Scars

I played football for about ten years in my younger days...and I have the scars to prove it!

I also have a scar on my left knee from an accident I had when taking out the trash. 

I have several scars on my face (go figure), from flag football in college and getting hit by the door of an industrial dishwasher during a summer job in high school.

If I were bald, you could even see a scar on the top of my head from the time I hit myself with the sharp side of an axe when I was a kid.

Basically, you can tell my life's story from tracking my scars, because they all say something about me.

Something that is unique to me.

Something that identifies me as me.

Maybe that is why Jesus used His scars to identify Himself to His disciples after His resurrection.

When they wondered who He was, He showed them His scars.

He said, "I am who I am, and I have the scars to prove it!"

On the evening of that first Easter day, the disciples were huddled together in a locked room, hiding from the Jewish religious leaders and the Roman guards and fearing for their lives.

Suddenly Jesus appeared to them out of nowhere...

"They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost.  He said to them...'Look at my hands and my feet.  It is I myself!'...When He had said this, He showed them His hands and feet..."  (Luke 24:37-40, excerpts, NIV)

How did Jesus finally prove to them who He was?  He showed them His hands and feet.  In other words, He showed them His scars.

How did He finally prove to "doubting Thomas" who He was?  He showed him His scars.

There, in the palm of His hands, they saw scars from the nails that had held Him on the cross.

There, on His feet, they saw scars from the nails that had caused Him so much pain.

The scars of a sinner, even though He had never sinned.

So, why was He scarred?

He was scarred because His scars were really their scars...and our scars.

When you look at the palms of your hands, are there nail scars there?  There should be.

When you take off your Easter shoes and socks, will you see nail scars on your feet?  You should.

But you don't see them because Jesus is scarred with your scars instead of you.

What if Jesus received a new scar every time you sinned?

What if He felt the same pain, all over again, in His hands and His feet every time you sinned?

If that were the case, when you get to heaven, would you recognize Him because you recognize YOUR scars on Him?

Would you recognize Him because you recognize the pain which YOUR sins caused Him?

The good news is that He has forgiven you if you have accepted Him as your Savior.  Through His love for you, He has forgotten your transgressions.

So, there are no more scars because of you.  No more pain because you fall short.

When you do see His scars some day, they won't condemn you...they will comfort you.

The One whose hands holds those scars will hold you like He held the disciples, and give you what He gave them...joy and amazement.

20/20

I wish I could see better.

Over the years, things have gone from 20/20…to slightly out of focus…to more noticeably out of focus…to blurry…to “I have no idea what it says!”

I started with over-the-counter reading glasses which had a magnification of 100.  Then I upped it to a magnification of 150…and up…and up.

Right now, I’m at magnification 250…and still going.

At one time, I wore glasses only when reading small print.  Then, only when reading all print.

Now, I find myself squinting at other times too, which sends me scurrying for my glasses again…like when I watch TV…or when I sit down to eat.

There is one thing I can see plainly, though…the day is fast approaching when I will need a “real” pair of glasses from a “real” eye doctor.

Which is a real shame, because there is nothing I like about wearing glasses.

I don’t like shopping for them.

I don’t like paying for them.

I don’t like trying to keep them clean.

I don’t like trying to find them when I need them.

I don’t like the way they fit on my crooked head.

I don’t like the way they look on my crooked head.

I don’t like carrying them around wherever I go.

I don’t like it when they break.

And do not talk to me about contacts…I try to avoid sticking things in my eyes, like my fingers, or a little round piece of whatever contacts are made out of.  To me, it seems like putting in contacts would be about the same as putting rocks in my eyes!

Laser surgery?  There’s another whole list of things I don’t like about that idea, so don’t get me started.

I get frustrated because I just can’t see things anymore without glasses.

My eyes can’t do the job on their own.

Thankfully, there are still some things that I don’t need glasses to “see” at all.

Because I don’t see them with my eyes…I see them with my heart.

I don’t need glasses to see a beautiful day.  I can feel it.

I don’t need glasses to see the seasons change from winter to spring.  I can smell it.

I don’t need glasses to see a concert that uplifts my soul.  I can hear it.

I don’t need glasses to see a delicious dessert.  I can taste it.

I don’t need glasses to see my love for my children.  I can express it.

And I don’t need glasses to see how much God loves me.  I know it.

The problem is, we are not very good about seeing with our hearts.  We have learned to see with our eyes only.

We can only believe what we see with “our own two eyes.”

And as a result, we miss so much.

That was the problem Jesus’ disciples had when they saw, with their own two eyes, what happened to Jesus on the cross.

They saw, with their own two eyes, the end of all their hopes and dreams about Jesus being the Messiah, who would establish an eternal kingdom during their lifetimes.

They saw, with their own two eyes, the power of the religious leaders, political leaders, and military soldiers overcome the power of their belief in Jesus.

They saw, with their own two eyes, a man who was bleeding, suffering, and dying.

And they did not know how to handle it.

If only they could have seen with their hearts instead of their eyes that day.

Then they would have seen the Son of God who was not defeated on the cross, but who was victorious there.

They would have seen the sacred Lamb of God who shed His blood on their behalf and accepted their sins so He could also forgive them and offer them eternal salvation.

They would have seen the fulfillment of every Old Testament prophecy about the coming Messiah and the culmination of everything Jesus had come to earth to do…all completed perfectly according to God’s plan.

