Monthly Archives: November 2015

Unknown's avatar Rev. David J. Schreffler 4:44 am on November 30, 2015
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Until We Say “Uncle” — Rev. David J. Schreffler

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November 30, 2015

“To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.” 1 Corinthians 9:22

“A Christian worker has to learn how to be God’s man or woman of great worth and excellence in the midst of a multitude of meager and worthless things. Never protest by saying, “If only I were somewhere else!” All of God’s people are ordinary people who have been made extraordinary by the purpose He has given them. Unless we have the right purpose intellectually in our minds and lovingly in our hearts, we will very quickly be diverted from being useful to God. We are not workers for God by choice. Many people deliberately choose to be workers, but they have no purpose of God’s almighty grace or His mighty Word in them. Paul’s whole heart, mind, and soul were consumed with the great purpose of what Jesus Christ came to do, and he never lost sight of that one thing. We must continually confront ourselves with one central fact— “…Jesus Christ and Him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2).

“I chose you…” (John 15:16). Keep these words as a wonderful reminder in your theology. It is not that you have gotten God, but that He has gotten you. God is at work bending, breaking, molding, and doing exactly as He chooses. And why is He doing it? He is doing it for only one purpose— that He may be able to say, “This is My man, and this is My woman.” We have to be in God’s hand so that He can place others on the Rock, Jesus Christ, just as He has placed us.

Never choose to be a worker, but once God has placed His call upon you, woe be to you if you “turn aside…to the right or the left…” (Deuteronomy 28:14). He will do with you what He never did before His call came to you, and He will do with you what He is not doing with other people. Let Him have His way.” (My Utmost For His Highest, Submitting to God’s Purpose, October 25, 2015, Our Daily Bread website)

“Choosing” versus “being chosen”. How do you view your work in the kingdom of G*d: that you have chosen your path, or that G*d has appointed a path for you? This is a very important distinction being made: “choosing” versus “being chosen”. One puts us in control, the other puts G*d in control – one focuses on our efforts, the other focuses on G*d’s efforts. Recently I preached at the installation for my friend Micki. She was a church organist and worked for the federal government. She could have retired and gone off into the sunset of her life. However, G*d had other ideas. One day she called me and we talked about “the call” we receive from G*d. She was hearing that call, and struggling with what she should do. My answer was the same answer I would give anyone who believes they are being called – no matter what we think, if the call comes from G*d, there is no running from it. When G*d chooses us, we really have few options, because G*d will mend and bend and mold us until we say “uncle”, because G*d is in control, and does not give up easily, if at all.

Pastor Dave

Unknown's avatar Rev. David J. Schreffler 4:44 am on November 29, 2015
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The Squeaky Wheel — Rev. David J. Schreffler

image          November 29, 2015

“Now Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jehucal* son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malkijah heard what Jeremiah had been telling the people. He had been saying, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Everyone who stays in Jerusalem will die from war, famine, or disease, but those who surrender to the Babylonians* will live. Their reward will be life. They will live!’ The Lord also says: ‘The city of Jerusalem will certainly be handed over to the army of the king of Babylon, who will capture it.’ ”

So these officials went to the king and said, “Sir, this man must die! That kind of talk will undermine the morale of the few fighting men we have left, as well as that of all the people. This man is a traitor!” King Zedekiah agreed. “All right,” he said. “Do as you like. I can’t stop you.” So the officials took Jeremiah from his cell and lowered him by ropes into an empty cistern in the prison yard. It belonged to Malkijah, a member of the royal family. There was no water in the cistern, but there was a thick layer of mud at the bottom, and Jeremiah sank down into it. But Ebed-melech the Ethiopian,* an important court official, heard that Jeremiah was in the cistern. At that time the king was holding court at the Benjamin Gate, so Ebed-melech rushed from the palace to speak with him. “My lord the king,” he said, “these men have done a very evil thing in putting Jeremiah the prophet into the cistern. He will soon die of hunger, for almost all the bread in the city is gone.” So the king told Ebed-melech, “Take thirty of my men with you, and pull Jeremiah out of the cistern before he dies.” So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to a room in the palace beneath the treasury, where he found some old rags and discarded clothing. He carried these to the cistern and lowered them to Jeremiah on a rope. Ebed-melech called down to Jeremiah, “Put these rags under your armpits to protect you from the ropes.” Then when Jeremiah was ready, they pulled him out. So Jeremiah was returned to the courtyard of the guard—the palace prison—where he remained.    Jeremiah 38:1 – 13

“Imagine having such a reputation as a whiner that your name becomes a synonym for complaining! That was the case with the prophet Jeremiah. His name provides the basis for the English word jeremiad, which means “lament” or “complaint.” Jeremiah was no whiner, but it seemed that way to Jerusalem. God had called the prophet to take His complaints to the people. His message pretty much went like this: “Your sins are awful. The Babylonians will slaughter you and take the survivors into captivity. Repent!” The officials of Jerusalem felt the message was nothing short of traitorous. They thought, Jeremiah is aiding and abetting the enemy by discouraging the people! So three of them went to King Zedekiah and demanded that Jeremiah be killed. “Do as you like,” said the king. “I can’t stop you” (Jeremiah 38:5). So they threw the prophet into a muddy cistern. None of the Judeans dared come to Jeremiah’s rescue. But an Ethiopian did. We don’t know much about Ebed-melech. The Bible simply calls him “an important court official” (Jeremiah 38:7), but he alone defended God’s prophet. “ ‘My lord the king,’ he said, ‘these men have done a very evil thing in putting Jeremiah the prophet into the cistern. He will soon die of hunger’ ” (Jeremiah 38:9). So Zedekiah permitted Ebed-melech to rescue him.

Ebed-melech feared the invading hordes (see Jeremiah 39:16-17), but he feared God more. When Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem he “slaughtered all the nobles of Judah” (Jeremiah 39:6), which likely included the three who conspired against Jeremiah. But God told Ebed-melech, “Because you trusted me, I will give you your life as a reward. I will rescue you and keep you safe” (Jeremiah 39:18). May we also trust God and do what honors Him.” (Whining and Trusting, October 25, 2015, Our Daily Journey website)

Were you known as a whiner, ever? Maybe as a child, or as a college student, you found yourself deep in a feeling of wanting to whine all of the time. You may have felt it was justified, or you believed that the situation you were in required you to speak up regarding your own injustice – and your parents just felt you were whining. Now think about Jeremiah – G*d had appointed him to take complaints to the people, legitimate complaints in the eyes of G*d, and the people felt he was just a complainer. And not just a complainer, but he was also passing judgment upon the people, not his judgment, but the judgment that G*d declared upon the people.

When does complaining about something turn from “Justice” to “Whining”? There is the old saying: “The squeaky wheel gets the grease” – but it can be a fine line between the occasional squeak and purposeful complaining (otherwise called whining). But we do not need to whine to G*d to get G*d to pay attention to us. And when it comes to our friends and family, perhaps we need to be more discerning about what we choose to “complain” about, and what we need to pursue in the name of Justice.

Pastor Dave