Leadership that is Out of this world. この世界以外のリーダーシップ

 

Exodus 3:1-15   出エジプト 3:1-15

Last year, we started a series that will cover all of Biblical History.  We will not touch EVERY story or person, but it is my intent to highlight certain people and events so as to clearly give a full account of what God was and is doing.  Remember that this is His Story. The Bible tells us What He said and What He did.  Alongside all of that, we have seen that Man is doing his own thing—sometimes against the wishes and commands of God, but we can also see God’s response to Man’s actions.

We looked at the early call of Abraham アブラハム, his offering his son—a foreshadow of what God will do with His only Son---for the Salvation of all mankind.  We looked at the life of Joseph ヨセフ. A life of trusting in the God he had heard about at his father’s feet—as a boy in his family’s tent. We saw how his older brothers hated him and sold him into slavery in Egypt エジプト. We saw how Joseph’s Heavenly Father held him close even when he went through some pretty hard times—mistreatment by his brothers, sold into slavery, falsely accused of sexual attack, jail time & at last freedom & being lifted up to become the #2 man in Egypt.

Then we had Christmas and now we will return to the Old Testament and to our story. Last week, we even took some of Moses’ モーセ experience with our New Year’s talk.  That God knew his name and that God had some good rest for him and for us.

Which brings us to today’s lesson, Leadership that is out of this world.                       

What is Leadership?            リーダーシップとは？

Charts, lists, books, the ability to lead, or guide?

Are there examples of Leadership? リーダーシップの例 Good and bad and silly.  

What makes someone a good leader?何がリーダーを作るのか？

From our passage, we will learn that the Hebrews were in trouble.  The leader of Egypt did not have a relationship with the Hebrews like the Pharaohs in the past.  This new leader was a cruel man. He became nervous when he saw that the Hebrews were populating the Goshen area. He feared that they would side in with their enemies should they be attacked. His plan- enslave them.  Then when that did not work, kill the male children. A real case of Genocide.             

On the sides of some of the walls in Egypt today, you can see the drawing of such an event—or did that come from the movie…? In any case, you can read about it in the Bible.  It is the truth.

God was still at work and helped the Hebrew families deal with this new decree.  One family tried to hide their little guy for up until three months.  But as a child would do, he was making some noise.  (We need to accept noise from children.  It does not bother me. In fact, it shows we are a family church and we can get over that.  In the past, some families were asked not to return because of the child’s noise.  I do not condone that! Let the children come. If the noise bothers you, move to another seat but do not refused them in the service.)

A number of years after Abraham, God was still active in the lives of His People, The Hebrews.  He heard the cries of His People as they were being suppressed.  They called out to God and He heard them.  A couple had a baby—a boy child.  The mother of this baby did something that may seem strange to many of us.  She made a small basket of reeds, packed it with tar and pitch and placed the boy child into it and put it in among the reeds.  THAT does not seem like a rational thing to do. If that is done today, the mother would be arrested of child endangerment.  “The sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him…” 2:4

Well, you may know the story, the Pharaoh’s daughter went down to bath, saw the child, moved to adopt the boy and had his own mother nurse the child until he got older and then became the son of the daughter of the Pharaoh.  Once in the court of Egypt, Moses learned all the stuff a child of the Pharaoh would learn and became a prince. 

Moses was aware of his Hebrew connection, and went out to see ‘his people’. Once out there, he found an Egyptian beating one of the Hebrews and steps in and kills the Egyptian after being sure no one saw the deed.  But it was known and he finds himself on the lam and runs for his life to the East to Midian.  When he is there, he comes in contact with a priest of Midian with his seven daughter. One became his wife. Her name is Zipporah.  (Little bird)

It is here, during the next 40 years of his life, which the Lord draws on to tune this soon-to-be leader into the man God would use. The Lord caused him to be a shepherd of flocks of sheep. A despised vocation of the Egyptians but one that God has used before and will use again (as in King David). His role as a shepherd, in just a few years from then, will help him as the leader of a stiff-necked people group.

In the world of Leadership training words/ terms they come up with:

9 Qualities Integrity- Uprightness	Dedication- Perseverance	Magnanimity- fairness	Humility- Modesty
Creativity and Openness	Fairness	Assertiveness	Sense of  humor
Ten Basic Integrity	Vision/strategy	Communication and Relationships
Adaptability and Persuasion	Teamwork and Planning	Coaching and Development	Decision-making

Maybe there are certain skills of Outstanding Leadership. Those are marks of a leader from the world of business and government.  Other words and traits could be added or even subtracted.  The kind of leader God was looking for was found in this 80-year-old has-been who lived in exile away from society for 40 years. God needed to break him first, & rebuild him. How? God’s Way! 神の道!

The burning Bush will do it every time.

Turn with me to Exodus 3:1-15 出エジプト 3:1-15

Here I Am! わたしはここにおります:

Willing to be used. “Here I am to worship”  (Isa 6:8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”) Willing and obedient/a winning combo.

Moses had a hard time with this one. He said he could not speak but he was well educated in Egypt! But for the last 40 years, he only spoke to sheep.  The Jews did not accept him last time he was in Egypt.  BUT this time God was in it.  Not by my might but by the Power of the Lord.  Once Moses accepted this, he was a great leader. Obedience to be where God wanted him to be. And he got better as he lead. Still had problems with the role during the next 40 years but he worked it out with his Father and God did His best in Moses. In short, Moses was there for the People of God as God’s Man.

Moses had a call of God on him and the Lord affirmed it with signs, encouragement from his father-in-law and with God’s Hand.

