Tim Vreugdenhil: Resilient

We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9

“Although Jesus fell by our hands, He rose again by the hand of the Father. Because of Jesus, God makes firm the steps of everyone who delights in him. This belief made the early Christians astonishingly resilient people. Even Roman soldiers, highly praised for their level of fortitude, were surprised by the courage of ordinary Christians in all circumstances, even in facing death.

The apostle Paul spent the last part of his life reflecting on the meaning of the resurrection. This is what he said in a nutshell: believing in Christ makes you more resilient than anything else. Although the road can be long and hard, the outcome is certain. God will uphold you. “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9).

You do not learn this resilience from a comedy series. You do not learn it in a council report. You do not learn it from the mouths of prime ministers or presidents. You learn it in the gospel. Everybody can be touched by it. And when that happens, it can be the start of an amazing spiritual adventure. Though you may stumble many times, you will not fall. For He upholds you with His hand.”

Tim Vreugdenhil in Redeemer City to City blog “The Search for Resilience” dated 7 December 2020.

I agreed this past week to speak at a conference on 31 May and 1 June with the theme of Resilient. Then over Easter my pastor shared this quote with the congregation celebrating the fact that it is precisely the resurrection which makes us resilient.

Consider this idea for a moment and how it links to generosity.

Christians are people who can weather any storm because the resurrection reminds us that we can trust God and anything He has promised. We can give and share sacrificially because He has said He will look after us when we do. His dependability fuels our generosity.

Too many people, however, think generosity flows from their capacity.

That’s merely philanthropy. It’s not generosity. Any giving that flows from a human source is human giving. Giving that flows from the work of the Spirit in us is generosity. Big difference! The apostle Paul teaches us this, which is why he employed different words for giving than were used in the NT world. Generosity was not a term used by the masses.

By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. Galatians 5:22-23

So, as we reflect on the implications of the resurrection, one implication is that we become more resilient people. I think it also makes us more generous people, because we remember anew and afresh that we can play our role because God can be trusted to play His. At all times and all occasions He supplies the resources for our generosity.

Pray for God’s blessing with me on another JOE (Journey of Empowerment) group that starts today. This one will serve God’s workers across India. We had a good start in Malaysia yesterday. Thanks for your support and prayers.

On one occasion, while He was eating with them, He gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” Acts 1:4-5

“Waiting is essential to the spiritual life. But waiting as a disciple of Jesus is not an empty waiting. It is a waiting with a promise in our hearts that makes already present what we are waiting for. We wait during Advent for the birth of Jesus. We wait after Easter for the coming of the Spirit, and after the ascension of Jesus we wait for His coming again in glory. We are always waiting, but it is a waiting in the conviction that we have already seen God’s footsteps. Waiting for God is an active, alert—yes, joyful—waiting. As we wait we remember Him for whom we are waiting, and as we remember Him we create a community ready to welcome Him when He comes.”

Henri Nouwen in Bread for the Journey (New York: HarperCollins, 2009) reading for 19 November.

Did you know that there was 50 days between the resurrection and the outpouring of the Spirit? It is a season of waiting. But we have a purpose in the waiting time.

As we return to the word for the year, remember, we are reminded of our purpose in life after Easter. We are here to wait actively for our Lord while trusting in His promises to sustain us.

This is not a passive waiting. We wait actively by building a community eager to welcome Him. In a world filled with doubt, this is our generous contribution: we bring joy and we build community.

Over the next four Mondays I am excited to build such a community in Malaysia. With Kuya Anjji Gabriel, my friend and brother in the Philippines, I will facilitate an online Journey of Empowerment group.

This is community building. We are building a community of stewards who are accountants, attorneys, pastors, and other professionals who are eager to help ministries follow standards. Why?

This positions ministries for flourishing and sustainability while we wait for our Lord. In a world filled with crisis, we need more communities of people who remember and rely on the promises of our Lord.

“Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him. But go, tell His disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see Him, just as He told you.’” Mark 16:6-7

“The most precious thing in this passate is the two words which are in no other Gospel. ‘Go,’ said the messenger. ‘Tell His disciples and Peter.’ How that message must have cheered Peter’s heart when he received it! He must have been tortured with the memory of his disloyalty, and suddenly there came a special message for him. It was characteristic of Jesus that He thought, not of the wrong Peter had done him but of the remorse he was undergoing. Jesus was far more eager to comfort the penitent sinner than to punish the sin. Someone has said, ‘The most precious thing about Jesus is the way in which He trusts us on the field of our defeat.”

