Russell Mckinney's Blog

Straight Talk About God and Life

What Jesus Was Thankful For

For a Thanksgiving sermon this year, I did something I’d never done. I got down my concordance and looked up all the instances in which Jesus is specifically mentioned as giving thanks. I found that there are four things for which the Bible says He gave thanks. 

#1: In John 6:11,23, Jesus gives thanks for the food by which He feeds the multitudes. In this passage, that food is five barley loaves and two small fishes, and those multitudes are 5,000 men. In another passage, Matthew 15:36, He gives thanks for the seven loaves of bread and few small fish that feed 4,000 men. Obviously, this teaches us that we should give thanks for food.

#2: In John 11:41, Jesus gives thanks that God the Father has heard His prayers concerning the death of Lazarus. This shows us that we should give thanks that God the Father, despite all of His majesty, glory, and power, will take the time to hear our prayers.

#3: In Luke 10:21, Jesus gives thanks that God the Father hides spiritual truths from the earthly wise and prudent and reveals them to “babes.” This teaches us that we should give thanks that God doesn’t have to depend upon the world’s intellectual elite to get His message out or His work done. He is perfectly willing and able to work through common folk. (This same lesson is taught in Matthew 11:25 and 1 Corinthians 1:18-25.) 

#4: In Luke 22:17-19, Jesus gives thanks for the symbolic elements He uses in the Lord’s Supper. The bread symbolizes His body and the cup symbolizes His blood. This teaches us that we should give thanks for Christ’s death. After all, it is because of that death that any of us have the opportunity to believe in Christ as Savior and be granted forgiveness of all sin and eternal life.    

Of course, I’m not saying that Jesus never gave thanks for anything outside these four categories. The Bible in no way gives us a complete record of His earthly life and ministry. But for those of us who believe that all the words of the Bible are divinely inspired (2 Timothy 3:16), we can find great meaning in those facts the Bible actually includes. We figure, if they made the cut, God had a good reason for putting them in there.

So, this Thanksgiving, take the time to thank the Lord for these four things. I can tell you from first-hand experience since Sunday that you will find this a helpful spiritual experience. And that, I know, will allow you to have a better Thanksgiving all the way around.

November 25, 2009 Posted by russellmckinney | Bible Study, Christ's Death, God's Provision, God's Work, Thankfulness, Thanksgiving, The Bible, prayer | , , , , | Leave a Comment

Play Your Piccolo

Acts 6:1-7 gives the account of an election that was held by the early church. The apostles instructed the church members to choose seven men. These seven had to be much more than “casual Christians.” They had to be of a good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit, and full of wisdom. They would be given the assignment of overseeing the daily distribution of food to the church’s widows.

Many consider this to be the first election of deacons. This interpretation is debated, but I, more or less, have always gone along with it. What’s sad is that in the debate over the interpretation, and in the subsequent debate over the qualifications for deaconship, a major point is missed altogether. That point is: The apostles said, “It is not right that we should leave the word of God and serve tables.”        

Listen, the Bible is a very complex book and it takes a ton of study to teach it correctly (2 Timothy 2:15). Such study requires time, and lots of it. It also requires much prayer and focus. All of that is hard to achieve when a man is expected fill his day with visiting the sick, evangelizing the lost, counseling the troubled, attending meetings, etc. Is it any wonder, then, that the New Testament so plainly teaches that each and every Christian is to help out with the work of the church?

Passages such as Romans 12:1-13, 1 Corinthians 12:1-31, Ephesians 4:11-16, and 1 Corinthians 14:26 show us that God doesn’t expect all the work to be done by a precious few “spiritual elites.” He gifts every Christian with at least one spiritual gift and says, “Go and try to wear it out through use.” A spiritual gift is a skill or talent that the Christian did not have before the moment of salvation. The Holy Spirit imparted the gift to the Christian the moment the Spirit came to indwell the Christian. Many Christians receive more than one spiritual gift, but each Christian receives at least one.

Here again, though, the church has made the mistake of getting all bogged down in how to interpret the spiritual gift passages. Does God still impart all of the different kinds of gifts or were the so-called “sign” gifts only for the days of the early church? I’ve got an opinion on that question of interpretation, as do others. But in all of the debating and arguing we seem to have completely overlooked the idea that every Christian is supposed to do his or her part in the work of the church.

Ephesians 4:11-12 says that Jesus gave some to be apostles, some to be pastors, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers. And why did He give these people? He did it “for the equipping of the saints.” And why do the saints (Christians) need to be equipped. It is “for the work of the ministry.”

I couldn’t even begin to estimate how many times I, as a pastor, have had to abandon my Bible study and sermon preparation to go do something that some other member of the church could have done. You see, that other church member couldn’t prepare a sermon and preach, but he or she could have done the other job. Such situations don’t just hurt me as a preacher who tries to do a good job in the pulpit; they hurt the entire church.

