Should We Call Every Day Father’s Day?

Today isn’t Father’s Day.  The calendar still says it’s more than five months until we celebrate the holiday here in the U.S.  But today IS the anniversary of my Dad’s birth.  There’s no party today, because he passed away almost 10 years ago.  But besides noticing the date on the calendar, I was reminded of him because we examined what is commonly called the Lord’s Prayer in church today.  Since the King James Version of that passage is the one most of us could quote by memory, here it is:

Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.  10 Thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.  11 Give us this day our daily bread.  12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.  13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.   Matthew 6:9-13

As I recited the words today, it struck me as significant that Jesus taught us to refer to HIS Father as OUR Father.  I believe it’s significant because the impression most folks have about God is that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was demanding and rigid.  Most folks may have deemed Him unreachable and barely knowable.  Yet into this Jewish culture, Jesus speaks about God as being a “Father” – OUR Father.  I had to wonder what the disciples must have thought about such a personal title for such a majestic and holy God?

Though I’ve been teaching the Bible for a long time, I had to wonder about the first usage of the term “Father” in Scripture in reference to the Creator God.  It seems that Jesus’ words may not have been as ground-breaking as I originally supposed.  Because the Jews of Jesus’ day already understood that the God who created them, the God who led them from bondage through the desert, the God who provided Judges and Kings, and who had just revealed their Redeemer, had always referred to Himself as “Father”. 

Among the last words Moses spoke to the assembled Jews before Joshua took over were these:

Do you thus deal with the Lord, O foolish and unwise people?  Is He not your Father, who bought you?  Has He not made you and established you?   Deuteronomy 32:6

Often, God’s prophets, speaking on His behalf, echoed the same imagery in trying to redirect the hearts of His people:

They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble: for I am a Father to Israel…   Jeremiah 31:9

Doubtless You are our Father, Though Abraham was ignorant of us, And Israel does not acknowledge us.  You, O Lord, are our Father; Our Redeemer from Everlasting is Your name.   Isaiah 63:16

David rejoiced over the generosity of his people as they prepared for Solomon to build a great temple to honor God:

“Blessed are You, Lord God of Israel, our Father, forever and ever.  11 Yours, O Lord, is the greatness, The power and the glory, The victory and the majesty; For all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours; Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, And You are exalted as head over all.  12 Both riches and honor come from You, And You reign over all.  In Your hand is power and might; In Your hand it is to make great And to give strength to all.  13 “Now therefore, our God, We thank You And praise Your glorious name.   2 Chronicles 29:10-13

In fact, the truths found in the Lord’s Prayer almost echo the prayer of David, 1,000 years before Jesus came. It’s important for all of us to know that our Creator God has always had a Father’s heart.  What’s a father’s heart supposed to be like?  A heart that’s filled with truth, with expectation, that seeks only good, and that’s sure to provide both love and discipline.  That sure sounds like my Heavenly Father.  It even sounds a lot like the fellow I used to call Dad. 

Jacob

I Don’t Plan to Come Back

When you go to a wedding, it’s normal to identify with the couple getting married.  You may grip the hand next to you a little tighter or even remember yourself in front of a similar assembly, pledging love to the partner of your dreams.  It’s easy to identify whether you’ve been through it or not.

But what about at a funeral?  I’ve been to a couple in the last week, and I don’t know if this happens to you or not, but I find myself oddly reflective during these solemn gatherings.  It’s hard to say I “identify” as in the example of attending a wedding, yet each of us is destined to have our bodies lie in a box while people pass by and discuss our appearance.  I don’t mean that in a disrespectful manner, it’s just that that’s what our social convention normally dictates.  At some funerals, the casket is closed, and it seems the latest trend is to just wait some period of time after a person passes and have a “Celebration of Life” service without any body being present at all. 

