As King Jeroboam continued to lead the northern kingdom of Israel into idolatry (see yesterday's post) God, on more than one occasion, sent a prophet to warn him about the error of his ways. In 1 Kings chapter 13, we read of a time when God even sent a man of God all the way from the southern kingdom of Judah to prophesy against the evil that Jeroboam was perpetuating at his new "places of worship" in Dan and Bethel.
There's no doubt that this man is a genuine prophet who knows how to hear from the Lord. He foretells the future reign of young King Josiah and the things that will happen at that time. When Jeroboam attempts to have him detained, the king's hand becomes paralysed and the prophet from Judah heals him. The sign that he foretold (that the pagan altar would crack open, spilling ashes on the ground) happens right there and then, proving the veracity of the prophet's message. Yes, this man knew how to hear God's voice.
I often think of this man's story when I'm speaking to young people about learning to hear God's voice for ourselves, because it illustrates the importance of testing words that come from others. God does often speak to us through other people, but those words are usually a confirmation of things that He has already been speaking to us personally. It's vitally important that we know how to hear directly from God for our own lives, because He will hold us accountable for what we do with that.
In this story, the man of God from Judah had heard God telling him not to stay for anything to eat or drink in Bethel, but to come straight home again after prophesying to Jeroboam. So when the king invites him to stay for a meal, he declines, explaining that God told him not to linger for anything to eat or drink.
But when he is already on the way home, an older prophet, for reasons we're not told, rides after him and lies to him, telling the younger man that an angel told him to invite him back to his home for a meal. The Judah prophet trusts the older man and goes back with him for something to eat and drink. However, after deceiving him in this way, the older man then gives him a prophecy that actually is from the Lord: the prophet from Judah is going to pray a price for disobeying what God told him. Sure enough, on his way home again, the younger man is killed by a lion.
I remember feeling outraged, one of the first times that I studied this passage, back in the 1980s. The younger man acted in good faith and paid for it with his life, while the older man who deliberately lied to him apparently got off scot free! But God reminded me at the time that this passage simply doesn't tell us the end of the story for the Bethel prophet or how God may have dealt with him in the future. What it does warn us is that we will be held fully responsible for our own obedience or disobedience to the things things God has spoken to us, irrespective of what others may have said to us.
In yesterday's post, I wrote about "easy allegiance" - when we settle for a form of Christianity that is easier than the real thing. One of the areas where this can be a particular danger is when it comes to hearing God's instructions and guidance for our lives. Unless we had the privilege of learning to hear God's voice when we were children (4 year olds seem to have no trouble at all knowing what God is saying to them) it often requires patience and practice when we're a little older. We need to learn to be comfortable with waiting in silence and stilling our own thoughts and distractions so that we can really hear from God. Sometimes it seems easier to have someone else, a pastor or a leader, hear from God for us.
But hearing and obeying God is an essential part of being a Christian and, as today's story reminds us, it's vitally important that we learn how to hear from God first hand and not only second hand through others. He longs for us to listen to Him and joyfully, and carefully, obey.
I'm reading each morning this month in the book of 1st Kings - that season in Bible history when the formerly united nation of Israel is divided into two separate kingdoms - the kingdom of Judah in the south and the kingdom of Israel in the north.
The big split happened when Solomon's son, Rehoboam, was too arrogant to take advice from those older and wiser than himself; despite their counsel, he announced his intention to be a harsh taskmaster over the nation of Israel. Most of Israel rebelled and proclaimed a new king for themselves instead of Rehoboam. Only the tribe of Judah remained faithful to him. And thus began centuries of the nation being divided into two kingdoms, each with their own king.
The northern tribes chose a man called Jeroboam to be their king. In fact, this had been foretold by a prophet, quite a number of years earlier. While King Rehoboam of Judah still had the Palace and the Temple in Jerusalem, King Jeroboam of Israel began to centre the northern kingdom's political and religious life around historically significant locations such as Shechem, Peniel and Bethel. The problem was that Jeroboam was ambitious, and therefore a bit concerned that people's going to the Jerusalem temple to worship God might renew their allegiance to Rehoboam and weaken his own position as king.
