Author: pastorjonathan

Christian,Husband, Dad, Pastor, Mentor, Volunteer.

Day 2: John 4-6 (NEW TESTAMENT 90)

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Today’s reading comes from John 4-6 follow the link provided here to read the ESV online.

What really jumped out at me today was how often individuals are credited with bringing others to Jesus.  Yesterday we saw that Andrew brought Peter to Jesus (1:41) and Phillip told Nathaniel about Jesus (1:45). Today we read how the Samaritan woman brought her village to Jesus (4:28-30) and Andrew brought the boy with a lunch to Jesus (6:8-9).

In John 4 I was reminded of how Jesus saw the people of Samaria. The disciples went to town and bought lunch and left, but later the whole town came out to meet Jesus based on the testimony of this woman. I was reminded about how sometimes we can be blind to those who really need Jesus.

I was interested in metaphors that Jesus continues to use for Himself. He is the Living Water, He is the Bread of Life. I see another illustration early in Jesus’ ministry to what we call the Lord’s Supper. We saw Jesus stretch his hand to heal the man at the pool and the nobleman’s son.

I was reminded that some people look to Jesus for the wrong thing (6:26) and that some people can read the word of God and miss Jesus (5:39). I see Jesus reinforcing His message that he came to save.

So here is how I am praying through this passage today:

Lord, I am thankful for the individuals that you used to bring me to you. I pray that you would use me to bring others to you today. I recognize and confess that I don’t have any saving power in myself, you are the one who saves, heals, helps, and the one in whom we should hope. Speak to me through your word, don’t let me be blind to how you are working in the world, but show me so that I might be a part. Help me to see people as you see them and not look past them for just my own needs (like lunch). Today I lift up the hurting, the broken, the ill, those who are estranged from their families, those who are facing crisis and I ask that they would find all that they need in you. Thank you for drawing individuals to faith in you. I thank you for drawing me. In the Name of Jesus. Amen.

What did you take away from today’s reading? What are your thoughts or questions? Feel free to comment below and enter the discussion.

Find out about New Testament 90 – Here

new-in-90-sheet

Day 1: John 1-3 (NEW TESTAMENT 90)

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The gospel writer John lays out the mission and message of Jesus in these first few chapters.  Jesus has come to be a light shining in the darkness (John 1:4-5,9, 3:19-21). He is God in the flesh (John 1:1-3, 14). He is Heaven reaching down to men (1:18, 3:13). Jesus has come to reveal God to men.

The wedding feast in chapter two seems to always jump out at me. It’s the first miracle/ Sign Jesus offers of his divinity. You can’t help but wonder,what does Jesus have to do with wine?  What does Jesus have to do with weddings?  Why here, why now?

I think it is interesting that Jesus begins and ends His earthly ministry with wine. The first is to celebrate in a covenant marriage feast where they did not have enough to go around. The last to help usher in a different kind of covenant.  One where his blood would become the atonement for our sins and there would be plenty to go around (Matthew 26:27-29).

Similarly I think the wedding here is a hint of a greater wedding feast to come (Revelation 19:7-9). I do not think that it is an accident that John begins his Gospel with a wedding feast and ends the book of Revelation with a wedding feast. (God used the Apostle to write both the Gospel of John and the book of Revelation). I know that when we speak of Jesus’ hour not yet coming that often it’s in regards to his crucifixion.   However, I think there is a glimpse of something greater in John chapter two.  He is a groom and his bride is not quiet ready, his hour has not yet come. (I owe this thought to Timothy Keller)

Here is how my heart is provoked to pray through this passage today.

Lord, I thank you that when we don’t have enough, that you are more than enough. I thank you that weddings reflect your joy for your people and that marriage reflects your love for your people. I look forward with joy and anticipation for the day when all things will be fulfilled in Christ. I am grateful that you drank the cup of wrath that I might drink the cup of life. Thank you for communion and how it reminds me of your love poured out for me. Thank you that when I was a stranger and could not understand you that you came to me and drew me close to you. I pray for your kingdom to come and I ask that the sick, the lost, those suffering loss, the one’s in pain, the discouraged, those in need of direction, those who are facing crisis, those who experience joy, those who I am charged to shepherd would be suited and ready in that final hour. In Jesus Name. Amen.

What did you take away from today’s reading? What are your thoughts or questions? Feel free to comment below and enter the discussion.

Find out about New Testament 90 – Here

new-in-90-sheet

Read the New Testament in 90 Days

On By pastorjonathanIn blogging, Ministry, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Have you ever read through the entire New Testament? The Bible has really shaped who we are as a society and especially shaped my life as a Christian. I enjoy reading through the whole Bible each year, but this year I want to invite you to spend 90 days reading through the New Testament with me! That’s right I am issuing a 90 day reading challenge! 

Several years ago I organized a simple effort to read the New Testament in 90 days and I thought it was worth picking it up again this years.  We will be reading about three chapters of Scripture a day and I’ll try and share a few of my thoughts as a blog post each day. I’ll be limiting my posts to 300 500 words or less to ensure that each day’s posting is brief. For those of you taking the challenge, I encourage you to briefly write your thoughts as well. Feel free to jump in, comment about the scripture passage here, ask questions, etc. 

The challenge will begging January 1st, 2020. 

Here is the new-in-90-sheet I organized back in 2011 and I will be using again this year. I’ve listed the days here without a date so that some of you can start later, or hop back on the bus easily if you miss a day. I’ll try and link back to the list below once I’ve shared my thoughts so you can see where we are in the process.

