communityoftheholyfire

We live in unstable times, most recently made more unstable by the terrorist attacks in Paris. Yet we have a promise that stability can be found in a treasure that the Lord gives to His people, and that treasure is the fear of the Lord. “God will be the stability of our times, abundance of salvation, wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is His treasure.” (Isaiah 33:6)

Fear has many facets. The Bible uses it in two ways: First, it calls all nations and ungodly people to “be afraid,” because they do not control their lives; actually God does. He causes nations and leaders to rise, but also to fall. (I am convinced that those who persecute Christians do so because they are afraid of God, and see something of God in those they persecute.) Second, the Bible calls all Christians to have the fear of the Lord. He does not tell us to be afraid of God, but to have a “holy fear.”

What is the fear of the Lord? The Early Church, as recorded in the Book of Acts, was marked by the fear of the Lord. Consider the lives of these believers: They were constantly overwhelmed by God’s unending love, and this greater Love (which is the heart of the fear of the Lord) cast out all their other fears. They did not tolerate sin, because they knew it grieved the Spirit of God and was the key factor that prevented them from being used to the maximum by God. They had complete trust in God and in the promises of His Word, because they understood the heart of God. They were filled with hope and stability in extremely unstable times.

The fear of the Lord is to turn away from evil and sin (Proverbs 8:13) and to turn towards God. This leads us into God’s amazing mercy and grace, in causes us to be enveloped in God’s love and gives us hope for our times and for the future. Hope is not wishful thinking, but rather confident expectation that God will do all He has promised to do.

We must seek the fear of the Lord in our lives. Here is the way to seek it:

1. Search for it as for a hidden treasure. Solomon said, “My son, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. (Proverbs 2:4-12)

2. Ask the Holy Spirit for the gift of the fear of the Lord. One name for the Holy Spirit is “The Spirit of the Fear of the Lord.” (Isaiah 11:2) Ask Him to consume you by His purifying fire, to burn away our sins in His furnace of transformation. Give Him full control of your life, and you will see the glory of God.

3. Make your home in the Word of God. One of the synonyms for the Bible, or the Word of God, is “The Fear of the Lord.” (Psalm 19:9) God’s Word is pure, clean, true, right, sure, trustworthy and perfect. Stand before that Word and allow God’s Holy Spirit to transform you into the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:28-29). This is what it means to “make your home in the Word of God.” The Word sometimes comes as “wheat” to feed us; at other times it comes as “fire” to burn away our sins, or as a “hammer” to break our hard outer shell to release our inner life in Christ. God’s Word brings light that enables us to see the world as God’s creation, and He continues to create within us a desire to walk away from sin and evil, to no longer compromise with Satan or the anti-God forces of the world. We begin to live a life of surprising joy.

4. Turn away from sin and hate sin. What does God love? He loves you, and He loves the whole world, including those you may see as your enemies. What does God hate? He hates sin, for that is what is slowly destroying you. Nothing can block the flow of God’s love in your life but sin. Satan cannot block it, your enemies cannot prevent you from receiving God’s love. But sin can, and that is why we must come to hate sin in all its many forms.

5. Now receive all the blessings and promises of the fear of the Lord. Now you will be free to turn to God with a deep sense of awe and wonder, filled with expectation that God is going to work in you, and through you to bless the world.

The Old Testament closes with the fear of the Lord, leading to reconciliation in the family and in the world. (Read and meditate on Malachi 3:16 through Malachi 4:3.) When we enter the New Testament we discover a Church that is on fire with the Holy Spirit, what the prophet Malachi referred to as the “company (or community) of those who fear the Lord.” (Malachi 3:16) Just like the Early Church in Acts, we do not need to wrestle with our sins alone; rather, we have a community of like-minded people who will help us. It is a corporate life in the Spirit.

Just as Isaiah said, the fear of the Lord is a treasure in the Church. But like most treasures, it remains hidden. When we discover it, we will find the healing for which we have longed, we will experience fresh joy and intimacy with the Lord, and we will be prepared to bless the world and give it the stability it so desperately needs

My meditation this morning was Jeremiah 14:22 – O Lord our God . . . we set our hope on You.

We are told in Scripture that the tares are sown among the wheat, one for destruction the other for life. Only at the end of time will we see the results. In the meantime, evil (tares) increases, but good (wheat) also increases. Evil can never overcome good, for God alone is good; He who is in us (God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit) is greater than those who are in the world (demonic forces of Satan). 1 John 4:4

So we can expect a rise in evil in 2015, very likely extremely destructive things. But we can expect God to work in more wondrous ways. The stately King James Version translation of Isaiah 59:19 is, When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him! We have nothing to fear. God will surprise us in remarkable ways in 2015, partially by allowing, or bringing judgment on our sins; but at the same time by bestowing His amazing grace on all who believe.

