Trust me – Jesus can relate...

Troubles. We all have them, big and small. You may be going through some right now. And they have a way of... well... troubling us. 

As Jesus' disciples gathered in the upper room, they were feeling troubled by big-time troubles. They were wondering what was going to happen to Jesus – and to them – as angry people plotted. It was well known that things seemed to be coming to a head between Jesus and the religious leaders in Jerusalem. So as Jesus addressed them just before his crucifixion, he lovingly said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me" (John 14:1).

To some people, that might sound trite. Saying, "Just believe" might sound like shallow advice to someone stressed out by huge challenges. But not to Jesus, because he knew that the focus of such belief is a God who is infinitely bigger than any challenge we could ever face, and therefore even took his own advice. Jesus felt stress, and he knows how you feel when you feel stress. In John 12:27-28a, Jesus said, “Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour. Father, glorify Your name.”

Jesus knew exactly what the disciples were feeling as he stared down the barrel of life-threatening circumstances. That tells us that it's not a sin to feel troubled. As a perfect man, Jesus felt troubled. It astounds me that even with all his understanding as the Son of God, and with the incredible intimacy he had with his heavenly Father, Jesus was still capable of feeling troubled. So it's not wrong to feel that way. Don't let guilt be added to your troubles! It's what we do with stress that leads to sin. Do we respond with belief in God or with unbelief?

Jesus followed his own counsel of believing in God when his heart was troubled. We're told that his thoughts immediately turned to his Father, and to God's purposes, and to God's glory. "But for this purpose... Father, glorify Your name.” By seeking God's perspective in that way, I'm certain Jesus felt less troubled.

When circumstances in my own life cause my heart to feel troubled, I can be tempted to pray, "Father, save me from these troubles! Take them away!" Or even "Take me away! Save me from this hour!" Jesus prayed something like that in the Garden of Gethsemane as he said, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will” (Matthew 26:39). Once again, we see how quickly Jesus shifted his focus from earthly thoughts to heavenly thoughts. He turned his thoughts to God's will and purposes.

Jesus recognized God's obvious and awesome purposes in the exceptional circumstances that he was facing by turning his thoughts upward and by believing God. And I suspect that God has purposes for any challenges that any of us face. The Bible alludes to this when James wrote, "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing" (James 1:2-4).

So rather than asking God for a divine rescue when our hearts are troubled, perhaps it'd be better if we turned to heaven and asked God for his perspective. That's how we can seek God's glory rather than our own relief – because we truly glorify God when we trust him amidst the challenges we face.

So whatever you're going through, take a cue from Jesus – when your heart is troubled, look to God; believe in God; and in his Son, Jesus. Believe that God has a purpose for the challenges you're facing – and that he's allowing. Seek his glory as you give him glory by trusting him to fulfill his purposes in every trial you face.

Hands up if...

Hands up if you love reading about all the ceremonial laws near the beginning of the Bible! You know, the stuff about entrails and fatty lobes and sprinkled blood and burning kidneys. 

I sometimes find I hard to stay focused when reading all those details about the various sacrifices. But as I recently worked my way through some of those instructions, something unexpectedly caught my eye. I almost missed it, because I think my mind had kind of wandered off somewhere as I'd been reading (...has that ever happened to you?). But it was as if my mind suddenly stopped me and asked me, "Did you see that?" Though I suspect it was the Holy Spirit speaking to me.

After reading some extremely detailed directions to do with daily offerings, and just before some very exacting instructions regarding how to make an altar of incense, I suddenly noticed a beautiful theme tucked in there. In Exodus 29:42, God inserts a wonderful promise to a very undeserving people (much like us): "I will meet you to speak with you."

This probably felt like a very unexpected blessing. But God goes on to reinforce it as he refers to "the door of the tabernacle of meeting." This tabernacle was a new thing for the people of Israel. We may be used to reading about it, but they'd never had one before, and God's initial reference to it is full of encouragement. First of all, the Hebrew word for "tabernacle" literally means dwelling place. And if it's a dwelling place for God, then the mention of a "door" (or an entryway), and of "meeting" (or dwelling together) sounds pretty exciting! It all reinforces one thought: God wants to be among his people.

So this isn't just some tedious passage about outdated ceremonial laws. It's an example of God going to great lengths to be in relationship with his people. This becomes increasingly clear in the verses that follow. In verse 43, God says, "I will meet with the children of Israel." Then in verse 45, God says, "I will dwell among the children of Israel." Then in verse 46, God explains that all these instructions are "that I may dwell among them."

So what has potential to feel tedious to us, as we're immersed in myriad ceremonial details, is for the express purpose of making a way for a holy God to dwell among a sinful people. God simply didn't want to be separated from his people!

This is reinforced further as God insists that he "will be their God" (v.45), and "I am the LORD their God" (v.46). And what makes this more exciting is that all of this was meant to point to Jesus. Every ceremonial law was fulfilled by the sacrifice of Jesus, and when we invite Jesus into our hearts, we become his tabernacle -- his tent of meeting -- as he abides in us and meets with us and speaks with us.

John wrote, "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we seen his glory, glory as of the only son, from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:14). John literally wrote there that Jesus "tabernacled" among us. And the offerings once required for God to dwell among us have been completed by Jesus, who offered his life for us. The Bible tells us that "every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God" (Hebrews 10:11-12). And so "by one offering he has perfected forever those who are being sanctified" (Hebrews 10:14).

