Good Morning.
It is going to be one of the ten best days. Alice and I walked for an hour last evening; praise the Lord for the brilliant moon. Praise the Lord for the unhurried sun. Praise the Lord for beauty of the earth. Praise the Lord for the nations and the people groups of the world. It is a great blessing to be alive in such times as this. Sunita and Andy are already in New Delhi. Their friends from Washington, DC are in Calcutta, the city of Mother Teresa. We will all be meeting in Bubaneswar on Sunday.
As I prepare for our long trip, I was reading from Hebrews 11. It is the Faith Chapter. Faith is a common denominator. Every one alive daily expresses faith in something. No one can live a single day without exercising faith – at the very least we show faith in the physical world. For instance, when you awoke this morning you flipped a light switch and you had faith that it would work. When you get in your car you have faith that it will start. Faith is also expressed in the spiritual realm. Each of us regardless of our backgrounds or educations, our social status, or our talents can express faith.
The difference between the faith we exercise in our daily routine and our religious faith is the object of that faith. Moslems puts their faith in the Koran and in Mohammed. The humanist put his faith in himself. Many place their faith in their own good works. None of these can save, because the object of their faith is wrong. Our faith is only as good as the object in which we place our faith. The Bible insists that we personally put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ. Acts 4:12 says, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
Further, in Hebrews 11 it is written, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.”
True faith is confident obedience to God’s word in spite of circumstances or consequences. Faith is described in a two-fold way. It is the “substance of things hoped for,” and “the evidence of things not seen.” In Greek the word which we translate as substance is really the foundation that gives the believer the confidence to stand. The verse could be translated “faith is the confidence of things hoped for.”
This is illustrated in the life of the missionary Hudson Taylor. “When Hudson Taylor, the famous missionary, first went to China, it was in a sailing vessel. Very close to the shore of cannibal islands the ship was caught in a calm, and it was slowly drifting toward the shore …and the savages were eagerly anticipating a feast.
"The captain came to Mr. Taylor and sought him to pray for the help of God. ‘I will,’ said Taylor, ‘provided you set your sails to catch the breeze.’ The Captain declined to make himself a laughing stock by unfurling the sails in a dead calm. Taylor said, ‘I will not undertake to pray for the vessel unless you will prepare the sails.’ And it was done.
"While engaged in prayer, there was a knock at the door of his stateroom. 'Who is there?' The captains voice responded, ‘Are your still praying for wind?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘Well,’ said the captain ‘you better stop praying for we have more wind than we can manage.’” [Paul Lee Tan. Encyclopedia of 7,700 Illustrations. (Rockville, Maryland: Assurance Publishers, 1979). # 1493]
Further, the word describing what faith is, is translated “evidence” and means “conviction.” This inward conviction enables the believer to believe things not yet seen, that God perform what he has promised.
Another story of a captain of a ship illustrates this point. “The story is told by the captain of a ship on which George Mueller of Bristol was traveling. (Mueller was a man who had several children’s homes and depended on God alone to provide for them.) During his lifetime he received more than 1,000,000 pounds from the Lord without advertising – every penny came as an answer to prayer.
"'We had George Mueller of Bristol aboard', said the captain. ‘I had been on the bridge for twenty-four hours and never left it and George Mueller came to me and said, ‘Captain, I have come to tell you that you must be in Quebec on Saturday afternoon.’ ‘It is impossible.’ I said. ‘Then very well, if your ship cannot take me, God will find some other way. I have never broken an engagement in fifty-seven years; let us go down into the chart room and pray.’
‘I looked at that man of God and thought to myself. What lunatic asylum can that man have come from, for I never heard of such a thing as this?’ ‘Mr. Mueller,’ I said, ‘do you know how dense this fog is?’ No he replied, ‘my eye is not on the density of the fog, but on the living God who controls every circumstance of my life.’ He knelt down and he prayed one of the simplest prayers. When he had finished I was going to pray, but he put his hand on my shoulder and told me not to pray. ‘As you do not believe He will answer, and as I believe He has, there is no need whatever for you to pray about it.’
‘I looked at him and George Mueller said, ‘Captain, I have known the Lord for fifty-seven years and there has never been a single day when I have failed to get an audience with the King. Get up, Captain and open the door and you will find the fog has gone.’
‘I got up and the fog indeed was gone and on that Saturday afternoon George Mueller kept his promised engagement.” [Paul Lee Tan. Encyclopedia of 7,700 Illustrations. (Rockville, Maryland: Assurance Publishers, 1979). # 1494] That is the conviction that only faith can bring.
In Christ,
Brown
http://youtu.be/sv55FMjeMV0
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Brown's Daily Word 7-13-11
Praise the Lord for this new day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it. . I am enclosing a note from Sunita, that we received just this morning. A few years ago I spent a couple weeks in Alaska. I recall reading one of the road signs which read, “Choose your rut carefully. You’ll be in it for the next 200 miles.” Many people are in ruts, but they do not even know it. Most of us tend to settle for predictable and comfortable lives.