This beginning of a new year, a gift from our Lord, is not a time to look for new prophecies. False prophets – those who do not stand in the “council of the Lord to see and to hear His Word,” but who issue prophecies out of their own thinking and previously conceived views of history – will likely abound this year. But we Christians, who daily stand in the presence of the Lord to behold His glorious Face and listen to His words, do not need to pay them much attention. We only need to discern these prophecies as we abide in God’s Word and allow His Holy Spirit to lead us.

Lord, we look not to man, nor to the myriads of idols we all have set up. Forgive us for depending on anything other than You. We look to You alone. We set our hope on You. Amen

A Visit to My Home Church in Sweden

I always look forward to visiting my home church in Sweden, the Hallebërg Church in the small seaside town of Ljungskile. It’s only a one hour walk from the Youth With A Mission base, so Ellen and I enjoy walking to the town each day when we come here to teach.

The 180-200 member church is like an oasis in the midst of an increasingly spiritually dry land. Sunday morning worship begins at 10 am, but most members come about 9:15 to sit in the sanctuary and pray, sometimes singing quietly as they lift up their hearts to praise the Lord in anticipation of the service of worship. Little children fill up the first few pews, because they are the ones who get to choose some of the songs as the service begins. Last Sunday, after the children left for their own time of study and worship, the youth choir came up to sing. They sang in Swedish, then in English, once again in the Swedish language. Their worship was pure, their hearts committed to the Lord as they sang.

This time I had a special time of fellowship and teaching with the young people. On Wednesday night, nearly 40 young people aged 13 to 19 met for two and a half hours to worship, study, pray and enjoy good food. The adult leading the meeting reminded me that young people of this church have met every Wednesday night for the last 40 years! One of the leaders, a school teacher in his mid 40’s, told me that he himself grew up, accepted the Lord, and was nourished in this same youth group when he was a young boy.

My mind went back to my original home church, Plaza Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, NC, where we also met every Sunday night in much the same way as these young Swedish students meet today. This was where our faith was formed, our commitment to the Lord made firm, and where we learned the true meaning of Christian community – koinonia. We learned to develop responsible relationships, to become accountable to one another, to become a sharing community, and to become partners with Christ to fulfill His Great Commission.

I told my Swedish friend that my American home church also had a tradition similar to his, and that even now, 60+ years later, many of our original members continue to gather together every three or four years to “go back over the Jordan” to remember and re-experience our roots and to recommit to our communal calling. I continue to pray God’s blessings on A.T. and Doris Brown, my leaders when I was in high school, as well as to give thanks for the many godly leaders who nurtured me but who have now gone to be with the Lord.

After the youth had sung in the Hallebërg Church last Sunday, I was invited to preach. This is a special privilege because this is my home church. They have no paid pastor, by preference not necessity, so the five or six elders take turns preaching, except when a visiting pastor may be invited.

After the sermon the whole congregation spends another time in prayer, responding to God’s Word, or interceding for missionaries the church has sent out or for the youth of Sweden.

After the worship ends, the whole congregation together with visitors go to the adjoining dining room for fika, which is a Swedish custom of enjoying fellowship with coffee or tea and a bullar, a delicious not-too-sweet cinnamon bun. Swedish people keep this custom of fika every day, for about 30 minutes, coming together from whatever work they may be doing for a time of sharing and fellowship. They do not talk about their work, they simply relax together. (Statistics show that productivity in business actually increases when workers enjoy daily fika! Perhaps Americans should try this.)

You may ask, why would this be my home church (in addition to my original home church, Plaza Presbyterian; or my Korean home church, Youngnak Church)? Because I have found a community of kindred spirits, a people who love the Lord and are fully committed to serving Him in a society where it is becoming increasingly difficult to witness to Christ, a church that invests heavily in its youth and young adults and disciples them to become godly, servant leaders, a kind of Christian counter-culture in the world where anti-God forces are increasing at an alarming rate. Their language is Swedish, mine English, but love, prayer and praise erase the language barrier. My home church is a faithful Church. Their lamps continue to burn brightly. They are a people of prayer, a people of the Word, a missionary community. Who would not want a “home church” like this?

Please visit my home church when you come to Sweden. You will always be welcome, and you may also ask to become an “adopted” member of this vibrant community of Christians.

