Legacy

I always wanted to have a grandpa with a long white beard. It wasn’t necessary for him to look exactly like one of the seven dwarves but an older man with a slightly graying beard would do. As we grow older, many people develop a burning desire to leave some sort of legacy behind. As we get closer to the grave some people need to find that perfect plaque, object or program to leave behind as a reminder of what they have accomplished in their life. The patriarchs passed on land, prophets passed on their mantles and kings passed on their right to the throne.

 Just prior to my own mother’s passing, she developed a burning desire to leave us with an old fashioned wooden school desk. It was the kind made completely out of oak, had a hole for an ink well and was identical to the one she had used as a little girl growing up in La Mesa. I remember how my father had to run around visiting antique shop after antique shop until, one day, he discovered a desk that matched her description. For some unknown reason my mother wanted us to have this desk to remember her by, so the cash was laid down and the trophy brought home. Today however, the desk stands motionless, upstairs in the loft; it is never used, covered with magazines, books and a layer of dust. When I do see the desk, it does not automatically remind me of my mother.

In chapter 23 of Joshua, we find the elderly leader preparing to pass on into the eternal Promised Land. But before he dies, he encourages the Israelites to always keep God first in their lives. Joshua instructs them to stay close to God and not turn away to the right or the left. He reminds them to love God with all their hearts, minds and strength. If they would keep God first in their lives by loving and adoring Him then things would go well for them. God had proved Himself to be faithful and to deliver on all of His promises; to go before them conquering all nations and all who would dare stand in their way. In the book of Joshua we read “One man of you shall chase a thousand, for the Lord your God is He who fights for you, as He promised you. Therefore take careful heed to yourselves, that you love the Lord your God.” Joshua 23:10-11.

It’s my belief that later on in their history the shepherd-king David took this thought to heart and was the embodiment as he stood up to and decapitated the giant Goliath. David’s strength was in his love for God. He believed that his victories were from the Lord God almighty.  

Realizing your depravity, your lost state and your need for God’s forgiveness is paramount to beginning a loving relationship with Him. Learning to love God because of His kindness is what drives us to our knees in repentance. We will never be able to serve God until we learn to worship and love Him. Acts of service, on their own merit, never bring us closer to God.  It’s only when acts of service are driven by our love and admiration of Him that seeds of service can sprout, grow multiplying God’s kingdom a hundred fold.

We are by nature “children of wrath” and have nothing to offer a righteous, sinless God. It was God, who while we were still in this lost state of degeneration, offered us a way to approach Him. Jesus Christ the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament became our debt-payment and our covering. Our Emmanuel, God with us, Jesus, chose to be born into His own creation, chose to become sin for us as he took upon the sins of a lost world. He became the Lamb of the sacrifice whose blood is the most powerful thing in this universe. God, because He is rich in mercy and love, planned a road, a way and a ladder to heaven for all who would choose to believe in faith. Paul, in his letter to the church in Ephesus, said it this way “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9.

The death of Jesus was not a tragic end but a new beginning, a victorious story of how the King of kings rose from the grave, conquering death, promising to return for all those who love Him. And while God did not leave behind an old wooden school desk for us to remember Him by; He did leave behind an old rugged cross, a cup of wine and broken loaf of bread.

Trusting

Last week I confessed how much I hate waiting. Waiting in a line for anything is the worst idea ever invented by man, however waiting on the Lord is the best idea that anyone can choose to make. Making a conscious, determined choice to wait on God is the key to success. After their victory at Jericho, the Israelites begin to trust in and rely upon their own self-sufficiency. God warns us that pride comes before the fall so, as the Israelites began to believe in their own strength; the walls of God’s protection begin to come tumbling down around them. They fail to consult with God for His guidance and blunder foolishly ahead, attacking the village of Ai.

There’s something to be said of a man who can take a step back, take a deep, long breath and let a volatile situation cool down. Waiting on the Lord is the main ingredient in any good work the Lord is preparing in our lives. Many great men and women of God only succeed when they paused, stepped out of the way and let God guide them through to victory. The old saying “Where God guides He provides” is so truthful that whoever is led by the Holy Spirit will never fail. One of my favorite verses that remind me to wait and trust in God is found in Proverbs 3:5, 6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding but in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your path straight.”