William Barclay in The Gospel of Mark (DSBS; Edinburgh; The Saint Andrew Press, 1975) 369.

Happy Resurrection Sunday!

As we have learned, Mark is the Petrine Gospel. It’s Peter’s account as penned by Mark. So, the two words that are the most precious thing about this proclamation—and Peter—are Peter’s Easter greeting to us.

What is he saying to us?

He is saying that our failures are not final. Even if we sinned repeatedly, and we feel like we are spiraling to defeat, our risen Lord Jesus pursues us with love and forgiveness, with grace and mercy.

That’s Easter generosity!

The Lenten journey has taught us that prayer, fasting, and giving transform us into people who look and love like Jesus. We become generous conduits of kindness and forgiveness, of grace and mercy.

But, it’s hard, really hard.

For sure, which is why Jesus modeled the way for us. He tracked down the fisherman, Peter, that he had picked to be a pillar in the church, who betrayed Him three times and forgave him. That’s good news.

There’s hope for the rest of us.

And now, don’t stop the disciplines. Continue to pray daily. Fast like the early church, at least a couple times a week to stay centered, and give generously by serving as a conduit of material and spiritual blessings.

When we do this, we take hold of life, and reflect the love of our risen Savior to a watching world.

Happy Easter!

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn. Isaiah 61:1-2

The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because He has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Luke 4:18-19

“Take note of Jesus’ decision to end His reading [of Isaiah 61:1-2] where He did. He stopped short of reading “And the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn.” He ended His reading on the subject of grace. The purpose of His first coming was to proclaim the good news of salvation by grace through faith in the Messiah. The “day of vengeance” will come soon enough. The day of wrath will occur in the future as predicted by John in Revelation. For now, however, the Lord’s anger against sin is held in reserve. Now is the time of grace, during which all who embrace the Messiah as their Savior will find mercy.”

Charles R. Swindoll in Insights on Luke (Swindoll’s Living Insights New Testament Commentary; Tyndale House, 2017) 116.

Today is Holy Week Saturday. It’s the day Jesus accomplished the work of setting captives free by conquering death. This is the good news. It is for the whole world.

Though times are challenging globally, we have peace. Someday Jesus will make things right. His second coming will be a day of vengeance against evil and comfort for the hurting.

In the meantime, let us dedicate our lives to sharing the good news of Jesus. At GTP our work of multiplying faithful stewards and helping ministries follow standards magnifies the impact of ministry.

Today marks our second birthday. We’ve experienced unimaginable fruits since we got our 501c3 on 3 April 2019. All glory to God. Visit our Facebook and/or LinkedIn to see cool infographics of what God has done.

And celebrate with us by making a gift to GTP today. Resource the global movement of helping ministries flourish in this season of grace while our Lord tarries His return.

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures. 1 Corinthians 15:3-4

“We love the old saints, missionaries, martyrs, reformers: our Luthers, Bunyans, Wesleys, Asburys, etc. We will write their biographies, reverence their memories, frame their epitaphs, and build their cenotaphs. We will do anything except immitate. We cherish the last drop of their blood, but watch the first drop of our own!”

Leonard Ravenhill in Why Revival Tarries (Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987) 41. Special thanks to Michael Blue for sharing this quote in his talk, “When Faith & Finances Collide.” Watch it on YouTube.

Today is Good Friday because Jesus did the best thing for humanity. He died for our sins on the cross. And we also celebrate saints through the centuries who made a difference by giving their lives generously.

So what about you and me? Will we give our lives generously? Seriously, what would it look like for you to follow in the footsteps of Jesus? Are you willing to sacrifice to the point of suffering or even shedding blood?

These days are troubling not due to COVID or circumstances. Times are dark because few are willing to give their lives as saints, martyrs, missionaries, and reformers. Ask Jesus today how you should give your life like Jesus.

Do this not to try to earn favor with God. Your redemption was accomplished by Christ on the cross! Do it because you want the world to see love in action like we saw God’s love displayed through Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:48

“In the pursuit of the perfection of the Father, Jesus’ disciples will encounter a number of everyday concerns that have the potential to deter them from undivided loyalty to the kingdom and its righteousness. The first one he discusses is wealth… The accumulation of wealth for its own sake is deceptive, because one can find in material treasure a false sense of security or an inaccurate assessment of one’s spirituality.”