In 1 Corinthians chapter 12, the apostle Paul compares the functioning of the church to the functioning of the human body. He says that if a foot doesn’t do its job because it wants to be a hand, that hurts the whole body. If an ear doesn’t do its job because it wants to be an eye, that hurts the whole body. If the whole body is one big eye, the work of hearing doesn’t get done. If it is one big ear, the work of smelling doesn’t get done. What a marvelous illustration!

Sir Michael Costa, that noted composer and conductor of another day, was once conducting a rehearsal with a large number of performers and singers. The mighty chorus was singing out in perfect unison, the organ was thundering, the drums were rolling, the horns were blasting, and the cymbals were clashing. In the midst of that din of noise, one piccolo player began to feel very small and insignificant. He thought to himself, “In all this sound it doesn’t really matter whether I play or not. Nobody will notice if I just stop.” And so he stopped. Immediately, however, the great conductor brought the entire undertaking to a screeching halt, threw up his hands, and cried out, “Where is the piccolo?”

That story makes me think of God. I can just picture Him leaning over heaven’s balcony, listening to the volume of noise that rises up as the church goes about its work. But, unlike Michael Costa, God doesn’t just miss the sound of one player who isn’t using his gift to carry out his assignment. No, God misses thousands, even millions, of spiritually-gifted people who simply aren’t doing the jobs they are supposed to be doing. 

So tell me, Christian, how is your piccolo playing these days? Are you using your spiritual gift (gifts) in service to Christ? Are you carrying your weight with the work of the church? Or does the Lord only hear silence coming from your chair? Speaking as a hard-working part of the orchestra, let me just say that we need your piccolo. If you won’t play it, somebody like me will have to pick up the slack. And, frankly, I’ve got plenty of my own work to do.  

        

July 2, 2009 Posted by russellmckinney | Bible Study, Doing Good, God's Work, Work, preaching, spiritual gifts | , , , , , , | Leave a Comment

A Boll Weevil Experience

In his book, It Is Toward Evening, Vance Havner tells the story of a group of cotton farmers in the deep South. Year after year these men grew cotton. They put their profits back into it and set all of their fields in it. Then tragedy struck in the form of the devastating boll weevil. All of the cotton was destroyed and it looked as if the farmers were headed for the poorhouse.

Being farmers, though, the men persevered. In the wake of their disaster with cotton, they shifted gears and planted peanuts. Amazingly, they ended up making more money with the peanuts than they ever had with the cotton. When the farmers realized that what had seemed to be a disaster had actually turned out to be a boon, they erected a large monument to the very thing they thought had ruined them: the boll weevil.

Havner concludes the story by saying:

“Sometimes we settle into a humdrum routine as monotonous as growing cotton year after year. Then God sends the boll weevil; He jolts us out of our groove, and we must find new ways to live. Financial reverses, great bereavement, physical infirmity, loss of position – how many have been driven by trouble to be better husbandman and to bring forth finer fruit from their souls! The best thing that ever happened to some of us was the coming of our boll weevil.”

When God either causes or allows you to go through a boll weevil experience, you might think it is the ruin of you. You might say, “I will never come back from this. This is more than I can overcome. These wounds are too deep to ever heal.” But that is a wrong assessment of your situation. If you will turn things over to God and allow Him to help you, you won’t just get past the experience; you will come out the other end of it a better person who will, as Vance Havner said, “bring forth finer fruit.”

The book of Genesis gives us the record of Joseph’s boll weevil experience. He was sold into slavery by his brothers (Genesis 37:12-36). He was taken from his homeland of Canaan and transported south to Egypt where he became the servant of Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh’s guard (Genesis 39:1-6). He was falsely accused of rape by Potiphar’s wife (Genesis 39:7-18). He was thrown into Pharaoh’s prison where he remained for two years (Genesis 39:20-41:1). Talk about devastating times!

But God took that whole experience and used it to bring incredible fruit from Joseph. After interpretting two dreams for Pharaoh, Joseph was made second in command of all Egypt (Genesis 41:1-46). Because of Joseph’s foresight and administrative skill, Egypt prospered through a seven-year famine (Genesis 41:48-57). Ultimately, because of his position in Egypt, he was able to reunite with his family and bring them from famine-ravaged Canaan to Egypt, where they thrived (Genesis 42:1-47:27).

I can just hear Joseph saying when his brothers sold him into slavery, “Lord, don’t let this happen to me.” I can just hear him asking when Potiphar’s wife told her lie, “Lord, are you going to let her get away with this?” I can just hear him praying as he languished in Pharoah’s prison for those two years, “Lord, it seems as if my life is over.” But then I can also hear him, as an old man, looking back over his life and admitting, “When I was going through that experience, I thought it was the end of me. But now I see that God used it to make me better than I was.”

Perhaps you are in a boll weevil experience right now. Something has happened that has just devastated you. If that’s the case, don’t give up hope. Times may seem hard now, but God isn’t finished working the process. He’s been clearing the fields of your old crop of service so that He can make room for your new and more fruitful crop. Don’t begrudge whatever it takes for Him to do away with your cotton because that cotton has to go to make room for your peanuts.