Last night I arrived in Tokyo, beginning a five-week “almost around the world” trip. After a week here and in Osaka, I will go to Korea, where Ellen will join me for a week at the YWAM Korea annual Staff Conference. Ellen will then return to Seattle and I will go to Sweden and Finland for a New Korea Servant Workshop and for a trans-Europe networking seminar for agencies working in North Korea. This year the seminar will be held in Helsinki, Finland. Then I will return to Korea to speak at a conference for migrant workers from many nations, sponsored by Onnuri Church. After a couple of days visiting friends in Kwangju, I will head back to Seattle.

Isn’t it wonderful that friends who are drawn together because of common participation in sharing the Gospel of the Kingdom of God reconnect with one another instantly after having been separated by many years! Pastor Joshua Kim and his wife, together with a young man, Lee Chang Mok, of his church met us at the Haneda Airport in Tokyo. Right away it was if we had never been separated, even thought it has been many years since we last met. God has used Pastor Joshua and his wife in wonderful ways, for many years, here in Japan, and we praise the Lord for him.

These days I am meditating once again on Paul’s letter to the Philippians, a letter marked by friendship in the Gospel. Paul began his letter by telling his friends that his first thought on remembering them is thanksgiving to God that they are “partners” (the Greek word stems from koinonia – usually translated as “responsible, caring, sharing” community) in the  Gospel. The first thing Paul does for his friends as he remembers them with thanksgiving is to pray for them, and he prays with joy! And that is the first thing I am doing for you this morning. I’m sitting in a hotel overlooking the beautiful city of Tokyo, thousands of miles away from most of you, but resting in the arms of the same God who loves us without condition. Truly, as von Balthasar says, “love alone is credible!” 

This morning’s meditation was on Philippians 1:8 (I meditate on only one verse a day. I can think, ponder, and reflect on more verses a day, but I can meditate on one verse only. One verse of Scripture could fill our minds and hearts for months, could it not?) – For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus! Not only His agape love, but His love that holds us, all together wherever we are, with great care and lovingkindness. We are dear to Jesus, and we are dear to one another in Him.

May the Lord bless you today and keep you – set His hedge around you to protect you – and be gracious to you. May He lift up His Face upon you and give you peace. Let’s rejoice in our friendship.

Ellen and I returned yesterday from a month-long trip to Korea. We call it a “journey” because we went with a purpose other than a vacation. We usually enjoy our vacations here in the beautiful Northwest or on the East Coast.

The day after we arrived we were privileged to speak at a nationwide “Holy Spirit Gathering” of 10,000 Full Gospel students and young adults. Many of these radically committed young people have full-time jobs, yet they are “full-time” disciples of Jesus. They live in the world but don’t belong to it. The Church in Korea is by no means dead, although it has suffered from the sins and mistaken human-centered visions of a very small minority of leaders. We met with the new pastor (Rev. Young-Hoon Lee) of the largest church in the world–Yoido Full Gospel Church–and were greatly encouraged by his God-centered vision of seeing His people remolded by the Holy Spirit into the character of Christ, and by his longing to see the fruits of the Holy Spirit (and not just the outward gifts of the Spirit) blossom among God’s people so that they will be able to emphasize not wealth or prosperity but rather generosity, mercy and practical love to society’s outcast, poor and needy people. His message is the Cross and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, and this is the message that, when lived out practically in our lives, will renew any and all nations.

We still are in awe at the remarkably sacrificial commitment of the few young men and women who organized and carried out this huge event. All of them are very busy in their jobs, some even have their own companies, but they worked selflessly in Trinitarian unity to make this possible.

Immediately after leaving this event, we went to the International Convention of the Jubilee Prayer Meeting in another part of Seoul. Delegates from around the world gathered to pray for North Korea, and for the unification of the Korean Peninsula. I was able to bless them and encourage them to keep going forward until we see a totally New Korea, a Korea unified in Jesus Christ, under one Father–God, our Father–and one Shepherd. Again, the Church in Korea is not dead. We can see the Church in the South, it is visible. We cannot see the Church in the North, because it is not visible. North Korea’s Christians have experienced powerful conversions in Christ; no one in North Korea would risk being sent to a concentration camp or executed by simply being a “social Christian.” Their Christian faith is real, but they are currently walking through the wilderness, enduring great suffering. These members of the world’s “Suffering Church” are headed for glory. God has hidden His saints in North Korea until the day (which will come much sooner than most people expect) that He already has chosen, to allow them to surface as a purified Church that will be united with a purified Church in South Korea to become a Church that can bless the entire world.
Please pray for this Church, and be sure to pray with the confidence that God gives us in His Word, and not just with human pity.

