Author: looking2jesus13

God’s Peace Plan

Bible Reading: Colossians 1:19-23

Colossians 1:19-23, “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.”

Any watcher of the news knows we live perilous times.  Wars and rumors of wars are in the headlines, whether it be Russian vs. Ukraine, China vs. Taiwan, or Iran vs. Israel and its neighbors.  How can we find security and peace amidst so much uncertainty? Where is it all headed?  It’s helpful to remind ourselves we live in a broken, sin-cursed world.  Cain killed Abel and mankind has been warring with each other ever since.  History is littered with countless such battles. 

In 1965, U Thant, the secretary of the UN asked this question: “What element is lacking so that with all our skill and all our knowledge we still find ourselves in the dark valley of discord and enmity?  What is it that inhibits us from going forward together to enjoy the fruits of human endeavor and to reap the harvest of human experience?  Why is it that, for all our professed ideals, our hopes, and our skills, peace on earth is still a distant objective seen only dimly through the storms and turmoil of our present difficulties?”

What element is so lacking?  Underlying humanity’s discord and enmity is the long war against God.  No war has lasted longer, or involved more people, as every son and daughter of Adam has been devil-drafted to fight in that unwinnable conflict.  Left to ourselves and our own devices, there’d be no hope for resolution.

Christ has worked through the cross to do what we cannot do, making peace with rebel sinners through the blood of the cross.  The term translated peace speaks not just to the absence of conflict, but to a situation in which two parties are brought together in a harmonious relationship.  Christ fought sin, “killing the hostility,” to bring us to God (Ephesians 2:16; 1 Peter 3:18).  “He Himself is our peace” (Ephesians 2:14).  He has availed to us His peace.  His admonition stands, “Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27).

Not only has Christ worked to reconcile to Himself those who believe, he has worked to “reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven?”  Some have taken this verse to mean God is going to save everyone, yet we know from the clear teaching of other Scripture passages this cannot be true.  For example, 2 Thessalonians 1:8-10 speaks of two differing destinies for two differing groups of people, one to eternal destruction and the other to the glory of heaven.  So, what does our text mean?  Reconciliation here can be compared to what we do when we reconcile our check books.  We add up all the deposits, then add up all the withdrawals, then subtract the one from the other to reconcile the balance, until no deposit or withdrawal is left unaccounted for.  Likewise, Christ’s triumph on the cross has vanquished all His foes (Colossians 2:15).  God “has put all things under his feet” (Ephesians 1:22).  The day will come when “every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” (Philippians 2:10-11). 

For 29 years after the conflict had ended, the Imperial Japanese Army, having surrendered to the Allies aboard the USS Missouri, Japanese soldier Hiroo Onoda hid out in the Philippine jungles and continued waging a war which was long over with.  In the same way, enemies of Christ keep fighting and they will, until He returns.  But take heart, fellow believer, Christ has already triumphed and His victory is yours too!  “Christ always leads us in triumphal procession” (2 Corinthians 2:14)!

JESUS, I AM RESTING, RESTING

Jesus, I am resting, resting
in the joy of what thou art;
I am finding out the greatness
of thy loving heart.
Thou hast bid me gaze upon thee,
as thy beauty fills my soul,
for by thy transforming power,
thou hast made me whole.

Refrain:
Jesus, I am resting, resting,
in the joy of what thou art;
I am finding out the greatness
of thy loving heart.

O how great thy lovingkindness,
vaster, broader than the sea!
O how marvelous thy goodness
lavished all on me!
Yes, I rest in thee, Beloved,
know what wealth of grace is thine,
know thy certainty of promise
and have made it mine. [Refrain]

Simply trusting thee, Lord Jesus,
I behold thee as thou art,
and thy love, so pure, so changeless,
satisfies my heart;
satisfies its deepest longings,
meets, supplies its ev’ry need,
compasseth me round with blessings:
thine is love indeed. [Refrain]

Ever lift thy face upon me
as I work and wait for thee;
resting ‘neath thy smile, Lord Jesus,
earth’s dark shadows flee.
Brightness of my Father’s glory,
sunshine of my Father’s face,
keep me ever trusting, resting,
fill me with thy grace. [Refrain]

Christ Above all

Bible Reading: Colossians 1:15-17

Colossians 1:17, “And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”

The church in Colossae was being confronted by false teaching.  Though we don’t know the exact nature of the Colossian heresy, it is thought to have been some “proto-Gnosticism.”  Gnosticism was a form of religion than integrated various myths and elements of Greek philosophy.  The Gnostics believed matter to be evil.  And that God and matter were therefore at odds.  How then, did God create the world?  They believed it happened through a series of emanations, each a little more distant from God and having a little less of deity.  At the end of the chain of these intermediate beings was Christ.  This supposition made it impossible for the Gnostics to accept the real incarnation of God in Christ.  Some of them explained it away by denying His actual humanity; others by denying His deity.  Either way, the false teaching was contrary to the truth and exceptionally dangerous to the spiritual well-being of the members of the church in Colossae.

