If there is one thing I try to keep close is my younger days…I mean younger…the day I was born. Now when people ask me where…well I put my head down mumble, cough and kinda turn my head to the side. It really doesn’t work and I end up having to explain why? Now they don’t really care and do their best to remain polite, which means they don’t laugh. But it is hard to cover their amusement at my sudden change of demeanor. You see I was born in The Bronx, New York…yes that New York. Their best efforts are completely destroyed by their next statement. “Well Bless Your Heart” If you are from the south then you should know that the phrase has multiple meanings and is used to express genuine sympathy but sometimes as an insult that conveys condescension, derision, or contempt. You are granted the choice, pick one. In my case I really believe it was used to express genuine sympathy. I was raised in the south, that New York thing was the fault of the Army Air Corps…well my Dad was responsible also. Now please understand it was war time, Mom’s parents lived in the Bronx. Let’s think about this for a moment. What with gas being rationed and all the patriotic efforts being done to preserve as much as we could to fund the troops… a young girl with child could not have gone traipsing across the country although I believe she would would have to spare me this cross. As I shared with you before we moved after every four years and then came my salvation. We ended up in Texas! I immediately adopted Texas as my home. I loved every year I was there and as silly as it seems to this day I love Texas. Why you may ask? I can’t speak for now at this time but I can tell you it is true what the say…oh not that every things bigger stuff… No one ever asked me where are you from. They just welcomed me and judged me by what I did. Yes I realize I was born in the Bronx, NewYork but I am southern raised and Texas made.

Funny how this back porch turns the day around. See you next week here on the back porch.

Kurt 

There is no such thing as an ordinary Christian…We all are called out to be different, each to his own calling according to the gifts of the Spirit. After completing the series of the  Shortest Books of The Bible I started looking for other materials to share in a blog. That was my mistake…because it truly is a fact that God has always provided and as usual the path was made known to me. 

The circumstances here are very similar to the chapter we will look at this week. I had accomplished my goal of writing about the shortest books of the Bible but there were more stories to be told and more to be done. So it is in the 15th chapter of Acts…Paul has done a lot to establish the church…The New Way but they have hit a wall that if not removed the Church as we know it today would never be.

The Jewish Factor…The Issue is Circumcision 

While the numbers aren’t factually known it is very much agreed that the early church did have a mixture of Jews and Gentiles, the number of Gentiles growing daily…Remember that a Gentile as defined by the Jews was anyone other than a Jew. Simple and to the point. The Jews felt that in order to be a part of this new way…you should be  circumcised as to the practice of Moses, otherwise you can’t be saved. There was a group that was sent down from Judea to teach this very thing to the brethren. Of course there was an immediate conflict between them and Paul and Barnabas who were teaching exactly the opposite. There was a great dispute and so much opposition to Paul and Barnabas teachings that resulted in an agreement being made…Paul, Barnabas and some others would go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders to get this question settled. When studying Scripture it is a good thing to accord history its due. There was a lot happening in Antioch, the gospel was being preached to Jew and Gentile and they were living together as brethren. But what happens next is a good example that we haven’t learned well from past history, today just like then it takes only a few to mess things up. There were certain Jews that just could not accept this, they were unwilling to concede that they were God’s chosen people. They were quite willing to accept these people into the church…but they must first become Jews. The major argument in the 15th chapter was if the gift of God was for the select few or for all the world? A simple question whose answer would determine whether all the walls would be broken down and the church would move forward with God’s will as its guide. So we move on from here…in laymen’s terms…Paul, Barnabas and all the big guns of the present day early church came together to decide this issue once and for all…It was named The Jerusalem Conference.

Paul and Barnabas stated their case then Peter stood to address those present. Peter reminded them that he had been responsible for the reception of Cornelius into the church some ten years ago. Was he right in welcoming Cornelius and the others at that time. They say “proof is in the pudding” and that being the case Cornelius and those who came with him were granted by God…the Holy Spirit. They settled the question “can we earn the favor of God? There were among those Jews those that said you could only earn God’s favor by “keeping the law.” True peace comes when we realize that the peace of God’s saving grace lies in the understanding that we can never put God in our debt. We will be much happier and at peace when we learn that for a Christian the way to victory in this life is through surrender to Him who is the Creator of all things.

