Ecclesiastes 3: 11
“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”
“I know what time is until someone asks me to define it.” St. Augustine
We are told in Ecclesiastes that God is at work in time bringing about His good purpose in our lives (see also Rom. 8:28). While we are confined to time, as creatures in time, we have been given an inward sense of eternity. This means that time has significance for the Christian in light of eternal reality. Here are a couple of things to note about what the Bible teaches us about time.
Time is always experienced as now. Time is just the successive events of what we experience as now. Right now as you read this, wherever you are, you are in the now of time. When we look back at what has just happened, it now belongs to the past. The future is still to come. For Christians the future is anticipated as a glorious hope. We have hope because we know that God has all time in His hand, and we have the promise of His salvation, which entails, the past, the present and the future. As Paul states in Titus: “a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time.” (Titus 2). Therefore time is a gift and not a right. C.S. Lewis wrote in the Screwtape Letters about the man who thought “time was his own,” and was very distraught over those “interruptions” that “stole” his time away. Looking forward to a quiet evening at home and then interrupted by an unexpected visitor. Feeling that his time was stolen, this is thought as an intrusion into his rights. For the believer, God has given us time as a gift and there are no claims to our time. It is God’s time. Where you are now, and whatever interruptions or the persons who needs you now, is not a violation of your rights, but an invitation to live in God’s now -present time.
There are two Greek words for time used in the New Testament. One is the word Kronos, which means measured time, or calendar time. It is where we get the word chronology. The second word is Kairos; it is not measured time, but momentous time. It is the time not measured or predictable, but the opportunities God gives us to obey, to respond to Christ, to say yes to God. It is the word most used in the New Testament.
The pop rock group, Chicago in one of their songs asked the question, “does anyone really know what time it is?” For the Christian, that is not the primary question. What is important is what you are doing with “your” time. Right now is God’s time and it belongs to Him.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
A Prayer for Distressing Times
O LORD, be gracious to us;
we long for you.
Be our strength every morning,
our salvation in time of distress. Isa. 33:2
The nation of Judah had faced the onslaught of political bullying and acts of terrorism by the Assyrians. They lived under the threat of national survival, just as their northern brothers were toppled and exploited. But things were going from bad to worse. Isaiah’s prophetic ministry was constantly to remind God’s people of a coming kingdom – when nations would gather in Zion and the rivers of righteousness would fill the barren lands. Babylon and its great empire was yet to come and bring its terror, but this was not end of the matter. A righteous King will come to Zion. If, the book of Isaiah could be divided into two parts, then chapter 33 is right in the middle. Like the Bible, Isaiah has 66 books or chapters. So, smack in the center of this great book is a little prayer that is good for believers living in distressing times.
Fast forward many centuries and life is about the same. Distress and anxiety does not always come by way of sword and spear or earthly rulers. God’s people look forward to the time when the righteous King will destroy all his enemies. We are reminded on every side of the struggles, the pain and the disappointments of this frail life. But, we can still sing the songs of Zion in a strange land. We pray realizing our dependence is not upon our outward security but upon the gracious deliverance of God. We pray with the certainty of being a redeemed people that our strength for living each day is found in Christ. It is a prayer for God to grant us the unmerited favor of his love for undeserving sinners. It means we acknowledge that our righteousness is not the basis of God’s goodness – it never is. Yes God desires obedience and blesses it, but never think we earn God’s blessings. At times we think our resources will be enough and that the strong arm of our abilities and talents are what will decide the day. This prayer understands that like small children we need the strong arm of a mighty Father to pick us up in life. Distress comes as a blessing in disguise, because it is then we run to the arms of our Father. “O Yahweh, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our arm of strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress.” Amen.
we long for you.
Be our strength every morning,
our salvation in time of distress. Isa. 33:2
The nation of Judah had faced the onslaught of political bullying and acts of terrorism by the Assyrians. They lived under the threat of national survival, just as their northern brothers were toppled and exploited. But things were going from bad to worse. Isaiah’s prophetic ministry was constantly to remind God’s people of a coming kingdom – when nations would gather in Zion and the rivers of righteousness would fill the barren lands. Babylon and its great empire was yet to come and bring its terror, but this was not end of the matter. A righteous King will come to Zion. If, the book of Isaiah could be divided into two parts, then chapter 33 is right in the middle. Like the Bible, Isaiah has 66 books or chapters. So, smack in the center of this great book is a little prayer that is good for believers living in distressing times.