Our passage speaks to the glorious truth that the Lord Jesus Christ is “very God of very God… who was made man.” Fully divine.  Fully human.  He is the One in whom all things hold together.  “Hold together” translates a word which carries the idea of consistence or harmony. It speaks to the unifying power that underlies all things. Every atom in the universe holds together because it is in Christ. There is order and harmony in all creation. It is a universe, not a chaos, and Christ is the unifying force.

As many of you know, I used to work in the nuclear power industry.  I trained reactor operators.  We had to study nuclear physics, and one thing you are taught to understand is that atoms are held together by a so-called nuclear force.  At the center of an atom, you have neutrons and protons, and around the perimeter, you have electrons.  The protons are positively charged and should repel each other.  But they are bound at the nucleus of the atom by this mysterious force.  It is the unleashing of this force in the process of fission that a nuclear power plant produces its power.  But my main point here is this—He even holds the tiniest of particles together!  And, of course, everything else is held together by Him as well.  The earth is where it ought to be.  The climate is according to His design.  The political forces are within His limitations.  Things are moving in the direction of His predetermined plan.  He literally has the whole world in His hands and is providentially overseeing all that takes place in His universe.

Ray Stedman has commented on this, “The most astonishing phenomenon today is to see men who work with this physical universe, who intimately observe the beauty, order, and power inherent in the natural world as well as in the world of humanity, yet who fail to see the Power behind it all; the ordered Intelligence that possesses and originates all these things. I do not understand how a man like Carl Sagan can work in the field of astronomy, knowing of the great secrets that are now coming to light in the universe, and yet go on breathing air which God has supplied, eating the food with which God has stocked this earth, and relying moment by moment on a heartbeat whose continuation rests in the will of Someone other than himself, yet can busy himself telling us that only man matters! It is a phenomenon beyond my understanding…”as I think of the world in which we live today surely this is the reason for the terrible sense of lostness among people. We are a generation adrift. We have thrown out all the absolutes and found ourselves adrift on the tossing ocean of life. They have no King to worship, no authority to serve, no cause greater than themselves. Thus, the central truth of our faith, and one that makes for strength in the Christian life, is this truth. In Jesus is found the center of life. ‘He is the image of the invisible God…the Creator of all things, who is before all things and holds all things in his hand and power.’ Is he your Lord?”

MAY JESUS CHRIST BE PRAISED!

When morning gilds the sky,
our hearts awaking cry:
May Jesus Christ be praised!
in all our work and prayer
we ask his loving care:
May Jesus Christ be praised!

To God, the Word on high,
the hosts of angels cry:
May Jesus Christ be praised!
Let mortals too upraise
their voices in hymns of praise:
May Jesus Christ be praised!

Let earth’s wide circle round
in joyful notes resound:
May Jesus Christ be praised!
Let air and sea and sky
from depth to height reply:
May Jesus Christ be praised!

Be this, when day is past,
of all our thoughts the last:
May Jesus Christ be praised!
The night becomes as day
when from the heart we say:
May Jesus Christ be praised!

Then let us join to sing
to Christ, our loving King:
May Jesus Christ be praised!
Be this the eternal song
through all the ages long:
May Jesus Christ be praised!

By, Through, and For Him!

Bible Reading: Colossians 1:15-17

Colossians 1:15-16, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.”

This was the text for my first sermon at Lewis and Clark Bible Church a little over 42 years ago.  Since their pastor had resigned, I was called to fill the pulpit in the very church where the first member of my family had been saved.  The departing pastor was packing up his belongings from the parsonage when we arrived.  The few in attendance seemed fewer still, spread out as they were in that massive sanctuary.  I was nervous and preached my forty-minute sermon in about half that time.  So much has changed in the four decades since that day and that sermon.  The church in America has changed, and sadly, not for the better.  The same goes for our society.  The world itself is even now experiencing unprecedented challenges.  There’s never been so much uncertainty in my lifetime as there is now in our country.  But some things don’t change, and preeminently amongst those things is the preeminence of the Lord Jesus Christ—all things have been created by, through, and for Him!  It all exists because of Him and exists unto His glory!

All things were created by Him!  Did you know that about the Lord Jesus?  Do you realize that the same Savior who delivered Himself up for you is the One who put the stars into place?  It is as Hebrews 1:2 explains, “In these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, through whom also he created the world.”  

All things were created through Him!  Look around.  See those rivers and trees and plants and flowers.  And what of those animals of all different kinds?  What of those stars and the sun and the moon?  And the land and the sea?  Where did it all come from?  What power and wisdom worked to bring that all into being?  John 1:3 states the matter plainly, both in the positive and negative, “All things were made through him, and without him not any thing made was made”

All things were created for Him!  There are those that think that the fate of man and creation lies in the hands of men.  Praise God that it is not so!  The One who created it all is the One who “upholds the universe by the word of his power” (Hebrews 1:3).  It all belongs to Him and there will come a day when He will receive His due, for “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10).

