This is a very bold statement and, while seemingly simplistic, very profound: “GOD IS!” (I am capitalizing this because small-caps are not available in this blog and I want to reflect the emphasis shown in the Bible.) Moses asks God for His name to tell the Israelites and God says, “I AM who I AM” and then tells Moses to say to his people, “I AM has sent me to you.” (Exodus 3:14) The enormous weight of God’s self-existence and self-identity is found in this simple statement. The ramifications of such a statement are too many to account for but I hope you will feel some of the ripples of God’s declaration.

Humanity apart from God is on a dangerous and destructive path of self-identity. We see people self-identifying as to their culture, gender, sexuality, etc. Caucasian women have claimed to be black and attach themselves to the Black Lives Matter movement. This has caused anger and outrage; however, they should not be surprised. Women’s Marches are struggling as to whether to include people who have physically been changed from male to female or who claim to be a woman in a man’s body; but they should not be surprised. When humanity rejects its Creator by considering itself to be self-existent by its own evolutionary will, then they become gods unto themselves and self-identify as they like. When “GOD IS,” then mankind must acknowledge His transcendency and adhere to His definitions.

Christianity apart from God is also on a dangerous, destructive path. Wait … how can such a statement exist? Isn’t this an oxymoron? Seemingly so; but nonetheless true. When God is the self-existent, self-identifying One and Christians recognize Him as such, then He is also seen as the One who defines what the term “God” means. God then also gets to define all other meanings. Jesus makes several “I am” statements and only He can make them and define them because He is God. When the apostle John writes, “God is love” (1 John 4:8), and Christians decide to define love as they see fit, they may then end up defining God. It is a logical and theological fallacy just as it would be to say that since the sky is blue then all things blue must be the sky. God must define both sides of the equation: God and love. Tweaking or redefining either term leads us away from God and true love. When people insert their definition of love into the equation and then flip it around, they turn their image of love into God and end up serving a love-god idol.

This month Freedom Centre will be hearing messages on the “I am” statements of Jesus. We should be truly thankful that we have the Bible as an authoritative record of God’s revelation to man. While I will attempt to convey meaning to the “I am” statements, we must remind ourselves that only God can truly define them and that Jesus is saying that He is the only way to the Father. Remember: only GOD IS.

Journeying with you,

Pastor Merril

Well, it’s tax season. A season some people dread and others can’t wait for … all depending upon whether you expect to pay or to get a refund. But, as the saying goes, “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” (Benjamin Franklin, 1789) So, some people dread death just as they taxes, depending upon how they view the outcome of that audit. And that’s the clincher.

The writer of the letter to the Hebrews states: “And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” (Heb. 9:27-28) Christ has dealt with the sin issue through His crucifixion; now it comes to how people will be judged in light of it.

Those who are eagerly waiting for Him may or may not face death. Paul wrote that while people may die before the return of Christ, there will be those who are alive at His returning and will be caught up with the resurrected saints to meet Christ. (1 Thess. 4:15-17) So, we see that death is not certain for those who live in the very last days before Jesus comes back.

However, Jesus also said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.” (John 8:51) What was Jesus meaning here? This discourse begins in verse twelve with Jesus saying He is the “light of the world.” He then charges the Pharisees with not being able to follow Him past physical death. (v.21) They think that means they are going to heaven and Jesus not, but the opposite is true. So, Jesus is saying in verse 51 that those who believe Him and keep His word will have eternal life and not see the second death beyond the physical one. (Rev. 20:6, 14)

The certainty that remains from the Hebrews passage is judgement. We will all be judged before Christ. Firstly, we will be judged as to whether our names are in the Book of Life by having eternal life in Christ. Then our works will be judged: those who are alive in Christ to assess God’s rewards for them in eternal life; those who are dead to Christ to assess God’s wrath for them in the second death. (See Rev. 20:11-15; cf. 1 Cor. 3:9-15)

I trust that you are reading this having already made the choice for eternal life in Christ. If not, connect with me or someone else who has eternal life and repent and confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. Those who have done so have dealt with the problem of death and are simply eager to see Jesus.

Journeying with you all,

Pastor Merril

As I was praying about themes for this year, and even more specifically about what should follow up our month of fasting and prayer, I had a clear impression of a word: devotion. This is an interesting word that I normally hear in Christian circles related to a time of prayer and Scripture reading – commonly called doing or having your devotions.

However, the concept of being devout or devoted is much more than a ritual. The first Sunday in February is one in which many people in the United States have what some might consider a devout experience – the Super Bowl. People will paint themselves and stir themselves into frenzied expressions of devotion towards “their” team.

However, a truly devoted fan will not give up on their team when they are struggling to just make the playoffs. We can see that here in Edmonton. No matter how the Oilers are doing, there are fans out there that will not give up on them. There is a firm belief that their team can be the one to bring home the trophy – it’ll just take some time and effort.

Devotion can be defined as, “the fact or state of being ardently dedicated and loyal.” (merriam-webster.com) People can find many things to be devoted to: spouse, family, friend, a cause, God, church, etc. In Paul’s letter to Titus (3:8,14) he tells Titus to instruct Christians to be devoted to doing good works. Paul is saying that they should set things in place before themselves so that they are diligent to look after them.

And so, devotions in the morning for a Christian could simply be a ritual or habit … or it could be the purposeful setting of something important before you at the start of the day so that what is important remains so throughout the day. What occupies your heart and mind throughout your days? How important are the important things? How devoted are we to God, God’s people and God’s mission? I believe these are fair and important questions to ask ourselves and allow the Holy Spirit to ask us. I know I am.

