communityoftheholyfire

Part One (of three)

I have found it helpful to meditate on the Psalms during the Lenten Season leading up to Resurrection Sunday. One way is to meditate on the “Psalms of Ascent” (Psalms 120-134, sung by pilgrims on their journey to Jerusalem. For Christians, this is the journey into the heart of God, what we could call “The Path to Glory.”

Psalms 120 – 134

Luke tells us that Jesus, when He knew that His time had come, “set His face to go to Jerusalem.” (Luke 9:51) He set His face towards total rejection and death on the cross. He was on a journey. It began in heaven, then to Bethlehem, then to Jerusalem and Golgotha’s cross, and continued on to glory in His resurrection and return to heaven.

Jesus told His disciples to begin in Jerusalem to proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom, and to go from there to all peoples and all nations. Today we also begin where we are and go wherever Jesus tells us to go, to proclaim His Gospel.

We Christians are on a pilgrimage, not to the old Jerusalem but to the New Jerusalem, into the presence of the Lord. Paul calls this the “Jerusalem from above.” (Galatians 4:25-26) The apostle John describes the New Jerusalem beautifully in Revelation chapter 21. This is the Jerusalem the prophet Isaiah prophesied in Isaiah 65:17-25 (not the earthly Jerusalem but the New Jerusalem to come). Not everyone can make physical trips to holy places, but we can all enter the New Jerusalem spiritually; we can daily enter into the Holy of Holies, into the very presence of God. (Hebrews 4:14-16)

Jesus endured the shame that we might live in joy.

Jesus took upon Himself death that we might receive unto ourselves life everlasting.

The Lenten season is a good time to begin our journey. We take the journey together with Jesus, and His Holy Spirit guides us. We go again to Golgotha, the cross, and to the resurrection of Jesus. As we journey we are ascending the mountain of the Lord, to the Rock of Israel. (Isaiah 30:29) We are headed to the mountain of healing, forgiveness, renewal, restoration and to a new beginning.

The Psalms will be our guide for this journey. Psalms 120 – 134 are called “Psalms of Ascent;” the pilgrims sang them as they traveled to Jerusalem. Today these 15 psalms are a guide to us as we take a pilgrimage during the Lenten season (or any season), preparing for the joy of Jesus’ resurrection.

We can meditate each day on one of these psalms, beginning with Psalm 120 and ending with Psalm 134. The best way to meditate is first to read through each psalm to understand the meaning and emphasis of each psalm. Then we will take one verse from each psalm for our meditation.

Some things to remember about meditating on the Bible:

1. Meditation is a journey with the Holy Spirit. You already have embarked on your spiritual pilgrimage!

2. A good definition of meditation is: “When we open our Bible and ask God to open our eyes to behold wonderful things in His Word, the Holy Spirit takes the written Word, transforms it into the living Word, and plants it in our innermost being.

3. I begin meditation by sitting before a verse, or even a single word, of the Scripture, and simply asking God if He has something He would like to say to me through this Word. I listen and receive whatever He wants to say to me.

4. We do not need any other book, just the Bible. It would be good to keep a journal of what God says to us each day, or of our response of prayer to God based on what He says.

5. As you meditate, do three things: OPEN yourself to God, FOCUS on each word of the verse, and allow the Holy Spirit to FILL you with that word. He will plant each word in your spirit; just as a seed that you plant in the soil takes root and produces fruit, so will each word that Spirit plants in you as you meditate take root and produce fruit in your life.

6. You will see change coming into your life.

PSALMS OF ASCENT

1. Psalm 120

We begin our pilgrimage to the New Jerusalem with Psalm 120. We begin where we are. The psalmist is in distress. He or she wants peace, but is surrounded by those who do not want peace. The one who begins this journey to go higher with God is surrounded by antagonism and people who oppose. She is seeking the peace of Jesus.

Choose one verse and meditate for about 5 or 10 minutes. Ask God to speak to you, and then listen and respond.

The discovery of DNA gives us understanding of what the psalmist calls “God’s Book.” The psalmist is not referring to the Bible as God’s Book, although the Bible is the book that reveals God to all humankind. Even though King David, who wrote Psalm 139, did not know the modern words “DNA,” that is what He was talking about.

