Pastor Buddy’s Blog

The Man on the mountain…

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Journal,

Want to let everyone know that the Christian Challenge services can now be viewed via the Microsoft Windows Media Player. Had our first viewing last evening. From one of the comments we’ve received, the Media Player is 7000 times better than our old system. (Sounds a bit like hyperbole to me.)  –Extravagant exaggeration –   

Nonetheless, it seems that everyone who checked in with last evening’s service thoroughly enjoyed the video and sound improvement. So, in the future if you would like to sit in on a Christian Challenge service, that is, at 10 a.m. on Sunday, or at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, go to our web site  — http://www.christianchallenge.org/

– On the left side click on — ‘Video - Live & Archived.’

By the way, Nathan ministers on Sundays, David Stellwagon ministers the first Wednesday of each month, and your’s truly ministers on the other Wednesdays.

So whats this about ‘the Man on the mountain’…

That dear friend, was the ministry title for last evening. I took my reading from Matthew 7:24-29, where Jesus concludes what is commonly called ‘the sermon on the mount.’ In this the Lord speaks of two houses, one built on the rock, the other built on the sand. The two houses represent Israel divided into the house of redemption and the house of rejection.

It is the final words of the text that I wanted to draw attention to, which reads:

“When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.”

I begin the teaching by sharing that Jesus was not crucified simply because He took to Himself as being the Messiah. Israel has always had Messiah pretenders. He was crucified because He identified Himself with God, that is, He used God language.

The Rock language is a classic example. When Jesus used ‘the Rock’, this would have triggered a memory for his Jewish audience. They well knew that ‘the Rock’ was a term to symbolize deity.

For example their minds would have given thought to the song of Moses:

“For I proclaim the name of the LORD; ascribe greatness to our God!
The Rock! His work is perfect, for all His ways are just; a God of faithfulness and without injustice, Righteous and upright is He.” (Deu32:3,4)

There were other ancient Jewish symbols that I shared to clue folk in on what the Jews would have heard Jesus actually saying. And of course He startled them merely with His words alone. After all, Jesus is the Word of God. 

There were three platforms that I wanted to bring across, in this order:

I - The House of Redemption
II - The Footprint of Heaven
III - Words to Live By

In any event this teaching will shortly be in our archives. I would encourage any of my readers to take note of it. You may be surprised to learn that both Caiaphas and possibly even Pilate spoke words of prophecy concerning the One to be crucified. Did you know that God can use a sinner to prophesy, and they not even know it?

Ok, nuff on that.

What’s all this about animals…

Now that I’ve caught your attention with ‘the Man on the Mountain’, let me clue you in on some awesome teachings taking place on Sundays. Nathan has a series going through November, entitied, ‘What animal planet can teach you about life.’

Don’t let the title fool you. Nathan is drawing from Proverbs 30:24-28, which reads:

“Four things are small on the earth, but they are exceedingly wise: the ants are not a strong people, but they prepare their food in the summer; the shephanim are not a mighty people, yet they make their houses in the rocks; the locusts have no king, yet all of them go out in ranks; the lizard you may grasp with the hands, yet it is in kings’ palaces.”

The first Sunday it was the ants. Last week was the shephanim. This Sunday will be the lucust, and the final teaching will have the lizard in the background.

While the title may not sound spiritual, these teachings are filled with life and wisdom, along with Nathan’s funny antics that will keep you laughing. I realize it sounds like I am bragging, and maybe I am just a but, but Nathan is an absolutely awesome practical and spiritual teacher when it comes to discovering treasures in the Word of God.

Ok - Here’s a short study for you Bible students.

Did you know that the prostitutes enter the kingdom of God first…

Does this shock you? Well, let’s see if there is any validity to this idea of the prostitute entering the kingdom first.

Here is the study — It goes along with the house divided, that is, the house of redemption and the house that rejected Jesus.

Jesus gave a parable to the hardened religious leaders. He spoke of two sons who were told to work in the vineyard. One said he would not go, but he did. The other said he would go, but he did not. “Which did the will of the father,” Jesus asked. They said, “The first.” The Lord then responded, “The tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you.” Cf. Matthew 21:28-31

The Lord was speaking to the chief priests and elders. He was standing in the temple, and talking to the recognized leaders of world Judaism. Where these men would ultimately reject Jesus Christ, those who received Him would include tax collectors and prostitutes.

