Josh McDowell's Blog, page 16
July 29, 2020
Can We Talk About Jesus?
So why aren’t we excitedly telling people about Jesus? One reason is because it feels hard to bring Him up, given that the world so stridently asserts that God and the Bible are fiction. Too many Christians haven’t read the Bible with any depth, so they can’t push back the world’s false claims. Yet we should be reading God’s Word, as it answers our big questions about life and what follows after death.
This post is designed to help grow your knowledge of what the Bible says. You’ll find links to many of our previously published blog posts that focus on the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. How do we know that Jesus was a real person, and that His disciples and many others interacted with Him after He rose? As you read the posts, you’ll discover that the Christian faith is rooted not in “blind faith,” as skeptics suggest, but vetted historical fact. If we can trust that Jesus is real, we can trust that God and His ceaseless love for us are real, too. That’s Good News! Read on.
Bridging the Gap blog #hurthealedwhole
For 50+ years, Josh McDowell Ministry has been leading seekers into a deeper knowledge of God’s truth and power. We offer you our accumulated knowledge and research to help you find truth and encouragement to live a healthy and whole life in Christ.
“So, why am I a Christian?”
“Because I know I’m a train wreck in a dumpster fire. But I also know that God loves me 100% as is, right now, in the midst of the burning carnage that is often my life. I know that if I were to stack up my cards against most church people, I’d fold every time. I’m not that good at following rules, and I run my mouth a lot. And yet, God loves me and is cheering for me as I get better and especially when I fall down. Where I see failure, He sees opportunity for growth. Where I see addiction, He sees an opportunity to take a step. Where I’ve given up, He whispers, ‘You can make it.’”
Truth About Jesus
> Does Historical Evidence Prove that Jesus Lived?
> An Investigation: The Lofty Claims of Jesus.
> Deity of Christ: True or False?
Truth About His Resurrection
> Is Jesus’ Resurrection Fact? History Weighs in.
> Resurrection Theories Debunked: Christ Rose!
> Resurrection of Jesus: Pre-Resurrection Facts.
> Resurrection of Jesus: Code Critical.
> Resurrection of Jesus: Hoax or Truth?
> Does Science Disprove the Resurrection?
Truth About The Bible
> Who Recorded Events in the Bible?
> Isn’t the Bible Full of Disagreements?
> Is the Bible Fact or Fiction?
> Are the Bible and Science at Odds?
> An Investigation: Who Decided What to Include in the Bible?
> Did the Bible’s Adam Really Exist?
> Meticulous Scribe, Trusted Manuscript.
> Did Scribes Faithfully Transmit Old Testament Manuscripts?
> Do Alleged Contradictions Skew Bible Truth?
> Archeology Helps to Confirm the Historicity of the Bible.
Truth About Christianity
> Is Christianity A Copycat Religion? Quick VIDEO.
> 3 Foundational Truths of Christianity.
> Three Ways the Resurrection of Jesus Can Transform Your Life Today.
> Hope: Not Wishful Thinking For Christians.
> Showing Christ Relevant to Our Whatever Culture.
> Does God Exist? Quick VIDEO with 5 Arguments.
> Christianity: Putting It All Together.
> Objective Truth: Christian Response to Postmodernism.
NEXT STEPS:
We invite you to read Josh’s short book, More Than a Carpenter, which examines evidence about Jesus.
For more on the origin of the Bible, check out God Breathed by Josh McDowell.
To really dive into Josh’s decades of research, read our recently updated apologetics classic, Evidence That Demands a Verdict .
Sheri writes and edits for Josh McDowell Ministry.
The post Can We Talk About Jesus? appeared first on Josh.org.
July 24, 2020
Snapshot of Amazing Grace
The following personal story, recently shared by one of my favorite Christian speakers, does a great job of helping us to understand the amazing grace God gives us. Read on!
Bridging the Gap blog #hurthealedwhole
For 50+ years, Josh McDowell Ministry has been leading seekers into a deeper knowledge of God’s truth and power. We offer you our accumulated knowledge and research to help you find truth and encouragement to live a healthy and whole life in Christ.
Abundant, Amazing Grace
This speaker shared that early in her marriage she did something that filled her with shame. So much so, that she felt she had to hide it from her husband. So daily, for seven months, she silently carried the heavy weight of her action. She wanted to confess her sin to him, but found herself continuing to stall because she feared his reaction.
What if confessing changed how he viewed her? What if he chose to stop loving her … to walk away?
When she finally did tell him, as tears plunged down her face, his response was to simply wrap his arms around her and hold her close for a long moment. Then she heard him utter the words she had been dreading: “I need to leave the house for a while.”
In the hours he was gone she anxiously paced, a part of her certain that he wouldn’t return. But her heart leapt when he strode back into their home, his arms overflowing with delicate yellow tulips — her favorite flower.
This godly man hadn’t left to punish her, but to shop at as many flower stores as necessary for him to gather the gorgeous display. The symbolism of his grand and generous gesture: he wanted her to grasp, beyond a shadow of her doubt, that he was offering her God-sized grace.
Here in Texas we love to say, “Go big or go home.” In effect, her husband’s big gesture said, “I forgive you, love you, and accept you — just as God offers me His amazing grace when I blow it.”
Once we've tasted the sweetness of God's grace, we carry it within us to likewise offer it.
