Church History: Martyrs (part 1)

Starting with Stephen (Acts 7-8:1), the history of the church tells of the men and women who were martyred for their testimony of Jesus Christ. Over the next few weeks, we will look at some of their stories. Scripture tells us that James was executed by King Herod Agrippa around A.D. 44 (Mark 6:14-29). Ten years later, the Apostle Philip was scourged, imprisoned, and crucified. Legend says that Matthew was killed in A.D. 60 by violent means. Jesus’ brother, James was martyred around A.D. 66. Peter’s brother, Andrew was crucified on an X-shaped cross; Peter was also crucified – but upside-down as he did not consider himself worthy to die in the same position as his Lord. Tradition says Mark was dragged to pieces in Alexandria and Paul was beheaded in A.D. 66.

Even today, in many parts of the eastern world, people are still being killed for their faith. We don’t have the same level of persecution in the U.S., but I have no doubt that it’s coming. If someone were to ever point a gun at my head and demand that I betray my Savior or die, I say I would choose death. But am I betraying Him in my daily life? Will I betray Him with profane words while wearing my “Jesus is Lord” T-shirt? Will I curse someone who cut me off despite the fish symbol on my bumper? Will I walk into church on Sunday morning after walking into an R-rated movie on Saturday night? I say that I will take a bullet for Jesus, but will I take the humble road in a dispute with my neighbor?

What good is my bold declaration of devotion to Jesus if I don’t prove my kinship in the smaller matters of daily life? I don’t think I will ever be confronted with death for the cause of Christ, but every day I must choose to die to myself in the grocery store, my workplace, my home, and on the road.

Harold Chadwick, who updated Foxe’s Book of Martyrs in 1997 wrote these words after pouring over story after story of dauntless and devoted Christians who gladly died for the Name and cause of Christ: “Could we with our soft and self-serving Christianity, follow their examples of such courage and love for Christ that we would suffer being tortured, mutilated, and burned alive rather than recant our faith in Him?”[1] What say ye, Beloved?

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[1] Harold J. Chadwick, Forward to The New Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, Updated through the 21^st Century, (Alachua: Bridge-Logos, 2001), xiv.

When the Rooster Crows

Have you ever noticed how hard it is to recognize sin in the moment? Peter sat in the courtyard outside of the place where Jesus was being tried, and three times denied his association with the One whom he had sworn just hours before to never abandon. It wasn’t until the rooster crowed that Peter woke out of his sin stupor and realized what he had done. And it broke his heart. Oh, Jesus had tried to help him. He warned him when they stood on the Mount of Olives: “Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times” (Matthew 26:34) and again in the Garden: “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41).
The flesh wants what the flesh wants. It doesn’t care about your spirit when temptation dangles like a carrot on a stick. Or an adult website. Or an attractive coworker. It will rise up in you and me and take control. There’s something about the lure of sin that dulls our spiritual senses and makes it easy for our weak flesh to fall for the bait. In that moment we’re only thinking of pleasure. It’s after we have spent ourselves for sin, that we wake up and realize what we’ve done. Which is what Peter did when he heard the rooster’s call. He suddenly remembered Jesus’ dire prediction and “he went outside and wept bitterly” (v. 75).
It’s no wonder that Peter later wrote, “Be self-controlled and alert” (1 Peter 5:8). He learned the hard way the necessity of being sober and vigilant. The enemy is on the prowl – looking for an opportunity to take you and me down. He knows your vices, he knows my weaknesses and he takes full advantage of them.
Paul, under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, said we must be aware of the devil’s schemes (Eph 6:11) and look for the way out of temptation (1 Cor 10:13) – and there is always a way out. The problem is most of us are looking for the way in. When the Bible says “Flee evil desires” that means you get away from the temptation. You don’t stand there and toy with it. You will fall every time.
I confess I am by no means an expert on resisting sin, but I know Someone who is and His advice is to “Watch and pray.” And run away. Beloved, don’t let the rooster crow on you.

