March 20, 2020

Here we are in the very beginning of the coronavirus shutdown, no one saw this coming (other than the people who tell us every day that the sky is falling - remember that even a broken clock is accurate twice a day). Not only did we not see this coming, no one knows how long it will last. This event that we are living through was not orchestrated by humans, for no human or group of humans could manipulate the nations across the globe into taking the catastrophic action that governments are taking all over the world.

If we take our eyes off the nations for a moment and look internally into our church family, we recognize that there is a wide variance in the effect on individuals. For some - what is happening is extremely difficult, for others to a lesser extent and yet everyone of us is being affected by events beyond our control moving at a breath-taking pace.

Would the words of the LORD spoken through Haggai accurately describe the times we are experiencing right now? “I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,’ says the LORD Almighty.” Truly the nations are being shaken, and our world as we know it is being turned upside down, and because the nations are made up of individual people, this verse is referring to an earth-shaking event that affects everyone. Now if we have the faith to believe this truth from God’s Word, to believe that this type of shaking comes from Him, we will only experience comfort by believing the truth that this God is the God of love who gave His Son for us, the God who loves us with unfailing love, who chose us in Christ to be His children, who asks us to call Him Father.

May we as children of the King be filled with confidence that the LORD, the Lover of our soul is the One doing the shaking. Notice that the shaking described in Haggai 2:7 has a wonderful purpose, for our God does not shake for the sake of causing turmoil in our lives, rather He shakes for the purpose of drawing us to his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. May we draw near to our God wherever we are, and experience the wonderful benefits of fellowship with Him, for His grace will bring us strength and His peace will guard our minds and hearts.

Pastor John

March 11, 2020 Looking forward to Zechariah chapter 1 on March 15, 2020

Ezra 6:14

So the elders of the Jews continued to build and prosper under the preaching of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah, a descendant of Iddo. They finished building the temple according to the command of the God of Israel and the decrees of Cyrus, Darius and Artaxerxes, kings of Persia.

God’s Word makes it clear that how we end is more important than how we start.

New beginnings, second chances, third chances - mercy upon mercy and grace upon grace is the story of how God interacts with His people through the duration of their lives. Yet how we finish is the most important part of our journey with our God, as an example of this truth just for a moment allow your mind to travel through the story of Samson.

The value for us in 2020 as we seek to meet our God in the writings of Zechariah, is the stated purpose of the prophecies of Zechariah, Zechariah was given Words from God to stimulate the people to finish the work they started. Haggai and Zechariah began their ministry in the same time period, the 2^nd year of King Darius. They spoke to  the same people- the Jewish people who had returned from the Babylonian captivity. They spoke Words from the same God, a holy God who wants to restore His people and establish them centered on his presence with them.

Yet Haggai and Zechariah are 2 very different prophets for Haggai seems very practical, focused on the here and now, feet on the ground, the rubber meets the road, get working. He ends His prophecy with a heavenly vision of God honouring their leader, but the gist of Haggai is focused on the here and now – he is the practical voice- talking about timber, wallets, grain, work, strength. He hits them hard about procrastinating and then deals with objections or obstacles that arise. We can relate.

On the other hand Zechariah can see God and see the spiritual world in an extraordinary way- he sees angels and talks with angels and angels talk with him, he sees angelic beings – the horses and horns and craftsman in this chapter – it is an amazing book full of mystery and spiritual sight. If you wanted to read Revelation and be blessed by it, one of the things you could do is read Zechariah first and the Revelation- you will recognize the parallels quickly.

Now we can lose ourselves in the visions- seeking to peer into the spiritual with Zechariah and I love to do that, I find people who have spiritual vision amazing – I am so limited in that area- But as we enter into this spiritual world that was revealed to Zechariah and journey along with him, let us agree together on something- let us agree together to not lose sight of the purpose of these visions- let us agree to not be so heavenly minded that we are of no earthly good – God’s purpose in giving Zechariah these insights is to encourage and to motivate us to be strong in our work on God’s house, to get us to finish the work! The bible is all about new beginnings- and yet it stresses the importance of how we end. It is how we end that counts – we must finish well.