In Acts 4 we have a record of the witness of the early Christians, whose lives were transformed from blandness and boredom to boldness. In fact, it was "Holy Boldness". As we plan to go to India, some of my friends are praying for that "Holy Boldness" for us. Very few of us dare to be bold with our lives and seize every day as a fresh gift from God. Psalm 118:24 states, "This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." In Ecclesiastes 11, Solomon repeated this concept, “Don’t play it safe!” We are not to let fear, pessimism, and paranoia rule our lives. How much more we can enjoy life if we decide to invest life instead of just enduring it.
Solomon spent the two previous chapters teaching that unpredictable things happen in our lives and the only way to live life is under God’s providential hand. It is the only way that life is fulfilling. However, living life under God’s providential hand involves some risk, but when we risk according to God’s purpose, we are greatly rewarded. We are called and propelled to live life generously.
Ecclesiastes 11:1 – "Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again." For many in our current society, this verse carries little meaningful, but in biblical times, the most profitable business was the import and export business. You had to trust your “bread” on the “waters”. Your product made more money when shipped by sea than by land because it arrived more quickly at its destination. Thus, the returns would be quicker. There were, however, some risks involved: pirates, storms, and disreputable “middle men” who might steal your profit.
However, there were much greater risks that take place when you didn’t send out your bread. If you just store the bread, it molds, and so you lose your investment as well. The idea is that it’s better to get it to market and have a chance to make some profit as opposed to just letting it sit and rot.
I am reminded of the parable of the talents, in which the servant buried his money in the ground. He got nothing out of it – not even what he could have earned by just depositing it with a banker.
Solomon speaks of generosity. Don’t hold back! Whatever you have, invest it in people. Don’t let what God has given you, treasure, time, talent, and testimony, just sit and do nothing. Too many people live a philosophy of getting: Get all you can. Can all you get. Then sit on the can. This is the philosophy of life “lived under the sun.”
Solomon’s advice is that life will produce nothing of significance without faith. The key to living by faith is acting without being able to see exactly how things will turn out. 2 Corinthians 5:7 reminds us that, “We live by faith, not by sight.”
I read the story of Larry Walters some time ago. Larry lived in a little suburb outside of Los Angeles just south of the L.A. Airport. A truck driver, he used to spend his weekends in his backyard sitting in his favorite lawn chair with a six-pack and some peanut butter sandwiches. Several years ago, when Larry was sitting around looking at all the fences around him in the subdivision where he lived, he got an idea. He decided he would go and buy some weather balloons, fill them with helium, and tie them to his lawn chair. He figured they would allow him to float 100 or so feet up in the air so that he could visit with all his neighbors, who lived behind all those fences, while he floated along.
He obtained 30-40 weather balloons and filled them with helium. He tied them to his lawn chair. He went in the house and got another six-pack and a couple of peanut butter sandwiches and his BB gun. He took his supplies outside, sat down in the lawn chair that his friends were holding down, and said, “Let ‘er go!”
He didn’t go to only 100 feet in the air. He went to 11,000 feet. He shot straight up in the air. He couldn’t shoot out the balloons because he was afraid he would cause the chair to get off balance and he would fall out.
It happened that he floated straight up into the landing pattern of the L.A. Airport. A pilot of a DC-10 reported seeing a lawn chair float by. You can only imagine the control tower wanting to know how many six-packs the pilot had consumed.
Larry was holding on for dear life. Eventually, they sent helicopters up. They stopped all takeoffs and landings at the airport while they got this truck driver and his lawn chair down from 11,000 feet. When he was finally back on the ground, he was surrounded by a huge crowd. The police were there, the helicopter crew, the television crews, and all kinds of reporters.
One reporter stuck a microphone in his face and said, “Were you scared?” Larry said, “What kind of question is that? Wouldn’t you be scared if you were floating around in a lawn chair at 11,000 feet?”
Then the reporter asked, “Would you do it again?” Larry’s answer was a very strong, “NO!!!”
Finally the reporter asked him, “What in the world made you do it the first time?” And to that Larry Walters replied, “Well, you can’t just sit there.”
We are called to live life generously and boldly.
In Christ,
Brown
http://youtu.be/twuLr5rQmp0
Dear Friends,
Our time in Romania was a bit like being in overdrive. The staff here packed our days full of home visits, meetings with community leaders and times of planning and debriefing with staff. A typical day involved being picked up from our hotel before 9am and returning after 10pm to our rooms at night, our minds and hearts full to overflowing from what we’ve seen and experienced each day. We initially felt some heaviness when we came to Bucharest last week. You could still see the visible evidence of Ceacescu’s dictatorship all over, in the old communist buildings, and in the huge issue of child neglect and abandonment, despite tremendous progress that has been made over the past 20 years. We saw things every day that made us want to weep; sometimes with joy, but mostly with heartbreak for the neglect so many children and youth have suffered in this nation. On a personal level, it confirmed for Andy & I a conviction we have long felt to be part of caring for neglected kids, and has caused us to start looking more seriously and imminently at foster care or adoption. We had a TREMENDOUS time in Romania and have a rolodex of images replaying through our minds as we look back over the packed hours of our packed days. We’ll share a few of them here:
• Our first day in Romania, we visited several projects in Bucharest working with deinstitutionalized children, trying to get them out of state run orphanages into transitional housing—a 2 bedroom apartment with 8 kids and a dorm mom where they can get more individualized care, and be taught basic lifeskills that are absent in the orphanages, where everything (bathing, choosing clothes to wear, brushing teeth, etc) is done for them. The World Vision staff in Romania do outstanding work training government workers on better models of care for orphans in this country. It was fantastic to see how many laws, measures and models implemented by World Vision had been adopted by the government and local organizations here over the past 20 years. Our staff are passionate about protecting children and I felt very proud to work for World Vision in seeing their passion and professionalism.