  • Day 1 – John 1 – 3
  • Day 2 – John 4 – 6
  • Day 3 – John 7 – 9
  • Day 4 – John 10 – 12
  • Day 5 – John 13 – 15
  • Day 6 – John 16 – 18
  • Day 7 – John 19 – 21
  • Day 8 – Matthew 1 – 4
  • Day 9 – Matthew 5 -7
  • Day 10 – Matthew 8 – 10
  • Day 11 – Matthew 11 – 12
  • Day 12 – Matthew 13 – 15
  • Day 13 – Matthew 16 – 18
  • Day 14 – Matthew 19 – 21
  • Day 15 – Matthew 22 – 24
  • Day 16 – Matthew 25 – 27
  • Day 17 – Matthew 28
  • Day 18 – Mark 1 – 3
  • Day 19 – Mark 4 – 6
  • Day 20 – Mark 7 – 9
  • Day 21 – Mark 10 – 12
  • Day 22 – Mark 13 – 15
  • Day 23 – Mark 16
  • Day 24 – Luke 1 – 3
  • Day 25 – Luke 4 – 6
  • Day 26 – Luke 7 – 9
  • Day 27 – Luke 10 – 12
  • Day 28 – Luke 13 – 15
  • Day 29 – Luke 16 – 18
  • Day 30 – Luke 19 – 21
  • Day 31 – Luke 22 – 24
  • Day 32 – Acts 1 – 3
  • Day 33 – Acts 4 – 6
  • Day 34 – Acts 7 – 9
  • Day 35 – Acts 10 – 12
  • Day 36 – Acts 13 – 15
  • Day 37 – Acts 16 – 19
  • Day 38 – Acts 20 – 22
  • Day 39 – Acts 23 – 25
  • Day 40 – Acts 26 – 28
  • Day 41 – Romans 1 – 3
  • Day 42 – Romans 4 – 6
  • Day 43 – Romans 7 – 9
  • Day 44 – Romans 10 – 12
  • Day 45 – Romans 13 – 15
  • Day 46 – Romans 16
  • Day 47 – I Corinthians 1 – 3
  • Day 48 – I Corinthians 4 – 6
  • Day 49 – I Corinthians 7 – 9
  • Day 50 – I Corinthians 10 – 12
  • Day 51 – I Corinthians 13 -15
  • Day 52 – I Corinthians 16
  • Day 53 – 2 Corinthians 1 – 3
  • Day 54 – 2 Corinthians 4 – 6
  • Day 55 – 2 Corinthians 7 – 9
  • Day 56 – 2 Corinthians 10 – 12
  • Day 57 – 2 Corinthians 13
  • Day 58 – Galatians 1 – 3
  • Day 59 – Galatians 4 – 6
  • Day 60 – Ephesians 1 – 3
  • Day 61 – Ephesians 4 – 6
  • Day 62 – Philippians
  • Day 63 – Colossians
  • Day 64 – 1 Thessalonians 1 – 3
  • Day 65 – 1 Thessalonians 4 – 5
  • Day 66 – 2 Thessalonians
  • Day 67 –  1 Timothy 1 – 3
  • Day 68 – 1 Timothy 4 – 6
  • Day 69 – 2 Timothy
  • Day 70 – Titus
  • Day 71 – Philemon
  • Day 72 – Hebrews 1 – 2
  • Day 73 – Hebrews 3 – 5
  • Day 74 – Hebrews 6 – 8
  • Day 75 – Hebrews 9 – 10
  • Day 76 – Hebrews 11 – 13
  • Day 77 – James
  • Day 78 – 1 Peter 1-3
  • Day 79 – 1 Peter 4-5
  • Day 80 – 2 Peter
  • Day 81 – 1 John 1 – 3
  • Day 82 – 1 John 4 – 5
  • Day 83 – 2 John, 3 John, Jude
  • Day 84 – Revelation 1 – 3
  • Day 85 – Revelation 4 – 6
  • Day 86 – Revelation 7 – 9
  • Day 87 – Revelation 10 – 12
  • Day 88 – Revelation 13 – 15
  • Day 89 – Revelation 16 – 18
  • Day 90 – Revelation 19 – 22

Letters to My Students (A Review)

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Image result for letters to my students"What a breath of fresh air! I really wish I had this book starting out! It’s simple and compelling! Dr. Allen provides an excellent guide for young pastors and pastoral students. The first years of ministry can be rough and very difficult to navigate, “Letters to My Students: On Preaching,” provides clarity and hope for biblical preaching in the next generation.

“Letters to My Students: On Preaching,” is comprised of twenty chapters neatly divided into three major sections. These sections address the topics of preparing to be a preacher, preparing to preach, and growing in preaching. The easy to read chapters are filled with biblical insight, practical application and prove to be a valuable resource for young ministers. I certainly profited from them.

The book’s format provides a great opportunity to read and digest a small chapter each day (this is certainly how I enjoyed it). It also lends itself to reading and discussing a chapter with those you are mentoring or who are mentoring you (that is one way I plan to use it). “Letters to My Students: On Preaching,” is a true gift to the church. I hope there are many more volumes to come!

For the sake of full disclosure: I attended a college bible study led by Jason (As we called him back then). That was around 20 years ago. I’m confident that I was able to read and review this book without bias.

Remembering 9-11 and Honoring Those who Serve our Communities Today

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When you are in elementary school, they teach you that in an emergency you can call 911 and help will come. It’s a great bit of information to have and most of us just tucked it away and took for granted that a phone call would bring help if we were ever in trouble.

Seldom at that age did we think about how bad it would be to call 911 and who would actually come. We didn’t pause to think that behind the lights and sirens that there would be real women and men.

We didn’t think about it, because we were just kids. We rested in the promise of rescue when we found ourselves in trouble.  We didn’t think about the life of those who would run to our rescue.  We didn’t imagine how their day must go when they have a plan, but everything changes. We didn’t pause to think about what they do, the training they’ve been through, the equipment they keep up. We didn’t think about the fires they had put out, the dealers they took off the street, the justice that was served, the lives saved, all because they were there. We selfishly thought the peace we enjoyed was just the way that the world was. We didn’t consider that perhaps God used men and women to secure our peace by keeping evil in check. We just rested in the fact that if evil ever came for us, someone would come to our rescue.

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Then one Tuesday morning in September the world began to fall apart. It’s a moment that marked our nation. I was in our church office preparing for a staff meeting. Our Senior pastor came in and said he heard on the radio that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. We turned on the only TV we could find. As a staff we watched as a second plane hit the towers causing us to realize that this wasn’t an accident, but this was indeed an act of terrorism.

We held on watching and praying as we witnessed fire crews and police officers running into the building to save lives. Then we heard about the pentagon and flight 93 that crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. And we watched praying for people who we knew were in New York. Then we saw the towers fall, it was like having the wind knocked out of us, but rather than gasping for breath, we were grasping for hope in the midst of tragedy.

Yet, in our darkest hour, we saw our heroes in the ashes. We found our hope. Over the next few days we would find out more about what had happened. We heard about how practical strangers banded together on flight 93 to put their plane down in a field and frustrate the plans of the hijackers.

We heard about the two F-16 pilots who scrambled out of our Nation’s capital without ammunition, ready to ram the rouge flight 93 if necessary. One of the pilots had strapped in her plane knowing that her dad was possibly the pilot of the flight they would be ordered to ground.

There was a young hero working as a equities trader, who had been a volunteer firefighter back home, who got everyone from his department down safely. Then he went back in to help more people make it down… the last anyone saw of him was in the smoke and ash as he had tied a cloth around his mouth, going back in for more.

We are told that within one minute of when the first plane hit that firefighters and police crews were dispatched to the trade center. There was one hero who was supposed to be off that day but he saw the first plane go into the tower so he scrapped his plans stopped by the station to get his gear and ran into the towers to help save lives.

Many brave men and women died as they ran in and the towers fell. Over the days and weeks following many who did survive were slated with the daunting task of pulling survivors and bodies from the debris. We lost 3000 souls that day.

We banded together as a nation. Together we mourned and swore we would come up from the ashes stronger and in many ways I believe we have.