By God’s gracious provision, we once built a house on a piece of property we owned in Astoria.  It was a dream house strategically placed just beside a pond in a setting of tall trees.  Though I wasn’t the general contractor on paper, I was in reality, for I planned and supervised the construction from start to finish.  It would be fair to say that the house was built by me—for Laura and I did all the planning and hired the architect who drew up the plans.  It would also be fair to say that it was built through me—for it was our funds that paid for the materials and labor.  And much of the work I did with my own hands.  And without question one could say that it was built for me (for us), for when it was finished, we occupied it and it was everywhere known to be the Conklin’s house. 

Just like that, this universe was created by, through, and for Jesus Christ.  It all belongs to Him, including you (Psalm 100:3; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 2 Corinthians 15:5). He is even now the “ruler of kings on earth” (Revelation 1:5). The Lord Jesus is coming again! All things will be brought into subjection to Him “and he shall reign forever and ever” (Revelation 11:15). What a glorious day that will be!

ALLELUIA! SING TO JESUS!

Alleluia! Sing to Jesus;
his the scepter, his the throne;
Alleluia! his the triumph,
his the victory alone.
Hark! The songs of peaceful Zion
thunder like a mighty flood:
“Jesus, out of ev’ry nation
has redeemed us by his blood.”

Alleluia! Bread of heaven,
here on earth our food, our stay;
Alleluia! here the sinful
flee to you from day to day.
Intercessor, friend of sinners,
earth’s Redeemer, hear our plea
where the songs of all the sinless
sweep across the crystal sea.

Alleluia! Not as orphans
are we left in sorrow now;
Alleluia! he is near us;
faith believes, nor questions how.
Though the cloud from sight received him
when the forty days were o’er,
shall our hearts forget his promise:
“I am with you evermore”?

Redeemed!

Bible Reading: Colossians 1:9-14

Colossians 1:14, “In whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

The term translated redemption means “a releasing on payment of a price.”  The term was used in secular Greek as a technical term referring to the money paid to buy back and set free prisoners of war or emancipate slaves from their masters.

Within the Roman Empire, slaves were sold at public auction or by private sale. Sometimes slaves stood on revolving stands, and around each slave for sale hung a type of plaque describing his origin, health, character, intelligence, education, and other pertinent information. Prices varied with age and quality, with the most valuable slaves fetching prices equivalent to thousands of today’s dollars. Slaves could be freed through a variety of means.  The owner could simply grant a slave’s freedom.  Sometimes that was done in a family or public ceremony.    Another way was for a master to make provision for his release upon his death—as prescribed in his will.  Someone could purchase a slave’s freedom.  Usually, the slave himself could not do that because they were not allowed to have money.

This is the sense of the term here.  The master in the spiritual realm is sin—and the one who stands behind all sin—Satan (Hebrews 2:14-15; 1 John 3:8).  We are all born slaves to sin, having inherited that nature from Adam (Romans 5:12).  No one is exempt, as Jesus made clear: “Everyone who sins is a slave of sin (John 8:34).  

When Epaphras first brought the gospel to Colossae (his hometown), he brought it to such folks.  And it mattered not their physical estate.  There were, undoubtedly, rich men and poor, freemen and slaves, powerful and lowly—but they all shared this in common—they were all slaves to sin.  And they were helpless to do anything to rescue themselves.  No amount of human self-effort could work to subdue their sin-greedy desires.  No amount of external restraint—no chains or shackles—could stop them from doing that their hearts compelled them to do.  They were enslaved and there was no one—this side of heaven—who could affect their rescue.  But Jesus did what we cannot do.  His shed blood was the payment laid down in the slave market.  His resurrection proof positive that the payment was accepted!  His precious blood, having been shed there for us, has worked to set the sin captives free (Acts 20:28; 1 Peter 1:18-19).

We are emancipated slaves living amongst slaves.  The world, the flesh, and the devil are having their way with them.  We cannot redeem them—but Jesus can.  Harriet Tubman grew up a slave.  But then she gained her freedom.  She escorted hundreds of slaves from the south along the underground railroad.  Once in New York, she saw a freed slave being returned to his slave master under the Fugitive Slave Act.  As the guards were taking him away, Tubman ran to the man, threw her arms around him, and made herself a hostage too.  The guards beat her in an attempt to make her release the man, but she wouldn’t let go.  Finally, she was able to escape and led the slave to freedom.  Christ came down from heaven, at the cross He put Him arms around us, His blood provided to us a way of escape, and we’ve been set free by His efforts.  God has privileged us to go to the other slaves—to direct them to Christ—to show to them the way of freedom—in Him!

REDEEMED

Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it!
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed through His infinite mercy,
His child, and forever, I am.

Refrain:
Redeemed, redeemed,
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it!
His child, and forever, I am.

