MY FRIEND, MAX

There was a point early in my career when I seriously considered moving my family to San Antonio, Texas.  Our family was young!  Troy and Tracie were babies.  We lived in McClellandtown, PA.  I was going to be moving to a new church and thought: "Why not explore some different options?"  

Somehow or other, I heard about the Free Methodist Church in New Orleans - looking for a pastor - and wrote a letter of inquiry.  They responded immediately.  An invitation came to fly in for a weekend.  I only had one thought on my mind.

This was the city where Max Lucado lived and pastored!  Maybe I would meet him at a pastor's gathering?  Maybe we would live near him?  Maybe we would become friends?  I could hardly imagine such joy!

But, it would be a huge change for us!  Our family was young.  We would be removing them from all our family connections.  My mom had died a year earlier. It wasn't a good time to move away from my dad.  It would probably be REALLY HOT down there - I was surprised when I consulted a map and saw how far south it was!  After seriously weighing all the factors - I moved to East Liverpool, OH instead.  

Actually, there's a story in that move, too!  I was told that I was going to the Apollo, PA FMC where I would conveniently be able to continue my seminary education in Pittsburgh.  But, a last minute change occurred and in the wisdom of the Ministerial Appointment Committee [and a story I can't tell here], I was appointed to the Oakland FMC, where I served for thirteen years.  

Consequently, I've never met my literary friend, Max.  I've read his books and tried to emulate his style, but our paths are not likely to cross.  

I'm currently re-reading his book, IT'S NOT ABOUT ME.  

In chapter two, in his masterful style, Max talks about the fact that God meets with Moses after journeying a ways into the wilderness.  God has already offered to wipe the Israelites out and start again with Moses - as He had done earlier with Noah.  God understands Moses' frustration with these unfaithful, chronic complaining, rebellious people!  

Consequently, God gives Moses one last request.  

It's like rubbing the magic lantern!  God grants Moses a freebee!  Ask anything you want, Moses!  He doesn't even have to think about it!  

"Show me Your glory!" [Exodus 33:18 NCV].

Max writes about this request:  

"We cross a line when we make such a request.  When our deepest desire is not the things of God, or a favor from God, but God Himself, we cross a threshold.  Less self-focus, more God-focus. Less about me, more about Him." 

"Flex your biceps.  Let me see the S on your chest...Forget the money and power.  Bypass the youth.  I can live with an aging body, but I can't live without you.  I want more, God, please.  I'd like to see more of your glory."  [p.18]

So, God tucked Moses into the cleft of a rock, telling Moses:

"You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me and live...I...will cover you with My hand while I pass by.  Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen" [Exodus 33:20,22-23 NKJV]. 

 Paul - in II Corinthians 3:7 - tells us the results of this exposure to God:

When Moses descended the mountain, "the sons of Israel could not look intently at the face of Moses because of the glory of his face". 

We must listen to my friend, Max, again:  😉

"Did Moses have reason for anger?  Cause for worry? Of course.  Challenges await him.  A desert and forty years of great challenges.  But now, having seen God's face, he can face them."

"Forgive my effrontery, but shouldn't Moses' request be yours?  You've got problems.  Look at you.  Living in a dying body, walking on a decaying planet, surrounded by self-centered society.  Some saved by grace; others fueled by narcissism.  Many of us by both.  Cancer.  War.  Disease.

These are no small issues.  A small god?  No thanks.  You and I need what Moses needed - a glimpse of God's glory.  Such a sighting can change you forever."  [p.20]

Whatever you're facing - be it frustrating people or enigmatic situations, CHOOSE CAREFULLY!  Wealth is devalued.  Things deteriorate.  Relationships grow distant.  Strength diminishes.  Memory becomes unreliable.  Choose an eternity with God - who loves you and gave His one-and-only-Son for you!  He - and He alone - will see you through to a good end!   