Then James, the leader of the Jerusalem Church, a position made even more powerful because it was not one of a formal office…it was because he was an outstanding individual of high moral standards. He was also the brother of Jesus. In 1 Corinthians 15:7 James had received a special resurrection appearance of Jesus all to himself. James also was a rigorous observer of the Law. Now he stood to declare that the Gentiles should be allowed into the church without anything else standing in their way. The mater was brought to a close as James suggested three things that should be asked of the Gentiles. 

-They must not eat meat that had be offered to idols. 

-They must abstain from fornication

-They must abstain from things strangled and from blood. 

Once the Church had made a decision two things occurred immediately. The terms of the decision were put in a letter which was sent by special messages back to Antioch. The Church sent as representatives Judas and Silas along with Paul and Barnabas. A lesson we might learn here is the messengers were a special acknowledgment of the sincerity of the church in Jerusalem. This news was a major development in the future of the church and the kindness and sincerity in which it was presented added greatly to its worth.The last barrier between Jew and Gentile had fallen and now a unified Church would go forward with the Good News.

Life is Good

jk 

Sitting here on the porch this evening my mind wandered back to my mother and some things I never told her. for some reason or other I went and got her old bible off the shelf and spent a few moments looking through it. Like all old bibles they tell a story about the person to whom they belonged. You can tell by the overall condition the many hours of service, so to speak and if you look close enough the wear of certain sections or pages paint a picture of their journey through the scriptures. One thing for sure…if that bible had been a daily companion of that person it most likely can and will tell a story. Inserts, now these are big items…the fact that they were placed in the bible indicates their special place in the mind and heart of the owner. My mother’s bible was full of birth and death announcements. This reminded me how much the actions of my mother always were centered on her children and the family in general. We were a military family and that meant that the day to day things of kids and running of the household rested on her. I don’t remember her having many close friends, she never learned to drive and had little interest in anything outside the home. She was an expert at setting up house, after all we moved every four years…or so. Five kids a dog and a parakeet and my mother loved us all. The best I can remember every day she read her bible, the condition of the pages attest to that. That bible had a lot of miles on it, it was given to her by her mom and dad…on her confirmation in the church. There it was along with the memories of things I didn’t say a reminder of things I did not do. Put away among the pages of moms bible was an article from an old Ann Landers column. Landers was an advice writer of her day. It was about a mother who was sad about the fact that her kids, once grown did not come around much. I am 80 years old now and the tears welled up in my eyes when I read that.

The pages of that bible were wrinkled and discolored from the years it had been in use and the time it has spent on that shelf. I am so grateful that I got that bible. The only thing I got of my parents was of course her bible and my dads service records…Think about that a moment in this day of accumulation of stuff.  My mom and dad left me what mattered. My mom was a woman of faith and she showed us kids what God meant by unconditional love. My dad loved his country and served it for 30 years… God and Country… my mom would probably add Family. I will remember that every time I see that bible…Which I will remove from the shelf and place on my desk.

Thanks for stopping by…come back next week and sit a bit. Oh, if you wish you can ponder and rock a bit…got two find rockers…get here early.

jk

The authority of the First Epistle of John having been established, and the opinion of those who read and considered the language of John 1 are of agreement that 2nd and 3rd John most definitely were written by the hand of John. There were some rather weak doubts by the early church but they were not able to keep these two books out of the final canonical line-up. Nuff said about that let’s get to the book. John is now much older and it is believed that he would have been about 90 when he put pen to scroll an wrote “greetings, from John the elder” and he meant it to designate his advanced age…not to be taken as a sign of office. By now John would have been the oldest of all the apostles and the only one to die a natural death. A few key things that give us an insight to very short book.