So hands up if you're grateful for what Jesus did for us so that we can enjoy genuine fellowship with God! Amidst all the ceremonial details of Exodus, God wants us to recognize his Father's heart for fellowship. Those details are meant to point us to Jesus, through whom God wants to draw near to us -- right here and now -- to meet with us.

A Glorious Glimpse of Grace

As the Gospel Story unfolded after Jesus' resurrection, God arranged for Jesus to meet two men on a road, and we're told that "beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself" (Luke 24:47). 

Who were those guys to whom Jesus explained all that? That episode happened at a time in the story of the early church when Jesus' 11 remaining disciples were main characters, and yet Jesus chose to reveal himself to two unknowns. That matters. That tells us that when God wants to make himself known, he includes those who may not feel noticed by God, or worthy of a visitation from him. It tells us that he doesn't just show up to walk alongside those we view as spiritual superstars. He loves to visit ordinary people. That's an illustration of God's grace.

And that thought of God's grace revealed takes me way back in time to a story in the Scriptures when I believe Jesus revealed himself in an extraordinary way to ordinary people. And it's a story that reveals God's grace on a scale I find difficult to comprehend. Let's travel back in time to a story that gets very little attention. You may not even remember it's in the Bible. 

Shortly after God had delivered his people from Pharaoh, God said to Moses, “Come up to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and worship from afar" (Exodus 24:1). It sounds like God was keeping his distance here, because in a sense, he was. This was just before the time when "the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel" (24:17). But even with the glory of the Lord about to cover the mountain, God called 70 unnamed people to “Come up to the Lord."

In fact, it then says that "Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up, and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness. And he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel; they beheld God, and ate and drank" (24:9-11).

Those 70 unknown men "saw the God of Israel"!  "They beheld God"! Or at least we know they saw his feet! Is this one of the stories that Jesus told those other two unknown men about when he told them "what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself"? 

Jesus said that "God is spirit" as he described his Father (John 4:24), and therefore doesn't have a body. That's why I believe that when those men saw those feet walking on sapphire, they were seeing the beautiful feet of Jesus before he "emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant" (Philippians 2:7). But this unexpected unveiling of what sounds like a glimpse of heaven wasn't only for Moses to see, the way most Bible-readers may recall, but it included 70 elders of Israel who represented all of God's people as they were invited to come and behold God. 

And though those men wouldn't have known it, the feet they saw would one day be pierced for the sins of the people they represented, as well as for their own sins. After all, God knew how quickly Aaron and these 70 elders would create a golden calf and worship it with all the people (Exodus 32:1-10). God knew that in a matter of mere days or weeks, while Moses remained on the mountain, those men who God had graciously invited to behold him, and who "ate and drank" in his holy presence would soon sit down "to eat and drink" before a golden calf (32:6). God knew it all. He knew they'd make that calf, and that they'd feast at its feet, and yet we're told that "he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel." Perhaps that's because God's reason for inviting them to behold him was so that he could reveal the precious feet of Jesus, thereby foreshadowing what Jesus would do when "while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8). 

God the Father revealed God the Son to those 70 unknown, unnamed men because they represented a whole nation of ordinary people who were prone to sin and in need of a Saviour. We're no different, and God still loves to visit ordinary people. It's also impossible to measure the grace that's revealed in those feet that would step from the sapphire streets of heaven to the dusty roads of Judea, and to then be nailed to a tree for our salvation.

Promises for the flawed and the fearful

I can hear the raw emotion in Peter’s voice as he asked Jesus, “Lord, where are you going?” Peter and the other 11 men Jesus had chosen had been with him for three life-changing, eye-opening, jaw-dropping years. Peter himself had walked on water with Jesus, seen Jesus transfigured, and seen Jesus do so many mighty miracles that those three amazing years must have felt like ten! And now Jesus was suddenly saying, “Where I am going, you cannot come.” Can you see the desperate look in Peter’s eyes as he asked, “Lord, where are you going?” “Jesus answered him, ‘Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you shall follow me afterward.’” (John 13:36)

But Peter wasn’t satisfied with that. As the other disciples looked on, all appearing equally desperate and confused, I expect the emotion in Peter’s voice intensified as he asked, “Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for your sake!” There was passion in Peter’s claim. He was basically saying, “Lord, don’t leave! I’ll be a hero for you! I’ll go the distance. I’ll give you my all.”

But Jesus knew Peter. And Jesus knew what would soon happen. “Jesus answered him, ‘Will you lay down your life for my sake? Most assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow till you have denied me three times.’”

Boom. Cue the suspenseful music. Zoom in on Peter’s widened eyes. See the shock on Peter’s face as the other disciples all exchanged fearful glances in the dim light of the upper room. But amidst it all, Jesus was calm. Peaceful. There was no anger in his voice. Not even disapproval. Just certainty, and love. For after all, it had already been written that “having loved his own who were in the world, he [Jesus] loved them to the end” (John 13:1).

But Jesus didn’t love his disciples because he thought they were all heroes who were ready to die with him. And nor did he love them because they were models of amazing maturity. No, quite the contrary – he loved them enough to die for them because he knew they could never measure up to God’s high holy standards. And he loved them because His Father had chosen them, and this ragtag bunch had become his friends (John 17:6; 15:15). That’s why Jesus could be so calm as he pointed out Peter’s imminent betrayal.