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When you and I humbly confess our sin to God, He doesn’t make us wallow and grovel and do a bunch of good deeds to tip the scale of worth back in our favor. Rather, He offers us instant grace, from His bottomless well of love.
God doesn’t offer us a single bloom, friends, but a lush bouquet, to make sure we “get” that He’s completely removed the stain of our offense and sees it no more. We are clean. Forgiven. Understood. Accepted.
The Bible declares that God sees us as sanctified, justified, and redeemed. Says Psalm 103:12: “As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.” No ifs, ands, or buts. No loopholes. Jesus sealed this deal for us on the cross.
We may have to walk out consequences because of our sin, but every step is covered by His amazing grace, freeing us from soul-crippling shame and blame. Let us rejoice in that!
Are you burdened by sin you’re trying to hide from God? (Spoiler alert: He already knows.) God isn’t focused on your perfection, but your progress. Run to Him! He wants to restore you into relationship with Him via His unceasing grace!
NEXT STEPS:
Can we pray for you? It would be our honor. Click here.
Do you want to have a relationship with Jesus? Start here.
Do you have shame you can’t shake, despite God’s grace? Head over to our Resolution Movement.
Sheri writes and edits for Josh McDowell Ministry.
The post Snapshot of Amazing Grace appeared first on Josh.org.
July 17, 2020
What is the Joy of the Lord? Can We Have it?
If I hear a Christian occasionally use this expression, I always notice, as it’s not a statement often said. Certainly nowhere near the frequency of, say, “God is good!” or “Jesus is love.”
I think this is because Christians often struggle with joy. We know we’re supposed to feel it, because of Jesus, but life is often hard. Like Peter, who only momentarily walked on the water at Jesus’ invitation, we sink when we shift our eyes from Him to our problems.
Perhaps “stressed out,” “worried,” and “fearful” more aptly describe us most of the time. But the Bible says that the “joy of the Lord” is the reality we can continually experience. So why aren’t we? In Googling for answers, I gleaned insights from stay-at-home moms, professional writers, and pastors (including this impressive 1871 sermon by Charles Spurgeon, the “Prince of Preachers”). If, like me, you want consistent joy in your life, read on.
Bridging the Gap blog #hurthealedwhole
For 50+ years, Josh McDowell Ministry has been leading seekers into a deeper knowledge of God’s truth and power. We offer you our accumulated knowledge and research to help you find truth and encouragement to live a healthy and whole life in Christ.
Defining Joy
The dictionary defines joy as “feeling great delight with present or expected good.” But some of us think we can’t have joy if we’re not feeling happy. So let’s clear up the difference between the joy we’re able to generate on our own — and the joy we gain from Jesus.
In one of his sermons, Pastor John K. Jenkins, Sr. points out that the joy of the Lord is a bubbling up of contentment we feel from being connected to God. It is entirely unrelated to enjoyable circumstances. Only this supernatural joy, adds Jenkins, can give us “calm delight in the midst of hell” and a “cheerfulness even when life isn’t cheerful.”
Real joy — a fruit of the Holy Spirit — is a supernatural transaction we experience with God. It’s the soul-deep assurance that helps us to face cancer … bankruptcy … the end of our marriage … because we know that Jesus is carrying us through it.
Francis Chan, Christian speaker, author, and founder of Crazy Love Ministries, reminds us that Philippians 4:4 calls Christ-followers to rejoice in the Lord always. “Do people see you as a rejoicer?” challenges Chan. “That you’re always praising the Lord?” No pressure, Francis! If we’re going to get there, friends, we must create daily habits that keep up plugged into God’s supernatural power.
The Bible says that we can daily experience life with consistent joy, rather than riding an emotional rollercoaster of highs and lows. Imagine that freedom!
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“Nobody is immune from heartache or suffering or regret and depression,” notes Candace Payne, the stay-at-mom who, overnight, found herself a social media celebrity after she posted a video of herself laughing with delight over her Chewbacca mask. Her video has been viewed more than 200 million times, for the simple reason that Candace’s joy and belly laughs were so contagious.
Having struggled with depression in the past, Candace, is now so joy-focused that she’s written several books on the topic, which she shares with live and online audiences. “When life hits you, defiant joy stands up and fight backs and refuses to let negative circumstances define her,” says Candace. “Defiant joy finds her identity, her worth, in Christ.”
So how do we, like Candace, add the joy of the Lord to our daily lives? We can start with the following three steps.
Step One: We Abide in Him
Psalm 16:11 says, “You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.” Step one, friends, is smack dab in the middle of this verse: we are to get before God in prayer and worship.
What is prayer and worship? Is it hours on our knees, speaking with the formal “thee” and “thou” of the King James Bible translation? Sure, if that’s your style. But God’s not particular; He just wants our focus and humble hearts. So prayer and worship can be our silent convo with God while we’re on the bus to work. Our singing to Him as we feed our baby a bottle. Our appreciating His woods as we take a walk. Our dancing so loudly to praise music that our dishes rattle. Our looking skyward during lunch, to thank Him for providing yet another meal. When it comes to our one-on-one God time, we get to think outside the box. God is all ears, on all frequencies, 24/7.
Yet we can be guilty of seeking God only when we need or want something from Him. As Christian teacher and author Joyce Meyer notes, “It’s amazing how much time we have for God when we’re desperate.”