I think of my blessed Redeemer,
I think of Him all the day long;
I sing, for I cannot be silent;
His love is the theme of my song. [Refrain]

I know I shall see in His beauty
The King in whose law I delight,
Who lovingly guardeth my footsteps,
And giveth me songs in the night. [Refrain]

Divine Deliverance

Bible Reading: Colossians 1:9-14

Colossians 1:13, “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son.”

In August 2010, a large mine collapse in Chile entombed 33 miners 2300 feet underground. The world anxiously waited for 17 days as exploratory bore holes were drilled to learn whether any of the miners were still alive. Once they knew they were, extensive rescue efforts began. Meanwhile, the miners tried to escape. But the mandated escape ladders had not been installed. The duty shift supervisor gathered the men into a secure room and organized them and their meager resources to ensure their long-term survival. The room was only 540 square feet in size and had but two benches. Food supplies were limited, and each man lost an average of 18 lbs. by the time they were discovered. Because of the high heat and humidity, the men were always covered with sweat. They would venture into the tunnels to find ventilation. Sanitation was a problem. Health problems ensued over time—two men suffered from silicosis, one developed pneumonia, others suffered from eye and teeth problems. Plans were undertaken to rescue the men. Nearly every Chilean government agency, NASA, and more than a dozen international corporations were involved. A large hole was drilled (large enough to winch down a rescue capsule). A rescue worker was sent down in the capsule to the workers. Soon afterwards, the first miner made his way to the surface. After 69 days underground, before a TV audience estimated at over 1 billion viewers, the 33 miners were brought safely to the surface. After winching the last trapped miner to the surface, the rescue workers, all still underground, held up a sign for the TV cameras. The sign read “Mission Accomplished Chile.” On the surface, people cried, hugged, and cheered. It was a remarkable rescue, but the believer in Christ has experienced, in salvation, a deliverance of far greater importance and proportion.

The term translated “domain,” speaks of “the power of one whose commands must be submitted to.”  The unbeliever is a person bound in sin, in a dark domain, in which Satan terrorizes his captives (Ephesians 2:2; 1 John 5:19; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Acts 26:18; Ephesians 5:11, 6:12).  He is glad for the miserable and harsh enslavement of the lost, anticipating their damnation in “the outer darkness” (Matthew 8:12).  He hides the sole means of escape and directs lost souls in a broad way leading to a disastrous end (Matthew 7:13).  There is, from the “domain of darkness,” no human means of escape.

The term translated “delivered” means “to rescue from.”  Jesus, “the Deliverer” (Romans 11:26), represents the sole means of rescue for sin-captives.  He has done all that is necessary to accomplish this, as Hebrews 2:14-15 explains, “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.” Through his death on the cross, Jesus has worked to accomplish the greatest of all rescue operations.  Those rescuers of the Chilean miners were caring enough, wise enough, and resourceful enough to get the job done.  Likewise, God purposed to intervene according to His love, power, and wisdom (John 3:16; 1 Corinthians 1:24).  God not only intervened—that would be reason enough to praise and thank Him—but He did so at an incredible cost to Himself, and though we, as sin rebels, were not at all deserving of His rescuing work (Romans 5:8).

The believer is one who has been delivered from a domain to be transferred to a kingdom.  The Chilean miners were transferred from a dark and foreboding place to the light of the sun and the warm embrace of family members and friends.  The believer has been brought into a “kingdom,” “a sphere of God’s rule,” that is characterized by love (Colossians 1:13).  The “domain” was according to the nature and character of the devil.  He is the father of lies, the adversary, the destroyer—and that is the character of his domain.  Christ is all loving, all wise, and all powerful—He reigns according to His benevolent nature.  His subjects are glad to love and serve Him (2 Corinthians 5:15).

If you have not trusted in Jesus Christ, you have need to be rescued.  Your sin demands punishment.  Left unresolved, the darkness that is your present experience will be nothing compared to the eternal darkness that awaits you (2 Thessalonians 1:9).  You are like the miners, in the depths of an inescapable tomb, from which Christ alone can save you (Acts 16:31; Romans 10:9).  The Chilean miners were thankful and rejoicing when they were finally brought to the surface.  The believer in Christ has sufficient reason in his rescue from sin to abound forevermore in thanksgiving to God (Colossians 1:12, 2:7).  Give thanks to Him even now for the miracle of your deliverance!

SAVED, SAVED!

I’ve found a friend who is all to me,
His love is ever true;
I love to tell how He lifted me,
And what His grace can do for you.

Refrain:
Saved by His pow’r, by His pow’r divine,
Saved to new life, to new life sublime!
Life now is sweet and my joy is complete,
For I’m saved, saved, saved.

He saves me from ev’ry sin and harm,
Secures my soul each day;
I’m leaning strong on His mighty arm–
I know He’ll guide me all the way. [Refrain]

When poor and needy and all alone,
In love He said to me,
“Come unto Me and I’ll lead you home
To live with Me eternally.” [Refrain]

Strengthened for the Journey

Bible Reading: Colossians 1:9-14

Colossians 1:11, “Being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy.”