Paul writing to the Philippians says in the first chapter that he is confident that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Paul’s confidence is not in himself, nor in the Christians in Philippi- His confidence is in the Lord Jesus Christ who is the builder of each of us. We are called to build as our Lord builds, we are to follow Him, we are to be His hands and feet- we are confident in His ability to complete that work- God can do it for sure – but will we do our part - will we work to the end, or will we stop before the end?

March 10, 2020 - Reflections on Haggai

Haggai 2:23 (NIV) “‘On that day,’ declares the LORD Almighty, ‘I will take you, my servant Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel,’ declares the LORD,  ‘and I will make you like my signet ring, for I have chosen you,’ declares the LORD Almighty.”

The last Word of God through His prophet Haggai for the purpose of encouraging God’s people to continue in their work on the temple is a Word of honour for their leader Zerubbabel.

God lifts their leader up, He honours this man for the purpose of encouraging the people to work.

Is the last Word the most important Word?

We know from our experiences at work how having the right leader is so important to people continuing in their work. How we work, and whether we stay at work is directly connected to who our leader is. Now we know next to nothing about this man Zerubbabel, about his history, or his family, or his age, or his education, or his personality, or his weaknesses, or his strengths. We aren’t given any examples of his leadership, like the specific examples given of Nehemiah, that we can emulate in order to become a godly leader. All that is given to them is the truth that while the world around them is being shaken apart, God calls Zerubbabel His signet ring. A signet ring is a ring that represents the person, it bears His seal or initials, and is the most important piece of jewelry a leader could wear. God is honouring this man by elevating him in status with amazing language. It is God’s choice of Zerubbabel that is stressed in this verse, making Zerubbabel’s character and leadership traits secondary.

How would a person who was working on the temple in that age react to the language of God about their leader? Well how would we react?

I think we would be convinced of the importance of this project to God Himself, for God has decided that the man in charge of the work represents God.

We would also be convinced of the security and safety of following this leader, for while the world is being shaken apart, he is attached to God’s hand.

The last Word of God through His prophet Haggai for the purpose of encouraging God’s people to continue in their work on the temple is a Word of honour for their leader Zerubbabel.

The last Word the most important Word!

Zerubbabel is the man in charge of building God’s house in this Old Testament age, and our Lord Jesus is the Man in charge of building God’s house in our New Testament age. Our Lord Himself told Peter that He would build His church, and Hebrews 3 tells us that Jesus has more honour than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honour than the house itself.

Dwelling on, thinking about, singing about or in whatever other way we can focus our attention on the honour and glory of our Lord Jesus Christ is  the key to us being strong in the work God has created us for, prepared us for and led us into.

Christ Jesus was raised to the highest place, seated at the right hand of God, given all authority in heaven and in earth, King of kings and Lord of lords. As we meditate on the honour and glory given to our leader, we will continue in our work on God’s house- His church at Parkdale and our own lives.    

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March 9, 2020 - Reflections on Haggai

Haggai 2:4 (NIV) “But now be strong, Zerubbabel,’ declares the LORD.

                        ‘Be strong, Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest.

                        Be strong, all you people of the land,’ declares the LORD, ‘and work.

                                    For I am with you,’ declares the LORD Almighty.”

If we believe God is with us - we will be strong in the work of the Lord!

God with us - is the gospel in three Words.

Matthew applies Isaiah’s prophecy of Immanuel (God with us) to Jesus of Nazareth, as part of his amazing gospel that uses the Old Testament prophecies to prove that this Jesus of Nazareth is the promised Messiah. Matthew declares that God came to earth as Jesus, the Son of God yet born of Mary, who walked among the Jews, who rejected Him and killed Him, but the grave could not hold Him, and He rose and appeared to many people. Luke records in Acts 1 that He returned to heaven with a promise that He would return one day to earth, and after a command to wait in Jerusalem for the promised gift of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit came on the Day of Pentecost and since that day all who call on the Name of the Lord are saved through the sanctifying Presence of the Holy Spirit within each one of us. Paul declares in 1 Corinthians 6:19 “that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you received from God”

God with us - is the gospel in three Words.

The LORD speaking through Haggai for the purpose of stirring up God’s people to build the physical structure called the 2^nd temple, uses His Presence with them as the reason for them to BE STRONG.