Life is crazy hectic with full schedules, draining jobs, endless bills, interrupting phones, and demanding relationships. That’s the reality of our modern world, says Will Graham, grandson of the evangelist Billy Graham. And, he adds, “it can be difficult to tap the brakes and slow down when we try to spend quiet time with God. We’ll race through a short passage of Scripture and our list of prayer requests, keeping one eye on the phone to make sure we don’t miss that text from the boss. I commend you for taking time to spend with the Lord, but I encourage you to meditate on the words of Psalm 46:10: ‘Be still, and know that I am God.’”
This feels awkward if we’re new to the habit of meeting with God. After all, why would the Great I Am wanna hear from us? Because He’s our loving Heavenly Father. He made us; He even knows the number of hairs on our heads!
Step Two: We Spend Time in Scripture
Fess up: Do you know your Bible well enough to find John 3:16, Romans 8:38, and the other promises God has for you?
Some Christians read their Bibles often, marking the text with pens and highlighters. They regularly get into God’s Word to know what it says, so they can live it out. Other Christians never crack open a Bible, not realizing the power they’re giving up.
If you don’t read the Bible, why not? Perhaps because you tried reading a passage or two and decided it was boring? Certainly, some parts of the Old Testament are a bit dry, but they’re included because they’re historically important. But there’s no way you can call the New Testament boring. It teaches us about our Savior! To fall in love with Jesus, we have to get to know Him. To get to know Him, let’s start with the truest, most historically vetted source: God’s Word.
The Bible is not a dusty work of fiction, but timeless wisdom still very applicable to modern life. Do you have a problem with knee-jerk reactions? Memorize James 1:19: Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. Are you often tempted to gossip? Study Proverbs 16:28: A perverse person stirs up conflict, and a gossip separates close friends. This verse reminds us why God cautions us to set a guard over our mouths. Do you have a spending habit? Lack integrity? Struggle with being generous? The Bible has plenty to say about each issue, to help you overcome them so they don’t overcome you.
Step Three: We Live for God
By connecting with God, and knowing what He says to us in His Word, we begin to desire to please Him with our thoughts, words, and actions. It is in Him that we find our roadmap for living. So why do we tend to be drawn to believe what the world tells us? Let’s do a short comparison to identify which should have the voice of authority in our lives.
The world tells us that it gets to define “winners” and “losers.” God reminds us that only His high opinion of us matters. The world tells us that self-focus guarantees our “best” life. God reminds that it is in having a servant’s heart that we truly live. The world tells us that nothing is free, and to not expect second chances. God reminds us that He loves without strings, and that He’s the architect of unlimited comebacks. The world tells us we need to be perfect. God reminds us that it’s our growth that matters to Him.
Clearly, the world cares very little for us. But God does, and and He wants us to be “all in,” living firmly rooted in His strength and love. Let us, then, chase after a deep connection with Him, so that we bear good fruit — including His supernatural joy.
NEXT STEPS:
Do you want to have a relationship with Jesus? Start here.
We invite you to read Josh’s book, More Than a Carpenter. This short apologetics classic highlights historical evidence of Jesus.
Sheri writes and edits for Josh McDowell Ministry.
The post What is the Joy of the Lord? Can We Have it? appeared first on Josh.org.
July 16, 2020
Three Steps Before We Speak Out
This has given us the ability to speak out against racial prejudice and injustice. This is a good thing! The Old Testament prophets repeatedly voiced God’s charge to Israel to care for the marginalized and exercise justice. But what if that isn’t enough? Does Scripture call us to do more than just speak out on behalf of others?
>>> Speaking out is good, but that alone can’t be the solution to injustice in our world.
Perhaps, like me, you have felt frustration at what you can do to make a real difference in these issues. Apart from speaking out on social media, it felt like other action steps were too grand, too unattainable for me. I didn’t have the time or resources to launch a movement or start a charity, for example. But I have since come to realize that there are three biblical, effective, and attainable steps that I can apply to my own life to address these problems. I’d like to share three with you.
Bridging the Gap blog #hurthealedwhole
One: I Can Pray to God for Healing.
As it says in Philippians 4:6, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” In the midst of a chaotic world, it is easy to forget that our first plan of action is always to turn our attention to the One who upholds the universe by the word of His power (Hebrews 1:3).
This will help to calm our minds and anchor our souls in our unchanging God, so that we will be mentally centered to speak out. But first and foremost, we pray because God responds to the prayers of His people, and only God can ultimately accomplish the changes necessary to heal our land.
>>> So it’s not just speaking out, but speaking up.
Two: I Can Examine My Heart.
Maybe you have noticed how many claim that our culture has problems, but few claim that the problems begin with them. Sin has a way of blinding us, especially when we’re able to hide under our moral-sounding words.
So before we speak out about injustice, we must lock arms with God and turn inward to see if any of these issues lie buried in our own self. This is at the core of Jesus’s statement in Matthew 7:3: “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?” If we want to see change in our world, we must begin with ourselves. We invite God into this process because He knows us better than we know ourselves. He alone has the grace we need to forgive ourselves and experience transformation.
>>> So it’s not just speaking out, but speaking in.
Three: I Can Comfort the Hurting.
