Tag Archives: God

Pastor Wrinkles: House on Fire Pt. 30

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The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

 

Well lookee’hear! We are almost half way through the Book Of Acts. We are entering into our lessons on the formation of the Gentile church and I am really looking forward to the discussions that lay ahead concerning the nature of church in the Christian life. If you have missed any of our previous discussions, you can catch up by going to the House On Fire Page found in the Pastor Wrinkles drop down above.

 

Here is today’s discussion topic:

image from cupoffaith.org

Our last lesson was about Paul’s message given in the synagogue of Pisidian Antioch. Can you find that on the map?

before we read today’s passage I want you to consider that Paul has by the point of his preaching in Pisidian Antioch already carried the word from Syrian Antioch across the isle of Cyprus over the Mediterranean Sea to Perga and up to Pisidian Antioch. That entire journey is given to us in two verses of the Bible (chapter 13:13,14). It’s hardly a foot note in the Word but we have to remember Paul was not travelling by plane, speed boat or monorail. There is no indication that Paul even owned a camel or a horse. As you read the next passage I want you to put yourself in Paul’s shoes. Consider the difficulties of the task God has laid on Paul’s  shoulders. What are some of the difficulties Paul faced in doing this work?

Now that you have answered that, here is today’s reading:

 

And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next sabbath.

43 Now when the congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God.

44 And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God.

45 But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy, and spake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming.

46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.

47 For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth.

48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.

49 And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region.

50 But the Jews stirred up the devout and honourable women, and the chief men of the city, and raised persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them out of their coasts.

51 But they shook off the dust of their feet against them, and came unto Iconium.

52 And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost Acts. 13:42-52

As you consider the difficulty of the journey and the work Paul and Barnabus were doing, how do you think they felt about being expelled from Pisidian Antioch? How would you have felt?  What mind-set do you think was required for Paul and Barnabus to keep going on to Iconium? Do you have that same mind-set? If not what needs to change?

 

Pastor Wrinkles: House On Fire Pt. 29

Posted on by under Pastor Wrinkles
The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

My sister is flying into Boston Logan from Schipol Amsterdam today. Even as you read this I may be on my way to pick her up for her Christmas holiday.

My own  weekend was a flurry of ministry and shoveling! But in betwixt the snowflakes, worship leading and the airport shuttle I have had time to put together this next class for your perusal.

I want to send a big thank you out to the thirteen of you who followed the last class. If anyone needs to catch up on past discussions they can be found here

http://wp.me/P39vIx-Gh

Here is today’s discussion topic from Acts 13:16-41:

16 So Paul stood, lifted his hand to quiet them, and started speaking. “Men of Israel,” he said, “and you God-fearing Gentiles, listen to me.

17 “The God of this nation of Israel chose our ancestors and made them multiply and grow strong during their stay in Egypt. Then with a powerful arm he led them out of their slavery. 18 He put up with them through forty years of wandering in the wilderness. 19 Then he destroyed seven nations in Canaan and gave their land to Israel as an inheritance. 20 All this took about 450 years.

“After that, God gave them judges to rule until the time of Samuel the prophet. 21 Then the people begged for a king, and God gave them Saul son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, who reigned for forty years. 22 But God removed Saul and replaced him with David, a man about whom God said, ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart. He will do everything I want him to do.’

23 “And it is one of King David’s descendants, Jesus, who is God’s promised Savior of Israel! 24 Before he came, John the Baptist preached that all the people of Israel needed to repent of their sins and turn to God and be baptized. 25 As John was finishing his ministry he asked, ‘Do you think I am the Messiah? No, I am not! But he is coming soon—and I’m not even worthy to be his slave and untie the sandals on his feet.’

26 “Brothers—you sons of Abraham, and also you God-fearing Gentiles—this message of salvation has been sent to us!27 The people in Jerusalem and their leaders did not recognize Jesus as the one the prophets had spoken about. Instead, they condemned him, and in doing this they fulfilled the prophets’ words that are read every Sabbath. 28 They found no legal reason to execute him, but they asked Pilate to have him killed anyway.

29 “When they had done all that the prophecies said about him, they took him down from the cross and placed him in a tomb. 30 But God raised him from the dead! 31 And over a period of many days he appeared to those who had gone with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to the people of Israel.

