God's Standards Never Change

Good morning,

            Last week I had a brief appointment with Dr. Hendricks about everyone’s favorite procedure: a colonoscopy. I am on a three-year “recall” for this procedure and the time had come plan for the next one. However, Charlie told me that the “standard has changed” and that now the recommendation is to have the procedure done every five years, so he will have his office contact me in a couple years. You can imagine how very disappointed I was to hear this. I almost cried as I left his office J. Why did the standard change? I’m not really sure. Perhaps there is some science behind it, or some kind of experience that showed that having it done every three years didn’t produce any better results than having it done every five years. Or maybe insurance companies want to spend less money and prefer to see it done less often. I am not certain. But I do know that I didn’t mind one bit that the standard had been changed.

            It seems like this world has ever-changing standards for just about everything. And the trend – like my colonoscopy – is to make life easier or less expensive or more to our liking. It seems easier to drop standards in life than to raise them. If Charlie had told me the standard was being moved to once every two years or once a year, I would have groaned and, no doubt, complained. Perhaps it is natural for us to dislike it when standards get higher or harder. For us, easier is better.

            Compare this to God, whose standards never change. Any standard of God – such as the 10 Commandments or anything else in the Bible – are the same as they were 2, 200, or 2000 years ago. We can always count on knowing where God stands. He doesn’t lower His standards for any reason – especially to make it “easier” for us. And this is good news. Why? Because He doesn’t present us with a moving target. He’s always consistent and we can know not only what He wants or expects, but also how He will respond to us in any given situation or circumstance. For example, God’s standard for truth is just as true for the workplace as it is for the family home… as it is for the elected official… and as it is for the media. God does not possess nor does He advocate double-standards: one level of responsibility for one person and a different level of responsibility for another. God is “true” and consistent in all things.

            I find that in life – when I fall short of God’s standards – that it is easy to make excuses or to become fearful of God or fearful of disappointing Him. Sometimes I feel like the more I try to “press on to perfection” (Philippians 3) I become more and more aware of just how hard (impossible, actually) it is. And people I have known – teachers and leaders in the Gospel – have shared similar experiences. The closer they felt they were coming to holiness, the more they had a sense of their sin and their need before God.

            Thank God for Jesus His Son. Jesus met all of the unchanging standards of God without failing in even the smallest way. And – praise God – I am “in” Jesus by virtue of the salvation He has given me by grace. Through faith I have received His merit: everything Jesus “earned” is mine through His death on the cross. When you have missed God’s standards in any way, turn to Christ. Find forgiveness in Him. Find deliverance from guilt and shame. In Him find wholeness and peace, because He has met the standard for you.

Malachi 3:6-7 (NIV) - ⁶ "I the LORD do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. ⁷ Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you," says the LORD Almighty. "But you ask, 'How are we to return?'…

James 1:17 (NIV) - ¹⁷ Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

1 Timothy 2:5-6 (NIV) - ⁵ For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, ⁶ who gave himself as a ransom for all men--the testimony given in its proper time.

PRAYER: “Father, thank You for Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. Thank You that I can rest in Him and benefit from His perfect sacrifice of love for me on the cross. Forgive me when I “miss the mark”. Thank You that He never did, and that His blood covers me.  In Jesus’ name, AMEN.”

NOTES OF INTEREST / REMINDERS…

-          Congratulations to Mike and Megan Updegraff on the birth of their third child – Matthias Eli, born on January 22, 2013. May God bless Matthias, his parents, and his brother and sister McGarry and Molly.

-          Dyer Merchant spoke to me Sunday, asking if I knew of anyone who needed any work done (for hire) or of any jobs he might be able to consider. I told him I didn’t off the top of my head, but that I would pass the word. If you know of anyone who might be looking for some help or had some work to offer, please let me know so that I can pass it on to him. Thanks.

-          The church has a new website. It’s the same address – www.fbcbarharbor.com   –  but has a new design. This coming Sunday morning, at about 10:15 a.m., Adrian will be presenting an overview of it on the sanctuary screen. Of course, you can look it over and use it anytime now. We hope you will use it and that it will be a tool for the church and for the Lord in our ministry. If you have questions or suggestions, please direct them to myself or Adrian. We both realize there may be features or ideas that would be helpful to add to the site. Your input would be valuable.

Jesus Christ is Lord!

Scott

Tuesday Check-In is sent weekly to all those on the email news list of First Baptist Church of Bar Harbor. If you received this email in error, or if you wish to be removed from this list, please let me know and I will make the adjustment. Thank you.

Kaleidoscope

Good morning,

                I have a kaleidoscope on my desk. Have you ever used one? Kaleidoscopes are quite fascinating, though I don’t know that they have all that much of a purpose. Using light, mirrors, and (usually) bits of colorful, broken objects put together in a viewing case, you can enjoy many random, bright colorful combinations which are geometrical and quite beautiful. A description on Wikipedia reads…

“A kaleidoscope is a cylinder with mirrors containing loose, colored objects such as beads or pebbles and bits of glass. As the viewer looks into one end, light entering the other creates a colorful pattern, due to the reflection off of the mirrors. Coined in 1817 by Scottish inventorSir David Brewster, "kaleidoscope" is derived from the Ancient Greek καλός (kalos), "beautiful, beauty", εἶδος (eidos), "that which is seen: form, shape" and σκοπέω (skopeō), "to look to, to examine", hence "observer of beautiful forms.”

