Pastor Buddy’s Blog

Journal,

The Lord has been so good to me, even when I wasn’t as good as I should have been. But one thing I’ve found out above all else is that I need Him, every hour I need Him.

So, in view of all this, think I’ve truly discovered the real key to triumphant faith. The key is to do your best to live a life that is constantly being surrendered to the Lord. Which for me means pretty much ‘constantly surrendering’ every time I look around. 

Guess my nick name should have been ‘Constantly Surrendering.’ But this is why I dearly love so many of the old gospel songs that talk about our walk with the Lord. Here’s a good one…

This calls to mind my early surrendering days…

Stay with me as I retell a story.

Guess I was bout 12 or 13 years old. Don’t even remember what kind of trouble I was facing, but I sho nuff didn’t want my ma and pa to know about it. So I went to the outhouse, and there I made me a solemn bargaining with God. What I told God is that if He would get me out of trouble, that I’d preach the gospel the rest of my days.  Course in those days I’d get baptized ever so often jest to make sure things were right between me and the Lord.

Well, that outhouse promise lasted jest a short time. I do recall getting some of my cousins in an outhouse, and made them sit there while I stood in the door and preached. Don’t think my preaching saved anyone. They jest wanted to get out of there.

Now you know how things go. Wasn’t long before I forgot all about the outhouse promise. Course my praying days weren’t near about over. Seems like I’d find myself back to those ‘Constantly Surrendering’ days every time you looked around.

What bothers me the most is that God never seems to forget…

Now I remember reading in the Bible where God said, “For I will be merciful to their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.”

Seems like that Scripture about God not remembering, had nothing to do with solemn bargaining promises made with God in the outhouse. Yup - The Lord never forgot that bargain that we struck.

So after I’d sowed some wild oats, here comes the Lord a knocking at my door. It was about ten years after I made the solemn promise, that the Lord comes to claim His part of the bargain. There I was, at age twenty-four, preaching my heart out, trying to tell folk how to live their lives and I didn’t hardly know how to live my own life.

In fact my first two sermons were nothing less than a mess. What an embarrassment for me to find out that the word ‘charity’ in the King James Bible really meant ‘love.’ I jest preached my sock off on people giving to charity. Course my face turned quite red after I found out jest how dumb I was.

And I’m not going to tell you what the other message was that brought redness to my ears.

But they survived and so did I…

Been preaching now for nigh forty-four years. Less see — I began at age twenty-four and now I’m marking on sixty eight. Yup, thats just about forty-four years.

But you know the greatest thing about the out-house promise? The greatest thing is that I never had to walk the preacher trail alone. The Lord has never failed me. He has been there each step of the way.

Like I said at the beginning, ‘The Lord has been so good to me.’ Why, He gave me a fine lady to be my wife, and a whole passel of childrens, grand-childrens, and a soon to be great grand-child.

So, is there a point to all this? Sure there is. Go back up the page and listen to Randy Owens and the Isaacs. The song they sing pretty much tells the tale.

And remember,

There is much love coming your way,

Buddy

Journal,

As far as I know tomorrow is kick off day for our studies in Hebrews.  

Just wanted to remind my readers that I am preparing a series of studies on the book of Hebrews. These studies will be offered to our Hebraic-Foundations study group. (We presently have 180 subscribers.) To any of my journal readers who would like to participate in these studies, you can subscribe at the HF web site. As a Christian based study group we do require the completion of a questionnaire. 

To subscribe go to:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Hebraic-Foundations/

A prelude to the studies…

The book of Hebrews was written as a final warning to the Jewish peoples concerning Jesus Christ. It is an inspiring book that deals with the earliest vestiges of Jewish Christianity. In 70 a.d., both Jerusalem and the temple would be set ablaze. Old Testament Judaism will no longer exist.

Hebrews has a view to an overlapping of covenants. The former covenant is about to disappear with all its physical characteristics. It was a dead covenant. Only the body was left to be buried.  

What’s this about ‘if you hear His voice’….

I want to lift one portion of Scriptures out of Hebrews to give an idea of what will be included in the studies. Hebrews 4:7, says,

“Therefore, since it remains for some to enter it [God's rest in Christ], and those who formerly had good news preached to them failed to enter because of disobedience, He again fixes a certain day, ‘Today,’ saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before, ‘Today if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.’”(Heb 6:6,7 nasb)

With regard to the new covenant in Christ, ‘hearing His voice’ is the cardinal sign that a person has come to know the Lord. Jesus said, “I have other sheep, 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.” (John 10:16)

How would this apply to the Jewish peoples? Let’s consider something in the ancient Jewish writings.  

An interesting story from the Talmud…

The ancient Jewish writings (Talmud; compiled many years after Jesus) contain a myth-story about the Messiah that includes the Scripture, ‘Today, if you hear His voice…’ Here it is:

“When R. Joshua ben Levi found the prophet Elijah standing by the entrance to the cave in which R. Simeon ben Yohai was buried, he asked Him, ‘Will I be allowed to enter the world-to-come?’

Elijah answered, ‘If this master here desires it.’

R. Joshua later said, ‘I saw two [Elijah and myself] but I heard the voice of a third.’ He then asked Elijah, ‘When will the Messiah come?’

‘Go and ask him yourself,’ was his reply.

‘Where is he sitting?’ ‘At the entrance to the city [of Rome].’

‘And by what sign may I recognize him?’

‘He is sitting among the poor who are stricken with illnesses; all of whom untie and retie all the bandages over their sores at the same time, whereas he unties and reties each bandage separately, saying to himself: Should I be wanted, I must not be delayed.”

So R. Joshua went to the Messiah and greeted him: ‘Peace be upon you, my master and teacher.’

‘Peace be upon you, son of Levi,’ the Messiah replied.

R. Joshua: ‘When will you come, O master?’

‘Today,’ was the Messiah’s answer.

When R. Joshua came back to Elijah, the latter asked him, ‘What did he say to you?’

