Author: pastorscottwordofgracefellowship

Growing up we lived near enough to my dad’s parents to regularly have Sunday dinner with them until we moved away after my 9th grade year.   When I was in 6th grade my mom (I’m being totally transparent here) started dressing me a little more stylishly.  To my grandpa’s eye, those styles looked like what the Hippies wore, but he skipped right over the Hippies and called me a Communist.  I had no idea what he was talking about, but I knew what a Communist was; so my response was, “Grandpa, I have two paper routes!” –  which, of course, didn’t change his opinion about my plaid pants.

The moral of the story is that he never did change my opinion about the clothing (I still wore plaid for a couple more years); he changed my opinion about his opinion – about him.* I knew for a fact that plaid pants did not make me a Communist.

Sniping causes the one attacked to protect himself.  Some protect themselves by hiding, some by running away, some by creating a shell.  And some snipe back.  In my case I tend to disregard the opinion of those who snipe.  I don’t think many are changed or persuaded by sniping.  

On social media the urge to snipe (argue with someone’s post)** is likely to assure that others aren’t persuaded by something we see as untrue or misleading.  And I get that!!  BUT when I comment under someone’s post, I am commenting to them.  It’s both unkind and ineffective.   If my concern is for them, I should handle the concern privately.  If my concern is getting the truth out “big picture,” then I should write about the truth on my own page.  I need to be as, if not MORE, polite on social media than I am in person, because on social media my audience is bigger and the record is permanent.

Walking worthy (Ephesians 4:1ff) isn’t just about what happens in church. We are the church!

Because of Grace,

Pastor Scott

*Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t hate my grandpa.  I just shut him out when he opined about my hair and clothing in the early 70’s!

**While I think this has always been an issue, it seems as the political/social/covid19/racial/grief rhetoric in our country has increased so has the arguing/sniping.  And it’s not how Christ would have us behave –   “This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.”  James 1:19-20

In Romans 14 and 1 Corinthians 8, Paul addresses an issue in the First-Century church that was causing very real division.  Meat sold in the markets in those cities was apparently sold after being offered to an idol.  Some church members, recognizing that idols are just man-made carvings, ate meat without any conscious thought.  Others were pricked in the conscience at the thought of eating something offered to an idol (demon?).  The strong meat eaters sneered at the weak abstainers.  And the principled vegans judged the reckless carnivores.

Paul came down supporting the logic of the meat eaters but supporting the consciences of the vegans.  He pointed out that he had the freedom to eat meat, but if he led someone to eat with him in violation of their conscience, he would be causing them to sin AND he would be sinning himself.  He ends by pointing out that we have liberty, but we ought to let love regulate that liberty.

I’m watching this same type of thing play out in the world with regard to safety measures (masks, socials distancing, etc.) after two months of virus concerns.*  

Populous states/counties experienced high infection/death rates and are still very focused on safety, as is the news coverage coming out of those areas, and there are myriads of stories and studies supporting a bunker mentality.  They tend to be “judgy” of those who yearn to be free.

Less densely populated areas experienced fewer infections/deaths and are far more focused on getting the economy running again, as is the news coverage tailored to them, and there are a myriad of stories and studies supporting that point of view.  They tend to sneer at those who appear to value safety more than freedom.

Obviously, that’s counterproductive, but that’s politics, and the country/world is only going to get more divided until The King is on The Throne.  The thing is we need to NOT bring political division into the church.  (1 Cor 1:10)

So whether you fall into the camp that believes that masks save lives or you fall into the camp that believes masks are a silly affectation, as long as the county health department asks us to wear them or not sing at all; let’s wear them and make a joyful noise unto the Lord!

Pastor Scott

*May 26, 2020

By Chris Stirewalt

A VIRUS THAT FOUND OUR POLITICAL WEAK SPOT

America is such a political basket case that even our viral infections break along partisan lines.

 At least that’s how it looks when you start investigating the political geography of coronavirus. We’ve talked from the beginning how red America and blue America are having very different experiences and reactions to the pandemic and the measures taken to control it.

 Now we’ve got some very useful evidence to help quantify the split.