Sin isn’t a show-stopper for Jesus. Jesus’ total awareness of Peter’s inevitable failings didn’t stop Jesus from telling him that “you shall follow me afterward.” And nor do our failures stop Jesus from saying the same to you and me. Rather than responding in anger or disapproval, Jesus reminds us that that is why he died – so we could be forgiven.

Jesus’s very next words to his stunned disciples were, “Let not your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me” (John 14:1). He said those reassuring words to flawed and confused disciples who would soon all abandon him in fear. But Jesus still affectionately promised to “come again and receive you to myself, that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:3-4). Words of comfort for the obviously undeserving in tremendously difficult days. Sound familiar?

This touching exchange between Jesus and his disciples makes it abundantly clear that Jesus isn’t threatened by our failings. He calls us despite being certain we will fail him. And as we come to him, confessing our faults and sharing our hearts, we can be sure Jesus will turn to us and say, “Let not your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me.”

© 2020 Ken Peters

The Comfort of His Presence

As the sun descended on that long-anticipated day, the room gradually dimmed as twelve men huddled close to Jesus, hanging on his every word. The trembling shadows in that candlelit upper room must have befitted the somber faces staring intently at their Master. What compassion Jesus must have felt as he caught their gazes, one by one, seeing their fear, their confusion, their sadness. 

He deeply understood the troubles they would soon face in this world. But he also knew that he would soon overcome this broken world that vainly sought to oppose him. And he also knew that they would have a Helper unlike any they had ever known. So as he spoke, he intentionally looked into their eyes with an expression of heartfelt comfort. 

“Let not your hearts be troubled,” he said. “You believe in God. Believe also in me” (John 14:1). He wanted them to believe that the One with whom they had walked so closely for those three brief miracle-filled, awe-infused, horizon-widening years would not abandon them now. And though he had to speak of leaving, he promised that “I will come again and receive you to myself, that where I am, there you may be also” (14:3).

What a wonder. That the Son of God would receive the likes of them — or of us — despite all our flaws and fears, to himself. To hear him say, with unfeigned affection, I will “receive you,” means that he wants to embrace us, accept us, gather us up “that where I am, there you may be also” (14:3) — forever!

The disciples responded with confused questions, not understanding that Jesus had no intention of enforcing his will in an earthly kingdom that would usurp all who opposed him in the here and now. But with the advantages of my post-Pentecost perspective, Jesus’ promise of heavenly fellowship with him creates great expectations in me. Spending eternity with Jesus — I can’t imagine anything better. 

But Jesus wasn’t satisfied with merely pointing to future fellowship with him as he sought to comfort his disciples in this troubled world. Jesus anticipated his own burial, resurrection and ascension when he then said, “A little while longer and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you will live also. At that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you” (14:19-20).

So yes, Jesus wanted his disciples to be comforted by his promise that one day and forever, “where I am, there you may be also” (14:3). But he also reassuringly promised that he wanted to walk in close fellowship with them in this world — “you in me, and I in you” (14:20) — as he also spoke of a “Helper” (14:16), “he who dwells with you and will be in you” (14:17)!

So imagine Jesus at a table with us now, in 2020, looking intently at each of us, catching our gaze, seeing the fear, the confusion, the sadness, the frustration, the angst of living in a world wrestling with a pandemic. 

I can hear him saying, “Let not your hearts be troubled. You believe in God. Believe also in me.” And he would want us to be comforted as he said, “Believe that I will not only one day joyfully receive you to be with me forever, but also believe that because I am now with my Father, I have sent my Spirit to abide with you and to help you, so that through him you can truly and continually be in me, and I in you — together in loving friendship — right now, today and every day.

© 2020 Ken Peters

Jesus wants to Change our Focus

Jesus was on his way home, and choosing to take the quick route, was passing through the region of Samaria. This was the land of the Samaritans, a people despised by Jews, half-breeds due to the Jewish people intermingling with Gentiles long ago when Israel’s northern kingdom was conquered. We’re told Jesus was weary. Imagine that. The Son of God, weary from a journey, feeling thirsty as he rested by a well, unsheltered from the glaring sun. (John 4:3-6)

As he waited there alone, I can see his gentle eyes watching a woman as she slowly approached from the city nearby. It was noon, the hottest time of the day, and perhaps this woman came to the well at this time because she preferred to be alone. Perhaps the struggles of her life had caused her to withdraw from the more social times of day when the well was a busy place, a happy place, a talkative place. And yet here was this stranger, this man resting by the well when she came to draw water. What was he doing here? She likely felt awkward as he watched her self-consciously approach and as she let down her waterpot. I can see him kindly watching her face as she studiously tried to avoid glancing at his. After all, she wanted to be alone. (John 4:7-8)

Then breaking the silence, he spoke, asking for a drink from her Samaritan waterpot. She knew from his clothes, and from his accent, that he was a Jew. And she being both a Samaritan and a woman, knew that this was an inappropriate situation. Why was he addressing her? And why would he be prepared to drink from her container? So she attempted a protest, suggesting how uncomfortable she felt: “How is it that you, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” (John 4:7-9)

Jesus’ answer couldn’t have been what she expected. It felt a deflection. In fact, it felt like an offer of some kind. He said, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” Suddenly it sounded like he didn’t want a drink at all, but wanted to give her a drink! Perplexed amidst the awkwardness of the situation, she asked him where he planned to get this “living water.” Was he suggesting that he knew of a water source better than this well that dated all the way back to Jacob? (John 4:10-12)