• Robert is a beautiful 10 year old boy who lives with his grandma in a *tiny* apartment, not more than 150 square feet in size. Robert has very weak legs and is considered disabled here, so was abandoned by his mom, though she occasionally visits him. They live in one of the filthiest buildings I’ve ever been in, but their tiny apartment is tidy and clean and a little oasis. But with Robert’s disability and his grandma’s age, he sometimes has to drag himself up 3 or 4 flights of filthy stairs. You can tell Robert’s grandmother loves him and is proud of him. He’s a winsome, adorable boy that I can’t imagine not being proud of. But his grandma has diabetes and it is hard for me not to think of what will happen to Robert if his grandma’s health fails. We had a chance to pray for them both and I am continuing to pray.
• In Iasi, a city in the northeast of the country, we met an American volunteering for 2 months for the World Vision office there. Her name is Rebecca and it turns out that she is pursuing her Master’s at George Mason University and lives about a half mile from us (4th and Evarts, NE, for Eckington friends)! It was so “random” and of course not random at all. J We only had a day together, visiting projects, but Andy had a great conversation with Rebecca during which she opened up about her mother dying when she was 12 and her father then abandoning her. She has a lot of anger and hurt towards God from this. We’re planning to get together when we all are back in DC so appreciate your prayer with us that Jesus would wrap Rebecca in His arms of love and begin His work of healing.
• We visited a number of families living in the rural countryside with conditions comparable to many developing nations’ contexts: 7-10 family members squeezed into 1-2 room homes built from by hand; poor ventilation with ripe conditions for tuberculosis and other communicable diseases (we had a staff member contract TB recently and have to get surgery on her lungs); no running water or well (having to port water from the village pump) so infrequent bathing and poor hygiene, especially in the winter; no electricity, healthcare, etc.
• One of our joys in Romania was how frequently we were able to pray with families as we visited them in their homes. We saw so many hardships and difficult things, and while we know that there is much that is needed in terms of action, only Jesus can fully provide and move in these situations. Though almost all, if not all, of the families we visited were Orthodox Christians, I think they were a little surprised, but grateful, to have people take time to pray with them.
• In both Albania and Romania, but especially Romania, one of the main populations World Vision works with are Roma (a derogatory name often used in the past is ‘Gypsies’). The Roma actually began migrating towards Europe from India almost 1000 years ago, many believe to escape Muslim raids. They quickly became enslaved and have suffered intense discrimination (and even genocide under Hitler) ever since. It has been fascinating to make this connection with India, and even more so to see the connections that the Roma feel with India so many centuries later, mainly because of the blatant racism and prejudice they continue to experience I think. Yesterday (Tuesday) we visited a Roma community where World Vision works and it was fun to see how excited they were to learn that my dad is from India. They immediately extended an invitation for him to come and preach in their church. An American missionary helped start a church in their village a few years ago and 38 people have been baptized so far. One of our staff marveled at the change he’s seen in that community since the church began. They currently have a pastor come into the community on Sundays, for a few hours, to preach, but they really need someone who is full-time and who can walk with them through daily life.
• This brings me to another joy and affirmation on this trip, which is a deeper conviction than ever for us that the Church is the key to transformation of in a community. We know the Church is critical to spiritual transformation in a community, but I think both of us have been reaffirmed at the pivotal role that the Church, the believers present in a community, are the key to lasting economic, social AND spiritual change. We’ll look forward to sharing more thoughts and stories when we are back J
• Sunita and Andy
In Acts 4 we have a record of the witness of the early Christians, whose lives were transformed from blandness and boredom to boldness. In fact, it was "Holy Boldness". As we plan to go to India, some of my friends are praying for that "Holy Boldness" for us. Very few of us dare to be bold with our lives and seize every day as a fresh gift from God. Psalm 118:24 states, "This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." In Ecclesiastes 11, Solomon repeated this concept, “Don’t play it safe!” We are not to let fear, pessimism, and paranoia rule our lives. How much more we can enjoy life if we decide to invest life instead of just enduring it.
Solomon spent the two previous chapters teaching that unpredictable things happen in our lives and the only way to live life is under God’s providential hand. It is the only way that life is fulfilling. However, living life under God’s providential hand involves some risk, but when we risk according to God’s purpose, we are greatly rewarded. We are called and propelled to live life generously.