 Here’s what the NYT found: “Counties won by President Trump in 2016 have reported just 27 percent of the virus infections and 21 percent of the deaths — even though 45 percent of Americans live in these communities.”

 It’s no wonder that Republicans and Democrats are talking past each other.

 A plague that hits major population centers hardest is as old as plagues themselves. Population density is a dominant factor in the transmission of every communicable disease we know.

What’s different now is how well sorted politically Americans are and how little empathy partisans have for each other. With urban Republicans and rural Democrats all but extinct, there’s far less political pressure for compassion and compromise than there would have once been.

Viruses exploit the body’s weakness, so perhaps the same goes for entire nations.

Not even Paul Harvey’s “If I Were The Devil” would have a nightmare dream of something so wicked as a politically skewed virus arriving just at the moment when we’re most seriously testing the ties that bind this union: This ugly election year.

It took little imagination to know what people like that would do with a natural disaster that follows political and socioeconomic fault lines. 

 We have a political class that works those same levers every day. They find new and more potent ways to arouse suspicion and resentments against their fellow Americans. They happily ignore the good news when it’s better for someone else. They present every decision as good/evil, us/them, black/white. They question every motive but their own.

 They do all the things that would undermine dealing effectively with the deadly virus and its economic aftermath. Cheerful cooperation and mutual respect are desperately needed in a natural disaster like this one. But those things are deadly to more than viruses; they would also kill off the brain-dead negative partisanship that passes for civic discourse these days.

 The good news is that if we can summon the collective strength to deal with a virus that exploits our tribal partisanship, we will help roll back one of our leading societal ills in the process. 

I watched a very thoughtful talk, from a Christian perspective, regarding how we ought not be so quick to jump aboard all of these conspiracy theories. Without going into all the details, a single point that stood out was that if one listened to more than one of them, they tended to neutralize one another. The talk counseled grace toward the decision makers in government and patient trust in God. I appreciated the wisdom and scriptural application of the presenters, but the moment they were done there were dozens of sincere “Yes, buts.”

The ones that stood out were the ones that cited such passages as the Matthew 25 admonition about not letting your lamp oil run out. The objectors reminded the presenters that we are supposed to “watch for His return” and we aren’t supposed to be caught “sleeping.”  While that’s true, nowhere in scripture are we told to wring our hands wondering if this or that might be the next sign!  We are told specifically to be sober, having put on the armor, to recognize we are NOT destined for wrath but for SALVATION, and to spend our time building each other up! (1 Thess 5:8-11).  And even if we are being persecuted or imprisoned, the Word of God is not (2 Timothy 2:9).  We can still, from wherever we are, be His ministers, His servants and His prayer warriors until He comes to take us home!   

As I sat to write this week’s blog, all that came to mind was this concept of  “waiting.”  It feels like God has me – us – in a holding pattern as He works His will in the world.  I’m sure it’s more complicated than that, and I’m sure there is much we can be doing to both improve ourselves and minister to others, but His primary message to me, and perhaps to you, is PATIENCE!!  Accordingly, I went looking for an illustration and couldn’t pick just one. Enjoy! 🙂

PATIENCE

The purposes of God often develop slowly because His grand designs are never hurried. The great New England preacher Phillips Brooks was noted for his poise and quiet manner. At times, however, even he suffered moments of frustration and irritability. One day a friend saw him feverishly pacing the floor like a caged lion. “What’s the trouble, Mr. Brooks?” he asked. 

“The trouble is that I’m in a hurry, but God isn’t!” Haven’t we felt the same way many times?

Some of the greatest missionaries of history devotedly spread the seed of God’s Word and yet had to wait long periods before seeing the fruit of their efforts. William Carey, for example, labored 7 years before the first Hindu convert was brought to Christ in Burma, and Adoniram Judson toiled 7 years before his faithful preaching was rewarded. In western Africa it was 14 years before one convert was received into the Christian church. In New Zealand it took 9 years, and in Tahiti it was 16 years before the first harvest of souls began.

