The KJV - 400 years old this week, but still alive and powerful!

This week is the 400th anniversary of the Authorized Version, the King James Bible.

History is replete with the stories of those whose blood was shed to put the Word of God into the hands of common people and in their own language.

We should all love the Word, list to it, learn it, live it and long for it.

It is our life, our bread, our water, our honey, our milk and our meat.

It is a sharp two-edged sword, a mirror, a hammer and a fire.

The Word comforts us, guides us, instructs us, convicts us, reproves us and corrects us.

God’s holy Word is our manual for life, God’s love letter to us and His revelation of Himself to us.

Andrew Jackson stated: “That book, sir, is the rock on which our republic rests.”

And since the Scriptures have made us wise unto salvation (II Ti 3:15), and since we are born again by the incorruptible seed of the Word of God (I Pe 1:23), then it is the rock upon which our souls rest.

Read your Bible today and be blessed by its timeless truths!

Ah, Come On, Ma!

Mat 20:20 Then came to him the mother of Zebedee's children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a certain thing of him. 21 And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom. 22 But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, We are able. 23 And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father. 24 And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brethren.

You remember when your mom licked her finger to wipe a smudge off your face? Guys, how about the times when you were a little boy and she drug you into the ladies' room at the department store? Talk about your embarrassing moments!

How about when the mom of James and John, these "Sons of Thunder" comes to Jesus, right there in front of all their buddies and says, "Jesus, I want special seating in heaven for my boys, see what you can do."

Imagine those rough and tumble guys; Peter, the swarthy fisherman, Simon, the uber-patriot, Andrew, tanned and leathered from outdoor activity, all gasping for air as they laughed at their fellow disciples. "Hey boys, so glad mommy stopped by today for a visit with the Lord!" Then their laughter turned to anger, "Why, the very thought of it, those guys getting better seats at the table than us, harrumph!"

How sheepish must James and John have felt to have mom making such requests right there in front of God and everybody?

Moms do that. They demand a hug in front of the other middle schoolers. They reprimand you in church for passing notes. Shucks, I'm in my 50s and my mom demands that I sing solos more than anyone else in church!

Mother's Day is next week and we really should be thankful that we do have that one big fan, our moms.

The Forgiveness Imperative.

Mt 18:21-35
Mat 18:21 Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? 22 Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.

Not long before she died in 1988, in a moment of surprising candor in television, Marghanita Laski, one of our best-known secular humanists and novelists, said, "What I envy most about you Christians is your forgiveness; I have nobody to forgive me."

It cannot be stressed enough how imperative it is that we learn to forgive. Never are we more like God than when we forgive another their trespasses against us. It has been said, to err is human, but to forgive is Divine.

It is highly therapeutic for us to grant forgiveness to another. Our Lord modeled this for us in His commentary on the Lord's Prayer when He said, "For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." Matt 6:14,15.

Three quick thoughts I would like to share with you here:

1. The Quantity of Forgiveness - 70x7. That's 490 times, in case you were are tabulating. But then, by that time, who's counting?

2. The Ratio of Forgiveness - Christ forgave us tens of thousands of our sins. Think about it, if you sinned 3 ONLY times a day, that would be 20 sins a week, 80 per month, 1000 sins a year. If you lived your threescore and ten, you would have to stand before a righteous, holy God with 70,000 sins for which to answer! Talk about hopeless!!! But every one of those sins against God's holiness is washed away in the blood of Jesus, completely forgiven, covered in mercy & grace.

Yet we quibble about forgiving someone else of 4 or 5 offences. You have heard it, perhaps you have even spoken it, "I just can't forgive him/her for what he’s/she's done to me!"

Consider and contrast what the man in our passage received, yea, what you have received in the way of forgiveness and then what you have such a hard time granting to another. This wretched man needed the attitude adjustment that was coming to him in debtor's prison. Do you need a similar adjustment?

3. Rationale of forgiveness - If we have been forgiven for so much, how can we not forgive So little?

It only makes sense, we ought to forgive because of the forgiveness we have received. Jesus said, freely ye have received, freely give. That not only includes the gospel message and the many blessings poured out upon our lives, but forgiveness.

Who stands in need of your grace and mercy today? Who desperately needs your forgiveness? News flash: you need to forgive MORE than they need to be forgiven!

After the Civil War, Robert E. Lee visited a Kentucky lady who took him to the remains of a grand old tree in front of her house. There she bitterly cried that its limbs and trunk had been destroyed by Federal artillery fire. She looked to Lee for a word condemning the North or at least sympathizing with her loss. After a brief silence, Lee said, "Cut it down, my dear Madam, and forget it." It is better to forgive the injustices of the past than to allow them to remain, let bitterness take root and poison the rest of our life.