Yes, Jesus Loves Me

I was blessed to attend a Bible study group this week for the first time. As a teacher, it is a rare treat to have someone pour into me for a change. The worship was uplifting, the fellowship was sweet, and the message was timely: the Love of God. The speaker took us through several of the attributes of God’s love and she ended by leading us all through “Jesus Loves Me.” Yes, that is a sweet little song we teach to our children, but let me assure you, it is equally applicable to adults. There is something specials about singing that song with a group of seasoned ladies who have leaned on God’s love through the highs and lows of life.
But something interesting happened. Did you know that there are more verses to that song than we teach our babies? Do you know the words to all those verses? I don’t and neither did most of the ladies there. So we Googled the song. We all knew the first verse – no problem. And we all referred to our phones for the second verse – still good. And then we came to the third verse and we were not all on the same version. Suddenly most of us dropped out and let the leader sing a solo.
What happened? We looked to the world for the words. We trusted the internet to fill in the holes in our song. The lesson was clear to me. Trust no one else but God for truth. Sure it was just a verse in a simple, little song, and the words we pulled up were not blasphemous – they were just not the right words. But words – or rather The Word – matters. Paul urged Timothy to stay in the Scriptures that are the very breath of God (2 Tim 3:14-17). Peter confirmed that the Scriptures are given to man by the Holy Spirit – they are trustworthy and true. They are always the right words.
You may be tired of me beating the Berean drum, but it cannot be stressed enough – always, always, always take everything you hear and everything you read and lay it alongside the Bible and see if it is true (Acts 17:11). Do not take anyone’s word for truth if it does not agree with the living Word of the living God. Too much is at stake to be misled, even by one little, seemingly insignificant word.
Beloved, be a student of the Scriptures. Get to know God’s Word for yourself so that you do not fall for the wrong verse in the song. Because Jesus does love you, and you need to know it.

Take What God Has Given You

“Take possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given you the land to possess” (Numbers 33:53). This was God’s word to the Israelites when they came to the edge of the Promised Land after forty years of wandering in the wilderness. They were about to take possession of the territory that God had promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob long ago – land was already inhabited by powerful people who would not surrender without a fight. The Israelites would have to go in and take what God had given to them.
The Holy Spirit nudged my heart, “What has God given to you that you need to take possession of?” Let’s see what the Scripture says.
This past year has been full of turmoil and anxiety for me. But Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you” (Jn 14:27). That means I don’t have to search for His peace, He had already given it to me.
I confess that I have said, “I don’t think I can do what You expect of me. It’s too hard.” But His Word says, “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness” (2 Pet 1:3). God has prepared us for life in His Son.
I have always tended to be melancholy – I don’t naturally “bubble over,” but Jesus has given me Joy – His Joy. He said, “My Joy may be in you . . . that your Joy may be complete” (Jn 15:11). And He told the Father that we have been given “the full measure of [His] Joy” (Jn 17:13).
“As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you” (Jn 15:9). From Genesis to Revelation the Bible speaks of God’s unfailing, abiding, lavish love which He freely gives to you and me.
“I have given them your word” (Jn 17:14). Jesus came to earth as the Word of God made flesh (Jn 1:14) so that we could know God’s heart.
“I have given them the glory that You gave me” (Jn 17:22). Read it again. This is incredible! Jesus has given you and me His very own glory. He has exalted us in Him before the Father.
And this is the greatest gift of all – “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son” (1 Jn 5:11). Words fail me. It is too wonderful for my finite mind.
All of these are ours in Christ. Not just will be. Are. But we must lay hold of what has already been decreed for us as God’s children. Beloved, it’s time to take what belongs to you by God’s grace and favor.

Acts: When the Lion Roars

Paul sits in confinement in a Roman barracks while evil things are stirring outside of the jail, things that will move Paul into God’s perfect plan. Please read Acts 23:12-35.
Paul’s young nephew overheard the Jews plotting to kill his uncle. They were so committed to their hatred that they vowed not to eat or drink until their wicked deed was done. They created a ruse to get their intended victim away from the safe confines of the barracks – and the chief priests and elders were in on it.
But the boy told Paul and the Roman commander of the conspiracy. Realizing that his own life rested on the safety of his prisoner – a Roman citizen no less – the commander intervened and ordered a large detachment of Roman soldiers to get Paul out of Jerusalem. He appealed to Governor Felix who was in Caesarea on Paul’s behalf and they whisked him away in the night. Paul was kept secure in Herod’s palace until a trial could be convened.
Every time I read this account, I picture the angels of heaven and the demons of hell in a cosmic clash of epic proportions. I’ve been in the middle of those a few times –when good and evil are battling just over my head. That’s not saying I am good and an evil person is at war with me. That means God’s purpose for my life, or the life of someone I love is under spiritual attack. The battle over Paul was the devil’s attempt to squash God’s most prolific evangelist – and the spread of the gospel.
In His last message to His disciples, Jesus said, “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first” (Jn 15:18).
Every time I stepped out in obedience to the Lord – to teach, speak, write, go to seminary, or fight for the soul of someone I love – the devil set me in his crosshairs and started shooting. I have heard His wicked voice in my ear and felt his hot breath on the back of my neck. Do you know what that means? I am right where God wants me to be.
The Scripture says, “[the devil] is filled with fury because he knows that his time is short” (Rev. 12:12). If that was true two thousand-plus years ago, it is more so today. He is “a roaring lion” (1 Pet 5:8). and he roars loudest at those who threaten his wicked kingdom. If the enemy is breathing down your neck trust that the Lord and his angels are breathing down his – and you, Beloved, are in the sweet spot of God’s will.