Thomas Kempis described that kind of patience in these words: “He deserves not the name of patient who is only willing to suffer as much as he thinks proper, and for whom he pleases. The truly patient man asks (nothing) from whom he suffers, (whether) his superior, his equal, or his inferior… But from whomever, or how much, or how often wrong is done to him, he accepts it all as from the hand of God, and counts it gain!” 

Our Daily Bread.

True patience is waiting without worrying.

124. Swindoll, Growing Strong, p. 124.

125. ---

“Patience serves as a protection against wrongs as clothes do against cold. For if you put on more clothes as the cold increases it will have no power to hurt you. So in like manner you must grow in patience when you meet with great wrongs, and they will then be powerless to vex your mind.” 

Leonardo da Vinci.

Patience is a virtue;

Possess it if you can.

Found seldom in a woman,

Never in a man.

 Source Unknown.

To those Christians who are always in a hurry, here’s some good advice from the 19th-Century preacher A.B. Simpson:

“Beloved, have you ever thought that someday you will not have anything to try you, or anyone to vex you again? There will be no opportunity in heaven to learn or to show the spirit of patience, forbearance, and longsuffering. If you are to practice these things, it must be now.” Yes, each day affords countless opportunities to learn patience. Let’s not waste them.

Commenting on our need for this virtue, M.H. Lount has said, “God’s best gifts come slowly. We could not use them if they did not. Many a man, called of God to… a work in which he is pouring out his life, is convinced that the Lord means to bring his efforts to a successful conclusion. Nevertheless, even such a confident worker grows discouraged at times and worries because results do not come as rapidly as he would desire. But growth and strength in waiting are results often greater than the end so impatiently longed for. Paul had time to realize this as he lay in prison. Moses must have asked, ‘Why?’ many times during the delays in Midian and in the wilderness. Jesus Himself experienced the discipline of delay in His silent years before His great public ministry began.”

God wants us to see results as we work for Him, but His first concern is our growth. That’s why He often withholds success until we have learned patience. The Lord teaches us this needed lesson through the blessed discipline of delay. 

Our Daily Bread.

Hebrews 12:1 tells us to “run with endurance” the race set before us. George Matheson wrote, “We commonly associate patience with lying down. We think of it as the angel that guards the couch of the invalid. Yet there is a patience that I believe to be harder – the patience that can run. To lie down in the time of grief, to be quiet under the stroke of adverse fortune, implies a great strength; but I know of something that implies a strength greater still: it is the power to work under stress; to have a great weight at your heart and still run; to have a deep anguish in your spirit and still perform the daily tasks. It is a Christ-like thing! The hardest thing is that most of us are called to exercise our patience, not in the sickbed but in the street.” To wait is hard, to do it with “good courage” is harder! 

Our Daily Bread

According to a traditional Hebrew story, Abraham was sitting outside his tent one evening when he saw an old man, weary from age and journey, coming toward him. Abraham rushed out, greeted him, and then invited him into his tent. There he washed the old man’s feet and gave him food and drink.

The old man immediately began eating without saying any prayer or blessing. So Abraham asked him, “Don’t you worship God?”

The old traveler replied, “I worship fire only and reverence no other god.”

When he heard this, Abraham became incensed, grabbed the old man by the shoulders, and threw him out of his tent into the cold night air.

When the old man had departed, God called to his friend Abraham and asked where the stranger was. Abraham replied, “I forced him out because he did not worship you.”

God answered, “I have suffered him these eighty years although he dishonors me. Could you not endure him one night?”

Thomas Lindberg.

When the KC Mayor began making noise about extending the stay-home order (calling it Phase #1 which is not much different from the Church’s perspective), I reached out to a contact we’d developed within the Jackson County Health Department.   This person has maintained “no change” (full re-opening on May 15) all along – and then on Wednesday, May 6 the County Commissioner brought Jackson County in line with the rest of the KC Metro Area and delayed our opening, indefinitely.

I’m hopeful that we will again be able to gather some time before Fall.  In the meantime lets’ keep loving each other in deed as well as word.  Let’s look for ways to be a blessing.  Let’s not forget to bring our full tithe into the storehouse.  And let’s pray for each other and for our elected and appointed officials to strike a good balance of security and freedom.  ~Pastor Scott

Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth
Does not become weary or tired.
His understanding is inscrutable.
He gives strength to the weary,
And to him who lacks might He increases power.
Though youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous young men stumble badly,
Yet those who wait for the Lord
Will gain new strength;
They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary.