Psalm 139 reveals our identity. In Psalm 139:13-18, the psalmist tells us 3 profound things about our lives: First, God alone is the source of each person’s life. Parents are of course instrumental, but it is God alone who gives life. (verse 13) Second, God created each of the 7.6 billion persons in the world as a unique being, unlike any other person. (“I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made!” (verse 14) Third, God’s thoughts of me are so vast that no book could contain them all. His plan for each life is great, good and perfect. (verses 17-18)

God is the Author of our biological code. DNA is the biological code for every facet of our spiritual, psychological and physical self; it includes the design of our face, our body, hair, limbs, as well as the personality traits with which we are born. The psalmist says, “In Your Book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them!” (verse 16) DNA is the book God has written for each person, each star in the heavens, every tree and every animal. He even gives a name to  every star in the heavens! (Isaiah 40:25-26)

It is time that the artificial war between Christianity and science is called off. Christianity is not incompatible with science; in fact, some of the greatest scientists in history have been, and still are today, men and women of great faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

All of us want to grow during this new year. Children want to grow older physically; the elderly want to grow younger in spirit. But all of us want to grow spiritually, with increasing joy in the Lord and commitment to doing His will.

I am enclosing a file on The Church Year. Most Protestants have no idea what this is, but the Church Year, often spoken of as the “Church Calendar,” describes the pattern of growth into Christian maturity. Beginning with Advent, it leads us to expect the Lord of all nations to come to earth as the baby in Bethlehem. Each event leads us in our growth.

The file is in both English and Korean, and I hope it doesn’t confuse some of you. But if you will follow it during this year, you will see that now we are in the time of Epiphany, or the manifestation of Jesus to the world by the Wise Men. Please feel free to contact me if you have questions, or to share your own ideas and understanding that will help us all to grow more. Also, if you cannot open the file, please let me know and I will send it to you in another form.

May God bless you during this New Year, and keep you safe in His everlasting Arms, and cause His face to shine upon you, that you may walk in His grace and in His peace.

Church Year

Ellen and I were traveling in Norway with friends when we came upon this restful rock. Our Shepherd met us there and restored our souls. So we called it the “Rock of Meeting.” We wanted to take it with us, but instead were satisfied with a photo reminder. We know that Jesus is our Rock! He is always with us, but we need a “meeting place” to meet Him and enter the presence of the One who is “always before me.” (Acts 2:25) The psalmist confessed, “I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.” (Psalm 16:8) Sometimes a simple discovery of a beautiful site of nature allows us to see the Lord who is always before us. I am a man of the Word, but God has also created many beautiful places, many beautiful works of art and music, and beautiful people who enable me to meet Him.

Not being able to go back and revisit this “Rock of Meeting,” I sometimes carry my own small “rock of meeting” with me when I travel. It looks like this:

As we enter this new year of our Lord, 2018, the most important thing we can do is to meet Him daily. By living in His presence and having an ongoing conversation with the Lord, we will be able to see and believe the new things that the Lord will do in this new year. Let us go to the Rock together; let us ask the Holy Spirit to lead us into the presence of the Lord, who is our Rock. (Psalm18:1-3) This new year will be a year of new beginnings.

A miracle is contained in every seed. When we plant them they produce life, resulting in food for the hungry and beauty in place of ashes. A Christian organization sent tens of thousands of packets of seeds to an African nation that did not welcome a Christian presence. They were wonderful, high quality seeds that would grow well in African soil and feed many people, but the government of that nation refused the seeds because they bore a Christian mark. The officials removed all the Christian markings from the packages and only then accepted the seeds. The result? Life entered that nation! The form, or expression of faith, could not enter the country, but the essence entered. Life entered that nation in the form of seeds. Nothing but a tiny seed without a label, but life for hungry people! Flowers, food, sustenance of tomorrow are in seeds planted today.

Recently I read story that a famous university in New England is trying to remove the seeds of Christianity that were sown as the university was founded. I suspect that this news is not entirely accurate, because many Christians are there at this present time, both students and faculty. The story contains some truth, because most of our famous American universities that were established originally on strong Christian principles have become totally secularized, and many of them even oppose any form of Christian influence on campus.

But that is to be expected in the world. What is not expected and is often overlooked is the more important fact that the seeds that were sown so many years ago have germinated and born great fruit. The seeds gave rise to the Student Volunteer Movement that began in 1886 and blossomed into the flowering of 100,000 young people committing their entire lives to spread the Gospel of the Kingdom of God in nations throughout the world. Multitudes have been blessed because of the seeds sown by our predecessors. And new seeds are being planted in those universities today.

