You Are The Man

Posted by Jim Thornber on March 9, 2014
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The following is the last point of the sermon I will teach today called “You Are The Man.”

“Then David comforted Bathsheba, his wife, and slept with her. She became pregnant and gave birth to a son, and Davidnamed him Solomon. The Lord loved the child and sent word through Nathan the prophet that they should name him Jedidiah (which means “beloved of the Lord”), as the Lord had commanded.” – 2 Samuel 12:24-25

You-are-the-manThis is the part of the story that tells me God is full of endless grace and mercy. It shows us a God who sees a bad situation, knows He’s been sinned against, punishes the sin but then – and here’s the challenging part – God doesn’t hold it over their head. Unfortunately we, mere fallen humans, can still tell stories about how we were wronged, and feel the pain in that wrong, years and years later. We hold it over people’s heads in the way we speak or don’t speak to them. We don’t ever completely let it go. But God does, and He makes sure we know it. It is one of those character traits of God that we have the most trouble imitating.

After their baby dies – the baby conceived in sin – David comforts Bathsheba, let’s her mourn, and then resumes relations with her. She conceives and gives birth to a son, whom they call Solomon, which means “God is his peace.”  The name Solomon and the word Shalom (peace), both share in the name Jerusalem, the City of Peace.

But God instructs Nathan to tell David and Bathsheba to call the child Jedidiah, which means “Loved by the Lord.”  God was saying, “David, you sinned greatly. But My grace and mercy will make sure that your family will have My love and compassion. I will show you how much I love you by the way I love your children.” And by this, David knew God loved him.

I remember a story told by Dick Foth, the president of Bethany Bible College while I was a student there. One day President Foth came home from work and, while his wife Ruth was in the kitchen preparing dinner, he did what dads do best: he got down on the floor and starting playing with the kids. There was wrestling and roughhousing and noise and peals of laughter. Ruth came out and stood in the doorway, watching the shenanigans until it was over. Then she said to Dick, “Thank you for loving me.”

“Loving you?” Dick replied. “I was only playing with the kids.”

“Yes,” she said. “But when you love my kids you love me.”

How many ladies completely and immediately understand this? I must admit that as a man, it took me a while but I finally caught on. And I think something like that is taking place here. God is showing how much He loves David and Bathsheba, despite their recent despicable sins, by showing how much He loves their children. God isn’t holding it over their heads. He isn’t using their past as leverage against them. True, there will still be consequences and reverberations from David’s choices, but that doesn’t take away God’s love for David. Or for us. Continue Reading

Scriptures That Bother Me — John 2:9

Posted by Jim Thornber on February 9, 2014
Posted in: Christian Spirituality, Religion, Scripture. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

“When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from . . . he called the bridegroom over” – John 2:9

BehindScenesLogoIt happened again. As the preacher was reading the passage he was getting ready to teach, my mind seized on one scene from the story and took off in a completely different direction. A couple of directions, in fact. I wish it wouldn’t do that, but in this case I like the places it took me.

In John 2, Jesus and the disciples are at a wedding in a little village called Cana in Galilee. A wedding was always a grand and festive occasion, and in a small village like Cana it would be a celebration that involved the whole community. Like today’s wedding celebrations, refreshments were served and at this wedding the wine was very important. Failing to provide adequate wine would be a social disgrace to the family. And in this small village, the newly-married couple would never live it down.

Jesus, with a little nudge from his mother, tells the servants to fill six stone jars with water. Now we have around 120 gallons of water that is about to be turned into wine. Jesus tells the servants to take a sample to the master of ceremonies, a person called in to oversee the distribution of the food and drink. Astonished at the high quality of the wine, the master of ceremonies calls the bridegroom to the side and compliments him on saving the best for last. The bridegroom, naturally, has no idea what he’s talking about, and John doesn’t tell us if he ever confesses the truth.

This is where my mind takes a left turn. Jesus performs this tremendous miracle behind the scenes and as far as we know, never steps forward to take credit. Sure, the servants knew and the disciples get to witness His first miracle, but Jesus stays quiet. Now as the preacher is heading off in an entirely different direction, I’m wondering, “How often does Jesus work behind the scenes to make us look good?” I’m sure, if this story is any indication, God is quite fond of saving people’s reputations and making them look good in ways that go beyond description. I don’t think we’ll ever know all the miracles God has done for us without us having a clue He was even in the room. Continue Reading

Jesus is Looking at ME!