I am frequently asked for my opinion on what God is doing.  Why a world-wide pandemic?  Truth is, we may never get a satisfying answer to the big why, remember how He answered Job?  God is God and God only answers to Himself.  That said, because He is God, He is the Master multi-tasker; and I imagine we can each find some little (personal) whys if we just take a minute and quiet our hearts.   I would also ask us each to pray that God would use this crisis to draw people everywhere closer to Himself and that He might use you and me in that process.

I really like what J.I. Packer said about how God uses these hardships:

Grace is God drawing sinners closer and closer to him. How does God in grace prosecute this purpose? Not by shielding us from assault by the work, the flesh, and the devil, nor by protecting us from burdensome and frustrating circumstance, not yet by shielding us from troubles created by our own temperament and psychology, but rather by exposing us to all these things, so as to overwhelm us with a sense of our own inadequacy, and to drive us to cling to him more closely.

This is the ultimate reason, from our standpoint, why God fills our lives with troubles and perplexities of one sort and another — it is to ensure that we shall learn to hold him fast. The reason why the Bible spends so much of its time reiterating that God is a strong rock, a firm defense, and a sure refuge and help for the weak is that God spends so much of his time showing us that we are weak, both mentally and morally, and dare not trust ourselves to find or follow the right road. When we walk along a clear road feeling fine, and someone takes our arm to help us, likely we would impatiently shake him off; but when we are caught in rough country in the dark, with a storm brewing and our strength spent, and someone takes our arm to help us, we would thankfully lean on him. And God wants us to feel that our way through life is rough and perplexing, so that we may learn to lean on him thankfully. Therefore he takes steps to drive us out of self-confidence to trust in himself, to — in the classic scriptural phrase for the secret of the godly man’s life — “wait on the Lord.”

James Packer, Your Father Loves You, Harold Shaw Publishers, 1986.

You may, in your surfing of YouTube or FaceBook, have noticed that different churches have been able to accomplish different varieties of services during this social distancing era.  And you maybe wondering why Word of Grace Fellowship hasn’t had a drive-in service or worship music, etc…  so I thought I’d take a shot at answering a couple of those:

Drive-In Service: In the weeks before Palm Sunday I asked the City of Raytown for permission to do a parking lot service on Palm Sunday and Easter.  I proposed that the congregation would stay in their cars.  We would broadcast to their FM radios and to Facebook Live.  The City of Raytown redirected me to the Jackson County Department of Health.  I left voicemails and sent emails, but they did not respond.  Once upon a time, we used to say that silence gives consent, but given our experience with the county I wanted permission in writing, so the drive-in service was a bust.  The churches closest to us that I am aware of which held drive-in services published that they had received their waivers from their local police stations.  I guess I missed that step.

Music Online:  As I surf other services and see music being played online, my first thought is almost always, “I hope they have the right license!”  I seriously doubt the FCC has enough employees during this pandemic-driven online church era to police it, but I still believe we ought to obey the laws and contracts we agreed to when we bought the music we use. 

Here at Word of Grace and at most churches that want to use music produced in the 20th or 21st centuries, we use a copyright service to assure that the copyright holders get their royalties.  We pay an annual fee that is adjusted according to the size of the congregation for the right to project, play and sing their music.  We use a service called Christian Copyright License International (CCLI).   Up until a week or so ago our license only included songs we played in-house.  Therefore, tapes, CDs, and, lately, streamed services contained preaching only, because we didn’t have the license to record music.

Recently money was donated to upgrade our license.  We are now legal to stream the music portion or our Sunday service.  When we are back in business, if you are watching our service on Facebook Live or YouTube, you can watch the WHOLE service.  (That was the donor’s intent.)  The natural query that arises is what about now during the stay-at-home order?   I don’t know if you picked it up, and I can’t really wrap my head around it, since once something is “streamed” it’s recorded, but we can only live-stream.  We can’t record songs and then upload, which is how we are now doing Sunday messages, because we are all doing these from our own homes or at different times in order to follow the social distancing guidelines.  The only way we can abide by our license agreement and add music to our service is if we all gather on Sunday and stream the service at 9:30.  Frankly, too many of us fall into the susceptible category (me included) for all of us to gather on stage until we are sure it’s safe.  