32 “And now we are here to bring you this Good News. The promise was made to our ancestors, 33 and God has now fulfilled it for us, their descendants, by raising Jesus. This is what the second psalm says about Jesus:

‘You are my Son.
    Today I have become your Father.’

34 For God had promised to raise him from the dead, not leaving him to rot in the grave. He said, ‘I will give you the sacred blessings I promised to David.’ 35 Another psalm explains it more fully: ‘You will not allow your Holy One to rot in the grave.’ 36 This is not a reference to David, for after David had done the will of God in his own generation, he died and was buried with his ancestors, and his body decayed. 37 No, it was a reference to someone else—someone whom God raised and whose body did not decay.

38 “Brothers, listen! We are here to proclaim that through this man Jesus there is forgiveness for your sins.39 Everyone who believes in him is declared right with God—something the law of Moses could never do. 40 Be careful! Don’t let the prophets’ words apply to you. For they said,

41 ‘Look, you mockers,
    be amazed and die!
For I am doing something in your own day,
    something you wouldn’t believe
    even if someone told you about it.’”

As you read list five things you notice about Paul’s address. How is Paul using the Old Testament references here?

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Alone

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cees-fun-foto

Cee has given us a great photo challenge this week with the word alone!

http://ceenphotography.com/2013/12/10/cees-fun-foto-challenge-alone/

My blogging time over the last two months  has been extremely limited and I have had to curtail my writing to about 10 minutes daily (it’s good  I had a bunch of material written ahead).  That said this topic was so good I just couldn’t pass it up; So I have managed to carve out a few spare minutes to create a new picture post from the topic.

"Ah, look at all the lonely people Ah, look at all the lonely people Eleanor Rigby picks up the rice in the church where a wedding has been, Lives in a dream Waits at the window, wearing the face that she keeps in a jar by the door Who is it for? All the lonely people Where do they all come from? All the lonely people Where do they all belong? Father Mckenzie writing the words of a sermon that no one will hear No one comes near. Look at him working, darning his socks in the night when there's nobody there What does he care? All the lonely people Where do they all come from? All the lonely people Where do they all belong? Ah, look at all the lonely people Ah, look at all the lonely people Eleanor Rigby died in the church and was buried along with her name Nobody came Father Mckenzie wiping the dirt from his hands as he walks from the grave No one was saved All the lonely people (ah, look at all the lonely people) Where do they all come from? All the lonely people (ah, look at all the lonely people) Where do they all belong?" John Lennon, Paul MCCartney

“Ah, look at all the lonely people
Ah, look at all the lonely people
Eleanor Rigby picks up the rice in the church where a wedding has been,
Lives in a dream
Waits at the window, wearing the face that she keeps in a jar by the door
Who is it for?
All the lonely people
Where do they all come from?
All the lonely people
Where do they all belong?…
 John Lennon, Paul MCCartney

Father Mckenzie writing the words of a sermon that no one will hear No one comes near. Look at him working, darning his socks in the night when there's nobody there What does he care? All the lonely people Where do they all come from? All the lonely people Where do they all belong? Ah, look at all the lonely people Ah, look at all the lonely people John Lennon, Paul MCCartney

Father Mckenzie writing the words of a sermon that no one will hear
No one comes near.
Look at him working, darning his socks in the night when there’s nobody there
What does he care?
All the lonely people
Where do they all come from?
All the lonely people
Where do they all belong?
Ah, look at all the lonely people
Ah, look at all the lonely people…
John Lennon, Paul MCCartney

The idea of  being alone communicates sadness and even fear to many people. Yet in a certain sense we are never alone. Jesus said, ” I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.” Ma 28:20 KJV

So if we choose to acknowledge Christ’s presence being alone transforms itself from a lack to an advantage…the power of one, if you will.

“I learned that in each of us there burns a flame of independence that must never be allowed to go out. That as long as it exists within us we cannot be destroyed.” ― Bryce Courtenay, The Power of One

“I learned that in each of us there burns a flame of independence that must never be allowed to go out. That as long as it exists within us we cannot be destroyed.”
― Bryce Courtenay, The Power of One

That stubborn streak many of us call independence (which I really think is best displayed as a cooperative dependence on God) is what makes aloneness a power rather than a weakness.
Don’t get me wrong. You won’t find a bigger advocate for the necessity of community but when it comes right down to it there are certain places you can only go alone.
Every man must do two things alone; he must do his own believing and his own dying. Martin Luther

Every man must do two things alone; he must do his own believing and his own dying.
Martin Luther

Ultimately it is in these alone places, where we discover ourselves separated from all other human comapnionship, that we find out just how much we have come to rely on the One solitary life that was given so we might never truly walk alone.

