Three Part Harmony

 By Brenda Black

From time to time, I get the privilege of singing three part harmony with a couple of lovely ladies. I admittedly sing the easy part – the melody. They employ their far more advanced musical skills to sort out the tougher tasks, finding complementary notes or writing in a sweet sounding chord. Though my notes are typically the most familiar, their low and high intricacies lend richness and complexity to the song, bringing it to its full potential.

As we practiced this week for a performance, one of my dear friends began to weep during one of our selections. I noticed first her voice had faded, but I was focusing on the sheet music and didn't see the tears until the song ended. God moved her through the music. He longs to fill each of our hearts that same way, with the harmony of Himself. And His arrangement is a beautiful blend of faith, hope and love that Christ sings into our lives.

At our little country church, our spiritual batteries were recharged this week during a revival. Thanks to singing and powerful preaching by my husband, Alan Black, and Bro. Bill Platt of Nevada First Christian Church, the presence of the Lord filled the sanctuary.

While caught up in the music or the moment, it's easy to feel empowered. But when the doors are closed, the music ceases and the preachers shut the Scriptures, the challenge truly begins. For once you've been filled, God expects you to share that power with someone else. He calls us to reach out with faith, hope and love!

We are called to walk out faith daily! How do you remain faithful in a fickle world that waffles, compromises and curses? Do your best in the power of Christ to present truth. “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for.” (Hebrews 11:1-2) Leave no room for doubt where your loyalty lies, to whom you answer for every word and deed, or that you truly love and serve the Lord. Speak of Him out of a pure heart and cling to the cross. Never forget God was faithful to redeem. May we live faithfully grateful and eager to share.

When we are energized, hope is renewed and we must hold out that hope to the world where people settle for less than God's best and believe the sad lies of the enemy. “So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while, 'He who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith.” (Heb. 10:35-38a)

The two are eternally intertwined – faith and hope. And they are incomplete without the final piece: Love! Only because we are filled with Christ are we able to love even when we are hated. Those who are called apart and commissioned to live as light and salt and ministers of the Gospel, will find themselves upside-down and at odds with this world. Christ came to set His people free, not just make them comfortable here on earth. He came to glorify the Father in Heaven, not fit in with the crowd. He died for our sins not that we would continue to condone them, but that we would be saved from them. And once we have tasted and seen such lavish mercy, we can't help but give it away.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8a)

We are called to be in the world, but not of this world. We can convey the faith, hope and love of God because we've known it first-hand even though we must wait to see the beautiful composer face to face. Go share with the lost this perfect three-part remedy. Stay ignited and go touch the world for the sake of the cross and the perfect harmony of God.

“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” (1 Cor. 13:13)

Cat Walk

By Brenda Black

On a normal morning, my Labrador greets me bouncing gleefully. She knows we're going for a walk down the road if I step out of the house early, and shod in my Sauconies. It's her chance to sniff to her heart's content and follow that nose for short, excited road-side adventures. She gets to stretch aging legs that spend too much time on concrete where she lay trying to keep cool in this blistering heat. For me, it's a way to clear my mind for the work ahead and burn off calories before they touch my lips and hips. We make a pretty good team. But once in a great while, we are joined by another companion – the cat. Then the walk looks a whole lot different.

My dog understands the drill. She jogs along perfectly positioned ahead, alongside or behind. She is confident and knows the course we trod and paces herself according to my gait. The cat, on the other hand, doesn't have a clue. Yet she pretends to be in charge. So with every 10 steps I take, she bolts from behind, pounces ahead and inconveniently drops and rolls playfully right in my path. If I didn't know better, I'd think she was trying to kill me!

I acknowledge her cuteness as I sidestep the fur-ball hurdle that could hurl me flat on my face. She pulls her catastrophic escapades three or four more calculated times before she gives up the game and wanders to the ditch to pursue smaller game. Today, she hung with us for well over a mile. Of course, as we stepped lively, she finally fell behind far enough to stop tripping me and far enough to have me keep looking over my shoulder to make sure she was still safe.

