Just a Tip

The following news article shows that even people who should know better allows money to become an idol. 

Another week, another person making headlines for scribbling on a restaurant receipt. This time, it’s a customer who seems to think that claiming he’s a pastor absolves him of having to leave a tip.

The photo, which began tearing up the Atheism page on Reddit not long after it was posted a few hours ago, shows a receipt for $34.93 with an automatic gratuity of 18% ($6.29) included.

But the diner has scratched out that tip, writing instead that “I Give God 10% Why do you Get 18″ and adding the word “pastor” above his signature. And instead of leaving a tip that was merely less than the 18%, just wrote a big “0.”

In the comments on the post, the person who submitted the image explains that this was just a portion of the total bill for a table of 20, which means the 18% tip is automatically put on the bill.

“Parties up to eight at my work may tip whatever they’d like,” explains the server, “but larger parties receive an automatic gratuity. It’s in the computer, it’s not something I do.” The auto-gratuity policy is apparently also listed on the menu.

In total, the group ran up more than $200 worth of food before tax and tip, says the server. As for whether or not the zero-dollar tip reflect the quality of service, the waiter writes, “They had no problem with my service, and told me I was great. They just didn’t want to pay when the time came.”

We understand why someone might be upset about an automatic gratuity. But we can’t recall any religious texts that claim the best way to combat an unpleasant situation is to leave a passive-aggressive note while simultaneously penalizing someone who did not create the problem.

So why do I post this with a lesson on idolatry?  Think about it. 

Family Values

Can a good thing be an idol?  I mean a really good thing, say, family values.  Anything that comes before God is an idol and that would include things that we should stand up and fight for such as family values.
Leah and lived in the shadow of her beautiful younger sister all her life and suddenly she finds herself as the wife of a man who is in love with her younger sister.  She then set out to fill a void in her heart by having her husband love her.  She had four sons in a row and for each of the first three she thought that by having a son her husband would love her.
Her first son was Reuben, so named because it means "surely my husband will love me now".
Her second son was named Simeon because it means that she was not loved.
Her next son was named Levi so named because she said that surely he will become attached to me.
Her forth son was Judah and this time there was no mention of her husband or her family but only her God.  His named meant, "Yahweh is praised."  Finally Leah had a break through and saw that her true value was not found in her husband or her children but in her God.  
Leah felt that she was the woman that no one loved but in the end her son Judah was the ancestor of the greater Judah, Jesus Christ, who was the man that nobody wanted.  He became the man that nobody wanted for you and for me.  He came to redeem us and we need to stop trying to redeem ourselves and come to him for our redemption.  The only way we can get rid of an old affection is to have a new and greater one.  We should not get rid of the good but learn to love the greater, our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Evangelical Idols

What are the new idols of the evangelicals today?  Without going into all the different idols today I would like you to listen to John Piper.  He doesn't call this an idol but you can see the idolatry here.  The question is what is the idol?  Is it being prosperous or is it ourselves?  Listen to John Piper:

Thank you Mr. Piper.

God Loves You

Now that may seem obvious to people today.  Isn't it God's job to love us?  Why shouldn't He love us, after all we are lovable. 
It may come as a surprise to us to learn that the first time that we read that God loves us in the Bible is in the fourth chapter of the fifth book.  Moses says in Deuteronomy 4:37, "Because he loved your ancestors and chose their descendants after them, he brought you out of Egypt by his Presence and his great strength."  That was the first time in the Bible that we read that God loved people. 
Why did God love them?  Was it because they were lovable?  Was it because of what they could do for God?  Again Moses says, "The Lord did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because the Lord loved you and kept the oath he swore to your ancestors that he brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the land of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt." Deuteronomy 7:7,8
So there you have it, God loves you because He loves you and for no other reason. 

