Saturdays at 8(am)

For Saturday, January 28, 2012.  Hooray for the ice fishermen.

Gentlemen,

Perry reported that you pressed on through Roman’s Chapter 3.  Be ready for Chapter 4, giving us an example of what true faith looks like, in Abraham.  

To make sense of this Chapter, it helps to know the story of Abraham.  We studied Genesis in 2007-2008 so it may be a bit rusty.  Genesis Chapter 17 is a good summary of God’s promises to Abraham, and includes the talk of circumcision that became so important to the Jewish people that they began to see it in the wrong way, like “this is our club and no one else can get in.”  Hebrews 11:8-19 is the best and shortest summary of Abraham’s faith.

In the same way that Courage can only be proved in action, Faith can only be seen in what you do.  And Abraham had it.

Faith is deep.  You can’t reduce it to one dimension.  Paul tells us we are justified solely by Faith.  James tells us, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves.  Do what it says.” 

What major qualities of God emerge from this Chapter?  How will these qualities change the way you live next week?

-Pete M.

P.S. Here is our 11-3-07 weekly e-mail for Genesis, Chapter 12 on Abraham.  It is remarkably relevant to Roman’s Chapter 4:

Genesis Chapter 12 contains a promise, and an instruction to Abraham.  Read Hebrews 11:8-16 and Romans 4:16-25.  These verses summarize Abraham’s story, with the benefit of hindsight that the New Testament authors had regarding the answer to the promises made so many years before.  The following questions frame the next several chapters, so keep them in mind:

• What was God’s promise to Abraham?
• How was the promise kept by God?
• Did Abraham ever see the promise to fruition?  Did he ever benefit from the grace available through it? 
• Are we beneficiaries of the same promise?
• What was God preparing the world for through Abraham?

Any major patterns emerging in Genesis that reflect the character of God? 

Gentlemen,

Last week we explored how Romans helps us relate to God and others today.  Great stuff.  Let’s finish Roman’s Chapter 2 and work beyond as time permits. 

Paul, essentially a lawyer, is sometimes long-winded & repetitive.  Try this:  Look at each passage of text and underline the verse that sums it up.  Here are mine.

·         Romans 2:17-29:  There was tremendous antagonism between the Jews (proud of their Abrahamic and Mosaic legacy) and the Gentiles.  Addressing this, “You, then (the Jews), who teach others, do you not teach yourself?”

·         Romans 3:  “This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe… all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”  [This sums up the entire book.]

·         Romans 4:  Look at Abraham as an example, “The words ‘it was credited to him’ were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness - for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.”

Saturday will be excellent. 

Hope does not disappoint,

Pete M.

PS:  John Sisson just had a shoulder replacement.  Bev & Merrill Almquist sent thanks for our prayers, as Merrill gradually recovers from cancer and chemo, and is no longer in hospice.

PPS: The Lake Leelanau group has firmed up one-day men’s retreat plans on March 17th, and is inviting Christian men throughout the County.  It will be rewarding.  Christian men will grow in faith.  Protestants will experience Christian unity in the hospitality of their Catholic brothers.  Pastor Joe will be attending and has been invited to help out.  I will send a separate e-mail with more details.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Gentlemen,

I saw a former church member at the post office.   I said, “I hope the New Year is good”, catching his eye so he knew it was more than a greeting.

“It couldn’t be much worse than last year…”

We chatted a little.  There was bitterness in his heart mixed up with concern about the people who are less fortunate.

Yet, I am surprised by the resilience I see around me.  Families break up, finances fail, jobs come and go, addictions suck the life out of some, young people tangle with crime.  Untimely death takes family members, serious illness hits so many.  And I see people in these circumstances saying “thank you.”  Often the loudest thanks come from those hardest hit.  Living out the Book of Philippians, they press on toward the goal….  Rejoicing in the Lord they find the peace of God, which transcends all understanding.

It keeps me in line and shuts up the complaining voice in the back of my head.  I’m thankful for that.

FOR SATURDAY:

Be ready for Romans, Chapters 2 and 3.  In the first half of Chapter 1, Paul summarizes his theme.  In the last half of Chapter 1, Paul describes some of the immorality facing Rome.  In Chapter 2 he dashes the hope of Jews claiming righteousness by their heritage, or anyone claiming righteousness by their behavior.  Then he lumps the Gentiles in the same category - we all fall short.  No one can condemn someone without condemning himself.  God gives us a law we can’t meet.  Seemingly, we’ve been set up for failure.  So what’s the point? 