R. Joshua: ‘Peace be upon you, son of Levi.’

Elijah observed, ‘By that he assured you and your father of a portion in the world-to-come.‘

R. Joshua: [How can I believe him, seeing that] he spoke falsely to me, for he told me that he would come today, yet he has not.

Elijah: ‘When he told you, ‘Today,’ he was quoting the first word of a verse that goes on to say, ‘If you will hear His voice.’”

In this mythological story is an element of prophecy…

Will the Jewish peoples hear the voice of Jesus again? After all, He spoke in their streets, and in their temple. He healed their sick and raised their dead. Knowing that the Jewish leaders would reject Him, we hear Jesus say, 

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling.

“Behold, your house is being left to you desolate! For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.’” (Matt23:37-39)

When Jesus said, ‘Your house,’ this term was commonly used for the temple, although it could also speak of Israel as a people group. In any event the temple would be left desolate and empty. The word ‘desolate’ speaks of loneliness and a waste.

In another place, Jesus says,

“If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes.

“For the days will come upon you when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, and surround you and hem you in on every side, and they will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another,

“… because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.” (Luke 19:43-44)

Yes, God Himself had paid a personal visit to the people of the covenant. He walked among them. He loved them and healed them. Yet they turned from Him. They closed their ears to His voice.

It is like the weeping prophet, weeping once again,

“Harvest is past, summer is ended, and we are not saved. For the brokenness of the daughter of my people I am broken; I mourn, dismay has taken ahold of me.” (Jeremiah 8:20,21)

And so, will the Jewish people hear the voice of Jesus again?

You will find out this and much more in the studies to come.

So where does that leave us? Here is the Scripture again. Think about it. 

“He again fixes a certain day, ‘Today,’ saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before, ‘TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS.’” (Hebrews 4:7)

And again we hear this,

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.” (Rev3:20)

How goes it? Is Jesus knocking at the door of your heart? If so, it is because He loves you much more than you’ll ever know.

In Christ,

Buddy

Journal,

We had an awe-inspiring service this morning. Nathan ministered on the subject, ‘Communion at the Cross.’ His teaching was anchored in something that Paul wrote:

“For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He  comes.” (1Co11:26 nasb)

The heart of Nathan’s message was that the penalty for our sins, that is, past, present, and future, was paid in full at the cross. For this reason the accuser cannot bring a charge against any who have truly trusted in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. 

Forgiveness, reconciliation, adoption, acceptance, righteousness, sanctification, sealing, are all terms that belong to God’s message from the cross. Each term is like a glittering diamond that reflects what Jesus meant when He said, “It is finished!”

The work of redemption was finished. Listen:

“But He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God.” (Heb10:12)

“When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.” (Col2:13,14)

What made the service even more unique is that Nathan had everyone pass by a large wooden cross. There they could nail to the cross anything that the enemy was trying to hold over their head. From there they came forward for communion. Of course he made it very plain that this nailing was only a symbol. It reflected on what had taken place at the crucifixion of Jesus Christ over 2000 years ago.

And the cross was filled to overflowing…

What an awesome picture. Papers were folded and nailed to the cross. Seems there wasn’t much room left, but then I remember the old song which said, ‘There is Room at the Cross for You.’

Here it is with organ music and the lyrics.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=G1VjJF3kn7g

ROOM AT THE CROSS FOR YOU
(Ira F. Stanphill) (1946)

The cross upon which Jesus died,
Is a shelter in which we can hide;
And its grace so free is sufficient for me,
And deep is its fountain as wide as the sea

There’s room at the cross for you,
There’s room at the cross for you,
Tho millions have come, There’s still room for one
Yes, there’s room at the cross for you.

Tho millions have found Him a friend,
And have turned from the sins they have sinned,
The Savior still waits to open the gates
And welcomes a sinner before it’s too late.

There’s room at the cross for you,
There’s room at the cross for you,
Tho millions have come, There’s still room for one
Yes, there’s room at the cross for you.

The hand of my Savior is strong,
And the love of my Savior is long;
Through sunshine or rain, through loss or in gain,
The blood flows from Calvary to cleanse every stain.

There’s room at the cross for you,
There’s room at the cross for you,
Tho millions have come, There’s still room for one
Yes, there’s room at the cross for you.

This scene will be remembered for a long time.

Now about those School for Christian Workers students….

Just had to add a couple pictures of our Disciple’s Heart and our Shepherd’s Heart classes. The first picture to the right is our Shepherd’s Heart group. Fine looking chappies if I have to say so myself. Only one missing.

This next group is our Disciple’s Heart class. Looks like a few folks missed out on the picture taking. Course they are a handsome group also. Actually we only train good looking folk who have beautiful feet. (Work on that one Vern.)

Ok, where do we go from here? Oh yeah…

And now for Lois (gotta hear this, ‘Elizabeth’)  Gibson, also known as Sarge…

I ask Lois if we could start calling her Lizzie. Huumph! was the best answer I could get.  In fact she threatened to smack me real proper like.

Anyway, all I can say is that when the Lord gets ready, you gotta move. I think Lois’ head is still spinning. Already got her a house.

Yep, this New Jersey girl, by way of Texas, is moving to Pineville. Who’d a thunk it. Must be something about these southern folk that Lois simply loves. Personally I think it is the music. This country blue grass gospel fiddling and guitar playing will simply put tears in your eyes.

Let’s see — Well I’d better quit. Kinda late and I’m running out of words.

Remember now, don’t let the accuser try to hang anything around your neck. If he wants to remind you of anything in your past, you simply remind him of his future. You’ve been made free in Christ. Yes indeed, it was all taken care of at the cross.

There’s a whole lot of blessings coming your way,

Buddy

Journal,

Ok, let’s get started. Seems some folk miss the stories on my personal life adventures. I’ll just begin with some off-the-wall jabbering.

So, who is this guy??? Rather handsome I’d say.

After all this is possibly one of my fore-bearers. Just can’t figure out which one. We have a number of Billy Martins in my lineage. And I have over 6500 Martin-kin in my data files. Plenty nu-ff good looking Martins to go around. 