If you really want to know the ins and outs of this, you can spend some hours on this website: https://us.ccli.com/  or email Pastor Tom.  🙂 

Pray with me this ends soon,

Pastor Scott

This past Wednesday night I felt like Eeyore all alone in his meadow with his broken balloon.  It’s been weird trying to adjust to preaching to the congregation through a camera lens, but then to find out mid-high point that the congregation couldn’t see or hear me… it was a tad deflating.  🙂

Anyway, I was in the middle of answering an Ask-the-Pastor question that reads like this:   

1 John 2:15-17 says that whoever loves the world does not have the love of God in him.  Does this mean he is not born again? How do we handle those who say they are believers and yet love the world and exude worldliness? 

There is a whole sermon in this question, but I’ll try to handle just three main points that jump out at me.

1. What does it mean to be born again?  In the opening paragraph(s) of Ephesians, Paul lists a number of things that happened before we were born (some before the world was created), and in verse 13 it says that when we heard the gospel and believed, we were sealed by the Holy Spirit into all of those truths.  In fact, in a survey of Paul’s, Peter’s, and the author of Hebrews’ writings, Dr. Lewis Sperry Chaffer famously distilled 33 benefits that accrued to our account the moment of salvation. I like to picture one of those old attic doors up in the ceiling with a pull string.  Imagine that you’re covered in honey and there are 33 feathers up there; faith is what pulls that string. In a moment, an instant, you are covered with all 33 feathers, benefits of salvation, and they are yours forever. (Chaffer’s list is below.)
2. “They say they are believers.” Here lies an issue.  #1 is a list of God’s promises and they occur at the moment of faith, but that moment occurs between the believer and God, not between the believer’s parent, pastor, or teacher and God.  Sometimes we need to take these opportunities to challenge a young person to make his faith personal. Secondly, we need to remember that when a child becomes a believer he is still a child and still has to grow up.  “Christian kids still get spankings” because foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child. Also, discipleship/Christian growth is NOT automatic, else there wouldn’t be so many issues the epistles had to cover. Sometimes the Holy Spirit convicts without the input of the Word or the Body, but many times it takes time and the input of both to sharpen the believer.
3. Finally we come to the verses in 1 John.  I believe John was a) writing about fellowship (1 John 1) and b) writing about false teachers (1 John 2:26).  So I don’t read the warning in 2:15, “If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him,” as being a warning to the recipients of the letter so much as it is a reminder that these false teachers who clearly love the world shouldn’t be listened to.  It reminds me of James teaching in James 3 about bitter and pure water coming from the same well. God’s love isn’t going to share space with love of the world.  Now, just because the force of the writing is toward false teachers doesn’t mean it’s not true of everybody.  If we are loving the world, we are not displaying the love of the Father. If we are truly saved, then we are walking in a manner that is unworthy (Eph 4:1) and the call is to repent!  

Your Brother in Christ,

Pastor Scott

Chaffer’s List (sans Scripture references because they were all hyperlinks)

1)  Forgiven

2)  Child of God

3)  Having access to God

4)  Reconciled

5)  Justified

6)  Placed “in Christ” 

7)  Acceptable to God

8)  Heavenly citizenship

9)  Of the family and household of God

10)  A heavenly association

11)  Within the “much more” care of God

12)  Glorified

13)  In the fellowship of the saints

14)  On the rock, Christ Jesus

15)  A part in the eternal plan of God

16)  Redeemed 

17)  A living relationship with God

18)  Free from the law

19)  Adoption

20) Brought near

21)  Delivered from the power of darkness

22)  Entrance into a new kingdom

23)  A gift from God the Father to Christ

24)  Circumcised in Christ

25)  Members of a royal and holy priesthood

26)  A chosen generation, a holy nation, a peculiar people

27)  His inheritance

28)  The inheritance of the saints

29)  Light in the Lord

30)  United to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit

31)  Blessed with the firstfruits of the Spirit

32)  Complete in Him

33)  Possessing every spiritual blessing

Me: Okay, God, here’s the thing. I’m scared. I’m trying not to be, but I am.