Well, this was the first day out of thirty days! Perhaps when we have overcome our jet lag we will share more with you. Thanks for visiting. God bless you.

When Ellen and I left for Korea as missionaries in 1961 we were not aware that our families were also deeply involved in missions. Later, we came to the realization that every Christian is a missionary, and some are called to go to other countries. This of course was one of the secrets of the growth of the Early Church – every Christian saw himself, or herself, as a missionary. We also discovered later that both our families were very much involved in missions to the world.

Just recently I uncovered an old paper that was a copy of excerpts from something my mother had written in 1965. At the time she was the chairperson of the world missions committee of my home church, Plaza Presbyterian Church. These excerpts are from her 1965 mission report to the church. 

Why do we intrude in others’ lives? Or why do we have world missions? God said, “Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel!” God has called certain men and women to go into foreign fields, some to be missionaries at home . . . we who do not go out to mission fields are missionaries as we live our lives from day to day. We have an influence on people with whom we come in contact every day, whether it is good or bad.

The Koreans told a missionary to go back to America and tell them the basic need of Korea is to unite North and South. “Come back with authority for unification,” one pastor said. As this pastor took a train to a destination father south from Seoul, this pastor always thought that in the same time he could have traveled on the same railroad to his former home in North Korea to see his wife, whom he had not seen in 13 years. We cling to the hope that God will heal this wound and soon North and South will be together soon.

Two things impressed me about this report: first, all Christians are missionaries. If we believe this, the Church in America will be renewed quickly. Second, I was impressed that my mother had even thought about the sadness and the tragedy of the divided nation of Korea. I do not remember talking very much about this with her. Now I realize that God wants to lay a burden on the hearts of all His people everywhere for the divided peoples in the world, those suffering from war, persecution, famine, human trafficking, and cruel totalitarian governments. We all are called to be global Christians, and we all are responsible for the salvation and the freedom of every human alive on today’s planet. 

I have been considering the importance of mercy these days, especially with the amount of violence that has increased in nations around the world. Mercy is not an excuse for justice; it is not saying, “Well, let’s just forgive everybody and be nice to those who commit atrocious deeds of evil.” Mercy seeks to transform evil. It opens the door to compassion, which overcomes evil.

This poem was written in the year 1937, by a Catholic nun, Sister Faustina.

Help me, O Lord, that my eyes may be merciful, so that I may never suspect or judge from appearances, but look for what is beautiful in my neighbors’ souls and come to their rescue.

Help me, O Lord, that my ears may be merciful, so that I may give heed to my neighbor’s needs and not be indifferent to their pains and moanings.

Help me, O Lord, that my tongue may be merciful, so that I should never speak negatively of my neighbor, but have a word of comfort and forgiveness for all.

Help me, O Lord, that my hands may be merciful and filled with good deeds, so that I may do only good to my neighbors and take upon myself the more difficult and toilsome tasks.

Help me, O Lord, that my feet may be merciful, so that I may hurry to assist my neighbor, overcoming my own fatigue and weariness. My true rest is in the service of my neighbor.

Help me, O Lord, that my heart may be merciful so that I myself may feel all the suffering of my neighbor. I will refuse my heart to no one. I will be sincere even with those who, I know, will abuse my kindness. And I will lock myself up in the most merciful Heart of Jesus. I will bear my own suffering in silence. May Your mercy, O Lord, rest upon me.

You Yourself command me to exercise the three degrees of mercy. The first: the act of mercy, of whatever kind. The second: the word of mercy — if I cannot carry out a work of mercy, I will assist by my words. The third: prayer — if I cannot show mercy by my deeds or words, I can always do so by prayer. My prayer reaches out even there where I cannot reach out physically.

O my Jesus, transform me into Yourself, for You can do all things.

Quoted from the book Mercy, by Walter Kasper. pp. 144-145. I would highly recommend it.

Waking up in the morning is something we all have in common, until that day when we are eternally awake in God’s presence. Morning is the most crucial time of the day for the Christian. How we wake up to greet each new day determines the quality of our Christian life. I remember waking up so many mornings “in the wrong way,” worried about the coming day, planning sinful activities, or just planning to “waste this day.” So this is important for me. How should we face each new day? The psalmist gives us some clues.

First of all, Psalm 118:24 – “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” We must realize that today is the only day we have. All our yesterdays are past, only memories remain. Of course our lives are shaped and formed by all the events of our past, both good and bad. But we must not be bound to the past because of sins or wounds of spirit. We do not possess the future, although we plan and look forward to it in hope. Today is the most important day of our lives, and we must live it in a way that glorifies God. (Remember that the psalmist was not having a trouble free day on the day he wrote this – he had been suffering very much. Nevertheless, he says, “let us rejoice!”)