Love, Trust and Obey

Pastor Tim Keller says in his book Counterfeit Gods "The Bible uses three basic metaphors to describe how people relate to the idols of their hearts.  They love idols, trust idols, and obey idols."
So here is one test for idols of our hearts:  What do you love?  What do you trust?  What do you obey?
Do we love money, power, success, pleasure, position?  What ever you love more than God is an idol in your heart.  How do you know if you love something more than you love God?  What demands our time and our energy?  What do you look to for your significance?
What have you put your trust in?  Where do you get your security?  Would you be destroyed if the things that you trust were shown to be untrustworthy?
Finally, are you prepared to obey God above all else?
Revelation 12:11 says, "They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death."  When you love God more than even you own life then you know that you have torn down the idols of our hearts.
So what is an idol?  To quote Tim Keller again, "It is anything more important to you than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more than God, anything you seek to give you what only God can give."

Cultural Shift

It has been understood that culture shifts over a long period of time but social anthropolists have shown us that there is often a massive shift in culture over a relatively short period of time, maybe 15 to 25 years.  We are in that time in North America.  The church, the government, marriage, abortion, and more are being attacked at the old standards are being torn down.
What should be our approach as a church to this cultural change?  We can learn from Moses as he instructs the people.  They were about to go into a land that did not hold to the foundations that Israel did and there would be a temptation to blend in with the culture.  Moses tells the people that they must not do that.  They have to remain separate from that culture.  To do that the younger generation had to be taught the things of God.
Today as we see a massive cultural shift we must remember that as a church we are not called to reform the culture but to take a stand against it.  We are to instruct our children and grandchildren so that they know how to live in a world that is tearing the foundations apart.  We must teach our children well.  We must instruct them in the doctrines of the faith.  We must prepare our children so that they will know how to live in a post-christian world.

The Missionary Impact of Obedience

I borrowed the title from Ajith Fernando's commentary on Deuteronomy.  When a people, whether it is the nation of Israel in Moses' day or the church today, are obedient to God's Word it has an impact on the world.
First, we see that the people are wise and understanding.  When we cling to the Word then we have a Biblical worldview.  Many churches and many Christians do not know their Bibles and therefore they cannot cling to the Word.  Their world view then comes from the culture around them and instead of being counter culture they are part of the ever shifting mainstream culture.  Remember that though the world sees this they do not necessarily recognize it. 
Second, remember that God is with us.  What makes us different from the world?  The main difference is that we have God with us and we know that He is with us.  Why we do what we do is because we know that God is with us. 
Third, we display righteousness and we show the world that righteousness rules in our lives.  When we speak out against social evils it is not because we are filled with hatred but because we want to see righteousness done in our land. 
Does the world see our missionary impact or do they see us as people who are against current culture?  We are against the trends of our culture as it shifts further and further to the left but it should be because we are clinging to God's Word, having a Biblical worldview, knowing that God has not abandoned His people and we desire righteous to rule.

Hour of Decision

The Hour of Decision is a weekly broadcast by Billy and Franklin Graham.  It has been on the radio since 1950 and is heard on over 1200 radio stations.  When Billy Graham began his ministry he felt compelled to call the people to make a decision.

In Deuteronomy Moses is calling the people to make a decision.  He tells the people over and over again that they must renew their covenant; they must cling to the Word of God; they must make a decision to remain faithful to the statutes and laws that Moses was giving them in his final address.

Today we are called to make a similar decision.  Joshua said in his final address that the people had to choose whom they would serve but he had already made that choice. 

As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

Cling to God

Over and over again in the book of Deuteronomy Moses tells the Israelites that they must cling to their God.   He reminded the people that were alive and ready to go into the land that they were there because they clung to their God and obeyed.  Another way of saying it would be that they had to hold fast.
When I was younger I used to spend a lot of time in the summer at my friend's cottage at the lake.  He was a good swimmer and I was not.  I had grown up on a farm in Saskatchewan and had never learned to swim.  In his attempt to teach me to swim he told me to let go of the back of the boat and then I would have to swim.  I believed him so I let go and down I went.  When I came up I hollered at him to throw me a life jacket.  He threw me one and it landed right around my neck.  I understood what it meant to cling to something.  I held tight to that life jacket until I was safe in the boat.
That is how we are to cling to our God.  We are to hold on to Him, His Word and not let go until we are safely home.  All too often we are too casual about our relationship with God.  If we held unto Him as I held unto that life jacket we would not find ourselves needing His discipline.  Learn to cling to God.