                When I think of my kaleidoscope I remember Diane Muise, a Gospel musician from my hometown of Auburn. Diane was a singer who loved the Lord and sought to glorify Him with a ministry of music in Maine and beyond. She was supported by her husband and was a visitor to many churches, including ours, until her death in 2008. The reason I think of Diane is a song that she wrote about broken pieces of glass called “Stained Glass Window”. Though it was not a theme she originated, the song described how God takes the broken pieces of our lives and puts them together into something with beauty and meaning.

                Why do I keep my kaleidoscope? Because it gives me pleasure… because there is beauty to be found when I look through the lens. And because it reminds me that my brokenness has a purpose in God’s scheme of glory. When we are broken, or experiencing trouble, we don’t typically feel very valuable or useful. The things we go through often don’t make sense to us. But God’s Word reminds of His ability to use such things for our good and His honor. As Rick Warren has put it: “God never wastes a hurt.”

                Praise God for His “artistry” in our lives and for the hope we have in Christ and that our God “does all things well.

Psalm 139:13-14 - ¹³For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴ I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

Romans 8:28 - ²⁸ And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Isaiah 61:1-3 - The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, ² to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance^(J) of our God, to comfort all who mourn, ³ and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.

PRAYER: “Father, may the brokenness in my life – be it great or small – be for the display of Your splendor. Please transform me, so that ugly things become beautiful in Your hands, that sharp, rough things become smooth by Your work in me, and that broken emotions are healed. You excel in this and all that You do magnifies Your glory. Thank You. In Jesus’ name, AMEN.”

Les Miserables

Tuesday January 8th, 2013           

            In the 8^th grade my English class was required to read Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables. It was a pretty big book and I wasn’t very excited about the assignment. But after taking some time to “get into it”, the story began to capture my attention and imagination. It’s the story of a poor man in 19^thcentury France who, after spending 19 years doing hard labor for stealing a loaf of bread in desperation, is redeemed by grace. Though he steals from a priest (after being released from prison and not being accepted anywhere in society), the priest shows mercy on him and keeps him from being arrested. Then the priest extends grace to him and gives him more than he stole. The man – Jean Valjean – turns his life over to God and, for the rest of his life, is hounded by his past and an over-zealous lawman who cannot comprehend the meaning of mercy. Though Valjean prospers, he cannot escape repeated encounters (in amazing plot twists) with this lawman named Javert. The many characters are not always easy to follow and the story gets bogged down at times with Hugo’s long digressions into the politics of the day. But somehow the book became my favorite book. Even though I’ve enjoyed books like The Lord of the Rings and many others since, none have taken its place.

            The novel has been made into a movie about 20 times. I’ve enjoyed some of them, but they never seem to satisfy – because the story is so long and complex that it is virtually impossible to capture on a couple hours of film. When the musical came to Broadway in the late 1980s, Joanne and I were able to go see it. I loved it, and saw it again a few years later with her brother. When I heard that the musical was to be made into a movie, that was pretty exciting news. Joanne, Brianne and I went to see it the day after Christmas. We all enjoyed it very much. On our trip in 2011, Joanne and I went to Victor Hugo’s house in Paris. As you can tell, the story has made an impact in my life.

            Every time I read, listen to, or watch Les Miserables, I am reminded of the changing power of grace. If you have ever wanted to change a person’s life, show them grace: favor when they have done nothing to deserve it. In fact, grace involves favor when someone has done things that are the opposite of deserving. It involves favor in response to failure. This is how God has loved us. And it has changed (and is changing) our lives. God has shown us favor when we deserved to be ignored, laughed at, and even judged with great severity. Not only has he withheld punishment that is deserved (like the priest in Les Miserables did not accuse Jean Valjean of stealing his silver), but the Lord has given life and love and blessing and hope and peace and joy and His own friendship and care – and so much more as well – just like the priest added a set of silver candlesticks to all the other that Valjean stole - as a gift of his best.

            God has given us His “best” in His Son, Jesus Christ. He could have given us all that we deserved, but He wanted to change our lives and bring us into a close relationship with Himself. When Valjean saw the full and deep truth about what he was, and when he comprehended the amazing and wonderful grace the priest showed him, his life changed. I have always believed that the more I see and understand the full and deep character of the sin in my life, the more grace will mean to me. I will appreciate it… savor it… rejoice in it… and it will change my life. May you and I not only worship God appropriately for His grace, but may our lives become vessels of grace – “dispensers” of grace – and may we know the joy of seeing lives changed before us.

Romans 5:6-9 (NIV) ⁶ You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷ Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. ⁸ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. ⁹ Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him!

Philippians 1:6 (NIV) ⁶ being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

PRAYER: “Father, thank You for the work You’ve begun in me, and for Your promise to complete it. It’s a thrill to be a part of the greatest story ever told: Your story, and to be on the receiving end of Your grace. In Jesus’ name, AMEN.”