Then, we begin the day with thanksgiving to the Lord. (Psalm 107:19-22) Upon awakening, the psalmist proclaimed, “I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustains me. (Psalm 3:5) 

We are already on our way to a beautiful day in the Lord. A way to make sure is to now confess our sins and receive God’s tender mercies and steadfast love, His forgiveness and loving care throughout this day. (Lamentations 3:22-23) When we do that, we will be able to look forward to God’s faithfulness throughout this new day.

A great secret of the psalmist was to be satisfied with God alone throughout each day (Psalm 17:14-15), and not just with his surrounding environment. “The Lord alone is my chosen portion,” says the psalmist (Psalm 16:5), “indeed the Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup.” 

You may feel the need to “cry out” to the Lord today; the psalmist did. (Psalm 5:3) Know with confidence that He will surely hear your cry. 

As we conclude our preparation for this new day (and all this only takes a few minutes), an important key is to spend some time waiting upon the Lord. (Psalm 27:14) We must take courage in Him, for He will lead us through this day in His strength, to victory. Most important of all, we must watch before the Lord, like a watchman, to see what He may want to say to us today. (Psalm 5:3, Isaiah 50:4-5, Habakkuk 2:1) God has a fresh word He wants to speak to you personally today. Take time to ask Him, and to listen to what He says. Then obey whatever He tells you to do.

Learning from the psalmist, and following his ways, leads us to offer our bodies as living sacrifices this day, to be available for whoever, or whatever, God may send our way. 

The result? We will be able to live this day without fear. The psalmist says it this way: “I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people who have set themselves against me round about!” (Psalm 3:6) 

Have a good day! Yes, this day can be good regardless of tragic circumstances that would seem to destroy us. God – remember, God alone – can make this day a day of victory for us all.

Missionary Quotes

Send me anywhere, only go with me. Lay any burden on me, only sustain me. Sever any tie, but the ties that bind me to Your service and Your heart.       David Livingstone

Tell the students to give up their small ambitions and come eastward to preach the Gospel of Christ.     Francis Xavier

No reserves, no retreats, no regrets.      William Borden of Yale (Died in Egypt soon after having arrived – 1913)

God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supply. If I had 1000 lives, I’d give them all to China.     Hudson Taylor

Expect great things from God, attempt great things for God.     William Carey

The Spirit of Christ is the Spirit of missions. The nearer we get to Him, the more intensely missionary we become.                                   Henry Martyn, missionary to India/Persia

Some wish to live within the sound of a chapel bell; I wish to run a rescue mission within a yard of hell.     C.T. Studd

The history of missions is the history of answered prayer.    Samuel Zwemer, missionary to Muslims

 “Not called” did you say? Put your ear down to the Bible and hear Him bid you go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin. Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity and listen to its pitiful wail for help. Go stand by the gates of hell and hear the damned entreat you to bid their brothers not to come there. Then look Christ in the face and tell Him whether you will join heart and soul and body . . . to publish His mercy to the world.                      General William Booth, founder of The Salvation Army

In encouraging young men to come out as missionaries, do use a word of caution. One wrong-headed, obstinate fellow would ruin us. Humble, quiet, persevering men; men of sound, sterling talents (though perhaps not brilliant), of decent accomplishments, and some natural aptitude to acquire a language, men of amiable temper, willing to take the lowest place, to be the least of all and the servant of all; men who enjoy closet religion, who live near to God and are willing to suffer all things for Christ’s sake, without being proud of it, these are the men. But oh, how unlike to this description is the writer of it!         Adoniram Judson of Burma

Having passed through the Lenten season and Holy Week, I wrote this short poem.

It’s for myself — it’s part of the way I meditate — but I thought I would share it with you.

“By oppression and judgment He was taken away,                                                                                                                                       and as for His generation, who considered that He was cut off out of the land of the living                                                                          for the transgression of my people,                                                                                                                                                                  to whom the stroke was due?”                                                           

                                                Isaiah 53:8

To Whom the Stroke Was Due

‘Twas I to whom the stroke was due

That fell on Him who loved so true;

My sin, my guilt, my wretched shame

Were all removed in His precious name.

‘Twas I to whom the stroke was due

That crushed my Savior, ‘twas not His due;

My body of sin, worn down with grief,

He clothed with beauty beyond belief.

‘Twas I to whom the stroke was due

That severed my Lord from His Love so true;

My love awakened, my soul reborn,

I now live in Him in our Father’s home.

                               — David Ross