Right off we find ourselves with a set of uncertain facts and that my friends is a whopper of a conundrum. We do not know who the lady is John addresses or the city where she lives. What we do know is by deductive reasoning, she is a lady of distinction, brought about by her devotion and services to the church and it is also possible that church services were held in her house. Many believed that the title given her by John, which also he bestowed upon her sister at the end of this Epistle was in recognition of their extraordinary piety. He also recommends to her and her family not to have anything to do with the heretics of that day, for they do not believe that Jesus Christ has come among us in the flesh. John refers to them as deceivers and antichrists and this should reinforce for us in these days the importance of a faith based on the divine truth and promises of Jesus Christ. His love for them is of a Christian nature to always love one another and leaves them with his apostolical benediction. A note for us of this day…John was very happy to meet some of her children and to find them living just as the father has commanded…Are we raising our children today to have a love of God and passion for the work of the church? John makes use of this encounter by reminding them that we are commanded to always love each other…this was not a new commandment but it has been present from the very beginning. He expands on that by reminding them that love means doing what God has commanded us to do. Verses 7,8 and 9 contain warnings, instructions and a mention of a reward. The deceiver’s  have gone out into the world, continuing to deny that Jesus Christ came among us in a real body. They are of the antichrist do not allow them to mislead you and take from you all you have worked so hard to achieve. Remain with your teachings and continue to have a relationship with both the Father and son. Here in verses 10 and 11 we see the practice of shunning, encouraged by John…have nothing to do with these people, give them no encouragement…least you become a partner in their evil work. In verse 12 and 13 John sends greetings from the children of your sister, chosen by God. Most likely meaning here would be the members of you sister church. In closing John tells them that there is much more he would like to share with them but would prefer to do so face to face… “then our joy would be complete.”

A neat little book of warnings, encouragement, and practical instruction. Hope you have enjoyed this series of the five shortest books of the Bible and will join us in the Pew next week.

Life is Good

jk

As I shared in the last From The Back Porch I love to come out here to clear my mind of the days events. There is another reason I need to share with you that works well with me. When I write my blog From The Pew I try to not preach but rather just share the wonder and joy of God’s word. Most of the time I am able to do just that. Now the back porch allows me to step out of the Pew and share a a few personal thoughts, clear my mind of any negative thoughts and enjoy this world God has given us. Look at the picture above left…Someone has definitely left the door open and I am trying to look at it with an open mind and heart. You know the saying this ain’t your daddy’s Democratic Party anymore? Well this ain’t my United Methodist Church anymore? I can’t see the love and inclusiveness, fellowship and scripture obedience from divine inspiration that united us in His name in the picture above.

The headline I read today….It implied that over 5000 United Methodist congregations have left the church amid arguments over sex and gender. I wish to take issue with that. The Methodist Church has never officially denied anyone to enter or kept them from God’s table…to my knowledge. What is going on here is about money and property and control, along with the failure of church leadership to enforce Church Doctrine and Law. It is about a failure of leadership and perverting the word of God as written to meet the social and cultural demands of a few, fueled by agenda driven social warriors who will destroy anything that disagrees with their opinion. If that seems to be a bit harsh to some of you…welcome to reality and my world. I believe what I have written to be true and accurate. Look at the picture again…all I see is hate, frustration and a group of people who are mad because they can’t get their way. For over forty years this issue has driven us toward division and the Holy Spirit will not abide among such behaviour. It really got started over nine little words…I will repeat a few for you. “is not compatible with Christian beliefs”   may not be the exact quote but accurate enough.  What God has created you or anyone else cannot alter…neither will any of us escape the Lord’s Day and Judgement.