One Solitary Life He was born in an obscure village The child of a peasant woman He grew up in another obscure village Where he worked in a carpenter shop Until he was thirty He never wrote a book He never held an office He never went to college He never visited a big city He never travelled more than two hundred miles From the place where he was born He did none of the things Usually associated with greatness He had no credentials but himself He was only thirty three His friends ran away One of them denied him He was turned over to his enemies And went through the mockery of a trial He was nailed to a cross between two thieves While dying, his executioners gambled for his clothing The only property he had on earth When he was dead He was laid in a borrowed grave Through the pity of a friend Nineteen centuries have come and gone And today Jesus is the central figure of the human race And the leader of mankind's progress All the armies that have ever marched All the navies that have ever sailed All the parliaments that have ever sat All the kings that ever reigned put together Have not affected the life of mankind on earth As powerfully as that one solitary life Dr James Allan © 1926.

One Solitary Life
He was born in an obscure village
The child of a peasant woman
He grew up in another obscure village
Where he worked in a carpenter shop
Until he was thirty
He never wrote a book
He never held an office
He never went to college
He never visited a big city
He never travelled more than two hundred miles
From the place where he was born
He did none of the things
Usually associated with greatness
He had no credentials but himself
He was only thirty three
His friends ran away
One of them denied him
He was turned over to his enemies
And went through the mockery of a trial
He was nailed to a cross between two thieves
While dying, his executioners gambled for his clothing
The only property he had on earth
When he was dead
He was laid in a borrowed grave
Through the pity of a friend
Nineteen centuries have come and gone
And today Jesus is the central figure of the human race
And the leader of mankind’s progress
All the armies that have ever marched
All the navies that have ever sailed
All the parliaments that have ever sat
All the kings that ever reigned put together
Have not affected the life of mankind on earth
As powerfully as that one solitary life
Dr James Allan © 1926.

Heaven Pt. 135: Where Does Your Grief Go?

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crying eye

 

And when they raised their eyes from afar, and did not recognize him, they lifted their voices and wept; and each one tore his robe and sprinkled dust on his head toward heaven. Job. 2:12 NKJV

Job’s counsellors are oft criticized for their simplistic answers concerning Job’s tragic circumstances. Yet one thing they did right.  When they saw the man they esteemed and loved in his fallen state they were grieved and the Bible tells us they raised up a lament to Heaven. They didn’t turn their sorrow immediately to criticism. They didn’t stomp around and blame the government or Job’s wife. The Bible doesn’t even tell us they blamed God. We have no record of them ever charging God with folly. They just grieved and they pointed their grief toward Heaven. For seven days they sat in the presence of God and grieved with Job.

When your life is headed down the mountain what do you do with your grief? Do you direct it in anger and blame towards your loved ones? Do you create sorrow mines that blow people out the water every time they try to get near you? Do you blame God?  If so you need to know there remains another choice. Instead of being angry with your family, the world around you or the Lord you can take your grief and present it before the throne of God asking Him to bring you the comfort you so desperately need. He will hear you and He will comfort you in your trouble. I am certain He will. Because He comforted me in my sorrow.

3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. 4 He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. 5 For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ. 6 Even when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your comfort and salvation! For when we ourselves are comforted, we will certainly comfort you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer. 7 We are confident that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in the comfort God gives us. 2 Cor. 1:3-7 NIV

Pastor Wrinkles: House On Fire Pt. 28

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The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

 

Last week in our discussion on the Book of Acts we dialogued  from Acts 11 and 12 concerning the change in emphasis from the Jewish church in Jerusalem to the Gentile church flowing from Antioch. Starting in chapters 11 and 12 the focus of Acts moves from the Peter  to Paul.  Paul discusses the ramifications of this change in Romans 9-11. To see how it played out in everyday life though let’s continue on in our reading from Acts.