Before we finally reached home, I had scooped up the panting, far-less cocky cat and was hauling her little worn-out self the rest of the journey. She discovered she didn't know the way and she most certainly wasn't the leader.

Believers today can fall into any of these categories: the Faithful, Joyful, Confident Canine; the Determined Disciple; or the Know-it-All Kitty that trips the rest of us up and slows down the progress. Which are you?

The Book of John addresses each.

“When Jesus spoke again to the people he said, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.'” (John 8:12) My dog knows the way because she follows her master consistently. She could walk it alone, but she never does. She'd rather walk it with me. Oh, to be a believer who spends so much time with the Savior that we know which way He's going and we long to stick near Him.

When we walk, I get time and space to talk with the Lord. Often, I simply listen. But just as it takes self-discipline to get up and get down that road early in the morning, likewise we are called to accept some pretty heavy doctrine from an omnipotent God. We are to believe even when it is hard to understand. It takes determination to be a disciple when the world is telling you that you are on the wrong path. John records in chapter 6 that Jesus turned some fickle followers off when they heard him speak of feeding on Himself. I'd have to admit that would be a bit hard interpret. But for those who grasped His eternal meaning, they became more than disciples – they became His children.

“On hearing it, many of his disciples said, 'This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?'

“Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, 'Does this offend you? What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe...' Simon Peter answered him, 'Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.'” (Jn. 6:60-69)

Hopefully, you are gleefully committed and/or dutifully determined. If not either of these, you might be in danger of being a fickle feline wandering aimlessly, and tripping others on your misguided adventure.

It's a Matter of Math

It's a Matter of Math
By Brenda Black

“The essence of mathematics is not to make simple things complicated, but to make complicated things simple.” ~S. Gudder

Take the passage in Luke 10:1-20 for example: “After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. He told them, 'The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.

“'When you enter a house, first say, “Peace to this house.” If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you. Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.

“'When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick who are there and tell them, “The kingdom of God is near you.” But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, “Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near.”...

“'He who listens to you listens to me; he who rejects you rejects me; but he who rejects me rejects him who sent me.'

“The seventy-two returned with joy and said, 'Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.'

“He replied, '...do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.'”

The God who spoke creation into existence did not haphazardly scatter whomever was handy to reach the world with his salvation story. He intentionally initiated a strategy steeped in perfect purpose and commissioned a specific number of recruits to get the news broadcast – 72 to be exact.

Think about this: The languages of the Holy Bible are Hebrew and Greek. The most prevalent language used in history for the spread of the Gospel is English. Hebrew has 22 letters. Greek has 24 characters. English has 26 letters. 22+24+26 = 72. You say that might just be a coincidence, but Christ did say to his disciples, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved...”(Mark 16:15) Guess what, at the time of Christ’s death, there were 72 nations known to man.

Good old 72 shows up elsewhere in Scriptures. In Numbers 11:14-17, 70 elders were chosen to assist Moses. Add Moses and Aaron to the total count; guess what, 72. There were 72 ornaments on the Menorah in the Tabernacle. There were said to be 72 separate pieces of the veil in the Temple which separated the Holy place from the Most Holy Place. There were also 72 members of the Sanhedrin.

Additionally, the Greek Old Testament, the Septuagint, was said to have been translated by 72 Hebrew Scholars (six from each tribe) in 72 days.

Even with all of the intrigue surrounding 72, there's another number just as integral to Christ's commission. He sent them out two by two.

“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”
(Ecclesiastes 4:9-12)

Still the most important number is that invisible component of the three-fold cord. The ONE Holy Spirit that accompanied sheep among wolves, provided food through the hospitality of others, filled their hearts with peace in unpredictable places, dominated demons and filled obedient disciples with joy and a safe return.

The Messiah didn't complicate matters with his specific plans. Instead, He solved the world's sin problem by dying on a cross. He sent out willing servants to tell the Good News. He simplified access to the Gospel by taking it to every being on the planet.

