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In Memory of Our Family Friend Leona

I had the privilege of preaching the Memorial Service message for our dear family friend Leona. I’m posting the message here in an effort to honor Leona
and give glory to the Lord.
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Memorial Service Message for Leona
This is the Day Which the Lord Hath Made:  Rejoicing & Gospel Hope
June 8, 2013

The first time I met Leona, I was two days old at St. Joseph Hospital here in Bellingham.  Leona and her husband Al were good friends and ministry partners with my Grandparents, Cordell and Virginia Baker.  There was never really a time in my life, especially growing up, that I did not know Leona, because I would see her every time that I visited my Grandparents whether in Bellingham, Toelle (Utah), or Walla Walla.

My family and I were richly blessed by Leona in more ways than I can share today.  The impact that Al and Leona had on my Grandparents’ ministry alone is impossible to calculate.  Al and Leona moved from Bellingham to Utah to support my Grandparents in home missions.  After Al passed away Leona stayed in Utah for a decade, living in a condo under my Grandparents’ condo for many of those years, until my Grandparents moved to Walla Walla.

She was such a good friend to them that she followed them to Walla Walla and lived there for years before later returning to Bellingham.  My Grandma called Leona her best friend.  Only the Lord knows the ministry encouragement, the people saved, and the spiritual fruit in people’s lives that happened because of her direct ministry to other people as well as her ministry to my Grandparents.

There are six specific traits that I personally remember about Leona as I think back over all of those years:

She was a hard worker.
She was a life-long nurse.
She had more energy than almost anyone I have ever met.
She was never late.
She had a contagious grin.
She had a strong faith and trust in the Lord Jesus.

There are probably very few in this room that don’t remember her smile and nod and her characteristic phrase after any plans were made, “Lord willing.”

That’s why it was no surprise to me to learn from her son Craig and daughter-in-law Judi that Leona’s favorite verse, printed on the front of your bulletin, was Psalm 118:24,
“This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.”

For Leona, life was meant to be lived with joy and trust in Christ.  Even in times of sorrow, the Apostle Paul’s phrase in 2 Corinthians 6:10, “sorrowful yet always rejoicing” seemed to be a mantra for Leona.

Craig and Judi shared a special time that they spent with her earlier this year.  She was having an especially hard day and the effects of Alzheimer’s were making it hard to say any words at all.  Yet, Leona suddenly declared, “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.”  It came out of her soul, an expression of praise to her God even as she went through the deepest trial of her life.

The best way that we can honor Leona today and also give glory to the God that she praised is by agreeing with Leona and the Psalmist, “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.”

But the kind of rejoicing that Leona expressed and that the Psalmist is talking about is not some sort of vague rejoicing or hope that is grounded on shifting sand.  Rather, it is what the Apostle Paul talks about in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18:

But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.  For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.  For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.  For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God.  And the dead in Christ will rise first.  Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.  Therefore encourage one another with these words.

This is why her son Craig put the words on the front of the bulletin, “Born September 26, 1925 … Graduated to Heaven April 13, 2013.”  Leona knew without a doubt that Jesus had died for her and risen again, and lived in a way that showed her belief.  She could say no matter what was happening, “This is the day which the Lord hath made, we will rejoice and be glad in it” because of the rock solid hope of the Gospel.

She knew and believed, and wanted others to know and believe, what is printed in the bulletin you hold in your hands, that “all have sinned” and that we need a Savior.  We cannot save ourselves.  The Bible says in Romans 6:23 that sin results in eternal death.

We need to repent of our sins, trusting only in Christ’s complete sacrifice on the cross.  The only way that we can have the kind of rock solid hope that Leona knew is by putting our faith in Christ alone for salvation.  Romans 10:9 says, “That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved.”

That is why we can grieve–because we miss Leona–but we can grieve as those who do have hope.  The family’s prayer is that each person would leave even this Memorial Service today trusting in Jesus Christ for salvation, believing that He died on the cross for your sins and rose again.  That is why we as Christians would put “This is the day which the Lord hath made, we will rejoice and be glad in it” on the front of a Memorial Service bulletin.