Jesus didn’t back down. In fact, I can see him leaning forward eagerly, a slight smile on his face, as he told this lonely woman that the water he had to offer would quench her thirst forever, and lead to “everlasting life”! But she missed his point, immediately latching onto the thought of never having to come to this well again; never having to avoid the cheerful, carefree women who came here in the cooler times of day; never having to be seen coming here alone, after they had left, the merciless sun beating down on her rejected, unworthy frame. “Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw!” (John 4:13-15)

It was then that Jesus truly shocked her. He sat back and gently said, “Go, call your husband, and come here.” I doubt she would have been able to hide the expression of alarm on her face as she quickly looked back down at the well, desperately wondering why he asked her that. I suspect there was then a long pause, with the hot wind blowing across her brow, before she quietly confessed, “I have no husband.” (John 4:16-17)

Jesus must have felt something quite tender toward her as he witnessed this awkward response, and softly yet knowingly replied, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly." He knew all along. This would've been another shock to her. And yet, perhaps Jesus exposed those awkward truths just to heighten this woman's sense of desperation. (John 4:17-18) 

But this would not have been an easy moment for this broken woman. Jesus had just exposed her sin and triggered her shame. I can easily imagine another long pause here as this woman wondered who this strange man was. First of all he speaks to me while we’re out here all alone by the well, asking me for water – then he offers me water from I don’t know where that can quench my thirst forever – and then he tells me all the things I ever did!

Suddenly she looks back up at Jesus as she blurts out, “Sir, I perceive you are a prophet!” Now she feels frightened, for the prophets of old never treated sin lightly, and this man knows all about her sinful past! So as she fiddled with the rope of her waterpot, once again studiously avoiding Jesus’ gaze, I wonder if she suddenly brought up a religious subject just to shift the subject from herself. Or perhaps the reason she asked about how her people worship at a nearby mountain was to make herself appear less unworthy. Whatever her reasons, Jesus wasn't bothered, and by the end of the conversation, he had said something that we’re told he tried to keep a secret in just about every other place he ever went! Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He" – the Messiah. (John 4:19-20, 26) 

What a moment! What a dramatic declaration. Jesus, who later said that his Father had sent him to the Jews first, chose to reveal his true identity for the very first time to a woman of the despised Samaritans! But this was not just an Samaritan woman. This was a sinful Samaritan woman who was living with a man in an immoral relationship! But this was not just a sinful woman – she was also a rejected woman who had been divorced by five previous husbands, discarded by them, unloved, unwanted. And Jesus lovingly revealed to her that he was the Messiah, the Saviour of the world! (John 4:42)

What an encouragement it is when we take our eyes off of ourselves and fix our gaze on Jesus! This woman surely felt shame, but Jesus still invited her near by declaring to her who he is. The issue wasn't how worthy she was to know him – none of us will ever be good enough to know God. The point of the good news of Jesus is that it is Jesus who is good enough to be a righteous substitute for us before God, and to show us our worth by taking the penalty of our sin upon himself so that we can be forgiven.

This is why Martyn Lloyd-Jones wrote, "Forget yourself, forget all about yourself. Of course you are not good enough, you never will be good enough. The Christian way of salvation tells you this, that it does not matter what you have been, it does not matter what you have done... this is the test, that you acknowledge readily and say clearly that you look to Christ and to Christ alone and to nothing and no one else, that you stop looking at particular sins and particular people." That was Jesus' message to the Samaritan woman he so lovingly revealed himself to, and it's Jesus' message to you and me today: I am he – and I want to be a fountain of living water in you, "springing up into everlasting life!" (John 4:10, 14)

© 2020 by Ken Peters

In Memory of Consumers Distributing

Some of you may remember Consumers Distributing. It was a store that operated from 1957 to 1996 in which customers selected items from a store catalog instead of from store shelves, and employees would then go to a warehouse behind their counter to get any catalog items requested. I loved Consumers Distributing, and was sad when they closed. I used to eagerly page through the Consumers catalog, wishing I could afford so many of the things that I saw. I can fondly remember random items that I bought there: a baseball glove, a wall clock, a microwave cabinet, a floor lamp. And so many other things. I think I enjoyed shopping there because it was so easy to browse their entire stock as you just stood in one place and paged through their colourful catalog, knowing that whatever you found could immediately be brought out and presented to you like a gift (that you then had to pay for)! It was like Amazon before the internet and without the shipping fees! And just as Amazon aims to provide us with all that we want all on one website, Consumers Distributing tried to provide whatever any consumer might want all in one catalog.

All of these memories occurred to me this morning as I read Proverbs 23:23. "Buy truth, and do not sell it; buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding." 

These are all invaluable items! Much more precious than baseball gloves and floor lamps. And it occurred to me that they're all readily available in the pages of one beautiful book that contains the words of God: the Bible! I can eagerly read my Bible knowing that every page is filled with truth and wisdom, instruction and understanding, and all of it is affordable because it's free! Isaiah wrote, "...he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price" (Isaiah 55:1). The food Isaiah spoke of was spiritual food. He went on to mention an "everlasting covenant" with God (55:3) in which we know that wine is symbolic of the shed blood of Jesus and milk represents the rich nourishment of God's Word. And it's all explained and made available in a book that has no product pictures, and yet is full of pictures for those who have eyes to see!