Personal Blessing

2Sa 7:9 And I was with thee whithersoever thou wentest, and have cut off all thine enemies out of thy sight, and have made thee a great name, like unto the name of the great men that are in the earth.

God brings certain people into our lives to enrich and encourage us in our walk with the Lord. These people may be salt of the earth, regular people that we come across at church, work or at a social function. They may be great giants of the faith whose godliness emanates from them like a spiritual force field.

I have had the distinct privilege of being blessed by several of these people in just the past 24 hours. It was a blessing to have lunch with some special servants of the Lord yesterday; pastors, Christian leaders and Christian media representatives. But I was especially blessed to meet our fine state senator Mark Christiansen. What a fine, godly man God has inserted into our state government. He is a man of character, integrity and spiritual depth.

I was interested to hear him relate the story of the little boy in his church who, I suppose you have heard and seen much of lately, Colton Burpo, who visited heaven while his 4 year old body lay on the operating table some time back. At the very same time as he was relating this story to me, my wife was on her plane to Phoenix reading the account in the best-selling book, Heaven is Real. That, my friend, we call a God thing!

This morning I was blessed to be in a small prayer group with Reese Kauffman, President of Child Evangelism Fellowship. To have him call my name in prayer to the Father stirred and humbled me. His assistant, Buzz Baker, another godly man of great spiritual vigor, also lifted me before the throne.

Last evening and again this morning, I enjoyed close fellowship with a true hero of the faith, internationally known by all evangelical pastors, Brother Warren Weirsbe. This is one of the wittiest, kindest and most learned men I have ever met. And to think, he took time to fellowship with one who is among the least in the kingdom of God.

My head is still spinning in regards to these great people I have been blessed to fellowship with over the past day. Yet, tonight I meet with my dear church people. I will meet once again with these “famous” saints in glory, but I get to be with my church family who will company with me on both sides of the pearly gates, great people in their own rights. I am blessed.

Striving for Greatness

Mat 18:1 At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? 2 And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, 3 And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

A little assertiveness can go a long way when it comes to the job market. We teach our kids to do their best and put their best foot forward. But when it comes to God's kingdom, we go farthest on our knees as servants.

God is great, and when we find ourselves serving Him and others, our greatness is wound into His. It is His glory we seek, not our own.

Jesus modeled this for us in that He left the glory of heaven to be an example of
servant hood. Philippians tells us, But (He) made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:

Furthermore, Jesus instructed us that we can unburden ourselves by being more like Him while on this earth, meek and lowly. Mat 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

The meek and lowly don't need or seek greatness, therefore the pressure is off.

Strive not for greatness, but for godliness.

The Tomb is Empty

Mat 28:5 And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. 6 He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.

I have been there, done that and got the t-shirt! I mean, twice I have been to the tomb of Jesus, and sure enough, it is empty!

Some of the implications of the empty tomb:
Our Minds are not! We are not crazy. The women saw Him alive, the disciples all saw Him. Thomas felt the nail holes in His hands and feet and declared, "My Lord and my God!" The two disciples walked and talked and ate with Him, over 500 brethren saw Him at the same time. And most of all, I know He lives! You ask me how I know that? He lives withing my heart!

Our Hearts are not! Oh, we believers are filled to overflowing with love and the resurrection power of Jesus. We cannot contain ourselves when we proclaim that we serve a risen Savior! He walks with us and He talks with us and He tells us that we are His own. And the joy we share as we tarry there, none other has ever known.

Our Lives are not! We Christians are busy people. The resurrected Christ told us to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. That gospel contains the message that Jesus died for our sins, was buried and rose again on the third day. We can't afford to dilly dally, He's coming again and we've got to get the Word out.

Low in the Grave He Lay

Mat 27:65 Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can. 66 So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch.

Saturday of Holy Week has always been an odd day for me. I find myself chomping at the bit as if awaiting the original bodily resurrection of the Savior.

Sure, He rose again long ago and now lives within His own, abiding faithful as our High Priest. But I impatiently await Resurrection Sunday each year expecting a fresh wind to fill the sails of the church and each believer.

I love to stand on a beautiful hillside for Sonrise services and listen to the victorious shouts of the believers. No day brings more "Amens!" from our people as does Easter.

I love to gather around the tables of fellowship for an Easter Sunday morning breakfast with excited saints, living in expectation of a great worship service. Then, church time arrives, the music, the bright clothes, the smiling faces, the victorious attitudes, the fervent singing, the beautiful special music, the powerful preaching of the old rugged cross and the vacated tomb, these are the Sundays we live for.

But now, it's Saturday. Things are calm, but they are ready to be stirred. As Jesus' body lay on the cold stone slab, our spirits rest within us, knowing that an explosion of life is about to burst forth, leaving us filled with hope and promise and commission.

It's Saturday, wait for it, wait for it, wait for it...... but Sunday's coming.