Leona believed years ago what Romans 8:38-39 declares, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, [I would remind us—nor Alzheimer’s], nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Leona loved Christ so much and so looked forward to Heaven that she told my Mom years ago that she wanted her to play the song, “Ship Ahoy” on the piano at her Memorial and that she wanted Wes to sing it.  That love for Christ was in response to a God who loved her and saved her and held onto her.

There’s a truth in this song that Leona chose, that we need to make sure we hear.  Being saved from her sins by Christ Jesus her Savior when she was 30 years old in 1955, the same day as her husband Al, changed her and she wanted others to know and experience this salvation in Christ too.  Listen to these words that she wanted us to hear today:

The good Captain commanded a boat to be low’red,
And with tender compassion He took me on board;
And I’m happy today, all my sins washed away
In the blood of my Savior, and now I can say:
“Bless the Lord! Bless the Lord!”
From my soul I can say: “Bless the Lord!”

O soul, sinking down ’neath sin’s merciless wave,
The strong arm of our Captain is mighty to save;
Then trust Him today, no longer delay,
Board the old ship of Zion, and shout on your way:
“Jesus saves! Jesus saves!”
Shout and sing on your way: “Jesus saves!”

When I think of Leona, I think of a life well lived.  She loved her husband Al for over 43 years, she raised 3 children—Craig, Ross, and Lynn—and she loved her grandchildren dearly and would glow when talking about them.

I remember playing basketball with Leona’s grandson Michael while he visited her for the Summer, and her granddaughters Holly and Heather are both missionaries.  Leona loved serving others and that is evident in her family.  We all remember Leona as a nurse, passionately caring for others and trying to help them heal for over 50 years.

The Lord sometimes placed Leona in just the right place at the right time.  Once she performed mouth to mouth resuscitation on her daughter Lynn from South Lake Whatcom all the way to the Sedro Wooley hospital and saved her life.  Another time she saw a young child chocking in a grocery store with a hysterical mom that did not know what to do.  Leona quickly performed the Heimlich Maneuver and saved the child’s life.

Even after retiring as a nurse in her 70s I remember being amazed but not surprised when I heard that Leona was volunteering at a hospital in Walla Walla.  Some of her caregivers at Christian Health Care Center in Lynden were people that she had trained.  She loved to serve others and that flowed out of the love that she had for the Lord.

Everyone who knew Leona well knew that she was always early.  I remember walking past her car and seeing a suitcase in the back.  When I asked her where she was going, she replied, “Oh, I’m going to visit Bellingham in 10 days.”  I’ve never met anyone who was so early all the time.  If my family was inviting her over to a special Sunday afternoon dinner like Easter and my Mom wanted her to arrive at 1:00, she would tell her that dinner was at 2:00 because we all knew that if you told Leona 2:00 she would arrive at 1:00.

But, Leona was right on time early in the morning on April 13th when the Lord said, “Leona” and she knew His voice as she closed her eyes and stepped into glory.  She experienced at that moment and is experiencing now what she had believed for so many years, “to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”  In Christ, death is swallowed up in victory!

This is why we say even through tears today, “This is the day that the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.”

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What Is the Place of Bible Study in a Youth Ministry?

One of the things that I enjoy most in life is sitting down with a group of high schoolers on Sunday nights and teaching them God’s Word in a way that is faithful to the meaning while helping them apply it to their lives.  We are currently studying the book of Philippians, and I love the challenge of studying the meaning of the text, seeing the universal principles in it that God is teaching, and then helping teenagers apply it.  We have a small group time after our time of Bible study, and I get energized hearing them wrestle with how what they have heard applies on the baseball field, in their high school hallway the next morning, or in their relationship with their parents when they get home.