Who Am I?わたしは何者なのでしょうか？ We need to have a realistic understanding of who you are.  Based on what is revealed to us in His Word, we are lost without Him. He calls us into a living relationship with Him through His Son. We become a child of the King. (John 1:12) John 15:15 says that as a disciple of Jesus, I am His friend. I have been justified (Romans 5:1). I am free of condemnation (Romans 8:1-2). I am complete in Christ (Col 2:9-10). I have been forgiven of all my sins (Col 1:14). I am sealed by God-keep for Him (2 Cor. 1:21-22). I am a citizen of Heaven (Phil 3:20). And that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Phil 4:13). Realize that the call of God is from Him on you and not the other way around. We are to do HIS WILL not demanding Him to support your needs and desires. This is the way it was with Moses! It was God’s Way and it came thru a burning bush: very different. Not that way with anyone else.    Col 1:27 “To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this Mystery, which is Christ in you, the Hope of Glory.”

Who Are You?あなたはどなたですか？ Moses is asking God—or the voice talking with him, A very good question. But not my first question.  What is going on? Why this voice? I’m out of here! This voice had not come out of just any other burning bush in Midian.  It was God’s way of making the call special.

And God told Moses just who He was. God identified Himself this way: verse 14:    “I Am that I Am.”          Verse 18: “The elders of Israel will listen to you.” —God gave assurances to His person.

But what if they don’t?  4:2  What do you have in your hand?  “A staff.”   I’m going to use that stick for my Glory.  I am going to show you even what I can do with a walking stick! And you will see what I can do with you along the way…

Application:

1. Be available to Him.

2. Know who you are.  You are a Child of God IF you have Jesus as your Lord and Savior!

3. Know who HE is and that He will use even your sticks. What do you have in your hand? What is close to your heart? Understand that the staff was regular appliance for a shepherd.  What do you have on hand? Teaching ability? Let Him have it! You like to cook? Use that for His Glory. You have an interest in music?—use that to bring Him the attention. You enjoy talking to people? Talk to them about His Love. You are good at organizational things? Use that which is in your hand for His Purpose. AND IF HE IS IN IT-YOU WILL LEAD!

Exodus 15:2 Moses sang this with the people: “The LORD is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise Him, my father’s God, and I will exalt Him.” And He leads the People of God, God’s way!

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The verse for this month is:

Romans 15:4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

ローマ15:4 これまでに書かれた事がらは、すべてわたしたちの教のために書かれたのであって、それは聖書の与える忍耐と慰めとによって、望みをいだかせるためである。

“I will give you rest.” ~ Jesus said that. 「わたしがあなたを休ませます」イエスはそう言った。

The beginning of a new year.  We need to start at the beginning. Look at this.

 The Aleph is the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet, and the Omega is the last letter of the Greek alphabet. ヘブライ語の最初のアルファベット、アルフを青字、ギリシャ語のアルファベット最後のオメガを紫色としています。 Not only does this symbolize the One who has come and will come again, it also emphasizes the continuity of God's work in history throughout both the Old and New Testaments. To better understand where we are now, we need to look back and see where we have come from.  Where do we stand as a Church?  What do we stand for?

Our purpose statement.    Who we are:

ICCS seeks to extend the transforming power of Christ through the world by ministering to the international and local community in Japan through worship, prayer, evangelism, lay training, and discipleship resulting in believers who are equipped and encouraged to stand firm in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Starting at the very beginning.  The start of the Church, as we know it, did not start 20+ years ago as an outreach to the Expats in the Tokorozawa area.  No, it did indeed start way back in the time of the Acts of the Apostles.  Peter, James, Paul and the rest, saw the birth of a new thing God was doing on the earth.  People from every tribe and nation were coming together under the same banner to worship the Living God, the Father of our Lord Jesus.  The Holy Spirit of God FELL on those early Believers in such power and with so much might, it shook the very foundations of the known world at that time.

Remember what happened? As Peter was preaching—as the result of some people suggesting they were drunk—the Good News of God’s Great Grace moved on them.  It did not stop there. Even with difficult persecutions, the little band of followers of Jesus grew each day.  1,000 here—5,000 there.  Here, ten, there, one hundred fifty five. In a matter of a few years, the entire known world—and with some evidence of even beyond that—had the opportunity to hear—for the first time, that Jesus was the only way to the Father.  Jesus, the Son of God, the Promised One.

Jesus’ promise of Matthew 28:20 was as true then as it is today. He is with His Church. “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

So the opposite of that would also be true.  He is not with those who oppose His Church. He loves them, but they have chosen to exclude Him from their walk.  Cut Him out of their every day life.  Only give lip service to This Loving, Creator God. 

So, is He really with us as He told us? Was that only a figure of speech? Only a wild dream?  Well, we could just say, “yes, Jesus will always be with me” and move on.  However, to do so, might deny some reality. Truth be known, sometimes it really looks like He has not stayed with us at all but working against us at times. Can that be true?  We could say it is not true but our lives show a different truth.  At times, doesn’t it feel like you have been left outside in the rain?

Let’s look at this.  As we start the New Year, we want to be sure we got our story straight.  Let’s look back, shall we, to a time when God did speak verbally to His People.   

Exodus 33:14
The LORD replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” 出エジプト 33:14 すると主は仰せられた。「わたし自身がいっしょに行って、あなたを休ませよう」

First, the background. Israel in Egypt for over 400 years. (Genesis 50-Exodus 1) The last part of that had been really hard.  Slaves really, under the stern hand of the Pharaoh. (Ex 1:8) Moses. (3-6) Ten plagues. (7-11)  Passover. (12) Leaving Egypt richer. (12:33-42) Crossing the Sea. (14) Manna and Quail AND water provided by the Hand of God (16-17). At Mount Sinai.  The Ten Commandments given. (20) The Covenant Confirmed from the Book of the Covenant. (24:1-18)

The Ark (25) and the Tabernacle (26) where God’s Presence was. (32) The Golden Calf and God’s anger burned against the stiffed-necked people (32:10). And it is at this time, God was speaking to Moses again, and telling him, just as I had been with you in the past and had lead you through all that we went over just now.  Read from Exodus 33:12-23! 