 

 Among the prophets and teachers of the church at Antioch of Syria were Barnabas, Simeon (called “the black man”), Lucius (from Cyrene), Manaen (the childhood companion of King Herod Antipas), and Saul. 2 One day as these men were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Dedicate Barnabas and Saul for the special work to which I have called them.” 3 So after more fasting and prayer, the men laid their hands on them and sent them on their way.

Paul’s First Missionary Journey

4 So Barnabas and Saul were sent out by the Holy Spirit. They went down to the seaport of Seleucia and then sailed for the island of Cyprus. 5 There, in the town of Salamis, they went to the Jewish synagogues and preached the word of God. John Mark went with them as their assistant.

6 Afterward they traveled from town to town across the entire island until finally they reached Paphos, where they met a Jewish sorcerer, a false prophet named Bar-Jesus. 7 He had attached himself to the governor, Sergius Paulus, who was an intelligent man. The governor invited Barnabas and Saul to visit him, for he wanted to hear the word of God.8 But Elymas, the sorcerer (as his name means in Greek), interfered and urged the governor to pay no attention to what Barnabas and Saul said. He was trying to keep the governor from believing.

9 Saul, also known as Paul, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he looked the sorcerer in the eye. 10 Then he said, “You son of the devil, full of every sort of deceit and fraud, and enemy of all that is good! Will you never stop perverting the true ways of the Lord? 11 Watch now, for the Lord has laid his hand of punishment upon you, and you will be struck blind. You will not see the sunlight for some time.” Instantly mist and darkness came over the man’s eyes, and he began groping around begging for someone to take his hand and lead him.

12 When the governor saw what had happened, he became a believer, for he was astonished at the teaching about the Lord. Acts 13:1-13 

In this passage we read about the call or the sending of Barnabus and Saul to the work of ministry. Please note that I said ministry was a calling ( or a sending) not a chosen profession. What do think the difference is? Does the idea of a calling apply to every Christian? How?

Weekly Travel Theme: Symbol

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I am glad to have some time to work on  a photographic post this week, FINALLY!

The travel theme we have been asked to photograph is: Symbol.

When you are done with my symbols  go on over to Ailsa’s place and find out what her other subscribers are putting forth.

http://wheresmybackpack.com/2013/12/06/travel-theme-symbol/

Here are some symbols I found:

Peacock Design at Delft Factory

Peacock Design at Delft Factory

The peacock is a symbol of immortality because the ancients believed that the peacock had flesh that did not decay after death. As such, early Christian paintings and mosaics use peacock imagery, and peacock feathers can be used during the Easter season as church decorations. This symbol of immortality is also directly linked to Christ.-The meaningsof symbols.blogspot.com

Windmills at Zaanseschans

Windmills at Zaanseschans

When I think windmills I think Holland (or  Don Quixote but let’s stay away from the crazy shall we). Windmills are a symbol of industry and ingenuity overcoming obstacles. A truly worthy symbol if ever there was one!

The Cross Cut Out at St. Bavo's

The Cross Cut Out at St. Bavo’s

No post on symbols by me would be complete without the symbol of the cross. Immortality is awesome! Ingenuity and Industry are great! But none of these are truly possible without the cross! Paul said… “When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, 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.” Col. 2:13-15

Without the cross immortality is impossible. Without the cross ingenuity falls short of eternal accomplishment. And without the cross industry is just so much wasted energy. For the cross is what reconciles us to God and fills the need of true purpose that dwells within the heart of every man.

Pastor Wrinkles: house On Fire Pt. 27

Posted on by under Pastor Wrinkles
The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

The Word of God is a bridge that connects Earth with Heaven and Heaven with Earth.- Joseph Elon Lillie

 

Deb and I have been having a good conversation on the nature of reverence since our last class. I hope you find time to pop on over and catch up on it if you missed out. You can find the previous classes at

http://wp.me/P39vIx-Gh

Now here is today’s discussion topic:

The church in Jerusalem and the church in Antioch:

 

Soon the news reached the apostles and other believers in Judea that the Gentiles had received the word of God.2 But when Peter arrived back in Jerusalem, the Jewish believers criticized him. 3 “You entered the home of Gentiles and even ate with them!” they said.