This is an important step before we speak out, because it is better to talk your walk than to walk your talk. Don’t throw yourself into a hypocrite’s corner with your message, but let your message be grounded in your life. Boots on the ground, our calling as Christians is to care for the things that God cares about. This includes those who are hurting by racial discrimination, sexual exploitation, or any issue that reduces their irrevocable dignity as an image bearer of God. This approach is deeply relational, and requires that we build relationships with people different from ourselves.
Romans 12:15 encourages us to “rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” For instance, when George Floyd was killed, many felt a great deal of pain, both inside and outside the black community. The pain of racism continues to be very real for many people. Are we checking in? Are we offering words of encouragement and providing comfort? Are we the hands and feet of Jesus?
>>> So it’s not just speaking out, but speaking toward.
You and I can make a difference in this world
In all this, we never want to lose sight that the Gospel of Jesus Christ — the proclamation of His death and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins — is at the center of everything we stand for. But as God repeatedly voices His concern for the weak, the hurting, the poor, and the marginalized, we see that this must find its place in the lifeblood of every believer.
Speak up, speak in, speak toward, speak out. In doing this, we take positive steps toward actual change in ourselves and in the world.
Next Steps:
We’d love to pray for you! Please send us a prayer request via this form.
Read Josh’s thoughts on having hope in this time of crisis.
Download this PDF: 7 Ways to Minister to Others From a Distance.
Matthew Tingblad is a communicator at Josh McDowell Ministry with a seminary education from Talbot School of Theology.
The post Three Steps Before We Speak Out appeared first on Josh.org.
July 15, 2020
Walking By Faith
Have you considered what is involved in the process of walking? First, we must learn to support our body weight on our legs. Then we have to learn to balance, and stand without support. Finally, we must learn to momentarily place our full weight on one leg, and then transition that weight to our other leg. Only in mastering this transition do we gain the faith that we will, with practice, be able to easily walk on our own.
> Notice what the Bible says about the process of walking. 2 Corinthians 5:7: “For we walk by faith, not by sight.” As I studied this idea of walking by faith, I noticed three descriptive prepositions that accompany our spiritual walk.
> The first preposition is the word “in.”
Scripture tells us to walk in the steps of faith (Romans 4:12), in newness of life (Romans 6:4), in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16, 25), in love (Ephesians 5:2), in Him (Colossians 2:6), in the light (1 John 1:7, Revelations 21:24), and in truth (3 John 1:4). Just as a child learning to walk uses props to aid his balance, these give us balance to trust the Lord during our faith walk.
> The second preposition is the word “as.”
This word is used illustratively, revealing additional truth. 1 Corinthians 3:3 directs us to walk as mature adults; as followers of Christ who have long passed the elementary stages of just beginning to walk. Ephesians 5:8 directs us to walk as children of light, mature in our faith.
> The third preposition is the word “by.”
2 Corinthians 5:7 reveals the methodology of walking on the spiritual level. The Lord is represented by one leg, and you and I by the other. He carries the weight of responsibility and direction; we carry the weight of obedience and faith. We cannot move until He directs us, and He will not move without our obedience and faith.
Our first steps of faith are uncertain, our trust a new process. But as we begin to understand how God is developing us, we gain confidence and skill in walking in harmony with Him. This process is necessary to grow our faith, so that we do not remain undeveloped in His image and likeness. Without developing, we remain insensitive to the Lord’s voice, ineffective in our service, and unconscious of our spiritual existence. Simply put, we become salt that has lost its savor.
Hinderances
Christians often struggle with learning to walk in faith when they lack strong examples. Some don’t receive encouragement to grow, while others hold on to wrong teaching and other hindrances that stall their walk. It’s like they are only able to hobble. Hobbling, as a mode of forward movement, does not get us very far. And the energy it requires is impossible to sustain.
To walk by faith, then, we must trust in the Lord, not ourselves. And as we learn to trust Him to lead us and empower us to do His will, we begin to see Him doing more and more through us. We find ourselves not just walking, but running to finish our race!
Guest blogger Vernon Ball, a retired pastor, is 75 years young. In his 50 years of preaching, Vernon pastored five churches and served as interim pastor of four others. He is the author of the book, The Mystery of Faith . A great-grandfather of 12, Vernon is currently involved in international ministries in Eastern Asia. His website: Ballministries.com.
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June 29, 2020
World Got You Down? 5 Daily Habits That Help
As God’s people, we need to do better. Let’s try these five daily habits to better love God and others.
Inspiration #hurthealedwhole
Our ability to patiently listen to others? Habit. Our willingness to feel empathy? Habit. Our consistent focus on gratitude? Habit. We each must develop daily habits that build up our world, not tear it down. Our habits should reflect the love and grace of Jesus.
Habit 1: Start Your Day With “Thanks, God!”
This small action reminds us to keep an “attitude of gratitude.” Even when life hurts, there is always something to be grateful for. So build the daily habit of looking at life with gratitude. List things that are good about the world; things that make you feel good and hopeful. Perhaps it’s butterflies … or that you got new glasses …. or that you love summer watermelon. Train your brain to enjoy the feeling of feeling grateful. Default to gratitude instead of complaining.
Tip: When some smokers attempt to quit, they slip a rubber band around their wrist. As they experience tobacco cravings, they snap the rubber band against their skin to redirect their thoughts. What can you use to “snap” your brain into gratitude?