What a thing to hear!  Did you catch the relationship between Moses and his God, the Great I AM? “If you are not going up with us, then we will not go.” “Oh, I WILL go with you because I know you by name.”

Does God know you by your name?  Does He even care to know you that way?  YES!  Exodus 34:10  “I will make a covenant with you.”  Even though we are a stiff-necked people!  34:14. “Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.”  He jealously looks to us and expects us to look to Him and He will give His People His rest!

 “And I will give you rest.”  What a great promise! Many in our fellowship are very tired.  Things have fallen into our lives and it has affected us in many ways.  Some deal with it in seclusion. Some rather not even deal with it and reject the problem.  Others are blaming everyone else for their problems.  That is called denial.  Yes, many of us are tired.  Worn out and we need to take a rest.  But some of us are taking the rest the wrong way.  Some have stopped coming to church, as they are upset or challenged with personal relationships. Is it easier to push the problem away and not deal with it or face it and deal with it?  Like a beach ball in the ocean, you can’t keep it under the surface.  It will come up—in time.  It MUST come up…but we deny it being there at all!

We don’t really want rest—we want justice.  We may even want vengeance.  We want the other person to pay. So we cut ourselves off from fellowship.  Or, we might always show up here each week, but we are far from being the kind of community God wants of us.  He wants to give us rest but He can’t because we are not forgiving each other.

I am saying this for the whole Church—everywhere! Israel had a problem with forgiveness.  The early church had a problem with forgiveness and the church today has the same problem with forgiveness.  We don’t feel we can be forgiven. And we don’t forgive one another. 

Yet, God still says: “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” And we say, NO YOU WILL NOT!  We would rather be in pain, than experience rest. Why? Because we know better! Isn’t that true?  We know better than God-who made us and wants to give us what He has for us NOT what we deserve.  More Grace than you can ever believe in.  More love than we could ever accept.  HE WILL GIVE US HIS REST when we accept His Grace!

“I will have nothing to do with a God who cares only occasionally. I need a God who is with us always, everywhere, in the deepest depths as well as the highest heights. It is when things go wrong, when good things do not happen, when our prayers seem to have been lost, that God is most present.” Madeline L'Engle

The New Testament gives us more information on this ans from the lips of Jesus: Matthew 11:28   “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” マタイ 11:28  「すべて、疲れた人、重荷を負っている人は、わたしのところに来なさい。わたしがあなたがたを休ませてあげます。」

Bring it on!  Weary people, walking with no delight. Burdened people without any enjoyment!  WE NEED HIS REST BECAUSE WE ARE NOT FUN PEOPLE ANYMORE! We lack His Joy!

I love the song; Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee!

Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee,
 God of glory, Lord of love;
 Hearts unfold like flow’rs before Thee, 
Op’ning to the sun above.
 Melt the clouds of sin and sadness;
 Drive the dark of doubt away; 
Giver of immortal gladness,
 Fill us with the light of day!

Thou art giving and forgiving,
 Ever blessing, ever blest,
 Wellspring of the joy of living,
 Ocean depth of happy rest!
 Thou our Father, Christ our Brother,
 All who live in love are Thine;
 Teach us how to love each other,
 Lift us to the joy divine.

Oh, would that be true of us/of ICCS in 2012!  That we would embrace the JOY of His Rest as He instructed us. And as we do that, we are to carry on what He has given us to do. 

(In Matthew 28:18-20) Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

マタイ 28:18-20

イエスは近づいて来て、彼らにこう言われた。「わたしには天においても、地においても、いっさいの権威が与えられています。それゆえ、あなたがたは行って、あらゆる国の人々を弟子としなさい。そして、父、子、聖霊の御名によってバプテスマを授け、また、わたしがあなたがたに命じておいたすべてのことを守るように、彼らを教えなさい。見よ。わたしは、世の終わりまで、いつも、あなたがたとともにいます。」

To the very end of 2012 or until the Lord returns!

Christmas Morning: Just what I always wanted クリスマスの朝：いつもわたしが願うこと

Luke 2:1-20  ルカ2：1-20

    When you woke up this AM, what did you feel? Tired, even after a good night of sleep?  Maybe, you did not sleep so very well and you haven’t been sleeping that well for a few months now.  Maybe you did not sleep at all and you are here ready to fall asleep any minute now. Don’t be afraid…恐れるな。。。  Good news…よきお告げ。。。  Great joy… 大いなる喜び。。。

　　

    Could it be that Christmas has become just one of those times you just try and get through?  It is hard to get into the Spirit of Christmas this year.  There are less and less Christmas lights in the shopping areas.  Almost no Christmas music—as in the past. There had been WONDERFUL Carols and even Worship Song being played over the sounds systems.  Handle’s Messiah, Glory to God, in the Highest!  Not your Bing Crosby type of dribble but real worship songs.  All that has not been in place this time…maybe because of the March 11th event… Maybe because people are just not interested.

    Are you interested? Somewhat, or you would not be here this morning.  Unless you don’t have other things to do or places to go, you made a good choice.  Thank you for being here.

     One reason some are not interested in Christmas very much is because they don’t really understand what this all means.  There might be a dark cloud around the holiday because there is a misunderstanding of God’s willingness to forgive. 