One New Year’s Day, in the Tournament of Roses parade, a beautiful float suddenly sputtered and quit. It was out of gas. The whole parade was held up until a can of gas could be brought. Ironically, the float represented the Standard Oil Company. Despite its vast oil resources, its truck was out of gas!  Tragically, its possible for a believer to run out of gas so to speak, even though the glorious might of God has been availed to him!

Paul’s prayer here is a more succinct version of what we find in Ephesians 1:16-20, “I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know…what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might  that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places.”

As Jesus made clear, “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5)!  We are so prone to depending on ourselves, but it is in our weakness that the strengthening and sustaining power of God is availed to us (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).  And we need not doubt its sufficiency.  Paul’s prayer was that they might see through eyes of faith that which is not readily apparent.  Having awakened to the presence of the enemy’s army, Elisha’s servant was much afraid, until the Lord opened his eyes and he saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.  We look to the cross and are reminded of the power that worked to raise Jesus from the dead and seat him at the Father’s right hand.  That power—that is according to his great might—has been availed to you.  Note in the passage that it is a power “toward us!”  We are not talking about a theological or theoretical thing.  We are talking about a Spirit-borne (Ephesians 3:16), surpassing power, stuck as a kind of supernatural battery right there in our jar of clay (2 Corinthians 4:7).  To be sure, the jars of clay wouldn’t be adequate for any good work, let alone function at all, were it not for the animating power of God!

Now home with Jesus, Harriet was a dear friend.  She played the piano at Lewis and Clark Bible Church for nearly fifty years.  As she got older, her arthritis grew worse so that it became more difficult for her to always hit the right piano keys, still she kept on playing until it became impossible!  She served in the church in many roles and stuck it out, with endurance (patience in circumstances) and patience (patience with people), for all those many years.  When I arrived, our first month’s budget at the church was $600.  Harriet was the treasurer so we’d meet once a month and try to figure out how we were going to pay all our bills.  One funny story about Harriet sticks in my mind.  In her older years, she walked with a cane.  I was walking with her as she was struggling up the front steps in the church to the sanctuary.  She looked at me and smiled and said, “You know what Jerry?  When I was a young girl, I used to laugh at the older ladies struggling to make their way up the steps into church!”  Harriet’s husband wasn’t a believer, and she faced her share of challenges, but she remained so faithful through it all, strengthened as she was by His glorious might in her walk with Jesus!

HE GIVETH MORE GRACE

He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labors increase;
To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.

Fear not that thy need shall exceed His provision,
Our God ever yearns His resources to share;
Lean hard on the arm everlasting, availing;
The Father both thee and thy load will upbear.

His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,
His power no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.

A Worthy Walk

Bible Reading: Colossians 1:9-14

Colossians 1:10, “So as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”

The word translated worthy in verse 10 is the Greek axios, which speaks of that which balances the scales.  Think of one of those old-fashioned scales in which weight is added to the one side until the weight and the thing being weighed are equal.  That’s the idea here.  On the one side of the scale there is Jesus, in the glory of His person and His worth, and the extent that He matters to you.  On the other side of the scale is your walk, the way you conduct yourself as a believer in Him.  His glory demands a worthy walk.  That’s the point here.  A worthy walk is typified by a desire to please Him–in bearing fruit, doing good works, and growing in the knowledge of God!

It was many years ago when I first heard of the remarkable story of William Borden and of his devotion to Jesus. In so many respects, his life exemplifies the worthy walk. Be encouraged as you read of his life, keeping in mind that God is well able to use any of us in a similar fashion. I’ve condensed this from his biography. Sorry for the length, but I believe it’s well worth the read…

In 1904 William Borden graduated from a Chicago high school. As heir to the Borden family fortune, he was already a wealthy man. For his high school graduation present, his parents gave 16-year-old Borden a trip around the world. As the young man traveled through Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, he felt a growing burden for the world’s hurting people and wrote home about his “desire to be a missionary.” On hearing the news, one of his friends expressed disbelief that Bill was “throwing himself away as a missionary.”  In response, Borden wrote two words in the back of his Bible: “NO RESERVES.”

Even though young Borden was wealthy, he arrived on the campus of Yale University in 1905 trying to look like just one more freshman. Very quickly, however, Borden’s classmates noticed something unusual about him and it wasn’t that he had lots of money. One of them wrote: “He came to college far ahead, spiritually, of any of us. He had already given his heart in full surrender to Christ and had really done it. We who were his classmates learned to lean on him and find in him a strength that was solid as a rock, just because of this settled purpose and consecration.”

During his college years, Bill Borden made an entry in his personal journal that defined what his classmates were seeing in him. That entry said simply: “Say ‘no’ to self and ‘yes’ to Jesus every time.”

Borden’s first disappointment at Yale came when the university president spoke in a convocation about the students’ need of “having a fixed purpose.” After that speech, Borden wrote: “He neglected to say what our purpose should be, and where we should get the ability to persevere and the strength to resist temptations.”  Surveying the Yale faculty and much of the student body, Borden lamented what he saw as the result of an empty, humanistic philosophy: moral weakness and sin-ruined lives.