Habit 2: Daily Recite Scripture
Let’s get real and admit that most of us don’t have a daily habit of speaking God’s Word out loud, much less daily cracking open our Bibles. But we’re missing out by not doing both! For these two reasons: the Bible tells us that God’s power is unleashed when we SPEAK Scripture, and research shows that the words we SAY change our brain, and thus how we feel and act.
We speak defeat, we feel defeated. We speak hate, we feel hatred. We complain, we feel ungrateful. But Speaking God’s Word restores our hope and trust in His power and loving providence.
Habit 3: Focus on Being Fruity
God’s Word calls us to be fruity. The “fruit of the Spirit” includes kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, patience, self-control, hope, peace, and love. Each attribute represent an aspect of God’s nature. So when we offer these to others, we reflect God to the world. Is this easy with our easily offended egos? Nope. But we must press on, with His help, because He asks us to.
Being fruity takes WORK. It requires that we commit to putting ourselves second, so that God can work through us to soften the world. This only gets easier when we make it a daily habit. Imagine getting so self-discipled at being fruity that it’s no longer a struggle! Patience? No problem. Kindness? Small potatoes. Gentleness? You nail it with your eyes closed and one hand behind your back.
Habit 4: Own Your Responses
A stranger belittles you on Facebook, and you respond with a less-than-kind zinger. Your husband bails on a promise, and you carry a grudge. You have a fight with a close friend, and you refuse to be the first to reconcile. The fruit you resemble? A prickly pear. #ouch
God tells us to be fruity because He understands that our pride so easily sidetracks us from offering love. That’s why His Word TELLS us that His two greatest commandments are that we love God and love others. Loving others — ummm, sometimes even liking others — requires that we see them as God sees them: as valuable, important, cherished, and loved, even when we don’t like nor understand their actions.
Because our brain happily believes what we tell it, we need to be careful to feed it truth. If we tell our brain that “x” people are selfish, “y” people are morons, and “z” people are racist, our brain will use those filters to validate that we’re right. But what happens when we feed our brains untruths? Look around!
The fruit of the Spirit challenges us to be open to others, not closed. To be patient, not defensive. To be empathetic, not quick to judge. We must continually ask ourselves if we’re looking at others through bad filters we construct with our personal pain and biases.
Habit 5: Commit to Becoming Mature
We dish out what we’re full of — but we can’t offer what we don’t possess. Where we carry wounds, we have to put in the work of healing to do better. Check out our Resolution Movement, which can help. Growth is hard. It’s much easier to just slide by, or give up. But our world is in so much pain and upheaval because too many of us aren’t being intentional about developing the habit of being fruity. If we want a world strengthened by kindness, patience, joy, love, and self-control, we have to look like Jesus. WWJD? He’d produce such beautiful fruit that Pinterest would drool.
Some of our habits we set with intention. But a LOT of them we slip into because they’re easy, comfortable, and let us get away without maturing or sacrifice. A habit that doesn’t produce our best should go. A quote taped to my fridge is 100 percent truth: “You are not the highest version of yourself that you can imagine. You are the lowest version of what you will accept.”
I don’t know who authored the quote, but it was likely a wise person who also is probably pretty fruity. God calls us to do better. In John 15:8, Jesus says, “My father is glorified when you produce much fruit and in this way prove that you are my disciples.”
NEXT STEPS:
Submit a prayer request to us here .
Do you want to have a relationship with Jesus? Start here.
Want to know more about our Resolution Movement to wholeness? Click here.
Sheri writes and edits for Josh McDowell Ministry.
The post World Got You Down? 5 Daily Habits That Help appeared first on Josh.org.
June 22, 2020
Book of Ruth: 3 Lessons For Us
Naomi, a Hebrew, along with her husband and two grown sons, forsakes her hometown of Bethlehem to escape a famine. The family settles into nearby Moab (modern day Jordan), for about a decade. But Naomi’s husband and sons perish, leaving Naomi with a broken heart and two grieving Moabite daughters-in-law. When Naomi hears that Bethlehem is again flush with food, she decides to return home — a rigorous 7-10 day journey across the desert, which she must make without companion or male protection. But one of her daughters-in-law, Ruth, stubbornly refuses to let Naomi forsake her: “For where you go, I will go.” When the women arrive safely in Bethlehem, Naomi laments to her old friends, “Don’t call me Naomi, call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter.”
Oh, Naomi, if only you could see the bigger story about to develop through your loyal daughter-in-law!
Through Ruth, God will restore Naomi’s joy, hope, and trust — and cement Ruth, a lowly foreigner, as a key player in Israel’s history. Let’s look at just three attributes of Ruth that made her usable by God.
Bridging the Gap blog #hurthealedwhole
For 50+ years, Josh McDowell Ministry has been leading seekers into a deeper knowledge of God’s truth and power. We offer you our accumulated knowledge and research to help you find truth and encouragement to live a healthy and whole life in Christ.
3 Qualities That Made Ruth Usable by God
Ruth Was a Woman of Commitment
We’re not told why Ruth chooses to stay with Naomi, rather than return to her own family. Perhaps she recognizes how difficult life is for poor widows, and doesn’t want Naomi to endure the hardship alone. What we do know is that Ruth feels deep affection for Naomi. “Entreat me not to leave thee,” she begs, “or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God; Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the Lord do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me.”