    In fact, that is JUST what I want to talk to you about this morning: forgiveness.  And I want to speak about Truths and Myths.  And Christmas is full of them both.  Some are there because of error and others are there because of truth.

    I have heard from more than one person that forgiveness is not only hard to give, it is not natural. Impossible with man but POSSIBLE with God  人には不可能だが神には可能。

     A young lady tells that her own father abused her when she was a child.  How could a father do that?  How could God allow that to happen?  When the subject of forgiveness comes up, she says that that sort of a person does not deserve forgiveness.  On one hand, she is right.  He doesn’t deserve it but it is offered. Forgiveness for that lady, as well as so many others, is a real struggle.  It is not only just difficult to forgive—it is impossible. In Luke 6:37, Jesus teaches, “Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”  He adds to that teaching in Matthew 6:14-15: “For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will to forgive you sins.”  Paul adds to the fire with Colossians 3:13 “Forgive as the Lord forgave you”.  

     There needs to be a better way to understand forgiveness and for us to receive true healing from wrongs done to us and to our families.  It is a healing and freedom God desires for you and for me, and especially during this Christmas Season.  Why? Because He forgave us.  He was born to do that very thing.

     Today, we will quickly look at a few Myths of Forgiveness 赦しの６つの神話。 And then, How That Fits With Christmas.  Let’s get started.

     MYTH #1 about forgiveness is:Forgiving means the offender didn’t really hurt you. 赦しは攻撃するものがあなたを傷つけないということを意味する。

      The young lady felt that if she forgave her father, it would lessen the severity of the parental abuse. The forgiveness does not deny the hurt; does not deny the wrong.  What he did was evil.  He did the abuse and he wronged her. The offense was not to be belittled at all.  Forgiveness would only end the fear.

     It has been said, “Forgiveness is a redemptive response to having been wronged and wounded.  Only those who have wronged and wounded us are candidates for forgiveness.”  ~ Lewis B. Smedes.  If she CHOSE to forgive her father, that would begin her healing of the deep pain she may still experience.

Forgiveness was seen at Christmas! 赦しはクリスマスに表れる！

Myth #2: Forgiveness means that you excuse the offender’s cruel act. 赦しは冷酷な行いに言い訳を与えることを意味するWhen I chose to forgive the one who wronged me, I do not condone the behavior, it is a response that seeks to redeem the pain—not cover it up.  Betrayal by a friend needs forgiveness.  It would unlock my prison of bitterness.  Bitterness really ends up hurting us more than the issue at hand.

Forgiveness was seen at Christmas! 赦しはクリスマスに表れる！

Myth #3: Before you can forgive the offended person, you must feel forgiven. 赦すことができる前に、赦されたことを感じ取らねばならない。 In truth, forgiveness has nothing what so ever to do with feelings.  You may still feel hurt, angry and betrayed and still completely forgive the one who hurt you. When we look at forgiveness, it must be with the eyesight of Biblical forgiveness.  It is an act of the will.  You make the choice to forgive.  I want to forgive that person.  I want to end the cycle of hurt.

     Remember that God’s love has shown us that kind of love.  We were enemies of God, not wanting to allow Him to control our lives.  We also chose to  NOT worship Him.  Not to love Him. Not to follow His teachings.  We made the choice to bend the rules. We allowed our life to move off center—even a little—from what He wanted for us.  He wants to forgive us. He offers that forgiveness in our accepting His Free gift of eternal life in His Only Son, Jesus, the Christ. 

Forgiveness was seen at Christmas! 赦しはクリスマスに表れる！

Myth #4: It is important to understand why the person hurt you before you can forgive them. 赦される前に人はあなたをなぜ傷つけるのか理解することが重要である。 Not true.  In fact, back in 1997, a second year student in Kentucky demonstrates just the opposite.  She was leading a prayer meeting before school started when an other students burst into the meeting and started shooting 11 shots into the praying group. One of the bullets severely damaged the spinal cord of a girl named Missy.  She became paralyzed from the waist down.  She will be in a wheelchair for the rest of her life.

     Missy still does not know why the shooter did that but that did not stop this young crippled girl from making the choice to forgive him.  She was reported to say: “It won’t make me walk again. Besides, I know it isn’t what Jesus would do.”

     Philip Yancey wrote in his book What’s So Amazing About Grace, “Not to forgive imprisons me in the past and locks out all potential for change. I thus yield control to another, my enemy, and doom myself to suffer the consequences of the wrong.”

Forgiveness was seen at Christmas! 赦しはクリスマスに表れる！

Myth #5: Some would say—forgiving means the offended will face no consequences, no penalty. 赦しは攻撃したものが何の罰に直面しないことを意味する。 When you make the choice to forgive someone of their wronging you, your forgiveness does not ‘make it all better.’ It does not let them off the hook. Forgiving someone does not mean justice shouldn’t be served. 

     Remember when Pope John Paul II was shot in 1981? A few years later, when John Paul had recovered from the gunshot to the chest, he visited the prison where his would-be assassin was imprisoned.  Looking him in the eye, John Paul said to Aqca while offering him his hand, “I forgive you.”  Even after that, Aqca continued serving his sentence and was released in 2006.

Back where I come from, we have a saying: You do the crime, you spend the time. 犯罪を犯し、時間を浪費する。

Forgiveness was seen at Christmas! 赦しはクリスマスに表れる！

Lastly, Myth #6: When your offender is finally punished, you will find sweet closure. あなたの攻撃者が最終的に罰せられるとき、すばらしい終わりを見るであろう。Not even close. You are still hurt.  You still have the memory of the event.