And so Jeroboam begin to establish some alternative forms of worship. First, he had two golden calves made and he set these up at either end of his kingdom, one at Dan in the north and the other at Bethel in the south. It's unclear whether his original intention was for them to represent the Lord or whether he was knowingly promoting idolatry from the beginning. He said to the people, "Here are your gods that brought you out of Egypt." Of course, that's how a lot of idolatry and compromise begins; it starts with something familiar and true (there's a God that brought our ancestors out of Egypt) but adapts it to suit our own convenience.
Jeroboam may have been doing this in his own interest, but his steps also offered the people an easy allegiance. He even said to the people, "It's too much trouble for you to go down to Jerusalem and worship the Lord Yahweh there." Instead, here are your friendly neighbourhood gods, all within easy travelling distance, whether you live in the north or the south of the country. (1 Kings 12: 28 - 29)
Such blatant idolatry may be shocking to us on a superficial reading of the text, but it's not so very different from the easy allegiance that can creep into some churches nowadays. Whenever it becomes "too much trouble" or too costly to worship and obey the one true God, we will inevitably slip into easier alternatives to true obedience.
When it's "too much trouble" to get out of bed on Sunday morning, we'll opt to watch a service on TV instead, and only go to church when we feel like it.
When it's "too much trouble" to welcome people of different backgrounds and cultures into our church family, we'll tend to huddle in our middle class, well dressed, monocultural congregations.
When it's difficult to have victory over our invisible sins - like criticism, gossip, pride or materialism - we'll focus instead on condemning those with more visible failings - like smoking, drinking, wearing "unsuitable" clothes or having an ugly tattoo.
When it's costly or feels awkward for us to share the gospel with our neighbours, friends or workmates, we'll slip into an unremarkable form of Christianity that never takes a stand for the claims of Christ.
When it's "too much trouble" to spend time studying the Word or listening in silence to hear God's voice or battling in prayer for that lost family member... when following Jesus requires difficult steps of obedience or perseverance or faith... we'll back off and say that this may work for some, but not for me.
And so, little by little, we slip into an easy allegiance that is no allegiance at all. Or, as Paul described it when writing to Timothy, a religion that has an outward appearance of godliness but lacks the power of real faith. (2 Timothy 3: 5)
Very soon, modern day idols will have crept in. For the Israelites in 1 Kings 12, it was golden statues, pagan priests and an alternative festival to the feast of tabernacles. For church folks today, it might mean giving unbiblical importance to how we dress, the type of music we sing or the way we do communion. Like the Pharisees in Jesus' day, our own preferences and traditions become idols and are given more allegiance than biblical truths.
Where is there a danger of "easy allegiance" in my life?
I've been reading recently in the 1st Book of Kings, and today I came to chapter 8, the part where the Ark of the Covenant is brought with great ceremony to the newly built Temple in Jerusalem.
The Jewish faith laid a strong emphasis on not having any graven images, and so it's interesting to me that the Ark played such a prominent role in their worship. You'd imagine that they'd be wary of the danger of people worshipping the Ark instead of worshipping the Lord.
But now that they've built a Temple as a place to focus their worship of God, they don't simply discard the Ark that was made some 480 years previously. Instead, they move it from its old location (the Tabernacle or Tent of Meeting) to a new location in the Most Holy Place of the Temple.
This is significant because of what the Ark had always represented to them:
1) God's presence among them
2) God's word spoken to them
The cloud of God's presence has historically hovered over the Tabernacle and the Ark (see Numbers 9:22, for example) and when it moved, it was a sign that God's presence was also moving on; that the people needed to break camp and move with Him.