This is Love

Christmas and love go hand in hand.
Love sent the Divine to earth (Gal 4:4).
Love wrapped the Baby in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger (Lk 2:6).
Love sang to the shepherds (Lk 2:14).
Love appeared as a guiding star (Mt 2:10).
But love isn’t just for Christmas.
Love welcomed the Promise of Israel (Lk 2:25-38).
Love searched for the lost boy for three days in Jerusalem (Lk 2:46).
Love made a home for a son that wasn’t his own (Lk 2:51).
And when the boy grew into a man . . .
Love healed the sick and raised the dead and freed the demon-possessed (Matt; Mk; Lk).
Love refused to judge (Jn 8:10).
Love rejected to devil’s temptations (Mt 4:10)
Love preached the Kingdom of God (Mt 4:17).
Love taught the truth (Matt; Mk; Lk).
Love willingly touched the leper (Mt 8:3).
Love calmed the storm (Mk 4:39).
Love made the blind see and the mute speak (Matt; Mk Lk).
Love spoke in parables that the people could understand (Matt).
Love fed the hungry (Mt 15:29-39)
Love walked on water and rescued a drowning man (Mt 14:22-33).
Love came for lost sons and daughters (Lk 19:10).
Love blessed the little children (Mk 10:13-16).
Love rode a colt into the city (Mk 11:1-10).
Love cleansed the temple (Mk 11:12-17).
Love washed filthy feet (Jn 13: 1-17)
Love broke the bread and shared the wine (Mt 26:126-28).
Love prayed while His friends slept (Mt 26:36-46)
Love restored a wounded ear (Lk 49-51).
Love stood before those who would judge and condemn an innocent man (Jn 18:1-19:16).
Love willingly took the blows (Mk 15:16-20).
Love bore the burden of the cross and the crown of thorns (Mt27:27-31; Jn 19:17).
Love felt the nails (Mk 15:24).
Love covered over a multitude of sins (1 Pet 4:8)
Love made sure His mother was cared for (Jn 19:26-27).
Love said, “It is finished” and surrendered His Spirit (Jn 19:30; Lk 23:46).
Love lay silently in a borrowed tomb (Mt 27:57-60).
Love broke open the grave ((Mt 28:2-6).
Love walked through the garden (Jn 20: 10-18).
Love cooked breakfast on the beach (Jn 21:12).
Love sent the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4).
Love is coming again (Rev 22:20).
Do you know why I always call you “Beloved?” It’s because God loves you with an everlasting, never-failing, eternal, divine and holy love. Don’t believe me? He planted and nurtured the seed that would grow into the tree that would become the cross on which His Son would die. For you.

Advent 2023: How Do We Get to Bethlehem?

“Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea . . . “Matthew 2:1

I had a conversation recently with a friend who is moving away. She is greeting this transition with both anxiety and excitement. “It’s all going to be so strange in a new town, but who knows what God has in store there?” I remembered my own move five years ago and that same mix of anticipation and trepidation. Like my friend, I believed God was behind our relocation and in the ensuing years He has confirmed that His will for me is here in this place. I believe God sets things in motion and orchestrates events so that His will is fulfilled. The Bible is filled with story after story of God’s hand in the events of human history, and in individual lives. But sometimes the path He chooses is hard and difficult to understand in the moment.

Joseph had a destiny in Egypt that affected his family, the forthcoming nation of Israel and the entire world. But God took him through pits and prison on the way. David would be king of Israel, but by way of the sheep fields and running for his life through the wilderness. I love the accounts of Paul; God had a purpose for him, to “carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel,” (Acts 9:15). He declared, “you must testify about me in Rome, (Acts 23:11). And he did indeed make it to Rome to declare the name of Christ Jesus, but he arrived as a prisoner, through a storm and a shipwreck and a snake (Acts 27-28).

Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem fulfilled a prophecy made hundreds of years before: “Out of you, Bethlehem Ephrathah . . . will come one for me who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from old, from ancient times” (Micah 5:2). How could that happen when His mother and father were in Nazareth, some 100 miles away? Watch what God did. “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. And everyone when to his own town to register,” (Luke 2:1, 3). Guess where Joseph’s family town happened to be?

Beloved, a life surrendered into the hands of the Lord God Almighty may have twists and surprises, and yes even doubts and struggles, but you can be assured that He is faithful to fulfill His purpose. Don’t be afraid of these “strange things that are happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12). It’s just God at work fulfilling His purpose for you.

Thanks Giving

The Ark of the Covenant, the one element of the Tabernacle that was God’s special dwelling place, had been captured by the Philistines.  David set out to bring the Ark home, and the people and their king were ecstatic.  They celebrated with sacrifices and offerings and Joyful thanks.  The king wrote a psalm: “Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name; make known among the nations what He has done” (1 Chr 16:8). With the Ark secured in its rightful place, David appointed priests and Levites to minister before the Ark, to present the daily offerings and some to guard the gate to the tent.