God: I know. Want to talk about it?

Me: Do we need to? I mean, you already know.

God: Let’s talk about it anyway… We’ve done this before.

Me: I know, I just feel like I should be bigger or stronger of something by now.

God: *waiting patiently, unhurried, undistracted, never annoyed.

Me: Okay. So, I’m afraid I’ll do everything I can to protect my family and it won’t be enough. I’m afraid of someone I love dying. I’m afraid the world won’t go back to what it was before. I’m afraid my life is always going to feel a little bit unsettled.

God: Anything else?

Me: EVERYTHING ELSE.

God: Remember how Jaxton woke up the other night and came running down the hall to your bedroom?

Me: Yes.

God: You were still awake, so when you heard him running, you started calling out to him before he even got to you… remember? Do you remember what you called out to him?

Me: I said, “You’re okay! You’re okay! You’re okay!”

God: Why did you call to him? Why didn’t you just wait for him to get to your room?

Me: Because I wanted him to know that I was awake, and I heard him, and he didn’t have to be afraid until he reached the end of the dark hallway.

God: Exactly. I hear you, daughter. I hear your thoughts racing like feet down the dark hallway. There’s an other side to all of this. I’m there already. I’ve seen the end of it. And I want you to know right here as you walk through it all, you’re okay. I haven’t gone to sleep, and I won’t.

Me: *crying. Can we sit together awhile? Can we just sit here a minute before I go back to facing it all?

God: There’s nothing I’d love more.

Copyright©️ Becky Thompson.

Note from Pastor Scott:  This piece is a sampling from a new mom’s devotional that is being previewed on a site I follow.  I don’t know the author, but she has good tastes in Bible Camps insofar as where she posted her preview.  It resonated with me, I think, because I’m “office-ing” at home these days and there be children here!  Here’s more about Becky’s book:

For more hope and encouragement, Order my new book, Midnight Mom Devotional: 365 Prayers to Put Your Momma Heart to Rest, releasing in one week! It’s available at Target, Walmart, Barnes & Noble, Amazon and just about everywhere books are sold.💕

“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;”  2 Corinthians 4:7-9

These are verses we all love to go to in hard times.  And they stand alone very well, but if you have a moment, I would encourage you to read the whole of chapter 4.  Note how it starts and ends with the phrase “we will not lose heart.” We, as a nation, as a church, as families, are going through a rough patch right now.  Paul’s entire ministry life was a rough patch (cf. Acts 9:16) and yet he didn’t lose heart or stay down because his eyes were fixed on the eternal prize (2 Cor. 4:18).  Let’s try to remember throughout this and any other trial Satan sends our way that our hope is NOT in this world. With Christ, we can live to fight another day until He takes us home.  I love this purely physical story of Andrew Jackson’s persistence. Maybe it will help you as it has helped me to not stay down! 🙂 PS  

The story is told that Andrew Jackson’s boyhood friends just couldn’t understand how he became a famous general and then the President of the United States. They knew of other men who had greater talent but who never succeeded. One of Jackson’s friends said, “Why, Jim Brown, who lived right down the pike from Jackson, was not only smarter but he could throw Andy three times out of four in a wrestling match. But look where Andy is now.” Another friend responded, “How did there happen to be a fourth time? Didn’t they usually say three times and out?” “Sure, they were supposed to, but not Andy. He would never admit he was beat — he would never stay ‘throwed.’ Jim Brown would get tired, and on the fourth try Andrew Jackson would throw him and be the winner.” Picking up on that idea, someone has said, “The thing that counts is not how many times you are ‘throwed,’ but whether you are willing to stay ‘throwed’.” We may face setbacks, but we must take courage and go forward in faith. Then, through the Holy Spirit’s power we can be the eventual victor over sin and the world. The battle is the Lord’s, so there is no excuse for us to stay “throwed”!