Another  phrase “To obey is better than sacrifice” was spoken by God in the Old Testament reminding God’s people that  if they were only obedient then they wouldn’t have to offer up endless sacrifices. These six words strung together remind us to reflect and center ourselves once again aligning our will with God’s. Many a sacrifice, many a consequence could have been avoided if we only would have stopped and waited on the Lord and sought Him for direction. I remember a line from a 1980’s TV drama called “Berretta” where the detective use to always say to the convicted criminal as he was being led away to jail “Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time”.

Immediately after the successful sacking of the walled city of Jericho, Joshua now turns to the small village of Ai. The village is located at the top of a mountain about 1000 meters in elevation change from their current position in the desert valley below. Joshua sends in men to spy on the village and they return overconfident, insisting that Joshua only send out a small contingent consisting of 3000 armed Israelites. As the troops near the top of the mountain, they quickly retreat back down to the bottom. Taking a comparative look at the text in Joshua 7:5, it says, “The hearts of the people melted”. Here God is describing how the Israelites felt as they are fleeing for their lives but, what’s interesting is that this same phrase was used by Rahab to describe how the residence of Palestine felt as the Israelites were poised to cross over the Jordan River.

So what caused such a dramatic turn of events? God had instructed Joshua not to take any of the accursed things ^”And you, by all means abstain from the accursed things, lest you become accursed when you take of the accursed things, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. But all the silver and gold, and vessels of bronze and iron, are consecrated to the Lord; they shall come into the treasury of the Lord." Joshua 6:18-19. Achan, one of the Israelite soldiers, had secretly taken some of the silver and gold from Jericho and hid the loot under his tent. This blatant act of disobedience by one man brought a curse upon the entire army and contributed to their defeat.  Joshua had failed to consult with the Lord for direction and foolishly took the advice of his spies.   

Learning to wait on God does not come without some pain, but from Joshua’s defeat at Ai, we can learn a valuable lesson, to wait upon the Lord before engaging the enemy. “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the whole armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes; For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” After all, in the end, the battle belongs to the Lord!

Waiting

I hate waiting. Whether I’m sitting at a traffic light, in a doctor’s office or waiting for a pot of water to boil I don’t like the grass growing under my feet. I’ve heard other people say that patience is a virtue but for me I want to squeeze 70 minutes out of an hour.  The truth is, I do tend to get ahead of God’s leading from time to time and God has to reel me back in. Why, I remember a time back in the 1990’s when I put on a small outreach to raise funds for a local missionary named Bob Daniels. Bob would collect funds, food and clothing then fly them down to an orphanage nestled deep in the Nicaraguan jungle.

When I met Bob for the first time, I was immediately taken by his bravado and swagger. The way he put his total trust in the Lord was infectious. So, in my zeal to help him, I organized the “Music Mission Outreach” and began to mobilize the troops. The process was hard, filled with obstacles and roadblocks.

 There use to be a small coffee shop called “Poets”, where Bob and I met for coffee and fellowship. The owner, after hearing about our plan, offered his store to host the event. Dawn and Neil Richardson, from the Willows Baptist Church, offered to print up flyers and take pictures. Soon others were getting involved by making crafts to sell, squeezing lemons for lemonade and even local Christian artists were offering to play for the crowd. A high school theater troupe worked on some skits to perform for the crowd. Bob Taylor donated some T shirts and a local sign company donated some really nice banners for the event.

In the book of Matthew 25:31-46 the prophecy depicts the story of Jesus coming back to judge the world. He begins to separate the non-believers from the believers; the sheep and the goats and in the process the righteous ask Him “When did we clothe You? When did we feed You? and when did we come to visit You? To which Jesus says to them “Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these brethren, you did it to Me.”

So in my zeal to help Him, I failed to ask from the very beginning if this was something that God wanted me to do or was I doing it for my own reward? There is another verse in the book of Isaiah 40:31 that states “But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings as eagles, They shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint”. As the event ended and we drove home to count the money the answer came loud and clear. The total amount collected that day was exactly $ 647.37. But I had expected there to be much more!

So why didn’t the Lord open up the floodgates of heaven and pour out blessings on us? I mean, after all, it was to help out helpless orphans and that was definitely in God’s will? The event got people involved and sent relief to children who really needed it. But why was there so little money in the offering? The bottom line, after all the money was counted and the dust had settled, was that I failed to wait upon the Lord. As I reflected back on the busy weeks of preparation that led to the outreach, I heard a still, quiet voice say “Dean, I don’t need your money”.