We call that the curse of the Martins.  We have been struck with exceptionally good looks.  

Anyway, this picture was posted on our family genealogy forum, ‘The Martins of Sabine Territory,’ with the caption, ‘William Martin - Soldier.’

I’ve been unable to get a response from anyone on the picture.

Well, since you are showing such interest in this gentleman, let me simply add that the first William (Billy) Martin to come to Louisiana, was a Revolutionary Soldier. He was born circa 1766, and died in 1840. Billy arrived with his Indian wife to settle in the Anacoco, Louisiana, area, around 1804. Most of we Martin clan have remained in this area ever since.  

But is this gentleman our first William Martin? I don’t know.

To bring this forward, our first Billy Martin also had a son named ‘William Martin’. And  William’s son was possibly a soldier during the Civil War. A William Martin is listed on the roll of POWs, paroled in Natchitoches, June 16, 1865. (This is near Anacoco.) If this is the William Martin in the picture, then he is my g-g-grandfather.

The problem is that I have twenty William Martins listed in my genealogy, with ten of them having lived during the 1800s. Oh well, mystery unsolved.

And now that I’ve thrilled you with this wonderful information concerning the Martins, let’s move on to other things. Just one more point — My kids have been known so say that I say this — “If you aren’t a Martin, you ought to be one.”

Well, that comes across fair to middling. What I actually tell my kids is to be careful who they talk about, because they are kin to most everyone from here to the Sabine River.

OK, enough already. Good place to stop….

This morning I purged my prayer journal…

What’s that mean you say?

Well, I’ve kept a prayer journal of sorts for a number of years. In the journal I number each prayer. As a prayer is answered, I place a check mark over the prayer. As time progresses I’ll remove pages of my journal that have been checked. Don’t care to have folk know about my ’secret’ prayer life. After all Jesus told us to make our personal prayers to be secret prayers between us and the heavenly Father.

Now I don’t record everything that I pray, just those kinds of prayers that I am intensely concerned with on a personal level.

Did you know that Jesus had His own secret prayer life?

You see, a secret prayer life is very, very personal. It is about intimate interchanges between the believer and their heavenly Father. In fact a secret prayer life should always be ordered under the auspices of the Holy Spirit.

Listen:

“But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.”(Mt6:6 nasb)

Anyway, for me my secret prayers are heavenly interchanges.

To continue, in my present prayer journal (which was a gift to me from Warren and Lori Spurgeon) my latest prayer is numbered #404. And of the over four hundred secret recorded prayers, I have eight prayers that have not been checked off. They are yet before the throne of God. The rest of my prayers have been checked off in one way or another.

If you feel that I am placing too great an emphasis on my prayers being answered, or that I simply wish to draw attention to myself, I will have to leave that with you. That is not my intent in the least. My point in sharing this is two-fold. First I want to encourage my readers that the Lord meant exactly what He said in this statement:

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” (Mt7:7,8)

The second reason I wanted to share this is that I’ve not been as faithful to my prayer journal of late as I ought to have been. Just this morning the Lord began placing in my heart that it was time again to conduct some important secret family business. Don’t you love it when the Lord puts on your heart to come to the throne of grace! 

OK, so confession is good for the soul. There, I confessed it. And I’ve brought my journal up-to-date by removing the checked pages.

Have you ever heard of the stairway to heaven…

When Jacob had his dream, he saw a stairway that was set on the earth and ascended right into heaven.  

It is interesting that in Jacob’s dream, the angels of God were ascending and descending on the stairway.

(Cf. Gen28:12 - The Hebrew translated as ladder is equally translated as a stairway.)

When Jacob awoke, he was filled with awe. It says…

“Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, ‘Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.’ He was afraid and said, ‘How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.’” (Gen28:16,17)

Jacob’s stairway had to do with God’s Messiah. The Lord was at the top of the stairway. Jesus explained to Nathanael, that He Himself was God’s stairway from heaven to earth, and from earth to heaven.

It is not as though we have to climb a stairway to enjoy heavenly things. The truth of the stairway is that Jesus Himself is our heavenly life. We ascend and descend through Him or with Him. We meet the Father in and through Him.

It is like Jesus is saying to all believers, ‘Welcome to My world. Won’t you come on in. Come right to the throne room. My Father and I would like to fellowship with you.’

Did you know that when Elvis, Jim Reeves, and others sang the song ‘Welcome to My World,’ they were singing the very heart of Jesus. Listen to this song and hear the gospel: 

http://youtube.com/watch?v=r_sU0pAE-fE&feature=related 

Time to sign out.

Love and blessings are coming your way,

Buddy

Journal,

Have you ever had this thought go through your mind, ‘Why did they have to grow up?’ Well, I certainly have. Then I wonder, ‘Could it be that God has had this same kind of thought?’ 

Well, of course not. We know that God doesn’t think those kinds of thoughts. After all, He IS God! (Hmmmmm. Does make you wonder about God’s thinking.)

What’s this we hear Jesus say? 

“Unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt18:3)

What is this? Why did Jesus say this? Sounds like growing down, rather than growing up.

Actually the disciples had been in a debate over who would be considered the greatest in God’s kingdom. Isn’t that just like us humans! We so badly want to be seen as great ones.

Jesus swiftly addressed this attitude in his disciples by calling a child to Himself, and saying, “Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” (v4)

The riskiness of self-seeking… 

The Lord knew that His disciples were moving in a bad direction. In fact their attitude was so disturbing to Him, that He gives them a severe rebuke. The rebuke in the Greek carries a double negative, which means that it is quite severe. Listen again:

“Unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.”

The Lord was saying that with their present thinking they would not even be able to enter into the kingdom of heaven, much less hold a prominent place in it. This means that humility of heart is the real key to life in the kingdom of God, something that the disciples must learn.

But this childlikeness goes even further. A child knows his dependency is on his parents. He doesn’t worry about it. His world is very small and uncomplicated. A little child simply believes that his parents will take care of him. Nothing complicated about that. And that is the kind of life the Lord wants us to learn to live.