Ruth is all-in. 100 percent. No longing looks over her shoulder.
Image courtesy of FreeBibleImages.org.
The contemporary Christian song Burn the Ships, by the band for King & Country, echoes Ruth’s decision to have no exit strategy.
Step into a new day.
We can rise up from the dust and walk away.
We can dance upon our heartache, yeah.
So light a match, leave the past, burn the ships.
And don’t you look back.
Ruth has a lot of time to reflect on her decision, as she and Naomi journey 50+ miles westward across the hot desert to get around the Dead Sea. But from the moment the last of the Moab dust is ground beneath the soles of her sandals, Ruth’s old life is done. Boxed. Sealed with duct tape. With all bets on Bethlehem.
There will be no comparing her past to her future, no lamenting that “life was better back home.” A mindset, as an aside, that the Israelites groaning and moaning in the desert for 40 years should have adopted.
Perhaps the saying “Faith like a child” is appropriate here, as Ruth is certainly trusting that her future will be better as she seeks to loyally serve and honor her mother-in-law. (Hold on, Ruth! Just wait!)
Ruth Was a Woman of Courage
Imagine yourself as Ruth. You’ve lost your husband. And now your heart aches at the thought of losing your last connection to him, his mother. It’s an option you’re unwilling to consider. So you pack your overnight bag and water bottle and set off to make a new life with Naomi in her homeland. Only this time, you’ll be the foreigner. How will you feed and clothe yourself? Where will you find shelter? A new husband doesn’t seem likely. When Naomi dies, you’ll be left all alone.
Despite her fears, Ruth heads out, which earns her big kudos in my book. Have you had to “pull a Ruth” yet in your own life? Have you been developing your courage?
Perhaps Ruth forsakes Moab because she realizes a truth we highlighted in our recent post on Simon Peter: we often must courageously step out of the boat, onto the dark, choppy waters, to experience the bigger life God has for us. Our adventure awaits beyond the safety of the boat!
Ruth Was a Woman of Character
As Joy Burgess writes in her article on Ruth, “Ruth’s story is ordinary. Perhaps that’s what makes it so compelling. She doesn’t come from a famous family. She doesn’t have great riches or great position. Ruth is just a widow – one from an enemy nation, at that. Nothing is going in her favor, but she’s brave, and her faith never wavers. And yet the life of a foreign widow who has nothing becomes so important that it’s included in the Bible and her name recognized in the lineage of Jesus.”
God loves to use “nobodies” to create history. Remember Noah’s start? Gideon’s? David’s? Mary’s?
What Ruth has going for her is her character. We can discern who Ruth is through her words and actions as the story progresses. Ruth displays what the Bible calls the “fruit of the Spirit“: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Because of the woman Ruth has chosen to be, Naomi’s people become her people, and Naomi’s God becomes her God.
Through God’s provision, Ruth captures the heart of an older, wealthy “kinsman redeemer” related to Naomi. God uses Boaz’s integrity and generosity — his own developed character — to redeem and bless both women. At the birth of Ruth’s son, Naomi again take joy in her name, which means “pleasantness.” (Way better than bitter.)
Naomi had a few things of value to learn from her young daughter-in-law. And a few things to learn about God’s trustworthiness.
Ruth: Our Example
It’s hard to see that good is coming, when all you feel is pain and abandonment. But know that God is never idle. As Naomi tenderly cradles Ruth’s infant son, she affirms her trust in God’s provision. But she has no clue that he will one day become the grandfather of Israel’s most faithful king, King David. And that from this lineage, Jesus, the Savior of the World, will also come.
It’s important that in Ruth, we see ourselves. As BibleStudyTools.com notes, “Ruth strikingly exemplifies the truth that participation in the coming kingdom of God is decided, not by blood and birth, but by the conformity of one’s life to the will of God through the “obedience that comes from faith.”
Are you developing and preparing yourself to be obediently used by Him?
NEXT STEPS:
Do you want to have a relationship with Jesus? Start here.
We invite you to read Josh’s book, More Than a Carpenter. This short apologetics classic examines the historical evidence of the live, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
Sheri writes and edits for Josh McDowell Ministry.
The post Book of Ruth: 3 Lessons For Us appeared first on Josh.org.
June 19, 2020
A Father’s Model of Biblical Manhood
When someone asks me to define biblical manhood, I reference Raising a Modern Day Knight, the resource my dad and his friends used to teach me and my friends that a biblical man rejects passivity, accepts responsibility, leads courageously, and expects the greater reward, God’s reward.
Now, years later, the traits are ingrained in my mind. They stuck because my dad didn’t just teach them, he modeled them. The traits have been my guide for decision-making, and a checklist for my character. I believe that I am the man I am today because of my dad’s teaching and actions.
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For 50+ years, Josh McDowell Ministry has been leading seekers into a deeper knowledge of God’s truth and power. We offer you our accumulated knowledge and research to help you find truth and encouragement to live a healthy and whole life in Christ.
Modeling The Four Traits of Biblical Manhood
As my friends and I sat around the fire one night in Northern Minnesota, our dads took the opportunity to teach us about biblical manhood. We each pulled out our journals and took notes. In that moment, I didn’t know how influential the Raising a Modern Day Knight program would become for me. The four traits, which I highlight below, have helped me to pursue Christ as I navigate this sin-soaked world.