He still calls his believers to go out and share his love story. We are each commissioned and empowered to do such bidding and we never go alone. The Holy Spirit will always accompany the faithful who stick to the plan. It really is that simple.

Who Do You Say That I Am

Who Do You Say That I Am
By Brenda Black


“Who do you say I am,” Jesus asked his disciple. Peter passed the exam with flying colors, but I wonder how modern-day disciples might answer. It seems the farther we advance in history from the cross, the faster the facts about Christ get altered. There have always been false religions and misinformation dispensed concerning Jesus. But in my lifetime, I've never seen more disregard for the truth. I have a theory: some people still think that ignorance is bliss. Not necessarily.

Current research says that only 9% of American adults hold a biblical worldview. Even among born again Christians, evidence reveals that many have indoctrinated their own version of absolute truth. How have we wandered so far from knowledge? However we arrived at this dubious place, the danger of losing more ground with each generation leaves Christianity in America hanging precariously by a thread. The less we know about the Word of God, the more blurred the lines of right and wrong become. Now, more than ever, it is time to know what you truly believe, who you honestly serve and be able to clearly define God's principles. As Jesus said, "It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God’" (Luke 4:4)

Daniel Webster, the great American statesman, offered this warning concerning the importance of biblical knowledge: "If there is anything in my thoughts or style to commend, the credit is due to my parents for instilling in me an early love of the Scriptures. If we abide by the principles taught in the Bible, our country will go on prospering and to prosper; but if we and our posterity neglect its instructions and authority, no man can tell how sudden a catastrophe may overwhelm us and bury all our glory in profound obscurity" (Halley’s Bible Handbook, p. 18)

George Washington, the nation’s first President, preceded Webster with his own succinct observance: "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible" (Halley’s Bible Handbook, p. 18)

A young man came to Jesus and asked Him, "Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?" Did Christ flippantly say, "You don’t have to do a thing"? No! Jesus said to him, "‘Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.’ He said to Him, ‘Which ones?’ Jesus said, ‘"You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’" (Matthew 19:16–19).

I contend that Jesus knew best. How blessed we are that we still have his thoughts and examples after which to pattern our lives. And it is by those standards that we weigh the world's advice. When ignorance and indifference encourage false arguments and say the Bible is archaic or hatefully intolerant, do you believe the loud enemies of God. When powerful politicians down to the peanut and beer man at the ball park say the commandments are not valid for modern, cynical society, will you follow their lead. Jesus Christ was nailed to the cross—His commandments were not! The commandments continue to define the sin that put him there and provide our measuring rod.

It is not the first time in history, mankind has forsaken the Scriptures. Time and again, the Israelite nation fell away and followed pagan gods. For one generation, it took the strength of youth and strong conviction to stand up for the truth. Josiah was a mere child when placed on the throne in Judah. His father certainly had not provided a good example for godly living, but this youngster somehow found his way back to holiness. By the age of 26 his mission to rid the territory of Assyrian idols, unearthed the secret to righteous living.

“Then the king called together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem. He went up to the temple of the Lord with the men of Judah, the people of Jerusalem, the priests and the prophets – all the people from the least to the greatest. He read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant, which had been found in the temple of the Lord. The king stood by the pillar and renewed the covenant in the presence of the Lord – to follow the Lord and keep his commands, regulations and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, thus confirming the words of the covenant written in this book. Then all the people pledged themselves to the covenant.” (2 Kings 23:1-3)

Almost 200 years later, after the hot-then-cold, then hot-again faith of the Israelite nation, Ezra the priest introduced the key to life once again. “Ezra opened the book...and as he opened it, the people all stood up. Ezra praised the Lord, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, 'Amen! Amen!' Then they bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.” (Nehemiah 8:5-6)

Here we are, a fickle nation with the history of an ebb and flow faith that strengthens and wanes. We're running out of time to impart God's promises and warn of his pending vengeance. Who do you say that Jesus is? Answer that question based on truth, then teach the Bible to the next generation so they can do the same.