There was another important position to be filled: “With them were Heman and Jeduthun and the rest of those chosen and designated by name to give thanks to the Lord, ‘for His love endures forever’” (1 Chr 16:41). Their sole responsibility was to express gratitude to the Lord who was again dwelling among His people.  They led the Israelites in songs and exclamations of thanks.

Did you know that you are also chosen to give thanks? You may not be a descendant of Aaron, the first high priest, but 1 Peter 2:9 says: “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness and into His wonderful light.” If you are in Christ, you have been chosen by God to be His royal priest.  You have been given the special mission of leading your family, church, community, and nation in gratitude to the Lord who created you, sustains you, provides for you, and, most importantly of all, the One who saved and redeemed you and marked you for eternal life.  Being a priest of God is a high and holy calling.

As you gather with family and friends today, remember that God is with you in your celebration. And never forget that you are a priest chosen by the Lord to give thanks.  So give thanks, Beloved – today and every day. I pray you have a blessed and Joyful Thanksgiving friends.

Loaves and Fishes and Walking on Water

The Bible is more than simple soundbites and stories. It is a continuum of God’s story and his activity and interaction with His creation. There are common threads that run throughout the Scriptures. Case in point: Peter walked on the water. A meager lunch fed thousands of people. What is the connection? Faith. Faith to accomplish the impossible with the limitations of nature – water vs. weight vs. mass. Faith to accomplish the impossible with the smallest offering in the face of great need. It was faith in Jesus that made Peter swing his legs over the side of that boat. It was faith in Jesus that led a little boy to give up the only food he had to the Teacher. Without faith, Peter sits in the boat and wonders “What if?” Without faith, one little boy has a full tummy, thousands of people go hungry, and the miraculous work of Jesus goes unfulfilled. Peter could have “logically’ reasoned that the water could not hold him up. The little boy could have kept his lunch to himself, after all, Mama made it for him, besides, “That’s a drop in the bucket for a crowd like this” (John 6:9-The Message).

What are we afraid of? That the water won’t hold us up? That the little we have won’t be enough? Christ honors and esteems our faith. Will you hold on to the meager things, thinking it’s best to keep what little you have than lose it? Will I decide that the risk of failure outweighs the call of God? I’m preaching to myself right now. What am I afraid of? That Jesus will let me down, let me sink, leave me hungry? That I will be embarrassed by stepping out in faith and failing? That’s not my Jesus.

You see, by definition, faith is more than warm thoughts; faith is a belief and a confidence that leads to action. I want to be a woman of faith. I want to step out of the safe confines of the boat; I want to give to Jesus the little I have and trust Him to not only provide everything I need but to spread the little I have out to bless many more. Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ said, “God does not require you to have great faith. You simply are to have faith in a great God.”

Beloved, how is your faith today?

Cold Hearts

In recent years there has been a rash of “celebrity Christians” who have renounced their faith and “deconstructed.” (I think it’s more accurate to say they have “self-destructed.”) What happened to these pastors, musicians, authors, and communicators? I remember a quote that said – “If you don’t feel close to God anymore, think about who moved.” Peter is the prime example of one who walked closely with the Savior, yet allowed himself to drift.

One of Christ’s most passionate disciples, Peter swore allegiance to Jesus when he announced, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death” (Luke 22:33). But Jesus knew that Peter’s bold talk would not sustain his resolve. He told Peter “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me” (v. 34). And sure enough, Luke 22:54-62 tells us that Peter did just as the Lord said he would.

How does one who walked so closely with Jesus turn away from Him so easily?

The last part of verse 54 gives us an important clue – “Peter followed at a distance.” He heads out to accompany his Lord and Teacher with the passionate heart of a disciple. But out of fear for his own life, he fell back, and the distance between him and Jesus began to work on his heart. When he separated himself, his passion for the Lord cooled, and rather than a heart warmed by his love for Jesus, he warms himself beside a man-made fire. His passion for Christ had chilled to the point that he openly denied the One he previously swore to follow to prison and death. Not once. Not twice. But three times.

It is the same with you and me – we allow the cares or the fear or the glitter of this world to draw us away from our Savior. It’s quite subtle at first. A thought here, a compromise there, a shift in priorities and soon our hearts begin to cool toward Christ. Rather than draw near to Him, we turn and warm our cold hearts at the world’s fires. God promised in His Word to never leave us, but you and I can certainly drift and lose our white-hot passion for Christ. Beloved, don’t let anything this world has to offer cause you to deny your Savior. Stay close to Jesus with prayer and Bible study and humble surrender. Be sure you’re not seeking the warmth of strange fires.