Posted by Jim Thornber on January 26, 2014
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“When Jesus had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Now go out where it is deeper, and let down your nets to catch some fish . . . . And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear . . . .When Simon realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, ‘Oh, Lord, please leave me—I’m too much of a sinner to be around you.’” – Luke 5:1-11

EyeIn this passage, Jesus has finished teaching and decides to bless Simon, the owner of the boat He’s been using as a platform. Simon puts up a bit of an argument with the Lord but obeys in the end (Simon argues and finally obeys. This is not my point, but it does sound a bit like me!). The result is a tremendous catch of fish that almost swamps his boat – and this after a night in which Simon and his buddies caught nothing.

It is Peter’s response to this is tremendous catch of fish that I find disturbing. “Oh, Lord, please leave me – I’m too much of a sinner to be around you” (NLT). At first I thought Peter said this because he had never been around a miracle or the power of God before, but this is not true. In Luke 4 Jesus healed Simon’s mother-in-law, and prior to that, Jesus cast a demon out of a man, and Simon was likely a witness to that miracle, too. Simon was accustomed to seeing the power of God, but still I wondered, Why did Simon react so strangely when God’s power was focused upon him?

I believe the answer is in Peter’s response: “I’m too much of a sinner to be around you.” When the power of God is pointed at our neighbor, or even our mother-in-law, we don’t have to react or deal with the results – we just observe. But when God’s power comes into our lives – and in Peter’s case, his business – then we must make a decision: Am I going to continue to allow this power to remain, or am I going to send it away, because if the power stays, then there is no more room for myself. Continue Reading

Caught In The Good ‘Ol Days

Posted by Jim Thornber on January 19, 2014
Posted in: Christian Spirituality, Religion, Scripture. Tagged: , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

“Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. . . .because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions.” Hebrews 10:32-34

soccerWhen I was in high school, I played soccer, which was a strange sport for a guy who didn’t like to run long distances. Being vertically challenged (I’m 5’3″ in two pair of thick socks), I was constantly falling behind the taller guys in the long runs. Because my legs were (well, still are) short, I was quick and usually the first one to the ten-yard line but most always last in the mile. My coach would yell at me for not running fast enough, and I would yell back, “I’m running twice as far as anybody else ‘cause I’m taking twice as many steps!” For some reason, he never bought that excuse.

We had to be in excellent shape because in the average soccer game, a player could run up to six miles, and soccer continues to be among the world’s most physically enduring sports. I’m sad to report that I have not maintained that level of conditioning since I left high school. But it was great while it lasted.

Christians also need to be in shape to stay in the “contest” (vs. 32). The Greek word for contest in this verse is athlesis. It refers to an athletic competition and is the source of our English word “athlete.” As Christians, we must not just remember when we were at our best, but we must keep at it and stay that way. We are not to be like the athlete I turned out to be – one who keeps in shape and maintains a peak performance for only a few years, only to grow old and spend time reminiscing about the good ‘ol days when we were on top of our game and the best in the league. Rather, we are commissioned not only to stay in the race, but to run it better and win it grander as our years mature and our love for God and His people expands. We should be the only athletic team in the universe who grows stronger in mind and spirit as the years mature us, so that the enemy knows without a doubt that the toughest players in the game are the “seniors.” Continue Reading

When God Says “No”

Posted by Jim Thornber on January 12, 2014
Posted in: Christian Spirituality, Scripture. Tagged: , , , , , . 1 Comment

 The King David went in and sat before the LORD and prayed.” – 2 Samuel 7:18

NoWhen I was in college I met a girl that I was quite taken with. She was beautiful to look at, loved God with all her heart and her father was a pastor and my homiletics professor. She was the perfect girl to fulfill my dream of having the perfect wife to accompany me in my ministry to teach God’s Word. God created me to desire such a woman and it seemed the right thing to do.