     In 1990, two daughters of a woman named Linda were killed by a very evil man.  Ten years later, as the man was being strapped to his death gurney, the murder apologized for the savage killings.  All that did not bring closer for Linda.  She was disappointed after the execution, not comforted. 

     We would think that punishment for the crime or offence would bring healing.  One would think that a deep apology or justice or imprisonment or even an execution would produce the much expected closure, but it would not.  Only forgiveness would do that. ただ赦しのみがそれを為す。

Forgiveness is a process.  It does not come all at once.  It is a journey—and sometimes a very long one.

After the War in the Pacific, a former member of the bombing squad over Japan, the Doolittle Raiders, was handing out tracts at the Shibuya station. His name was Jacob DeShazer.  In his book, Forgive Your Enemies, DeShazer, who had spent almost the entire war as a POW and suffered terrible torture (including water-boarding) found the only way he could survive was to open his heart to God.  Becoming a born-again Christian, he found his life's purpose in missionary work.  He eventually returned to Japan where he began a mission and converted one of the guards who had routinely beat him during his activity.

     DeShazer, part of the Doolittle Raiders who bombed Nagoya, met Captain Mitsuo Fuchida, 淵田美津雄隊長 who led the attack on Pearl Harbor. They becoming close friends. Fuchida became a Christian in 1950 after reading a tract written about DeShazer titled, I Was a Prisoner of Japan, and spent the rest of his life as a missionary in Asia and the United States. On occasion, DeShazer and Fuchida preached together as Christian missionaries in Japan.

     In the US, Fuchida sought reconciliation and began a career of preaching to the Japanese American community.  In one of those historical ironies, a quarter century after he led the first attack, he was naturalized as an American citizen. His story can be found in the book, God’s Samurai: Lead Pilot at Pearl Harbor by Dillion, Godlstein and Prange.

     After the war, Jacob DeShazer returned to Japan and served his former enemy for thirty years as a missionary. His testimony of forgiveness and reconciliation - of love over hate - inspires a powerful Gospel message for our lives today. As for Fuchida-he wrote, "That morning [December 7] … I lifted the curtain of warfare by dispatching that cursed order, and I put my whole effort into the war that followed. … [But] after buying and reading the Bible, my mind was strongly impressed and captivated. I think I can say today without hesitation that God's grace has been set upon me."

Forgiveness was seen at Christmas! 赦しはクリスマスに表れる！

Forgiveness ABC’s 赦しのABC

Acknowledge the hurt: Speak it out to the Lord. See Ps 34:18 and Ps 147:3 打ち砕かれた者を知る。　詩編34：18、147：3

Blame the offender: Correctly placing the blame prepares you to begin the forgiveness process. 攻撃者を叱咤する　癒しの道のり You are on the road to healing.

Cancel the debt: 借りを帳消しにする。　マタイ6：9-13 You now need the Lord’s help even more.  Matt 6:9-13 (esp verse 12)  “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” Speak it aloud and say: “__NAME__, I have chosen to forgive you for hurting me. I have decided to cancel the debt you owe me.”  On the road in the process of forgiving the person who hurt you. God has a plan that really works!　神は本当に有効な計画を持っていた

     Now, how does this fit in at Christmas time? Forgiveness was really seen at Christmas! God made man. He is the creator of all life. Man HAD a growing, personal relationship with Him in the Garden. Man made a very stupid mistake. He did not correct his wife and let them both be tempted to go against God’s Word. They took something that He told them not to take. This disobedience was a break in that relationship. Man broke God’s heart. He separated himself from his Creator.  In his broken condition, he kept making the wrong choice…yet the Creator made a way for His creation to be brought back to His Love.  Man broke it and God was going to make it right.  Forgiveness needed to be expressed. Man could not provide such an expression as the penalty was so huge. God alone could. He sent His Only Son. That was the WHY of the Baby in Bethlehem.  That is the WHY of Christmas.  

John 3:16. For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.ヨハネ3：16   神は、実に、そのひとり子をお与えになったほど、世を愛された。それは御子を信じる者が、ひとりとして滅びることがなく、永遠のいのちを持つためである。

Isn't forgiveness something you always wanted?  It is yours in Christ Jesus!

Forgiveness was seen at Christmas!

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Myths taken from an article, What Forgiveness Isn’t by Denise George.  6 myths that may be keeping you from letting go.  July/August 200 issue of Today’s Christian Woman.

Faith, the kids and I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and to have a Christmas that will express His dear love to you and to your loved ones around the world.

"Glory to God in the highest,

and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rest,"

わが家族より皆様へメリークリスマスFaithと子供たちそして私からクリスマスのよき訪れ、世界中の主の愛があなたとあなたの愛する者たちの上に示されますようにと願います。来年２０１２年に会いましょう。

「いと高き所に、栄光が、神にあるように。地の上に、平和が、御心にかなう人々にあるように。」

Do you bow at all? あなたはかしづきますか。

Matt 2:1-12   マタイ2：1-12

 Believers, what do you believe??

     The Apostles' Creed

I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth:

And in Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son, our Lord:

Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary:

Suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, dead and buried: 

The third day He rose again from the dead:                           

He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty:

From there He shall come to judge the quick and the dead:

I believe in the Holy Spirit,

the holy universal church,

the communion of saints,

the forgiveness of sins,

the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.

Amen.

   It is the time of year for singing some pretty interesting songs. Some of the songs that are sung are really off base.  It is not my intention this morning to make fun of some of the holiday songs but one of them just has it wrong.  

