Jesus wants your burdens

by Barrett Vanlandingham
February 27, 2013

By the time you read this, Lord willing, I will have already sung at an elderly friend’s funeral on Wednesday, gone through a colonoscopy Thursday, gotten the results, recovered, reported for jury duty Friday morning, and attended a weekend youth rally in Arkansas! FUN, FUN (at least the rally part). Yes I know that’s a lot to cram into the second half of my week, but I am not going to complain, considering I talk to people every week who have it much worse.

I have written many articles and lessons on the topics of worry, stress, fear, and giving it over to God. But at this moment I find myself guilty of not approaching any of these topics the right way in my personal life. Please forgive me if you think this makes me a hypocrite? Hopefully, it makes me human.

Fear of the unknown is something we all have to deal with. Even Jesus, though He was God in the flesh, was only made perfect through suffering (Heb. 2:10). He not only understands us better because of His suffering, but His acts of self-sacrifice also satisfy our human need to feel that Jesus has been in our shoes.

Certainly, Jesus could have used His supernatural ability to empathize with us. But He knew we would view that as taking the easy way out. So, He was tempted in every way, and in His weakest moment even pleaded with His Father to change His mind about the cross.

Jesus wanted mankind to know without a doubt that He was sincere in His love for us. He wanted us to be confident He understands our struggles enough to show us mercy (Hebrews 4:15-16). His life here on earth was the ultimate act of compassion, and simply put, He doesn’t want us to worry, period! (Matthew 6:25-34) He simply wants us to be compelled enough by His love to choose Him (2 Corinthians 5:14). Jesus will do the rest.

The apostle Paul said it well when he compared our earthly body to a temporary tent that we will eventually exchange for a heavenly dwelling (2 Cor. 5:1-5). I appreciate mature Christians who not only understand that this world is not our home, but our bodies are not ours to keep. They are only a tool to do the Lord’s work for a short while (Matt. 28:18-20).

May God bless us all with peace as we strive to unload our burdens at the feet of Jesus (Matt. 11:28), who promises to give us rest in our time of need. Have a great week!

There is a cure for spiritual bacteria
by Barrett Vanlandingham
February 20, 2013

            As I stood in the church kitchen the other morning waiting for my coffee to brew, the hand sanitizer dispenser on the wall caught my eye and I had the irresistible urge to sanitize my hands! Why is that?  I didn’t feel that way 20 years ago.

            Ironically, our society has become less tolerant of germs in recent years while becoming more tolerant of sin.  Why do so many no longer feel just as strongly about clean souls as we do clean hands, especially if doing so will prevent us from becoming spiritually sick?

            The idea of having spiritually clean hands is not a new one.  About 3000 years ago in Psalm 24:3-4, David says, “Who may ascend to the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place?”

David answers that question by saying, “He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false.”

In other words, the person or generation who is committed only to God, and trusts only in Him is the one who David says “…will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God his Savior (Ps 23:5-6).”

Perhaps this is what the apostle Paul had in mind when he wrote to young Timothy.  “I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer without anger or disputing (1 Tim. 2:8)”

In context, Paul encourages us to pray for kings and other authority figures, Jews and Gentiles.  He reminds us that the Good News of Jesus Christ should be preached to all people.  This would be important so that everyone, no matter what their nationality or social class, can lives truly peaceful lives and communicate with God (hands raised or not), knowing they have been made holy or set apart for service in His kingdom.

This is something that would have been impossible without Jesus, the perfect sacrifice, who continually washes our sins away.  Baptism is mentioned over and over in the New Testament as the moment at which our sins are washed away or forgiven (Acts 22:16 and Acts 2:38).  Baptism is symbolic of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, something all true believers in Christ must take part in so as to “live a new life” of obedience (Romans 6:3-5 and James 2:26).

As ethyl alcohol is to hand sanitizer, the active ingredient spiritually for having clean hands and a pure heart is belief in Jesus Christ (John 1:12 and 3:16) as the son of God whose grace (Romans 3:24) makes our salvation possible.  Have a great week!