Fast forward many centuries and life is about the same. Distress and anxiety does not always come by way of sword and spear or earthly rulers. God’s people look forward to the time when the righteous King will destroy all his enemies. We are reminded on every side of the struggles, the pain and the disappointments of this frail life. But, we can still sing the songs of Zion in a strange land. We pray realizing our dependence is not upon our outward security but upon the gracious deliverance of God. We pray with the certainty of being a redeemed people that our strength for living each day is found in Christ. It is a prayer for God to grant us the unmerited favor of his love for undeserving sinners. It means we acknowledge that our righteousness is not the basis of God’s goodness – it never is. Yes God desires obedience and blesses it, but never think we earn God’s blessings. At times we think our resources will be enough and that the strong arm of our abilities and talents are what will decide the day. This prayer understands that like small children we need the strong arm of a mighty Father to pick us up in life. Distress comes as a blessing in disguise, because it is then we run to the arms of our Father. “O Yahweh, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our arm of strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress.” Amen.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
The Reign of Jesus
Another great quote from Lesslie Newbigin I used in my sermon last Sunday. From his book, "The Sign of the Kingdom."
"The question about which everyone has to enquire is the question: am I living in total faithfulness, trust and loving obedience to him who is the sovereign? The sharp words of Jesus have to be heeded in every situation- whether the temptation is to a worldly optimism or to a worldly pessimism. Our attention is directed to God himself. He alone is king. What is called for in us is a total trust which-whether in success or in failure -simply places all its hope in him; which accepts the promise: Fear not, little flock, it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom."
The great need today is to live in obedience to this King and for the people of God to depend upon the provisions of our Sovereign promised to us.
"The question about which everyone has to enquire is the question: am I living in total faithfulness, trust and loving obedience to him who is the sovereign? The sharp words of Jesus have to be heeded in every situation- whether the temptation is to a worldly optimism or to a worldly pessimism. Our attention is directed to God himself. He alone is king. What is called for in us is a total trust which-whether in success or in failure -simply places all its hope in him; which accepts the promise: Fear not, little flock, it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom."
The great need today is to live in obedience to this King and for the people of God to depend upon the provisions of our Sovereign promised to us.
Thursday, January 9, 2014
Momentary Compassion - Jonah Series
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/20036692/Momentary%20Compassion%20-%20Jonah%20Series.MP3
Sermon preached at First Presbyterian Enterprise on Dec. 14, 2013 by Todd D. Baucum
Sermon preached at First Presbyterian Enterprise on Dec. 14, 2013 by Todd D. Baucum
Thursday, December 12, 2013
Great Quotes about the love of Books
“A room without books is like a body without a soul.” Cicero
“You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.”
― C.S. Lewis
“You have to write the book that wants to be written. And if the book will be too difficult for grown-ups, then you write it for children.”
― Madeleine L'Engle
“Some books should be tasted, some devoured, but only a few should be chewed and digested thoroughly.”
― Francis Bacon
“When I have a little money, I buy books; and if I have any left, I buy food and clothes.”
― Desiderius Erasmus
“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.”
― Augustine of Hippo
“In the case of good books, the point is not to see how many of them you can get through, but rather how many can get through to you.”
― Mortimer J. Adler
“If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.”
― Cicero
“The worst thing about new books is that they keep us from reading the old ones.”
― Joseph Joubert
“It is a good rule after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between.”
― C.S. Lewis
“Books serve to show a man that those original thoughts of his aren't very new after all.”
― Abraham Lincoln
“We are of opinion that instead of letting books grow moldy behind an iron grating, far from the vulgar gaze, it is better to let them wear out by being read.”
― Jules Verne, Journey to the Center of the Earth
“Books are the treasured wealth of the world and the fit inheritance of generations and nations.”
― Henry David Thoreau, Walden
Ask for books this Christmas, and then take time to read them. Enrich your spirit with good literature!
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
Muggeridge on Evolution
“I myself am convinced that the theory of evolution, especially the extent to which it’s been applied, will be one of the great jokes in the history books in the future. Posterity will marvel that so very flimsy and dubious an hypothesis could be accepted with the incredible credulity that it has. I think I spoke to you before about this age as one of the most credulous in history, and I would include evolution as an example.” In a Q & A by Malcom Muggeridge at the Pascal Lectures on Christianity at the University of Waterloo in 1978.
Muggeridge was a journalist most of his life and like C.S. Lewis came to faith later as an adult after a period of atheism. I highly recommend his little book, "The End of Christendom". Like Chesterton's work, his writings are always thought provoking, while one might not always agree. His view of evolution is in my opinion one of the best and succinct statements that could be made. It says more about us as a nonthinking and idolatrous generation, than it says about the nature of true science.
Muggeridge was a journalist most of his life and like C.S. Lewis came to faith later as an adult after a period of atheism. I highly recommend his little book, "The End of Christendom". Like Chesterton's work, his writings are always thought provoking, while one might not always agree. His view of evolution is in my opinion one of the best and succinct statements that could be made. It says more about us as a nonthinking and idolatrous generation, than it says about the nature of true science.