Chapter 3 starts the explanation, which continues through Chapter 8.  This is my summary:

·         God is perfect.  He cannot tolerate sin.  He teaches us His standards through Moses.

·         He made us in His image, giving us free will.  We all eventually use this free will to do, say, or think things that offend God’s law.  We might try to be perfect, but can’t. 

·         God is just.  Perfect justice requires a penalty for sin.  The penalty for sin is death. 

·         God provides the ultimate answer to the problem of His perfection, our freewill and sin, His justice and our separation from God:  one ultimate, loving sacrifice, performed for all of us.  In the same way the sin of one man, Adam, planted the seed of sin in everyone, so the sacrifice of one man, Jesus Christ, planted the seed of forgiveness for everyone.

·         There are all sorts of words for the process of forgiveness through Christ.  “Substitutionary atonement,” “justification”, “propitiation”, “redemption.”  These terms describe various aspects of the concept that Christ died to pay the penalty for the sins we commit, and through that process we are forgiven and restored to a right relation with God.  The point is, Christ’s sacrifice allows us to re-connect with God even though we are not perfect.

·         The term “righteousness” pops up throughout the process, because God is righteous, his perfection demands our righteousness, we fail on our own, and God provides a solution that gives us back the righteousness we had before sin.  Righteousness, applied to people, means a right relationship with God.

·         The term “faith” comes up because we receive forgiveness, and the righteousness that accompanies it, by faith in God.  [Not faith in ourselves, each other, creation, or the “universe” as many now teach.]

·         A guy summed it up one time.  “You can’t get to the resurrection without going through the crucifixion.”  The resurrection is cool because it proves that Jesus was God, but also because it represents the new life we get from a restored relationship with God.  [It’s also cool because it gives us earthly proof that there is more to life after “death”, but that’s another Book….]

·         Maybe I’m confused, but, this is the short version of what I get from the Book of Romans.

Let’s figure it out over the next few Saturdays.

Pete M.

Thanks

It was our best Christmas ever. There are hundreds of reasons, but the most important one was the gathering of our family and the fun we had in our recognition of His birth and His love for us, despite or even with the case of the flu that went through every one but two (out of twenty maybe?). We thank you Lord for such wonder and joy.

I know we all know nothing goes to heaven with us but ourselves and each other. The trappings of this temporal existence on the planet we call Earth stay here to be consumed by others who come after us, possibly people we’re not related to or knew, except the relation that is we all came from Him. Or maybe some giant asteroid will gobble the material stuff all up in fire some distant day in the future.

But I wonder how many of us really understand. It’s like one of those things you know for sure, but your mind, and more importantly you heart’s mind can’t quite seem to get it. This probably explains a lot about things like why some people have a lot more than others and while they certainly help out, do they do all they can? Instead of complaining about this inequity (if you are on the have not side) what about gratitude for whatever it is they do? And as far as those with so much, we must remember, none of it goes with us. Hopefully they realize this too, sooner obviously better than later and being grateful, do more.

I know I’ve mentioned this before (and before), but I thank God every day as soon as my brain begins to register, which sometimes is immediately upon awakening and sometimes takes a half an hour or so and at least one cup of coffee. I begin with Him, thanking Him for Him and my dearest, then my kids and grandkid, then friends, then all the good things that have happened to us and then the ‘interesting’ things, those lessons we perceived as tribulation or tragedy.

For some reason and time now, I rarely thank God for possessions or having money (either when I do have it or I don’t).

Being grateful for ‘everything’ is a challenge. Actually, it’s a huge challenge. It’s tough for people with disabilities, with financial problems, for people with tons of money, for everyone. But there is one thing that sticks in my mind from our work back when our company was still viable with a non governmental organization (NGO) that had far reaching impact on people in dire poverty. It was reading reports from the field about people who lived in tents (if they even had that) and mud and disease and often death. While they talked about the problems of the people we served, the thing that stuck with me was how the people themselves were so grateful and happy over the littlest of things; a tube of toothpaste, a small bottle of shampoo, some soap, a pencil and something to write on and of course food and water that wasn’t swimming with bugs and bacteria. Some things in the food and water might not yet be identified by scientists it was so murky and lumpy. And they were not just happy about the ‘things’ they received, but more happy in general.