Brian Cosby has written a helpful book, Giving Up Gimmicks: Reclaiming Youth Ministry fron an Entertainment Culture that reminds us of the importance of having Bibgiving up gimmicksle-saturated, Gospel-centered Youth Ministry that takes the Bible seriously.  Cosby writes:

Doctrine should never be separated from worship and the “so what?” question.  Doctrine should inform students why they should do well in school, and how they can fight the temptation to gossip about another teen…indeed, the truths of God’s Word should be the lens through which they view all of life–from homework to movies, from dating to parents. — pp. 99-100

I can’t imagine having an opportunity for teens to regularly gather together and not encouraging them to believe the gospel and live the gospel through taking time to teach God’s Word.  Youth Ministries are never more fulfilling their mission than when they support Christian parents by supplementing what their teens are already being taught at home, while also reaching out to those who come from unbelieving homes by consistently, passionately teaching what it means to know and follow Jesus from the Bible.  Anything less is subliminally teaching them that it’s OK to build their lives on sinking sand (Matt. 7:24-27)!

Often when the importance of the Word of God in Youth Ministry is brought up, there is a concern about the place of games.  I heartily believe that both have a place in Youth Ministry.  In our context, our Middle Schoolers and High Schoolers enjoy free time over ping pong, pool, and foosball before we begin each Sunday night, and an organized game after worship in singing, Bible Study, and small groups (including prayer).  In fact, I have told our Children’s Ministry workers, “You must have fun if you work with children,” and the same goes for Youth Ministry.  Teenagers love to have fun together, which is part of fellowship for them.  But there does not need to be a dichotomy between having fun together and taking the Bible seriously!

Peter confessed to Christ, “You have the words of eternal life…” (John 6:68)  In order to have a Family Ministry that has an eternal impact, we need to study those words of eternal life together regularly.  Twelve year olds and eighteen year olds need this Word just as much as everyone else.

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Teach Them Diligently: Eight Principles to Help You Teach Your Children According to Deuteronomy 6

picture of familyLast weekend my wife was at a Women’s Retreat and I watched our three young children on Friday night, and the two oldest again on Saturday.  I made several plans of things to do with them, but those plans quickly became a trip to the store and a trip to the park between changing diapers, cleaning up meals, hugging away boo-boos and realizing that pig tails are way harder to make than they look–in fact, impossible for me.  Having this concentrated time with the kids and without my wife not only reminded me afresh of all of the ways she works so hard as a mom for our family, but it also made me contemplate the importance of knowing our parenting goals.

We don’t want to wake up 18 years from now and realize that we changed diapers, cleaned up meals, and shuttled kids to sports but missed the most important thing.  More than anything, my wife and I want our kids to know and love Jesus as their Lord and Savior.  Sometimes we simply need to be reminded of some of the basics towards that eternally significant goal.  Deuteronomy 6:4-15 clearly lays out 8 things God expects us to be teaching our children.  We teach these things not only when we read a Children’s Bible before bedtime, but also when we are going to the store or enjoying God’s creation at the park:  “And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.  You shall teach them diligently to your children, and you shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”

  • Teach your children that your family is part of the larger body of Christ (Deut. 6:4).  Deuteronomy 6 is given to Israel corporately, even though the parents have to apply it individually.
  • Teach your children about God (Deut. 6:4)  You hear theology in this verse; children are sponges, soaking in information about not only the world but also about God.
  • Teach your children to love God (Deut. 6:5)  Jesus said this was the greatest commandment.
  • Teach your children to obey God from the heart (Deut. 6:6-7)  If it comes from their heart because they love God, they will want to obey Him even when you’re not looking.
  • Teach your children to follow your example (Deut. 6:6-7)  This implies that you are believing the gospel and following hard after Christ yourself.
  • Teach your children at every God-given moment during the day (Deut. 6:6-7)  Every day, all day.  God gives a countless number of teachable moments each day.  Teach them diligently!
  • Teach your children the Bible and how it interacts with their lives (Deut. 6:7-9)  If you’re giving them a solid foundation of God’s Word, you will be able to pull from it as situations come up each day and they will see that the Bible applies to them.
  • Teach your children to love God, not the world (Deut. 6:10-15)  Everything can become an idol.  Teach them to be in the world but not of it.
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How Do You “Shelter” Your Young Children From Current Events?

