"Jack Sprat Revisited"

“Jack Sprat Revisited”

“Jack Sprat could eat no fat,

His wife could eat no lean.

And so, between the both of them

They licked the platter clean.”

(Not the best of table manners but you get the point.)

Years ago Karen and I talked with a couple in which the husband couldn’t eat seeds. (That has a familiar ring to it!) They had been served sesame seed rolls at a restaurant and the husband commented that he couldn’t have them. His wife said, “O yes you can. I’ll eat the tops and you eat the bottoms.” Sometimes the most obvious solutions are the last ones we think of! (It took us a while to realize we could do the same with Whopper buns at Burger King.)

These stories picture how God equips His church for ministry. Few if any of us possess all the gifts of the Holy Spirit (see 1 Corinthians 12:27-30) but each has at least one (“…{the Spirit} gives them to each one, just as he determines.”—Verse 11, emphasis added) which He expects us to use for the benefit of all (“Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.”—Verse 7, emphasis added). Romans 12 shows that as each one exercises his or her Spirit-given ability(ies) the body of Christ functions smoothly, just as the various parts of the human body contribute to its proper functioning. When each part of our body does its intended job we call it good health—when each member of Christ’s body faithfully uses the gifts entrusted to them the result is a healthy church. Shouldn’t this be the desire of all of us as parts of God’s family?

It’s a real blessing to see God’s people emulate Mr. and Mrs. Sprat as they complement each other to enable Christ’s body to function as He intends. This shouldn’t surprise us—it’s what Scripture teaches (“Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.”—Romans 12:4-5). So let’s all do our part by allowing God to work in and through us to fulfill His purposes.

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan

"Head-scratchers"

“Head-scratchers”

The term “head-scratching” was first used in 1827 to describe dealing with confusion or pondering a puzzling statement. We still use it in this way today as we try to make sense out of seemingly contradictory or perplexing assertions or situations. Consider the following “head-scratchers” I’ve encountered:

   -In Quincy Market in downtown Boston (a collection of unique boutiques and eateries) I saw a left-handed shop. Behind the counter was the clerk—writing with her right hand!

   -Some time ago while walking through our church’s parking lot I observed a Chrysler advertising it was a courtesy vehicle—for the local Toyota dealership!

   -And years ago during the days of the 55 mph national speed limit I was “expanding” the law and was passed by a pick-up doing at least 75. I got a quick glimpse of a bumper sticker: “55 saves lives”!

   -An age old question: Why do we drive on a parkway and park on a driveway?

And let’s not forget baseball great Yogi Berra who’s “credited” with the following (among others):

    -On learning a new position: “Third base ain’t so bad if they don’t hit nothin’ to you.”

    -Playing left field in the old Yankee Stadium: “It gets late early out there.”

   -And ordering a pizza from room service: “You better cut it in eight pieces. I don’t think I  can eat twelve.”

On first glance there are some biblical statements that seem like “head-scratchers” but properly understood they make sense (remember God’s words: “…My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways….”—Isaiah 55:8). Here are a couple to ponder:

   -“…Whoever wants to save (his or her) life will lose it, but whoever loses (his or her) life for me will find it.” (Matthew 16:25). In giving our lives to God we discover His eternal purpose for us.

   -“…Everyone who exalts (himself or herself) will be humbled, and (the one) who humbles (himself or herself) will be exalted.” (Luke 18:14), In God’s economy self-promotion is to be avoided and godly modesty embraced.

Society’s “head-scratchers” don’t make sense over the long haul but let’s remember, “…(God’s) truth endures to all generations.” (Psalm 100:5, NKJV). And despite our “head-scratching” it always makes sense.

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan

"Pictures of the Insides"

“Pictures of the Insides”

In 1962 my grandfather was hospitalized for the first time in his 77 years. My brother and I went to visit and he reviewed his day with us. Included in his regimen was a trip to the x-ray department where (as he put it), “They took pictures of my insides.” (This was rather primitive as a diagnostic tool when compared to today’s PET scans, CAT scans and MRI’s.) We then joked with him some about knowing more of what he looked like internally than externally. But he recovered well and lived seven more years until God took him Home in December 1969.

I greatly admitted this gentleman who was an important influence on my life (see more about this in my posting “Quiet Godliness”) and often remember the things he said and did which made me think and sometimes chuckle a bit. I then recalled the “Superman” comics and TV series in which the hero had x-ray vision to see through walls and other barriers in his “fight for truth, justice and the American way”. From here my mind wandered to God’s words to His priest Samuel: “(People look) at the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7). This might be described as “Divine x-ray vision” and is one of the many ways God distinguishes Himself from us humans.