May God Forgive Us All

Kurt

It is generally agreed that that the author of Jude is the brother of James and one of the four brothers of Jesus. There is much to write about concerning this book but I will stay, with the help of Bible Panorama, with eight points of interest. The first we find in verses 1 and 2. We see a profile of a christian. A person who has accepted Jesus Christ and because of this he is called and set apart by God in whom he shall find mercy, peace and love. He recognizes Jesus as his Savior. Verses 3 and 4 instructs us to contend….stand up and defend the faith. The faith “delivered” by God “once” , is neither negotiable or changeable. The Church and many Christians today seem to be developing a habit of “negotiable” approaches to sin and accepted behavior, based on how prevailing winds of public opinion are blowing. Bible study group is involved in a study of Paul’s ministry. The working title of study in the 24th chapter is “An Inconvenient Faith”. Felix becomes uncomfortable when Paul confronts him and his current wife with their behavior. He sends him away, “we will talk latter.” So…..is it not possible that in this day we put aside our faith because it is “inconvenient” or makes us uncomfortable in certain situations. Verses 5-7 speak to God”s condemnation of sin. This condemnation is a continuing principle throughout Scripture. There are many examples of this, two that come to mind is the judgement of unbelievers as Israel left Egypt. Of course there is the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and surrounding cities because of sexual immorality and sexual perversion. Sin is sin and the reality of God’s judgement is a given.

In verses 8-11 Jude deals with a situation that the “church” is fighting today. Corruption, here I add a personal note of an observation of my own. The corruption I find most distressing is the corruption of Scripture to fit a personal agenda. This is a mark of false teachings and the lack of respect for the authority of the word. These people show their corruption in what they say and do. Jude makes it plain that they will be “convicted and sentenced” in verses 12-15. Depending on what version you are reading verses 16-21 lists various un-godly behaviors that are occurring among the people. Jude encourages the Christians to build themselves up in the faith through the Holy Spirit and looking to Jesus Christ. We read in verses 22-23 the need for compassion while hating the sin. Sin tolerated soon spreads because silence is confused for acceptance. Remember the familiar “hate the sin, love the sinner”, it is noted that while we should do this, we should also seek to “pull them out of the fire” which takes us back to verses 3-4, Contend, stand-up for the faith bring the sinner home through the power of Christ and the Holy Spirit. The last two verses 24-25 provides us with a much needed reminder of who we are and who we serve. We are reminded that our God, our Savior, The Lord Jesus Christ can and will keep us on a path of Holy living. As Christians we can rejoice in knowing that our God is a sovereign and powerful God of eternity.

When I read Jude it is to me like a good friend who sees some difficulties now and in the future. He presents a no wiggle room assessment and you might say a good old fashioned “talking to”. Next week the last book in this series…2. Second John – 245 words.

God Bless, Life Is Good

jk

Welcome back…Pull up a chair and join in. The picture here is from a porch in 1939 in N.C. It is most likely a front porch of a old country store…But I liked it…Come join me on the back porch, not so crowded there. A favorite comedian of mine passed away a few weeks ago…James Gregory, a Georgia boy. When I decided to write something mid-week the name From The Back Porch just popped up in my head. Don’t know why but I just liked it. Now James was not of that line of thought. He believed that when we left the front porch and went to that thing called a deck, it was just another step on the way down for our nation. He said “you can’t see a thing from that deck, anything could be happening and you would not know it.” You couldn’t wave at anybody driving by, did not matter if you knew them or not…”wouldn’t want them to think you were uppity.” Also, where did you put that old stove? “Why right out there on the front porch beside the old washing machine.” You know there was a certain amount of simplicity in those days and for some reason I get a sense of comfort from those days and the people who were on that porch.

As I consider the events of this day I remember yesterday…June 6…not the June 6 of 2023 but June 6, 1944. Felt bad toward the end of the day because there was so little said or written about it. The apostle Paul said at the end of Philippians 3 “One thing I do: Forgetting what is behind… and here from gotquestions.com is a biblical perspective.

“The word forgetting in this passage means “no longer caring for, neglecting, refusing to focus on.” Our memories store millions of pieces of information gained through our senses since birth. Some experiences are impossible to forget, and any effort to forget them only makes them more prominent. Paul is not advising a memory wipe; he is telling us to focus on the present and the future, rather than the past.”