During his first semester at Yale, Borden started something that would transform campus life. One of his friends described how it began: “It was well on in the first term when Bill and I began to pray together in the morning before breakfast. I cannot say positively whose suggestion it was, but I feel sure it must have originated with Bill. We had been meeting only a short time when a third student joined us and soon after a fourth. The time was spent in prayer after a brief reading of Scripture. Bill’s handling of Scripture was helpful. . .. He would read to us from the Bible, show us something that God had promised and then proceed to claim the promise with assurance.”

Borden’s small morning prayer group gave birth to a movement that soon spread across the campus. By the end of his first year, 150 freshmen were meeting weekly for Bible study and prayer. By the time Bill Borden was a senior, one thousand of Yale’s 1,300 students were meeting in such groups.

Borden made it his habit to seek out the most “incorrigible” students and try to bring them to salvation. “In his sophomore year we organized Bible study groups and divided up the class of 300 or more, each man interested taking a certain number, so that all might, if possible, be reached. The names were gone over one by one, and the question asked, ‘Who will take this person?’ When it came to someone thought to be a hard proposition, there would be an ominous pause. Nobody wanted the responsibility. Then Bill’s voice would be heard, ‘Put him down to me.'”

Borden’s outreach ministry was not confined to the Yale campus. He cared about widows and orphans and the disabled. He rescued drunks from the streets of New Haven. Attempting to rehabilitate them, he founded the Yale Hope Mission. One of Bill Borden’s friends wrote that he “might often be found in the lower parts of the city at night, on the street, in a cheap lodging house or some restaurant to which he had taken a poor hungry fellow to feed him, seeking to lead men to Christ.”

Borden’s missionary call narrowed to the Muslim Kansu people in China. Once he fixed his eyes on that goal, Borden never wavered. He also challenged his classmates to consider missionary service. One of them said of him: “He certainly was one of the strongest characters I have ever known, and he put backbone into the rest of us at college. There was real iron in him, and I always felt he was of the stuff martyrs were made of, and heroic missionaries of more modern times.”

Although he was a millionaire, Bill seemed to “realize always that he must be about his Father’s business, and not wasting time in the pursuit of amusement.”  Although Borden refused to join a fraternity, “he did more with his classmates in his senior year than ever before.” He presided over the huge student missionary conference held at Yale and served as president of the honor society Phi Beta Kappa.

Upon graduation from Yale, Borden turned down some high-paying job offers. At one point, after the death of his father, his family begged him to take over the Borden corporation.  The career would have granted him both power and position and great wealth.  He refused.  In his Bible, he wrote two more words: “NO RETREATS.”

William Borden went on to do graduate work at Princeton Seminary in New Jersey. When he finished his studies at Princeton, he sailed for China. Because he was hoping to work with Muslims, he stopped first in Egypt to study Arabic. While there, he contracted spinal meningitis. Within a month, 25-year-old William Borden was dead.

When the news of William Whiting Borden’s death was cabled back to the U.S., the story was carried by nearly every American newspaper. “A wave of sorrow went round the world . . . Borden not only gave (away) his wealth, but himself, in a way so joyous and natural that it (seemed) a privilege rather than a sacrifice” wrote Mary Taylor in her introduction to his biography.   Was Borden’s untimely death a waste? Not in God’s perspective. Prior to his death, Borden had written two more words in his Bible. Underneath the words “NO RESERVES” and “NO RETREATS,” he had written: “NO REGRETS.”

Based on excerpts from: Mary Geraldine Guinness (Mrs. Howard) Taylor, Borden of Yale ’09 (Philadelphia: China Inland Mission, 1927).

JUST A CLOSER WALK WITH THEE

I am weak but Thou art strong;
Jesus, keep me from all wrong;
I’ll be satisfied as long
As I walk, let me walk close to Thee.

Refrain:
Just a closer walk with Thee,
Grant it, Jesus, is my plea,
Daily walking close to Thee,
Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.

Thro’ this world of toil and snares,
If I falter, Lord, who cares?
Who with me my burden shares?
None but Thee, dear Lord, none but Thee. [Refrain]

When my feeble life is o’er,
Time for me will be no more;
Guide me gently, safely o’er
To Thy kingdom shore, to Thy shore. [Refrain]

Knowing God’s Will

Bible Reading: Colossians 1:9-14

Colossians 1:9, “And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding.” 

Having helped to teach in many pastor conferences in Uganda, we’d often conclude a day’s instruction by giving the pastors opportunities to ask questions.  There was never a shortage of questions, for the pastors had lacked training and the churches they led had lacked Bibles, or any kind of Bible study resources.  Sometimes these question-and-answer sessions would last for hours.  They would ask about all sorts of things: “Is tongues Biblical?” “The Bible says that we should live with our wife in an understanding way.  But what if she is rebellious and difficult?” “What should I do about a divisive man who refuses to stop even after being confronted?” “What should be done with the unrepentant drunkard?”  “What should we do if a man has more than one wife?”  They earnestly wanted to know what the Bible had to say about a matter, and that’s where we’d take them to find answers.  It was important to them to know and do what God wanted them to do in their lives and ministries.

