Plagues In Our Lives/わたしたちの生活における災い

  (1446 BC: Then/ 2012AD: Now) 

　   Romans 15:4 “For everything that 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。

 Ex 7-11  出エジプト 7-11

And the Pharaoh’s heart was hardened.

1.Water to Blood-could not drink 水から血へ

7:19  The LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt—over the streams and canals, over the ponds and all the reservoirs’—and they will turn to blood. Blood will be everywhere in Egypt, even in the wooden buckets and stone jars.”

   The river is turned into blood. It was the distress of the Egyptians. Here is the first of the ten plagues.  It was a righteous plague, and justly sent upon the Egyptians; for the Nile, the Great River of Egypt, was their idol. That creature which we idolize, God justly takes from us, or makes bitter to us. The Egyptians had stained the river with the blood of the Hebrews' children, and now God made that river all blood and not only the river but all water—everywhere.  When people thirsted after blood, sooner or later they had enough of it. It was a significant plague; Egypt had great dependence upon their river. Truth will find us out as Truth seeks no corners. It is sin that turns our waters into blood.

2. Frogs-slimy frogs  かえる

 8:2-4  If you refuse to let them go, I will plague your whole country with frogs. The Nile will teem with frogs. They will come up into your palace and your bedroom and onto your bed, into the houses of your officials and on your people, and into your ovens and kneading troughs. The frogs will go up on you and your people and all your officials.’”

3. Gnats or Lice-on the body  ぶよ　あるいはのみ

8:16 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your staff and strike the dust of the ground,’ and throughout the land of Egypt the dust will become gnats.”

4. Flies-filth  あぶ

8:21 If you do not let My people go, I will send swarms of flies on you and your officials, on your people and into your houses. The houses of the Egyptians will be full of flies, and even the ground where they are.

5. Livestock Diseased-food 家畜の疫病

9:3 The hand of the LORD will bring a terrible plague on your livestock in the field—on your horses and donkeys and camels and on your cattle and sheep and goats. There was a very grievous fast-spreading disease like that of anthrax.

6. Boils-Personal   うみの出る腫物

9:8-9 Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from a furnace and have Moses toss it into the air in the presence of Pharaoh. It will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt, and festering boils will break out on men and animals throughout the land.”

7. Thunder and Hail 雷と雹

9:18 Therefore, at this time tomorrow I will send the worst hailstorm that has ever fallen on Egypt, from the day it was founded till now.

8. Locusts-ate everything the hail missed  いなご

10:4-5 If you refuse to let them go, I will bring locusts into your country tomorrow. They will cover the face of the ground so that it cannot be seen. They will devour what little you have left after the hail, including every tree that is growing in your fields.

9. Darkness-grouping without the Light of God. 暗闇

Go look at the first missionary journey of Paul when he had been set on an island-at Paphos, the false prophet named Bar-Jesus tried to keep the leader of the island from hearing the Gospel. Acts 13:11.  “Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the sun.”  Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. Same kind of darkness BUT this one could be felt!  Not just a man made blind-but all the Egyptians!

 

10:21-23 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that darkness will spread over Egypt—darkness that can be felt.” So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and total darkness covered all Egypt for three days. No one could see anyone else or leave his place for three days. Yet all the Israelites had light in the places where they lived.

10. Angel of Death-Firstborn had the birthright. 死の使い！ All the dreams for the family was in that one child.  It took the life of Pharaoh’s son as well; the hope of the Nation.

11:4-7 So Moses said, “This is what the LORD says: ‘About midnight I will go throughout Egypt. Every firstborn son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sits on the throne, to the firstborn son of the slave girl, who is at her hand mill, and all the firstborn of the cattle as well. There will be loud wailing throughout Egypt—worse than there has ever been or ever will be again. But among the Israelites not a dog will bark at any man or animal.’ Then you will know that the LORD makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel.

   After all these ten plagues on the Pharaoh’s country, one condition remained.  His heart was cold and hardened.  Can you even imagine that kind of response to these events?