Communicating the Spirit of Christ…

There is a two-fold picture that we need to see with what Jesus is saying about childlikeness. First of all, to enter into the kingdom of Christ, we have to strip ourselves of self-importance, self-dependence, and self-achievers. This means becoming small in our own eyes. 

The point is that no one earns their right to God’s kingdom by their own achievements. This is why Jesus spoke of the struggle that self-made, self-reliant, or, self-important people have in attempting to enter the kingdom of God. 

“Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” (Mt19:24)

Can rich people be saved? Certainly they can. But only when they come to the end of themselves and to their importance in their own eyes.

The second issue of the two-fold picture has to do with the communication of life. The ‘I’ in my life must take a back seat to His life. This communication of life relates to learning to live in constant fellowship with the Lord, that is, in a sense of looking to Jesus for all things. Once again we are allaying ourselves of independence.

Listen to what two New Testament men have to say about our life in comparision to the life of Jesus:

John the Baptist said,

“He must increase, but I must decrease. He who comes from above is above all, he who is of the earth is from the earth and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all.” (John 3:20,21)

The apostle Paul said,

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” (Gal 2:20)

Of course this reverts back to childlikeness. Sometimes our minds go back to how easy life seemed to be when we were children. We didn’t have to worry about anything. Our parents had it all under control.

Well, that is exactly what the Lord wants for our lives as grownups.  You see, the kingdom of God works unlike anything that we are familiar with. To grow up in the kingdom of God, means we actually have to grown into childlikeness in our faith. Wow, does that ever seem strange. To grow up, we must grow down.

And this is why the Lord taught us to pray simple childlike prayers.

Childlike you say?

Yes indeed. What we call the Lord’s prayer is a very simple prayer. Actually it is based on a simple Davidic prayer. And this is the kind of praying that the Lord wishes us to become use to. Not all this long, laborious, fancy-speaking, religious praying. Listen to what Jesus said,

“When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.

“But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

“And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.
 
“So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.

“Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name…’” (Mt6:5-9)

The Lord wasn’t giving a formula of prayer that we are to repeat over and over. He is simply sharing what attitude to take in our prayers.

The one prayer in my entire life …

… that has been most meaningful to me, was a prayer that I’ve often written about. I was a wee lad. My mom would kneel beside me as I prayed this simple prayer,

“Now I lay be down to sleep. I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake. I pray the Lord my soul to take.”

At the end of that prayer I would ask the Lord to bless everyone that I could possibly think of.

And this brings us back to my thought of…

Keep it simple, sweetheart…

Sometimes we encumber and complicate our walk with the Lord with all kinds of religious thinking, with all kinds of ‘do nots’, or with all kinds of religious experience seekings. The apostle said that these kinds of things can become obstacles to a true spiritual walk with Christ. Listen:

“But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.” (2Co11:3)

Did you catch it? Everything in our walk with the Lord is to flow from our simple devotion to Him. This is what ‘keep it simple, sweetheart’ means. Just like a little child, we need to know that our heavenly Father will take care of us.

Ok, let’s move on. What else can I pass to my friends.

Oh yeah. Talking about sweethearts. Did you know that…

The General has a new girlie friend…

No, not a girlfriend in the conventional sense, but a girl who has become a special girlie friend. Here’s a picture of CJ and his new girlie friend.

This is Lois Gibson, our friend from Houston, who came over for the weekend. Lois spent so much time petting on CJ, that I’m beginning to wonder who his best friend is.

Naw - General Claudius Josephus will always be my good buddie.

Now where did that dog go? Not again. Lois, would you mind!? 

Hmmmm. I see right now that I’ll have to keep an eye on Lois Gibson. Not only did she make a move on my good buddie, but she plopped right down in my easy chair.

Oh well, that is life. 

Guess its time to find a stopping place. 

So, once again, never forget,

Much love is coming your way,

Buddy, best friend of CJ

Journal,

Last evening I provided at study at Christian Challenge, entitled ‘What Are You Afraid Of?’ The study was not a new message. It just seems to have become lost in much preaching and teaching today. I would encourage my readers to take time to listen to the message. It may well provide some answers to things you are struggling with by way of fear, of guilt, of insecurity, of condemnation, and whatever else may be causing a spiritual or emotional conflict in your life.   

Go to: http://christianchallenge.org/live/index.html

Scroll down to the two black screens that say Sunday: or Wednesday: For this particular study, click on ‘Wednesday’. 

The motivation for trust is to know that God loves you…

And if you know that He loves you, then you’ll know that God will take care of you.

The only thing you need is to look to Jesus Himself.

Listen:

“I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul will make its boast in the LORD; the humble will hear it and rejoice. O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together. I sought the LORD, and He answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.

“They looked to Him and were radiant, and their faces will never be ashamed. This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them. O taste and see that the LORD is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him! O fear the LORD, you His saints; for to those who fear Him there is no want.” Psalm 34:1-9 nasb

Are you listening? The Lord would like to speak into your heart…

You don’t have to bang on the gates of heaven to get God’s attention. You don’t have to wait until you feel worthy to hear from the Lord. You can have an audience with Him this very moment.

This is what the God said through the prophet Isaiah:

“For thus the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said, ‘In repentance and rest you will be saved, In quietness and trust is your strength.’ …” Isaiah 30:15

It is in quietness that we learn to hear Christ speaking in our hearts.  Click on this next song. Relax. Let the Lord fill you with His presence.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Hecaz4NkQVY&feature=related

The Workman’s Diary - Would you like to have a devotional guide…

Many years ago I designed a devotional guide for our students in the Disciple’s Heart Class. Thought it would be good to pass it along. You may wish to print out a copy for yourself. Here it is –

GEMS FOR JESUS WORKMAN’S DIARY
“The Morning Devotion”

THE MOST IMPORTANT time of the day is the time you spend with the Lord preparing for the day ahead. All believers should have a morning devotion. By presenting yourself to the Lord each morning, you begin your day refreshed. Equally important you will find your day ordered in the Lord.

