Many, many, MANY years ago, back when dinosaurs ruled the earth, I had a professor whom I now think of as my mentor. He shared with us one day of a Bible conference that was held that had some of the biggest theological names of the time. This professor had just returned from a twenty year mission in the Philippines and had taken a position at a Christian seminary. He was nothing special in the United States at the time and, although he would have liked to have attended this conference, he could not afford the trip. Then, just less than two weeks before the conference was to begin, he got a call asking him if he would like to come and preach. The original speaker he would be replacing had to change his plans and the dozens of others they had already called had turned them down. Sort of flattered and very flustered, the professor agreed, and it was set up. And then the thought came, WHAT DO I PREACH? 

    He finally decided that the greatest sermon ever preached was the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew chapters five, six and seven. He decided to simply preach the Sermon to show the power of the teachings of Jesus. To make it easier to understand, he put it all into the English language of the time. He wasn't the keynote speaker. He was the before breakfast speaker, when most of the attendees were still in bed. Still, it was an honor to be there. He brought his message, just the Sermon on the Mount in the day's English and without mentioning that it was the Sermon, and he said at the close of it everyone was perfectly still and quiet. No one spoke. Everyone on the dais just sat still. Then the clamoring began. People rushing up to him, shaking his hand, hugging him, some in tears, all asking where he had gotten his information. He was shocked until he realized that they didn't recognize his sermon as the Sermon on the Mount. 

    He shared the story with us to show the absolute power of the Scripture. I thought about this story when I was asked the question I am asked almost every year. In Matthew 27:46 we have this; And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Jesus, on the cross, gasps out these words. Why would He, being God the Son, think that the Father had forsaken Him? He knew the plan and He knew what must happen. Was He in such deep despair? And as a follow-up question, only asked maybe twice over the years, why did He speak in Hebrew? A language He didn't use much and a language the common man didn't know well. These are good questions.  

    And there is an answer. If I am talking to another Christian about the care and love of God, I might say, "Well, think on the 23rd Psalm." Or I might sing the first verse, "Amazing grace, how sweet the sound". In both cases, I have just shared a piece of Scripture or a song, both so well known that I need go no farther. At the time of Christ, the Psalms were not numbered as we have them today. But, as with "Amazing Grace," just giving the first verse directs one to the intended Psalm. (Remember, the Psalms is a collection of their songs.) The fact that Jesus spoke in Hebrew means He is referencing the Hebrew Scripture. By speaking that one sentence, He is preaching the entire Psalm. In this case, Psalm 22.

    Jesus. Agony. His shoulders dislocated from the process of crucifixion. Barely able to breathe, much less speak. Beaten. Spit upon. People mocking Him. People dividing His clothing. The shame of being high up, stripped of clothing and dignity. Spikes in His hands and feet. Hot sun. Lips and mouth dry in a way we can not understand. To breathe He would have had to push up on the foot spike to slide His shoulders enough to take in a little air. This would tear at His feet. Psalm 22 was written a thousand years before that day on the cross. The Jews didn't crucify. That came later with foreign invaders. The Jews of David's time, when Psalm 22 was written, stoned a criminal to death. Actually, more humane than crucifixion. Nails in hands and feet was never thought of. A spear through the heart to be assured of death was not considered. What was happening to Jesus had been around for maybe a century. In all of this, Jesus speaks the first line of a thousand year old Psalm. And with that, He connected Himself to this centuries old Messianic Psalm. The Jewish leaders, when they heard, probably had a chill run through them.

    Take a few minutes to read this Psalm and see how Jesus preached a devastating sermon with the Scripture.  

Psalm 22:1-31

1 My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from saving Me, from the words of My groaning?

2 O my God, I cry by day, but You do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest.

3 Yet You are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel.

4 In You our fathers trusted; they trusted, and You delivered them.

5 To You they cried and were rescued; in You they trusted and were not put to shame.

6 But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people.

7 All who see Me mock Me; they make mouths at Me; they wag their heads;

8 “He trusts in the Lord; let Him deliver Him; let Him rescue Him, for He delights in Him!”