While it might seem hard to “identify” because none of us has died before, aren’t you at least curious about the process?  You may have read some popular book that describes aspects of the process of dying, or even that provides some glimpse of the afterlife, but if I want answers about what happens after I die, I’m going to go to the source of life itself – our Lord, Jesus Christ.  Jesus told this story about the reality of death:

There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. ²⁰ But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, ²¹ desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, the dogs came and licked his sores.²² So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. ²³ And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.  Luke 16:19-23

My goal in sharing this passage isn’t to spend lots of time on the content of the story, but only to use it as a statement of truth regarding life after this life.  We all die, but if we have a relationship with God through His Son, Jesus, we will be ushered through the door we call “death” by angels carrying us into Jesus’ presence.  If we do NOT have a relationship with God through Jesus, our experience will not be pleasant.  Based upon that truth, I DO think about my own experience when I’m at a funeral.  What will stepping through the door to eternity be like?

As often happens, I keep asking questions.  And the first one that popped in my mind today was, “I wonder how Lazarus felt when Jesus called him back from death?” (see John 11:43) This isn’t the same Lazarus as in the story about the beggar – this one was the dear friend of Jesus Himself.  Jesus wept over his passing, no doubt as He does for each of us who know and love Him.  But in this case, it was necessary for Jesus to call Lazarus back from his stint in Paradise after Lazarus had enjoyed its pleasures for four days!  I know that won’t happen to me, but I can’t imagine that the life Lazarus came back to was as good as the one he was forced to leave.  Would you want to come back here after spending four days in heaven?!  I think not.

Here’s my take-away.  When I breathe my last in this mortal body, I will open my eyes to a new reality.  One that exists just beyond my ability to see it now, but just as real.  Each tick-tock moment in this life that reminded me of the passing of time will be replaced by a never-ending day filled with never-ceasing joy.  Next time you’re at a funeral, hold the hand of your mate just a little tighter, shed a tear for your loss, and remember that you know what’s coming because you know where you’re going.  And just for the record, don’t expect me to come back here.  Unless Jesus calls for me…

Jacob

The Christmas Story You May Have Missed

It’s said that a good story bears repeating.  And while telling the same story over and over again can become boring and tedious, it seems we never tire of the images we know and love – the angels announcing the birth of the Christ-child; the shepherds cowering in fear as the glory of God filled the night sky; and the wise men following the star and offering gifts to the child.  But one image in that story may hold more significance than you imagined, because for the shepherds who would behold the Child in the manger, the story holds a richness that we may have never fully appreciated.

The prophet, Micah, foretold the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem in this passage that most of us have heard countless times:

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting.”  (Micah 5:2)

That little village about six miles southeast of Jerusalem has a rich history in Scripture that began about 2,000 years before the birth of Jesus when Rachel, the beloved wife of Jacob, was buried just outside the village. 

So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath that is, Bethlehem. ²⁰ And Jacob set a pillar on her grave, which is the pillar of Rachel’s grave to this day.  ²¹ Then Israel (Jacob) journeyed and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder.  Genesis 35:19-21

God’s amazing story of redemption is woven even more deeply into the prophecy of Micah just a few verses before the more famous passage mentioned above:

…So the Lord will reign over them in Mount Zion From now on, even forever.  And you, O tower of the flock (Migdal Eder), the stronghold of the daughter of Zion, to you shall it come, even the former dominion shall come, the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.”  (Micah 4:7-8)

There it is again!  Did you notice that mention of the Tower of Eder?  Bethlehem was a special place, not just because of its history, but because the lambs raised in the hills north of there were destined for use as sacrifices in the temple in Jerusalem.  Migdal Eder was a watchtower just north of Bethlehem, from which shepherds could keep an eye out for threats to the flock.  From the tower, watchful eyes could keep a lookout for packs of wild animals or thieves who might threaten the temple flocks. 

When the temple lambs were to be born, the ewes were brought in from the fields and kept in the cave at the tower’s base, which essentially became a birthing station for sacrificial lambs.  After inspecting the lambs to assure they were unblemished and fit for sacrifice, shepherds, like those in our Christmas story, would bind the newborn lambs with rags, or swaddling cloths, and place them in a manger to keep them calm and free from harm. 