There are no set rules for a devotion. Here are some guidelines that can be applied to cause your devotion to be truly meaningful: 

(1) Begin your devotion with a moment of quietness. Place your Bible in your lap. Close your eyes and just reflect on the Lord’s goodness. David said,

“Surely I have composed and quieted my soul; like a weaned child rests against his mother, My soul is like a weaned child within me.” Psalm 131:2

(2) Give place to praise and worship. Thankfulness is the heart of worship. Your quietness will give place to worship. Worship the Lord freely. It doesn’t have to be aloud. Worship is a thing of the heart. It is as the Psalmist said,

“Then they were glad because they were quiet, so He guided them to their desired haven. Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness, and for His wonders to the sons of men!” Psalm 107:30,31

(3) Now comes the hearing. You will sense the Lord’s timing for turning to your Bible. Remember that God can speak to you from anywhere in the Scriptures. You will find this to be true whether you are following a regular reading program or not. As it is written,

“I will hear what God the Lord will say; for He will speak peace to His people, to His godly ones.” Psalm 85:8

(4) Receive your Word for the day. Generally the Lord will minister one special truth to you. As He shares, don’t read any further. Stop and meditate on the truth being revealed. Take this truth as your GEM for the day. Chances are this truth will become a ministry tool sometime during your day. Again the Psalmist says,

“I will sing of the lovingkindness of the Lord forever: to all generations I will make known Your faithfulness with my mouth.”  Psalm 89:1

(5) Now is the time to pray. Oftentimes it is here that the Holy Spirit will begin moving in your heart towards certain prayer needs. Pray over the truth He has given you. Pray concerning your day. Pray for each person the Holy Spirit brings before you. You will have a knowing in your spirit when prayer time is over. Jesus said,

“When He puts forth all His own, He goes before them, and the sheep follow Him because they know His voice.” John 10:4

(6) End your devotion with praise and thanksgiving. Thank the Lord for meeting with you in the special way. Remember that He loves to share with you. It is written,

“They looked to Him and were radiant, and their faces will never be ashamed.” Psalm 34:5

(7) Carry the testimony of the Lord with you. One key to witnessing is to simply take to heart what the Lord shared with you during your devotion. Treasure these things. As you go about your day, the testimony will be there. The Bible says,

“For the testimony of Jesus Christ is the spirit of prophecy.” Rev19:10

OK, so much for the devotional guide. Just one more thing…

Here is a book that I would encourage every believer to read…

This has to be one of the greatest healing books that I’ve ever read. All I can say is that ‘The Shack’ will reach into the deep of your heart. It is an astonishing read.

If you would like to order it, I suggest using the Christian Challenge site link to Amazon.

Go to:

http://christianchallenge.org/bookstore/index.html

Well, enough for now.

And always remember this;

There is much love coming your way.

Buddy

Journal,

It was February, 1975. We had left Lafayette, Louisiana, to pastor a small country church in Central Louisiana. Betty and me and our three children literally walked through a gate of faith that I’ve come to call, ‘our gate to miracle land.’

Yep, we ventured into a territory of faith that was totally new for us. It wasn’t as though we knew nothing about the faith walk. Only this time, it was very different. So many wonderful things happened to us. For one thing the small congregation was made up of the most delightful and loving people you would ever want to meet. It was exactly the kind of church we needed to prepare us for what lay ahead, the founding of Christian Challenge.

But over the past few days a memory keeps floating up in my mind about that little church. It is the memory of a tiny bird that would appear at our bathroom window each morning to sing a song to me. At least that is how I felt about it.

It has been my custom over the years that before I have my morning devotion, I first head to the shower to prepare myself for the day. I never did like to have an audience with the King without looking my best. And each morning when I would look out our bathroom window, there on a limb was this beautiful little bird, just singing her little heart out. Guess you can say that I fell in love with her.

Now here’s the tricky part. When it came time for us to resign from our pastorate there,  when I entered the shower, I did not see the tiny bird, but I heard a sound that was somewhat similar. That’s when I noticed that our pipes would make a sound almost like the song of the bird. So I wondered, was it the bird singing all that time?

Of course I had to dismiss that discouraging thought. And I came to a firm conclusion that the bird was sent to sing a love song to me from God Himself. The Lord wanted my life to be filled with music.

When everything is alive…

The one thing that stands out most to me about learning to live a life of faith is that everything seems so alive. It is as though God placed music in His creation. And if you learn to listen closely you can hear it. In fact it seems that music and singing and rejoicing are all the natural language in the world of faith. I find it a most exciting world to live in.

In fact, it is even possible that angels have their own music. Listen –   

“And I heard a voice out of heaven, the sound like a cataract, like the crash of thunder. And then I heard music, harp music.” (Rev14:2 Message)

Whether this speaks of angelic music or the music of the redeemed is not the issue at hand. There is no question that heaven is filled with music.  

Yes indeed. The walk of faith is a walk filled with life. It is a walk filled with love. And it is filled with laughter. Laughter you say? Oh yes indeed. Throughout the Bible you will find that a life of faith includes laughter.

Remember what Sarah said concerning the baby that God had promised her? Listen:

“Sarah said, ‘God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me.” (Gen21:6)

In all this wonderment of the faith walk, I think I’ve discovered why some believers have such a struggle in learning to trust the Lord for all things in their life. Their real struggle is over the love of God. They are not fully convinced just how much God really loves them.

It is hard to trust someone if you aren’t sure that they love you…

This may seem strange but it is true nonetheless. The apostle Paul said,

“For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love.” (Galatians 5:6 nasb)

We can take this ‘faith working through love’ in a number of directions. But the bottom line is that we learn to trust in God to the level that we believe in His love for us. We know that if God truly loves us, then He will truly take care of us. And this is why it is so crucial to our walk with the Lord, to come to know God as our very own Father. The Fatherhood of God is the single greatest revelation that a believer can acquire in this life.

And this reminds me of an incident that took place many, many years ago, between me and my youngest son, Andre. It was pitch dark when I arrived home. There were no outside lights. Andre was on the porch waiting for daddy. When I got near the porch, I knew that Andre could not see me. When I got near, I simply said, “Jump, Andre, daddy will catch you.”

