Am I Ready to Appear?

When I was in high school I was a well-behaved student. Ok now that I’ve made what sounds like a boastful statement please let me explain it. I certainly was not perfect, just ask my parents…ah, on second thought I would prefer you not do that, if you know what I mean? However, I didn’t like getting in trouble so I avoided it and those who caused it and that plan worked very well for me. I stayed out of trouble.

But unfortunately my high school record is not sparkling clean. Yeah, there happens to be one ugly stain on it; and all because I gave into peer pressure.

My dark moment took place during an all school assembly. I believe it was a pep rally to cheer on our pathetic football team…how exciting! Because assemblies were done during school hours which required the school to shorten and cancel some classes I never minded attending them; except for the one time I’m now sharing with you.

This particular assembly was scheduled during my lunch period…my favourite subject in school! Well, myself along with two friends were in no mood to cheer on our losing team and our taste buds wanted something more than cafeteria food. So even though I resisted for a few minutes one of my friends convinced us that we would have plenty of time to sneak (that’s the key word here) off school property, go to his house, have some pizza, and enjoy some TV. And that’s exactly what we did.

All went well until we arrived back at school and attempted to go back on the grounds unnoticed. Because I had never done anything like this before, I was a nervous wreck. Let me tell ya, my heart was racing and my ears were keenly in tune to every single sound made. My neck was getting sore from intensely looking in every direction for any teachers. But with each passing second of going undetected I began to feel we might actually get away with our disobedient deed.

And that’s when it happened! We turned a corner and there stood; of all people one of my favourite teachers. Boy did I want to crawl under a rock as I asked myself, “why did I have to get caught by her!?” To this day I can still hear her words as she began to write us up, “Well, well what do we have hear?”

That was only the beginning of my anguish though. A couple of days later I was called out of class by the vice principle. In all of my school years I never had to stand before the principle. For a kid who worked so hard at staying out of trouble, the whole ordeal was embarrasing, humiliating, and even tragic as I stood before him and gave an account of my act of disobedience and then received my punishment…three days of detention.

So now that I’ve confessed one of my moral failures allow me to share the spiritual lesson I’m reminded of this evening. It makes think about the judgment seat of Christ. 

You see, I had no choice that day, I had to stand before the vice principle as a guilty offender. No amount of bribery and begging would have been sufficient to obtain an excuse from appearing. Well you know what? One day I must stand before the Lord Jesus Christ at His judgment seat: 2 Corinthians 5:10 “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ…” And on that day no amount of bribery and begging will get me off either.

But wait a minute, as I recall it the vice principle made me look at him and tell him what I had done and why I had chosen to break the school rule. I have absolutely no recollection of what I told him, but I know it was not enjoyable. I think it’s that aspect of the judgment seat I dread the most; giving an account of how I lived my Christian life to Jesus Christ. Romans 14:12 says, “So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.” Whoa! what kind of excuses will I have for my disobedient actions and my selfish ambitions?

And there’s one more thought I have concerning all of this. I stood before the vice principle all alone. Neither one of my friends were allowed to be at my side for moral support. They could not serve as my advocates and try to get me off. It was just me and the vice principle. When I stand before the Lord, I will do so all alone. Romans 14:12 says every man will give an, “account of himself to God.” No lawyers, no counselors, no parents, no friends present just me and Jesus Christ!

You see, just as I knew the vice principle would eventually get to me I know (because the Bible says so) that I will stand before the Lord one day to give an account to Him about my Christian life. I will stand in His court room so-to-speak and though I’m thankful my salvation will never be the topic of consideration knowing that my life and service for Christ will be causes me to ask myself this one simple question; Am I ready to appear? Are you?
 
 

 

Will I Be Ashamed?

When I was in high school I was a poor student academically and not because I couldn’t get good grades, but because I didn’t want to get good grades. Simply put, I was academically indifferent and lazy. Well, that indifference and laziness led to very low marks and tension between my parents and I who knew I could do better and therefore, wanted me to do better. I always dreaded showing mom and dad my report card because it always resulted in questions and discussions on how I needed to improve my grades.