1) A Biblical Man Rejects Passivity
From the very beginning of the Bible, we see the theme of work. In the first couple of chapters of Genesis, the author describes God’s creation of the world as “work.” This work is connected with divine, orderly creation and human purpose. In Genesis 1, we see God taking delight in His work. Genesis 2 expands to God caring for His creation. He then commissions humanity to continue His work. Genesis 1:28 says that we are to “fill the earth and subdue it.”
The commissioning of humanity’s work was designed to bring us reward and freedom. But it requires our discipline. The book of Proverbs tells us that God is honored by our good work habits. These habits are formed from our reverence for God, and generally lead to our prosperity. It’s easy to sit back and take a passive approach to life, but you and I are called to a higher standard.
I have watched my dad work not just for the provision of our family, but for lives of many to be changed by the good news of the Gospel. My dad doesn’t sit idle, but works out of obedience from the calling of his loving Lord. I actively reject passivity because of his actions.
2) A Biblical Man Accepts Responsibility
Parents raise their kids to the best of their abilities, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be hurt in the process. As a kid, I always wanted my parents to be perfect. I knew my sin and mistakes, but I struggled when my parents would fail. It wasn’t until later in life that I realized that my parents are just like me: broken and sinful, yet saved by the grace of God. The difference between my sin and my parents’ sin has been their response.
I used to (and sometimes still do) hide in my sin as it produces guilt and shame. Like Adam and Eve, we tend to respond to our failures by running and covering. I find my gut reaction to sin is to shift blame, lie, and avoid pain. But my parents have modeled a better response: dealing with their sin quickly and responsibly, as God commands. They repent, first bringing their sin to God in confession, then to others in conversation, and finally by taking active steps to turn from their sin.
I learned to accept responsibility for my actions by watching my dad. I remember a few times he understandably got frustrated with me and my sisters, only to sit next to us in bed later that night, to apologize and ask for our forgiveness. Those little moments of taking responsibility have been monumental in my own integrity and development.
3) A Biblical Man Leads Courageously
My dad leads from his convictions, not necessarily his beliefs. To hold a belief, people know what they believe in. But to have conviction, we must know why we believe it, and have experienced it in our lives.
I’ve learned that being a spiritual leader isn’t always about spiritual conversations, group devotions, or the outpouring of knowledge. These are important, but one of the most important ways we can model spiritual leadership is through our daily walk with Christ. Most of the time, leadership isn’t public. Rather, it is in our private moments, when we choose to do the right thing when no one is looking.
Jesus, in John 15:4-11, calls us to remain in Him, as He is the one who produces life. Courageous leadership stems from remaining in the source of all good things, our heavenly Father.
My dad has always led my family publicly, and himself privately. I have always admired the way he processes things with my mom, discerns current events, and spends time reading and applying God’s word. My father’s leadership isn’t just affecting lives here on earth, but affecting lives for eternity.
4) A Biblical Man Expects the Greater Reward, God’s Reward
My dad also modeled that biblical manhood is rooted in meekness and humility. Meekness is power under control. Humility is knowing who you are, Who made you who you are, and giving God the glory. Biblical manhood is not working or leading for recognition by others here on earth, but for the one whose opinion ultimately matters, our heavenly Father. We can only grasp this eternal mindset when we continue to remain in Christ, walking in His way and following His example.
What ultimately matters is if we know Jesus, not how much stuff or recognition we have. Do we love people well, are we guiding them toward the gospel, and furthering their fulfillment in Christ? My dad has an eternal mindset, and is working for eternity. To the best of his ability, he strives to do all things for the greater reward, God’s reward.
A Modeled Relationship & Spiritual Legacy
My dad did not learn to model these godly character traits on his own. To understand why my dad taught them to me, we have to look at his relationship with his own father. I have a loving, principled father because of my grandfather.
My grandpa was a sharecropper. He was raised dirt poor, by an extremely dysfunctional father. Hearing him say that he hated his dad still shocks me. My great-grandfather stole from my grandpa and victimized him. Angry and bitter, my grandpa sat in the little chapel where he first heard about Jesus. Confessing Christ as Lord, he chose not to be a victim, but to forgive his father and walk in the way of Jesus.
My grandpa made the decision to model Christ’s ways to my dad. Because of that choice, my father was then able to model biblical manhood to me. The blessings I have received from my dad are the result of my grandfather’s obedience and faithfulness in walking with Christ. Click this link to listen to my grandpa’s story from my dad’s perspective.
Sadly, I all too often hear stories of father wounds distorting and damaging family relationships for generations. My grandfather’s testimony teaches us that it takes choosing to change to disrupt this painful cycle. It requires a step of obedience to forgive, not live as a victim, and walk in the love that Christ modeled.
My dad hasn’t just taught me about the Bible, he has walked the way of Jesus in his everyday life. His teaching hasn’t just led me; his actions have motivated me to follow in his footsteps.
I love you dad. I am so thankful for the impact you have had on my life. You will always be my hero!
Happy Father’s Day!
May we pray for you? It would be our honor to walk alongside you. Share your needs with us.