picture 20We happened to be staying in a hotel the same day that the recent bombing at the Boston Marathon happened.  The next morning, my wife and I helped our 5 year old and 21 month old get their food from the breakfast dining area, then got our own food while one of us was holding our infant.  We were all excited for the breakfast spread at the hotel and were just starting to enjoy it when a morning news program began blaring in the dining area.  All eyes were on the TV, trying to hear the latest news about the explosions.  We couldn’t turn it off.  Getting down there and getting back upstairs was no easy task–impossible to imagine going in reverse with food in our hands–so we sat there for a few minutes trying to distract our 5 year old, until he asked if there were any kids hurt in the explosion.  We gathered them up quickly and headed back upstairs with our food, little ones and food both in our hands.

Because of the ages of our children, we don’t listen to the news while they’re awake at home, or in the car anymore.  But this week my 5 year old and 21 month old saw images of explosions while out in public, and last week my son asked me why men can’t marry other men because he saw two men once that “looked married.”  This is where Deuteronomy 6:6-7 comes into play while also asking the Lord for wisdom:  “And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.  You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”

Sometimes as you walk through life your young kids will ask you questions that you are not prepared to answer, and that they may not be ready to hear a full answer to.  I won’t pretend to be able to do this perfectly, but we can balance giving them an appropriate answer that brings God’s Word to the issue while also not telling them things that are too much for them right now.  For example, I was able to give my son a concise answer about marriage that seemed appropriate for his age, by simply telling him that God made marriage for a man and a woman only.  He asked more about it, but I told him that was all he needed to know right now.  As he gets older, we will have longer discussions about relevant issues like marriage and explosions.

Corrie Ten Boom illustrates this well (from The Hiding Place) with a story of how her father answered a question she asked when she was young:

He turned to look at me, as he always did when answering a question, but to my surprise he said nothing. At last he stood up, lifted his traveling case from the rack over our heads, and set it on the floor.

“Will you carry it off the train, Corrie?” he said.

I stood up and tugged at it. It was crammed with the watches and spare parts he had purchased that morning.

“It’s too heavy,” I said.

“Yes,” he said. “And it would be a pretty poor father who would ask his little girl to carry such a load. It’s the same way, Corrie, with knowledge. Some knowledge is too heavy for children. When you are older and stronger you can bear it. For now you must trust me to carry it for you.

Don’t you love how parenting makes you beg God for wisdom?  Lord, give us wisdom to teach our children biblical principles when they come across hard issues in this world, while also knowing what their young minds can and cannot handle.

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What Does the Resurrection Have to Do With Ministry?

picture 18I have a friend in Juarez, Mexico who is a native Mexican pastor of a small, poor church in the outskirts of the city.  He and his beautiful family have gone where most would fear to live and have planted a thriving church that loves the Lord and that loves to share the Gospel.  I had the privilege of visiting him often when I lived in Albuquerque, and there was one verse that we would often remind each other of as an encouragement when ministry was hard.  First Corinthians 15:58 declares, “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”  Even now I can hear him responding, “Amen!  Amen!”

There is a great truth that drives Josue and all of us as we seek to serve the Lord day in and day out.  It is the simple but earth-shaking truth of the Gospel.  One of the first principles of Bible study when you read a verse that says, “therefore…” is to see what the “therefore” is there for.  In 1 Corinthians 15:58, Paul has just finished an extensive chapter all about the resurrection.  He begins by reminding us “…of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you…” (1 Cor. 15:1-2)  This includes the death of Christ on the cross for our sins, but also His burial, resurrection, and appearances before His ascension which proved and confirmed that He was truly risen from the dead (1 Cor. 15:3-8).  Later the apostle defends the bodily resurrection of believers, based on the fact that Christ has risen.  He points out that if we don’t have the hope of the resurrection, then our faith is futile and we are still in our sins (1 Cor. 15:17), and that there is no real hope in Christ if we only have hope in this life (1 Cor. 15:18-19).  Then Paul brings us back to this glorious, life-changing reality:  “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead…” (1 Cor. 15:20)!