Is a boll weevil experience pleasant? Certainly not. Is it something you want to volunteer for? Not if you have any sense. But is it something that God can use to make you a better servant? Most definitely. He won’t expect you to follow those farmers’ example and erect a monument to your experience, but He will expect you to see the value in the experience. And there will be value in it. The fact is, you will never produce a certain quality and quanitity of fruit in your life until your boll weevil wipes you out and you are forced to rethink the way you live.

May 5, 2009 Posted by russellmckinney | Adversity, God's Work, Problems, perseverance | , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment

Get To Work

Throughout the Bible, we find verses that can be broken down into two parts: your part and God’s part. Here are a few examples:

-Psalm 37:4: “Delight yourself also in the Lord, (your part) and He shall give you the desires of your heart. (His part)

-Proverbs 3:6: “In all your ways acknowledge Him (your part), and He shall direct your paths.” (His part)

-Matthew 6:4: “But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; (your part) and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.” (His part)

-Matthew 6:33: “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, (your part) and all these things shall be added to you.” (His part)

-Matthew 11:28: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, (your part) and I will give you rest.” (His part)

-Mark 1:17: “Follow Me, (your part) and I will make you become fishers of men.” (His part)

-Revelation 3:20: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, (your part) I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” (His part)

What you need to understand is that God won’t do your part and you can’t do His part. This isn’t God imposing His will on you any more than it is you imposing your will upon Him. It is a pair working in tandem.

Earlier I cited Christ’s words from Matthew 11:28: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Now let me mention what He says in the very next verse: “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” (Matthew 11:29). For years I missed the meaning of these words simply because I didn’t know what a “yoke” is.

Webster’s defines “yoke” as: “a wooden bar or frame by which two draft animals (as oxen) are joined at the heads or necks for working together.” To picture a yoke in your mind, envision a wooden board that is laid over the necks of two animals that are standing side by side. The board has a slight arc in each place where the necks rest. Underneath each side of the board hangs a u-shaped harnessing device that buckles the board under each animal’s neck.

It would be blasphemous for me to describe Jesus as an ox. It would also be blasphemous for me to place myself right alongside Him in anything. But it’s a different story when He does these things. And that is exactly what He does in this verse. He says to me, “I have taken my place here on one side of the yoke. The board rests upon my shoulders. The harness is tightened underneath my neck. I’m ready to work. Now I want you to take your place alongside me in the yoke. Let the other side of the board rest upon your shoulders and let the other harnessing device hang tight under your neck.” Get the picture?

And, in Christ’s illustration, who is the farmer who owns the yoke and is ready to work the team of animals? He is God the Father. Remember that Jesus said, “I must work the works of Him who sent Me” (John 9:4). You see, Jesus wants me to work with Him to get the work of God the Father done. Since Jesus is all-powerful, He could do the work by Himself. But He desires that I work with Him.

Now think about that. For Jesus to want to work right alongside me day after day, night after night, He must enjoy my company. He must enjoy having a relationship with me and spending time with me. You see, it’s an honor for Jesus to ask a person to work beside Him! It means that He has saved a place for that person inside the yoke. There He is, shoulders stooped, with the yoke resting upon Him. He turns His head inside the harness, looks at the person, gives a little grin, and says, “Get in here, we’ve got work to do.” 

You say, “But I’m not sure I like the sounds of that. I’m kind of lazy. I’m afraid that the work Jesus has in mind for me would wear me out.” Don’t worry. That’s not how it plays out. Notice that Jesus ends the verse with the words, “and you will find rest for your souls.” Then, He follows that up by saying, “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

I realize this doesn’t make sense. A yoke shouldn’t be easy, and the burden of being in one shouldn’t be light. Keep in mind, though, that we are talking about Jesus. He can make possible that which seems impossible. Just as He never tires of doing God the Father’s work, you won’t tire of it when you work with Him. To the contrary, you will find yourself rested.

Oh, and by the way, you don’t have to be super qualified before you can get in the yoke with Jesus. I’ve heard that farmers will put an inexperienced animal in yoke with an experienced one. They do this so the experienced animal can teach the inexperienced one how to do the work. By mimicking what the experienced animal does inside the yoke, the inexperienced one learns. This is what Jesus meant when He said, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me.” He’s saying, “You don’t know how to do God the Father’s work, but I do. All you have to do is follow my lead and do as I do. In that way you will learn.” 

Tell me, how much of God the Father’s work are you getting done these days? If it isn’t much, you aren’t living the life Jesus wants you to live. Even if you are getting some of the work done, but it is tiring you out, something is wrong there too. The answer to both problems is simple: Get in yoke with Jesus. That will result in not only God the Father’s work getting done in your life, but also in you enjoying a rest for your soul. Each of these things is good. So what are you waiting for? Take your place alongside Jesus in God the Father’s yoke and get to work.

April 24, 2009 Posted by russellmckinney | Commitment, Discipleship, God's Work | , , | Leave a Comment