9 Yet You are He who took Me from the womb; You made Me trust You at My mother's breasts.

10 On You was I cast from My birth, and from My mother's womb You have been My God.

11 Be not far from Me, for trouble is near, and there is none to help.

12 Many bulls encompass Me; strong bulls of Bashan surround Me;

13 they open wide their mouths at Me, like a ravening and roaring lion.

14 I am poured out like water, and all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; it is melted within My breast;

15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and My tongue sticks to My jaws; You lay Me in the dust of death.

16 For dogs encompass Me; a company of evildoers encircle Me; they have pierced My hands and feet—

17 I can count all My bones—they stare and gloat over Me;

18 they divide My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.

19 But You, O Lord, do not be far off! O You, My help, come quickly to My aid!

20 Deliver My soul from the sword, My precious life from the power of the dog!

21 Save Me from the mouth of the lion! You have rescued Me from the horns of the wild oxen!

22 I will tell of Your name to My brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise You:

23 You who fear the Lord, praise Him! All you offspring of Jacob, glorify Him, and stand in awe of Him, all you offspring of Israel!

24 For He has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted, and He has not hidden His face from him,
but has heard, when he cried to Him.

25 From You comes My praise in the great congregation;
My vows I will perform before those who fear Him.

26 The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek Him shall praise the Lord! May your hearts live forever!

27 All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before You.

28 For Kingship belongs to the Lord, and He rules over the nations.

29 All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship;
before Him shall bow all who go down to the dust, even the one who could not keep himself alive.

30 Posterity shall serve Him; it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation;

31 they shall come and proclaim His righteousness to a people yet unborn, that He has done it.

    This past Sunday, as the wind howled outside, I sat at my computer getting my notes from the day's sermon together in a readable form. No one will ever read them, of course, but I started this little habit back in 1987 so that I could go back and review my own notes. As I have gotten older it has become more needed. This old brain just doesn't process and store memories like it used to do. So, I was involved in this endeavor at 7:30 in the evening when the fire alarm went off.

    I live in an apartment complex for seniors. You have to be at least 55 to be here. Each apartment has fire alarms and when one goes off the ones in the hallways all go off. It is loud and very persistent. The stairwells are all fire resistant and we are all supposed to go there. At the bottom of each stairwell there is a door that leads outside. In case of a fire we are to go down and go outside. The same fire alarm system is also in place for tornados, in which case we are to wait it out in the stairwells. With the wind blasting away it could have been either situation. A downed power line could have started a fire or a tornado could have been lurking in the dusk. Either way, it was time to head to the stairwells.

    However.....in the two and a half years I have been here, that alarm has gone off maybe twenty times. Just gone off at random. At first the halls would fill as residents hurried to the stairwells. But now, TVs just get turned up a little louder. Meals continue to be prepared. If it is at night, maybe you wake up, maybe not. Sunday evening it very well could have been the real thing. But no one went to the hallway. No one was concerned, myself included. It was just an irritation.

    When I finished with my notes, I realized the alarm was still going off. It had been thirty minutes since it had started. A couple of fire trucks had pulled in. Since it was the weekend there was no staff to check it out, so the fire department had to come. They knew that our system rarely worked right, so they had been in no great hurry. In just a few minutes the alarm shut off. All was quiet.

    And in the silence, a thought found its way through the fog of my brain and demanded to be recognized. I have always marveled that the Jews had denied Jesus. All the prophecies of the coming Messiah had been fulfilled. Amazing miracles had been done. This man, Jesus, had been noteworthy for His compassion and love. He had not sinned. He had not sought to disrupt either the Roman Empire or the Jewish governance. He spoke the truth, certainly, but He did so without malice. He was a man of peace and that peace came from His very soul. Why had they denied Him?

    The thought that rose to the surface in my brain reminded me that the first Messianic prophecy had been 4,000 years before Jesus. From histories outside of the Bible we know that there had been at least three dozen different men who had come forward as Messiah. Each had gathered around them a small following and then their movements died, usually with the death of the fake Messiah. When Jesus came, He was very much like the previous contenders. Yes, He did miracles that seemed to defy nature, but the miracles could have been staged. Even raising from death the man from Nain could have been a clever set-up. The Jewish leaders did not want their positions threatened, but they also did not want the people fooled. This Jesus wasn't all that different from those who preceded Him, so silencing Him was important. Afterall, after 4,000 year the leadership had become convinced the Christ would be a warrior king, driving out the enemies of the Jews. Jesus was a carpenter. He simply didn't fit their idea of who Messiah would be.