To our First-Responders and Heroes:

I’m sure there are days and moments where you feel like a hero because by Gods grace you saw the results of your labor. You know you saved lives. On other days it seems like you have only seen the worst side of humanity, and it feels like you are losing not because of your efforts but because the odds are so overwhelming. 

How do you keep going?

I want to share a few verses with you: “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” – 1 cor. 13:12-13

I think what helps is remembering that we don’t and won’t see perfectly this side of Heaven, but one day we will see. The three virtues that we are told that remain are faith, hope, and love. They each help us move forward in a fallen world.

Faith isn’t wishful thinking, as some would have you believe. Faith is a rock solid trust that God is who He says He is and He will do what He said He will do. Faith is looking at a lost and fallen world, seeing the worst of humanity and realizing that God is still in control. It’s recognizing that the final word hasn’t been spoken yet and that justice will come to everyone!

Hope isn’t a desperate wish, but here it is an optimistic longing. It’s like waiting to unwrap the presents at Christmas. They are already bought and under the tree and little Tommy says, “I hope Christmas get’s here soon.” There is no question, Christmas is coming, what little Tommy wants is for it to get here sooner rather than later. When we see the ugly in the world, we are reminded that this world is broken and a new world is coming. Hope says bring it quickly!

Finally there is Love. Love isn’t a sappy emotion, at it’s core love is giving selflessly for for others. Jesus demonstrated his love for us by voluntarily dying in our place for our sins. Then God who is just, and calls every sin into account, is still just by punishing Jesus for every evil we have done. You could be free from the sins you had committed and the wrath that they incurred, not because they didn’t matter, but because Jesus paid the price you could not pay. Love takes the worst and gives the best.

I thank God for you!

I’ll never forget the day my son told me, “look out daddy, I see the police.” I was shocked! What had happened? Why did he think I should be afraid? Was it because I might get a speeding ticket? I rebuked him. I said, “No, son thank God you see the police!” My son ever so smart at responding said, “what if he gives you a ticket?” To which I responded, “what if he didn’t give out tickets? What if he just let people speed by? What if I lose respect for a speed limit that is slower than my car will go? What if I hit a boy your age because I was speeding through a school zone and didn’t see him? No son, thank God for the policeman.

Son, thank God for the paramedic! What would happen if there were no one to call when you are hurt?

Son, thank God for the legal system. Thank God that if you get accused of a crime that you get a day in court in front of a jury of your peers.

Thank God for the fire fighters who do so much more than put out fires, but serve our community in countless ways.

Thank God for the military who protect us and secure the freedoms we claim in our nation.

You see son, we can go to sleep tonight because God has called brave men women to be our heroes so if ever the need arises we can call and they will come.

One day, something will happen and you will reach for that phone to call 911 and you will never doubt that help is on the way. You don’t for a second pause and hope that the paramedics, the firefighters, the officers, etc. will come. So son, don’t look at a hero and say, watch out like it is a bad thing. We should watch out for our heroes and honor them.

We watched on as our nation faced its own crisis on 9-11 and our first-responders were there. Heroes in uniform and heroes in plain clothes. We never really lost hope because even when the world was falling down around us we witnessed our heroes answer that call selflessly serving others covered in ash, running back in to a burning building to save even more lives. It is fitting that we pause today to remember the events of 9-11 and to honor the men and women in our community who answer our call for heroes still today! 

(This was part of a speech I shared with a crowd of heroes a few years back.)

Audience of One: How We Kicked God off the Stage in Worship

On By pastorjonathanIn Devotional, discipleship, Just Thinking, theology, worship3 Comments

What would happen if we were to subtly change the way the church goes about worshiping God? What if we were to remove an emphasis on the objective truth of the Bible and place a subtle emphasis on personal experience? What if we did this in a way that on the surface seemed like we were worshiping God, but in the end actually removed God from worship and put us on the stage instead?

I am afraid that is exactly what is going on in many congregations across America. We are seeing popular pastors abandon Biblical authority in honor of individual subjective experience (Rob Bell and more recently and to a different degree, Andy Stanley). What bothers me the most, is that I think there are many pastors and worship leaders with good intentions, who are taking us down the path of looking for subjective experience instead of objective truth in weekly congregational worship.

For me, this can most clearly be seen in the rhetoric of “Audience of One” on the lips of pastors and worship leaders. Typically the “Audience of One” illustration is described this way: We gather for worship and it seems like the audience is the congregation and the actors or entertainers are the musicians, worship leader and pastor. But in this illustration, the roles are redesigned to account for God in the room. The congregation becomes the actors in worship, God is the audience, and the musicians, worship leader, and pastor are all prompters whose function is to provide the script by which the congregation performs worship.”

Cool concept right?  It sounds cool to say that “God is the only audience we seek.” But is it right? More importantly is it Biblical? Before you assume I’m crazy, hear me out. I’ll explain to you that when we say, “Audience of One” that the whole illustration is a complete misunderstanding of worship that ultimately moves us away from an emphasis on truth from God (God’s Word) to our own subjective experience of “worship” and personal interpretation of that experience. My real concern is that we may have just kicked God off the stage and replaced Him with pathetic individual experiences of worship that are more about us than they are about the God of the Bible. Like I said hear me out.

 

I want to level a serious contention: What if the illustration of God as the “audience of One” in our services was originally a thought experiment designed to introduce a philosophy that would eventually  come to be known as existentialism to Christianity? Think I’m off the mark? Let’s look at where the illustration originated.

Audience of ONE_ How WE Kicked GOD off the Stage of Worship(1)

The History behind the Phrase. The concept behind the phrase “Audience of One” first appears in Soren Kierkegaard’s book, “Purity of Heart is to Will One Thing.”  Kierkegaard in his own words:

 It is so on the stage, as you know well enough, that someone sits and prompts by whispers; he is the inconspicuous one; he is, and wishes to be overlooked. But then there is another, he strides out prominently, he draws every eye to himself. For that reason he has been given his name, that is: actor. He impersonates a distinct individual. In the skillful sense of this illusionary art, each word becomes true when embodied in him, true through him—and yet he is told what he shall say by the hidden one that sits and whispers. No one is so foolish as to regard the prompter as more important than the actor.

Now forget this light talk about art. Alas, in regard to things spiritual, the foolishness of many is this, that they in the secular sense look upon the speaker as an actor, and the listeners as theatergoers who are to pass judgment upon the artist. But the speaker is not the actor—not in the remotest sense. No, the speaker is the prompter. There are no mere theatergoers present, for each listener will be looking into his own heart. The stage is eternity, and the listener, if he is the true listener (and if he is not, he is at fault) stands before God during the talk. The prompter whispers to the actor what he is to say, but the actor’s repetition of it is the main concern—is the solemn charm of the art. The speaker whispers the word to the listeners. But the main concern is earnestness: that the listeners by themselves, with themselves, and to themselves, in the silence before God, may speak with the help of this address.