However, this girl had another plan, and this other plan was called “Jeff.” After spending the day with her at the beach and learning it was to be our last outing together, I was walking back to the car alone and dejected when God spoke to my heart.

“Jim, will you remain single for Me?”

I couldn’t help but wonder if this was some kind of cosmic joke. I was in the midst of walking away from one of the most beautiful ladies I’d ever known and God is asking me if I’ll remain single for Him. Being the Biblical scholar I foolishly claimed to be, I quickly scanned my limited knowledge of Scripture and remembered Abraham getting Isaac back after attempting to sacrifice him to God. So I said to God, “Sure. If I sacrifice marriage, can I have it back?”

Can I offer you a piece of advice? Avoid quoting Scripture at God as a way of wiggling out of something you don’t want to do. It makes for a very tense moment between you and God until you answer His question. And I did answer His question. Ten months later. I said “yes,” but it was a lonely ten months.

Of course, there was nothing wrong with wanting this girl to be my wife. God created me to want a wife. He created me to want to share my life with a woman where we would walk together in the ministry of His Good News. I wasn’t asking for something that was unbiblical. I was asking for something He created me to desire. But still He said “No.”

David found himself in a similar situation. After establishing peace in Israel and bringing the Ark to Jerusalem, David looks around him and realizes that not everything is in order. Sure, there is peace. Yes, Jerusalem no longer belongs to the Jebusites. Of course, David now lives in a palace. But the Ark of God lives in a tent. So He decides to build a house for God. He runs it by his pastor and spiritual advisor, and the prophet Nathan says, “Sounds good to me. Go for it.”

But later that night God says to Nathan, “Not so quick. I have other plans for David and they do not include building a Temple. That is reserved for his son. Instead, I’m going to build a kingdom through David.” And this is the message Nathan brings to David.

And David’s response? He goes and sits down before the Lord. It took me ten months to sit before the Lord when my plans were rejected, but David does it immediately. I decided to sulk, whereas David decided to seek God.

When God has told you “No,” did you sulk or did you seek Him? Did you feel rejected like I did, or did you come to understand that God was simply redirecting you? That’s what God did to me. He redirected my steps from a beach in California to move to Arkansas to meet another beautiful woman (who was also from California!), who will soon be my wife of twenty years.

I challenge you to look at the good things you’ve wanted to do for God and see that when He has said “No,” it is often not a rejection but a redirection. The Lord told David that his desire to build the Temple was excellent (2 Chron. 6:8). His heart was in the right place, but God had other plans. The Temple did get built by Solomon and David contributed tons of material for the project. It all worked out perfectly, as God knew it would.

Of course, we don’t often see then end so we take God’s “No” as a rejection, as I did on that beach in California. It took me ten years to realize that God’s “No” to one fine lady was also a redirection that allowed Him to say “Yes” to another. And had I just taken the time to go and sit before the Lord and seek Him, I’m sure my season of sulking would have been shortened by many months.

Exit The Elephant

Posted by Jim Thornber on January 4, 2014
Posted in: Christian Spirituality, Church, Religion, Scripture. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

The king and his men marched to Jerusalem to attack the Jebusites, who lived there. The Jebusites said to David, “You will not get in here; even the blind and the lame can ward you off.” They thought, “David cannot get in here.” Nevertheless, David captured the fortress of Zion—which is the City of David – 2 Sam. 5:6-7

elephantI don’t know if I’ve ever been to a church that didn’t have an elephant or two in the room. Even the church I pastor has a few. They seem to be everywhere, sitting right in the middle of everything, acknowledged by everyone and addressed by no one.  However, elephants don’t make good church members. They take up too much room and will eventually make a mess that might be impossible to clean up.

David had an elephant in the room when he became King – the Jebusites in Jerusalem. Everyone knew they were there, squatting on the hill that Abraham took Isaac to in obedience to God’s command to sacrifice his only son. But David, who wasn’t afraid of Goliath or lions or bears, certainly wasn’t going to let a nasty little elephant stand in the way of God’s desire to establish His name in Jerusalem (Deut. 12:5; 2 Chron. 6:6).