Just a Horse Trader

There is an old mathematical problem that goes like this:

A rich landowner had 35 valuable horses and when he died he left the following instructions regarding the dividing up of his horses among his three sons.  The oldest was to get one half of the horses, the second was to get one third and the youngest was to get one ninth.  The three brothers had a problem as one half of the horses did not come out to a whole number, neither did one third or one ninth.  How could they divide the horses?

Since they did not see a solution to their problem they went to an old friend of the family for help.  He said that he would help them and when they asked what they need to pay him for his help he told them that he would be adequately repaid.

The next day he showed up with one of his prize horses which he added to the 35 to make 36 horses.  He then told the oldest to take his half which was 18 horse, the second son to take his third which was 12 horses and the youngest to take his ninth which was 4 horses.  The total of the horses that the brothers received was 34.  The friend went home with his horse and one more for his help.  The question is, can you explain what happened?

Unlike the above problem Moses tells us that we are not to add to or subtract from the commands that Moses was giving them.  People today want to add to the work of Christ.  Salvation they say is by grace and keeping the commandments but that is taking the work of Christ and saying it is not sufficient.  Salvation is by grace alone and we cannot and we must not add to that.  Nor must we subtract from the work of Christ.  We cannot say that we don't have to believe that Jesus is the only way to heaven.  That is subtracting.  Christ's work on Calvary is complete and sufficient, nothing else is needed.

Listen and do

I will not tell you the number of times my wife as asked me to do something and I did something only to find out that I hadn't listened totally and did the wrong thing.  You would think I would learn but I still make the same mistake over and over again.  I need to listen, listen carefully, and then do. 
The joke is told about an elderly couple who were getting forgetful.  One day the wife asked her husband if he wanted something to eat.  He told her he would like to have a bowl of ice cream.  She was gone for a long time and when she returned she had a plate of scrambled eggs.  He told her that she never listened to him, he wanted his eggs over easy.
Moses tells the people to listen to his words and then do what they are instructed to do.  Today we need to listen to God's Word.  The Scriptures tells us that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.  Moses told the people that if they wanted to live well in the land then they needed to listen to and obey the Words of the Lord.

Significance

Why was it that Moses was able to accept the Lord's "No" when he pleaded with the Lord to allow him to enter the land?  For all his life Moses had dreamed of this moment, the moment when the people went into the land that God had promised them.  In his dream he saw himself leading the people.  And now the time had come and he would not lead the people.  He had to step aside and let another lead them into the land.  This was bittersweet to the man.  Sweet because the people would possess the land, bitter because he would not be part of it.
Moses might have tasted the bittersweet but he was not bitter in his spirit.  Moses could accept the "No" of God because he did not get his significance from what he did but rather from his relationship with God.
Where do we get our significance?  Is it from our jobs, our possessions, our families, our talents?  It it is from our jobs then what is our significance if we lose that job?  It it is from our possessions then what happens to us when our possessions are gone?  If we base our significance on anything or anyone other than God Himself then there will come a point when we will lose our significance and bitterness will come.  But if our significance is in God then we know that we will never lose the one that brings us significance.  Whatever the world may throw at us cannot take away our significance.

What makes us different?

A friend of mine asked this question on facebook, "How do you tell the difference between today's Christian and the rest of the world? I know this sounds like the beginning of a joke, but sadly it's not."  How would you answer that question?  Some say it is our lifestyle and of course that is important.  Others say that we follow what Jesus said in John 13 that people will know us by our love for one another. 
Today it is difficult to tell believers from nonbelievers.  They speak the same, sometimes using the same crude language as nonbelievers but they forget that Paul warns us about our speech.  They are no different in what they eat or drink or wear or where they go.  Now these things do not make us a Christian but they should be evidences of what we believe.
What about our world view?  How do we make decisions regarding what we buy, where we go, what we think, etc.  Do we make those decisions the same way everyone else does or do we have a Biblical worldview?
What made the people of Israel different from the people around them in Moses' day?  The most important thing is that they were aware of the presence of God.  Are we aware of His presence?  We can love others but what really makes us different is our love for God.  When we get into discussions about abortion, gun control, premarital sex, raising children, education, finances, etc. do the people we talk about know that our view comes from our love for God and His word or are they just our opinions, no better or no worse than anyone's opinion.