God’s perfect love is for all

by Barrett Vanlandingham
February 13, 2013

Ahhh, Valentine’s Day! It’s a time when we show special appreciation for our loved ones. A box of chocolates, a bouquet of flowers, dinner or movie, or maybe a special gift are all very thoughtful.

But believe it or not, such impressive acts hardly register on the Richter scale of love in comparison to the most important kind of love, God’s love. Can you even imagine the amount of love our heavenly Father must have for us? He spells it out in scripture over and over again.

“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord. ‘Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future.’” (Jeremiah 29:11)

And although many of the words of prophets like Jeremiah were often meant for a specific time-frame or people, the message often applies to all of those who make God their “Number One”.

Listen to what else God said to Jeremiah in 1:5, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.”

God uses the same idea in speaking of Christians in the first century. 1 Peter 2:9 says, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”

In Luke 12:6-7, Jesus reassures His followers that they have no reason to fear anyone who might harm them because of their loyalty to Him. In fact, Jesus reminded them, “Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”

In our culture, people lie about a lot of things. Words are cheap. People will say whatever they think you want to hear, just so they can forged a cheap and shallow relationship that may benefit them financially or otherwise. It may sound like love. But oftentimes it’s a lie. This is in stark contrast to God’s love which is not just words He sent down from on high.

Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

God’s love is found in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:39) and there is no way to the Father except through the Son (John 14:6). If you haven’t been clothed in Christ through baptism (Galatians 3:27), why not be baptized today (Romans 6:3-4)? It’s a gift of love that will last an eternity for those who remain faithful til the end. Have a blessed week!

It is important to share what we learn from the Bible
by Barrett Vanlandingham
February 6, 2013

            The people of Fort Gibson have always been gracious of my efforts to convey the truth of God’s word in my Fort Faith column.  But it is also exciting to hear from those of you who read my column in other papers besides the Fort Gibson Times. 

Comments from people in Stillwater, Norman, Durant and readers worldwide of various online publications are getting back to me.  I always love to hear from you, both when we agree and disagree.  Feel free to call or e-mail.  I learn a lot from the feedback, and it actually helps me focus my studies on areas that may need a little more of my attention.  None of us “preacher types” has everything figured out.

I think most of you would agree, it is always humbling and challenging to compare your biblical views with what the Bible actually says.  For me, just about the time I feel like I have a pretty good handle on all things religious (I know that sounds bad), it’s like God opens my eyes to things I hadn’t noticed before.  Even 91-year old Clarence Huggins, one of the sweetest and best Christian men I know, once told me he learns something new everytime he reads the Bible.

Growing up, I mistakenly thought there were two of every animal that entered Noah’s ark.  And while it is true that for each male animal there was also a mate, it is also true that there were actually seven pairs of every clean animal (such as livestock, sheep, and deer), seven pairs of every kind of bird, but only two of every unclean animal (such as camels, mice, hawks, pigs, horses, dogs, and cats).

By the way, I know what some of you are probably thinking.  “Who cares exactly how many animals were on the ark, and how does this knowledge help me or anyone else honor God and eventually go to heaven!?”  I couldn’t agree more.  But it is important to realize that if Noah felt that God’s instructions on numbers of animals, and how to build the ark were important, we should also listen closely to God’s word and obey even the things we consider to be “small” details.  Noah listened and obeyed. And look how things turned out for him. Pretty good, huh?

In our culture of Christian music artists, religious t-shirts and jewelry, and motivational Youtube videos, it is easy to get so comfortable in our relationship with God that we forget the importance of obedience to everything God commands (Matthew 28:18-20).

 It is AWESOME to experience God’s love and blessed assurance in our daily lives.  But it is also important for us to take seriously our responsibility to model God’s commands, and preach the good news to all, especially the poor (Luke 4:18), and above all, love God, and love others.  Remember to pray always, and have a great week!