Josh’s free parenting research for dads: The Father Factor.
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June 16, 2020
Inspiration: Default to Worship
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For 50+ years, Josh McDowell Ministry has been leading seekers into a deeper knowledge of God’s truth and power. We offer you our accumulated knowledge and research to help you find truth and encouragement to live a healthy and whole life in Christ.
Worship: David’s Example to Us
There is beauty in King David’s closeness to the Lord, in the midst of the good, the bad, and the ugly. In Psalm 103, we find David engaging God in the midst of challenge. Regardless of what was going on around him or within him, David recognized his need to keep a close connection with his Creator.
David instructs his soul to bless the Lord, listing out truths that he knows about God’s care and provision, to remind himself to default to praise and worship. Just the first five verses of this beautiful psalm:
1Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me,
bless his holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
3 who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
You might not always be in the right frame of mind to worship. You might be distracted, discouraged, or wrecked by your circumstances. But as you remind yourself of the truth of who God is and what He has done, you can enter into worship in even your most difficult moments.
Instruct your soul to bless the Lord! Consider writing your own psalm, as a reminder of His faithfulness!
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June 15, 2020
Like Peter, Get Out of the Boat!
Many Christians, however, view this story as yet one more failing on the part of this impetuous disciple. But it’s important to remember that Peter was the only disciple willing to step out onto the storm’s heaving waves. That says a lot about his potential — and ours.
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For 50+ years, Josh McDowell Ministry has been leading seekers into a deeper knowledge of God’s truth and power. We offer you our accumulated knowledge and research to help you find truth and encouragement to live a healthy and whole life in Christ.
A Vision Cast
We know that Simon eventually became rock-solid in his faith and commitment to Jesus. But during the three years he spent learning from Jesus, Simon had a lot of maturing to do. Still, Jesus saw his potential from the start, when He changed Simon’s name to Cephas (Peter), which means “Rock.”
Jesus cast a vision for Simon of who he could become. From impetuous and unsteady, to immovable and strong. Jesus wants to do the same for us.
Luke 5 tells us the story of Jesus being so pressed by the crowds that He gets into the fishing boat belonging to Simon. He requests that Simon row them out a bit from the shore. Dead-tired after fishing all night and catching zip, Simon could have begged off. But he doesn’t. He does just as Jesus requests. After teaching the crowd, Jesus then tells Simon to row out into the deep water and drop his nets.
We recognize that Simon isn’t keen on the idea, because He replies, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and caught nothing.” Doesn’t Jesus know that fishing isn’t fruitful during the day??? Jesus waits. So Simon wisely adds, “But because you say so, I’ll drop the nets.”
For his obedience, Simon and his fishing partners are rewarded with so many fish that their nets began to tear and their boats almost sink. The supernatural haul causes Simon Peter to drop to his knees in awe and fear. “Leave me, Lord, for I’m a sinner!” “Don’t be afraid,” Jesus replies. “From now on, you will be fishing for people.”
A Commitment Forged
Fishing, which required a lot of brawn in biblical times, was the world Peter knew. Yet when Jesus challenges him to leave the familiar, Peter instantly drops his nets to follow Him. Peter is just as quick to ask Jesus to command him to walk to Jesus on the churning waves (Matthew 14) in the later storm that terrifies all the disciples.
Peter wanted to be like Jesus, even though he repeatedly came up short.
Notes Adam Hamilton in his book, Simon Peter, “In the case of Simon Peter, the Gospel writers portray bumbling, fumbling, and stumbling again and again.” Yet each of Peter’s missteps serve to reveal a dimension of Jesus’ character or His teachings that can now grow our own commitment to follow Him.
John Ortberg has written a book I highly recommend: If You Want to Walk on Water, You’ve Got to Get Out of the Boat. What does Ortberg call the quaking eleven disciples still in the boat? “Boat potatoes.” Ouch!
Peter didn’t try to hide his failings — and some of them were mega-doozies. Can anyone say, “Rooster crows three times?” But Jesus lovingly restores Peter — just as He does us. It’s interesting to note that Simon Peter is mentioned by name in the Bible more than 120 times. In comparison, John, the “beloved disciple” of Jesus, is mentioned about 20 times by name in the Gospels. Clearly, Peter had a huge impact on the early Church.
May you and I become like Peter. Though flawed, may we be faithful in our desire to serve Jesus. May we find ourselves powerful boulders, not timid boat potatoes. May we wholeheartedly, with love and grace, fish for people.
Hamilton leaves us with this encouragement:
“When you think about it, we face situations in our lives every day that call us to say yes or not. When fear becomes the driving force in our life, our brain reflexively pushes the ‘no’ button. It becomes routine. And so we say no to things to which we should say yes. We say no to a promising new opportunity — or to an invitation from Jesus to venture out in a new way that may be unfamiliar to us. We think of a thousand excuses, all of them perfectly reasonable. But when we are motivated primarily by faith rather than fear, we recognize, as Peter did, that the adventure is outside the boat.”
NEXT STEPS:
Do you want to have a relationship with Jesus? Start here.
We invite you to read Josh’s book, More Than a Carpenter. This short apologetics classic examines the historical evidence for Jesus.
Sheri writes and edits for Josh McDowell Ministry.
The post Like Peter, Get Out of the Boat! appeared first on Josh.org.
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