 “Have yourself a merry little Christmas, it may be your last,
Next year we may all be living in the past/OR (Let your heart be light / Next year all our troubles will be out of sight".)
Have yourself a merry little Christmas, pop that champagne cork, Next year we will all be living in New York.
No good times like the olden days, happy golden days of yore,
Faithful friends who were dear to us, will be near to us no more.
But at least we all will be together, if the Fates allow, (if the Lord allows) From now on we'll have to muddle through somehow. So have yourself a merry little Christmas now.”

   Introduced by Judy Garland in 1944, and even she criticized the song as depressing. In the 1980’s Mr. Hugh Martin, the writer of the song, was playing his piano at a local church in the Western US when he told that the words were originally written differently. Hugh Martin-a believer who wanted the song to reflect his faith… BUT THE INDUSTRY DID NOT WANT THE “GOD THING’ IN THERE.  

   In just a few years, the whole meaning of the song was changed.  For better or for worst, it was changed.  Not so with our passage today. The words of Matthew ring true; the whole of the passage. And it was to BRING us the Good News and for us to KNOW Salvation.

In this passage, we also have the response of three very different people to the news of the birth of this “shepherd of My people.”

1. The chief rulers of “the Faith” 「信仰」の第一人者

   These men of faith knew in their heard all about the Promised One. They knew where to look for the answer—The Prophet Micah. And they know what he had said about where—in Bethlehem.

They told King Herod BUT THEY REMAINED in Jerusalem! Would that have been your response? They only reported the information and remained in the city and in effect, let foreigners go find Him.  Seemingly uninterested.  Are you to find out?

   They are so very like many of the religious leaders today—for the most part, they have head knowledge only of the Divine.  No heart at all.  I found this true in my own church I grew up in…more interested in trees, handshakes and beer than Christ.

These, so called leaders of the Faith were as blind then as they were about 30 years later when Jesus called them blind…

   Now as for 2. The official ruler of Israel, イスラエルの公的支配者,Herod. ヘロデ The Romans put this man up as ruler in the Palestine region as King of Judea in 37BC. He was ethnically Arab but a somewhat practicing Jew.  He was given the title of Herodes Magnus or Herod the Great.  He really liked that title!

   He was also given the title of ‘King of the Jews’ by Rome.  From what I read about this man, he really did not like being where he was and wanted Rome to do better things for him.  They did not so he seemed to take it out on the Jews.  He also had some interpersonal problems with family members.  Once when he visited Rome, he feared for his life—so, he ordered the death of his dear wife should he not return, as he could not bear the thought of another man with her.  Later, he had his wife put on trial and executed for scheming against him. There was no evidence of such a claim. He later executed three of his own sons in fear of being overtaken. He gave the order of all the high officials in Jerusalem to be arrested when he neared death, and killed on his own death so that the city would cry. He was also credited for the massacre of infants “from two years old and under, according to the time which he diligently inquired of the wise men.”  (Matt 2:16)

   He was upset in our passage because of the title the wise men used… verse 2 “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.”

   When they used THAT line, he was once again threatened.  That is why the whole city was disturbed with him.  The old line, “If the king isn’t happy, NOBODY is happy” comes to mind here.

   He, of course, did not wish to worship the New King of the Jews.  He lied to the wise men and hid from them his evil intent.  Not hidden, however from the Lord. The Lord showed the Wise men in a dream that they should leave by another route.  Could have cost them their lives but they were well gone from the power of Herod by that time.

   Which then leaves us with the third group: 3. The wise men from the east. 東からの賢者

   Even with our Christmas Carol “We, Three Kings…” we really don’t know 1. If there were three. 2. That they were kings but we do know they came from the east to see this Child King.  They came after the birth of Christ and not on the evening of the birth as with the shepherds.  Because they gave three kinds of gifts, it doesn’t mean there were three of them.  Does not really mater.  What matters is what they brought with them, why they came and what they did when they saw Him.

   a.What they brought with them: 彼らは何を持参したのでしょうかthe gifts they brought: Gold was a standard of trade more reliable than any country's money in those days. Frankincense and myrrh were sacred spices burned before the altar of the Lord. Myrrh was also associated with marriages and burials. These would come in handy in the weeks ahead as the family left for Egypt soon there after.  It also was a foreshadowing of what Jesus would need during His Ministry.  Needs that would cover His life, His work and His death.

   b. why they came. 彼らはなぜ来たのでしょうか  They might not have known it, but their coming was a fulfillment of Old Testament Messianic prophecies found in Ps 72:10, 11, 詩編72：10-11; Isa 49:7, 23 , イザヤ49：7,23; Isa 60:6 イザヤ60：6. They learned of this birth by looking to the skies.  I don’t understand the whole of this but the fact that the Lord shows His handiwork in nature is commonly seen.  He showed these men that something GREAT and totally unusual was going to take place and off they went to see and meat this Child.

   They came to see the Great Light.  The first Gentiles to see Him.  They came to worship Him—as foreigners.  Given this special task along with poor and ignorant local shepherds.  Again, a foreshadow of the call of God to the WORLD of His universal call of the Church.  All men are called to Him to worship the Incarnate God, showing that salvation was offered to all men, every tribe and nation.

   Let’s not miss this! c. what they did when they saw Him 彼らが主を見たとき何をしたのでしょうか。is the key to our message today.  They did something that we should also do.  They worshiped Him.  How? Verse 11  On coming to the house, they saw the child with His mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh.

   Are you willing to bow down to Him? Think about what else we bow down to. The call to being honest. The call to being a good husband.  The call to be the best you can be. The call of manhood.  The call of womanhood. The call of being a good citizen. Of being well off.  Of being intelligent.  Most of these callings, many would feel, are our rights.  We are destined to be these things. It is our right.

   So the question I have to answer and I am asking you to answer is this: Am I living my life for these things? IS being good my drive? IS being honest my center? IS being the best I can be the force that drives my life?