Ecclesiastes 11:1 – "Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again." For many in our current society, this verse carries little meaningful, but in biblical times, the most profitable business was the import and export business. You had to trust your “bread” on the “waters”. Your product made more money when shipped by sea than by land because it arrived more quickly at its destination. Thus, the returns would be quicker. There were, however, some risks involved: pirates, storms, and disreputable “middle men” who might steal your profit.
However, there were much greater risks that take place when you didn’t send out your bread. If you just store the bread, it molds, and so you lose your investment as well. The idea is that it’s better to get it to market and have a chance to make some profit as opposed to just letting it sit and rot.
I am reminded of the parable of the talents, in which the servant buried his money in the ground. He got nothing out of it – not even what he could have earned by just depositing it with a banker.
Solomon speaks of generosity. Don’t hold back! Whatever you have, invest it in people. Don’t let what God has given you, treasure, time, talent, and testimony, just sit and do nothing. Too many people live a philosophy of getting: Get all you can. Can all you get. Then sit on the can. This is the philosophy of life “lived under the sun.”
Solomon’s advice is that life will produce nothing of significance without faith. The key to living by faith is acting without being able to see exactly how things will turn out. 2 Corinthians 5:7 reminds us that, “We live by faith, not by sight.”
I read the story of Larry Walters some time ago. Larry lived in a little suburb outside of Los Angeles just south of the L.A. Airport. A truck driver, he used to spend his weekends in his backyard sitting in his favorite lawn chair with a six-pack and some peanut butter sandwiches. Several years ago, when Larry was sitting around looking at all the fences around him in the subdivision where he lived, he got an idea. He decided he would go and buy some weather balloons, fill them with helium, and tie them to his lawn chair. He figured they would allow him to float 100 or so feet up in the air so that he could visit with all his neighbors, who lived behind all those fences, while he floated along.
He obtained 30-40 weather balloons and filled them with helium. He tied them to his lawn chair. He went in the house and got another six-pack and a couple of peanut butter sandwiches and his BB gun. He took his supplies outside, sat down in the lawn chair that his friends were holding down, and said, “Let ‘er go!”
He didn’t go to only 100 feet in the air. He went to 11,000 feet. He shot straight up in the air. He couldn’t shoot out the balloons because he was afraid he would cause the chair to get off balance and he would fall out.
It happened that he floated straight up into the landing pattern of the L.A. Airport. A pilot of a DC-10 reported seeing a lawn chair float by. You can only imagine the control tower wanting to know how many six-packs the pilot had consumed.
Larry was holding on for dear life. Eventually, they sent helicopters up. They stopped all takeoffs and landings at the airport while they got this truck driver and his lawn chair down from 11,000 feet. When he was finally back on the ground, he was surrounded by a huge crowd. The police were there, the helicopter crew, the television crews, and all kinds of reporters.
One reporter stuck a microphone in his face and said, “Were you scared?” Larry said, “What kind of question is that? Wouldn’t you be scared if you were floating around in a lawn chair at 11,000 feet?”
Then the reporter asked, “Would you do it again?” Larry’s answer was a very strong, “NO!!!”
Finally the reporter asked him, “What in the world made you do it the first time?” And to that Larry Walters replied, “Well, you can’t just sit there.”
We are called to live life generously and boldly.
In Christ,
Brown
http://youtu.be/twuLr5rQmp0
Dear Friends,
Our time in Romania was a bit like being in overdrive. The staff here packed our days full of home visits, meetings with community leaders and times of planning and debriefing with staff. A typical day involved being picked up from our hotel before 9am and returning after 10pm to our rooms at night, our minds and hearts full to overflowing from what we’ve seen and experienced each day. We initially felt some heaviness when we came to Bucharest last week. You could still see the visible evidence of Ceacescu’s dictatorship all over, in the old communist buildings, and in the huge issue of child neglect and abandonment, despite tremendous progress that has been made over the past 20 years. We saw things every day that made us want to weep; sometimes with joy, but mostly with heartbreak for the neglect so many children and youth have suffered in this nation. On a personal level, it confirmed for Andy & I a conviction we have long felt to be part of caring for neglected kids, and has caused us to start looking more seriously and imminently at foster care or adoption. We had a TREMENDOUS time in Romania and have a rolodex of images replaying through our minds as we look back over the packed hours of our packed days. We’ll share a few of them here:
• Our first day in Romania, we visited several projects in Bucharest working with deinstitutionalized children, trying to get them out of state run orphanages into transitional housing—a 2 bedroom apartment with 8 kids and a dorm mom where they can get more individualized care, and be taught basic lifeskills that are absent in the orphanages, where everything (bathing, choosing clothes to wear, brushing teeth, etc) is done for them. The World Vision staff in Romania do outstanding work training government workers on better models of care for orphans in this country. It was fantastic to see how many laws, measures and models implemented by World Vision had been adopted by the government and local organizations here over the past 20 years. Our staff are passionate about protecting children and I felt very proud to work for World Vision in seeing their passion and professionalism.