Michael J. Wilkins in Matthew (NIVAC: Grand Rapids; Zondervan Academic, 2003) 292-93.

My eight-day retreat reminds me to focus on teachings of Jesus that relate to money. The primary text of Jesus on the topic is the Sermon on the Mount.

Jesus calls for perfection, which must be understood as not getting it always right but getting our lives into alignment with God’s way. Are you out of alignment? Do you seek security in wealth? Do you have undivided loyalty? Only you can answer these questions. Do it honestly.

And remember what day it is. It’s Maundy Thursday. It’s the day Jesus washed the disciples’ feet and had the last supper, which we observe to this day. He had an undivided heart, and went to the cross for us. Let’s follow suit. Set aside any thoughts or motives that cling to anything but Him.

Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.” Luke 9:58

“Jesus describes what disciples can expect when he is their example. His situation is worse than that of beasts: foxes and birds have places to stay, but the Son of Man has no home…

‘Homelessness’ has been Jesus’ fate from his birth. A disciple of Jesus must realize that following Him means living as a stranger in the world, because a choice for Jesus is a choice rejected by many in the world. Many will not follow Jesus and will reject His disciples. To be a disciple takes resolve…

What is true of the suffering Son of Man is true of His disciples. To live ‘rejected’ and ‘homeless’ means to trust God and know that one’s home is with Him. There is a deep note of pathos in Jesus’ remark. The disciple must realize that the choice to follow Jesus is not an easy one.”

Darrell Bock in Luke, Volume 2 (BECNT: Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 1996) 978-79. Hard to believe today marks the end of the first quarter of 2021 already. I still have much reflection to do on the word ‘remember’ over the next nine months.

Today’s focus in the eight-day retreat is following Jesus. When I prayed about this idea, the word ‘place’ came to my remembrance. The Son of Man did not have a ‘place’ to lay His head. And in John 14:6 alerts us to good news, that He is preparing a ‘place’ for us. So, to follow Him is to live like a ‘stranger’ here.

This represents a strong otherworldly invitation. Are we willing to live like a stranger in the world because our place, our home, is not yet ready and trusting Jesus to supply it to us at some point in the future? This is not an insignificant idea, for it causes us to live for a competing set of priorities than most people.

Bock notes that the pathway is choosing rejection and homelessness, believing that in following one has acceptance and a home with God. The challenge for most everyone is that we want a home here too. Where will we live? We look for a place in terms of locality, and I think He wants us to find our place in community.

Following Jesus is finding new family, awaiting a future home, and realizing that this side of heaven we may not even enjoy the comforts that creatures enjoy. Sit in this idea today and ask God how it should shape your generosity. How should resources you steward be sent on to heaven through giving rather than spent here?

“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’

So he got up and went to his father.“ But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ Luke 15:17-21

“The image of returning is tied to repentance throughout Scripture. The immediate context assumes that the tax collectors and sinners gathered around Jesus because they had repented, and their meals together were celebrations of God’s grace and forgiveness.

Luke’s Gospel highlights that the tax collectors in particular were responsive to the preaching and baptism of John that called for repentance. “He came to himself” must mean that the younger son snapped out of it, and marks the beginning of his repentance.

How deep his repentance runs will only become clear from what he does after being received so generously by his father, but the parable concludes with the homecoming party. The parable’s abrupt ending reveals that it is not about a son’s repentance but about a father’s love.”

David E. Garland in Luke (ZECNT 3; Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2011) 628.

In my eight day retreat, I am to reflect on death, judgment, and the prodigal son today. In so doing, I am struck with the only right response: repentance. Notice the father’s response to the son’s repentance. The son was “received so generously.”

Personally, I am filled with awe by the compassion of the father. I want God to fill me with such compassion so that I can receive others in their brokenness so generously. And I also realize my own sin and ask God to help me “snap out of it.”

What’s the lesson for each of us? Two times the son exclaimed his unworthiness. It seems that the pathway to receiving compassion in order to dispense it to others is to wake up and abandon our worthiness.

The elder son also exhibits worthiness, which actually distances him from the father. God help us abandon our worthiness and simply learn to receive so that we can be filled with compassion and receive others so generously.

Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’” Matthew 21:12-13

“It is where the trade is being carried out rather than how that is the focus of His displeasure. And that means that the protest is directed not so much against the traders themselves but against the priestly establishment who had allowed them to operate withing the sacred area. Commercial activity, however justified in itself, should not be carried out where people came to pray, and a temple regime which encouraged this had failed in its responsibility.”