I can’t get June 6, 1944 out of my memory. God bless them for all they gave. This past weekend many folks went to the beach…on June 6, 1944 a lot of folks went to the beach…A lot did not come back home.

jk

The introduction to the book is brief, there is little if any details about the prophet and we have no date for it. What we can be sure of is that verse one clearly states that God has given to Obadiah a message that must be communicated to the people. This message if you will, plainly states at the very beginning that Edom is the subject of the message and the the people need to prepare to do battle. The prophet refers to to Edom as “you”. Verse two is structured in a way that one commentary sees as a strategy which is designed to show the people of Israel that God is about to destroy their traditional enemy. Verse three addresses pride and states a reason for it. The Edomites were proud of their military might and believed they could not be defeated. the expression “live in the clefts of the rocks” points to another of aspect of their pride. Their capital Sela in Hebrew means “rock”. The city is on a plain between two mountains and is accessible only from one direction. They did not feel they could be defeated. As we read in this book God easily defeated them. Verse four to me contains, I think an important point that the people did not recognize. These are much more than the words of Obadiah but a message from God of impending judgement. As I wander through the verses it is my intent to pick and glean a few interesting things. In verses five and six it is made plain that defeat will be complete and it will come at the hands of former allies. Verse seven continues the theme of Edom’s destruction. An interesting aspect here is it chides Edom for its lack discernment and intelligence, they will be surprised at the force of this divine judgement.

Verses eight and nine when reduced to simple layman knowledge simply reinforces the fact that this divine judgement will be conclusive and absolute. Total defeat, Edom’s intelligence, as well as it military power is criticized and challenged. In short, total destruction. Read carefully verses ten and eleven. Verse eleven is particularly harsh. “On that day you stood aside”……. Here lies the heart of Obadiah’s charge. You did nothing to help Judah…by doing nothing you allied yourselves with the invaders. You became like them and here the prophet goes on to list the things the Edomites did to the people of Judah. He continues to berate them in verses twelve and thirteen. Continuing on from verses twelve to fifteen the theme turns to “The Day Of The Lord”. Simply put, an outpouring of divine judgement against the enemies of Judah. As is found in most biblical writings there is a fair amount symbolism, the list of injustices and in verse fifteen the pronouncement. “As you have done, it shall be done to you.” The remaining verses allude to the aftermath. The destruction to allow the restoration and the assurance that victory will be an ultimate triumph over those who oppose divine will. In today’s vernacular, “God” is in charge.

I have for the most part read and shared the commentary from the New Interpreter’s Bible. What is here in Obadiah, what have I found. As layman we often pass over significant revelations simply because we never go beyond the words, get off the page and discover the awesome message contain in the bible. Another reason is we do not take advantage of the study materials available to us in this digital age. In the midst of all this is the fact that God is as much displeased with what they, Edom, did not do, as He is with what they did. I am sure not all the people physically attacked the people of Judah but all of them did nothing to help those people either. Theological perspective of some fail to recognize the world of today. It is clear here that God is dissatisfied or better said just plain mad about the attitudes of the Edomites toward their brothers and sisters in Judah.

Here is the little gem hidden beneath the story. We sometimes divorce ourselves from the reality of everyday life. To ignore the plight of those among us and fail to respond to the need of the poor, the excluded and destitute of society, such attitudes invite the judgement of God. I will borrow from NIB and leave you with this thought.

Obadiah’ prophecy calls attention to the need for the church to address the real problems of the day. To reach out to those who are socially excluded, ethnic minorities and the homeless and when faced with the realities of these social problems not to remain silent or ignore efforts that may be intended to oppress certain segments of society. I will quote directly from NIB. “One of the challenges North America faces is the development and creation of a multicultural, multilingual, and pluralistic society and church. That kind of church is distinguished by the participation of all it sectors, respect for divergent opinions and the incorporation of minority groups in to the decision making processes.”

I will add here that in my opinion it does not include the marginalizing of others beliefs or faith. No signs, banners or raised fists, endless slogans and political or social agendas… It requires that you do something of meaningful benefit for the “least of these”. May the Spirit lead us all…Amen

Matthew 25: 40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

Really quite simple…….Life is good

PS… Obadiah did it in 440 words…It took me 952

jk