The address is not given for the speaker’s sake, in order that men may praise or blame him. The listener’s repetition of it is what is aimed at. If the speaker has the responsibility for what he whispers, then the listener has an equally great responsibility not to fail short in his task. In the theater, the play is staged before an audience who are called theatergoers; but at the devotional address, God himself is present. In the most earnest sense, God is the critical theatergoer, who looks on to see how the lines are spoken and how they are listened to: hence here the customary audience is wanting. The speaker is then the prompter, and the listener stands openly before God. The listener … is the actor, who in all truth acts before God. (Kierkegaard, Søren, trans. Douglas V. Steere. Purity of Heart Is to Will One Thing. New York: HarperCollins, 2008. 180-189.) * bold print and underline added for emphasis

Existentialism: A Shift to the Subjective Human Experience Over Objective Truth.
Soren Kierkegaard is regarded by many as one of the first existentialist philosophers. Though, the word “existentialism” never appears in any of his works, the concepts of existentialism are core to many of his writings. In a nutshell, existentialism emphasizes the right of the individual to discover truth for themselves. Truth doesn’t come from an objective outside source (Like the Bible, institutional religion, society, etc.) but through individual experience and our subjective interpretation of that experience. Because of this, there is actually a broad spectrum of philosophers who can be classified existentialist, but would hold a different understanding of life (Nietzsche was another early existentialist philosopher).

Kierkegaard was really one of the first to press this idea into many different areas of society, including Christianity and religious practice.  You may have noted in the quote above, that it is said of the actor, who is pretending to be someone else, that “each word becomes true when embodied by him.”  At it’s core, Kierkegaard’s existential philosophy focuses on the individual to give the world meaning. In other words, an individual’s experience, and subsequent interpretation of that experience is more “authentic” and “meaningful” than objective truth. (Where have I heard those buzz words before?) To say it in terms of the illustration, the prompt (the sermon? the scriptures? he doesn’t tell us) isn’t true until acted out by the actor. Indeed, the prompt line become true “through” the actor. The actor’s experience is what defines truth for Kierkegaard. There is no truth in the prompt itself, only in the experience of the actor.

In Kierkegaard’s illustration the church goer is transitioned from a passive audience member to the main actor in the worship service.  The actor’s experience is where truth is produced and God now fills the role of the audience… an audience of One.

HOW DID THIS GET INTRODUCED TO THE CHURCH? I think that through ignorance that the “audience of one” terminology became common language to talk about how worship leaders are to lead in worshiping God.  What sounds cool often gets repeated. I’ve heard musicians such as Matt Redman, Big Daddy Weave, and others use the illustration. I am also aware that there are several books on “worship leadership” by authors that I very much respect that use the “audience of one” illustration as a description for worship leadership.

What effect has this had on the worship service? We have elevated to congregation to the stage to perform “for God.” So now, your experience of worship determines it’s worth, not God’s worthiness.  Now each individual is an actor for the sake of God who is our “true” audience… We have moved the emphasis of worship from objective truth of God’s Word in the pulpit to subjective experience in the pew.  In Kierkegaard’s view, the Bible isn’t true, unless it is acted upon by an individual, and thus experienced subjectively. While many of our pastor’s and music leaders wouldn’t say this out loud, we have used the metric of personal engagement and experience to determine the “quality of worship” (despite supposedly having an “audience of one”).

The flawed analogy: Why does God have to be the audience? Intentional or not, I believe Kierkegaard’s analogy is flawed. In the illustration that Kierkegaard gives, we have only two ways of seeing the room and all the participants. 1. Either God is the audience, the worshipers are actors, and the pastor is the prompter or 2. The audience is the congregation and the pastor is the actor and God is not present. (A not so subtle point of  Kierkegaard illustration: God is present as the audience or not at all).

WHAT IF THE ILLUSTRATION IS WRONG? Is there another way to see the room on Sunday morning? If you will notice the one thing really missing from Kierkegaard’s illustration is the Word of God.  It would be missing because Kierkegaard’s writing was trying to supplant the idea of “objective truth” and replace it with “subjective experiential truth.”  The Bible has long been understood to be objective truth (it is true weather you believe it or not).

What if we correct Kierkegaard’s view of the devotional service with the scripture as central? Has God not been present all along? Was he not always on center stage? Was the role of the pastor to ever entertain at all or was it to declare the word, work, and majesty of God through the Word of God? Was the role of pastor not to provoke our hearts to worship all along, not because God is in the audience but because God has commanded and invited us to worship Him?

Now let’s get down to the Scripture. Isn’t God the one who has invited (even commanded) us to worship Him (Exodus 20:3-5)? If we’d just read the Bible we’d see a divine plan of redemption unfolding where we who were separated from God, have no right or ability to reach up to God, but God reached down to us through Jesus Christ, who died on the cross, making payment for sin, rising from the dead, so that those who come to Him in genuine faith and repentance are reconciled to God (Romans 5:8). The very heart of worship is who God is (Revelation 4:11) and what He has done to reconcile us to Himself (Isaiah 61:10).  Even those who have rejected Jesus and will find themselves acknowledging that he is worthy of all glory and honor (Philippians 2:9-11).

Isn’t God at the very center of the stage of worship in Heaven? (Revelation 4:11, 5:12-14, 7:9-12, 19:1-10, Isaiah 6, etc.)  You won’t and can’t have an “audience of one” in Heaven because God is the only act! You will fall on your face and you will worship because He is worthy! If anything we will be part of the audience applauding Him. His glory demands an audience of worshipers (Luke 18:40)! 

What if we meant something other than worship by “audience of one?” If you mean to say that, “Gods opinion of you is the only one you care about,” do you not recognize the emphasis on a subjective individual experience in that statement as well? Would you not recognize that God has given us each other to be the voice of reason, accountability, and reminder of who He is (1 Timothy 4:12, Matthew 18:15-20)? I care about God’s opinion of me, but I also recognize that He judges my heart better than me and this attitude might be more about resisting accountability than it is about truly seeking the Lord.

If you mean to say, “Only God can Judge you perfectly,” then I think you are right (Romans 14:4). But there is a huge difference between God as a just judge and God as your audience. Judges render verdicts, audiences by nature observe and applaud (or heckle)… either way the verdict of a judge is more serious than applause of an audience.

I pray that we would all be aware that God is a just judge and we would strive to have pure hearts, but not in the way that Kierkegaard suggests. I would that we had them in the way that Jesus commands in the Sermon on the Mount. I would love to have a pure heart that doesn’t do deeds so as to be seen by others, but to be seen by God (Matthew 6:1-6) and simultaneously loves to do good works that are seen by everyone and point to God (Matthew 5:13-16).  Only God can judge a heart like that and to be clear only God can create a heart like that in me (Ezekiel 36:26, Psalm 51:10, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Jeremiah 24:7) . I reject the “Audience of One” illustration for worship because it is a dangerous philosophy that removes God from the act of worship and puts us center stage.