• Robert is a beautiful 10 year old boy who lives with his grandma in a *tiny* apartment, not more than 150 square feet in size. Robert has very weak legs and is considered disabled here, so was abandoned by his mom, though she occasionally visits him. They live in one of the filthiest buildings I’ve ever been in, but their tiny apartment is tidy and clean and a little oasis. But with Robert’s disability and his grandma’s age, he sometimes has to drag himself up 3 or 4 flights of filthy stairs. You can tell Robert’s grandmother loves him and is proud of him. He’s a winsome, adorable boy that I can’t imagine not being proud of. But his grandma has diabetes and it is hard for me not to think of what will happen to Robert if his grandma’s health fails. We had a chance to pray for them both and I am continuing to pray.
• In Iasi, a city in the northeast of the country, we met an American volunteering for 2 months for the World Vision office there. Her name is Rebecca and it turns out that she is pursuing her Master’s at George Mason University and lives about a half mile from us (4th and Evarts, NE, for Eckington friends)! It was so “random” and of course not random at all. J We only had a day together, visiting projects, but Andy had a great conversation with Rebecca during which she opened up about her mother dying when she was 12 and her father then abandoning her. She has a lot of anger and hurt towards God from this. We’re planning to get together when we all are back in DC so appreciate your prayer with us that Jesus would wrap Rebecca in His arms of love and begin His work of healing.
• We visited a number of families living in the rural countryside with conditions comparable to many developing nations’ contexts: 7-10 family members squeezed into 1-2 room homes built from by hand; poor ventilation with ripe conditions for tuberculosis and other communicable diseases (we had a staff member contract TB recently and have to get surgery on her lungs); no running water or well (having to port water from the village pump) so infrequent bathing and poor hygiene, especially in the winter; no electricity, healthcare, etc.
• One of our joys in Romania was how frequently we were able to pray with families as we visited them in their homes. We saw so many hardships and difficult things, and while we know that there is much that is needed in terms of action, only Jesus can fully provide and move in these situations. Though almost all, if not all, of the families we visited were Orthodox Christians, I think they were a little surprised, but grateful, to have people take time to pray with them.
• In both Albania and Romania, but especially Romania, one of the main populations World Vision works with are Roma (a derogatory name often used in the past is ‘Gypsies’). The Roma actually began migrating towards Europe from India almost 1000 years ago, many believe to escape Muslim raids. They quickly became enslaved and have suffered intense discrimination (and even genocide under Hitler) ever since. It has been fascinating to make this connection with India, and even more so to see the connections that the Roma feel with India so many centuries later, mainly because of the blatant racism and prejudice they continue to experience I think. Yesterday (Tuesday) we visited a Roma community where World Vision works and it was fun to see how excited they were to learn that my dad is from India. They immediately extended an invitation for him to come and preach in their church. An American missionary helped start a church in their village a few years ago and 38 people have been baptized so far. One of our staff marveled at the change he’s seen in that community since the church began. They currently have a pastor come into the community on Sundays, for a few hours, to preach, but they really need someone who is full-time and who can walk with them through daily life.
• This brings me to another joy and affirmation on this trip, which is a deeper conviction than ever for us that the Church is the key to transformation of in a community. We know the Church is critical to spiritual transformation in a community, but I think both of us have been reaffirmed at the pivotal role that the Church, the believers present in a community, are the key to lasting economic, social AND spiritual change. We’ll look forward to sharing more thoughts and stories when we are back J
• Sunita and Andy
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Brown's Daily Word 7-12-11
Praise the Lord for these wonderful summer days. Today they are forecasting for one of the hottest days of July. Praise the Lord for the seasons that the Lord does send upon the earth. Praise the Lord for the way He leads us through various seasons in our life's journey on earth. My daughter Sunita frequently reminds me of the special seasons of our lives. Jesus is the Lord in every season; He is the Lord of all seasons. Blessed be His Name.
I have decided by the grace of the Lord to celebrate in all seasons and in every season. In his new book, Erasing Hell, Francis Chan, counters Rob Bell’s recent work, Love Wins. Bell acknowledges hell’s existence on earth but finds it difficult to believe that it is forever and that God can punish non-Christians for all eternity. Chan, on the other hand, says that while most people wouldn’t want to believe in the reality of hell, the Bible clearly speaks about it.
Our Lord Jesus is the Master Storyteller. He told parables to elucidate Kingdom Princples. The seventh parable in the great parable chapter (Mathew 13) of the Bible is the fifth parable similitude in the chapter. This parable, like the previous two, begins with “Again” (Matthew 13:47; cp. Matthew 13:44, 45). It is the lesson that says we need repetition in the learning process. The flesh does not like the “again” business, but if you are going to learn anything well or do anything well, “again” must be part of the process. In studying the Scripture, you must study “again” and “again”.... Christ taught the people parables to help instruct in spiritual matters. Matthew 13:48 notes that when the net was full/filled, it would take a large number of men several hours just to drag it ashore/up on the beach. Then they sat down. The parable shows the deliberation of the sorting in judgment by the fact that the sorters “sat down.” This deliberation ensures an accurate judgment. No one will be cast away who is saved, and all unsaved will be rejected. The Angels sorted/gathered the good fish into containers, but threw away the bad. The fish to be carried to a distant market would be put in containers with water to keep the fish alive, and those that were to be sold nearby were placed in dry containers, usually baskets.