Andre sailed off the porch right into my arms. Why did he do that? He did it for three  reasons. He knew that daddy loved him. He did it because he knew that he could trust me. And he did it because he knew my voice. It was daddy’s voice and not the voice of a stranger.

Do you remember ‘The Garden Song’? If there was ever a song that speaks to the heart of our walk with the Lord, this is it. I’ve always loved to listen to being sung by Elvis Presley.

Would you like to hear it? Go to:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=-NH_is7VuCI&feature=related 

Ask God to speak to your heart…

I believe that the Lord longs to speak into each believer’s life. Listen to what the prophet wrote:

“Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you, and therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the LORD is a God of justice; How blessed are all those who long for Him.” (Isa30:18)

Now, as for that song of love from the tiny bird – I will always believe the Lord sent that little bird with a melody from heaven. She is one of the hundreds of blessed memories that I’ve accumulated through the years. And every once in awhile I love to sit back and think on all the good things the Lord has brought into my life and into the life of my family.

So, let me leave this with you. Take courage. The Lord wants to talk with you.

Much love coming your way,

Buddy

Journal,

It is said when a Jewish person reads the New Testament that they begin to hear a Jewish voice.  There is a reason for this. It is because the New Testament is written in Hebrew thought form.

Not all Christians are aware that the Bible we love so much, from Genesis to Revelation, is actually a Hebraic document. And to gain a deeper understanding of the Scriptures it helps to be able to read the Bible in the thought form in which it was written. I’m not speaking of learning to read Hebrew. Rather it has to do with understanding Hebrew idioms, metaphors, symbols, parables, and such like.

And this is why I instituted a unique email study group in June, 2000, called Hebraic Foundations.

Hebraic-Foundations is a Christian forum. Its purpose is to provide Bible studies from a Hebraic perspective that encourages open discussion on what the early Christians actually taught and believed. The studies have a special view to the Old Testament foundation of our Christian faith.

One problem we have today is that many Christians have lost out on their Hebrew heritage. A Jewish writer said that Christianity is the most Jewish of the non-Jewish religions.  Rabbi Steward Rosenberg, who after having observed Christians for years, made this statement; “The stronger a person’s Christian faith, the more Jewish will he regard himself.”

The Christian theologian Carl Barth also said, “The Bible is a Jewish book. It cannot be read, understood and expounded unless we are prepared to become Jews with the Jews.”

It is not that what these men say is entirely correct. But why would two learned men of different religious traditions reach such a similar conclusion? The answer is because Christianity finds its roots in ancient Judaism. As another writer said, “Christians are spiritual Semites.”

The Lord Himself said that salvation is from the Jews. The apostle adds, “And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.” [Cf. Gal. 3:29]

So once again, this is why I instituted a unique email study group in June, 2000, called Hebraic Foundations. Hebraic-Foundations is solely a Christian forum. Its purpose is to provide Bible studies from a Hebraic perspective that encourages open discussion on what the early Christians taught and believed. The studies have a special view to the Old Testament foundation of our Christian faith.

With this in mind I want to invite my readers to subscribe to this unique Bible study group that I serve as the host on. To subscribe to the study group, go to this site:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Hebraic-Foundations/

Since this is a restricted forum, be sure to complete the questionnaire.

Things you will gain insight into on Hebraic Foundations… 

Here are some instances where understanding things Hebraically can cause the Scriptures to take on added meaning.

(1) What did Paul mean when he said, “Therefore a woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.” (1Co11:10.)

(2) What did Jesus mean when he stopped the procession, and completed His remarks, by saying, “From [your] innermost being will flow rivers of living water.” (John 7:39)

(3) Where did Paul get his teaching that we have already been seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus? (Eph2:6)

(4) What did Paul mean by the statement that he was a “Hebrew of Hebrews?”  (Phil3:5)

(5) Why is there such a stress on the name of Jesus in the apostolic writings? (Acts 4:12)

(6) What is the one doctrine taught in the new covenant that has many branches of study, yet it is simply called ‘the rule!’ (Gal6:14-16)

(7) How did the ancient Church view the Messiah? (John 20:28)

(8) What did Paul mean when he said that in Christ there is neither male nor female? (Gal3:26-29)

(9) What does the terms Abba! Father! really refer to? (Rom8:15)

(10) What was Jesus speaking of when He quoted the Scripture, “You are Gods,” to the Jewish leadership? (John 10:34)

(11) Why did Paul tell us we must learn to “never exceed what is written?” (1Co4:6)

(12) What did the writer mean when he said, “Christ was faithful as a Son over His house.”? (Heb3:6)

(13) What does the term, “kingdom of His beloved Son mean.”? (Col1:13)

(14) What did Jesus mean, when He prayed, “The glory which You have given Me I have given to them.”? (John17:22)

(15) What did Paul mean when he said the Christ “existed in the form of God.”? (Phil2:6)

(16) What did Paul mean when he said that God had “bestowed on [Christ] the name which is above every name.”? (Phil2:9)

All the afore mention areas are samples of things that can be covered in our studies. However, they are also things that can only be understood properly from a Hebraic perspective.

Early church theology was simple. Everything they taught and believed was based on the prophets. For the earliest Jewish Christians, what we call the Old Testament was actually the New Testament to them. There were as yet no apostolic writings.

Well, that’s it for now. Just something to think about.

Much love coming your way.

Buddy

Journal,

Yep, we finally found out the truth behind the big foot legend. It was right in my home from the get go. Isn’t that amazing that you can be looking at the answer and never realize it. And all it took was one picture.

Well now, here it is. The legend can be put to rest.

Yep, that is CJ’s big paw in Jamie’s hand. Have you ever seen such a big foot? The only thing I can’t figure out is how the General made all those appearances up in Washington State, in Nepal, and in other places whereas he has been seen.  :)

Anyways, here is the rest of CJ, with his new found soon to be married, buddies, John Smith and Jamie Brunk. CJ is seriously considering being best man at their wedding. What do you think? Can I get an amen on that?