 

IT'S HARD TO READ THE OLD TESTAMENT PROPHETS

 For instance, I'm currently reading in Isaiah and Hosea.  They both lived and worked for God in the eighth century B.C.  This was  not a good time in Israel's history!  Her kingdom has already been divided into the northern and southern kingdoms: Samaria (north) and Judah [or Ephraim] (south).  Each has their own king and the kings of Samaria have even created their own worship centers to prevent their people from going to Jerusalem to worship!  

The people of both countries have wandered away from God.  They worship idols and sacrifice to non-gods.  Their immoral conduct is beyond description. They have forgotten the commandments of God and are living for self-pleasure.  Their kings are caught between two dominant and competitive forces:  Egypt, which has been stable for centuries, and Assyria, which is rising in power!  A long line of northern and southern kings seek treaties with one or the other of theses countries in an attempt to gain favor and protect their people.  They do this, of course, instead of turning to God for guidance and protection!  

God - through His prophets - sends many messengers to try to get the attention of His people, but they continue to rebel and ignore Him.  

By 722 B.C., God's patience has expired and he brings Assyria - as His instrument of punishment - to destroy Samaria and carry her inhabitants away to foreign lands!  Then, in 587 B.C., Jerusalem was destroyed and its people were carried away to Babylon!  And the foretold seventy years of exile began!  

During this time, the land of Israel lay dormant with a very small number of people left to care for the land!  Not until the Persians defeated Babylon would the new King Cyrus make a decree that the Jews could return to Israel and begin to rebuild the city and the temple [this occurred around 539 B.C.].  

Although the people were restored to their homeland, she would never attain to her former glory!

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I'm no prophet and I am not a scholar, but it is hard not to make inferences to our current situation in America.

Our country was founded on Christian principles by godly men and women who sought to establish a place for freedom of religion.  There is little doubt that these efforts flourished and a new country was born of revolution for independence!  Thirteen fledgling colonies gradually grew [by 1959] to fifty states [by the admission of Hawaii].  

This new land prospered in almost every way as westward expansion progressed from sea-to-sea!  The industrial revolution fueled enormous financial growth!  The central part of the new country became the breadbasket of the world!  The core values of Christianity adorned almost all government buildings via statues or engravings.  Churches became the glue that held communities together.  This establishment of peace and prosperity survived through the 1950's.  

Although I'm no historian, it is clear that the underpinnings came under attack during the turbulent 1960's.  We've catalogued a continual decline in the impact of Christianity since that time!  The drop-off of morality has progressively had an impact on the foundation of the American family!  Our educational system has fallen into the hands of seemingly 'progressive' thinkers who had alternative plans to subvert our youth and sow seeds of dissension.  We're seeing the results of this undermining nightly on our news channels.  

Families fracture, marriage is muddled, education is extirpated, unity is gutted, and hope is diminished. Sexual confusion is rampant among our children who are no longer led or protected by reasonable or Christian perspectives.  And all the while, a massive number of frustrated Americans remain silent - even though they may actually represent a majority!  

A cursory view of our world notices that two massive and major countries who have been traditionally considered a threat to the United States have now allied and pose a very real threat to our existence.  For at least a year, we've heard reporters and government leaders indicate that we are on the edge of nuclear war!  

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And yet, life goes on.  Many are unaware or unconcerned about these grave dilemmas.  Day-to-day life is all that matters.  Some have begun to pack away resources in case of an economic collapse.  The extreme wealthy have prepared underground bunkers capable of sustaining life for several years, if necessary.  Others rest in the misguided assumption that our woke military will ALWAYS be capable of defending us against our united enemies.  

But, different from the Old Testament days, we hear no prophets calling us back to the principles of our faith!  Christians are largely indistinguishable from all other citizens.  Complacency reigns - even in the church - which is clearly in serious decline!  

Thanks to the current administration, we're already being invaded by hoards of immigrants who do not share our values, know our history, or speak our language.  This damage has been done and cannot be reversed.  Those who have the desire and potential to propagate destructive acts and unleash unspeakable violence are already within our borders!  