4 Then Peter told them exactly what had happened. 5 “I was in the town of Joppa,” he said, “and while I was praying, I went into a trance and saw a vision. Something like a large sheet was let down by its four corners from the sky. And it came right down to me. 6 When I looked inside the sheet, I saw all sorts of tame and wild animals, reptiles, and birds.7 And I heard a voice say, ‘Get up, Peter; kill and eat them.’

8 “‘No, Lord,’ I replied. ‘I have never eaten anything that our Jewish laws have declared impure or unclean.’

9 “But the voice from heaven spoke again: ‘Do not call something unclean if God has made it clean.’ 10 This happened three times before the sheet and all it contained was pulled back up to heaven.

11 “Just then three men who had been sent from Caesarea arrived at the house where we were staying. 12 The Holy Spirit told me to go with them and not to worry that they were Gentiles. These six brothers here accompanied me, and we soon entered the home of the man who had sent for us. 13 He told us how an angel had appeared to him in his home and had told him, ‘Send messengers to Joppa, and summon a man named Simon Peter. 14 He will tell you how you and everyone in your household can be saved!’

15 “As I began to speak,” Peter continued, “the Holy Spirit fell on them, just as he fell on us at the beginning. 16 Then I thought of the Lord’s words when he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’17 And since God gave these Gentiles the same gift he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to stand in God’s way?”

18 When the others heard this, they stopped objecting and began praising God. They said, “We can see that God has also given the Gentiles the privilege of repenting of their sins and receiving eternal life.”

The Church in Antioch of Syria

19 Meanwhile, the believers who had been scattered during the persecution after Stephen’s death traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch of Syria. They preached the word of God, but only to Jews. 20 However, some of the believers who went to Antioch from Cyprus and Cyrene began preaching to the Gentiles about the Lord Jesus. 21 The power of the Lord was with them, and a large number of these Gentiles believed and turned to the Lord.

22 When the church at Jerusalem heard what had happened, they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23 When he arrived and saw this evidence of God’s blessing, he was filled with joy, and he encouraged the believers to stay true to the Lord.24 Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and strong in faith. And many people were brought to the Lord.

25 Then Barnabas went on to Tarsus to look for Saul. 26 When he found him, he brought him back to Antioch. Both of them stayed there with the church for a full year, teaching large crowds of people. (It was at Antioch that the believers were first called Christians.)

27 During this time some prophets traveled from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 One of them named Agabus stood up in one of the meetings and predicted by the Spirit that a great famine was coming upon the entire Roman world. (This was fulfilled during the reign of Claudius.) 29 So the believers in Antioch decided to send relief to the brothers and sisters in Judea, everyone giving as much as they could. 30 This they did, entrusting their gifts to Barnabas and Saul to take to the elders of the church in Jerusalem.

James Is Killed and Peter Is Imprisoned

12 About that time King Herod Agrippa began to persecute some believers in the church. 2 He had the apostle James (John’s brother) killed with a sword. 3 When Herod saw how much this pleased the Jewish people, he also arrested Peter. (This took place during the Passover celebration. 4 Then he imprisoned him, placing him under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring Peter out for public trial after the Passover. 5 But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him.

Peter’s Miraculous Escape from Prison

6 The night before Peter was to be placed on trial, he was asleep, fastened with two chains between two soldiers. Others stood guard at the prison gate. 7 Suddenly, there was a bright light in the cell, and an angel of the Lord stood before Peter. The angel struck him on the side to awaken him and said, “Quick! Get up!” And the chains fell off his wrists. 8 Then the angel told him, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” And he did. “Now put on your coat and follow me,” the angel ordered.

9 So Peter left the cell, following the angel. But all the time he thought it was a vision. He didn’t realize it was actually happening. 10 They passed the first and second guard posts and came to the iron gate leading to the city, and this opened for them all by itself. So they passed through and started walking down the street, and then the angel suddenly left him.

11 Peter finally came to his senses. “It’s really true!” he said. “The Lord has sent his angel and saved me from Herod and from what the Jewish leaders had planned to do to me!”

12 When he realized this, he went to the home of Mary, the mother of John Mark, where many were gathered for prayer.13 He knocked at the door in the gate, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to open it. 14 When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that, instead of opening the door, she ran back inside and told everyone, “Peter is standing at the door!”

15 “You’re out of your mind!” they said. When she insisted, they decided, “It must be his angel.”