Time to go

We had a pastor in the city where I once lived to pastored his church for over forty years.  He was the pastor of the church my parents went to when I was born and he was still pastoring when I became a father.  He was a good pastor and he loved his people but there came a time when he needed to step aside and let someone else pastor the church.
The church tried to graciously have him retire.  They hired an associate who was to take his place and they planned for the day when he would pass the baton to the new pastor.  Finally the day came.  The church planned a celebration for their retiring pastor but there was one problem.  He and his wife never came to the celebration but instead showed up next Sunday to take his place in the pulpit.  The result was that the associate had to move on and it was a few year later that finally the pastor did retire and another wonderful pastor took his place.
It is difficult sometimes to let go and let another take your place but you cannot stay forever.  Joshua had been Moses' assistant for many years and he was ready to step into the role of leadership.  He wasn't another Moses.  There would never be another Moses but he was the man to take the people to the next stage. 

Rest

In Exodus 33 the Lord gives Moses this promise:  "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest."  What was the rest that the Lord had promised to Moses?  In Psalm 95 the Psalmist says that the Lord in His anger at the people for their complaining said that they would never enter the rest.  It would seem that the rest was associated with the land of Canaan.  The writer of Hebrews also seems to indicate this in Hebrews 3 but then in the next chapter he indicates that this promise of rest still stands today.  There was something more than the promised land.
Moses never entered the land but he did receive the rest that the Lord promised to him.  The rest he received was the promise of God's presence.  We can experience that rest when we know that the promise of God's presence will be with us.  Remember the words of Jesus who said, "Go ...and surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
When we know that the Lord goes with us we can be assured of His rest.  When we do things in our own strength we find that we do not have that rest.  When God sends He goes along side and He is our rest.

Right Theology; Wrong Request

In Deuteronomy 3 we read about Moses pleading with God to allow him to enter the land.  Once again the Lord says no to Moses.  Moses' request was based upon a proper theology as he describes God's character, but the request was out of line.  Moses knew that he would not be allowed to go into the land because of his sin in striking the rock when he was told by God to speak to it.
Moses at this point accepts God's answer and knows that he must stop asking.  If we keep on asking when we know the answer is not one that we want then we forfeit the joy and freedom that should be ours.  Moses based his request on the glory and character of God but there still was an element of self in his prayer.  Too often today we don't base our requests on the glory and character of God but on our own selfishness.  We want comfort more than God's glory. 
I just finished two days of prayer and fasting and during that time I asked myself the question, "What is the purpose of doing this?"  Now before you brand me as a new age pagan, let me explain. 
The first answer, and it should be a sufficient answer, is that it is commanded of us in God's Word.  So if there was no other reason than that, I would do it but there is more.  God is more than able to carry out His will and purposes in the world without our prayers and our fasts, but just as God was gracious to Moses in allowing him to see the land so God is gracious to us in allowing us to bring our prayers and fasts to Him.  Our prayers, our fasts should never be to manipulate God or even to think that we can change God's mind by doing this.   If we were capable of changing God's mind in any way and by any means then we have put ourselves in the place of God.  God has said that He will not share His glory with anyone.

John Piper and Jason Meyer

When one has been the leader for a long time it is often difficult to move over and let another lead.  This was the problem for Moses.  He had led the people for 40 years and now was the time to pass the leadership to Joshua.  This was a difficult time for Moses but he knew that God had chosen his successor. 
John Piper had been preaching pastor at Bethlehem Baptist church in Minneapolis but at the end 2012 he passed the role on to his successor.  Here is an interview with John Piper and Jason Meyer.  It is almost half an hour in length but it is worth watching.

Last Words

If you had one thing to say before you die what would you say?  What would be your last words?  Francis Chan tells about Stan Gerlach in his book Crazy Love.  Here is the story:

As a pastor, I'm often called upon when life"vanishes a mist." One of the most powerful examples I've seen of this was Stan Gerlach, a successful businessman who was known in the community. Stan was giving a eulogy at a memorial service when he decided to share the gospel. At the end of his message, Stan told the mourners, "You never know when God is going to take your life. At that moment, there's nothing you can do about it. Are you ready?" Then Stan sat down, fell over, and died. His wife and sons tried to resuscitate him, but there was nothing they could do-just as Stan had said a few minutes earlier.