A couple of old sayings show our lack of ability to see beyond the surface in one another: “Beauty is only skin deep” (1613) and “You can’t judge a book by its cover” (1850). People can see only what we allow them to about us. We may hide who we really are from those around us but “Nothing is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” (Hebrews 4:13).

Around 400 BC Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” It’s thought he meant that without knowing or understanding ourselves our life has no value. But God valued each of us enough to “…(give) his one and only Son….” (John 3:16). And He calls on us to look at ourselves on the inside to conform to His purposes (“Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the Lord.”—Lamentations 3:40) before questioning another’s actions or motives (Matthew 7:5) or participating in the Lord’s Supper (1 Corinthians 11:28).

What we are on the inside will likely manifest itself outwardly at some point (“…the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart.”—Matthew 12:34, NASB). I pray the pictures of my insides will photograph well when seen on the outside.

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan

"Hosanna!"

“Hosanna!”

During Passover Jesus entered the City of Jerusalem on a donkey’s colt. The vast crowd that was there to celebrate this holy day heard He was coming, showed up en masse, laid their coats down In His path and waved palm branches with great exaltation. They shouted out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” (John 12:13). (“Hosanna” is the Greek form of a Hebrew exclamation of praise that literally means “save now” or “save, we pray” taken from Psalm 118:26. It became an expression of praise in Christian worship.)

But the real meaning the people had in mind would have been more accurate: “Save now! Save us from Roman rule; save us from hardships; save us from sickness and disease.” Many had seen Jesus work miracles—probably all in that large Passover crowd had at least heard about Him. Kings save people from their enemies, right? And this Man showed such power—surely He would save them.

But they were looking for a political savior, not a Savior for their hearts, which were under even greater bondage than their country. For this bondage was eternal—unless they recognized that this King—this Jesus—could save them from their sin. Could the same be said of us? When we sing the words, “Sing Hosanna! Blessed is the King of Israel; Hosanna!” do we realize what Jesus really came to earth to do?

If you have never made a personal choice to ask God to forgive you from your sin and ask Jesus to come into your life to be your Savior—to be in charge of your life—then you can sing, “Hosanna, save now!—save me now” and He will. But if you already know Jesus personally, what do you mean by “Hosanna”? “Save me from the many problems I’ve gotten myself into? Save me from this school assignment? Save me from my co-worker?” Or have you over the years turned the word “Hosanna” into more of an expression of praise—“Praise to the King of Israel”—but more importantly, “Praise to the King of my heart”?

Grace and Blessings!

Karen McMillan

(Karen wrote these thoughts as a devotional many years ago for a rehearsal of The Dove Singers {see “Undivided” for a description of this ministry.} The truth is timeless because Jesus came and died once to save us for all time {“He came once for all time, at the end of the age, to remove the power of sin forever by his sacrificial death for us.”—Hebrews 9:26, NLT}. Nothing more needs to be done. God is waiting to welcome you into His family. We pray you’ll accept His offer.)

More Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan

"An Empty Faith"

“An Empty Faith”

A physics principle attributed to Aristotle says, “Nature abhors a vacuum”. This tells us that any empty space will be filled with something. Think for a moment as to how we practice this in daily life. When the fuel gauge on our car’s dashboard points to “E” we head for a gas station to replenish the tank. When our refrigerator or cupboards are getting bare we make our way to our local supermarket to stock up on what we need (or maybe don’t). If we have some vacant area in our attic or garage it cries out for something to fill it leading to our saving things we don’t really need but have trouble parting with. So without realizing it we often show how right Aristotle was.

During this time of year when the sufferings, death and resurrection of Christ are especially remembered I thought of their significance to our faith. In a lengthy analysis Paul shows the importance of these events. He writes, “…If Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty.” (1 Corinthians 15:14, NKJV, emphasis added). (The Greek word means futile or without profit; other versions render it “useless”, “vain” or “smoke and mirrors” in this verse.) The Apostle then goes on to say, “But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead….” (Verse 20, emphasis added). So our faith is certainly not empty—rather it fills us with hope of our future with Christ.

At the risk of being labeled a heretic let me show how our faith is empty, but in a good and biblical sense. First is an empty Christ. In the kenosis passage (the Greek word for empty using English characters), Philippians 2:5-11, Paul states that Jesus “…emptied Himself….” (Verse 7, NASB), or voluntarily laid aside some of His rights as God when He took human form (but in no way compromised His Deity). Then there was an empty cross (“…Joseph…took {Jesus’ body} down {from the cross}….”—Luke 23:53), leaving it without His body. Finally and most importantly is the empty tomb. When the women went there on the morning of the third day after His crucifixion they found it empty and were told by angels, “He is not here; he has risen!” (Luke 24:6, emphasis added). (One of the highlights of our Israel trip was seeing where Jesus’ body had been but no longer is.)

So let’s thank God for our “empty faith”—not futile but victorious (“…Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:57).

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan