Understanding how the Lordship of Jesus Christ extends to all areas of life.
John Everett Millais' Victory O Lord! (1871) depicts Moses holding up his arms during the Battle of Rephidim, assisted by Hur (left) and Aaron.
The story unfolds in Exodus 17:8-16. The Israelites are in a heated, life-or-death battle with their enemies, the Amalekites.
So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up–one on one side, one on the other–so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.
I was reminded of this yesterday as I was finishing speaking at the Indiana state homeschool convention (IAHE). I gave six sessions over two days and had my own difficulties to overcome, including lack of sleep (fatigue), a few new sessions, and realizing that I had lost my notes a few moments before one of my new sessions! (For you non-speakers, that is something we speakers have nightmares about!)
Well, at this conference, a volunteer named Steve Brown was on hand at every session to make sure I had new batteries in my lapel mic, to make sure I had water to drink during my sessions, etc. That was all wonderful, but what really impressed me was what he told me as I began my final session of the weekend.
He had been praying for me and for the audience each time I spoke. He prayed that God would help me to communicate well and that he would open the hearts of the listeners. When he told me this, I knew that God had heard and answered his prayers. I had felt supernaturally carried through my sessions, and people responded with great enthusiasm to what they heard. Steve is a man who, by his admission, would have a very hard time standing on a stage and speaking to a large audience. That isn’t his gift. He may never be known by the masses, and some may not realize his importance to the work of the Kingdom. He is like Moses’ friend, Hur.
Two weeks ago, at the Michigan state homeschool convention (INCH) in Lansing, we were fellowshipping at a speakers’ dinner after the conference, and I met another Hur. She was a young lady named Sierra who had traveled with her mother, a featured speaker, and her father, the worship leader for the event. This young lady spent the entire event in the hotel, or in hallways and empty conference rooms at the event, taking care of her baby sister. No one saw her doing it. No one noticed her service. No one gave her a standing ovation. If anyone did talk to her, it was probably to tell her how awesome her mother and father were. She works behind the scenes, doing hard work with little to no public recognition. Yet the battle could not be won without her.
My own sister, Sony, is one of these. She isn’t a speaker, but I couldn’t do these events without her. My son, Benjamin, is only 11, but he jumps in with a ready heart to do whatever is asked of him. We all work together as a team.
Another Hur at the IAHE event is a man named Michael McHugh who works for Christian Liberty Press. He is a quiet, humble, unassuming man, who was virtually ignored by the thousands who attended the event. Yet this man has had a MAJOR impact on shaping the development of the Christian homeschooling movement in America. Not only has he edited and published many books for home educators, but some of his writings in the late 1980s and beyond had a phenomenal impact on me and many others in helping to shape the way we understood Christian education.
He has also lended his support, behind the scenes to many vital Christian education initiatives over the years that have borne much fruit. As I was leaving I told him that it bothered me that people don’t even know who he is, and if it wasn’t for pioneers like him, we wouldn’t even HAVE events like this. He just shrugged and said that it wasn’t important that he was known, it was only important that the work got done and that people are benefited. He is content to hold up the hands of others.
Not everyone gets to be Moses (and not everyone WANTS to be in that position!). That’s okay. We all have our unique places in the Kingdom. Some days, I am a Moses, and on others I may be Aaron or Hur. The important thing is that we all do our part when it is our time. That is how the work gets done and battle is won. So this is tribute to the unsung heroes. Those who labor quietly in the background, doing their part and being overlooked by the masses. We couldn’t do it without you!
Dr. Jack Kevorkian
Michigan right-to-die activist, Jack Kevorkian, died today at the age of 83. He was a leading advocate for euthanasia and physician assisted suicide. During his lifetime he helped 130 patients to kill themselves.
Dr. Kevorkian’s worldview begins with the assumption that man is measure of all things (Humanism). It places human reason on the throne as king when it comes to questions of bio-ethics. His worldview viewed all of life as merely biological, just like an animal with no soul. His worldview would promote the opinion: “I have the right to do with my own body whatever I choose.”
This stands in stark contrast to the teaching of the Bible which states, “You were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body (1 Corinthians 6:20).” The Christian worldview begins with the view that God is the Creator and sustainer of all life and that every human life is sacred, because we are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27).
Once you devalue human life on any level, you open the floodgates for the taking of human life on every level.
We do not have the right to play God when it comes to issues of life and death. The role of the physician is to sustain life, not to destroy it. There is only one God, and we are not Him. We will all stand before Him one day and give an account for what we have done in the body. According to CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Dr. Kevorkian said that he was afraid to die and that he wasn’t ready to die. That is sad. However, if we have placed our trust in Christ alone for our salvation, we don’t have to be afraid when we die, for we know that the same God that we have trusted in our lives, will be our hope for eternity.
Proverbs 8:36 NIV “But whoever fails to find me harms himself; all who hate me love death.”
Francis Chan is writing a new book about hell. As the book won’t be out until July 5th, I have not yet read it and therefore can’t endorse it. However, I was impressed with what he had to say on this video, and I would encourage you to hear his thoughts. As he says, we can’t afford to get this issue wrong.
Bob Dylan
Today is Bob Dylan‘s 70th birthday. The outspoken “prophet” of the turbulent 1960′s has never ceased to be an enigma to many of his friends, and adversaries.
During the “Jesus Movement” Dylan found his way into a California Vineyard church and began studying the Bible. Dylan attended a course held at the Vineyard School of Discipleship, which ran four days a week over the course of three months.
“At first I said, ‘There’s no way I can devote three months to this,’” Dylan would say in a 1980 interview. “‘I’ve got to be back on the road soon.’ But I was sleeping one day and I just sat up in bed at seven in the morning and I was compelled to get dressed and drive over to the Bible school.”
I remember growing up listening to Dylan’s gospel albums (yes, those black vinyl discs that look like frisbees), bank in the late 1970′s and early 1980′s. It’s amazing how bold and direct his message was. Especially now as we are swimming in Postmodern uncertainty, it is refreshing to hear a voice of clarity promoting moral absolutes. Dylan proclaimed:
You’re gonna have to serve somebody
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you’re gonna have to serve somebody
I mean, think of what a radical thing it must have been for the hippie generation to hear their icon declaring:
I was blinded by the devil
Born already ruined
Stone-cold dead
As I stepped out of the womb
By His grace I have been touched
By His word I have been healed
By His hand I’ve been delivered
By His spirit I’ve been sealedI’ve been saved
By the blood of the lamb
Saved
That’s telling it straighter than most preachers today! Dylan was booed by his fans and concert attendance dropped off dramatically. Dylan once lamented:
Years ago they … said I was a prophet. I used to say, “No I’m not a prophet” they say “Yes you are, you’re a prophet.” I said, “No it’s not me.” They used to say “You sure are a prophet.” They used to convince me I was a prophet. Now I come out and say Jesus Christ is the answer. They say, “Bob Dylan’s no prophet.” They just can’t handle it.
Somewhere in the mid-1980′s Dylan became disillusioned with at least institutional Christianity and distanced himself from public proclamations of faith. Regardless of Dylan’s own personal faith (or lack of it) today, he has left a body of work exploring the Christian faith that is well worth considering.
Don’t let me change my heart
Keep me set apart
From all the plans they do pursue
And I, I don’t mind the pain
Don’t mind the driving rain
I know I will sustain
’Cause I believe in you
Israel Wayne is an author and conference speaker who writes on cultural issues from a Biblical worldview.
Hugh Latimer
Hugh Latimer was an English Reformer who lived from 1485 to 1555. Martin Luther posted his 95 Thesis in 1517 and John Calvin wrote his Institutes of the Christian Religion in 1555.
Latimer was originally a Roman Catholic priest who was educated at Cambridge. Being a staunch Papist, Latimer initially debated the “new” doctrines of Justification by Faith (in particular the teachings of Philipp Melanchthon) until he was confronted by Thomas Bilney, a new convert who sought him out and shared his testimony with the priest. Latimer accepted the Reformed Doctrines that day and never looked back.
Latimer later joined a group of reformers including Bilney and Robert Barnes who met regularly at the White Horse Tavern. Latimer became a faithful expositor of the Holy Scriptures. With evangelistic fervor he taught:
“Catch thou hold of our Saviour, believe in Him, be assured in thy heart that He with His suffering took away thy sins.”
Mary Tutor was on the throne of England from 1553-1558. She was the eldest daughter of Henry VIII and only surviving child of Catherine of Aragon. As the fourth crowned monarch of the Tudor dynasty, she returned England to Roman Catholicism after succeeding her short-lived Protestant half brother, Edward VI. “Bloody Mary” (as she became known), was bringing a reign of terror on all in England who accepted the Protestant faith. In all she had nearly she had almost 300 religious dissenters burned at the stake in the Marian Persecutions.
Latimer and Nicholas Ridley were burned at the stake at Oxford in 1555, with Thomas Cranmer watching. He too would give his life the following year. As Latimer was dying, he encouraged his friend by yelling from the flames:
“Be of good comfort, Master Ridley, and play the man! We shall this day light such a candle by God’s grace in England as I trust shall never be put out!”
England was never again under the Pope. Now known as the Oxford Martyrs — these men are commemorated in Oxford by the Victorian Martyrs’ Memorial which is located near the actual execution site which is marked by a cross in Broad Street, (then the ditch outside the city’s North Gate). The Latimer room in Clare College, Cambridge is named after him.
Hugh Latimer, a late-comer to the truth, was faithful until death. My questions to you is, “Are you willing to play the man and offer your candle as a light for others?”