R.T. France in The Gospel of Matthew (NICNT; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2007) 784.

It is fitting that the eight day retreat calls for confession on Holy Week Monday as it is the day Jesus cleansed the temple. France notes that the cleansing of the temple was sending a message to the religious establishment. The temple was to be a place of prayer, not commercial activity.

Let us draw the parallel to our own lives. We are to be people of prayer who are not preoccupied with commercial activity, which would demonstrate slavery or servitude to money. Our bodies are the temple of God. Our hearts are sacred areas, yet we allow sin to occupy space. So, how do we experience the cleansing of Jesus?

I think we follow the examples of Nehemiah (in Nehemiah 1:5-11) and Ezra (in Ezra 9:5-7). They were ordinary people, a house slave and a teacher, who confessed the sins of their people and included themselves. Let us confess our sins together on behalf of our people wherever we serve to experience cleansing.

For my part, I think of the seven deadly sins of Proverbs 6:16-19 as an outline or guide for prayer. These seven are the things that the Lord hates: lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, pride. I also think of 1 Timothy 6:10 which presents greed or the love of money as a root for all manner of evil.

Essentially, in putting the money changers and merchants in the place of prayer, the religious leaders were exhibiting greed or the love of money rather than love of God. Each of us must be temples of God who remain people of prayer rather than people consumed with money which leads to all sorts of vices.

Father, forgive us for our disordered desires. Cleanse us of gluttony and self-centeredness. Free us from greed and the love of money. As we commune with you in prayer remind us that You are all we need. Awaken us from sloth. Rid us of wrath and envy. Wash away our pride. Do this by your Spirit, we ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. Zechariah 9:9

“The first Prelude is the narrative, which is of three pairs of men, and each one of them has acquired ten thousand ducats, not solely or as they ought for God’s love, and all want to save themselves and find in peace God our Lord, ridding themselves of the weight and hindrance to it which they have in the attachment for the thing acquired.

The second, a composition, seeing the place. It will be here to see myself, how I stand before God our Lord and all His Saints, to desire and know what is more pleasing to His Divine Goodness.

The third, to ask for what I want. Here it will be to ask grace to choose what is more to the glory of His Divine Majesty and the salvation of my soul.

The first pair would want to rid themselves of the attachment which they have to the thing acquired, in order to find in peace God our Lord, and be able to save themselves, and they do not place the means up to the hour of death.

The second want to rid themselves of the attachment, but want so to rid themselves of it as to remain with the thing acquired, so that God should come where they want, and they do not decide to leave it in order to go to God, although it would be the best state for them.

The third want to rid themselves of the attachment, but want so to rid themselves of it that they have even no liking for it, to keep the thing acquired or not to keep it, but only want to want it or not want it according as God our Lord will put in their will and as will appear to them better for the service and praise of His Divine Majesty; and meanwhile they want to reckon that they quit it all in attachment, forcing themselves not to want that or any other thing, unless only the service of God our Lord move them: so that the desire of being better able to serve God our Lord moves them to take the thing or leave it.

Ignatius of Loyola in Spiritual Exercises, Day 4 “Three Pairs of Men: In Order to Embrace What is Best” (Grand Rapids: CCEL) 35.

What would you do if you got 10,000 ducats (gold or silver coin in the Middle Ages)? To answer this question, Ignatius points to three pairs of men.

Would you rid yourself of it in a physical sense to find peace like the first pair of men?

This is letting go of possessions in obedience to Jesus which marks both the pathway of peace and which saves the person who chooses this pathway from death. Because life is not found in the abundance of possessions.

Would you want to let go of it but remain with it though leaving it would be best?

This is the path many take. The driving motivation is “want” and it leads them to  remain with the riches, even though this is not the best state for them. This pair is essentially a slave of “want.”

Or would you get rid of the liking or want of it so that it now longer had power over you?

It seems as I think about attachment on this Palm Sunday that our Lord did not remain attached to the title “King” or any facet of what that could bring Him. He humbled Himself and let go of His wants.

In letting go of any attachments or wants other than what the Father wanted, He was able to find His place and play His role in God’s redemptive story. It seems that’s the best pathway for us to take as well, to find our role in God’s story.

Father, by your Spirit help us attach or want only You and what You desire for us like Jesus. Not our will but Yours be done on earth and in our lives as it is in heaven. Amen.