Be strong and work - for God is with you.

But what does being strong look like in Haggai’s day and in our day?

If we take the time to look back into the records of Joshua the son of Nun whom God used to bring His people into the Promised Land we will discover the account of Caleb coming to Joshua with a request to allot the hill country that belonged to the giants (Anakites) to him and his family. Caleb was not asking for Joshua to give him this land on a silver platter with no effort on Caleb’s part, rather he was asking Joshua for ‘permission’ to fight and destroy the most powerful people in the promised land. At 85 years old Caleb was as strong as he was when he was a spy with Joshua some 40 years earlier.

Most of us understand this similarity in strength as a miraculous work of the LORD in preserving Caleb’s physical strength, just as He preserved their clothes and sandals, and just as the LORD provided water and food in the desert. I wonder though if that is what is truly meant by this statement in Joshua 14:6-12, for even if Caleb is as physically strong as he was when he was forty five, he is no match physically for the giants, the people group called the Anakites (the descendants of Anak). Caleb reminds Joshua of their spy trip together and their belief that no matter the size of the enemy, the LORD would give them the victory. Numbers 13 tells us that Caleb and Joshua were 2 out of 12 men, the other men didn’t believe that God would give them the victory and they stirred the people up, but Caleb silenced the people with a statement of confidence “we can certainly do it.” in their ability to possess the land.

It takes a lot of strength to stand against the crowd- not physical strength necessarily, but strength of character, and strength of faith in God’s promises despite the naysayers all around us. God's strength.

I believe it is this strength Caleb is referring to when He asks Joshua for permission to fight and destroy the most powerful foe in the land, for he ends his request with these Words; “You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the LORD helping me, I will drive them out just as he said.”

Caleb believed God was with him, so he was strong in his work for the Lord and for the Lord’s people.

Do we believe God is with us?

Do we share in Christ?

Do we experience the fellowship of the Spirit in our lives?

Are we strong in the work the Lord has laid out before us?

When discouragement comes (and it will come) and you think to yourself “I don’t want to do this anymore” , may our next thought be “Hey God is with me - I am doing this for Him and through His strength, I should ask Him if He wants me to stop before I quit.”

God is with us!

So lets be strong and work on His house!

December 30, 2019 - Reflections on the God revealed in Nahum

“He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17 and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”  20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21 He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

Luke 4:16-21(NIV) 

This well-known account of our Lord Jesus identifying Himself as the One whom Isaiah prophesied about, is very specific in its description of our Lord’s use of the Old Testament. He doesn’t identify chapter and verse before He read the passage He was looking for, but our bibles have a text note that links back to Isaiah 61:1,2.
There are two questions that come to mind as we lay our English translations of Isaiah 61:1,2 and Luke 4:18,19 beside each other;
Our first question is - why would the scroll our Lord read have “recovery of sight for the blind” when it doesn’t appear in our English translations of the Hebrew text? The answer is simple, for the scroll our Lord read from is the Greek translation of the Hebrew called the Septuagint or the LXX (the 70). If you Google “Septuagint Isaiah 61:1,2” you will find an English translation, and this question is answered.
Our second question is - why would our Lord stop His recitation of Isaiah 61:2 mid sentence? Our Lord was proclaiming “the year of the Lord’s favor” and yet the Isaiah text has 3 parallel statements of the proclamation;
            the year of the Lord’s favour
            the day of vengeance of our God (day of recompence in the LXX)
            the comfort of all who mourn.
Why would our Lord not quote the entire verse?
This second question is a little harder to answer, for it requires us to think theologically and consider the wider teaching of Scripture about our God. 
I believe Nahum 1 sheds some light for us, for we see two descriptions of God in Nahum 1 that many people think are contradictory, for how can God be both avenging and good at the same time? God is good to those who take refuge in Him, who trust in Him, and yet He pursues His foes into the realm of darkness. He is both because people take two different positions with God - some draw near to Him through Christ Jesus and yet more refuse to bow their knee and are His foe.
According to Nahum 1 God is also slow to anger and mighty in power. This age or year that we are in right now - the year of the Lord’s favour - will end with a day of vengeance, but only when God comes to the end of His patience. On that day only those who have taken refuge in Christ will be spared, all others will be utterly and completely destroyed. Christ came to usher in this age of grace in which we live, when all who call on the Lord will saved, for the Spirit is poured on all who believe.
Our Lord will come back in power and when He comes back He will finish the sentence of Isaiah 61:2.