I hope my readers know by now that I do have an adventuresome sense of humor. So with that in mind let me take this to a more earnest setting.

Did you know that our homes should be places of healings…

The entire world exists in an ambiance of disfunction. So when Jesus spoke of his disciples as being the salt of the earth or as a city sitting on a hill, His intent was to direct believers to the heavenly influence that their lives should bring to those who are hurting. That influence includes a flow of God’s love, and a flow of God’s healing presence. And, believe it or not, sometimes even Christians themselves stand in the greatest need of healing.

A number of years ago we had one of the YWAM (Youth With a Mission) Directors bring a school over to take part in our CCI School for Christian Worker’s outreach. An interesting thing happened. The morning the director was to leave, he told Betty and me that he had received a miracle healing while sleeping in our home. He had struggled with a physical malady for years. When he woke up it was gone.

I don’t share this to draw attention to the Martin home. I simply believe that the spiritual atmosphere in our home was conducive to him being healed. Surely the Lord would have all our homes and all our church settings to become places for healings from the emotional and spiritual and to include the physical.

With that in mind let me share a bit of a devotional and talk about…

The secret life of the kingdom…

There is an aspect of the secret life of the kingdom that has to do with how the Lordship of Jesus works in our experiences as believers.

Some time ago a lady in our church shared with me concerning her struggle over a wayward son. She was kept in sadness. Her prayers were in place but nothing seemed to be happening. Her hurt was the hurt of a mother over her child. Then this dear sister shared something that enabled me to speak with her about how Christ rules in our lives, even when we aren’t so aware of it.

She told me of a recent experience she had in that she woke up during the night singing a song. Later she was unable to remember the song itself, but she did recall how refreshed she became because of her experience.

From this I was able to share with her about the song of Christ. What happened to her was a song of deliverance. It was a song of Christ overruling her despondency. This is partly what Paul means when he said that Christ is our life. He lives His life in us.

The following morning the Lord gave a Scripture to this dear sister. Her eyes were drawn to Psalm 42:8, which says,

“The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime; and His song will be with me in the night, a prayer to the God of my life.”

Someone outside the kingdom of God’s beloved son would say that this was merely a  psychological working of the mind, but not so with the child of God. David spoke of God’s secret rule when he wrote,

“You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance.” (Psalm 32:7)

Then we have this in Hebrews 2:12, where the Lord Jesus says,

“I will proclaim Your name to My brethren, in the midst of the congregation I will sing Your praise.”

Now pay attention to what the Bible further has to say about our secret life.

“The secret of the LORD is for those who fear Him, and He will make them know His covenant.” (Psa25:14)

And again,

“For in the day of trouble He will conceal me in His tabernacle; in the secret place of His tent He will hide me; He will lift me up on a rock. And now my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me, and I will offer in His tent sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.” (Psa27:5,6)

And again,

“You hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the conspiracies of man; You keep them secretly in a shelter from the strife of tongues.” (Psalm 31:20)

And again,

“I will give you the treasures of darkness and hidden wealth of secret places, so that you may know that it is I, the LORD, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name.” (Isa45:3 - Spoken to Cyrus but the principle applies to all who belong to the Lord.)

And again,

“Surely the Lord GOD does nothing unless He reveals His secret counsel to His servants the prophets.” (Amos 3:7 - This applies to all new covenant believers since the prophetic anointing has passed to all who are born from above.)

 Then we have this from Jesus:

“But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.“ (Matt6:6)

“For nothing is hidden, except to be revealed; nor has anything been secret, but that it would come to light.” (Mark 4:22)

And from Paul: 

“Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past…” (Rom16:26)

“I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” (Phil4:12,13)

Yes indeed, there is much more to be said about the secret life of God’s kingdom. Think about these Scriptures. One thing I can assure you is that the Lord is not going to allow any of His children to become overwhelmed with the matters of life. The writer said that God always leads us in His triumph in Christ Jesus.

Much love coming your way,

Buddy

Well now Journal,

Can you believe that it is snowing just north of us? Wow - Snow in Louisiana. Course that won’t do narry a thing to hinder our 32th Homecoming Jubilee. Yep, we have us some guests coming in from Arkansas, Michigan, Texas, and Florida, and possibly other places. Plan to serve them a bit of crawfish and gumbo. After all, it would be a shame for anyone to come to Louisiana and not get a taste of our wonderful cajun cooking. 

And hows about our dearly beloved Louisiana anthem…

Thought about some Louisiana cajun music but most of my readers probably don’t understand Louisiana cajun French. So here is the next best thing…

http://youtube.com/watch?v=pfU6BAeOGXk&feature=related

For you folk who speak cajun, here it is especially for you…

http://youtube.com/watch?v=iRw_M6nkqEY&feature=related

By the way we’ve been known to sing the Jambalaya song with just the word hallelujah. Lots of fun. Still get to kick up a cloud and do the cajun yell. Hmmmmm. I may have to kick it in gear at our Jubilee.

OK, this is our final invitation to the Christian Challenge 32nd Homecoming Jubilee.

Now for a devotional study. Ready? Let’s call it…

A Message from the King…

We were crossing a mountain range to get to a village on the border of Honduras and Guatemala. I began asking the Lord what He wanted me to say to the village people. No sooner had I made the heart prayer, that I had this impression; “Tell them that you are an ambassador from the kingdom of God, and that you have a message from the King.”

Something did happen in the village that evening that I’ll share about later in the study. It has to do with an old Indian. 

The point is that the gospel is not simply a story about God’s power to save through the cross. The gospel is actually the saving power of God itself. This is why people get saved under the influence of preaching. And this is why Paul said, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” (Rom1:16)

While we know that the term gospel means good news, or glad tidings, what we may not always realize is that the preaching of the gospel involves the heralding the kingship of Jesus Christ. The God-called preacher is a ‘herald.’ He is a public crier. His job is to announce to his listeners that God’s King has been installed. This official announcement calls for an allegiance to the King.