Because Christ has been raised from the dead, we are to live our lives in light of eternity (1 Cor. 15:32-34), knowing that we serve a risen King who has all authority in Heaven and on earth.  Because Christ has risen, we have the sure hope of the glory of Heaven (1 Cor. 15:42-49) and the confidence that in Christ even “death is swallowed up in victory” (1 Cor. 15:54).  The truth of the Gospel–that in Christ my sins are forgiven and I am reconciled to God–and the reality of the resurrection, are all the motivation we need to be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord!  What does the resurrection have to do with ministry?  Everything.

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Jesus Lives!

It is amazing how our hope is tied into the fact of Christ’s resurrection.  As Christ Himself taught, “…I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die.  Do you believe this?” (John 11:25b-26)  He could actually call Himself THE resurrection before He had died or been raised.

He had just been discussing resurrection with Martha, because her brother Lazarus had died, and she had pointed to the Old Testament hope of resurrection.  He lovingly pointed out that there is no resurrection outside of the Son of God, Himself.  Then He proved it by raising Lazarus from the dead.  Martha got it right when he asked her if she believed this: “She said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world.” (John 11:27)  Have you made this confession (see my earlier post, “What is the Gospel?”)?  If you have, then you can be abounding in hope because of Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:19-20).

This Resurrection Sunday may you rejoice in Christ and in our hope that is in Christ, because He is risen!  I have recently been moved by the words of a song called “Jesus Lives” from Risen, a Sovereign Grace Music CD that is completely about the Resurrection.

Here is the music, but if you don’t listen then check out the words below:

I no longer fear the grave

Christ has come

Took the sting of death away

Through His saving blood

Though my body fails and my flesh grows weak

Till my final breath, to this hope I’ll cling

Jesus lives and so shall I

I’ll be raised from the dust with Christ on high

Jesus lives no more to die

And when He returns, with Him I’ll rise

Jesus lives

In this fallen world I cry

For the day

When Your glory splits the sky

And you come to reign

All creation waits for that promised hour

When the saints of God are revealed in power

Not death nor any power of hell can separate me from

The love, the love of my Savior

(Words by George Romanacce and Bob Kauflin, Copyright 2011 Sovereign Grace Worship)

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Are You Making the Best Use of Your Time??

Blue_candles_on_birthday_cakeWith my birthday being this week, I am not only full of thankfulness to God for His mercies and graces in my life–such as my salvation, my family, being a Pastor again, and our church–but I am also evaluating the choices that I make with my time.  I have decided to repost what I wrote a year ago right after my birthday, with a few minor edits.  I pray that it challenges you to ask God what needs to stay the same in your life, and what needs to change–for His glory!

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I turned 33 this week, and turning the same age that Jesus was when He had completely fulfilled His earthly ministry caused me to pause and think about what I am accomplishing with my life.

John Paton was 33 when he and his wife sailed to the New Hebrides islands to be missionaries to cannibals.  Adoniram Judson was 24 when he and his wife moved to Burma (now Myanmar) to be missionaries to what was then a “closed” country.  David Brainerd died at the age of 29 from tuberculosis after being sick and discouraged much of his adult life–yet his hope in God and zeal for ministry led hundreds of Native Americans to faith in Christ, and his diaries continue to have an impact today.  Robert Murray McCheyne was 29 when he died of typhus, yet his ministry continues through his biography, writings, and Bible reading plan that is popular even today.  Jim Elliott, who said “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose,” proved it by dying as a martyr at the age of 28 trying to evangelize Indians in Ecuador.  His wife, Elizabeth Elliott, was 32 when she and her 3 year old daughter went to live with the tribe that had killed her husband, so that they could teach them about Jesus.  Amy Carmichael was 33 when she began rescuing girls from prostitution in India and giving them the hope of the Gospel as well as a home.

