Tag: Paul Nordman

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I’ll Fight, Too.

Church on Sunday morning, men’s small group Monday evening, a larger men’s Bible study Wednesday morning, another Bible discussion Friday evening, and on top of this, daily personal time in the Word — do I really need another Bible study? Drawing near to other believers in community is indispensable to our spiritual growth and wellbeing, as modeled by the early church, who “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”1 Moreover, it is essential that we continue to absorb God’s purifying Word, as Jesus prayed to the Father on our behalf, “Make them holy for Yourself by the truth. Your Word is truth.”2 Yes, time in the Word with other believers is vital for a healthy church and a maturing people.

There comes a point, however, when we must stop and ask ourselves, “Is fortifying myself the endgame, or is there a greater purpose to which the Word calls me and for which it equips me?” On the night of His betrayal, Jesus humbly washed His disciples’ feet, then said to them, “Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. . . Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.”3 Paul likewise links learning and action — the indicative to the imperative: “Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me — put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”4 (Amazing, isn’t it, that God promises peace amid our obedience?)

What, then, does “put it into practice” look like? In his last public address, William Booth, the founder of The Salvation Army memorably articulated it this way: “While women weep, as they do now, I’ll fight; while children go hungry, as they do now I’ll fight; while men go to prison, in and out, in and out, as they do now, I’ll fight; while there is a poor lost girl upon the streets, while there remains one dark soul without the light of God, I’ll fight, I’ll fight to the very end!”5 Can there be a greater call, a greater meaning, a greater existence than to beat back darkness with the light of truth? Opportunities emerge before us every day. And if a particular form of darkness seems overwhelming to you, enlist with those already engaged in the fight — food pantries, prison ministries, hygiene help centers, student ministries . . . the list goes on. Just fight. And the God of peace will be with you.

Father, how great our call to love Your people in spirit and in action, for this also glorifies You. Equip us and lead us into the battle field. Win, just win. In Christ we pray. Amen.

1 Acts 2:42 NIV
2 John 17:17 NLV
3 John 13:14-17 NIV, emphasis added
4 Philippians 4:9 NIV, emphasis added
5 Public domain

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One Hundred Percent

A former work colleague — we’ll call him Ben — had previously made his living by selling life insurance, and like most sales people, he had accumulated a repertoire of battle stories, tests of wills between one trying to sell a product to those hesitant to buy it. In one such conversation, the prospect demurred, saying, “Well, what are my chances of dying, anyway, Ben?” The salesman kept his professional composure and replied matter-of-factly, “Oh, about a hundred percent.” Recalling the encounter years later, Ben described the look on the buyer’s face—stunned. “He looked as though this was the first time he had truly considered his inevitable demise.”

Death awaits us all; there are no exceptions. Israel’s King Solomon observed, “There is one fate for the righteous and for the wicked; for the good, for the clean and the unclean; for the person who offers a sacrifice and for the one who does not sacrifice.”1 We naturally fear death, and our fear takes different forms. Ben’s life insurance prospect, for instance, apparently lived in denial. Contrastingly, the ailing Hezekiah, when told he was at death’s door, “prayed to the Lord . . . and wept bitterly.”2 No denial here, just abject grief. God answered the king’s prayer, promising “I will add fifteen years to your life,”3 yet Hezekiah ultimately joined the “one hundred percent.” Likewise, every person Jesus ever healed in the Bible eventually died. And oddly enough, herein lies our hope.

For Jesus did not come to sentence us to eternal existence in a fallen, painful, and unjust world; rather, He came so that “what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.”4 Jesus came so that “through [His own] death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.”5 Then may we cower no longer at death, but run boldly, purposefully, and confidently toward life. For through Christ death is destroyed, and in Christ we live forever. One hundred percent.

Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. —Philippians 3:13-14 ESV

“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”6 Amen.

1 Ecclesiastes 9:2 NASB
2 Isaiah 38:2-3 ESV
3 Isiah 38:5 ESV
4 2 Corinthians 5:4 NIV
5 Hebrews 2:14-15 ESV
6 John 6:68-69 ESV

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The Hard Work

“Where else can you go and talk about Jesus to people who are coming to learn about Jesus?” mused my wife, Peggy. She was speaking about our Friday night Bible study through International Friendships (IFI), a ministry to international students pursuing degrees at American colleges and universities, many of whom know little, if anything, about Jesus when they arrive. She had a great point, yet I had an answer for her: Kairo Prison Ministries, “a short course in Christianity” for incarcerated men and women. For here also, seekers find answers from sharers, and in these answers, new life. Quipped one young Kairos volunteer to his wife, “I feel like I’m cheating!” But what we don’t see is all the groundwork others have toiled to lay before us.

As the denizens of Sychar made their way toward Jesus, He observed to His disciples, “I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”1 Did you catch it? The hard work in the Kingdom of God is not in the glorious reaping, but in the laborious sowing. Wrote Paul to the Corinthian church, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God’s fellow workers.”2 We are one body on one mission with one gospel, and each of us works as the Spirit leads us.

Among the “hard workers” in this Samaritan village was one unlikely woman who dared to tell others of her encounter with a thirsty Messiah offering living water. Then what about you — who were they who did the “hard work” of sowing Scripture seeds in you, and how long did it take for those seeds to germinate? Who were they whose joy, peace and contentment shone too brightly for you to ignore? Who patiently abided your rebellion and capably answered your arguments? It took time, didn’t it? Time and people.

Sometimes we feel like we must carry the entire evangelistic load by ourselves. This makes us feel too overwhelmed to act or too discouraged to continue. But God’s model is that we do the hard work together. So toil cheerfully. There will be a harvest of life, and we will rejoice as one.

“Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. 37 For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’” John 4:36-37 ESV

Father, You bless our lives with everlasting Kingdom purpose. Grace us to hear Your call today, and strengthen us for the work You have prepared for us to do. Be glorified in Your church. In Christ we pray. Amen.

1 John 4:38 NIV
2 1 Corinthians 3:6-9 ESV