Remembering His Words

6 “He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise." 8 And they remembered his words,” ESV Luke 24:6-8

This past week I spent a good deal of time studying the events surrounding the resurrection of Jesus as recorded by Luke. Each Gospel writer records the event. Yet each writer records it from a unique perspective and felt compelled by the Holy Spirit to record different, complimentary details.

One of the recurring themes in the Luke’s account is that of remembrance. In our text today, several women had gotten up early and headed out near dawn to the place where Jesus was buried with the intent of continuing the preparation of his corpse for proper burial. Fully expecting a corpse, they instead found an empty tomb!

Well, the tomb wasn’t completely empty. They did encounter what appeared to be two men in dazzling clothes (angels). And one of these men made the grand announcement: “He is not here, but has risen.” He continues by telling them to “remember” the words of Jesus. Jesus had indeed spoken of His impending persecution, His death and His subsequent resurrection while He was ministering in Galilee; see Luke 9:22; 18:31-33.

These women must have heard that testimony firsthand because the text tells us that they remembered and then they returned to tell the news to the eleven. This had to be what I like to call an “aha” moment. When they remembered His words, and connected them to the current events, I’m convinced that their faith was strengthened immensely. They had to literally swell from the increase in their faith. Can you imagine how the conversation turned? Could it be? Yes, He’s alive; just like He said! Now, because of their remembrance, they can carry on with renewed confidence and hope.

Fast forward to today. Christ’s words (indeed all scriptures) are just as important for us to commit to memory today. Just as Moses admonished the Hebrews to “take these words to heart” in Deuteronomy, we should take scripture to heart; cementing it in our minds through careful study so that when trials and tribulations come (when, not if) we can be prepared to “remember” His words, have our faith strengthened, and carry on with renewed hope.

R. Kent Hughes, in Disciplines of a Godly Man, has this to say:

You must remember this: You can never have a Christian mind without reading the Scriptures regularly because you cannot be profoundly influenced by that which you do not know. If you are filled with God’s Word, your life can then be informed and directed by God – your domestic relationships, your child-rearing, your career, your ethical decisions, your interior moral life. The way to a Christian mind is through God’s Word!

Develop a Christian mind. Read the Bible. Study the Bible. Study it so that it becomes a part of your very being. Study it so that it profoundly influences every facet of your life. And when the trials come, your remembrance of the Word will strengthen your faith; His Word will bear you through.

Walking in the Truth

“The elder to the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth. 2 Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul. 3 For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth. 4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” ESV 3 John 1:1-4

Gaius lived during a time when a group (known as the Gnostics) was spreading all manner of false doctrine in the community. Their religious teachings were a patchwork of ideas they obtained from philosophy, Christianity, and other religions of the time. One of their primary teachings was that salvation was acquired, not through the death, burial and resurrection of Christ, but through the acquisition of knowledge about oneself. Now, this may sound absurd, but look at how self centered, self gratified, self satisfied our society has become. We live in a time when the general consensus seems to be “it’s all about me.” And we’re a smug lot to boot.

Of course these self-saving notions, both then and now, contradict the most basic tenants of Christianity. To deny the work and power of Christ (Immanuel; God with us) through His death and resurrection is to completely deny Christianity. And this is the primary purpose and aim of John’s letters; to encourage Christians to hold fast in the faith and walk in truth; thus shunning and avoiding the false doctrines of the day.

Now, when it came to spiritual matters, this fellow Gaius must have had it together. Not only were people testifying to the fact that his daily actions indicated that he was steadfast in the faith and “walking in truth,” but his general spiritual health was such that John wrote greetings with the hopes that his physical health was also doing as well. When I read the passage I get the feeling that John was genuinely proud to count Gaius as a brother in Christ. We’re told plainly that John was always delighted to hear that Christians were “walking in truth.”

John received testimony of Gaius’s walk through a third party. Reading 3 John in its entirety indicates that some missionaries had passed his way and had subsequently encountered John and reported these things about Gaius.

And that brings me to my point. What would have been reported of your behavior? If a stranger crossed your path today and testified later as to your actions, would it be the same report these folks gave of Gaius? Could they report that you are steadfast in the Christian faith and walking in truth? Or would they report that you were so caught up in yourself that you scarcely noticed them?

As Easter Sunday approaches and you prepare to celebrate the resurrection of Christ, be especially mindful that your actions bear witness to your faith. Your true colors literally do shine through. May your actions betray your faith in a living, resurrected, eternal, all-powerful, all-knowing savior; Christ our Lord.

-Ken Askew

Christ’s Cross

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." ESV Matthew 11:28-30

Many of you know that I enjoy searching out and reading writers from the Puritan era. That’s how I came across a great little book called The Loveliness of Christ. Its content was excerpted from the letters of a Puritan writer by the name of Samuel Rutherford; a Scottish chap from the 17th century.