The only contents of the Ark (see 1 Kings 8: 9) were the two stone tablets from Mount Sinai that bore the Ten Commandments and the other laws that God had given to them through Moses.
So, although most people could barely see the Ark, deep within the inner sanctuary, it continued to represent these two very important things to the people.
We don't have the Ark today as Christians, but we do still have the two precious things that it represented:
1) We have God's presence constantly with us, by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
2) We have both His written and His spoken Word: - we have the Bible available in our own languages, and we have the ability, through the Spirit, to hear God's voice for ourselves.
So it got me thinking this morning:
- Do we value these things as much as the people of Israel valued the Ark?
- Are we conscious of carrying God's presence into every situation with us?
- And do we make enough time to read His Word and listen to His voice?
Food for thought ...
Yesterday, on my last morning of reading in John's Gospel, I was struck by the touching scene that brings a conclusion to the book. The background to this episode is that all of Jesus' disciples and friends had deserted Him in His time of need. Either they had run away to save their own skin, or they had followed at a distance and vehemently denied even knowing Jesus when anyone asked them about it. Now, just a few days after Jesus' death and resurrection, and even after they already had proof that He had risen from death, the disciples seem to have abandoned their calling to preach the gospel and started to go back to their old lives, to the way things were before they met Jesus and began to follow Him. John chapter 21 begins with seven of the disciples going out onto the lake to do some fishing.
They weren't very successful, though, and were probably feeling discouraged as they headed to shore in the dim light of dawn. Their new lives with the Teacher had fallen apart, and now their old lives weren't working out either. They hadn't caught a single fish, despite being out in the boat all night long.
The next part of the story is well known. In the light of the sunrise, they see an indistinct figure on the beach. He tells them to throw their nets out on the other side, and they bring in a huge haul of fish. That's when they realise that the man is Jesus.
But the part of the story that really struck me most is what Jesus says to them when they reach the beach. There are so many things that He could have said to them. He could have reprimanded them for abandoning Him and denying Him. He could have reproached them for going back to their old lives as fishermen. He could have said, "What on earth are you doing here?"
But He doesn't. Instead, what He does say to them is simply, "Come and have some breakfast." (vs 12) It's not a call to get their act together; it's not a command to get on with the work to be done. It's simply an invitation to relationship and to spending time together. This is not an invitation to religion; it's an invitation to friendship. It's an invitation to breakfast with Jesus. In this case, to breakfast right there on the beach.
Jesus has already started the fire going. He's already bought or baked some bread, and a few fish are already roasting on the fire. But he asks them to bring their own contribution too; he asks them to bring some of the fish that they have just caught. It would have been so easy for Jesus to provide everything; to emphasise the fact that He was the one with resources and that they had failed miserably to catch any fish, despite hours of hard toil. Instead, He asks them to bring something of what they have to offer, some of the fish that they have just caught. That's what friendship is about; it's about giving and receiving, caring and sharing, each one in the friendship doing his or her part to make it work.
Of course, Jesus had provided everything, as their huge haul of fish had been a miracle catch, but He graciously invites them to bring something to the breakfast that they're going to share together. That's how it should be in our friendship with Jesus: although in one sense He has done everything to make the friendship possible, He invites us to do our part - to give the time and attention necessary - to help the friendship grow deep and strong.
Read on below for some of my memories of "breakfast with Jesus."
Reading yesterday in John's Gospel, the part where Jesus invites His disciples to, "Come and have breakfast with me," got me thinking about the many years, decades in fact, that I've had my morning coffee with Jesus. I don't actually eat any breakfast, but when I get out of bed, I go downstairs, make my cup of coffee, and then settle down with my Bible and my journal - to spend time talking to and listening to Jesus at the start of my day.
Somehow, that memory prompted the thought yesterday that I should tidy up the cupboard where all my old journals are stored. I discovered, to my amazement, that I've filled 36 notebooks since first coming to visit Spain in mid 2007. Every now and then, I read in one of those old journals and am blessed a second time to be reminded of things that God was showing me in His Word during those precious "breakfast" times of the day.