So as eager as I was to browse the Consumers Distributing catalog (and as eager as I may sometimes be to browse Amazon), I have so much more reason to be excited about reading God's Word. In the pages of my Bible are truth, wisdom, instruction and understanding; they are always in stock and always free. And the Holy Spirit is continually available as our teacher in these things (John 14:26), though He doesn't wait behind a counter to receive our requests as we find things – He comes right into our hearts to enlighten and encourage us as we read. So read eagerly, looking for all that is available and always free!

© 2016 by Ken Peters

I'm having heart-surgery!

I'm about to have heart surgery! Go figure. I'm leaving town for heart surgery in a week, and the truth is, I've hardly thought about it. Don't get me wrong. I've been doing plenty of reflection these past six months. I haven't been to work since late December (!!), and yet, despite my physical limitations, I haven't wanted to waste this precious gift of so much time off. So I've been reading some really good books that I've felt God direct me to read. I'm presently on my 11th devotional book since February, and I'm journaling what I learn from each one. God's been touching lots of character stuff. Click here if you'd like to see my 2016 reading list. 

But lately I've felt as though the Holy Spirit has been nudging me – trying to get my attention – wanting me to reflect a little more on what's been happening with my heart. I've gotten the feeling that He's been wanting to emphasize a specific lesson I'm meant to learn from this health issue, as though there's more going on than what I see with my eyes and see in my schedule. So I decided to look some things up. Feel free to be amazed that I hadn't done this sooner, but I went to a couple websites to check out how they described what my cardiologist said my problem was. Here's what I found:

Mitral valve regurgitation is a condition in which your heart's mitral valve doesn't close tightly, allowing blood to flow backward in your heart. As a result, blood can't move through your heart or to the rest of your body as efficiently, making you feel tired or out of breath. If regurgitation is severe, increased pressure may result in congestion (or fluid build-up) in the lungs, and the heart may become enlarged in order to maintain forward flow of blood. This may produce symptoms ranging from fatigue, shortness of breath during exertion, coughing, congestion around the heart and lungs, heart palpitations, and arrhythmia, and can potentially lead to heart failure.

Treatment of mitral valve regurgitation depends on how severe your condition is, whether it's getting worse and whether you have symptoms. For mild leakage, treatment may not be necessary. For severe leakage or regurgitation, you may need heart surgery to repair or replace the valve. Left untreated, severe mitral valve regurgitation can cause heart failure or heart rhythm problems (arrhythmia) that will create an increased risk of blood clots that may cause a stroke.

Wow. Sounds pretty serious. And I've experienced all of those symptoms since December, and would be considered in the "severe" category. Yet those details fill me with gratitude, because if it hadn't been for the endocarditis I had this past winter – an infection in the lining of your heart that will either damage or (as in my case) worsen previously damaged heart valves – we may not have discovered that the regurgitation in my heart had become life-threateningly severe until it was too late. Thank you Lord!

But I sensed that the Holy Spirit wanted me to look beyond what's been happening to my physical heart. I feel like He's been helping me to see how there's more going on than meets the eye, and how I'm receiving more than one kind of heart surgery during this time off.

It was then that I wondered – if you'll permit the analogy – that if we all have physical heart valves that receive life-giving blood for our bodies, what would be our spiritual heart valves that receive the life-giving blood of Jesus? And what would it mean if our spiritual heart valves were regurgitating, or resisting, the life-giving blood that was meant to be flowing through them? What would cause that?

The Gospel of John has many references, from start to finish, to the spiritual "life" that Jesus came to bring. In chapter one, we see that "In Him [Jesus] was life..." (1:4), and near the end we see that "these things have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name" (20:31). The many references to the life found in Jesus that occur between those two verses frequently mention what we see in John 20:31, that it is by "believing" in Jesus, and in what He has done for us, that we experience the spiritual life flow He wants us to enjoy both now and for eternity (see 3:15; 5:24-26; 6:35, 40, 47 for some examples). But John also mentions another aspect of how we receive life from Jesus, and that is to "come" to Him (see 5:40; 6:37, 44). John 6:35 mentions both: "Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst.'" 

That would mean then that the spiritual life flow of Jesus would be restricted when we fall prey to unbelief and unwillingness. So according to my analogy, spiritual heart valve regurgitation would be unbelief and unwillingness. And that would mean that the valves of our spiritual heart would be our mind and our will. You can also be sure that the symptoms of this heart condition would also lead to death if left untreated.

If this analogy is valid, then for anyone experiencing severe spiritual heart valve regurgitation, it is imperative that we give attention to our mind and to our will. We may even need the Lord to do surgery on them. And that is why I believe that the first passage that came to my mind (without any sense of context) when I first began sensing the Holy Spirit nudging me regarding all this was Romans 12:1-2, which says, "Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." This speaks of both our will and our mind being totally surrendered to God for His purposes, which is what Scripture teaches us is truly living. 

I believe there are two clear applications from all this, and they just happen to be the very same two things that God has very lovingly been persuading me to focus on these past six months. By God's grace, both my prayer life, and my reading and study schedule have flourished since recovering from the endocarditis in February. Prayer and reading/study.