So upon receiving my report card one day I made a decision to eliminate the “pep talk” I knew I would hear when I got home; I simply would not show mom and dad. Hey, it made sense to me. By not revealing it to them it would give me another semester to get my grades up and be praised for being so diligent. Ok adults wipe that smirk off your face and if any young people are reading this, trust me, don’t try this!

You see there was far more tension having to consistently cover my mischievous deed then it would’ve been listening to the annual, “pep talk.” Then it happened. My parents discovered what I had done. Boy I will never forget the day my mother picked me up from work and asked me the question that said I know what you’ve done. Her tone of voice expressed both anger and disappointment as she said, “Is there anything you want to tell me?” I had been caught and there was nothing for me to say but to hang my head in shame and admit my wrong doing.

So why did I share that incident in my life? Simply to say this, Jesus is going to come back one day. John told us, “he shall appear” (1 John 2:28). The verse doesn’t say He might appear or hopefully He will appear, but rather He shall appear. It’s an affirmative statement telling us Christ’s return is a guarantee.

However, in that verse the apostle also encourages us to abide in Christ so we will not be ashamed when He does return (1 John 2:28). Now, I find that interesting because that means it’s quite possible for me to actually be ashamed of myself when the Saviour does come back again. Would you agree with me that that is not an aspect of Christ’s return we hear a lot about? We hear about the trumpet sounding, being changed in the twinkling of an eye, and even being ever present with the Lord, but how many sermons have you heard about being ashamed at His coming? Think about it, what in the world would cause a Christian to be ashamed when Jesus comes back to get them?

Well how about unconfessed sin (1 John 1:8-10)? You know, I was ashamed of myself when I sat in the presence of my mom admitting I had been dishonest to her and my dad. I was grieved that I had hurt them and breached their trust in me. And that was only my earthly parents. I cannot imagine what it would be like to be living in sin, have Jesus return and then have to stand before Him having to admit to a lifestyle of unconfessed sin.

Could lack of service and improper motives in our service for Christ be a source of shame if He were to return this very evening? How about a lack of obedience to the great commission? Imagine it, the trumpet sounds, the clouds are rolled back, and instantly we are lifted into Christ’s presence forever. But what would we be able to say we did for Him on earth? Who would be in His presence as a result of our godly influence and evangelistic efforts?

As I look back on the day my lie to my parents was uncovered I’m so thankful that they never stopped loving me and they never even thought about kicking me out of the house (I never worried about those things by the way). However, I knew there would be punishment and I would have to win back their trust over time. I’m also thankful that God will never stop loving me, and nothing I do will ever get me excommunicated from heaven, but I do want to live in such a way that I will not be ashamed when He comes back for me. So perhaps a good question to ask ourselves when we are contemplating certain actions and decisions is this, if I were doing this when Jesus returned would I be ashamed?

Prepared to Enter Heaven One Day

Preparations. Life is filled with them. Think about it, we prepare for school, work, exams, and many other activities. Right now I am preparing to go on vacation in a couple of weeks. do you know what I’ve noticed? It can be exhausting preparing for a trip away from home. Now I must confess that my wife has been the one  who has made many of the arrangements for this coming trip of ours. Therefore, I don’t blame her if she’s a bit fatigued from it. She has purchased plane tickets, coordinated fun-filled activities, located a place to stay, and looked into travel insurance. Boy, she deserves to put her feet up the whole week we will be away.

Yes life is filled with preparations. However, I’m wondering how many people have made preparations for eternity.

Stop and think about it for just a moment. One day our life on this earth will come to an end but when it does it will not result in cessation of existence. All of us will live forever in one of two places…Heaven or Hell. Jesus Christ Himself taught us that when He said, “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.” (Matthew 25:46). Wow! Jesus said when we take our last breath we will either endure, “everlasting punishment” or enjoy, “life eternal.”