Paul prayed thus for the believers in Colossae that they “may be filled with the knowledge of his will” (Colossians 1:9).  Put simply, God’s will is that which God wants to be done by us.  Before you were saved, being “alienated and hostile in mind,” you had no desire at all to do anything of what God wants (Colossians 1:21).  But in Christ, things have changed for you such that knowing and doing God’s will matters!

God’s will is a beautiful thing.  According to Romans 12:2, God’s purpose is that through the renewing of the mind, we might “discern what is the will of God” (Romans 12:2).  Three adjectives are used in that verse to describe God’s will—it is good, acceptable, and perfect.  Together, they speak of something that is intrinsically good, pleasing to God, and in perfect adherence to his plan.  God’s will is God’s best for us, or as one pastor put it; “success is knowing and doing God’s will.”  As Christ is the perfect example to us in every virtuous thing, so He is when it comes to knowing and doing God’s will.  He lived His life in perfect conformity to the will of the Father, even when it demanded His own life blood (Hebrews 10:7; John 4:34; Matthew 26:39)!

How are we to discern the will of God?  That’s a much-asked question, a subject to which entire books have been devoted.  But the simple answer is that we can know what God desires for us to do through the Word and the Spirit.  In fact, it is as the Spirit of God applies the Word of God to our hearts that we obtain the knowledge and wisdom necessary to discern and do the will of God in our lives (2 Timothy 3:16; Philippians 2:13).  The Spirit not only works to direct us through the Word into God’s will, but He also actually intercedes for us unto that very end (Romans 8:27)!

Sometimes the Bible plainly sets forth a matter to be the will of God.  For example, it is God’s will for us to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4; Spirit-filled (Ephesians 5:17-18); sanctified (1 Thessalonians 4:3); thankful (1 Thessalonians 5:18); and to trust God in all (1 Peter 4:19).  Still, sometimes we have questions regarding specific personal decisions.  In such matters, it’s helpful to seek godly counsel.  And sometimes God works to move us via our circumstances.  But how good it is to know that God hears our prayers and that the Spirit speaks to our hearts and can lead us in the will of God (Philippians 2:13).  Make is your goal to be “fully assured in all the will of God” (Colossians 4:12), that you might walk in a manner worthy of the Lord!

TAKE MY LIFE AND LET IT BE

Take my life and let it be
consecrated, Lord, to thee.
Take my moments and my days;
let them flow in endless praise,
let them flow in endless praise.

Take my hands and let them move
at the impulse of thy love.
Take my feet and let them be
swift and beautiful for thee,
swift and beautiful for thee.

Take my voice and let me sing
always, only, for my King.
Take my lips and let them be
filled with messages from thee,
filled with messages from thee.

Take my silver and my gold;
not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use
every power as thou shalt choose,
every power as thou shalt choose.

Take my will and make it thine;
it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart it is thine own;
it shall be thy royal throne,
it shall be thy royal throne.

Take my love; my Lord, I pour
at thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself, and I will be
ever, only, all for thee,
ever, only, all for thee.

Faith, Love, and Hope

Bible Reading: Colossians 1:1-8

Colossians 1:3-5a, “We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven.”

When a baby is born, they do an APGAR test to make sure the baby is healthy and doing all the things a newborn baby should do. Just like that, there are certain “virtues” or “characteristics” one would expect to see in the life of a newborn believer, or in the practice of those who make up a newly born church.  The Apostle Paul was thankful, as he had heard reports about the church in Colossae, these virtues were evident.

These three virtues—faith, hope, and love—are commonly grouped together (Romans 5:2-5; 1 Corinthians 13:13; 1 Thessalonians 1:3; Galatians 5:5-6).  There is a past (faith), present (love), and future (hope) dimension to them, though they are not bound so.  1 Corinthians 13:13 reminds us the greatest of the three is love, for there will come a day when faith and hope will give way to sight and hope’s fulfillment.

Colossae was a town filled with people who were without God and without hope in the world, as all lost sinners are likewise impoverished.  But then the powerful-to-save-and transform-gospel came to town by way of Epaphras.  People possessing no faith were born again by faith to faith.  People incapable of love were born again through the love of God to love.  People having no hope were born again through a message of hope to hope.  

The message of truth, having been planted in their hearts, came “bearing fruit and increasing” (Colossians 1:6)!  Paul heard the reports of what happened.  Paul, “you should see how those believers in Colossae are now trusting God in the affairs of their lives!”  “We’ve seen Paul, how God has worked a transformation in their lives from sin and selfishness so they are loving one another in their marriages and homes and in the church!”  “Behold how they are now filled up with the hope of heaven!”  The word of God is powerful to save and transform lives–as it did in Colossae, in Thessalonica (1 Thessalonians 1:2-3; 2:13), and in whatever place it has been received!