It is by prayer that we repent of our independence and submit our will to God. John Piper wrote that “Prayer is the antidote for the disease of self-confidence.” It is the act of "waiting for God – acknowledging our helplessness and His power, calling upon Him for help, seeking His counsel.” An active prayer life allows God to operate on the spiritual heart valve of our will. It is how we can increasingly "come" to God, presenting ourselves to Him as living sacrifices, flexing our will to continually wait on God. 

And it is by reading and studying and memorizing God's Word, as well as reading books by godly writers, that we can grow in our knowledge of God and His ways, so that our mind can thus be transformed. A well-planned reading schedule of both the Bible and of other books allows God to operate on the spiritual heart valve of our mind. It is how we can increasingly "believe" God, our mind being transformed by His living word, as we fill our mind with His truth.

So please join me in receiving spiritual heart surgery every day as we wait on the Lord in prayer and learn from Him in His Word. It will save our lives, as well as give us His life!

© 2016 by Ken Peters

What about the others?!

I'm fascinated by the story of Jesus visiting the pool of Bethesda in John, chapter 5. That's why I wrote a post a couple days ago in which I sought to dramatize the scene, followed by some liberties I took at the end. The reason I took those liberties was to draw attention to the intriguing fact that Jesus appeared to heal just one individual amidst a "multitude" of others who were all in desperate need (v.3), leaving the rest of them untouched and unhealed, somewhat like the way He chooses to save each of us amidst so many others around us who still need saving.

This leaves me with the same question every time I read this story: Why? Why didn't Jesus heal any others there that day? Why heal only one man, and then "withdraw" from the multitude that was there (v.13)? After all, Bethesda does mean "House of Mercy." That just doesn't sound like the Jesus I know. This is the same Jesus who when He tried to withdraw to a secluded place to grieve the loss of John the Baptist, and was followed by a multitude of over 5,000 people, Matthew writes that Jesus "felt compassion for them and healed their sick" – and then He fed them! (Matthew 14:13-14) So why withdraw from a multitude of desperately sick people at the pool called Bethesda after healing only one person?

Well, the answer to that question may point directly to the cross on which Jesus would provide a way of salvation for the healing of the entire human race! Is it possible that Jesus' purpose in healing that one man that day was to set in motion His redemptive plan for the multitude that fills an entire planet?

There's more to this story than the extraordinary healing of a man who had been lame for 38 years (v.5). I'm sure that Jesus knew as He approached the pool that He would find a great many sick people there, and I'm also sure that Jesus knew that He was visiting the pool on the Sabbath day. John points this out to his readers immediately after writing that the newly healed man did as Jesus instructed him to do and picked up his bed and walked. He then wrote, "And that day was the Sabbath" (v.9). Boom! Cue the foreboding music. This was the first time Jesus had openly violated the Sabbath in Jerusalem.

John then immediately explains that some of Jerusalem's Jewish leaders noticed the man carrying his bed on the Sabbath, something expressly forbidden by the 39^th of 39 work-categories in the Mishnah, which was the written interpretation of the Mosaic Law. 

So the Jewish leaders who saw the man said to him, "'It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed.' He answered them, 'He who made me well said to me, "Take up your bed and walk."' Then they asked him, 'Who is the Man who said to you, "Take up your bed and walk"?'" (vv.10-12). He didn't know, because Jesus had withdrawn. In other words, Jesus didn't go to the pool to heal the many sick who were there, as He would do just before feeding the 5,000, but to heal just one man, and to thereby get the attention of the Jewish authorities.

The Jewish reaction was swift and extreme. Once the Jews found out it had been Jesus, John writes: "For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath." (v.16)

This happened very early in Jesus' ministry. Most place it in the early part of his first year of ministry, and already the Jews in Jerusalem wanted to kill Him. This would not have taken Jesus by surprise. I believe this was a calculated act, in obedience to His Father. It was a miracle designed to get the attention of the Jewish leaders who would eventually be instrumental in God's redemptive plan: they would be key players in ensuring that Jesus was crucified.

And in light of the strategic nature of this particular miracle, I think it's worth noting a few things about the man who was healed. He never asked Jesus to heal him, nor did he even directly answer Jesus (yes or no) when Jesus asked him if he wanted to be healed. And then he sought to save his own skin among the Jewish leaders by being the one to eventually report Jesus to them once he realized it was Jesus who had healed him and had told him to break the so-called Sabbath rules (and he was only able to report Jesus because Jesus intentionally revealed Himself to him again and urged him to "sin no more" (v.14-15)). This was not a grateful man. He was a self-preserving man at Jesus' expense, which suited Jesus's purposes just fine, for Jesus wanted to upset the Jewish leaders.

So what are we to think of all this? I believe Jesus saw His own death in the healing of this ungrateful sinner (a man not unlike ourselves, lest we be too hard on him). And I believe Jesus healed this man primarily to begin the process that would result in His death for the salvation of a desperately needy world. Jesus had the world in mind at that House of Mercy, not just the people present.

If we continue reading John 5 and see the many things that Jesus said in response to the Jewish leaders' persecution of Him, we would see how Jesus emphasized His unity and oneness with God the Father and with all the Father's eternal purposes. These purposes surely included His plan of salvation, and perhaps that is what Jesus had in mind when He said that the Father "will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel" (v.20). 