For those who pay attention to these things, it at least raises the fear that we may be on the verge of being displaced, deported or destroyed.  

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For those who follow Christ firmly and place their trust in Him, we rest in the knowledge that He has assured us that He is always with us!  He sees it all!  He loves His own.  

But the fear is real!  Christians in the Roman Empire were compelled to pledge allegiance to Caesar or die!  Many chose death over denying their Lord!  Will it come to that for American Christians?  Is our faith in an eternal reward strong enough to carry us through this kind of deep persecution?  

The people of Jerusalem were marched out of the city naked as they looked over their shoulders at the smoldering fires of destruction.  Even the prophet Jeremiah was in this group!  But the same God who brought about their destruction, put it on Cyrus' heart to release them and fund the rebuilding of their society!  WE MUST TRUST GOD AND GOD ALONE!  

CHRISTIANS DIE WELL

[I came across this in William Barclay's DAILY CELEBRATION - Volume 2.  I felt compelled to share it with you today!]

T. R. Glover published his book, THE JESUS OF HISTORY, in 1917.  In it, he discusses the triumph of Christianity in the ancient world.  

It was a highly improbable triumph.  How did it happen that a small group of simple and unlettered men could go out into the world with the story of a crucified Jewish criminal and persuade men and women to take that Jesus as savior and Lord?  

Glover's answer is that the Christians were enabled by the grace of God to do three things - they outlived, they out-died, and they out-thought the pagan world.

THEY OUTLIVED THE WORLD

Why were they able to do this?  Because they could say of Jesus: "He loved me and gave himself for me" (Gal.2:20).  Every man had acquired a new dignity and a new worth because he could say that for him, as a person, the Son of God had died.

Further, he believed that the Son of God had loved and given Himself for all men.  He had therefore a motive for service that no one else had.

He was eager to help the man for whom Christ died.  He had a motive of forgiveness such as no one else had.  However unpleasant that other man might be, Jesus Christ had died for him.

He had a motive for purity such as no one else had.  He could look at a prostitute - "the victim of the common lust" as Tertullian called her - and he could know that even for her Christ had died.  And therefore he must treat her as a daughter of God and the beloved of Jesus Christ.  [Imagine how reduced the clicks for pornography would be if today's Christian men and women thought this way?]

Once a man could say "He loved me and gave Himself for me", and once he knew that that was true of everyone including himself, life could become a "new creation".

THEY OUT-DIED THE WORLD

It was this that won Tertullian, the famous Roman lawyer.  He saw the Christians die, and it shook him to the depths of his being!  "Every man," he said, "who sees it is moved with some misgiving, and is set on fire to learn the reason; he enquires and he is taught;  and when he has learned the truth he instantly follows it himself."  

When simple men and women could choose to die like that, and to die in agony, there must be something in that for which they died!

THEY OUT-THOUGHT THE WORLD

The ancient world was credulous and superstitious.  The Christian was clear-sighted and fearless.

Lucian tells how he saw on heathen shrines the notice: "Christians keep out."  The Christian saw too clearly through the mumbo-jumbo.

In the ancient world the way to destroy your enemy was to attach his name to a demon and the demon would kill him. "Go on," said the Christian, "attach my name to a demon.  I don't care.  I have a name which is above every name to keep me safe."

The Christian thought fearlessly and clearly.  The number of heresies shows the freedom and vigor with which the Christian thought.  He had a freedom of thought and speech that no one else had ever had.

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If we are to persuade the world that Christianity is worthwhile, the way of the early Christians is the only way.  We have to outlive the world in service, in charity, in purity and in joy.

We have to out-die the world in that we show the world that we are still prepared to pay the price of being a Christian.

We have to out-think the world, not clinging to the old ways and the old words, but ever ready for the adventure of thought in whatever age we live.

LONGING FOR SPONTANEITY

The last week of Jesus' life is a revelation of how much He loved the Pharisees and wanted to see them change their hearts toward Him.  