So with an eternal existence a reality for all of us the most important question one should consider is simply this, am I prepared for eternity? Forever is an extremely long time so wouldn’t it be prudent to be sure we are prepared for it? In other words, don’t you think it would be wise to make sure you’re prepared to enter Heaven upon leaving this earth? I think so and I’m also glad that I am prepared to enter Heaven one day.

Yes I am 100% certain Heaven will be my eternal home in the future, but my confidence is not based on who I am or even on what I’ve done, or am currently doing, but rather it is solely based on what Jesus Christ has done. He suffered for my sins, rose from the dead and reconciled my broken relationship with God and has prepared my place in Heaven for me. And let me tell you, it is a glorious and perfect mansion in His presence (John 14:1-3).

But guess what? There is plenty of room for many more mansions to be built. In fact Jesus would love nothing more than to begin construction on another mansion…your mansion if you haven’t already secured one. The bookmark link on our church’s web site gives full instructions on how one can be sure Heaven will one day be their eternal home. Why not take a look? Forever is a long time and I’ll tell you I am so thankful that I’m prepared to enter Heaven one day and I promise that you won’t regret making the same preparations through Christ.

Is This What I Live For?

Today I want to talk hockey. Specifically I want to talk Vancouver Canucks hockey. I do not wish however, to discuss the heart-stopping series just completed against the Blackhawks, nor will I interject my opinions concerning the upcoming series against the Predators. Believe me, my opinions wouldn’t be worth very much anyway with my very limited knowledge of the game.

Instead I would like to share something that’s been on my mind since the puck dropped at the start of the first game. You see, I’ve been mulling over the slogan being used to promote the playoffs here in Vancouver. Yes, I’m referring to the one that says, “This is What We Live For.”

As our family has enthusiastically followed our city’s beloved team, several times I’ve asked myself, “Shawn, what are you living for?” I guess what I’m saying is that statement has caused my to take an inventory of my priorities to be sure they are in the right order. As I’ve tried to assemble this priority inventory, the following is some questions that I’ve asked myself along with some Scripture verses:

1. Has my love for the Canucks become greater than my love for God? Mark 12:30 “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.”

2. Has my desire to see them win the Stanley Cup eclipsed my desire to see lives changed by God’s grace? Acts 17:16 “Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry.”

3. Am I following the playoffs more closely than I’m following the Lord? Ephesians 5:1 “Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children.”

4. Am I more concerned about the Canucks than I am about others around me? Matthew 9:36 “But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.”

5. Am I talking more about hockey than I am talking about the Saviour? Mark 5:19 “Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but saith unto him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee.”

I am not against hockey or sports in general and believe me I will continue to cheer on the Canucks. However, I do want to be certain that no idol has been erected and placed on the throne of my heart; nor do I ever want the priority of living for Christ to take a back seat to living for a hockey team, or any other temporary thing as well. It all comes down to this one question, am I living for the Canucks or am I living for Christ (Philippians 1:21)? Personally I think I’ll keep on cheering for the Canucks, but continue living for Christ. He never disappoints and living for Him results in eternal blessings, not just temporary enjoyment.

The World’s Biggest Liar

It all started with light…light created by God Himself, and thus the first six days of human history began. Six incredible days! During those six days the most brilliant artist, Jehovah God was busy creating this world which we call home. It was an awesome display of power and wisdom. In the first 144 hours of world history everything we behold and enjoy from the white puffy clouds, the green grass and trees, the rugged mountains, the ocean with its foam, and every form of wild life, was brought into existence at the command of God.

However, the high point of God’s creative masterpiece was not when He suspended the sun, moon, and stars in space. It did not come when He filled the waters with its seafaring creatures nor did it arrive when He created the birds, cattle, and all other wildlife. No, the high point in creation came when He took a handful of dust and created the first inhabitant of planet earth; a man named Adam.

God immensely loved Adam and He demonstrated it in so many tangible ways. First, God created a beautiful home for him to dwell in…a place called the Garden of Eden. In that place Adam was surrounded by beauty and had all his daily necessities at his fingertips. He was a busy man fulfilling his God-given purposes of keeping the garden in order and naming all the animals. Everything was perfect! So perfect in fact, that difficulties and suffering are two things that Adam did not experience.