December 20, 2019 - Suggested Reading Colossians 1 for the December 22nd message on Isaiah 9:1-7 in our worship service at 10:00AM

“For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him,  and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”

Colossians 1:19-20 (NIV)

As we read the first chapter of Colossians, I am struck by how Paul weaves the power of the Mighty God through the opening of his letter to this Gentile church, and yet what caused me to pick this chapter as part of the Scripture that brings understanding to Isaiah’s prophecy in 9:6, is Paul’s description of Christ’s work on the cross in verses 19 and 20. Surely Paul understood our Lord Jesus Christ as being the Prince of Peace that Isaiah saw!

Notice that just as a prince is subordinate to the king in our world, in this chapter our Lord is subordinate to His Father God.

Notice also that the mission of this One who had all the fullness of God, was reconciliation of all things on earth and heaven to God, by making peace through His blood on the cross.

The greatest dispute in history - the dispute between the Creator and His rebellious creatures was settled by Christ Jesus on the cross. He made peace through His blood - not just an ending of conflict but true peace where Creator and creature live together in harmony.

We were enemies in our minds because of our evil behaviour - oh that I would live as a child of God and not an enemy of God!

But now we are holy in His sight without blemish - oh that I would live my life as how my Heavenly Father sees me!

IF – a small Word with a large meaning that millions who celebrate Christmas miss.

IF we continue in our faith, established and firm, not moving from the hope held out in the gospel. It is faith that connected us to the grace in which we now live - a full understanding of the message of the gospel brought to us by the apostles, a belief in that understanding, and a life that reflects that belief. Faith comes from hearing the gospel, we hear, we believe, and we worship, and out of that worship our life flows as Creator and creature live together in harmony.

Oh, Friend this Prince of Peace we worship is alive in us, which is our hope of glory.

I wonder does this peace we have with God bring us peace with those around us?

December 19, 2019 - Suggested Reading Hebrews 2 for the December 22nd message on Isaiah 9:1-7 in our worship service at 10:00AM

“Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters. He says, “I will declare your name to my brothers and sisters; in the assembly I will sing your praises.”

Hebrews 2:11-13 (NIV) 

(Ps22:22) And again, “I will put my trust in him.” (Isa 8:17) And again he says, “Here am I, and the children God has given me.” (Isa 8:18)

Of the four titles given to our Lord Jesus by Isaiah 9:6, Everlasting Father seems confusing because we wonder how our Lord could be known as Father. Some answer this question by referring to the Trinity, and attempting to show that Isaiah was revealing Jesus as God through this title, but it seems like the title Mighty God covers that task quite well, and that the title Everlasting Father might have a different revelation in mind.

It seems to me that another aspect our Lord’s reign as King is in view here, for although it is hard for us to relate in a family way to the Lord Jesus. He is family! This King of kings, Lord of lords, who brings counsel and power and peace into our lives is family.

Not family of our doing- but what love God has lavished on us that we would be called the children of God, born again not of a human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.

Not family as we understand family, for we all recognize that there is nothing everlasting about our family- we mourn the loss of our loved ones, but we will never mourn the loss of our Everlasting Father. Rather we will enjoy sweet, sweet fellowship with this Everlasting Father - our Lord Jesus Christ.

Not father as we understand father, for we all recognize that human fathers are at best a shadow of the image of our Heavenly Father, and at worst a grotesque distortion of all that a father is supposed to be. But Father in the sense of Wonderful Counselor and Mighty God forever! Dad’s are to be wise and mighty, and this Dad is both – forever.

Friend I long to walk with my Everlasting Father and to bask in the privilege of being in the family of God, seeing Him in His glory and sharing in His glory.

The wonderful truth is that I can experience this familial kinship now, this side of glory, as I seek His face, listening to Him, worshipping Him and experiencing the wonder of the wisdom and protection of my Everlasting Father.