The world is a vast sea (Psalm 104:25). People, in their natural state, are like the fishes of the sea that have no ruler over them, (Habakkuk 1:14). The preaching of the gospel is the casting of a net into this sea, to catch something out of it, for God’s glory who has the sovereignty of the sea. This parable, like the one of the wheat and tares, avoids a separatism which prevents the people of God from associating with the people of the world. We are to be in the world but not of the world. The parable is not dealing with any transition from good to bad, or bad to good, but speaks to the fact that both exist together in the same world. Jesus is not creating a sectarian Israel to stand over against the rest of the world. Just as He ate with publicans and sinners, so His disciples will move among people who disbelieve,
The comparison of the kingdom of heaven to a fishing scene reminds us of the calling of the disciples to “fish for people” in 4:19. The focus seems to be on catching people for salvation rather than, here, as in Jeremiah 16:16, for punishment. Though the disciples’ “fishing” ministry belongs to the establishment of God’s kingship, this parable adds the thought that there is a negative as well as a positive aspect to it. Their net is cast over a wide cross-section of people, and while the message saves some it will leave others unconvinced; those who have failed to respond to it are presumably among the “bad fish” of this parable. The fishermen of v. 48 are of course identified as the angels, not as the disciples, but it is the prior announcement of the kingdom of heaven (with which the disciples have been entrusted, 10:7) which forms the basis of the separation between good and bad. Those who have received the kingdom with appropriate response in the form of discipleship—would survive; the evil would go to their punishment. In His interpretation of the parable of the weeds Jesus stated the same truth He gives here: At the end of the age [His] angels shall come out/come forth, and separate/take out. The action here is “to discriminate” or make distinctions, and in Greek, krisis literally means “to divide.” In our day there is an overwhelming disdain of discrimination or judgment. Yet by our actions we make countless numbers of personal judgments every day. We drink water and not battery acid. We drive on a green light and not a red. We eat fresh food instead of rotten. Discrimination and judgment are basic common factors of life. Perhaps there is such a disdain of them because of a underlying realization that this common occurrence is pointing to a final reality that people fear and repress.
During the present era, which is the Church age, God permits unbelief and unrighteousness, but the time is coming when His toleration will end and His judgment begin. The net of God’s judgment moves silently through the sea of humanity and draws all people to the shores of eternity for final separation to their ultimate destiny-believers to eternal life and unbelievers to eternal damnation.
People move about within that net as if they were forever free. The net may touch them from time to time, as it were, startling them. But they quickly swim away, thinking they have escaped, not realizing they are completely and inescapably encompassed in God’s sovereign plan. The invisible web of God’s judgment encroaches on every human being just as that of the net encroaches on the fish. Most people do not perceive the kingdom, and they do not see God working in the world. They may be briefly moved by the grace of the gospel or frightened by the threat of judgment; but they soon return to their old ways of thinking and living, oblivious to the things of eternity. But when humanity’s day is over and Christ returns to finalize His glorious kingdom, then judgment will come.
The sorting process will be accurate. It will be clearly distinguished between the good and bad. Over and over Jesus warns about the horrors of hell and pleads with people to avoid it by coming to Him for salvation. He warned:
Matthew 24:38-41 "For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. (ESV)
God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezekiel 18:23) and does not desire that anyone perish (2 Pet. 3:9). The Lord wept over Jerusalem because the people would not come to Him and be saved (Luke 19:41). He warned about hell not to put people in agony but to save them from it. Hell was not created for humanity, but for the devil and his fallen angels (Matt. 25:41), but it is the very real destination of those who fail to surrender to Him.
In Christ,
Brown
http://youtu.be/vO_bKR2Wzhk
I have decided by the grace of the Lord to celebrate in all seasons and in every season. In his new book, Erasing Hell, Francis Chan, counters Rob Bell’s recent work, Love Wins. Bell acknowledges hell’s existence on earth but finds it difficult to believe that it is forever and that God can punish non-Christians for all eternity. Chan, on the other hand, says that while most people wouldn’t want to believe in the reality of hell, the Bible clearly speaks about it.
Our Lord Jesus is the Master Storyteller. He told parables to elucidate Kingdom Princples. The seventh parable in the great parable chapter (Mathew 13) of the Bible is the fifth parable similitude in the chapter. This parable, like the previous two, begins with “Again” (Matthew 13:47; cp. Matthew 13:44, 45). It is the lesson that says we need repetition in the learning process. The flesh does not like the “again” business, but if you are going to learn anything well or do anything well, “again” must be part of the process. In studying the Scripture, you must study “again” and “again”.... Christ taught the people parables to help instruct in spiritual matters. Matthew 13:48 notes that when the net was full/filled, it would take a large number of men several hours just to drag it ashore/up on the beach. Then they sat down. The parable shows the deliberation of the sorting in judgment by the fact that the sorters “sat down.” This deliberation ensures an accurate judgment. No one will be cast away who is saved, and all unsaved will be rejected. The Angels sorted/gathered the good fish into containers, but threw away the bad. The fish to be carried to a distant market would be put in containers with water to keep the fish alive, and those that were to be sold nearby were placed in dry containers, usually baskets.