16 Meanwhile, Peter continued knocking. When they finally opened the door and saw him, they were amazed. 17 He motioned for them to quiet down and told them how the Lord had led him out of prison. “Tell James and the other brothers what happened,” he said. And then he went to another place.

18 At dawn there was a great commotion among the soldiers about what had happened to Peter. 19 Herod Agrippa ordered a thorough search for him. When he couldn’t be found, Herod interrogated the guards and sentenced them to death. Afterward Herod left Judea to stay in Caesarea for a while.

The Death of Herod Agrippa

20 Now Herod was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. So they sent a delegation to make peace with him because their cities were dependent upon Herod’s country for food. The delegates won the support of Blastus, Herod’s personal assistant, 21 and an appointment with Herod was granted. When the day arrived, Herod put on his royal robes, sat on his throne, and made a speech to them. 22 The people gave him a great ovation, shouting, “It’s the voice of a god, not of a man!”

23 Instantly, an angel of the Lord struck Herod with a sickness, because he accepted the people’s worship instead of giving the glory to God. So he was consumed with worms and died.

24 Meanwhile, the word of God continued to spread, and there were many new believers.

25 When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission to Jerusalem, they returned, taking John Mark with them.” Acts 11, 12

The story above is many things. One thing it is, is a contrast between two churches: The church of Jerusalem and the church of Antioch.

Tell me five things we can learn about the church of Jerusalem from this passage.

Why do you think the story of the church in Antioch is put smack dab in the middle of this narrative about Peter and the church in Jerusalem?

Pastor Wrinkles: Faith & Hope Pt. 2

Posted on by under Pastor Wrinkles
Big Rock

Jesus is the sure foundation.

In part 1 of this mini-series we talked about faith. If you missed that session you can find it here:

https://josephelonlillie.com/2013/11/22/pastor-wrinkles-faith-hope-pt-1/

I closed Faith & Hope Pt. 1 by saying ” If it is true that every man has faith living inside of him (like everyone has love living inside of him), then it is impossible to be truly faithless. Being unable to use our faith is not really a faith problem, then. It is a hope problem.”

So in this post it falls to me  to define for us the word “hope”, because fixing a problem (if we have one) always begins with defining what it is. Don’t you agree?

In part one I stated that faith (the Greek word pistis) is always used as a noun. Unlike faith, hope can be used as both a noun and a verb. We can hope for things to happen (verb form)…. OR….We can have a hope (noun form).

The verb form of hope is found in verses like Romans 8:25 “But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.” 

Here the verb, hope, is the word “elpizo”  which means “to trust in”. When we put our faith in someone or something then we are hoping in it. Hold on!I am about to turn the lights on for someone.

We now know about the verb form of hope, but what about the noun form of hope? What is A HOPE?

The Greek noun translated as hope in the New Testament is the word “Elpis”-  the object one applies faith to.

But the definitions of hope that really help here are from the Hebrew. There are several words translated as hope in the Old Testament but the two that I find most helpful are the words “tiqvah”  and “betach”

a tiqvah is a cord and my betach is my security or my protection. Picture yourself repelling from a high cliff with nothing between you and a three hundred foot drop but the rope tied around your waist. The rope is your hope. It is your cord (tiqvah) and your security or protection (betach).

Now here is where the issue with faith comes in. You see, I can have all kinds of faith living inside of me but if I am expected to repel down a three hundred foot cliff using a seventy five year old rope that is full of dry rot I am going to have a very hard time using my faith to actually get myself to go over the edge. My problem is not with the level of my faith it is with the trustworthiness of the thing I am being asked to trust (my hope).

Now let’s put that into relationship terms. Many of us put our faith in people who were too weak to hold us up. We got dropped and smashed on the rocks of life. We  made vows we would never trust anyone again. We don’t have a faith problem. We still have all kinds of faith living inside of us. We just don’t think there is anyone out there we can put our faith in. We see no hope…no tiqvah…no betach we can attach our faith to.

This is what Paul was talking about when he wrote, “11 Don’t forget that you Gentiles used to be outsiders. … In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope.” Ephesians 2:11,12 NLT

We cannot truly walk by faith until we meet someone who is strong enough to keep us from smashing on the rocks beneath the cliff called life. Jesus Christ is the only true hope of the world and until we make him our hope we succeed at nothing other than causing more injury to our faith.