In view of this, I have always found it interesting how much compassion Jesus felt for women in the Bible. And did you know that in the genealogy of Jesus Christ attention is brought to bear on four women. All four are Gentile in origin. Two of the women had prostitution written in their lives. Another was an adulteress. Yet all four of these women help preserve the lineage of Jesus Christ.

Here is a brief rundown. Tamar dressed herself as a temple prostitute in order to deceive Judah. Through her the lineage of Judah was preserved. Through Judah would come King David, and eventually the Messiah.

Next you have Rahab. As much as folk like to whitewash Rahab’s role, she was simply not an inn keeper. The Bible says she was a ‘harlot.’ [Hebrew is 'ishah zanah' which means to be a harlot or to act wanton.] 

Yet it was Rahab who saw something with her heart. Because of her, when Israel overflowed the land, her household was spared, and she also became part of the lineage of the Messiah.

And Ruth’s story is one of the most beautiful in all the Bible. She was a Moabitess. Actually the Jewish people use Ruth as a beautiful example of a Gentile coming to faith in the God of Israel. In fact the book of Ruth is read during the time of Pentecost. But once again we have non-Israelite woman preserving the seed of Messiah.

Finally we have Bathsheba. You know her story well. From this woman also came the lineage of Messiah.

It is not an issue of condoning illicit sexual mores. Jesus never did this. He knew full well that sin always has its own consequences. But if we knew the times well enough, we would know how much the women were at the mercy of the times. This was even the more true in the case of religion.  

A woman was born under complete control of the father. This then went to the husband. And as a rule, she received no inheritance from her dead husband, because it passed to the sons. The sons were to care for the mother. If she did not have sons, her situation was not good. The sons were the social security system of the time. 

My point is to draw attention to how many times the Lord Jesus dealt with women from a heart of compassion. He knew that their role in society often placed her at the mercy of those around her. If you’ll notice carefully this never changes in the case of repressive religions today, Christian sects or otherwise.  

Sometimes it is religion that becomes the greatest destroyer of personal faith.

When the religious minded men wished to stone a certain woman, what did Jesus do? He diverted the attention of the men to their own sins. He spoke nothing but kindness to the frightened woman. But he did tell her to free herself from the sinning business.

Then we have the woman at the well. Did Jesus slice and dice her over her multiple marriages? No. He began by helping her process her life. He spoke to her heart. He awakened something in her. What she was searching for in men could only be found in a true relationship with the God of glory.

Yet notice that the woman had one final argument. It was over religion. She said, “Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.”

There it is? All she knew was religion. It was like a pain in her heart, that she couldn’t do anything about.

What Jesus did with this woman is what we must learn also to do. He  took her case out of the hands of religion, when He said, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.”

He goes one to say, “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (The Greek term for ‘truth’ speaks of reality or realness.)

Jesus was saying was that there aren’t going to be any more special mountains you need to go to. There are no special anointed places you need to seek out. There are no great religious figures you need to bless you. True worship will be of the heart.

Paul later expounded on this, in saying, “Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision; for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh.” (Phil3:2,3)

This brings us full circle back to the high priests, the elders, the prostitutes, and the tax collectors. What does all this mean?

It means the door to heaven has been flung open. The curtain has been ripped. No one can ever again stand between you and the Lord God.

There is no prophet in the land that you need to go to to hear from the Lord. Just listen with your heart. Jesus said, “I have other sheep also, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one Shepherd.”

Does this do away with the Church? By no means. It establishes the Church that Jesus had built. We are the Church. The Church has never been a building. Christ flocks His people as He wills. We just need to find out where we need to be.

Let me simply add that I have been a pastor for a long time. My greatest joy remains to this day to thank the Lord for those who have been entrusted to our care.

“Thank you Lord. Thank you for all these beautiful people. They were once sickened in sin, but you have glorified Yourself in them. Thank you Lord Jesus.”

Just something to think about.

Much love coming your way,

Buddy