The world is a vast sea (Psalm 104:25). People, in their natural state, are like the fishes of the sea that have no ruler over them, (Habakkuk 1:14). The preaching of the gospel is the casting of a net into this sea, to catch something out of it, for God’s glory who has the sovereignty of the sea. This parable, like the one of the wheat and tares, avoids a separatism which prevents the people of God from associating with the people of the world. We are to be in the world but not of the world. The parable is not dealing with any transition from good to bad, or bad to good, but speaks to the fact that both exist together in the same world. Jesus is not creating a sectarian Israel to stand over against the rest of the world. Just as He ate with publicans and sinners, so His disciples will move among people who disbelieve,
The comparison of the kingdom of heaven to a fishing scene reminds us of the calling of the disciples to “fish for people” in 4:19. The focus seems to be on catching people for salvation rather than, here, as in Jeremiah 16:16, for punishment. Though the disciples’ “fishing” ministry belongs to the establishment of God’s kingship, this parable adds the thought that there is a negative as well as a positive aspect to it. Their net is cast over a wide cross-section of people, and while the message saves some it will leave others unconvinced; those who have failed to respond to it are presumably among the “bad fish” of this parable. The fishermen of v. 48 are of course identified as the angels, not as the disciples, but it is the prior announcement of the kingdom of heaven (with which the disciples have been entrusted, 10:7) which forms the basis of the separation between good and bad. Those who have received the kingdom with appropriate response in the form of discipleship—would survive; the evil would go to their punishment. In His interpretation of the parable of the weeds Jesus stated the same truth He gives here: At the end of the age [His] angels shall come out/come forth, and separate/take out. The action here is “to discriminate” or make distinctions, and in Greek, krisis literally means “to divide.” In our day there is an overwhelming disdain of discrimination or judgment. Yet by our actions we make countless numbers of personal judgments every day. We drink water and not battery acid. We drive on a green light and not a red. We eat fresh food instead of rotten. Discrimination and judgment are basic common factors of life. Perhaps there is such a disdain of them because of a underlying realization that this common occurrence is pointing to a final reality that people fear and repress.
During the present era, which is the Church age, God permits unbelief and unrighteousness, but the time is coming when His toleration will end and His judgment begin. The net of God’s judgment moves silently through the sea of humanity and draws all people to the shores of eternity for final separation to their ultimate destiny-believers to eternal life and unbelievers to eternal damnation.
People move about within that net as if they were forever free. The net may touch them from time to time, as it were, startling them. But they quickly swim away, thinking they have escaped, not realizing they are completely and inescapably encompassed in God’s sovereign plan. The invisible web of God’s judgment encroaches on every human being just as that of the net encroaches on the fish. Most people do not perceive the kingdom, and they do not see God working in the world. They may be briefly moved by the grace of the gospel or frightened by the threat of judgment; but they soon return to their old ways of thinking and living, oblivious to the things of eternity. But when humanity’s day is over and Christ returns to finalize His glorious kingdom, then judgment will come.
The sorting process will be accurate. It will be clearly distinguished between the good and bad. Over and over Jesus warns about the horrors of hell and pleads with people to avoid it by coming to Him for salvation. He warned:
Matthew 24:38-41 "For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. (ESV)
God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezekiel 18:23) and does not desire that anyone perish (2 Pet. 3:9). The Lord wept over Jerusalem because the people would not come to Him and be saved (Luke 19:41). He warned about hell not to put people in agony but to save them from it. Hell was not created for humanity, but for the devil and his fallen angels (Matt. 25:41), but it is the very real destination of those who fail to surrender to Him.
In Christ,
Brown
http://youtu.be/vO_bKR2Wzhk
Monday, July 11, 2011
Brown's Daily Word 7-11-11
Praise the Lord for summer days. Yesterday, the Lord blessed us with a beautiful day in His House with His people. It is always a great blessing to gather before Jesus the Risen Lord in worship, in witness, and in fellowship. Some of our young leaders organized an Ice Cream fest Saturday afternoon. It was a great time of sharing and fellowship. Some of our young leaders are gearing up for our upcoming Vacation Bible School, August 8-12.
Alice, with our niece Sharon, spent last few days in Boston, caring for the Micah, Simeon, and Ada. They drove back home yesterday afternoon.
It is expected to be a very hot day today here in New York. It will be in the low nineties. It will also be in the nineties in Bhubanswar, Orissa, India today.