For more on the topic of an undue emphasis on the individual subjective experience in American Christianity check out this previous blog post: Who are you really worshiping?

The LIFE TRANSFORMING Lesson I Discovered While Reading a List of Names in the Bible!

On By pastorjonathanIn Devotional, discipleship, leadership, Nehemiah, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Have you ever caught yourself reading through the Bible and you come to a long list of names and you think, “Do I still get credit if I skip these?“ There are a few passages in the scripture that can make you pause and wonder if there is really anything to be gained by reading a particular list of hard to pronounce biblical names? (Before you comment… I know all about the genealogy of Jesus and the four women mentioned there as well as characters of biblical  significance.) I’m talking about the lists in the Old Testament where someone’s name is mentioned once and never seen or heard from again! Places where we have NO history other than a name thrown in among dozens if not hundreds of other names. To be honest, I never doubted that these lists were scripture and were profitable some way, but I figured that I didn’t have the biblical chops to know exactly who Nephishesim was and why his name was in the bible. But then I messed up…

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I told a bunch of students that we would go chapter by chapter through the book of Nehemiah! I had read Nehemiah dozens of times, but I always skipped the long list of names, therefore I forgot that Nehemiah chapter seven actually contains a long list of names! (It takes up over two whole pages and four columns in my bible!) So there I was, stuck with a commitment to go through this book chapter by chapter and I came to chapter seven and I had to prepare a message for our students or eat crow and explain that I had forgotten about this chapter or worse, I would have to admit that I was in over my head. I firmly held then (and even more so now)  that ALL Scripture is, “God-Breathed and useful” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)… but this put it to the test.

I stared blankly at the text. I begged God. I looked up name meanings realizing that perhaps this was a stretch. I asked “Why?” a whole lot. When I was about to give up… He Spoke through the names!

They were there, because they mattered! I know, simple right? These people were listed because they were there! In this instance, they were there building a wall with Nehemiah. Then it hit me, the book might have Nehemiah’s name as the title, but it was just as much about the faithful who responded to his leadership. These folks weren’t only witnesses, they were participants.

I realized a two things:

  1. God cares about people.
  2. It’s incredibly good leadership take time to recognize and remember the work of the people you lead.

I still can’t pronounce half the names on that list, but I know this, seeing their name has impacted me and changed the way I lead. Maybe one day I’ll get the chance to tell them that God used a list with their name on it to bless me! Until then, I write thank you notes, applaud and do my best to encourage everyone who participates in the life of our church. After all, these people belong to God! I may be the leader up front at our church, but I am not the only one serving God.

So today I am thankful for a long list of names in the bible because it helps me really see the people around me.

Beautiful Daughters and Impure Sons: Who Does the Modesty Debate Really Hurt?

On By pastorjonathanIn discipleship, Family, Manhood, parenting, student ministry1 Comment

In a few short months, spring will be here and then summer and arguments are going to take place across our homes. Daughters will want to wear things that father’s suggest aren’t appropriate. Youth Pastors will break out slogans like “Modest is Hottest” when going over the rules for trips involving fun in the sun. I wish the church were free from debate on the issue, but it is often the center of every summer youth trip. I can’t think of a single issue that caused more tension in the nearly 20 years I spent as a student pastor.

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I have both a daughter and a son who are perhaps too young to feel the sting of this debate but as they grow older, they will hear many things and so I write mostly for them. You see the debate often stings both our girls and our guys because it reinforces negative perceptions about what it is to be male and female. If I can, I want to wade in and address this issue not by proposing a modesty rule (please read all of the post), but by proposing that Jesus should guard the hearts of both our girls and our guys when it comes to what we wear and how we view others.

First let’s talk about why a simple clothing rule isn’t enough (notice I didn’t say necessary, please read the entire article). For starters lets just imagine that you can put the same bathing suit on two different people and it is completely possible that your heart will be tempted towards lust with one and repulsion with the other. There is a difference between a hairy overweight old man in speedo’s and cowboy boots and a male model wearing the same thing… the same is true for an attractive young girl vs an overweight grandmother wearing the same designer two piece. Neither the outfit, nor the skin it reveals, prompt lust… It is already in the heart of the one lusting! It simply doesn’t help our daughters to tell them to “cover up” because their flesh is like kryptonite to young boys.  May of them struggle with their body image as it is. For the most part, they already compare themselves to other girls, super models in magazines, and have a part of themselves that they think is ugly. I can’t think of a genuine benefit derived for our daughters by treating all girls/ body types the same.  Before you set out to stone me, read the rest of the article.

Let’s also imagine for a moment that lust isn’t a particularly male issue. I know that guys are stimulated visually, etc. but many of our girls experience lust issues that are very similar to how our boys are visually stimulated. If we are honest, it has never been a single gender issue! We do our girls a huge disservice when we imagine that only boys deal with lust and treat it like an exclusively male problem. Our girls can privately feel even more ashamed and never seek help with their temptation to lust. In this generation, more than ever, the conversation about lust is one that must take place with both our daughters and our sons.  That might be news to you, but I challenge you to research it. (I wish I had listened sooner to parents of daughters who said that this was just as much a valid issue for their daughter as their sons).

Now imagine the negative stereotype that we reinforce with both our girls and boys when we make such a big deal about how boys are so easily tempted into sinful lust. When you teach them the solution is not to flee, but for girls to wear more clothes, you treat them as if they have NO control over the situation at all. I choose to teach my son and daughter that they have NO control over what other people wear, but they CAN control where they look and they should start by seeing where there mother and I choose to look (we still go to the beach where other people don’t obey “the one-piece” rule).  I do this because I think the real issue is in their heart and it doubly damages their heart when we place the emphasis on a rule concerning what someone else wears. First they can deny any real responsibility for their own lust and second because now they get to feel superior to someone else who dresses like a “skank.”

Finally, I want to imagine that the best way to address lust in one individual is not to put more clothes on another. This simply doesn’t solve the problem, it masks it. That would be like looking at the mirror, realizing you are naked and need clothes and painting clothes on the mirror… You are still naked! All you have done is cover the law that exposes the real sin that is in your heart and in the process you put a false law on someone else.  I read a book one time by a woman who lived in the middle east and she commented about how a man stared her up and down lustily while she was wearing a burka! His lust, was his lust and it wasn’t her fault. It’s apparent that no matter what you wear some people will choose to lust (this is particularly true in a generation that has been exposed to pornography over and over again). Keep Reading.

So now lets address 3 things that are present in this debate from a biblical perspective because ultimately for the believer, God’s Word should guide our actions and reactions.

1. The bible has a lot to say about authority.  (We won’t cover everything but we will hit a few highlights. ) We are reminded by Paul in Romans 13 that all authority ultimately flows from God. This begins in the home where we are to honor our father and mother (Exodus 20:12, Deuteronomy 5:16, Ephesians 5:2). So if our dad or mom asks us to wear something “less revealing,” while we live under their roof, the moral, right thing to do is to change our clothes. Doesn’t matter if you think they are wrong, or they don’t understand that it’s the style, or what other reason you might have. The real question is, will you obey the authority placed over you?

