “Sports” Spectacle of All!

The world recently had the opportunity to watch one of the greatest sports events of the year – the Super Bowl.  65,000 fortunate folks saw it live in Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.  For those purchasing seats for the game, they averaged approximately $8,600 a-piece.  Resale tickets bounced up to about $12,000.   But those prices are a steal of a deal when one considers that renting a suite cost an astounding 2.5 million!

Another 115 million viewers watched the game on screens.  That’s a new high, but it will undoubtedly be eclipsed in 2025, as viewership seems to rise each year.

As popular as the NFL’s biggest game may be, it doesn’t come close to being the most watched sporting event in the world.  That distinction is held by the Tour de France, which attracts massive audiences each year.  (3.5 billion people!)  The FIFA World Cup is right behind with 3.3 billion viewers, the Olympics with over 3 billion, and the Cricket World Cup with 2.6 billion. 

Those are staggering numbers! 

Why do sporting events draw such attention?  Why are they so emotionally compelling to so many people?  I believe Tom Guarriello explains it well in his article, “My Favorite Things: What Makes Sports So Popular?” 

I think the question of the emotional appeal of sports can be looked at from several points of view.  The first, and most common, is that team sports are tribal contests/rituals.  We identify with a team, whether it represents a country, a city, or a school, and invest a part of our identity…our self…our hopes of success and fears of failure, in the performance and achievements of these teams.

But the spotlight that sports shines on individual performances in structured, competitive situations…games…is another part of what makes sports so appealing for so many people.  One individual, in one moment, can make the difference between (maybe, a lifetime of?) triumphal exhilaration or inconsolable despair!

And, this is one of the most compelling aspects of competitive sports: what’s happening is real; what’s happening is now; and what’s happening will never happen like this again. Those who watch are witnessing history made live.

This uniqueness raises the possibility that every sporting event could be a captivating, memorable emotional experience.  Sports fans will always have a chance to see something happen (an impossible play!, a monumental blunder!) that elicits genuine emotions and feelings, sometimes joy and exhilaration, other times anger and despair.  Intense emotional experiences are always possible in sports.

This contrasts sharply with the mundanity of normal everyday life.

Which helps explains the allure of sporting events, and why so many watch.  Nor is this anything new!  Sporting contests and their popularity go way back in history.

So it should be no surprise that the Holy Spirit uses the illustration of an athletic event in the Scriptures to picture a spiritual truth.  Multiple times, actually.  And this is the most important … the most critical … contest ever.  At least for each of us as individuals. 

The event?  A believer’s spiritual race.

The challenge?  To avoid any obstacles that might keep him or her from finishing.

The goal?  To win the prize.

The prize?  The crown of eternal salvation.

Here’s how the Apostle Paul describes that race: “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize?  Run in such a way as to get the prize.  Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.  They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.” (1 Corinthians 9:24-25).

This race of faith is challenging and ongoing.  It’s not a 100-yard dash but a life-long marathon fraught with distractions and difficulties.  We must persevere to win the prize.  Thankfully we have some significant supporters.

The writer to the Hebrews adds another dimension to this spiritual race that perhaps we don’t often consider.  He reminds us of the spectators – the men and women of faith who have gone before us.  Not that they are necessarily watching us literally or specifically, but they are our “cheering section” nevertheless. 

They are the ones who have run the race before us and have persevered; they are reminders and encouragements to us that with God’s help, the race can be run and won.  These men and women of the faith are “in the stands,” eager for us to finish strong and gain the “championship.”

And these supporters are described as so numerous they form a great cloud that surrounds us.  (What a picture!) 

The writer runs through a lengthy and impressive list of those “looking on.”  It’s much more impressive than any of the athletes or celebrities attending a Super Bowl.  These are the warriors – the spiritual competitors – from the past. 

Abel, Enoch and Noah are there.  Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph as well.  Moses too, and a number of the “judges.”  David and Samuel also, and many, many others (Heb. 11)… including some whose race was extreme.  

“There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection.  Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment.  They were put to death by stoning; they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated — the world was not worthy of them.  They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground.  These were all commended for their faith …” (Hebrews 11:35-39a).

What an encouragement when we think of these previous victors!  What motivation to persevere through the hardships, frustrations and temptations in our spiritual run!

And what a joyous shout must rise from this mighty mass of onlookers every time another runner crosses the finish line into heaven.  What a victorious roar reverberates through the halls of heaven each time Jesus places the victor’s crown on another soul!

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.  And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,” … (and here’s the key to a victorious run!) … “fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith” (Hebrews 12:1-2).

The race to heaven is arduous.  Satan hates us and actively and viciously opposes us.  The world dismisses and discourages us.  Our sinful nature undermines us.  We need to focus on and cling to Jesus our Savior’s victory for us.  And we need the Holy Spirit to help us do so.

“Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees,” (Heb. 12:12) … your hearts and minds … regularly with God’s powerful gospel.  This is a very real contest … as is the trophy.  The race is temporary, but the crown lasts forever. 

It doesn’t get more intense or more critical than that. 

All of which is precisely why our spiritual race is the greatest “sports” spectacle of all! 

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