Category: Jesus

While we were in Europe this summer, we decided to hop over to pre-Olympic London for a couple of days. We found an affordable hotel just across from Kensington Palace where it just so happened that the ThreeSixty Theatre Group was performing The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, a play based on the classic book by C. S. Lewis. On a cool evening under a circus tent in Kate and William’s neighborhood, we watched the wonderful story of Jesus translated to the land of Narnia.

In the 1940s, as four children from war-torn London entered a magical world, they found talking animals and a kingdom poisoned by the White Witch. Tragically one of the children, Edmund, is quickly deceived — blinded by the evil witch. Where was hope?

Matilda Battersby, a writer for Britain’s The Independent, did not seem too impressed with the first part of the play (though eight-year-old John and the rest of us were mesmerized). But when the Lion came on the scene, even a hard-to-please critic was impressed: “Things picked up in the second half with the arrival of Aslan… He stole the show.” (May 30, 2012)

Is that not the world’s greatest truth? When Aslan comes… everything changes. When Jesus truly enters the picture… people are impacted. Some hear His Name and resist His love and His will; others hear His voice and are awakened to eternity.

C. S. Lewis put it this way in his book:

Here the Beaver’s voice sank into silence and it gave one or two very mysterious nods. Then signaling to the children to stand close around it as they possibly could, so their faces were actually tickled by its whiskers, it added in a low whisper — “They say Aslan is on the move — perhaps has already landed.”

None of the children knew who Aslan was any more than you do; but the moment the Beaver had spoken these words everyone felt quite different. Perhaps it has sometimes happened to you in a dream that someone says something which you don’t understand but in the dream it feels as if it had some enormous meaning — either a terrifying one which turns the whole dream into a nightmare or else a lovely meaning too lovely to put into words, which makes the dream so beautiful that you remember it all your life and are always wishing you could get into that dream again.

It was like that now. At the name of Aslan each one of the children felt something jump in it’s inside. Edmund felt a sensation of mysterious horror. Peter felt suddenly brave and adventurous. Susan felt as if some delicious smell or some delightful strain of music had just floated by her. And Lucy got the feeling you have when you wake up in the morning and realize that it is the beginning of the holidays or the beginning of summer.

(From The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis; copyright 1950 by C. S. Lewis Pte. Ltd.; p 74)

As Jesus continues to be the hope of the world, may we be among those who carefully proclaim His Name.

“And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of Christ, who is the image of God. For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord…” II Corinthians 4:3-5

We’ve come to the close of another school year and another writing season. This is a special week for our family as Karlyn graduates from high school. Family members and friends will gather as we honor all who have reached this wonderful milestone.

“Give honor to whom honor is due,” the Scripture says, but Jesus talked about those his Father would honor. So how do we receive the honor that comes from God? By serving Jesus. And we can only serve Jesus by following him. “Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am , my servant will also be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.”
(John 12:26)

If I care more about what people think than what God thinks, I can’t receive God’s honor. “Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise from men more than praise from God.” (John 12:42-43) What a sad exchange!

Jesus, who is honored above all, invites us to follow him. He does not say the path is easy, but he knows it is worth it. “If anyone would come after me, he must  deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.” (Matthew 16:24-27)

Susan and I are so thankful for a year of health and blessing. We are looking forward to a different summer as we are not in charge of camp this year. I may send a few updates in June and July. May God give us all joy in the journey.

Love,
Dana

“As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.” (John 15:9-12)

“What would Jesus say to us these days?” Perhaps the best way to answer this question is to remember what He said:

HEAR ME. “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Luke 8:8

COME TO ME. “Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

ASK ME. “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” John 4:10

BELIEVE IN ME. “‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.’ By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.” John 7:37-39

FOLLOW ME. “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.” Matthew 16:24-25

OBEY ME. “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.” John 14:23-24

REMAIN IN ME. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5

“Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” Romans 10:17

Francis Chan delivered a powerful message to over 40,000 young people at the Passion Conference in the Georgia Dome last week. “I beg you… read God’s Word for yourself. This world is giving you so many false messages and if you do not read God’s Word for yourself, you will not know the difference between a lie and the truth!”

I teach seventeen- and eighteen-year-old high school students. Though they have access to more information than anyone in human history, there is a frightening absence of knowledge of the Word of God. What advantage is unlimited information if we fail to focus on what is most important? What good is technology that can instantly supply the answer to any question if we don’t have the ability to discern the truth? What deception accompanies amazing sophistication that drowns out the Word of God?

As the devil quoted Scripture to Jesus while tempting him in the wilderness, Jesus declared that man lives on every word that comes from the mouth of God. What did Jesus mean? What warnings did the Teacher give his listeners regarding the Word of God?

Jesus was careful to fully explain one of his parables: “The Word goes out as seed from a sower. Know this: the devil is determined to steal the Word. The hard heart has no hope; the Word is taken before it has chance to take root. The rocky ground receives the Word with joy, but when trouble or persecution comes, these listeners with good intentions fade away because there is no root. Growth begins in the thorny ground, but riches and pleasures and life’s worries choke out the life. ‘But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the Word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.’” (see Luke 8:1-15)

Jesus, the Word made flesh, wants the children of the Father to receive strength, wisdom, and power from the living and active Word of God. He then wants us to hold out this Word to others… the Word of life that brings hope to all men.

“Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life.” Philippians 2:14-16

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” Colossians 3:16

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” James 1:22

The power of the Sermon on the Mount is not simply a beautiful lesson… it is a message backed by a life. Jesus lived out the Sermon on the Mount and He invites us to follow in his steps with the help only the Holy Spirit can provide.

On earth, Jesus proclaimed the Kingdom of God was at hand and He was the entrance. “For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” But what does this mean for us? Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s best known writing is “The Cost of Discipleship” in which he states that Jesus is calling us to really follow him. Without discipleship, Bonhoeffer argues that ‘costly grace’ turns into ‘cheap grace.’ Years before the beginning of World War II, this young German theologian looked at his ‘Christian nation’ and saw looming disaster. “Cheap grace has turned out to be utterly merciless to our Evangelical Church. This cheap grace has been no less disastrous to our own spiritual lives. Instead of opening up the way to Christ it has closed it. Instead of calling us to follow Christ, it has hardened us in our disobedience.”

Jesus said the religious leaders of his day were hypocrites because they claimed to follow the Law of Moses while ignoring the very heart of God. “You give a tenth of your spices — mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law — justice, mercy, and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter without neglecting the former.” (Mt 23:23) What does Jesus say about those who claim to follow him but do not do what He says? “Everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Mt 7:26-27)

Bonhoeffer argued that the one who gives up self is the one who truly understands grace. “The only man who has the right to say he is justified by grace alone is the one who has left all to follow Christ. Such a man knows that the call to discipleship is a gift of grace, and that the call is inseparable from grace. But those who try to use this grace as a dispensation from following Christ are simply deceiving themselves.”

“Happy are they who know that discipleship simply means the life which springs from grace, and that grace simply means discipleship.” So what is this discipleship “which springs from grace” that Dietrich proclaimed? It is one thing: following Jesus… each day… full of his Spirit… eyes on him… listening to his Word… obeying what He says… following Jesus.

“And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple… In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:27, 33

Quotes from “The Cost of Discipleship” by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, first published in 1937 by Chr. Kaiser Verlag, translated by R. H. Fuller. Copyright 1959 by SCM Press Ltd.