I don’t write this to make either you or myself simply feel bad about what we are accomplishing right now as compared to others, but to ask ourselves, “Am I making the best use of my time?”  I don’t need to be a missionary or the Son of God to obey Ephesians 5:15-16, “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.”  But am I fulfilling the ministry that the Lord has for me right now, and am I doing it in light of eternity?  Am I making purposeful choices, realizing that how I choose to spend my days will turn into how I lived my life?

The all-important question that faces all of us everyday is, “Am I glorifying Christ in how I live?”  Am I choosing to be a light for Christ wherever I am?  Am I pursuing holiness in my day to day life?  Am I further along now in my understanding of God’s Word and His will than I was 1 year ago?  Am I praying and asking God how my family and I could better serve Him where we are at now?  Am I looking to the future, realizing that the decisions I make now will shape my life for the next 33 years?  Am I investing in my wife and children, knowing that quantity time really is better than quality time in the long haul?

As Moses prayed thousands of years ago, “So teach us to number our days, that we may present to You a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12).  Lord, teach me to number my days so that if you bless me with another 33 years You will be more glorified in my life, family, and ministry than You are now.  Lord, teach me to number my days so that if I died tomorrow as some of Your faithful servants died at a young age, that others would be encouraged to live for You by my memory.  Oh, may we not look back at the end of our lives and say that we wasted them!  Are you making the best use of your time?

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How Do I Live Out Radical Discipleship with a Wife and 3 Kids?

radical pictureOur Pastor has been preaching on Mark 8:34-38 over the last two Sundays, and it sounds so radical to our comfortable American Christian ears.  I have had plenty of time to think through what the implications of Jesus’ words are for my life, and to realize that Jesus’ “radical” call to discipleship may not be so radical after all, but rather simply counter-cultural.  So, how do I live out radical discipleship with a wife and 3 kids?

Listen to what Christ calls us all to:  “And calling the crowd to Him with His disciples, He said to them, ‘If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.  For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.  For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?  For what can a man give in return for his soul?  For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”

Christ bids me come and die.  This is not new.  “I am crucified with Christ.  It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.  And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Gal. 2:20)  It won’t always be flashy.  It might be putting my 19 month old daughter to bed and singing “Jesus Loves Me” with her.  It might be talking with my 5 year old about Jesus and why He died for us as we read a Bible bed time story.  It might be letting my 5 month old boy know that He is a blessing and loved by changing his diaper with joy.  It might be putting on a towel and pulling out a basin and serving my wife when I get home from a long day at work instead of serving myself, however that looks at any point in our marriage.  This is impossible in my flesh, but easy in the Spirit.

I may not be a foreign missionary.  I may not be a martyr.  I may or may not ever be put in jail for preaching the Gospel.  I may even own a home someday.  But I can still be a radical disciple for Jesus Christ.  If my life is poured out for Christ, if my family knows that I love God, love them, and love our neighbors and the nations more than I love myself, that is radical discipleship.  I do this so imperfectly, but  I am clothed in Christ’s righteousness.

Jesus, draw me nearer to the cross.  Help me to pour out myself and my family in losing our lives for Your sake and the Gospel’s.

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Does “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…” Really Mean, “Go”?!

picture 17When Jesus commissioned His disciples from a mountain in Galilee with the words, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…” did He really mean, “go”?  I have often heard it taught that because “go” is actually a participle in Greek, it could more literally be translated, “in your going make disciples.”  This view means that all Christians are to be making disciples, so wherever you go, make disciples–evangelize and teach others to follow Christ no matter where God has placed you.  This understanding of Matthew 28:19 does have a place for international missions because of course some of the Apostles then and some of Jesus’ followers now will want to bring this good news to all nations in light of other Scriptures that speak to people from all nations coming to Christ as their Savior.

While being theologically accurate, I believe that Jesus’ words in Matthew 28:19 have a stronger emphasis than this, making modern versions that don’t say, “in your going” accurate, and leaving us to question our hearts perhaps more than we would otherwise about our involvement in missions today.

Every participle in Greek does not need to be translated into English as an “-ing” word such as “going.”  The context and structure of the sentence also plays a part.  “Go” in Matt. 28:19 is closer to the main verb “make disciples” than “baptizing” and “teaching,” and it is also a different form of participle.  Grammarians call this a coordinating participle rather than a subordinate participle.  In other words, “go” must be obeyed and seen as some sort of command to be able to carry out the main command, “make disciples.”  A few examples of this same structure in Matthew makes this extremely clear.  Another king with vastly less authority than Jesus, King Herod, commanded the wise men, “Go and search diligently for the child…” (Matt. 2:8).  While “search diligently” is the main verb, the participle “go” here has such a command force that Matthew said that Herod “sent them to Bethlehem” (Matt. 2:8).  This was not to be understood as simply, “in your going, search carefully for Jesus.”  Just five verses later the angel of the Lord uses the same Greek structure to command Joseph to save baby Jesus’ life: “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt…” (Matt. 2:13)  In order to obey the main command, “take the child,” Joseph had to “rise.”  In the Great Commission King Jesus is indeed commanding His disciples to go so that they can obey the command to make disciples of all nations!

As Christians we are to go here (to our community, region, and nation) and there (to the nations), making disciples as we baptize (implying evangelism) and teach what it means to follow Christ.  We are to have a sense of urgency when the risen Christ commands us to go and make disciples.  Let’s not soften it.

For those of us who are not missionaries, this is a reminder of our responsibility to be involved in the world-wide advance of the Gospel through going (short-term as an encouragement or perhaps long-term), financially supporting missionaries, encouraging and assisting missionaries, and praying for them.  What a wonderful commission from our King!

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Do You Care About Propitiation?

picture 16If you are a software programmer, then you have quickly and eagerly learned words like “gigabytes” and “linux.”  If you are a cook, then you will want to understand words like “al dente” and “broil.”  If you are a Christian, you should care about words like “propitiation.”

Propitiation is the word that God chose to communicate “appeasement” or “satisfaction” of God’s holy wrath against sin because of Christ’s perfect sacrifice of Himself on the cross.  Listen to these life-giving descriptions of propitiation:  “He is the propitiation for our sins…” (1 John 2:2)  “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (1 John 4:10)

Jesus Himself is the sacrifice that satisfies God’s righteous wrath against our sins.  Jesus Himself took our punishment for sin on the cross, where the great exchange happened:  Jesus took our sins, and gave us His righteousness (2 Cor. 5:21).  If you are in Christ, you no longer have to fear the wrath of God, because Jesus already bore it.  Jesus is your propitiation (notice the present tense in 1 John 2:2).

This idea of turning somebody favorably towards God because of a worthy sacrifice is beautifully illustrated in the Old Testament.  A form of the word “propitiation” was used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament to talk about the Mercy Seat on the Ark of the Covenant.  God’s presence, the Shekinah Glory, was above the Mercy Seat, and underneath the Mercy Seat–inside the Ark–was God’s Law.  The sprinkled blood on the Mercy Seat on the Day of Atonement went between God and His broken law.  It appeased or satisfied God’s righteous wrath against sin and a sinful people.  Jesus, the Lamb of God, was the fulfillment of this picture, the final atoning sacrifice for our sins.

So, do you care about propitiation?  You should, because you and I need it.  We need “a sacrifice that bears God’s wrath to the end and in so doing changes God’s wrath toward us into favor” (Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, p. 575).  When you sin today, ask Christ to forgive your sin (1 John 1:9), and then praise Him that He is the atoning sacrifice that satisfies God’s wrath against your sin.

[image credit: www.zazzle.com]

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