Wesley's Questions #1

NO! John Wesley, not John Wayne!

 I have been recently asked if I could answer the 19 questions that John Wesley had his bishops ask those wanting to enter the ministry. I believed I could so in taking on that challenge I am going to post my answers. They probably won't be perfect or how you might answer them but they will be mine. Perhaps you might ask yourself how you might answer them. 

1. Have you faith in Christ?

Romans 10:9-10 says, "If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved" (NIV). I have and do declare that Jesus is Lord of my life. I trust in His death on the cross has paid for my sins and His resurrection is proof the payment for sin is covered and that by having faith in Him, I too will have everlasting life. I further believe Jesus’ words that He is the only way to salvation (John 14:6).

I responded to an alter call at the First Baptist Church of Clinton, Indiana when I was 7 years old. I remember before consenting to baptize me the pastor sitting down with me in his office and asked if I knew what it meant to be a follower of Jesus. I do not recall the exact words I used but I understood Jesus paid the price for my sins and I could have a new life in Him and heaven when life was over. Since that time, I have come to understand more of the price Jesus paid, the depth of my sins, the promise of eternity, and the hope of a better life now with Jesus as my Lord (master, director, leader). 

Picture by CARTER SAUNDERS

Weeding in the Drought

John 9:4, "We must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent us. The night is coming, and then no one can work." 

 A few weeks back we had a small stretch of drought. Actually, I probably shouldn't call it a drought but three weeks without rain in Indiana in the early summer feels like a drought. The grass was drying and the weeks weren't even growing. 

No rain, of course, meant I didn't have to mow the yard but I had to water my pitiful little garden. Little is relative of course so 5 rows of beans, 28 tomato plants, a row of each sunflower, beets, and carrots,  4 hills of zucchini, 4 hills of cucumbers, watermelons, and pumpkins might be big to you. For me, small garden might not be the right word, but more on that later. I watered and weeded a little. Weeding a little was the problem. I wasn't worried too much the weeds were small, the tomatoes could wait to be tied up, and I thought I had time. 

Then the rains came, and came, and came, usually when I was off work so I didn't have to worry about watering the garden. YAH! or maybe not. Those weeds that were so small aren't now. Where did my carrots go? The beets are gone and somewhere among the weeds, beans and onions can be seen, mostly. The tomatoes are leaning over one another and I can't tell where one is and another begins. However, the sunflowers are taller than the weeds about them (small comfort).  

Now I have to mow the too tall grass, vegetables needing tending. and a garden of weeds. If only... 

This is where this article comes in because I realized if I had weeded in the drought I wouldn't be having this trouble. I had the time I wasn't spending on mowing I could have done this, but now I have a mess. At the time I should be tending my vegetables and preparing them to produce or even gathering some of the fresh vegetables, I need to weed. Not just weed but now I have a lawn to maintain. Bother!  

So how does this apply to life? 

I would suggest there are times when things aren't busy when things aren't seeming to grow. It isn't that the weeds aren't growing nothing you or I are trying is going anywhere. If we take the time then to deal with the small problems which if left unattended will grow into a problem then we may find that we have a bigger problem later. There are things in our lives that we may be able to ignore during the time of drought, but we need to remember we won't always be in this period of our lives. Waiting to weed things out, doing the maintenance, and the like is a bad idea. 

Don't wait.

Look around and ask yourself, "What should I do when things aren't growing?" or "How do I prepare for when things do begin to grow?" For me, I look at my busy life and wonder? Should I have started (weeded) this garden project?  I can see clearly now, that the answer is Yes. I started it when things were just starting to get busy in my life. Now as strange as it may sound my garden isn't a blessing. Yes, my garden is a weed. Perhaps you have things in your life that if you're honest with yourself might be a weed later. May I suggest, Weed it now before it grows. If you don't your life will look like my garden and it won't be a blessing. 

What if you have waited? Well, you have a lot of hard work and probably if you are honest, you knew better. I did. So, get your gloves out and start pulling because those weeds aren't getting smaller.

Do you want it there?

 

In the parable of the sower, Jesus speaks of the types of soil that the Word of God lands on when we sow. I was thinking of this when I came home and found a pile of seeds laying on the road. This is just one of the things you see when you live in rural Indiana.

While loading up harvested wheat, the local farmer spilled some of it.  It seemed like a waste to me but when the farmer considers how much effort and time it would take to try and recover the wheat without contamination, I'm sure, it was not worth the effort. One thing I am sure of was this wasn't done on purpose. Later this year I'm not going to find wheat growing on my gravel road and the farmer isn't looking for a harvest there either.