They would have seen an empty tomb on the horizon.

And they would have seen hope for the world.

As it was, it took them from Good Friday until Easter Sunday before they could see the cross with their hearts instead of their eyes…

…it would take His resurrection.

Here is how two of Jesus’ followers were changed when they realized with their hearts that their eyes had deceived them…

…they were walking along a road from Jerusalem to Emmaus after the crucifixion when a man came up to them and started a conversation about what had happened.

Although they did not recognize Him at the time, the stranger was actually Jesus…

“When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them.  Then their EYES were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.

They asked each other, ‘Were not our HEARTS burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?’

They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem.  There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together and saying, ‘It is true!  The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.’

Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was RECOGNIZED by them when he broke the bread.”  (Luke 24:30-35, NIV)

When you look at Jesus, what do you see?

Is He just a character in the Bible to you?

Is He a crutch that weak people lean on to prop them up in the world today?

Is He a convenient charm that gives people more confidence?

Or, is He the First and the Last, the Alpha and the Omega, the Prince of Peace, the Bread of Life, the Living Water, and the Savior of your soul?

It all depends on how you see Him…

…whether you see Him with your eyes only

…or with your heart.

One may require glasses.

The other requires your life.

 

Curious Commercials

My local Time Warner station has made some curious decisions regarding the kinds of commercials they have allowed to run during the History Channel's broadcast of The Bible.

Of course, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised when, even for a bibilically-based show like this, the Almight Dollar takes precedence over the Almighty God.

For example, there is the sixty-second commercial from a local gun shop touting all the life-saving reasons everyone in the country should own an assault rifle.  I'm not sure how Jesus feels about the pros and cons of owning such a gun, but I don't think The Bible telecast is the place or time for that discussion.

Then there are the every-commercial-break, ad nauseam spots for the other History channel top show, The Vikings.  I suppose the braintrust at the History Channel figures that if you like The Bible because of its historical context, then you will also like The Vikings.

Of course, I would guess that most people tuning in to watch The Bible are not doing so because it is history.  Besides, I'm not sure how much actual history is being reflected in The Vikings anyway, but my guess is, not much.

As a matter of fact, my guess is that most Christian viewers would not consider the content of The Vikings appropriate for them to watch, and certainly not a family-friendly show they would sit and watch with the kids.

But my biggest surprise is the commercial which has aired every single week on my local broadcast of The Bible from an area exotic dance establishment.  It actually shows scantily-clad women dancing and discussing why gentlemen should frequent their place of business.

Now, I suppose in the spirit of Christian freedom, believers may be interested in purchasing an assault weapon, and they may decide that they like to watch The Vikings.  But there are no circumstances under which a Christian should darken the door of an exotic dance bar.

Despite what some people may claim, no one goes into that kind of place because they like the food.   They go there for one reason and one reason only, and it has nothing to do with the food.  However, it has everything to do with lust.

And lust is sin.

And sin is wrong in the eyes of the Lord.

And the people who pay for this particular commercial know this.  They just don't care.  As a matter of fact, by running their commercial during The Bible, they are thumbing their noses at Christians and the God we serve.

They are laughing at us.

Mocking us.

It is not unlike what unbelievers did at the cross of Christ when He was crucified.

They thumbed their noses at Him.  They laughed at Him.  They mocked Him.

Some things never change.

Until they do.

They did when Jesus came off the cross and out of the tomb three days later.

They will when He comes off His throne in heaven and returns again, as the Scriptures say He will.

We'll see who has the last laugh then.

It's just a matter of time.

When God Weeps

Today in Washington, DC, the Supreme Court will hear people argue that our nation should allow same-sex marriage. 

Today in North Dakota, people are protesting, asking their state government to curtail limits on abortion.

Today in Christianity, we are only a few days away from Good Friday.

The paradox of that is striking to me.

In the midst of our most sacred week of Christian observances, commencing with Palm Sunday and concluding on Easter Sunday, we seem intent on making God weep as a nation.

As Jesus approached Jerusalem with His disciples, He stopped and wept.  He was saddened that His own people did not recognize Him as Messiah, and did not realize what a momentous loss this would be for them.

Today in heaven, God weeps again because so many people in this country do not realize the loss we suffer by ignoring His Word...

...which specifically says that He placed a man and a woman in the Garden of Eden.  He did so for a reason, because He ordains marriage to be between two people of the opposite sex.

...which proclaims that He "knits together" in mothers' wombs every baby, because He loves the unborn as much as He loves those who are born.

Today God weeps again because, just like the Jews of Jerusalem back then, many people in our country prefer to shape Him into their image of what they would like Him to be, rather than follow obediently the image of Himself He has already given us.

Their answer was to hang Jesus on a cross.

Interestingly, that is our answer also.  

My publisher, Westbow Press, called today to tell me that my book, "Where's God?  Finding Him in the Small Stuff" went "live."  I think that is publisher-speak for "It went to the printer."

Next step is the "author's copy," which is supposed to be in my hands in about two weeks.

Once I sign-off on that, the book will be available on the Westbow Press on-line bookstore, through Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Of course, I will probably have a few copies in my car at all times too.  So, if you see me on the street and want a copy, just flag me down!

How many copies will be sold?  I wonder.

I hope it will be enough so that I don't die of embarrassment.

About 12 copies should do it!