Why on earth am I filling so many notebooks, you may be wondering. Well, in the early days, when I was a teenager and in my twenties, I used to write directly in the margins of my Bible. (The Bible in the photo isn't mine.) I would underline verses that stood out to me, or write little notes in the margin about things that God was teaching me. The great thing about this was that I was constantly being reminded of truths and values that God was showing me for my own life as a follower of Jesus. Of course, it meant that my Bible margins quickly filled up and I had to buy a new Bible every four or five years. (That wasn't such a bad thing at the time, as it was a season when several new translations were being released - Good News Bible, New International Version, etc - and it was quite enriching to read familiar texts in new translations.)
After a while, though, I realised that there were other disad-vantages to having my Bible filled with underlinings and neatly printed notes in the margins. I occasionally found myself witnessing to Muslims (in France or in West Africa) and I knew that it was shocking for them to see such "defacing and disrespect" for the Holy Scriptures. I also noticed that each time I read a passage, I found myself falling into the same pattern of thinking as the previous time I'd read it; the notes in the margin reminded me of what God had said last time, but didn't help me keep my heart and my spirit open to something new that He might want to say to me this time.
I'd always kept a journal too, but there came a time when I decided to write only in the journal and no longer scribble in the margins of my Bible. And so that's the explanation of why I've stockpiled so many "quiet time notebooks" over the years. Some years I filled only one notebook, while other years I filled two or three. (The advent of pound shops and other discount stores was wonderful, as it meant I could pick up a nice notebook for only £1.)
So now you know why I'm filling so many journals, but perhaps you're wondering what I'm writing in them. (If you're a journaller yourself, you won't need to ask that question, of course.)
Well, I write down the insights that God is showing me through my Bible reading and/or the things that He is speaking to me personally through that passage. Sometimes I write down my prayers of response to God or questions that I'm grappling with. Sometimes I use a different coloured pen to write out a whole verse that speaks to me (instead of underlining it in the Bible.)
I also use my journal to write down my goals at the beginning of each year: areas where I desire to see spiritual growth, further development of ministry projects or steps to living a healthy, God-honouring lifestyle.
It can also be useful to write down things that happen outside of my "breakfast with Jesus" times. Perhaps God speaks to me during a church service or during something that happens. It's good to write those things down so that the valuable lessons won't get lost. Part of the reason I have so many journals from the past decade here in Spain is because the early years were a big transition time for me. I also wrote a lot during the many months that my Dad was in hospital. These were "life lessons" that happened outside of the context of "quiet time" and reading the Bible. Sometimes I've combined my diary and my journal in the same notebook, just because I was in a season of many such life lessons and teachable moments.
Some people use their journals to take notes during church services, during their house group Bible study, or during a seminar or retreat that they attend. Other people combine their "prayer" journal with their "Bible" journal, noting things that they pray and answers to those prayers.
If you've never kept a journal, let me encourage you to give it a try. It's probably true that journalling appeals more to some personality types than others, but I know journallers of many different personality types and they all share testimony of how helpful it has been to them in their relationship with God.
Buy yourself a notebook, choose your time of the day (you may not be a "breakfast with Jesus" kind of person; perhaps it works better for you before lunch or in the afternoon) and get started. When you come to your time alone with God, open your notebook, write down the date, and write down the Bible reference that you're reading. After you've read the passage a few times, thoughtfully and prayerfully, just write down whatever stands out to you, what you sense God wants you to know, or how you plan to apply that truth in your own life.
Some days I fill two pages; other days I write only two lines. The amount doesn't matter. Like the disciples in the post above (who brought their own fish to the breakfast with Jesus), it's simply about coming prepared and expectant, with a heart that longs to grow closer to Jesus.