It is not different if your church has a rule about bathing suits or mixed bathing or whatever it is. If you disagree with the leadership on how they exercise that rule, have a conversation about it. Appeal through the appropriate channels by going to leadership over you, but most importantly abide by the rules and respect the authority over you. In this context you may find that there is very good reason for the rule. When I was a youth pastor, it was simple, I didn’t want the job at looking at all of our daughters and determining if their swim suit is too revealing or not. A simple clothing rule allows female leaders (who may have differing opinions) a consistent standard to coach girls through as a matter of respecting authority on youth trips. (Of course you should also have standards for guys as well, that the male leaders should oversee.) Does this prevent lust? I imagine that it doesn’t. It simply gives us a standard we can appeal to. Just like principles of public schools who don’t want the job of examining everyone’s leggings or saggy pants, sometimes it is better for the organization as a whole to have a dress code for both girls and guys. If you are going to participate in a function of that organization, you should submit yourself to their dress code.  I am very appreciative of parents, girls, and guys who acknowledge the struggle of leading a group this age.

2. Let’s talk about modesty from a biblical perspective. Most often we refer to 1 Timothy 2:9-10 when we talk about modesty in the church: “likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire, but with what is proper for women who profess godliness—with good works” (1 Timothy 2:9-10). I think a few things are apparent in these verses. First, modesty here has nothing to do with swimsuits. Second, it’s in a list that gives us a clue to what the word modest might mean. It is included with words like self-control, gold, pearls, costly attire. Paul is addressing the “over dressing” of women in church. Modesty in this context is “don’t flaunt your wealth at church so people will look up to you.” The take away would actually be to wear less jewelry, less expensive clothes, do less with your hair, etc. so that your focus is on worshipping God, not seeking the attention of others.

While this passage doesn’t directly relate to modesty in a lust context, it does give us a good guideline to examine what we wear in light of our own hearts. When you pick out clothes or even apply make-up to say, “Hey look at me!” you place too much emphasis on your appearance. It’s good to put in a little time into your hygiene and some thought into your clothes. There are even good reasons for dressing up.  But when your heart’s desire is overly focused on garnering the attention of others rather than exalting God, you are looking for your esteem in the wrong direction. You will never be truly satisfied with what others think of you. Only when you are satisfied in Christ will you begin to overflow into these works that Paul talks about.

Biblical modesty is found just as much in what you do as what you wear.

Biblical modesty is found just as much in what you do as what you wear. we should want our girls and guys to be modest in this sense. Pay less attention to “dressing to impress” and more attention to “serving God by serving others”

On a very practical side note (because my daughter & son may read this one day).  Physical beauty is fleeting (James 1:11). That is why there are make-up artists for movie stars and many have had plastic surgery. We all age! The character of a life submitted to Christ will always attract the right kind of folks and will maintain a level of beauty that surpasses anything that make-up and clothes can do. It doesn’t matter what’s in your DNA or your body type, good works will always look good on you (1 Peter 3:4).

3. Finally, let’s address lust. This seems to be where this whole debate started. Let’s understand that lust is a problem for girls and guys. If we are honest, it has been this way for a long time. We know of at least one Egyptian woman from antiquity that had the hot’s for a certain guy named Joseph (Genesis 39). Then there was also the woman from Proverbs 7.  So it’s not like the Bible doesn’t mention female lust at all. It is in there and even more grossly represented in passages that I didn’t feel comfortable listing here. Lust is not a male only sin.

So I think first, we should recognize lust as something that we may be tempted too. With that in mind we are told by Paul that believers will always have a way of escape from their temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13). We need not use the excuse that, this is just what guys do. Or that we can’t help ourselves. If you are a believer you have control over your body and your thoughts. We can choose to flee this temptation (1 Corinthians 10:14). In fact this is exactly what Joseph did when Potiphar’s wife approached him (Genesis 39:12). Paul says to flee sexual immorality (I Corinthians 6:18). He reminds Timothy to “flee youthful passions and desires” (2 Timothy 2:22). Paul addresses lust in 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8 and he says that you have control over your body and that to deny this reality is to ignore God! In the Sermon on the Mount, when Jesus addresses lust he says that we are to fight it to the extent that we would cut out our eye or cut off our hand (notice that he doesn’t say that we should put the burden on someone else). We must flee temptation! We must control our own bodies through the power of the Holy Spirit at work in us! We must commit to radical means to root this form of idolatry out of our lives! This is the counsel of scripture on dealing with individuals who are prone to lust.

I grew up in a Christian home. We talked a lot about God. My mother gave me the “Birds and the bees” talk when I was very young, perhaps too young to understand what she was eluding too (I am thankful for her attempt at what must have been a very awkward conversation). However, later when my heart was awakened to be attracted to girls I didn’t have any guidance from my father on how to guard my heart from lust, or that it was even possible. I struggled for a very long time in a cycle of lust and guilt. It was easy to judge girls as being “skanks” for what they wore and who knows, maybe they had their own heart issues, but it didn’t do my heart any good to remove the sin label from my heart and place it judgmentally on theirs. I wouldn’t find freedom until I dealt with the lust in my heart on Jesus’ terms. That is what I long for most for our sons and daughters, that they would deal honestly with their sin and temptation before our Savior.

So if I were to wade into this debate for the sake of my son and daughter, I would say, “Submit to whatever authority is over you. Examine what you wear and why you wear it so that you might reflect a godly character more than you seek personal attention. Flee temptation to lust. It may seem like you are powerless, but if you are a believer you have the Holy Spirit of God in you and He is more than enough!”

Your comments and thoughts are welcome. Please keep them civil and to the point. Please also read the entire article before you comment. I didn’t cover anything exhaustively so I’m aware that the issue is bigger than a 2500 word essay.

You may also be interested in this blog post:

How do you Respond when your child tells you they have viewed pornography?

The Second Best Thing In My LIFE

On By pastorjonathanIn About Jonathan, datingLeave a comment

Thirteen years ago today I was running around a church as nervous as I had ever been in my life.  My family and friends had driven from all over the Southern United States to be with us.  I wish I could say that I remember all the people who were there, the truth is their names and faces were all blurred. I stood at the front, ready to speak my part but I couldn’t be settled down until I saw her. Then it happened. The music played and she floated down the isle to me (escorted and tethered to the earth by her father).  It was a great day in the history of great days and the best part is that even though it seemed like a dream… it was all true!

We stood in front of a crowd and took our vows.  The pastor pronounced us husband and wife and let me kiss my beautiful bride for the first time.  We ran out the front doors and then came back into the sanctuary for a few last-minute pictures.  At the reception I learned about just what all came with marriage.  Her grandmother engaged me in an awkward dance of avoidance as she zeroed in for a kiss on my lips. unfortunately she won and pinned money on my awkwardly as if to claim here prize.