I'll never forget receiving that phone call and heading over to the Gerlach house. Stan's wife, Suzy, was just arriving home. Se hugged me and cried. One of her sons, John, stepped out of the car weeping. He asked me, "Did you hear the story? Did you hear? I'm so proud of him. my dad died doing what he loved doing most. He was telling people about Jesus."

I was asked to share a word with everyone gathered. There were children, grandchildren, neighbors, and friends. I opened my Bible to Matthew 10:32-33 "Whoever acknowledge him before my Father in heaven."

I asked everyone to imagine what it must have felt like for Stan. One moment, he was at a memorial service saying to a crowd, "This is who confessing Jesus; a second later. Jesus was confessing him!

It happens that quickly. And it could happen to any of us. In the words of Stan Gerlach, Are you ready?"

What we see in Deuteronomy is Moses' last words.  This is what he wanted his people to remember.

Love and Justice

This morning we started our lessons in the book of Deuteronomy.  In chapter 10 we have that powerful passage of Scripture that asks the question, "What does the Lord your God require of you?"
In verses 17 - 19 he talks about the awesome and powerful God but then he makes a surprising statement about this God.  He is a God who loves justice and shows justice to the weak.  He then tells us that we are to also show this justice to the weak and vulnerable in our society.  Those include the unborn, the orphans, the widows, the poor, the powerless. 
Sometimes we stand in judgment of the poor and other times we want to ignore them.
One lady who takes in foster children told how difficult it is to not stand in judgment of the parents of these foster children.  They are reaching out in love to the helpless child but feel that the parents could have done more.  I don't know how to respond to that.  We live in a sin sick world and many times these people find themselves helpless to do anything to break out of the cycle of sin, addiction and poverty.  These foster parents do not want to stand in judgment but desire to give a place of refuge for the child.  We cannot change the world but we can change one person's life.  To fulfill what Moses, Micah (see Micah 6:8) and our Lord Jesus Christ says is required of us we should show justice and love to one helpless person at a time. 

THe Lord Your God

One of the phrases that Moses uses over and over again while he talks to the people is "the Lord your God."  He uses other phrases such as "shamer" which means "be careful" but the phrase "the Lord your God" he uses over 230 times.  If we are to be faithful we must remember that God is "the Lord our God."  We need to hear it from the pulpits, we need to hear it from our teachers, we need to remind our children but most of all we need to say it to ourselves.  He is "the Lord our God".

Why was this important to Moses?  He knew the hearts of the people.  He knew that when prosperity and safety would come that they would forget the Lord their God.  We too forget the Lord our God.  We want Him to be a safe and tame God but as Mrs. Beaver said to Lucy in C. S. Lewis classic, The Lion, the Which and the Wardrobe, that He is not safe, He is a lion but He is good.

Not the Gospel

Deuteronomy 10:12 - 22 is another of my favourite scriptures.  Moses asks the question, "What does the Lord your God require of you?"  He then gives 5 requirements:
1.  Fear God.
2.  Walk in His ways.
3.  Love Him.
4.  Serve Him
5.  Keep His commandments and statutes.
Now these are important but they are not the Gospel.  The Gospel is never what we do but what God has done.  We do these because God saved us.  We do this because we are recipients of His grace.  We don't do these because we are trying to earn favour with God.  There is nothing that we can do to earn His favour.

Grandpa Jasper

My Grandfather, Arthur Jasper, came to Canada in 1903 where he settled near Struan, Saskatchewan.  I do not remember much of my Grandparents as they passed away when I was only four years old.  However, I do remember that they were godly people who trusted the Lord's leading in their life.  My grandfather wrote a booklet called, "God's leading through life".  Like Moses he trusted that the Lord would lead him every step of the way.  I remember that his favourite hymn was "Saviour like a shepherd lead us."

As Moses came to the end of his life he could look back and say that the Lord has lead him all the way.  Once again I can hear him saying, "The Lord did it". 

God did it!