The only thing missing in Adam’s life was a human companion and God even took care of that. One day God caused a deep sleep to come upon Adam and He then took one of Adam’s ribs and created the first woman; Eve. When Adam awoke from his sleep the Lord then brought he and Eve together and conducted the first wedding in the world.

What a life it was for that married couple as they enjoyed the awesome splendour of God’s beautiful creation, as well as each other’s company and even fellowshipping with God Himself each day. It couldn’t get any better. All was peacefully well…peacefully well that is, until the world’s biggest liar showed up.

You see, God had given Adam and Even one rule to obey in the garden. They were told, “…Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” (Genesis 2:16-17). One simple rule; one clear consequence if they disobeyed.

Cleverly disqiusing himself as a serpent, this liar, known as Satan (aka the devil) showed up in Adam and Eve’s paradise and had a dishonest conversation with Eve and he is still uttering those same dishonest remarks today.

The conversation is recorded for us in Genesis chapter three. If one will take the time to read it (listen in so to speak) they will hear Satan question and deny God’s Word. God’s character was also questioned and attacked that dreadful day and he convinced Adam and Eve they could get away with sin. The couple believed the lies, disobeyed their creator, and reaped heart-breaking consequences as a result.

Now what saddens me is that Satan is still telling those same lies and many people are believing them just like earth’s first couple did. I meet many individuals who tell me that the Bible was written by men and has been changed, therefore, it cannot be trusted or believed. Others have tried to tell me that a God who allows so much suffering cannot be powerful or loving, and certainly not worthy of our trust. I even had one individual tell me that her and her husband did not feel adultery was wrong.

So Satan is indeed still spreading his lies and tragically many individuals believe them to be true. But then why am I so surprised by this? Jesus Himself said that the devil, “…is a liar, and the father of it.” (John 8:44).In fact I would call him the world’s biggest liar because he is not only managing to deceive a few people but the whole world is deceived by him (Revelation 12:9).

As April Fools Day approaches we must remember that Satan’s lies are not a fun-loving practical joke intended to bring a smile to our faces, but they are harmful lies intended to ruin our lives.

Life’s Final Appointment

What would you say is your primary response to the reality of death? It recently came to my attention that that question was asked to thousands of Canadians on two different occasions. The respondents were allowed to choose among five different emotional responses: sorrow, mystery, hope, fear, and no particular feeling. I’m glad I was not asked the question because my response was not listed among the five. But I’ll get to that later.

Now please do not misunderstand me. I’m not trying to be gloomy or gruesome today. I’m simply trying to take a moment to ponder the reality of death. And it is a reality. In fact the Bible reminds me that I have an appointment to meet up with death one day, “And as it is appointed unto men once to die…” (Hebrews 9:27). I think of it this way; death will be my life’s final appointment. Therefore, as a man who lives each day by a calendar and planner I do have some thoughts concerning this final appointment.

The first reality I’m reminded of is that I have no idea when I’m scheduled to die. Only God knows that, but I could not even give you an estimated guess. You see, unlike all the other appointments on my calendar right now I could not even try to place my funeral on the calendar. And that’s not all. When I am scheduled to take my last breath, it will be an appointment that I will not (nor will anybody else) be able to cancel, postpone, or reschedule. No amount of medication or medical treatment will be able to scratch it off God’s calendar for me that day. And then there is the fact that I have no idea where or how I will meet up with death.

Wow! there are a lot of unknowns involved in this appointment I’m scheduled for one day. However, the unknowns do not frighten or depress me because there are so many wonderful certainties as well.

To begin with I am certain that whenever my scheduled appointment with death is on God’s planner for me I will be in heaven. Now I will not be in heaven because I’ve earned a place there. I will reside in that wonderful location because Jesus Christ has prepared a place for me there (John 14:1-6). And even though all of the wonderful glories of heaven have not been revealed to me yet, I do know that I will never suffer there (Revelation 21:4). Then there is the certainty of Jesus’ presence throughout my scheduled appointment and eternity (Psalms 23:4). You see, He will be with me on this side of the grave and on the other side of the grave as well.