Journeying with you,

Pastor Merril

The question of holiness is one that seems to have lost its importance in the church of the western world. Today we tend to emphasize God’s love, or grace, or power, or goodness, or glory, or even His destiny for our lives. I am not in any way trying to minimize these aspects of God or of us in relation to Him. However, is it possible that we have in some manner minimized His holiness? I don’t think it has been done consciously or purposely but through neglect it has been diminished in our culture and character.

What would you say is the central attribute of God? Would you say love? Doesn’t our Bible say, “God is love”? (1 John 4:8) I think that many Christians focus on this aspect of His nature. Would you say that God is good (and hear others reply, “all the time”)? Even Jesus said that God alone is good. (Luke 18:19) Would you say glory? His glory is an aspect that He will not give to another. (Isa. 42:8) In fact, the whole earth is filled with His glory. (Isa. 6:3) Consider, however, what the angels are proclaiming before they say the earth is filled with His glory: “Holy, holy, holy!” We see that same declaration in the revelation that John received. (Rev. 4:8)

So many aspects of God’s nature and character to choose from and yet I believe at the core of it is His holiness. Part of the mental exercise is seeing what pairing attributes reveals as to which is more central. Is God one who has holy love or loving holiness? Is God one who has holy goodness or good holiness? Does God have graceful holiness or holy grace? Perhaps consider what was most offended when God had to drive Adam and Eve from the garden. Possibly think of what was identified as a key attribute when Moses approached the burning bush. Consider what it will take to be able to see God. You could even just note what attribute we connect with God’s Spirit.

My thoughts at the beginning of 2018 are about holiness because I believe God is calling His church to re-engage with it; to remember it; to renew it in our lives. Holiness isn’t just God’s core attribute but it is supposed to be the church’s also. Whether holiness is relevant in the 21^st century is not a question of cultural significance but of church survival. Much of the world is seeking church conformity and it is a commitment to holiness that will rebuff this. One author notes that “holiness is a message of hope” and I agree with him. There is much more about holiness that I will speak about in our month of prayer and fasting. I trust we will all renew our hearts in it.

Journeying with you,

Pastor Merril

This past Sunday (Nov. 26), I spoke about Waiting on God from Psalm 130. I did not recognize the link immediately, but I was talking with my son about a news item and the idea of things taking time came up again. The news item was about the Keystone XL Pipeline project and how Nebraska had finally approved a longer route. Sheldon noted that he remembers that project being a discussion in his grade six class. He asked how they could still be working on that same project so many years later. That was a good question. I did a little online checking and this has been in planning and process at least as far back as 2010.

It made me think of both God and the church. God has been working on His human redemption project since Adam and Eve sinned. In fact, He had it in His heart from before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4; Rev. 13:8). He has even thought of giving up on us but stuck to it with Noah and his family (Gen. 6:5-8). God was ready to destroy the Israelites and start over with Moses but Moses interceded with God and God continued His redemption plan (Exo. 32:7-14). It was about 1,500 years from the Exodus to the birth of Jesus and yet the Bible says that Jesus came at just the right time (Rom. 5:6), or in the fullness of time (Gal. 4:4).

So, now, in this Christmas season, we are looking for, not the first coming of Jesus the Messiah, but for the return of Jesus. Not only that, we are looking for God to do things in our own lives and in the life of the church. How patient are we? How dedicated to prayer, even as things seemed delayed? Are we committed to God’s project even while we wait for the “fullness of time”? I know that the temptation to dictate to God what I believe the timeline should be. However, even Jesus was not willing to do that when it came to His return (Mat. 24:36). He trusted His Father and His Father’s timing.

In this season of singing “Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel” in a minor key with the feeling of longing and of waiting, let us do so also be singing “O Come All Ye Faithful” and be faithful until the end (Heb. 3:14). Let us with full hearts, full of faith in God who is faithful, press forward in Him and His promises – knowing that He is more than able to fulfill all in His timing.

Have a very Merry Christmas plus know and experience God in greater ways in 2018!

Journeying with you,

Pastor Merril

“The only constant is change” is a saying that goes back to the Greek philosopher Heraclitus in the 6th century BC. Change is difficult for most people. We often don’t like changing seasons, changing to a new set of shoes, changing homes or changing jobs. Even if you like change, it often comes with challenges.

One of the biggest challenges people face with changes is a feeling of instability or of being lost. You can feel like you’re alone drifting on an ocean. However, even on an ocean, you have the anchor of the stars. I recently watched a documentary on how the Polynesian people navigated to Hawaii and it was amazing how they could hold their hand up to the horizon and use it as a sextant to navigate by the stars.

They key to navigating through change is being anchored to those things that don’t or should not change. Understanding the cycle of the stars as a constant, you can navigate on the ocean with no land to give you your bearings. Understanding the God of the Bible who is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8; James 1:17), anchors you through the journey of life.

“But what about when you can’t see the stars and are on the storm-tossed sea?”, you might ask. Well, then, like the disciples, you run for Jesus (Luke 8:23-24). The sun shines whether there are clouds covering it or not. The Lord reigns whether things are working as we would like or not. As with Jesus’ response when the disciples were in the boat fearing for their lives, this is a matter of faith.

Do we trust God through the changes? Is our focus on Him, the author and finisher of our faith? Faith is often tested (James 1:3; 1 Peter 1:7) but also can be strengthened (Romans 4:20) in these times. We all face changes. Let’s do so in the grace of God and grow by them.

Journeying with you,

Pastor Merril