We headed out the door, where we were pelted with birdseed and were well on our way to our honeymoon.

As beautiful as that day was and as wonderful as it is to retell the story, it was just a day.  You see the second best thing that ever happened to me wasn’t a wedding, but our marriage. And marriage is one of those things that you don’t just look back on, you live it.  Everyday growing, learning, loving, giving, forgiving, holding, sharing, caring, hearing and walking together. Some days better than others, but always together.  And that’s the point.  Always together, through thick and thin, an ever-loving, never giving up, kind of bond that holds husband and wife together.  Its one of the most awesome things I have ever experienced on this earth.

Today we are celebrating 13 great years of marriage and looking forward with anticipation to God’s plan for our life together.

What’s the best thing that ever happened to me you ask? It’s the day that I learned that God really loved me like that.

Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.
(Ephesians  5:25-27, ESV)

When God Fights Your Battles

On By pastorjonathanIn Devotional, Judges, Sermon2 Comments

When we get to Judges four, we see the ‘Judges cycle’ repeating itself. Ehud dies and the people again go after false gods. God allows them to be under the control of the wicked king of Canaan,  Jabin. Jabin has a captain named Sisera.

Sisera is a really bad guy! He roams the land with a crew of about 900 iron chariots. For the Israelites it’s like someone let the Hell’s Angels MC have free range with no police force to stop them. They aren’t there to help you, they are there to take from you, exploit you and hurt you.

The iron chariots were the brand new military achievement of the day. Nine-hundred iron chariots could easily take on ten thousand men. It just wasn’t a fair fight. No wonder the Israelites were scared. They couldn’t win!

And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD after Ehud died. And the LORD sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-hagoyim. Then the people of Israel cried out to the LORD for help, for he had 900 chariots of iron and he oppressed the people of Israel cruelly for twenty years. Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time. She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and the people of Israel came up to her for judgment. She sent and summoned Barak the son of Abinoam from Kedesh-naphtali and said to him, “Has not the LORD, the God of Israel, commanded you, ‘Go, gather your men at Mount Tabor, taking 10,000 from the people of Naphtali and the people of Zebulun. And I will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin’s army, to meet you by the river Kishon with his chariots and his troops, and I will give him into your hand’?”(Judges 4:1-7 ESV)

Then Deborah enters the scene. She is a poet prophetess ( Really! She drops some incredible Hebrew meter in chapter five, but we’ll get to that later.)

I don’t know if you noticed this, but Deborah is a woman. That’s an issue for some folks. They read into this passage things like, “Where all the men folks at, must be being lazy, or something. Only way God would raise up a woman was if the men was lazy.” Now look at your bible. Does it say the men were being lazy? Does it say the men were missing? No, we actually know that Deborah was married and she sends for a male military general who was anything but lazy

The author of Judges simply says that she was a prophetess, meaning she had a close walk with God and could discern His will. This helped her in her day job which was being a judge. She literally decided court cases and settled litigation. She’s an important figure in Israel at the time

Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, I will go, but if you will not go with me, I will not go.” And she said, “I will surely go with you. Nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to your glory, for the LORD will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” Then Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh. And Barak called out Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh. And 10,000 men went up at his heels, and Deborah went up with him.(Judges 4:8-10 ESV)

Deborah tells Barak that God has given Sisera and his cohort over into their hands. He only needs to meet them in a strategic valley in order to set a trap. Barak is all on board but he wants to make sure the Deborah is coming along for the ride. He says, “I’ll go, if you go.”

Now lots of folks think Barak is being a coward here.  It’s more likely that he wants to know God’s opinion in real time as things unfold.  In fact, the author of Hebrews includes him, but not Deborah in a list of those who had faith at the time of the Judges in Hebrews chapter 11!

And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets— (Hebrews 11:32 ESV)

If I were going to be bold enough to go against the iron chariots that stopped my ancestors and countrymen from completing the task at hand (Judges 1:19), I would want some assurances that God was with me too! I mean this man had one conversation and he was ready to take on the enemy that no one had been willing to take on. He really does have to have some kind of incredible faith to take on Sisera and his iron chariots, so we have to give the man some credit.

Now Heber the Kenite had separated from the Kenites, the descendants of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent as far away as the oak in Zaanannim, which is near Kedesh. (Judges 4:11 ESV)

So then out of nowhere appears this small verse that seemingly doesn’t fit. Barak is putting together his army, getting ready to take on these iron chariots and we learn about a dude who moved away from his family. Then we go right back to the story. It’s crazy. Everything is progressing. We’re gearing up for battle. If there is music in the background it’s building because troops are assembling…. Out of nowhere the scene shifts to a meadow with a bubbling brook, chirping birds, and a flute playing in the background… then back to building music. It’s weird.

When Sisera was told that Barak the son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor, Sisera called out all his chariots, 900 chariots of iron, and all the men who were with him, from Harosheth-hagoyim to the river Kishon. And Deborah said to Barak, “Up! For this is the day in which the LORD has given Sisera into your hand. Does not the LORD go out before you?” So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with 10,000 men following him. And the LORD routed Sisera and all his chariots and all his army before Barak by the edge of the sword. And Sisera got down from his chariot and fled away on foot. And Barak pursued the chariots and the army to Harosheth-hagoyim, and all the army of Sisera fell by the edge of the sword; not a man was left.  (Judges 4:12-16 ESV)

Sisera finds out about Barak amassing the troops. He runs out the door hops on his hog, ahem, I mean he gets in his chariot and rallies the troops. They come barreling down the plain 900 strong ready to shred the troops that Barak has amassed! Thinking that they are going to surprise Barak and force him into a trap!

Then something strange happens. You have to go to chapter five to get some of the details but basically as Barak and his men come barreling down the mountain, the Lord goes with them in the form of a thunderstorm. 

“LORD, when you went out from Seir, when you marched from the region of Edom, the earth trembled and the heavens dropped, yes, the clouds dropped water. The mountains quaked before the LORD, even Sinai before the LORD, the God of Israel.  (Judges 5:4-5 ESV)

The battle has been tipped. It was supposed to be Sisera slaughtering Barak and his army, but a little mud and flash flooding goes a long way and now it is Barak slaughtering Sisera and his army.

You really want the Lord on your side when you go to battle. The Bible often depicts God as a warrior delivering his people. When they escaped Pharoah’s chariots through the Red Sea Moses sang a song depicting God as a warrior:

The LORD is a man of war; the LORD is his name. “Pharaoh’s chariots and his host he cast into the sea, and his chosen officers were sunk in the Red Sea. The floods covered them; they went down into the depths like a stone. Your right hand, O LORD, glorious in power, your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy.(Exodus 15:3-6 ESV)

Something similar is happens here in chapter 5 of Judges as Deborah sings a song declaring that God was marching to battle!