Sunita called last Friday. The Lord is blessing their time in the Balkan States. She has posted some of pictures on her Face Book page. You can visit them via their post. The photos are brilliant. Sunita and Andy will be flying to New Delhi , India this Wednesday. They will be staying in New Delhi for a few days. They will be staying in the house that belongs to one of their friends, an attaché for the US Embassy in New Delhi. They will have use of a car and driver for their visit in Delhi. Their friends Rob and Jen from Washington, DC will be flying to Calcutta this Wednesday. They will be staying at the Monica House in Calcutta and working at the Mother Teresa mission for few day before flying to Bhubaneswar this Saturday to meet up with Sunita and Andy there. Laureen and I will be flying to India this Friday evening. Jess and Tom will be joining us. Thank you for praying for us.
We love to sing the hymns of the church, and we love to sing songs of worship and praise. I also love to listen some classical music. One hymn I love is, "There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel's vein". It was composed by the English Poet William Cowper. The story and testimony of William Cowper is a remarkable and compelling story of a man coming to the end of his rope and finding God. Cowper found himself so deep in discouragement and despair that he tried to put an end to it all, first by drinking poison. But God graciously led someone to find him. His stomach was pumped, and he was spared.
As soon as Cowper recovered, the despairing writer hired a carriage to take him down to the Thames River in which he intended to plunge himself into the dark, swirling waters. The driver of the carriage, however, would have none of it.
He restrained Cowper, got him back into the carriage, and drove him home.
Frustrated with that attempt, he found a knife in the privacy of this house and attempted to fall upon it, but the blade broke. Still not deterred, he rigged up a rope in the basement, put his neck in the noose, and dropped into thin air.
But someone found him before he strangled and took him down. He couldn’t even kill himself. Finally, in the depth of sorrow, he turned to the Bible, to the book of Romans. In the pages of that book, he found a passage that brought him to his knees and to faith in Jesus Christ. It was Romans 3:23-25: There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood." Years later, as a mature man of God, Cowper penned the now familiar hymn:
"God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform;
He plants his footsteps in the sea, And rides upon the storm.
Deep in unfathomable mines, Of never-failing skill,
He treasures up his bright designs, And works his sov’reign will."
Cowper wrote many other hymns including, “Oh for a Closer Walk with God”. The Lord, our Lord, is stubborn and obstinate in loving us. He is the "Hound of Heaven, always in Holy Pursuit towards us. James wrote "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. (James 1:2-5)
In Christ,
Brown
http://youtu.be/JoC1ec-lYps
Alice, with our niece Sharon, spent last few days in Boston, caring for the Micah, Simeon, and Ada. They drove back home yesterday afternoon.
It is expected to be a very hot day today here in New York. It will be in the low nineties. It will also be in the nineties in Bhubanswar, Orissa, India today.
Sunita called last Friday. The Lord is blessing their time in the Balkan States. She has posted some of pictures on her Face Book page. You can visit them via their post. The photos are brilliant. Sunita and Andy will be flying to New Delhi , India this Wednesday. They will be staying in New Delhi for a few days. They will be staying in the house that belongs to one of their friends, an attaché for the US Embassy in New Delhi. They will have use of a car and driver for their visit in Delhi. Their friends Rob and Jen from Washington, DC will be flying to Calcutta this Wednesday. They will be staying at the Monica House in Calcutta and working at the Mother Teresa mission for few day before flying to Bhubaneswar this Saturday to meet up with Sunita and Andy there. Laureen and I will be flying to India this Friday evening. Jess and Tom will be joining us. Thank you for praying for us.
We love to sing the hymns of the church, and we love to sing songs of worship and praise. I also love to listen some classical music. One hymn I love is, "There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel's vein". It was composed by the English Poet William Cowper. The story and testimony of William Cowper is a remarkable and compelling story of a man coming to the end of his rope and finding God. Cowper found himself so deep in discouragement and despair that he tried to put an end to it all, first by drinking poison. But God graciously led someone to find him. His stomach was pumped, and he was spared.
As soon as Cowper recovered, the despairing writer hired a carriage to take him down to the Thames River in which he intended to plunge himself into the dark, swirling waters. The driver of the carriage, however, would have none of it.
He restrained Cowper, got him back into the carriage, and drove him home.
Frustrated with that attempt, he found a knife in the privacy of this house and attempted to fall upon it, but the blade broke. Still not deterred, he rigged up a rope in the basement, put his neck in the noose, and dropped into thin air.
But someone found him before he strangled and took him down. He couldn’t even kill himself. Finally, in the depth of sorrow, he turned to the Bible, to the book of Romans. In the pages of that book, he found a passage that brought him to his knees and to faith in Jesus Christ. It was Romans 3:23-25: There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood." Years later, as a mature man of God, Cowper penned the now familiar hymn:
"God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform;
He plants his footsteps in the sea, And rides upon the storm.
Deep in unfathomable mines, Of never-failing skill,
He treasures up his bright designs, And works his sov’reign will."
Cowper wrote many other hymns including, “Oh for a Closer Walk with God”. The Lord, our Lord, is stubborn and obstinate in loving us. He is the "Hound of Heaven, always in Holy Pursuit towards us. James wrote "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. (James 1:2-5)
In Christ,
Brown
http://youtu.be/JoC1ec-lYps
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