   All this resulted in the leader of that great land of Egypt letting the People, the Hebrews, go. His heart was hard. Difficult to understand such hardness as his country was broken, economically shot, health wise, in the grabage and with so much personal loss. And yet, the Pharaoh was not all that convinced. And you and I would need to understand that he is no different from people today. Even ourselves. What did it take before we gave into the Way of God in our lives? Some of us came kicking and screaming into the faith—while others came running into the Light.  How does this historical event in Egypt help us understand the Hand of God?  How does it help us see our need for the Almighty?  How does it help us understand our need for a Savior?  A Savior from all the idols we have placed in our lives—as the Egyptians did so many years ago.

    While all this happened to the Land and People of Egypt, how did it affect the lives and hearts of the Hebrews? Did it help them in any way? Was their Faith in their “I AM THAT I AM” God made more sure? Did it help them in their walk of faith as they stepped out into the vast unknown?  In a word: no. Both responded the same way.

We need to learn from our past. わたしたちはわたしたちの過去に学ぶ必要がある

     One fact about our past is this! We can’t change our past. What was done was done. We need to learn from the past mistakes and successes but, try as we might, we can’t change the past.  Having said that, why then do we rehearse our past mistakes? Why do we allow the Evil One room in our minds to bring up our shortcomings time and time again?

     One reason is we might believe that we can still make changes in our past. That isn’t reality, is it? Yet we try.  If only I had said … If I only had chosen the other one …  I wish I had not … Why did that happen to me…?

     You can see that this will get us nowhere, yet we try. I hear a lot of this from people. I regret …   If only I had …  What a difference it would have made if …  That kind of living is like the Hebrews wanting to go back into Egypt. Oh, life back then was great!  We had all the good foods, we had work, and we had family times!  Truth is, you were slaves back then. You were hungry for Life itself. You were over worked. And your families were in bad shape.  NOTHING about the Good Old Days were all that good!

     Seems to be a trend to try and relive the past.  Whether it is retro music or haircuts or styles in cloths, the past was not all that good. You have come so far since then. And you have seen that some of the decisions you made were made ill advised.  Some of the conversation that you were involved in did not bring Glory to the Lord BUT what can be done with them now?

We need to put our full trust in the One who has called us.　わたしたちは神に全幅の信頼を置く必要がある

     Let it go. Forgive yourself.  I know you might want to hold on to them, but let it go! Don’t allow yourself the room for reliving the past. Give it to the Lord Who will touch it in His Own way. He will bring true refreshment to our souls. The old song back in the mid 70’s went: すべてをイエスに捧げよ

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Give Them All To Jesus  by Phil Johnson and Bob Benson, Sr.

Are you tired of chasing pretty rainbows? Are you tired of spinning round and round? Wrap up all those shattered dreams of your life. And at the feet of Jesus, lay them down.

Give them all to Jesus, Shattered dreams, wounded hearts, and broken toys. Give them all to Jesus. And He will turn your sorrows into joy.

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     The Lord WILL give His Peace to us as we learn to trust Him fully. And for many of us this morning, we have already put our trust in Him who has given us New Life in His Son, Jesus.  Some of us, as well, have not moved from that decision. We need to expand our Faith. We need to exercise our faith in many ways. I will hand out  a handout that has some verses to read and meditate on during this coming week. Add to your Faith a Heart to Trust.  Give them all to Jesus. (See list of verses at the end of this message.)

   Now, we may never see the Plagues upon our lives like those in Egypt received from the Hand of the Lord. But when hard times do come—and they will—we need to be found trusting Him.  Failure to do so will not only be sad, it would be a waste of a life. Trust God. Let each of us learn to do that in community. You can depend on this fellowship to help you. I can say that because I know you are able to help each other in your trust of God.       What matters in your life?      Please read Matthew 11:28.

"Failure is achieving success in something that ultimately doesn't matter." 失敗とはどうでもよい何かに成功することである。 Dr. Dixon in Chapel at CIU 1/10/2012.

Life for something that is well worth the life He saved.  Give it ALL to Jesus.

 (From the handout- Ps 46:1-2; 84:11-12; 37:3-5; 40:4; 125:1; Proverbs 3:5-6; Luke 12:32; Mark 6:31-32; and 1 Peter 5:7.)

Walk with the King today and be a blessing!

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。」