Grateful and happy.

Some of you think I have one foot of ‘my brain’ in Heaven and one foot on Earth. I would be hard pressed to argue. I think about heaven a lot and talk often with all the dear ones I know are there. I thank Him for them all the time and I thank them for all their intercession. While I really never ‘hear’ their response in our earthbound language, I hear their laughter continuously, particularly when I ask them to send down some winning lottery numbers (though that hasn’t stopped me from asking again on occasion and I thank them even when they don’t send the numbers). I love the concept C.S. Lewis espoused in his book ‘Shadowlands’. He suggested we live in the land of shadows and in reality, heaven is all around us. We just can’t see it yet. I find this very comforting and it also makes it much easier to ‘speak’ with those that went before us. I find I probably speak with His mother the most.

I think the one thing that will hit us the hardest in heaven is how grateful we will be to be there and with all the rest of us. I for one cannot wait to talk with my grandparents, particularly the men, who both left before I was born. We will finally understand gratitude completely, just like all the other things we’ll understand in their entirety, most of all His love. I do not think we’ll think much at all about what we did or did not have here, in this space and on this planet, that in the grand scheme of things, will not amount to as much as a pinprick in our lives. Eternity is so much much much more.

Our Father

, Who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.

I think the more I ‘thank’, Him and everyone I touch here, the closer that comes.

Clement

For January 7, 2012

Gentlemen:

We covered Romans, Chapter 1, verses 1-17, and touched upon verses 18-32. 

Romans has a powerful history - St. Augustine was an atheist bachelor living an immoral life when he was instantly converted by reading Roman’s 13:13-14.  Martin Luther was inspired by the Book of Romans teaching about grace, and came to understand and promote the gospel of salvation by grace through faith in Christ.

Last week we gleaned basic themes from Chapter 1:  1)  We are all called by God (“prevenient grace” - he is pursuing us all the time); 2)  we are called to be unified through Jesus Christ (Jew and gentile, Greek and non-Greek); and 3)  we have a gospel of righteousness by faith in Jesus Christ.  We touched upon the concepts of salvation and righteousness, which Paul will spend the remainder of the Book explaining.

This Saturday, first let’s cover 1:18 to 2:16.  If we have time we’ll finish with 2:17-29.  How do these passages apply to life?

·         What does this repeated phrase mean: “God gave them over to…”

·         Is there a pattern or progression to the repetition?

·         What things today does society approve that the Bible says are wrong?

·         Practical advice - how do we avoid the downward spiral?  Check Galatians 5:24-6:5.  How can we help each other?

Perry is the man with the key this Saturday.  Lisa and I are following the Hope women’s basketball team.

Happy New Year!

Pete M.

PS.  My Bible Study International commentary said, “The world is opposed to God’s gospel and ridicules it, and we are all far more attuned to the world than we imagine… But it is still true that the most important thing happening in the world at any given time is the preaching of the gospel.  There the Spirit of God is at work.”  Pray for the spread of God’s word and do stuff to make it happen.  Amen.

December 31, 2011

Gentlemen,

We are on Romans, Chapter 1.  What a great preface we have had lately, with sessions on prayer, the messianic scriptures, and the story of Christ’s birth!  With that introduction I think we are ready for what Paul has to say.

Some say Romans is written for lawyers.  Others discussing Romans say a central theme is that the law lays down what we must do, while the Gospel lays down what God has done.  Some even call it the “Gospel” of Romans.  Let’s see why people say these things about the Book of Romans.  Let’s search for today’s meaning in it.  See you Saturday.

Have a happy, Christ-centered new year!

-Pete Miller

PS Thank you for praying.  Pass on the hope that prayer brings, especially for our brothers and sisters in Christ in the effort to live as Christ calls us.

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Gentlemen,

Next Saturday we will be covering Romans, Chapter 1.  We had a beautiful and timely introduction last Saturday by reviewing some of the messianic prophecies.  I will be out of town, but Perry will open up and get things started.

Stay in touch with Christ,

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Pete M.

P.S. Keep praying for each other, and the men who are working to model Christ in our community through Scripture and prayer.