I've arrived back in the south of Spain, after spending ten days up north in the Cataluña region of the country (north of Barcelona.)
The intensive workshop in foundational coaching skills went very well and the feedback from the trainees was overwhelmingly positive. Not only did they experience transformation in their own lives, they also felt equipped with the skills and confidence needed to begin coaching others in the context of their church or missions setting.
This year's trainees were all Latinos - from places like Costa Rica, Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Mexico. Some had flown all the way from South America for the workshop, while others were working as missionaries in places like Turkey, Germany and Italy. In the photos above, you can see scenes from the teaching input and the practical application groups.
Last year, Patti and I were the only trainers in the workshop; this year we were "apprenticing" some new people who may be involved as trainers in the future. It was good to see how this new team formed and began to work together to serve this year's trainees.
We stayed at the same campsite as last year, right on the beach (which was still strewn with uprooted trees and other debris from the recent devastation of Storm Gloria.) They'd changed their catering system, though, and instead of helping ourselves from a buffet, a waiter brought our meals to the table. The food was good and the portions were huge. Several of us quickly decided that it would be wise to switch to half board instead of eating two enormous three course meals every day.
I opted to skip lunch, and this allowed me, often together with one of the other trainers, to go walking in the local area, discovering some of the old watchtowers that the region is famous for - a relic from the days when they had to be on the lookout for pirates. This meant that I was able to get some exercise, even though it was a week with no dog-walking. I did meet plenty of other dog walkers, though - mostly Germans and British people there on holiday in their camper vans.
It was a fruitful week, and we're thankful to God for all that He did in people's lives.
This morning, in John's Gospel chapter twelve, I read the account of where Mary of Bethany extravagantly anoints Jesus' feet with a half litre flask of very expensive perfumed oil. We see that Judas Iscariot was offended that she would "waste" something so expensive. (Although he justifies his negativity by saying that the money could have been given to the poor, we read that he in fact wanted to steal some of it for himself.)
The message of the story is unmistakable: No expense is too much, no sacrifice is too great for Jesus, who Himself gave up everything for us. But as I read the story this morning, I realised that, in my own life, I sometimes find myself in a dilemma between stewardship and sacrifice.
I love to be generous and so my dilemma doesn't arise when it comes to giving money or gifts to others. Where I do find myself hesitating is when it comes to apparently spending money on myself, and especially when it comes to those big budget expenses of plane tickets. I often find myself having to buy a plane ticket and make a trip for ministry reasons; some years I might have only two or three trips, while other years I might need to make four or five. This year, for example, I've already bought three plane tickets for short trips within Europe, and I still need to make plans for two other trips - one to the Middle East and one to Asia.
Whenever it's time to buy a plane ticket, I find myself switching into stewardship mode: I spend hours searching on the internet to find the very best deal possible, and I'll willingly put up with inconvenient hours or airport layovers if it means I can get a ticket at a good price and be a better steward of the money that God has provided for me. I feel disappointed if the dates of a trip mean that a plane ticket costs more than I would have wanted to spend.
There's nothing wrong with wanting to be a good steward of resources, but today I was thinking that a different perspective on plane tickets would be to see them as an opportunity to switch into sacrifice mode. After all, those ministry trips are not really for myself: they're steps of obedience to God's calling, and the money involved can be seen as my sacrificial gift to the Lord.
I'll always continue to look for "the best deal," but there's greater joy in the cost if I think of it as perfume poured on the feet of Jesus.
Stewardship and sacrifice.... Where do you face challenges in one or both of these areas? Do you spend impulsively, or get into debt, and fail to be a faithful steward of God's resources in your life? Do you struggle to be generous in giving to others, to the church, or to "good causes" ? Or, like me, do you find it challenging sometimes to discern the right balance between sacrifice and stewardship?
Bring your questions to God today, and seek His direction for how you use the money, possessions, time and gifts that He has entrusted to you.