I wonder how often the church pours the seed of the Word on the road. I don't want to say we should try and judge others' hearts and not give to those who might only look hardened. This being said, perhaps, we should consider if what we are doing is where we should be working. Jesus told his disciples in Judea to leave towns that did not receive the good news. On the other hand, God told Isaiah to preach all his days but in the end, everything but 10% would be lost (Isaiah 6).

So what do I conclude? Be wise, but also be obedient. Use the resources God has given you wisely. However, if God says to invest in something that will by all human measurements fail, then do it anyway. 

Are you greater than John?

 Luke 7:24-28

After John’s messengers had left, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swaying in the wind? Otherwise, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? Look, those who wear elegant clothing and live in luxury are found in palaces.

What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written:

‘Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You,

who will prepare Your way before You.’

I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John, yet even the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”

This scripture is a reminder that those in the new covenant are so much more than those in the old. We think Moses had a great relationship with God, or Abraham, or Isaiah but these are less of a prophet than John according to Jesus and what does Jesus say? 

You're greater.

Think about that.

What you have in Christ is greater. What God has and can do in you is greater! 

Wow! That is amazing.

Not my Rights

I enjoy my rights and I want what is "right" but I also remember that Jesus said:

Matthew 5:38-48 "You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye and tooth for tooth. But I tell you not to resist an evil person. If someone slaps you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also; if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well; and if someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.q Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor’ and ‘Hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,s that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Do not even tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even Gentiles do the same?

Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect."

I have to admit this version of perfection is hard. I like my "rights." What about you, is it hard?

Giving Sacrificially

 

 When I think about Christians sacrificially giving, I remember the times when Michelle and I gave to others anonymously and when they knew we did it. I remember many times when people would give of their time and money to help us and others. My life experience says that truly Christians give sacrificially of their time, their talent, and their treasure without seeking anything in return.  Sure, there are exceptions but as Elisha told his servant there are more with us than against us. I testify today that real Christianity is overflowing with loving and sacrificially-giving people. When it came to thinking of a time when someone gave that it meant so much and I have to be honest there are too many.   

As I thought this week however the most giving thing that stands in my mind is something the person who did it may not even have recognized as giving. What they gave helped me even more than I realized at the time.

When I started in ministry I was an odd duck. I didn’t grow up in the denomination. Originally, I went through the course of studies to get my ordination, a program that many considered second-rate, but which I found harder than college. I was preaching at a church of maybe a dozen people on a great week and I was working full-time. I couldn’t attend all the functions our denomination had and since I wore a suit this was even before I wore a clerical collar, I was accused by one pastor of being no better than a pharisee. To say the least, I felt less than a real minister, and sometimes real, or imagined I was treated that way.

I was invited to attend a meeting of pastors to pray. These pastors from various denominations were gracious, loved God, and loved each other despite the huge doctrinal differences between them. Pastor Paul Carey an experienced, well-educated Baptist pastor repeatedly treated me with respect and graciously listened to me as if I was his equal, I wasn’t. This gracious gift to a young pastor did and still does encourage me that God called me. His gift wasn’t money or talent, it was time and attention, and though he might not have thought much of it. It is one of the greatest gifts, I ever received. It flowed from his Christ-centered life. 

With Mothers' Day just finished and Fathers' Day fast approaching I wanted to consider Ephesians  5 and what it means to us men specifically. Often verse 22 is taken out of context to keep women silent and to make them little better or no better than a slave. The first issue that is overlooked is the command to listen to their own husband. I take this to mean, they were not supposed to be looking to other men for things that they should be looking to their husbands for (there is a lot to unpack in that and I won’t spend time here doing it). The second is the words “as unto the Lord,” to me this makes it clear that if a man is asking something God wouldn't they shouldn't. Just as with the government, you don't do anything God wouldn't be pleased with.

 

The other side of this is Paul's command to the husband. The husband can't demand obedience if he isn't doing his part. Loving her as Christ loves the church. Christ died to save the church. Most men say they would die for their wives so I'll give them this one (barely). Christ gave us the Spirit so that we can be all we were designed to be. Okay, so if your wife has the abilities to be a great CEO, are you as a husband supporting her in this? This is where most men fail or just refuse. They are supportive of the woman as long as they get something they want or they get the glory, but not the other way around. 

Jesus also listens to the church and asks us to bring all of our concerns to him. So are we really listening? Are we doing what is best for them not just what we think is best? Jesus is.

 

I could go on, but I will leave with this.
Pastor Charles