So to return to my original question of what about all those other poor hurting people at the pool called Bethesda – why couldn't they be healed? The answer is that Jesus certainly had them in mind when He healed one man among them so as to set in motion a plan that would take Him to the cross for them all. When Jesus appears to be ignoring our needs, we can be certain that He hasn't forgotten us – He's simply after a higher purpose in our lives!  And Jesus would also want us to know that if He could choose one ungrateful man to be healed as He pursued God's overall plan, we can be sure that we will not be disqualified by our own selfish sinfulness as we look to Him who saves and heals us from all our sins.

© 2016 by Ken Peters

Do you want to be healed?

Imagine that you're wandering through Jerusalem in the days when Jesus walked the earth, and you come upon an unusual scene. But before you see it, you hear it, and then you can smell it. Nothing can prepare you for this, though for the local people, it's an uncomfortable reality that they're well acquainted with.

You first hear the sound as you approach a row of columns that are parallel to the road you're walking down, but you can't yet see what's on the other side of them. At first you're not sure you heard right, as you can barely make sense of it amidst the competing sounds of the city: a chorus of baa'ing from the nearby sheep market, the haggling among the many sellers nearby, a donkey braying in the distance, a group of men arguing heatedly over some land title over by the Sheep Gate. But as you get closer, the sound becomes more recognizable. It's the sound of moaning; moans mingled with occasional cries that sound like prayers of painful desperation. In fact, it sounds as though many people must be in pain. Curiosity draws you closer until you notice the smell. You wonder what it could be as your senses are assaulted by the awful stench of infection mixed with body odour in the stifling heat. You've now walked close enough to begin seeing between the columns, and as you draw closer, an unforgettable scene opens up before you. On the other side of the columns, you see what appears to be a multitude of beggars in ragged clothes lying on several sizable porches – no, there are five porches, each with a roof overhead, all of them surrounding a pool of water, and each one crowded with sickly, crippled and even paralyzed people! Some are blind, many clearly can't walk, and others have bloodstained bandages that barely cover their broken limbs. Your eyes fill with tears as you wonder who all these people are, and why there are so many of them lingering here by these waters.

The place you have discovered is Bethesda (John 5:2-4), which in the local language of Aramaic means, "House of Mercy." But considering the scene before you, it would be fair for you to wonder why this horrible place of pain would be referred to as a place of mercy. According to local lore, it is said that in certain seasons, an angel of the Lord visits this pool and stirs the waters, and then whoever first steps into the water after the angel has stirred it will be made well from whatever ails him or her. That sounds like mercy. But considering the multitude of suffering people who wait for this precious moment, the sense of desperation and impending disappointment is palpable in this place.

As you gaze over this morbid scene, covering your mouth and nose with your hand and listening to the groans that are now unmistakable, your heart is overcome with sorrow and with hopelessness. But then suddenly you see movement nearby – about a dozen men are approaching the multitude just a few columns away. And then one of the men in that group crouches down to talk to a man on a mat, and you can just make out their brief conversation.

The man crouching down puts his hand gently on the lame man's forehead as He softly asks him, "Are you here because you want to be healed?"

The invalid replies, "Sir, I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me." (John 5:7)

And then suddenly, and without warning, the man crouching beside this sad, defeated man says, "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk!" (John 5:8)

You're taken aback at this, and the initial expression of shock you see on that poor crippled man's face reflects your own reaction to this unexpected demand! What could this man be thinking in being so bold?! By the way that crippled man's bony legs look, he hasn't walked in years – even decades! But then as you watch the man on the mat stare into the gentle eyes of this unusual stranger, he begins to stir. A smile begins to spread across the stranger's face as He extends His hands and begins to stand from His crouching position. You watch in awe as the crippled man takes His hands and struggles to kneel. As he does so, you do a double-take as you see his legs thickening with muscles that appear to be forming before your very eyes! Soon the man is tentatively standing, grinning from ear to ear, but unsure where to look! First at this stranger's beaming face, then at his newly strengthened legs, and then back at the joyful face of this man who has done the impossible! Soon the newly healed man is comfortable enough to stoop down and pick up his mat, and with a cheer, excitedly set off, likely for home, you suppose.

One man's life, among a multitude of others, unexpectedly chosen and forever changed. You're left open-mouthed, still staring at the amazing man who worked that great miracle, and suddenly he looks your way and catches your eye with a smile on His face. "Do you want to be healed?" He asks. 

And your heart leaps with a great yes! You imagine what it would mean to be well from all that ails you – not only from an illness that's lingered far too long now, but also from the sin that so easily besets you, the ruts you can't get out of, the weaknesses you've been unable to overcome! Perhaps this House of Mercy is actually a place where we all belong, a place that reflects the realities in all our souls, a place where we can meet this wonderful man who stands before you now, looking gently into your eyes and asking with the conviction of One who can save you, "Do you want to be healed?"

© 2016 by Ken Peters

That look...

Have you ever gotten that look? You know, that look from someone close to you – whether it be a spouse or a boss or a parent or a teacher – after you've just done something really bad? I mean, you really blew it, and then they turn and look at you with a disappointed or even an angry expression – or worse, that resigned "I knew it" look in their eyes as they shake their head at you. Have you ever gotten that look? I have, and I've even wondered at times if God ever gives me that look too.