I want to share with you one of his thoughts that I’ve been meditating on lately. Here it is: “Christ’s cross is such a burden as sails are to a ship or wings to a bird.” Now, please take a moment and let it sink in because it packs quiet a punch. That’s what I admire about the Puritans; they pack lots of content into few words.

I shared this thought with several of my friends last week and got all kinds of responses. They ranged from: “Christ is freedom!” All the way to: “Ken, You might want to consider lightening up on your reading a little.” And they were all right…

As I’ve repeated the phrase over and over in my mind this last week, I’ve come to realize that it lines up with the very words of Christ in Matthew.

Think of a sail. It is the means by which a vessel harnesses the wind for propulsion. Sails harness the wind so as to set the whole vessel into motion over the water. The sails must be very strong in order to harness and transfer the energy from the wind. Yet it the grander scheme of things they are not a burden to the ship at all. Quiet the contrary. The sails are an integral, vital, and complimentary part of the ship. And without them, the ship would never make its destination.

What about wings on a bird? Wings harness the air currents in a way that creates lift and enables birds to fly and glide seemingly effortlessly in the sky. Their wings no doubt endure lots of stress while supporting the weight of the bird and being buffeted by the wind. But far from being a burden, they are an absolute necessity if a bird is to fly. Without wings, birds would never leave the ground!

So too is the cross of Christ. Christ’s cross is demanding, yet it is the necessary appendage by which Christians are transformed into His image. It is through the cross that we find true rest. It is through the cross that our souls are quieted. Far from being a burden in a negative sense, the cross of Christ is that means by which we find true peace and eternal life.

Let me end by bringing Paul’s words to the Corinthian church to your recollection, “…the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” 1Cor 1:18

Train Yourself for Godliness

“Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness;” -ESV 1 Timothy 4:7

What kinds of training have you experienced? Some of you will undoubtedly think of rigorous military training. I don’t have any military experience, but my younger brother has told me plenty about Paris Island. Based on my conversations with him, I know that Marine training is intense to say the least. He even got some special treatment, not that he asked for it, at meal time. It seems that the Marines pay closer attention to your portions if you go into basic training a little on the heavy side. But I’ve got to hand it to them, twelve weeks later he came out of training a changed man.

Of course there are other kinds of training too. We go to college and enter into rigorous, prolonged courses of study in order to equip ourselves with the appropriate knowledge and skills to pursue a particular vocation. And as our studies progress in a particular subject, the study material becomes more and more focused. While freshman history classes are notorious for having hundreds of students, the atmosphere is much cozier in advanced courses like Tax Accounting and Organic Chemistry II. (For the record, I’ve actually taken Tax Accounting, but Organic Chemistry I was enough for me.)

And then there’s physical training. How many of you have ever tried to train your body by joining a health club? Those of you who’ve made the attempt know that discipline and accountability are keys to success. Confession time: In this area, if somebody is not holding me accountable, I won’t practice the necessary discipline to complete the task. For instance, today I’m six pounds lighter than I was a year ago after having lost 30 pounds during the last twelve months. (Don’t laugh too hard.)

Anyway, are you beginning to see a pattern? Effective training of all sorts shares common keys to success; focused attention, study, discipline and accountability. And I might ad that successful training is seldom easy. It takes effort to transition from civilian to Marine; from high school grad to college grad; from – well, you get the picture. To paraphrase Matthew Kelly, we often desire change; but it’s the transition that’s difficult.

In our text today, Paul tells Timothy to avoid irreverent, silly myths, but to focus instead on godliness. Now, many of you no doubt desire godliness. I mean how could a professing Christian not desire godliness? Wouldn’t that be completely contrary?

But godliness is not something that is simply conferred on a person. No, Paul tells Timothy to train himself for godliness. The implication is that while we might desire to change so that we are indeed more “godly” we will have to do so through a transition; training is required.

In his book, The Pursuit of Holiness, Jerry Bridges says: “God’s Word must be so strongly fixed in our minds that it becomes the dominant influence in our thoughts, our attitudes, and our actions.” His point is that to pursue holiness, or godliness, we must train ourselves by and through God’s Word. And if we train day in and day out by firmly planting God’s Word in our minds, then our thoughts and actions will become more and more inclined to godliness with each passing day.

For those of you willing to take Paul’s advice to heart; for those of you willing to train yourself for godliness; let me encourage you to identify with a local, Bible believing church that will support your endeavors by supplying some of the keys to success. Namely, the preaching/teaching of God’s Word and gentle accountability.

-Ken Askew