Ok, so now it’s time to total up all the expenses that went out. As I input the last figure into the calculator, I was stunned to read $ 647.36 on the calculator’s display screen.  Several feelings and questions rushed through my mind all at the same time. “If I reimburse myself then we didn’t raise a single nickel for the kids in Nicaragua. How could God allow this to happen and not bless our efforts? 

Years later as I look back on this event, it’s easy to see what God was doing. First, I did not wait on the Lord as the verse from Isaiah states. In my zeal to serve the Lord I had used all my own resources, connections and favors to bring this event to fruition. The voice I heard as I had counted the last coins was clear “I don’t need your money, I want your life” So now I had a choice to make, would I recoup my expenses and send nothing down to the orphans or chalk up a loss and send it all with Bob? Well, you will have to wait until next week to find out the answer.

 

Papa Chuck

Chuck Smith passed away last week on 10/3/2013 and entered into the presence and glory of his Lord. Many of you already know him through contact with one of his many books, videos, sermon tapes or radio and TV shows. For those of you who are not yet acquainted with Pastor Chuck, he was the man God raised up and used during one of our nations most troubling and turbulent times. In the late 1960’s, God led Chuck and Kay Smith to reach out in love to bring hope to a generation of dirty, bare footed and drug laced children. God chose to use Chuck’s wife, Kay Smith, to pray for and eventually reach out to this growing hippie culture drawing them into a loving relationship with Jesus. 

At that same time Chuck was asked to take over for a small church located on Church Street in Costa Mesa called “Calvary Chapel”. The church consisted of 25 very discouraged and deeply divided people. Through prayer, verse by verse bible study, and home fellowships, the small church began to grow as God added to its number daily. The small church continued to grow to become one of the largest Christian organizations in the world. At present the organization is comprised of thousands of churches, many with Christian schools and bible colleges sprinkled throughout the world. There is even a Calvary Chapel right here in Alpine. The accomplishments of the Calvary Chapel movement are wide reaching and have hit with tsunami-like effects around our globe. When asked how he managed to accomplish all of this, Chuck would produce a Cheshire Cat-like smile and say “Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit’, says the LORD.” Zechariah 4:6. 

Pastor Chuck was one of a handful of men in my life who lived and modeled to me how Jesus might have lived. “Papa Chuck”, as many referred to him, was a humble man who was dedicated to serving his Lord by serving others. His simple way of teaching through the bible verse by verse, within the homes of his members, was the vehicle that God used to plant the seeds of one of the largest revivals in the world’s recent history. What we now refer to as the “Jesus Movement” of the late 1960’s and into the 1970’s was the results of one man who stepped out of the way to let God guide him. Whenever he was asked about Calvary Chapel’s success and his role as senior pastor, Chuck would once again pause, smile and say “It’s all about Jesus!” It’s really quite amazing how God uses flawed, weak vessels to show His power and might. One verse that describes Chuck Smith’s entire life is found in the Old Testament “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him.” 2 Chronicles 16:9. 

Death always brings with it many questions for those of us who are left behind. “Why did God allow them to die?” or “What will happen to me when I die?”  It’s a very natural and probably the most asked question posed by most everyone at some point in our lives. As for the ancient patriarchs of Abraham’s day, they believed that there would be a resurrection or new life after death. Many scholars feel that the book of Job is one of the oldest books in the bible. We see both the mention of the Jewish Messiah and the concept of life after death or the resurrection of the dead in this text. Job said this while in the midst of his trials and tribulation “For I know that my redeemer lives, And He shall stand at last on the earth; And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, That in my flesh I will see God”. Job 19:25.  

There is a story in the book of John where Jesus was summoned to pray for Mary and Martha’s brother Lazarus who was deathly ill. As the story goes, Jesus deliberately postponed His appearance allowing Lazarus to die. As Martha runs to Jesus to employ Him to ask God to raise her dead brother Jesus says, “Your brother shall rise again.”  To which Martha replies “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” Then Jesus makes a very profound statement “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” I know that if Pastor Chuck could ask you all one final question before going to heaven it would be what Jesus just spoke to Martha.  

Chuck Smith

Chuck Smith, the evangelical pastor whose outreach to hippies in the 1960s helped transform worship styles in American Christianity and fueled the rise of the Calvary Chapel movement, died Thursday, Oct. 3, 2013, after a battle with lung cancer. He was 86.  Christianity Today 10/3/2013





I was afforded the rare opportunity to interview Pastor Chuck Smith on KPRZ 1210 AM radio in San Diego Ca. around 2010. It was one of my most favorite interviews as Chuck is one of a handful of men in my life who have modeled what Jesus would have been like.

