E=MC2

I think we are all familiar with this famous equation. It appears pretty simple, but the ideas that resulted from this simple concept were the seeds of what became the incredible power in nuclear bombs and nuclear power.

In a similar way, Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 1 about the simple, and what the world considers “foolish” plan, of salvation through Jesus Christ, but that is the most powerful and amazing expression of God toward people.

Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 1:23-25, “So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended, and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense, But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.”

Dear Lord the magnitude of your simple plan, saving us for eternity by accepting what you did through Jesus Christ, dwarfs any discovery we, as people, can make. Help us appreciate the simplicity and the power of this for ourselves and share it with others. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

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One of the questions people have about the accuracy of the Bible is, how can we be sure there is no transmission error, meaning error in the message between the time the events occurred and when they were recorded in the writings we have today.

I came across an interesting way to answer that question in “Why Trust the Bible?” by Greg Gilbert, he uses the following example.

Can you recite the words to the nursery rhyme “Jack and Jill?” “Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch…..” Did you learn this by reading it? Most of us learned this by hearing it told to us by our parents, and we told it to our children, but we remember the words verbatim. Do you know when this was originally composed? 1791, over 200 years ago.

So we obviously have a clear example of people’s ability to maintain the original words of a story for many years without having to have the original text available for reference. Giving us more confidence in what 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.”

Dear Lord, thank you for giving us the wisdom in the Bible. Help us to find strength and confidence in its teaching. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

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Do you ever wonder why God causes some people to go from completely “anti-Christian” to incredibly devout productive Christian authors, pastors and evangelists?

The most obvious from bible times was Paul who God turned from persecuting Christians to being instrumental in the rapid growth of the early church.

Some others are CS Lewis, the author of Christian books including the Chronicles of Narnia, Mere Christianity, and many others. He writes of being an atheist until his 30’s then God used him to write some of the best non-fiction Christian books and Novels.

Another interesting person that made a dramatic conversion is an author named Lee Strobel, a Yale educated lawyer and journalist, who was an avowed atheist until his wife became a Christian. He began researching Christianity in order to disprove it to his wife, and found himself accepting Christianity. He has subsequently written many Christian books including, The Case for Christ, and The Case for a Creator, evangelical programs and speaks on Christianity and Evangelism around the world. His story was recently turned the movie The Case For Christ.

It is truly amazing what God can do with people. In Philippians 2:12,13 Paul writes, “..Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.” It is God working through these people and us that makes the difference.

Dear Lord your power is amazing. Help us never forget how, if it is your will, you make dramatic changes that we would never expect in people. Help us obey you and give us the desire and power to do your will, as well. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

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I am a pilot, and one of the things pilots learn in training, and practice routinely, is handling emergencies. For instance, what do you you do if the engine fails, what if there is a fire, what if the landing gear do not extend or retract, and so on. In training, we all learn that the first thing to do in an emergency is, “Fly the Airplane.” You might think, that no pilot has to be taught this because it is so obvious. What happens, however, is pilots can get so wrapped up in solving the problem that they forget the most important thing, flying the airplane. When they put too much attention on problem solving, and not enough on flying the plane they can create an even bigger problem while trying to solve what might be a simple problem.

Our Christian life can be somewhat similar. How so? The first thing we must remember is to love God above all else. When we love God, we strive to do his will, which results in us making good decisions in our lives, and prevents us from making a small issue a much bigger problem.

When asked “What is the greatest commandment?” Jesus says in Matthew 22:37, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.”

Dear Lord, you are the solution we need in our day to day activities, or in our emergencies. Help us remember the first and most important thing to love you. When we do you will help us through all our challenges. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

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A while ago, I had the opportunity to do some very basic rock climbing and learn a little about how it is done. One thing that was very evident to me was how important and reassuring it was to have a “belay” line. A belay line is used by rock climbers to prevent falling a long distance if they lose their grip or footing and fall. On a climbing wall the lines hang down from the top, and slack is taken up as the climber ascends. On a natural climb, the belay line is anchored and another stationary climber feeds out the line as the other climber ascends. If the climber slips, he/she can only fall as far as the last anchor point and the amount of slack the rope allows.

The simple climbing I did looked so easy from the ground. However, once 30 or 40 feet up, the knowledge that making a mistake would only result in a learning experience and maybe a scrape or two, rather than serious injury or death, made it a completely different experience.

In a similar way, this is what Paul is saying in Hebrews 13:5-6, he writes, “For God has said, “I will never, never fail you nor forsake you.” That is why we can say without doubt or fear, “The Lord is my helper, and I am not afraid of anything that mere man can do to me.”

If we can get the belief God will not fail us, built into our hearts and minds. We can proceed with confidence on the mission to which he calls us.

Dear Lord, Knowing that you will not fail them provides incredible power and strength to those who trust you. Help us all to have this faith and do your will even in the midst of our fears. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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