I remembered the account of Saul of Tarsus getting knocked to the ground and blinded before God could use Him. He was given instructions to go to a man named Ananias. This man was all too aware of Saul’s reputation as a brutal persecutor of Christians. The Lord spoke to Ananias and said, “I will show him how much he (Saul) will suffer for my Name’s sake.” Throughout this whole encounter at the hardware store I kept thinking that…
Ever suffer a paper cut? For such a small wound to cause such discomfort is quite remarkable. I worked in a metal fabrication shop for a while when I was in college. I discovered something else at least as miserable as a paper cut…a metal shavings cut. After the machinists were through, I would be tasked with handling the shavings left over from the fabrication process…
George was frustrated over his unrealized youthful goals which he thought would have made a world of difference. What appeared to him and a few others as commonplace and routine was just the opposite. Then Angel Clarence gives him heavenly help at the critical moment. The connection becomes unmistakable between George Bailey and Jesus’ explanation of the last judgement in Matthew 25. We can picture George someday surely standing there among the sheep asking Jesus, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you or see you thirsty and give you drink?
We have been posting a series of articles to do with the subject Key People at the End of the Age. We began by talking about the popular view that so called ’key people’ are somehow, by virtue of their education, or pedigree or skills or innate character traits, deemed to be indispensable. Hopefully I showed why that notion is not compatible with the kingdom of God. No, a key person in the Kingdom of God…
This is part three of a series of posts I’ve titled Key People at the End of the Age. In the first article, I talked about the whole notion of being a ‘key person’ and what the Word of God says about the subject. What and who we deem to be indispensable, the Lord views in an entirely different fashion.
Next I talked about how physical keys are made and how the process begins with “presenting a blank.” If I have learned anything after almost forty years of ministry, it is that the Lord doesn’t need my advice. In fact, all I bring to the equation is weakness and sinfulness and a penchant for pride and stubbornness.
As we continue this series I’ve titled Key People at the End of the Age, a little background is in order. A number of years ago I went into the hardware store to get a key made. The man took me to where the key machine was and then he somehow morphed into “Infomercial Man”. He began to speak louder as if to draw a crowd…which he did.
It struck me funny the first time I heard the phrase. I was speaking with the pastor of a large church. In our conversation he used a term that I had never heard before—Key Man Insurance. What didn’t feel right to me was the notion that a man or woman could be deemed so indispensable as to be designated the “key” person. (without whom the organization would suffer such loss as to require an insurance policy on his life).
During the opening ceremony of the Rio Olympics, the camera panned to a group of no-name athletes from a nation that few could find on a map. One young man burst into tears as he entered the stadium. As he wiped away the tears and tried to compose himself, the commentator made a remark that captures the essence of that moment.
If the last 5 years have taught me anything, it is that how we say what we say about the Bible and Jesus is very important…and very delicate. Note that I did not say that the Gospel or the Bible are delicate. No, I said how we come across as we attempt to communicate these timeless truths in an era of increasing lawlessness is of major concern.
On trial for his life, Martin Luther is reported to have said, “Peace if possible…The truth at any rate.” The other day a famous preacher appeared on a talk show. He was apparently trying to rehab his image. He had been accused of having numerous sexual encounters with young men in his mega-church. After some long awkward silences, the host asked him, “What is your stance on gay marriage?”