One of my favorite stories from Chuck and is included in my interview of him is the "New Carpet Story". It is a classic story where this rather small but growing fellowship on Church Street, Costa Mesa, Ca. ordered new carpeting. As the story goes the date was the 1960's and Chuck's wife, Kay, had been inviting the long haired, drug laced hippies to church and introducing them to her Savior.

Unfortunately, the hippies came to church dirty and barefooted which caused the elders of the church to put up signs saying    "NO SHOES...NO ENTRANCE!" The leaders of the church also did not like them sitting on the floor on their precious new carpeting. So the boiling point was reached and a church meeting was scheduled by the church elders.

As Pastor Chuck listened to their complaints and it was now his turn to speak he calmly said "Yes, your all right, we do have a problem here with the new carpeting and the dirty bare feet of the hippies who are coming in to learn more about Jesus"

As the elders all began to breathe a sigh of relief Chuck slowly responds in his usual style. "Well OK, I guess we will need to remove all the carpeting as soon as possible"

I love Pastor Chuck Smith! He modeled what Jesus must have looked like! Rest in peace Chuck and I know he has just heard theses words from his Savior. " Well done My good and faithful servant, enter into your rest."

Dean Kellio
New Wine 10/3/2013

Renewal

October is one of my favorite months of the year! I have no problem at all saying goodbye to the hot sleepless nights of summer as the cooler breezes of fall start to move in. I really enjoy watching leaves change color and fall from their lofty perches to the ground below. I don’t even mind getting the rake out from the garden shed, gathering brightly colored leaves into piles to mulch. As the days pass, each one gets a little shorter allowing cooler nights to settle in upon us. Soon we will begin to gather in the season’s harvest of bright orange pumpkins, oddly disfigured squash and woven baskets overflowing with crisp, juicy, red apples. What a blessing this season is as it allows us time to slow down, re-gather our thoughts and prepare for the holidays that lie ahead.

Fall offers me a time to look inside myself, to re-evaluate my priorities that usually have gotten a wee bit twisted and out of order. Halloween, Thanksgiving and especially Christmas offer us an excuse to invite family and friends to once again sit around our hearth and gaze into the fire. As our fears and anxieties begin to soften, eventually melting away, we find ourselves refreshed, renewed and invigorated. There seems to be a great cycle to life where, as even our own  planet travels through our solar system in just the right way, with just the right amount of tilt and wobble to produce these seasonal changes that we so much look forward to.

The other day while at work, a colleague of mine, who has passed through some very tragic life events, made the most profound statement which caused me to stop and reflect on my own personal relationship with God. He said “I don’t understand how people who don’t have faith, who don’t have a relationship with God, can survive life’s tragedies?” Interestingly, many people I meet, who don’t yet believe in God, often ask me “If God truly loves me then why does He allow bad things to happen?” I wish I had a dollar for every time I have been asked that. The answer to that question is not always what people want to hear.

God never promised us a rose garden but actually said there would be trials and tribulation in this world. While God did promise us that He would guide us through to a safe harbor, He never mentioned that the seas of life we encounter would be calm. In fact, Jesus told us in John 16:33, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."  So in keeping with our fall seasonal theme, Jesus also said in Matthew 12:24 “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.”

This is a great verse on many levels. First, it’s the idea that when a seed dies it produces fruit. Death eventually brings life and, while Jesus’ teaches us about this law of nature, it’s also true spiritually.   Jesus is outlining the fact that He is going to die and die a horrific death. His death would not be the end but a new beginning. And as each one of us grasps that truth and cries out to God for help, He brings us into His kingdom where we can participate in the greatest harvest ever imagined, a harvest of human souls. Each unique individual was bought at a price, and ransomed from death to life. The King of kings and Lord of lords gave up His life so that many will live.

So, as the leaves fall to the ground and pumpkins begin to appear on front porches, try to enjoy this season of renewal and rest in the fact that God is at the helm, guiding us through the turbulent waters of life and into safe harbor! Jesus said that He would never leave us alone but come back to claim us, and that where ever He was, we would be with Him for all eternity. So as the sparks shoot out from your hearth this fall season and family and friends are gathered together, take and drink from the cup of salvation and feast on the bounty of the bread of life that is solely found in Christ Jesus our Lord.