“LORD, when you went out from Seir, when you marched from the region of Edom, the earth trembled and the heavens dropped, yes, the clouds dropped water. The mountains quaked before the LORD, even Sinai before the LORD, the God of Israel. (Judges 5:4-5 ESV)

From heaven the stars fought, from their courses they fought against Sisera. The torrent Kishon swept them away, the ancient torrent, the torrent Kishon. March on, my soul, with might! (Judges 5:20-21 ESV)

Mud stops the chariots from being able to escape and Sisera decides he can get away faster on foot. He abandons his horse and takes off. He runs and runs until he can run no more. Finally he comes upon a tent. It’s the tent we awkwardly heard mention of before. It belongs to a housewife who lives there with her husband, hours away from their nearest relatives.

But Sisera fled away on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, for there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. And Jael came out to meet Sisera and said to him, “Turn aside, my lord; turn aside to me; do not be afraid.” So he turned aside to her into the tent, and she covered him with a rug. And he said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a skin of milk and gave him a drink and covered him. And he said to her, “Stand at the opening of the tent, and if any man comes and asks you, ‘Is anyone here?’ say, ‘No.’” But Jael the wife of Heber took a tent peg, and took a hammer in her hand. Then she went softly to him and drove the peg into his temple until it went down into the ground while he was lying fast asleep from weariness. So he died. And behold, as Barak was pursuing Sisera, Jael went out to meet him and said to him, “Come, and I will show you the man whom you are seeking.” So he went in to her tent, and there lay Sisera dead, with the tent peg in his temple. So on that day God subdued Jabin the king of Canaan before the people of Israel. And the hand of the people of Israel pressed harder and harder against Jabin the king of Canaan, until they destroyed Jabin king of Canaan. (Judges 4:17-24 ESV)

Jael is what we would call a housewife. She doesn’t have a job outside the house. She’s a homemaker. She’s not a Deborah and people aren’t flocking to her for advice. She’s not a Barak; people aren’t looking to her for military leadership. She doesn’t have a lot of people depending on her. We don’t even know if she has kids depending on her.

Sisera stops and rests at her tent. He is tired and thirsty. He makes his way into her inner chamber to hide under a rug and asks for water, but she gives him some milk knowing that it will help put him to sleep. He lays down on the floor and goes to sleep. This is a very awkward situation for her.

While he is sleeping Jael slips up on him. She curls back his hair, finds his temple. Then gently places a sharp tent peg on the side of his head and forces it in. She uses a hammer to make sure the job is done and done right. She pins him to the ground.  This is the highlight of the story. The evil captain who wandered the countryside abusing Israelite women (Judges 5:30) is murdered in his sleep by an ordinary housewife.

Deborah writes a song about the whole thing that gets recorded as chapter five in your bible. It doesn’t look or sound much like poetry once it has been translated into English, but if you heard someone read it in Hebrew you would swear you could hear the tent peg being hammered in by Jael in the background as you get to this point.

Between her feet he sank, he fell, he lay still; between her feet he sank, he fell; where he sank, there he fell—dead. (Judges 5:27 ESV)

It stands as an incredible piece of poetry.  It’s the focus of a huge celebration. This man who murdered Israelite men and took advantage of Israelite women is no longer a threat and he didn’t go out guns a blazing, he died in his sleep at the hands of a woman.

So now let’s look back and see WHO delivered the nation of Israel. Was it Deborah? No she didn’t fight a battle or kill the commander of the army. Was it Barak then? He listened to Deborah and he did fight the battle, but he didn’t kill Sisera. Was it Jael? Well she did kill Sisera, but she didn’t hear from the Lord or command an army. I think as we look back on this we see that God didn’t just raise up Deborah, he didn’t just raise up a Deborah and a Barak, but he raised up Deborah, Barak and Jael all to work together! Not only that, he went with the army in the form of a Thunderstorm. God is the one who fought for his people that day! 

When you look at all three human heroes of this history, it’s kind of an odd picture. You get a prophetess judge. She’d be kind of like someone working for a parachurch ministry to place orphans into the loving arms of adoptive parents and helping families work through issues. Then you have an army commander who would be like a Sr. Navy Chief, used to barking commands and having people listen. Then you have Jael. She’s a housewife.

Now it makes sense! That awkward verse about a man who lived hours away from the nearest relatives in the midst of the battle scene… That was God! While everyone was sharpening swords and greasing up chariot tires God moved a man and his wife to the middle of nowhere, far from family, and set them up so that SHE could help deliver Israel.

So there are a few things we need to draw from this! First, God delights in using the most unexpected means to save his people. We saw it last week with Ehud and a sword, shamgar and a farming instrument, and now it’s a house wife and a tent peg… These are all shadows illustrating that there is a greater reality to come. One day God would save us all from an enemy even bigger enemy than Sisera. He would save us from our sins and He would do it in the most surprising of ways! He would win by losing! He would take an instrument of torture and death (much like we view the electric chair) and he would turn it into a symbol of victory! Jesus would go to the cross and die for our sins. He would rise from the dead. He would ascend into Heaven where He now stands at the right hand of God making intercession for us and he will return. The only way that Jesus’ victory counts as your victory is if you repent of your sin and trust him with your life.

We also need to know that God delights in using the most unsuspecting people to do the most miraculous of things. He doesn’t use princes and people with perfect complexions nearly as often as you would think. He uses ordinary people like you. You might not think you are anything special. You may in fact think of yourself as a nobody, but I guarantee you that God can use you. Not only would he, or could He use you, but He would delight in using you! See what the Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians who were boasting that they had it all together:

For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.  (1 Corinthians 1:26-29 ESV)

What if just one of the main characters in this story decided not to obey God? What if Deborah never called Barak? What if Barak chickened out and wouldn’t go to war? What if Jael never put a tent peg through Sisera’s temple? Any break in the chain anywhere and things would have been different. You see we all have people counting on us. We may know them or we may not know them, but they are counting on us. There are things that I’ve said and done that have had a ripple effect on others and set things in motion in the lives of others. Sometimes simply taking time to have coffee with a man sets a life, a family, a village of people on a different course because you were at the right place, at the right time, trusting God.

Ultimately I think what we are supposed to see here is that God fights for his people. If you are His and walking with Him, you are never in the fight alone! When we would repent of our sins and cry out to God for deliverance he will fight for us. Please know that when it comes to rooting habitual sin out of your life, that you are not in the fight alone. Indeed you could never succeed on your own. Christ is the one who fought for you at the cross and still promises to be with you even to this day. The great twist of the Christian faith is that we win by surrender. We give our lives to the Lord and then we see him conquer our enemies and it happens in everyday conversations, moves across the country, and even in the faith step to take on our darkest nightmares with the confidence that He will fight for us.

[1] In Judges 5:30, Sisera’s own mother is depicted as figuring that her son is probably off raping a few girls on the way home.