Thursday, October 17, 2013
When Anger is Love
He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. 6 Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus. Mark 3:5-6
Is it right for a Christian to be angry? Is holiness compatible with anger? Not if we think of being angry as blowing your top or turning red in the face while you let out some steam. Those too often human responses to anger tend to be self-centered reactions to our own inflated egos. But there is a more godly response to violations of goodness and truth that can rightly be described as anger. We may even use the word hate towards things that are sinful. The problem is maintaining the distinction between what violates God’s laws, and our own personal agendas. When I get angry because someone took a long time at a stop light and made me sit at the light an extra three minutes, I cannot call that righteous anger. Paul said, "In your anger do not sin" : Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold” (Eph. 4:26-27).
Most often my sense of anger can lead to giving the enemy an upper hand. That is why when Jesus was angry at the hardheartedness of the Pharisees he was not guilty of blowing his stack. The Bible says that Jesus was both angry and deeply distressed (a better word is grieved). In other words, Jesus could be angry at their sin and what it was doing to them, and at the same time feel nothing but deep pity for them. He hated what the sin was doing to them. C.S. Lewis said that he once thought it was silly to distinguish between hating the sin and loving the sinner, until he realized something. “But years later it occurred to me that there was one man to whom I had been doing this all my life- namely myself. However much I might dislike my cowardice or conceit or greed, I went on loving myself…In fact the very reason I hated the things was that I loved the man.” (Mere Christianity) Jesus had the capacity to love us infinitely more than anyone else, it is why his anger at sin was so great. He did not blow his top in some emotional venting, but in infinite grace went to the cross to pay for the sins that we all have committed. His hatred of sin was all the more because of his awesome love for us.
There is great sin in the world and we must hate it. The reason we hate it is because our love for the people around us is so great it causes us pain to see them doing things that will only hurt them. So next time you get angry, just check to see if it is an anger rooted in love..
Prayer of Jeremy Taylor (1613-1667)
Most merciful and gracious Father,
I bless and magnify your Name that you have adopted me into the inheritance of sons, and have given me a portion with my elder Brother. God of patience and consolation, strengthen me that I may bear the yoke of the Lord without murmur or ineffective unwillingness. Lord, I cannot stand under the Cross by myself, unless you strengthen my spirit, so that I may be strongest when I am weakest and able to do everything that pleases You, through Christ who give me strength. Amen. (adapted)
Is it right for a Christian to be angry? Is holiness compatible with anger? Not if we think of being angry as blowing your top or turning red in the face while you let out some steam. Those too often human responses to anger tend to be self-centered reactions to our own inflated egos. But there is a more godly response to violations of goodness and truth that can rightly be described as anger. We may even use the word hate towards things that are sinful. The problem is maintaining the distinction between what violates God’s laws, and our own personal agendas. When I get angry because someone took a long time at a stop light and made me sit at the light an extra three minutes, I cannot call that righteous anger. Paul said, "In your anger do not sin" : Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold” (Eph. 4:26-27).
Most often my sense of anger can lead to giving the enemy an upper hand. That is why when Jesus was angry at the hardheartedness of the Pharisees he was not guilty of blowing his stack. The Bible says that Jesus was both angry and deeply distressed (a better word is grieved). In other words, Jesus could be angry at their sin and what it was doing to them, and at the same time feel nothing but deep pity for them. He hated what the sin was doing to them. C.S. Lewis said that he once thought it was silly to distinguish between hating the sin and loving the sinner, until he realized something. “But years later it occurred to me that there was one man to whom I had been doing this all my life- namely myself. However much I might dislike my cowardice or conceit or greed, I went on loving myself…In fact the very reason I hated the things was that I loved the man.” (Mere Christianity) Jesus had the capacity to love us infinitely more than anyone else, it is why his anger at sin was so great. He did not blow his top in some emotional venting, but in infinite grace went to the cross to pay for the sins that we all have committed. His hatred of sin was all the more because of his awesome love for us.
There is great sin in the world and we must hate it. The reason we hate it is because our love for the people around us is so great it causes us pain to see them doing things that will only hurt them. So next time you get angry, just check to see if it is an anger rooted in love..
Prayer of Jeremy Taylor (1613-1667)
Most merciful and gracious Father,
I bless and magnify your Name that you have adopted me into the inheritance of sons, and have given me a portion with my elder Brother. God of patience and consolation, strengthen me that I may bear the yoke of the Lord without murmur or ineffective unwillingness. Lord, I cannot stand under the Cross by myself, unless you strengthen my spirit, so that I may be strongest when I am weakest and able to do everything that pleases You, through Christ who give me strength. Amen. (adapted)
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