Because the preacher holds an official work in the kingdom of God, we have this admonition, “How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!’” (Rom10:15)

When Paul said, “How will they preach unless they are sent?” he is drawing attention to an official herald or a spokesman for the King.

This is a factor that isn’t always understood. While all God’s people have the right to testify to their salvation in Christ, and can minister in many ways, not everyone is given the task of being a herald of the gospel, that is, not in the true sense of the word.

The herald has to be approved. It is required that he have the message right. Once he is approved, he then can be given an appointment as a herald for the King. And when the herald speaks, the voice of the King is heard. This is not to glorify preachers. It has to do with understanding the role of a preacher.

Paul said, “For our exhortation does not come from error or impurity or by way of deceit; but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who examines our hearts.” (1Th2:4)

Notice that the gospel in this sense is a sacred trust. But it is only given to the herald after a heart examination is completed.

In another place the apostle says, “For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time. For this [testimony] I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying) as a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.” (1Tim2:5-7)

Notice that Paul divides his calling into three areas, preacher, apostle, and teacher.

With regard to the preacher, I realize the term ‘herald’ may seem a bit confusing, but it really does describe the job of a God-called, God-equipped, and God-sent preacher.

The first herald of the gospel in the New Testament was John the Baptist. It says, “Now in those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” (Mat3:1)

The term ‘preaching’ is kerusso (kay-roos’-so). Kerusso means to be a public crier, a herald, to proclaim an official message. It carries the idea of formality. In the case of Jesus Christ, the preacher is the herald of a message that carries in it the very power of heaven to change in the hearts and lives of believers.

The message is God’s message. The change can only take place where an allegiance is made to the King. Jesus spoke of the final end time sign, “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end shall come.” (Matt24:14)

Thus we hear Jesus tell his apostles, “You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear [kingdom] fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give it you.” (John 15:16)

What Jesus said to the original apostles, He said also to Paul. Ananias said to him, “The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will and to see the Righteous One and to hear an utterance from His mouth.” (Act 22:14)

The apostles were chosen and then appointed to be heralds for Christ. They were to be official representatives of the King. (Ambassadors.) Because of their unique calling, they could ask the Father for whatever they may need to accomplish their work. They were only to ask in the name of their King, Jesus, and for the sake of His kingdom. Every God ordained preacher afterwards is also a herald. They, too, can ask the Father for whatever they may need to accomplish His work.

It is the preaching of the gospel that Satan fears the most. Martin Luther said, “The Devil does not mind the written word but he is put to flight whenever it is preached aloud.”

When C. H. Spurgeon was asked to write a defense on the gospel, he said, “The gospel does not need to be defended. It is like a caged lion. Just turn it loose and it will take care of itself.”

So the herald of the gospel is a man with a message. He must understand it. He must not corrupt it. He is responsible for its proper delivery. This is why one of the most urgent warnings in the Bible has to do with those who distort the gospel of Jesus Christ. To add anything to the Kingdom message, or to take anything away from its simplicity, is to place one’s self under condemnation.

The apostle said, “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!” (Gal1:8) James added that God’s people are not to take to themselves of being many teachers, because the teacher will receive the greater condemnation. (James 3:1)

The herald of the gospel is not a kingdom builder for himself. He has one responsibility and that is to announce the King. Paul said, “For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for I am under compulsion; for woe is me if I do not preach the gospel. For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have a stewardship entrusted to me.” (1Co9:16,17)

Stewardship speaks of the management of another’s property. All true ministers of the gospel have been given a stewardship in which they hold responsibility for. But they also have the authority that comes with the stewardship. This means that God Himself will supply the herald (minister) with whatever he may need, or with whatever he may ask the Father for, for the sake of Jesus Christ.

It it has been well over forty years since I first stood before a people and preached the gospel of Jesus Christ. What a difference these many years can make. In all this I still stand amazed at what happens in the preaching of the gospel. I stand in awe at how the Lord works through the heralding of the message. What a joy to see hearts and lives changed simply through the proclaiming of King Jesus.

Now for the old Indian —

The peoples gathered until the building overflowed. Men sat in the windows. There was no room left to sit down. The door was crowded with people. Little children were everywhere. When I opened my mouth, I said, “I come to you not as an ambassador of the United States, but as an ambassador of the kingdom of God. And I have a message for you from the King.”

That’s when it happened. At that moment awesomeness settled on everyone. All eyes were fixed on me. Then I began sharing the message of God’s Son. The gospel was working deeply. The voice of the King was being heard. (Yes, Christ Himself speaks to the people in the preaching of the gospel.)

As I brought my message to a close, the old Indian man stood up and began walking towards the front. He was coming to pay allegiance to the King. He wasn’t the only one, but he was the one that had my total attention.

It was as though the Lord was allowing me to see how the gospel works. Paul explained it this way; “For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.” (1Th2:13)

Then we have this from the Lord, “I have other sheep, 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.” (John 10:16) How will the sheep hear His voice? They will hear His voice primarily in the proclamation of the message of His kingdom.

Let me add one more dimension to the proclamation of the King. In the preaching of the gospel the voice of the King is heard. Paul calls this the power of the gospel. This is why Satan fights so hard to keep the message from being preached. He knows that the moment the voice of the King is heard, and the moment a person believes and confesses allegiance to King Jesus, he, that is, Satan, is put out of business.

Paul says that when a person hears the proclamation of the gospel, and believes, that is, gives a heart allegiance to the King, there is a transfer that takes place. And Satan knows that all a person has to do to be saved is to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and confess Him as Lord and Christ. Paul said, “For He [the Father] rescued us from the domain [authority] of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” (Cf. Col1:13,14)

And so for well over forty years, I’ve seen countless numbers of people come into the kingdom of our King and Savior. I’ve baptized untold numbers. And, yes, I’ve seen miracles and healings without number. But the greatest miracle of all still remains the same. It is the miracle of the transfer that takes place through the proclamation of God’s holy King.

What say ye. Have you responded to the message of the King?

Much love coming your way,

Buddy