If you re-read Luke 2, you’ll notice the angel only instructed the shepherds: “You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”  While they likely wondered WHY Jesus would be born in a place and manner reserved for sacrificial lambs, they didn’t have to think very hard about WHERE to find Him.  Because there was only one manger where sacrificial lambs were laid – the cave under the Tower of Eder.  The tower had stood as a sentinel for 100 generations before Jesus was born, but it had never witnessed anything like what was to happen that night. 

Those blessed shepherds found the Baby where they expected, and discovered more than they had ever hoped.  That’s what happens when we seek after Jesus.  We encounter all the love and light and hope and life we could ever imagine.  All found in the lovely face of that precious Child.  The One in the manger at Migdal Eder.

May you find what you really seek this Christmas.

Jacob

What’s Past is Passed…On

Genealogy is a big thing.  We all wonder where we came from.  My family has been “in these parts” for over 200 years on both sides of the family.  I’ve found some interesting things by investing some time on an ancestry website.  In fact, I’m anxiously awaiting the results of the DNA test I mailed in a couple weeks ago to see what secrets are hidden in the intricacies of my genetic makeup.  Don’t you wonder sometimes why you look the way you do, or more importantly, why you ACT the way you do?  When you see that picture of your grandmother as a baby, don’t you see a bit or yourself in that face?  I’ve noticed my son sometimes strikes a posture that’s just exactly like my father used to do.  How is that possible?  Because we pass along some part of us to everyone who follows.

Isn’t it interesting that the first recorded words in the New Testament are a genealogy?  I know these are the parts that many of us skip when we read the Bible, but we can’t really know who we are unless we know from whom we’ve descended.  Here’s a part of the text:

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:

² Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers. ³ Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron…⁵ Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, ⁶ and Jesse begot David the king.  David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah…¹¹ Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers about the time they were carried away to Babylon.  ¹² And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel...¹⁶ And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ.   Matthew 1:1-16

While I condensed things quite a bit, I hope you go back to your Bible and read the whole text.  Maybe even go over to Luke 3 and read his genealogy of Jesus (which is different because it traces Jesus through MARY instead of this text that shows us how Jesus is descended legally through Joseph).  I do, however, want to point out a few of the characters in this passage from Matthew.  I’ve show the names in BOLD print so you don’t miss them, but let’s first consider the women listed here.  Listing women in ANY genealogy of the day was virtually unheard of, because women were held in such low esteem.  But God sees these women as critical to the story of Jesus.

Tamar slept with her father-in-law, Judah (he didn’t know it was her, but still…).  Rahab was a harlot who helped the Jews.  Ruth was a foreigner who honored God.  The “wife of Uriah” is Bathsheba, who was taken advantage of by King David.  And, of course, the young woman, Mary, who was chosen by God to bear His Son as a gift to the world.

The men?  There is the first Jew, Abraham, who is an example of faith.  He was followed a couple generations later by Jacob, who was a conniving liar, but who received the blessing of God.  King David, the man after God’s own heart, who messed up terribly with Bathsheba, yet fathered Solomon by her, is among those listed just a few generations before King Jeconiah, who was such a terrible man he was cursed by God.  And lastly, Joseph, who must have been an amazing man to have been chosen as the foster father for the Savior of the world.

What do we learn from all these names, some of which we can barely pronounce?  That God CAN and DOES use even the worst among us if we are available and willing to honor Him.  We can’t change where we were born, like Ruth, and we can’t change who our parents are or the circumstances of our birth, like Solomon.  We may do the wrong things for what we thought were the right reasons, like Abraham and Jacob, but if we believe God, He will use us for His glory.  And even if we live a quiet, simple life, like Joseph and Mary, God may just use us to introduce others to Jesus.

While it may be true that we pass along genetic material and cultural habits to those who come after us, what really matters is whether we pass along the faith and humility that God honors.  Because no matter how my DNA test comes back, I already know I’m a spiritual descendant of Abraham and David and Ruth and Joseph and Mary.  And Jesus.  I’m really hoping one of these days I start looking more and more like Him, and less like that old stinker, Jacob.  But I claim them all, and I’m thankful that they passed on to me the faith to believe in the God who made me who I am, and who made me His own.  Now it’s my job to do the same for those who come after me. 

Jacob