So how then shall we interpret the look that the Lord gave Peter in Luke, chapter 22? Peter had just blown it big-time! He had denied Jesus three times, finally deceitfully exclaiming that he doesn't know what people are talking about (Luke 22:60a) and even going so far as to curse and swear to make his point (Matthew 26:74). Then Luke writes, "Immediately, while he [Peter] was still speaking, the rooster crowed. And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, 'Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.' So Peter went out and wept bitterly" (Luke 22:60b-62).

Somehow, Jesus was able to see Peter, and it sounds likely that their eyes met for at least a brief moment before Peter rushed away in tears. What was the expression in Jesus' eyes? Was it "that look" we've received from others in our lives?  I don't think so.

I think we can be reasonably certain that the look in Jesus's eyes wouldn't have been a harsh or condemning look, because the night before, not only did Jesus tell Peter it was going to happen (Luke 22:34), but He even sought to encourage Peter about it (Luke 22:31-32). He said, ³¹"Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. ³²But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren." It's worth noting that the Greek word "you" in verse 31 is plural, but singular in verse 32. In other words, Satan wanted to cause trouble to all of Jesus' disciples, but Jesus singled out Peter (who was also named Simon) as the one He wanted to use to encourage and rally the others.

So even though Jesus knew Peter would fail Him, He still had high expectations for him. That's why I don't believe Jesus looked at Peter with surprise or even with disappointment or anger. I believe He looked at Peter with a loving and imploring gaze, probably even with a prayer in His heart for Peter, confident that he was going to repent and return to Him a new, and humbled, man.

I also think that Jesus looks at us the same way when we blow it. That's how big His love is for each of us. He knows we're going to make mistakes – sometimes big mistakes. And even though Jesus knows that Satan wants to mess with us, He doesn't necessarily pray that Satan will leave us alone. He prays instead, just as He did for Peter, that our faith won't fail. For even though sin and Satan will cause us to stumble, Jesus is certain that the plans and purposes He has for each of us – good works prepared long ago for us to walk in (Ephesians 2:10) – are still going to be fulfilled for all who turn back to Him in humility. 

So when you blow it, don't put your head down to avoid Jesus' gaze. Look up, and look for the expression in His eyes – for that loving look that will lead us to brokenhearted repentance and restoration. You will see His face as you read and study the Bible, God's Word, for Jesus is the Word of God in bodily form (John 1:14). And the look you discover in His Word will be one of love and understanding and encouragement to return to Him, confident that as you do, there will be a place for you in His heart and in His plans!

© 2016 by Ken Peters

You really only need these two things...

Two things. That's it. That's all you need – it's all you'll ever need. I've grown fond of repeating these two things to my soul whenever I feel a dip in the road, because whenever I'm frustrated or discouraged or frightened, these two things lift me up.

They're both found in an oft-quoted Bible verse I memorized many years ago:
"And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him."  Hebrews 11:6 (NASB)

The two things are actually one thing: faith in God, that faith being an assurance of the things we hope for and a conviction of things promised that we can't always see with our physical eyes (Hebrews 11:1). But Hebrews 11:6 describes biblical faith in two parts: (1) confidence in God being who He says He is, and (2) confidence in all God's promises being available for those who seek Him. That's all you need when the chips are down and you're not sure how things are going to turn out.

So when you feel like you're struggling keep a good perspective, go ahead and ask yourself, 

"Is God still who He says He is?" (The answer is always yes.) 

And then also ask, 

"Are all God's promises still true?" (The answer to that is also always yes!) 

That is the kind of faith that pleases God – the kind that remembers God accurately and lifts our gaze to be encouraged by His promises.

That means it's vital for us to keep a lookout for who God is as we read the Bible and to remember what we've read so that we can look back to it in times of trouble. God's Word tells us all about who God is! Remember these things when you ask yourself if God is still who He says He is...

1. God is holy (Psalm 99:3; Rev. 4:8)
2. God is good (Psalm 25:8; James 1:17)
3. God is loving (Psalm 13:5; John 3:16)
4. God is faithful (Psalm 89:5; 1 Thessalonians 5:24)
5. God is merciful (Psalm 103:8; Ephesians 2:4)
6. God is powerful (Psalm 29:4; Ephesians 6:10)
7. God is wise (Psalm 104:24; Romans 11:33)
8. God is just (Psalm 37:28; 1 John 1:9)
9. God is ever-present (Psalm 139:7-10; Matthew 28:20)
10. God is all-knowing (Psalm 147:5; 1 John 3:20)

...and so much more!

And we also need to remember the promises of God as we read the Bible so that as we ask our soul if all God's promises are still true, we know what promises this applies to. This isn't complicated stuff! It's just a matter of remembering what we read so that we can remind ourselves in times of need. What has God promised to those who seek Him (which we can only do through Jesus (John 14:6))?

1. That we can personally know God (1 John 5:20)
2. That we can be filled with and empowered by His Holy Spirit (John 14:16-17)
3. Forgiveness (1 John 1:9)
4. Abundant life (John 10:10
5. Eternal life (1 John 2:25)
6. God's abiding presence (Hebrews 13:5)
7. God's peace (Philippians 4:7)
8. God's joy (Romans 15:13)
9. God having a purpose for our life (Ephesians 2:10)
10. Answers to our prayers (John 16:24)

...and so much more!

So remember! When life is tough, these are the two things you need in your holsters: To believe that God is exactly who He says He is in His Word! And to believe that every promise He's ever made is true and available when we are following Jesus (2 Corinthians 1:20)!

© 2016 by Ken Peters