How do you exit and elephant from the room of your church? Or your life? These are the points I used last week to address some of the elephants at Journey Church, and help people address their personal elephants – those things everyone (including yourself!) knows is there but no one wants to talk about. Perhaps they will help you.

You exit an elephant from the room by:

1. Admitting it exists (2 Sam. 5:6). That’s just common sense. You cannot address an issue if you won’t admit it exists. But many people won’t. King Saul didn’t. If you don’t think you have any personal elephants, ask your friends or family. You might be surprised at their answer.

2. Ignoring its taunts (2 Sam. 5:7). Elephants can be loud and noisy. They walk on padded feet, but when they start to make noise, the trumpeting is not something you want to listen to all day. The Jebusites told David even the blind and lame could keep him out of Jerusalem. Elephants will taunt you with an element of truth mixed with a lot of lies. Your elephant is probably right in the middle of your territory. It looks impregnable. It mocks you. It says you will never overcome it. It says you are so weak that two people, one blind and one lame, could defend it from your efforts to overcome it. Ignore it. Remember that Jesus said, “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Continue Reading

The Gift Of Our Enemies

Posted by Jim Thornber on December 15, 2013
Posted in: Christian Spirituality, Church, Religion. Tagged: , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

 Then David sang this lament over Saul and his son Jonathan – 2 Sam. 1:17

DiamondIn the passage we just read we see that David “laments” over the deaths of both his friend Jonathan and his wannabe murderer Saul. He didn’t rejoice, he didn’t gloat, and he didn’t express relief or shout “Hallelujah! God has triumphed over mine enemies!” when he heard the news of Saul. Instead, David laments. Furthermore, David says not to speak of the deaths of Saul and Jonathan in the city of Gath or the streets of Ashkelon, for he didn’t want those cities to rejoice in their deaths. He was, even after they were gone, protecting their memory. Today we’d have it tweeted and on Facebook while the bodies are still warm. Many of us have a long ways to go before we have the character of David.

Are we ready to see God’s hand shaping us in the way we are treated? Can we look to God in the midst of our injustice and say to Him, “What Christ-like trait are you trying to teach me?” Or do we just cry and moan about how unfair life is and if people who call themselves good Christian people would just learn to behave then my life would be easier?

Saul hated David. Saul chased, defrauded and attempted to kill David on more than one occasion. David lived all those years in the wilderness surrounded with and directed by the hatred of Saul. Danger, loneliness, loss and hardship were in David’s life because of Saul. But there was something deeper going on here. Saul was God’s anointed. Saul was God’s choice to be king when the people called for one. God knew what Saul was going to do to David, but still He anointed Saul to be king of Israel.

Saul made life difficult for David, but it didn’t destroy David. If David had allowed Saul’s hate to determine his life he would have been destroyed. I’m not saying he would have gone to hell. I’m saying he would have destroyed the potential that God created in David. If David had allowed Saul’s hatred to determine his life he would have been destroyed, cramped and constricted by vengeance. Eugene Peterson says, “When he was being chased down by Saul, he prayed his distress and anger and left it with God, Saul’s sufficient judge. Saul’s hate, instead of narrowing David and reducing him, in fact provided conditions in which he became large, expansive, and generous.”

When people hate you, work against you, look to take vengeance upon you, disregard and defraud you, do you think God is caught off guard? How often do we feel slighted, cheated and gossiped about so that our reputations are harmed and we feel we must inform God of the situation, as if He doesn’t know? God knows, and I want to offer you this thought: He is using these situations to mold you into the person you need to be. He wants to use these situations to expand you and teach you to be generous and Christ-like.

This is what I call the gift of our enemies. It is only through the difficult, pressure-filled and heated moments of life that we know whether we really have God as our complete Lord or if He is only there as a convenience to us, a type of cosmic blessing machine. Continue Reading

More Than A Guest

Posted by Jim Thornber on December 8, 2013
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Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly—Col. 3:16

house guest‘Tis the season for Holiday guests. I look forward to them coming and it always seems they leave too soon.