   Even before they saw Him, as they were coming closer, there was joy!  9 After they had heard the king, …10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.

   When the wise men bowed down to the Christ Child, think of what they saw.  A baby. In a house…not a stable, this happened later, remember? They saw a child.  A small child at that!  There were no angles flying around Him.  No Handel’s Messiah being played. No special glow around His little head.  He was just a BABY. But they caught the real meaning that has been lost so many times as we come to this season.  “Oh, little Christ Child…”  “No crying He made…” THAT KIND OF JESUS is fluff.  He was really God!

   And they worshiped Him!  For who He is! They knew that He was the Promised One from Old.  They knew He was the Son of God and they bowed down and worshiped Him.

   When you came here this morning, what did you expect to see?  What did you expect to hear? Soft music that charmed our ears? A ‘nice’ service?  Or did you expect to come into the very presence of the Living God of Creation?

   These men were called ‘wise men’ and for sure they were! They were wise because they were not tricked by the world. They were ready to see what they had been searching for.  They even brought things to give to Him. To present to Him.  Not a few extra pieces of change, but Gifts of Gold!  Gifts of incense and gifts of myrrh.  What do you have to give Him? He wants just you.  Your attention, your passion. All of you. What a joy to His Heart to get that from you today!  Because He first loved us… in fact…

   John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

ヨハネ3：16神は、実に、そのひとり子をお与えになったほど、世を愛された。それは御子を信じる者が、ほとりとして滅びることがなく、永遠のいのちを持つためである。

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For God                The Greatest All:

So loved               The Greatest emotion: Motivates His actions

The world             The greatest community

That He gave        The greatest sacrifice: He gave His ALL

His only Son         The greatest relationship: the Savior

That whoever       The greatest number: Open to all who believe.

Believes               The greatest adventure: based on Faith

In Him                 The greatest Person

Shall not perish    The greatest separation

But have              The greatest opportunity

Eternal life            The greatest gift: the reward is Great!

   One of the greatest gifts you can give to God is your attention. When was the last time you were passionate with God?  When did you cry out to Him with your open hurt and express to Him your need for Him to know your heart? The time for this is NOW!

   Merry Christmas!  Come to the Candle Light Service on Dec 24 at 6:30 PM.  4:30 for the Community Walking Caroling.

“The Joy: 喜び； The World Is Crowded With Gethsemanes" 世界はゲッセマネ（・・・の象徴）で満ちている

3rd week of Advent

   I DISCOVERED this past week that the Garden of Gethsemane was not really a garden at all but an orchard. Olive trees still grow there today, but during Jesus’ day it was a place of business, an olive press producing the local areas supply of oil. This is where the word Gethsemane comes in. A gat (Hebrew) is a press, a large five-foot high square stone pillar, and a semane, is oil. So on the evening before His crucifixion Jesus went to the orchard of the Olive Press with Peter, James, and John, to pray and to be pressed.

   If you lived in the first century and worked with an olive press (gethsemane), your day would be spent gathering olives, placing them in a woven fishnet like bag, and putting them on top of a stone table. This specially designed table is round with beveled edges that curve down to a trough. The trough is angled and funnels into a bucket which holds the oil. The top is designed to receive the pressed oil. The tall square stone is lifted up and set on top of the basket and for several hours its tremendous weight is left there to crush the liquid from the little olive.

   It is no accident that Jesus spent His last evening in the Garden of Gethsemane. From there He would leave to go to the Cross and receive the weight of the world, the gethsemane of our sins, blood crushed from His body running down the Cross to the world below. Dr. Luke describes the pressure Jesus suffered that evening: And being in anguish, He prayed more earnestly, and His sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. 医者のルカは、「苦しみもだえて、いよいよ切に祈られた。汗が血のしずくのように地に落ちた。」と書いています。 Luke 22:44  It is an image of the gathsemane crushing the oil from the olive fruit.

   Gethsemane ever since has come to symbolize suffering. And you already know that the world is crowded with gethsemanes 世界各地のゲッセマネfrom Bible times; Herod’s slaughtering the innocent. Today: Saran Gas attacks in Tokyo; Oklahoma City bombing; Columbine High School. And around the world: in Dec 21, 1988, over the skies of Dunblane in Scotland, a Pan Am jumbo jet 103 blew up-killing 259 people in the air and another 11 more on the ground, On March 16, 1988, in Halabja, Iraq the gassing of the Kurds that killed 5,000; Bosnia, the scenes of ethnic cleansing where over 100,000 died; and the town of Beslan, Russia where over 300 children were killed by terrorist. Rwanda, in 2004, over 800,000 Hutus and Tutsi were killed in less than 100 days. The world is full of gethsemanes. There are times and towns where the innocent have suffered. In the face of such unspeakable horror we need to ask ourselves some questions:

   First: whom do we turn to? だれに対するのでしょうか？

   50 years from now, people will say, Ishnomaki was the place so many school children died. So many innocent were lost. In times like that, whom do we turn to?  King David had some idea… See Ps 77:1-19 詩篇77：1-19

1 I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me. 2 When I was in distress, I sought the Lord; at night I stretched out untiring hands and my soul refused to be comforted. 3 I remembered you, O God, and I groaned; I mused, and my spirit grew faint. 4 You kept my eyes from closing; I was too troubled to speak. 5 I thought about the former days, the years of long ago; 6 I remembered my songs in the night. My heart mused and my spirit inquired:7 “Will the Lord reject forever? Will He never show His favor again? 8 Has His unfailing love vanished forever? Has His promise failed for all time? 9 Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has He in anger withheld His compassion?”10 Then I thought, “To this I will appeal: the years of the right hand of the Most High.” 11 I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember Your miracles of long ago. 12 I will meditate on all Your works and consider all Your mighty deeds.13 Your ways, O God, are holy. What god is so great as our God? 14 You are the God who performs miracles; You display Your power among the peoples. 15 With Your mighty arm You redeemed Your people, the descendants of Jacob and Joseph.16 The waters saw You, O God, the waters saw You and writhed; the very depths were convulsed. 17 The clouds poured down water, the skies resounded with thunder; Your arrows flashed back and forth. 18 Your thunder was heard in the whirlwind, Your lightning lit up the world; the earth trembled and quaked. 19 Your path led through the sea, Your way through the mighty waters, though Your footprints were not seen.