So back to that original question, What would you say is your primary response to the reality of death? My response? Confidence! I am confident, based on the Word of God that when I’m scheduled to meet with death it will be the beginning of an eternal appointment with Jesus Christ in heaven.

 

 

Pondering Again Soon

I cannot believe it has been five months since my last post. Wow! so, after a long absence I’m going to try this again. Check back at the end of February if you’re interested or curious about what I’ll be thinking about (pondering).

Consider Christ

Have you ever thought about how many times someone has stopped you and asked you to consider something? In fact, now that I think about it, that type of an incident occurs several times a week in my life and probably yours as well. Can you relate to any of the following incidents? Sometimes when I go to my mail box I find it stuffed with “ad mail.” Then there are the times I receive a phone call from a telemarketer (usually at dinner time) with the “deal of a lifetime.” And not to be outdone; I’ve had several advocacy groups want me to consider their cause.

Let me ask you again, can you relate?  Now think about it, what is the one thing those three groups have in common? It’s their message! Whenever we’re approached by them we’re being asked to stop and consider what they want to tell us about.  Well, I’d like to join that group and ask you (particularly Christians) to stop and consider Christ.

I suppose I could list dozens of reasons to give Jesus Christ serious consideration but I’ll only present one today. The Bible says He is, “…the author…of our faith…” (Hebrews 12:2). Quite an interesting description, but trust me it’s not too difficult to understand. The simplest definition for the word, “author” is chief leader. So, Jesus is the, “chief leader of our faith.” Another verse refers to Him as, “the captain of our salvation” (Hebrews 2:10).

Alright now that the technical jargon is behind us let’s think about the description of Jesus’ person in this phrase. Since He is the captain that means He is in charge, the boss, the one that we all must answer to. With that thought in my mind why not take a moment and answer Jesus’ question in Luke 6:46, “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” Now be careful here. Have you trusted Christ to save you? Do you call Him Lord? Then why are you not more obedient? Don’t get upset at me because I’m in the boat with you and I’m not the one who asked the question.

See if this makes sense, since Jesus is the, “author, the chief” of my faith it should be natural for me to obey Him quickly, sweetly, and completely. It makes sense to me, but why does it sometimes seem so difficult to do?

However, not only is Christ the chief of our faith, He’s the leader also and throughout the gospels He consistently calls for us to follow Him and promises to bless us with light down every path He leads (John 8:12). So, why does it seem so scary to follow such a wonderful leader such as Christ? Why are we Christians so hesitant and why do we often bristle? Could it be because we feel we know better? Could our selfishness be the cause of our unwillingness to follow? How about our rebellion or pride…our desire to be the leader rather than the follower?

With those thoughts in mind let me urge you to consider Christ and contemplate on the following :is Jesus Christ a harsh and heartless captain? Is He an ignorant leader or a blind leader? I trust you answered absolutely not to all three questions. Therefore, may I once again encourage you to consider Christ and remind you it is never time to quit living for Him nor is it worth doing so.

Consider the Most Important Things

I recently read some statistics that stated 65% of Canadians are losing sleep over finances and 34% have no confidence concerning any aspect of their financial situation. So, there appears to be quite a few stressed out Canadians walking about. Now, I have to be honest, there have been times when I have been stressed out about finances and material needs as well. What about you? In fact, I’m probably the perfect candidate to wear the label of, “worry wart.” The sad thing is that’s not a label God wants me to wear.

In Matthew 6:25 Jesus has instructed me to, “Take no thought” (don’t live in anxiety) about such things as food, clothing, and other necessities. What?! Don’t worry about those things?! Doesn’t Jesus know how important food, clothing, and shelter are? Well, actually He does because in verse 32 He told me God knows I need those very things to exist. So how could He tell me not to worry about material things? Well, I’ll let you investigate the passage and discover for yourself the reasons Jesus gave to not worry or panic. It’s found in Matthew 6:19-34.