    The raising of Lazarus began to cloud the issue a bit. By all accounts, he was really dead. Then Jesus Himself was killed. Absolutely. On a cross. With a spear run through Him. Put it a tomb. Sealed up, A guard put in place. Dead and gone with a guard to prevent tomb raiders. And then He was alive and there had to have been a dawning, a realization, that maybe this time it was real. No one else had ever done these things before. Yeah, maybe.....

    Looked at this way, we can excuse at least some of their certainty. They were wrong, of course, but they had precedent. 

    But what about us? From John 11 through the end of the book, we have the most electrifying narrative in history. But it has become so very common. So common, in fact, that we need to spice it up. Colored eggs, bright flowers, calling Resurrection Day easter, which is derived from the goddess Estre. The most powerful moment in all history is marked with rabbits and chicks to denote fertility of Spring. And beyond that, Jesus is coming again. But it has been 2,000 years. Many have come forward with dates, and every date has passed. 2,000 years? Is He really coming?

    Please, please, please do not let this moment go unnoticed. It has been said that the cross is the hinge upon which the door of all history swings. Cast away the silliness and embrace the majesty. The love. Let your heart break and then let Him put it back together.,

    Be blessed.    

    We are in a new place in civilization. And most everyone is just listening and nodding their heads. We worry about riots, we worry about a divided nation, we worry about climate. We worry about anything we are told to worry about. But there are things that lurk in the shadows.

    I have been spending a lot of time in doctors' offices lately. In these places they used to have piles of magazines of all kinds, but COVID put an end to that. Some offices had TVs before, but now almost all do. The television is set on whatever the person behind the desk wants. Game shows, round the clock news, weather, whatever. I usually ignore it. I don't watch TV anyway, so ignoring is easy. However, this one caught my attention.

    The pictured showed a Bible. The voice over explained that the Bible was the bestselling book of all time. It has brought comfort, peace, joy and inspiration for all of recorded human history. And then the voice over said, "However, with AI, new secrets have been revealed." That was what caught my attention. (Let me say, I call the voice a 'voice over' because I suspect the voice itself is AI generated. You can tell when the voice mispronounces a word that is common in the language. The voice pronounces it phonetically, but the actual pronunciation is different. Anyway...) For those who don't know, 'AI' stands for 'artificial intelligence.' Computer tech has gotten so sophisticated that they have figured how to get computers to think ad reason. Already songs are being written by AI, performed by AI generated voices and marketed with AI. Books have been written with AI, but carry a real person's name, as though they wrote it. Recently an AI video dropped of Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt fighting one another. It is said that it is so realistic that actors are now worried. Who needs actors when you can use AI. Sadly, we will probably have to use real flesh and blood politicians for a while yet. Apparently, they can't dumb down AI that much right now.

    I do not like the concept of AI. It is a program. It may 'think,' it may 'reason,' but it was created by man. They use complicated mathematical algorithms in which massive amounts of data are absorbed. Everyone is impressed because it really is impressive. However, going back to the beginning of computer programming, there was one word that took precedent above all others. 'GINGO.' It stands for 'garbage in, garbage out.' Whatever man puts in will come out. And man's mind compared to God's mind (or the mind of the universe, if that makes you feel better) is garbage. AI is a human created program. GINGO.

    But back to the program on TV. The voice over said that AI was given the task of identifying every prayer in the Bible and finding a pattern in these prayers. "What AI discovered went far beyond what any theologian, pastor, priest or any theological writer ever came up with. Only with AI could this pattern be discovered. Every legitimate prayer in the Bible, that is, a prayer to God, has four distinct elements. This holds true in both the Old and New Testament. 1.) Each prayer gives place to God. 2.) Each prayer acknowledges our dependence on God. 3.) Each prayer has confession and asks for forgiveness. 4.) Each prayer asks for protection from the world and/or Satan. Scriptural prayers included other elements, depending on the need, but all contain these four elements. AI has given us new insight." A lady sitting nearby looked amazed and whispered, "Wow, the Bible must be amazing!"