Warren Wiersbe has commented on this, “When “the word of truth, the gospel” is planted in the heart, it can produce fruit…Near King’s Cross station in London, England, there is a cemetery containing a unique grave, that of the agnostic Lady Ann Grimston. She is buried in a marble tomb, marked by a marble slab. Before she died, she said sarcastically to a friend, “I shall live again as surely as a tree will grow from my body.” An unbeliever, Lady Ann Grimston did not believe that there was life after death. However, a tree did grow from her grave! A tiny seed took root, and as it grew, it cracked the marble and even tore the metal railing out of the ground! There is life and power in a seed, and there is life and power in the Word of God. When God’s Word is planted and cultivated, it produces fruit. Faith, hope, and love are among the firstfruits in the spiritual harvest. These spiritual graces are among the evidence that a person has truly been born again.”

How are you doing regarding these virtues?  Can people see Jesus in you, in the way in which you trust Him, in the way in which you love others, in the way you keep your focus on the hope of heaven?  Pray that the Spirit might work to increase them even more as you grow in God’s grace unto His glory!

SINCE JESUS CAME INTO MY HEART

What a wonderful change in my life has been wrought
Since Jesus came into my heart!
I have light in my soul for which long I have sought,
Since Jesus came into my heart!

Refrain:
Since Jesus came into my heart,
Since Jesus came into my heart,
Floods of joy o’er my soul like the sea billows roll,
Since Jesus came into my heart.

I have ceased from my wand’ring and going astray,
Since Jesus came into my heart!
And my sins which were many are all washed away,
Since Jesus came into my heart! [Refrain]

I’m possessed of a hope that is steadfast and sure,
Since Jesus came into my heart!
And no dark clouds of doubt now my pathway obscure,
Since Jesus came into my heart! [Refrain]

There’s a light in the valley of death now for me,
Since Jesus came into my heart!
And the gates of the City beyond I can see,
Since Jesus came into my heart! [Refrain]

I shall go there to dwell in that city, I know,
Since Jesus came into my heart!
And I’m happy, so happy, as onward I go,
Since Jesus came into my heart! [Refrain]

The Word of Truth

Bible Reading: Colossians 1:1-8

Colossians 1:5-7a, “Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant.”

On a dangerous seacoast where shipwrecks often occur, there was once a little life-saving station. The building was primitive and there was just one boat  Yet the members of the life-saving station were committed to keep a constant watch over the sea. When a ship went down, they unselfishly went out day, or night to save the lost. Because so many lives were saved by that station, it became famous. 

Consequently, many people wanted to be associated with the station to give their time and talent and gave money to support its important work. New boats were bought, new crews were recruited and a formal training session was offered. As the membership in the life-saving station grew, some of the members became unhappy the building was so primitive and the equipment was outdated. They wanted a better place to welcome survivors pulled from the sea. So they replaced the emergency cots with beds and put better furniture in the enlarged and newly decorated building. 

Since that time the life-saving station become a popular gathering place for its members. They met regularly and when they did, it was apparent how they loved one another. They greeted each other, hugged each other, sharing with one another the events which had been going on in their lives. But fewer members were interested in going to sea on life-saving missions; so they hired lifeboat crews to do this for them.

The gospel God has made known to you is meant to be shared! How did the gospel, “the word of truth,” make its way to Colossae?  It was not the Apostle Paul who brought it there (Colossians 2:1), but Epaphras.  It’s likely Epaphras heard it from Paul when he was in Ephesus, which was about 100 miles away.  Epaphras, whose name means “charming,” heard the message and was then burdened to return to his hometown to make it known to others (Colossians 4:12). In so doing he exercised a charming influence on an entire town!

The powerful-to-save message of salvation by grace through faith in Christ worked to save and transform lives and a church was born.  Paul possessed it.  He proclaimed it.  Others believed, including Epaphras.  Epaphras then shared his treasure with others.  That’s how the process works.  

Someone shared the gospel with you.  You now possess, in your earthen vessel, the treasure of knowing Jesus.  That treasure–and the glorious gospel which led you to it–was a gift to you that is meant to be shared.  Have you shared it with anyone recently?  Is there someone in your life who even now needs to hear about the salvation availed to them through Christ’s death for sins and resurrection from the dead?  Pray for them and look for opportunities to speak of what Jesus has done for you! 

PASS IT ON

It only takes a spark to get a fire going,
And soon all those around can warm up in its glowing;
That’s how it is with God’s Love,
Once you’ve experienced it,
Your spread the love to everyone
You want to pass it on.

What a wondrous time is spring,
When all the tress are budding
The birds begin to sing, the flowers start their blooming;
That’s how it is with God’s love,
Once you’ve experienced it.
You want to sing, it’s fresh like spring,
You want to pass it on.

I wish for you my friend
This happiness that I’ve found;
You can depend on God
It matters not where you’re bound,
I’ll shout it from the mountain top,
I want the world to know
The Lord of love has come to me
I want to pass it on.