What I’m really mulling over at this moment is the thought-provoking question Christ asked in those verses. Here it is. Are you ready? He asked, “Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?” In other words, “Isn’t there more to life than simply eating food and wearing clothes (raiment)?” Or another way to ask the question is, “Don’t you need more than just food and clothing in life?” By way of a question Jesus was attempting to divert the attention of His listeners from their material needs to their spiritual needs.

Because I live in a material world so much of my attention can be devoted to material needs. Let’s face it, they will only take real loonies and toonies at the Superstore and only real food will fill my empty stomach. So I have real legitimate material needs. However, Jesus wants me to consider my real spiritual needs, which are the most important necessities in life.

For example, my body does need to be nourished with food but my soul needs the nourishment of God’s Word every day (Matthew 4:4). You see, I could feast at a King’s table every day of my life and still be unsatisfied, because there is more to life than simply enjoying a delicious meal. I could be decked out in the latest and snazziest fashions, but what good would that do if I wasn’t clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ (Romans 3:22). Wow, that is definitely more important because one day I will stand before God the judge of all the world, and “the fashion police” will not be present. I’m thankful for the roof over my head that protects me from rain and other elements of the weather. However, that roof could sag, crumble, and leak, but what kind of danger would I be in were it not for God’s eternal protection (John 10:27-30)?

So, as I close I do so having come to one conclusion… there is more to life than just food and clothing. I do have more important needs then simply material things. I have some very important spiritual needs as well and I would be wise to stop and consider those spiritual needs on a daily basis.

I’m Not Unsinkable

The RMS Titanic…it was just a little over 882 feet in length (268 metres) weighed over 46,000 tons, and towered approximately eleven stories into the air. When she embarked on her maiden voyage in 1912 the world looked on with intrigue, awe, and excitement. In fact many felt the vessel was, “unsinkable.”

All of that changed however on the morning of April 15, 1912 when it was discovered that the Titanic had gone to her grave. People’s intrigue, awe, and excitement was quickly transformed into shock, worry, and concern. Even though she was massive in size and beautiful to look at the Titanic stood no chance of survival against the forceful blow of the iceberg that ripped her open and the cold water of the Atlantic that pulled her down to the ocean’s floor; the graveyard for over 1,000 individuals. The ship that many felt was unsinkable was, well, very sinkable.

How many people have you known in your life that you felt were, “unsinkable” only to discover that they were very sinkable? I’m referring to those individuals who you have seen sink into sin, despair, apathy, and many other spiritual and emotional waters that have claimed their well-being, usefulness, and vitality. I’m sure that discovery changed your world forever.

But there is another concern that has occupied much of my thinking for quite some time now. I have to admit that it’s not an enjoyable thought but it is one for which I’m grateful the Lord has reminded me of. You see, lately I have been thinking about my own vulnerability. In other words I have been reminded through God’s Word that I myself am not unsinkable. There are many “icebergs” out there that could cut an interior gash so big that I could be stranded or even drowned in the cold waters of sin or emotional ruin. I had better not ever think myself unsinkable as I would like to do because better men than me have been brought down by those very icebergs I’m talking about.

I mean think about it, David was a man after God’s own heart and yet he ran into the icebergs of lust, adultery, deception, and murder. You see what I mean?! He’s just one example of many I could fill this space with. It’s a very humbling thought but one that is true nonetheless. So, perhaps the number one item on my prayer list should be a request that I not hit any icebergs that day. In fact didn’t Jesus teach me to do just that when he said that I should ask the following, “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil…” (Matthew 6:13)? That’s Jesus way of encouraging me to ask the Lord to prevent me from crashing into any icebergs.

It’s sobering to know that I’m not unsinkable. But it’s very encouraging to know that God can and wants to help me steer clear of all of Satan’s icebergs. Yes it’s true that many men have been hit and drowned spiritually, but many men have navigated around the icebergs and stayed afloat…remember Joseph? That’s the kind of man I want to be.