One of the latest cliches you hear around Christians today is "its a God thing".  Now that is a phrase that I cannot stand.  Of course it is a God thing but what does that really mean.  Moses doesn't use that phrase but rather he lets you know directly or indirectly that whatever happened God did it.  He didn't see God as a mischievous elf sneaking around doing things to delight His people but rather Moses saw God as sovereign and whither it was intended for good or not God was in control. 
Take for example his birth.  Satan tried to destroy Moses as a baby but not only was Moses saved from Pharaoh's schemes but he was raised in Pharaoh's court so that when he returned to free his people he knew how to behave in the court of the king. 

Unique Ministry

Moses had a very unique ministry.  He was called to be a deliverer, a law giver, a judge, a teacher, an intercessor and more.  One of the most unique ministries was that of intercessor.  Often we find Moses arguing with God regarding the people.  At one point God calls the people his (referring to Moses) and Moses responds by calling them His (referring to God).  Moses was prepared to stand in the gap for the people even though they complained, rebelled, and more.  The one who wrote the epilogue to Deuteronomy tells us that there has never been a prophet like Moses who the Lord talked to face to face.
What is it that you want to be known for when your life is over?  A great leader, a great teacher, a great politician?  Wouldn't it be wonderful if the one thing everyone said about you was that you were an intercessor.  That you were one who stood in the gap for others.  That was Moses.

What is that in your hand?

Moses had run out of excuses but he was still reluctant to obey.  His problem was that he didn't trust God to be able to use him.  Then God asked him the question, "What is that in your hand?"  Moses discovered that he didn't need any special gifts or training.  All he needed was what was in his hand and God would do the rest.
Too often we are concerned about things that we may need when God calls us.  Money, education, talent, etc.  However, God wants us to use what we have.  What we have has been given to us by Him.  God calls us and He wants us to trust Him to do the rest through us.  However, we must give Him what we have.
Are you reluctant to do something for God?  Are you waiting for something more so you can serve Him better?  What do you have?  Use it for His glory.

The Call

One of my favourite books is Os Guinness' book, The Call.  In it he talks about our primary call which is a call to a person, that is Jesus Christ, and our secondary call which is a call to service.  He reminds us that very few will ever have a call like Moses' or Paul's and therefore we should not sit around waiting for a burning bush or a light from heaven.  Kevin De Young says that we should just do something.  Moses' call was unique.  God really got his attention but instead of responding positively he quickly came up with excuses:

1. Not me, I am a nobody.

2. I don't know the One who is sending me.

3. Nobody will believe me.

4. I don't speak well.

God answered each of these excuses in a gracious and loving way.  Moses may have been a nobody but today he is known all over the world.  Today we know God's name because of Moses; "I am".  His books, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy are known and accepted by three major religions.  And finally when you read the book of Deuteronomy this is not the work of a man who did not speak well.  Who God calls He equips.  It is about Him and not about the one who is called.

ROTP

When I was in high school I decided that I wanted to go to university to become a teacher.  However, my family had no money.  The guidance councillor knew that so she suggested that I go into the ROTP program (Royal Officers Training Program).  I didn't want to go but I could see no way out so I filled out the application and soon I was on the train heading to Toronto to undergo the testing.  I failed.  Well, my eyes failed.  I was rejected because my vision was not adequate.  This is the one time I was glad that I had to wear glasses.  I came back to the school and filled out forms for university.  My prospects were limited because I did not have a second language.  Three universities did not require a language but two of them only for the engineering program.  Again, another program I didn't want to go into but...
There was one university that accepted me and also gave me a scholarship to study Mathematics.  I still had very little money but with summer jobs; friends I met in the university town, a brother who was a missionary, I was able to go to university for four years to get the degree I wanted.
Moses had no prospects either but "by chance" he was discovered floating in a basket by the river by a princess and she took him into her home and gave him the best education anyone could possibly get in those days.  While all male children were being thrown away Moses was rescued and prepared for a greater ministry than being the leader of Egypt.
Then came his post graduate education, caring for sheep on the back side of the desert.  Little did he know that this would be of great importance to him as he led the people from slavery to a nation.  God has a plan and it is always best.