    So, what bothers me about this, given that this lady was impressed? Well, I lit up my computer when I got the chance and went to the individual churches I have pastored. From 1987 until now, I have kept all my notes. From 1987 through 1994 they were handwritten, but when we got our first home computer in 1994, I typed those notes in. Computers change, systems change, so everything has been updated several times to be compatible to whatever the new system that is in use requires. Bible studies, sermon notes, weddings, funerals. I have a LOT of Biblical notes. And, without the use of AI, I found a pattern.

    From 1975 to 1987 I served mostly as a minister of youth and sometimes, regrettably, minister of music. From 1987 on, I have pastored. Even while I worked at the funeral home, I still worked with churches. Sometimes as pulpit supply, but more often as an interim pastor. The pattern I discovered was that in EVERY church I have been in, within the first month I would teach a series on prayer. My thinking is that prayer is the most important thing we can engage in. If we are engaged in prayer, the rest will fall into place. Now, those four elements that AI discovered? Well, I have taught those four elements for all those years. They are the four elements contained in the model prayer, commonly referred to as the Lord's prayer. In Matthew 6:9 we are not told to pray that prayer, but we are told to pray in that manner. And it is not that I have been teaching a mystery for five decades. I was taught this in college and seminary. These elements have been known and practiced for all time since Eden.

    So, what is the danger in the AI? Afterall, it did get the four elements right. Isn't that good? Yes, I suppose so. But saying that this could only be discovered through the use of AI is terrible. What that means to anyone casually watching the program is that God encoded messages in the Bible that were never meant to be discovered until now. Only through the use of AI and other such programs will we ever know the truth. The casual listener will think that AI is from God. Practically every cult ever has claimed to have new revelation. God has held back certain knowledge until the truly anointed has come along. Will GINGO lead people to Jesus or will it lead to man. GOD WANTS US TO UNDERSTAND HIS WORD. He would not withhold new mystery for thousands of years.

    We are told to study the Word. This requires more than listening to or reading drivel. It involves actual reading of the Word. Open your heart to the Spirit!   

               

            

    

    Good day in Christ! For a lot of us it is beginning to look a lot like Christmas. I feel kind of strange about this weather, though. Living up here just a mile or so from Lake Erie, we usually suffer more from the snow than most. The dreaded 'lake affect' snow. The evaporation of lake water mixing with the cold air out of Canada results in a great deal of snow fall, particularly within ten miles from the Lake and in the higher elevations. But as of this morning, Lake Erie is 92% frozen over, which eliminates the evaporation and really cuts down on the snow. This most recent storm came directly out of the west and pounded a 2,000 mile swath across the country, creating havoc in the South and throughout the heartland. But here we were on the northern most edge and did not receive as much snow. Around a foot. Plenty of cold, lots of wind, but less snow than we thought we would receive.
    However, this has nothing to do with this blog. With all the craziness going on up in Minnesota and overseas and south around our border with Mexico and around the rest of the country, it is easy to miss some of the problems that fall in the cracks so deep that neither the conservative nor the liberal media seem to notice. And yet, these problems have an impact on the other, more noisy problems going on.
    A couple of weeks ago I read that modern hymnals are omitting certain songs because of disturbing imagery. Now we know that the hymnbook industry is suffering. It is far more economical to put the music on a big screen or project it onto the wall than it is to buy the books. And music is going through a flux. More and more churches are switching to contemporary worship music, which is fine if you like that type of music. As a side note, I prefer Christian music that tells a story. Music just hurts my head and organ music particularly. But drums and clashing guitars and yelling lyrics make me think we are not listening to a story as much as we are listening to a bombing raid. Even the traditional music gives me a headache just because of the way I hear things. For over fifty years I have gone home from church and popped a couple of Excedrin. But I do love the lyrics of the hymns that tell a story.
    So, it is disturbing to me to know that more and more of the great story telling hymns are being canceled. Lost in contemporary music and eliminated from traditional music. The one that caught my attention was 'The Old Rugged Cross.' I did a double take. Eliminated because of disturbing imagery? How....? Now, some hymns have non-Biblical imagery. 'There is a Fountain Filled with Blood' is an example of non-Biblical imagery. There is no fountain filled with blood the comes from the veins of Jesus. The only time a fountain of blood is mentioned in the Word it is referring to woman's menstrual cycle. You can say that the song is using poetic license, but I can tell you that as a five year old kid, that song terrified me. I did not want to be plunged beneath the blood to lose all my guilty stains. I told my mother I would just rather be a sinner. But when a song uses Biblical imagery, how on earth does that warrant elimination? Obviously, I missed something in the lyrics, so I looked it up.
    First, it was written by George Benhard. Born in Ohio, he came to Christ early. As a young adult he ministered with the Salvation Army and then spent the bulk of his ministry pastoring in Michigan and Wisconsin. He was well known for his devotion to the Word. His hymns reflect that devotion. So let's look at the lyrics of this hymn, verse by verse.