A few weeks ago, we had some family come and stay with us for a few days. They live about three and a half hours away, so when they come for a visit it is always a special event. We clean the house, over-stock up on food, make the bed in the guest room (which probably wasn’t cleaned since the last guest), clear a path from the laundry room to the kitchen (Admit it; you do the same thing), take out pillows and blankets and pull the mattress off the futon so the kids can sleep on the floor, and generally put the house in order. And it stays that way for about, oh, the six minutes it takes the grandkids to drop their stuff, get out the toys, and make themselves at home.

Naturally, we wouldn’t have it any other way. Our family is always welcome to visit us and stay as long as they want, which usually isn’t long enough.

After they leave, we pick up the house, put the guest room back in order, fold the blankets, replace the mattress, start a new load of laundry and then sit in silence. We miss the crowded living room and the noise, but it’s nice to have the house back in order again. We made room for our guests, but now that they’re gone, we quickly put the house back the way we like it.

This scenario reminds me of the difference between a guest in a house and the one who owns and dwells in a house. A guest is not a permanent resident; a dweller is. A guest comes and goes according to what is convenient for him and the host. A dweller remains regardless of the circumstances. A guest does not have the right to paint the walls and move the couch near the window. Only the resident of the house has those privileges.

In Colossians 3:16, Paul tells us to let the word of Christ dwell in us richly. As I studied this passage, I began to see the differences between a guest and a resident. That done, I had to ask this question: Am I allowing the Word to dwell in me like a resident in a house, or do I simply invite it in like an infrequent guest, hoping it won’t stay too long and try to rearrange the furniture? Continue Reading

I Want THAT Gift!

Posted by Jim Thornber on December 1, 2013
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 “It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have”– 1 Corinthians 12:11

gift_crop380wFor many people, the Christmas season is their favorite time of year. The time spent with family, the abundance of favorite foods, and of course the opening of gifts all make this holiday special.

When I was a kid, I was so keen on getting gifts I would often peel back the wrapping paper to get a peak at what was underneath (and I’ll bet you did, too). After all the gifts were unwrapped on Christmas morning, I would head outside to gather with my friends and compare gifts which, in Southern California, inevitably included a few new bikes, a skateboard or two and usually one remote-controlled car. However, it seemed to me that no matter how cool my gifts were, there was always some other gift my friends had that I envied. I guess they felt the same, because we usually ended up playing with the other person’s gifts more than our own.

What bothers me is how often I have this same attitude towards the gifts the Holy Spirit has wisely given to me. Instead of enjoying and showing gratitude for the gifts God has graciously given me, I find myself desiring “other” gifts – gifts I see in people that I, with self-proclaimed omniscience abounding, deem more successful than I am. I figure if I had their gifts then I, too, could have what they have: house, car, job, successfully published book, prestige. You know, all those items that are destined to perish. Continue Reading

Scriptures That Bother Me — 1 John 3:2

Posted by Jim Thornber on November 17, 2013
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Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. 1 John 3:2 (NLT)

 

truthAs soon as I read this verse, I knew why it bothered me. John says that when Christ appears, “we will see him as he really is.” Inherent in this phrase is the fact that right now I do NOT see Him as He really is. And how can I? How can my puny, finite eyes really see and understand the infinite reality of our God-become-man-become-Savior?

How do I see Jesus? Usually, I see Him as I’d like to see Him—friendly, forgiving, easy to get along with, gently prodding me along to become a better person but mostly agreeing with my hopes and ambitions. I like to focus upon His place as King (Zechariah 14:16) because it gives me hope and security, but don’t spend too much time on His position as Judge and Lawgiver (Isaiah 33:22). I don’t like thinking about the many ways I’ve broken His law, and I can’t help but think that the final review of my life will be a disappointment to Him. And to me.

Furthermore, I don’t spend time seeing Him in light of my own desires and lusts. It is just too hard to imagine He ever had THOSE thoughts. Until, that is, I read Hebrews 4:15, which reminds me that He was “tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin.” Yes, Jesus was even tempted with THOSE thoughts. But unlike me, He never gave in.

It seems I’m a master at creating Jesus in my own image and likeness, making Him the type of God who comforts, forgives and accepts me, while at the same time rejecting my enemies (Now I like to see Him as Judge. Is it awful to see God only in the ways that suit me?). Continue Reading