   Who do we turn to when things are unexplainable painful?  God?

   The Bible asks us this question. And the Psalmist in essence is saying that there is no consolation, not even in God, when your soul has been torn from you. But even in great despair something faithful is happening. Even when we cry out “God is not there” we reveal our deep desire for God.

   There are many who have had it really tough in our world. Some of you have experienced great pain during your life-time. The illness or hard times sapped their strength almost to the point of death. In the midst of this illness, some wrote on suffering. Some would later come to realize: The sickness, which kept them in bed, which held them back, forced them to think about their spiritual condition. Suffering gets our attention; it forces us to look to God, when otherwise we would just as well ignore Him. 

   One who wrote a great deal about suffering and loss is Philip Yancey, who wrote: “Any discussion of how pain and suffering fit into God's scheme ultimately leads back to the Cross. ”  He later wrote: “God loves people because of who God is, not because of who we are.” What’s So Amazing About Grace? And in that pain of life, we see His Love.

   That’s it. Suffering gets our attention. 苦難は私たちの緊張感を高めます Suffering forces us to look toward another; forces us to ask the deeper questions about life; forces us to turn toward God. Even if it is to express our displeasure and despair, we turn to Him and in those pleas we display our faith in Him.

   The first question is: Who do we turn to? The second is: What are we to do? 私たちは何をすべきか？ The answer here could be obvious: we are to pray. When Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane, He went there for one reason, to pray.

   Not the time for sleeping, but to pray. 祈り  Get up and pray! During Advent, it is not a time of leisure and pleasure. Prayer gets us ready for suffering.  Our soul needs prayer to really live.  Jesus told His followers to pray because He knew what was to happen shortly after.

   Prayer does two things. It helps us cope with the hardships that come our way—and they will come our way.

  私たちの道のりにある苦難に耐えられるように助けてください   John 16:3 “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” けてください。ヨハネ16：3     

   It prepares us for what lies ahead.

   The hard times we go through is like being boiled in water. “If you are an egg, your affliction will make you hard-boiled and unresponsive. If you are a potato, you will emerge soft and pliable, resilient and adaptable." It may sound funny to some, but there have been times when we should pray, "O Lord, let me be a potato."

   #1-helps us cope with what is ahead and #2, It guides away from temptation. 誘惑から逃れられるように導いてもらう祈り　マルコ14：38

   “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.” Mark 14:38.   

   This was said in the Olive Garden.  In Luke, Jesus said this twice!

   Hardship many times brings temptation: Temptation to compromise our principles, temptation to pursue pleasure over adversity, temptation to renounce our faith in God. (Peter later quickly learned this lesson as he denied that he even knew Jesus.)  All 11 of His Disciples left the scene of His betrayal afraid for their own lives. They did not pray so they did not stay.  They did not stay so they gave into temptation because they did not pray.

   First question: Who do we turn to? Answer: God, even in our despair. Second question: What do we do? Answer: Pray to cope. Pray against temptation. Pray for one another. And pray for the Kingdom to come. Third question: Where do we go from here? 私たちはここからどこへ向かう？ Answer? Well this one is a little more complicated. The answer isn’t easy because life isn’t easy. When Jesus left Gethsemane, where did He go?  He went to Golgotha. He went to the Cross. イエスは十字架へ向かった At times we all seem to be running from the garden of despair to the hill of suffering. You will be in good company!

   We have seen so far in our Walk Thru the Bible that people have had their Gethsemane: their place of pressure.  Abraham-when he was asked to sacrifice his only son.  For Joseph, when he was put into jail for something he did not do.  Paul had his gethsemanes in his life. He listed them…stoned, whipped, robbed and shipwrecked.  

  2 Cor 11:24-26 24 第２コリント１１：24-26 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one.(195X) 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers.” 

   One major truth is found in these: When we are going through them, many times DO NOT SEE the purpose of the Gethsemanes we face.

   We cannot deny the picture painted by the Psalmist when he asks, 7 “Will the Lord reject forever? Will He never show His favor again? 8 Has His unfailing love vanished forever? Has His promise failed for all time? 9 Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has He in anger withheld His compassion?” Does His promises fail? Has God forgotten to be gracious? And David said this in his infirmity (condition)." 

   How does this fit during this, the third week of Advent when the key word is JOY. 

James 1:2-3 2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.

ヤコブの手紙 / 1章 2節-3節 わたしの兄弟たち、いろいろな試練に出会うときは、この上ない喜びと思いなさい。信仰が試されることで忍耐が生じると、あなたがたは知っています。

   I believe those three members of the new family did not really know what was going on nor what to do next.  It took a dream given to Joseph to get them going to Egypt as Herod’s killers were on their way to do murder. God was giving them JUST what they needed to take them to the next step. One step at a time-in the Father’s Will—produces JOY 喜び as they learned to TRUST.  Same for us. Look to Him, Pray to Him. Be lead by His Spirit and find the JOY of Christmas.