God has planted the seeds of life in those who welcome and receive Him. You yourself are a bearer of life. We have neglected the silent witness of the Gospel. In times of increasing anti-Christian sentiment, we must continue to plant seeds, seeds that will feed hungry bodies and nourish hungry souls.

As I am growing older (no use denying it any longer, eh?) I was very much encouraged by this word from George MacDonald. “The winter is the childhood of the year . . . It is as if God spoke to each of us according to our need: My son, my daughter, you are growing old and cunning; you must grow a child again, with My Son, this blessed birth-time. You are growing old and selfish; you must become a child. You are growing old and careful; you must become a child. You are growing old and distrustful; you must become a child. You are growing old and petty, and weak, and foolish; you must become a child — My child . . . ” (Meditations from George MacDonald’s fiction)

How precious is Your steadfast love, O God!

The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.

They feast on the abundance of Your house, and You give them drink from the river of Your delights.

For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light do we see light.

                                                                                          Psalm 36:7-9

FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son

Steadfast love

Life-giving love

Refuge-seekers’ love

Transforming love

Fountain of life

Saving love

Whole love

. . . that makes man whole

My people are a vineyard of light,
Planted with great care and with infinite love.
The Enemy came in to crush and destroy by sowing seeds of darkness.
But the darkness cannot overcome light,
for I am the Light of My people.

My vessel was crushed but not destroyed,
for I am the Potter who makes all thing new.
In the brokenness of My people I have remolded them,
more beautifully, into My image.

My vineyard was cut down;
but I laid My own plans over those of the Enemy.
What the Enemy cut and attempted to destroy
became My pruning,
that they may bear more fruit.
Fruit that will abide.
Fruit that will bring light to darkened areas of the world,
to people who are unable to overcome darkness on their own,
redemption to the wounded souls of the world.

My vineyard – the Church of Chosun, My vineyard of light,
is strong.
My people of Chosun, My beloved, have entered into the
Fellowship of My Suffering.
They will sow My seeds of light
and bring joy to a broken land.

David E. Ross, June 2016

[Chosun is the name North Koreans prefer to use for their nation. The Chosun Church is the Church of North Korea. This poem speaks for all persecuted churches – the Suffering Church – in the world.]

High Love

scraggly scrapers of the sky
smothered
in white softness
of yesterday’s snow
return my soul to the One
who covers the scarlet
crevices of my night.

David E. Ross
Steven’s Pass, Washington
May 1995

Neither the young pastor nor his wife would be considered ordinary. They are global Christians in a small setting. Small but not restricted. Their congregation is composed of men and women – actually brothers and sisters – who consider themselves one family. These beautiful people whose faces may look different and whose cultural backgrounds most certainly are, would have had no reason to come together as one family except for the fact of their common allegiance to one Lord, Jesus Christ, who by His Spirit has transformed them from non-kindreds into kindreds, the koinonia family of God. Formerly they did not even know one another; now they are the community of the Holy Spirit, taking responsibility for one another and sharing their lives together.

Many, if not most, pastors avoid such a multi-cultural church. They view it as a dead end for their success-oriented careers. But this couple welcomes it, saying that they “have no alternative but to be here.” This simply means that they are totally committed and are not continually seeking for a larger, more homogeneous church made up of people just like themselves. “But you have to speak bilingually all the time, and isn’t that difficult?” I asked. Their simple reply was “Hallelujah!” Their reply reminded me of St. Augustine’s words: “We are resurrection people, and ‘Hallelujah’ is our song!”

How refreshing to meet a man who has no authoritarian spirit because he has the spiritual authority that comes from intimacy with God and the leadership authority given to him by his people, who love and respect him. He allows his people to exercise their gifts, whether it be leading worship or small groups, or Bible teaching, or reaching out into the community. He is not threatened by laity who may be more gifted than he in certain areas. He is a minister who enables his people to minister. And his church continues to grow, reaching out to their community and the world. In a world where love alone is credible, this church bears witness to the width and depth of the Father’s love.

I told him when he invited me to conduct “revival services” at his church that I was not an accomplished “revival speaker.” His reply was, “That’s okay, I’m the revival speaker every Sunday, you just teach the Word.” I was happy to do that, since that is my calling.

A weekend spent in a small town church whose shepherd and his wife love and enable their flock to be nation changers was just what I needed to be reassured that the Kingdom of God continues to expand in communities and in nations around the world.