Throughout His three years of ministry, He:

• tried to be kind to them,
• tried to reason with them,
• ate in their homes,
• answered their questions,
• prayed for them [even in the midst of the Palm Sunday parade]

But, when He came to the last week of His life, He went directly after them!  He exposed them and confronted the hardness of their hearts.  He revealed their pride and arrogance.  He addressed their exclusivity.  He named their sins and indicted their prejudices. 

All of this because He yearned for them to become soft toward God!  When we read or view this scene, we are seeing the passionate heart of a compassionate Lord!

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I often wonder how - in America - we can read these passages and NOT see the American Church as the modern-day Pharisees.  

When I was actively leading churches, the number of Free Methodists in the U.S. was around 100,000 members.  Fifteen years later, that number is down to around 68,000 members!  Yet the number of global Free Methodists in expanding exponentially!

Is it any wonder that George Barna reports: 

"More than three quarters of adults in attendance do not experience the presence of God during worship.  In fact, half of all churchgoers admit that they have not felt connected to God or in His presence at any time in the past year, in spite of regular attendance at church."  

We'll not take time here to repeat the tragic numbers of church closings in recent years!  

During my years in China, I noticed something that perplexed me.  [NOTE: 2012-2015 was a period where the church in China was experiencing a good measure of freedom to grow and expand!]  

With some regularity, representatives of the American Church were brought in to hold special meetings in Chinese churches to teach them how to do evangelism and how to grow their churches.  Chinese Christians would flock to these meetings to hear these American 'experts'!  

I challenged those that I knew well and tried to explain that the presence of the Americans could do nothing but harm the Chinese Church.  But my attempts were rebuffed repeatedly.  The Chinese were convinced that the Americans could help them.  

Still, I persisted!  "The American Church has been in decline for at least seven decades!  The number of churches being started [in America] is eclipsed by the number of churches being closed!  If anything, the American Church should be sitting at the feet of the Chinese to find out how to grow the Kingdom of God!"

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But lets be careful!  I am NOT saying that ALL churches are disconnected, ineffective and declining.  There ARE exceptions - thanks be to God!  That speaks to HOPE!  

However, the bigger picture is discouraging on many fronts!  Current church leadership appears to be as mismatched to the task of regenerating life in the Church as our government leaders are at unifying and restoring confidence in our country!  

Yet - as stated earlier - we don't see Jesus' admonitions to the Pharisees as being relevant to us!  We don't meaningfully reflect on what Barna is identifying!  We don't care about the decline of the American Church!  We watch as empty seats outnumber filled seats.  We endure worship that fails to engage us with songs we don't know and performers who we enjoy watching.  The bulletin and order of worship is identical week after week, while few can remember the last baptism or name the most recent convert!  

Again - thank God for the exceptions!  But where is the hope for renewal and a reversal of this half-century trend?  

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A personal word:

I remember the joy of worship experienced in several of the churches that I participated in leading.  

• The 'Praise & Worship' movement of the 1980's sparked new life and jubilant worship during our years at the Oakland Church [East Liverpool, OH].
• The contagious, joyful worship at Cornerstone Church [Akron, OH] ignited new life in a constantly growing body of believers!
• After a few years of foundation-laying, our worship at Free Methodist Community Church [New Middletown, OH] became gratifying as our people reported experiencing the presence of God regularly in worship!
• The worship of the International Church we met with in Changchun [PRC] regularly brought tears to my eyes and joy to my heart as we met weekly with believers from as many as ten to fifteen nations!

I long for vibrant worship!  Worship that draws people to the front of the sanctuary instead of driving them to the back seats!  Worship that ignites passion and engages spirits!  Worship that refreshes, restores, enthralls, raises expectations for Sunday mornings!  

Today, my most meaningful worship takes place in my car as I weep and laugh joyfully before the Lord while listening to Robin Mark's music.  However, though it meets my need for vertical worship, it leaves me void of horizontal worship.  I still long to experience that again!