On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,

The emblem of suff’ring and shame;

And I love that old cross where the Dearest and Best

For a world of lost sinners was slain.

    Well, nothing there, actually. It does talk about someone being slain and the politically correct way to say it now is that someone became unalive (which is stupid beyond words), but that is all I can see in verse one. It does speak of One slain for a lost and dying world. Is that reason for elimination? Look at verse two;

Oh, that old rugged cross, so despised by the world,

Has a wondrous attraction for me;

For the dear Lamb of God left His glory above

To bear it to dark Calvary. 

    Maybe that is it. If the world despises something, we must as well, at least in the eyes of the world. And then the lyrics takes Jesus out of the manger (which is where the world wants Him) and puts Him on a cross becoming 'unalive' for us all. Verse three adds fuel to the fire;

In that old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine,

A wondrous beauty I see,

For ’twas on that old cross Jesus suffered and died,

To pardon and sanctify me.

    Well, I can see it now. Blood staining a wooden cross. That could warp a child's mind, right? Not a beautiful gold cross, inlaid with jewels, but a rugged and rough cross made with trees. And then, the baby Jesus (which is how the world thinks of Him) is hung on the cross and suffers! And becomes unalive! And He needed to do this so that we could be forgiven and sanctified. How would a child be expected to deal with such imagery? So much better he be allowed to continue playing whatever blood soaked video game he is currently playing. And then, verse four;

To the old rugged cross I will ever be true;

Its shame and reproach gladly bear;

Then He’ll call me someday to my home far away,

Where His glory forever I’ll share.

    Just gets worse, doesn't it? This seems to indicate that if we are true in our hearts to the events on that hilltop, we will someday be with Him. This says that there is just one way to glory. Such a narrow way of belief.

    But we do hold to the old rugged cross. It is Biblical. We do hold to the idea that Christ suffered and bled and died for us. It is Biblical. Further, we do hold to Christ was then laid in a borrowed tomb and then resurrected after three days and is now with God pleading our case, thus providing the only way to salvation. It is Biblical. Modern churches have decided that such 'imagery' is disturbing. Much better to allow the call of the world to seep in.

    Now here is the thing. Christians have allowed this to happen. First, prayer left our lives. We might read a prayer from a book, but to actually take our needs and petitions to Him? How do I know what to say? After we let prayer go, reading of the Scripture followed. We might do a devotional. You know, read a verse or two and then read what that means to the writer of the devotion. That should be enough. We have let our guard down and now we are losing what we have always held precious. And we don't even know it is happening.

    The world needs Jesus, and that is our job. When was the last time you shared the Gospel with someone? When was the last time you prayed with someone who was suffering? When was the last time you really talked to God? When was the last time you really read the Scripture for yourself? When was the last time that the image of a hill faraway where a cross was erected with a sinless, perfect and good Man was suffering in the brutal sun and was bleeding from flogging and nails in His hands and feet bothered you? Or is that to disturbing? To hard to think about? Maybe that is why we have all the problems of today. Christians equate success with big and flashy and loud. A preacher once said that the cross was the hinge upon which all history turned, and we Christians want to keep it quiet until Easter. We need to do better.