Pondering God: Part 27

27 May. Continuing our ponderings on God. Who is He? He is Saviour. This idea of rescue may not be something everyone is keen to consider. To admit a Saviour is necessary is to admit one needs salvation. To admit we need salvation is to admit there are problems beyond our human capabilities to solve. I've been there. I wonder if you've been there?

The biggest problem issue we have to sort is the problem of sin. Don't let me lose you here. Sin isn't about how many comic books you stole from the news agent when you were 10, or what movies you watched last week in the hotel room when you thought you were alone. It's much bigger than that. It's the continual inability you have to stand up for righteousness, your inability to control every aspect of your life and bring it under the surrendered control of God. It's selfishness in every sense of the word. It's "I'm first!" rather than how can I love my neighbor. It's when it's all about you.

That sin nature will produce sins like the stolen book or the pornographic movie, but sin is deeper than all that. It's your continual resistance to the plans of the Almighty. 

When you see how far you have veered from God's plans, and how desperate you are to get into His good graces, then you will see your need for Salvation. Only then will "God is your Saviour" make sense to you. Only when a person is overboard off the deck of the cruise liner does he reach for a life saver. Only when you smell the smoke in your burning apartment, only then do you ring EMERGENCY 9.1.1. or 000 or here in Israel 100. Only then do you run outside and grab the garden hose and try to save what is dying. 

Isaiah used that word Savior over and over in his prophecy.
For I am the LORD your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior " (43.3) and again, "I, even I, am the LORD, and there is no savior besides Me. " (43.11) and again, "Surely, they are My people, sons who will not deal falsely.” So He became their Savior." (63.8) (Do read chapter 63 in context. You will be amazed that the very God who spilled his own lifeblood on the earth for us [sound familiar as in crucifixion?] is our Savior and we as Jewish people would reject Him)

The abundance of Newer Testament references will be useful to the student reading this. I will supply them at the end. 

But for you who are just learning along with me this month as I unpack the nature and character of God, let this be the summary: We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. (from 1 John 4.14). 

Receive Him as your Savior today. Say this prayer, "Lord save me. I admit my sins and I admit my sin nature. I need saving. I want to live like you want me to live. Forgive me. Change me. Make me into the person you want me to be."

He will do it. Let me know if you did that. Thanks.

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Now for those serious students who want to read more about the Savior Yeshua: 

Hos. 13.4 ¶ Yet I have been the LORD your God
Since the land of Egypt;
And you were not to know any god except Me,
For there is no savior besides Me.
Luke 1.47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
Luke 2.11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a savior, who is Christ the Lord.
John 4.42 and they were saying to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this One is indeed the Savior of the world.”
Acts 5.31 “He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
Acts 13.23 “from the descendants of this man, according to promise, God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus,
Eph. 5.23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body.
Phil. 3.20 For our 1citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ;
1Tim. 1.1 ¶ Paul, an apostle of bChrist Jesus according to the commandment of God our Savior, and of Christ Jesus, who is our hope,
1Tim. 2.3 This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior,
1Tim. 4.10 For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers.
2Tim. 1.10 but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,
Titus 1.3 but at the proper time manifested, even His word, in the proclamation with which I was entrusted according to the commandment of God our Savior,
Titus 1.4 ¶ To Titus, my true child in a common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.
Titus 2.10 not pilfering, but showing all good faith so that they will adorn the doctrine of aGod our Savior in every respect.
Titus 2.13 looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus,
Titus 3.4 But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared,
Titus 3.6 whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,
2Pet. 1.1 ¶ Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, ¶ To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:
2Pet. 1.11 for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.
2Pet. 2.20 For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first.
2Pet. 3.2 that you should remember the words spoken beforehand by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken by your apostles.
2Pet. 3.18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
1John 4.14 We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
Jude 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

Stories of real Jews who really find the real Jesus

In Paris
Perry is one of our co laborers in Messiah and was at St Lazare (Paris) when Roxanne, a young woman, 23 years old, asked, ‘What IS Jews for Jesus?’ I replied, ‘We are Jews who believe Jesus is the Messiah and Savior of the world.’ Roxanne has a Jewish father and Catholic mother.

She was interested in her Jewish origins and had observed the Jewish holidays since childhood.  ‘My grandmother was the first to talk to me about the Passover lamb.’ she told me. Her grandmother had even told her once in Hebrew, ‘The Passover lamb is Yeshua, for the Lord saves.’

We had quite a good conversation then I said. ‘Have you ever asked Yeshua to forgive you your sins?’ Roxanne understood what it meant and prayed with me to receive Jesus as her personal Messiah. She finished by saying, ‘My grandmother is right: Yeshua saves!’”

Michael also was working with us in Paris last month. He reports, "I was at the market next to the Charenton Schools metro with one of the members of the Church of Charenton. There were not many people there, but I handed a tract to a man my age (in his 60s) named David. ‘Are you a Jew?’ he asked. ‘Yes,’ I replied. ‘Do you believe in Jesus?’ he asked me.  ‘Yes,’ I responded.

David accepted with an open heart all that I told him. ‘Have you already received the Lord?’ I asked. ‘No,’ he replied. ‘Is  there a reason you cannot now pray to receive forgiveness for your sins? We can do it now.’ He agreed to pray, and we did.  I was so surprised he agreed to pray in the street with me that I almost forgot to get his contact information! He did leave his address and number phone to keep in touch with us.”

Sydney and Kansas
Linda and I grew up in the same schools in the middle of the US. We both moved away decades ago and found each other again on Facebook last year. She and I, both Jews, have both been on a journey of spiritual discovery. I came to faith in Jesus 40 years ago. She, only a month ago now. And her story is filled with longing and wonder and pain.  God is so kind to give us friends and contacts to help discover the reality of Yeshua. She wrote "You have helped me grow and discover the joy and blessing of Christ."  

I asked her if she noticed any changes since she received Yeshua as Savior and Lord.  "I have not been such a complainer. I'm pretty content these days. Peaceful? I think the changes I've been looking for are right under my nose and I did not even notice." She also wrote, "I guess the Holy Spirit is indeed in me! I don't know what I expected, but now I have chills. It is so cool!" 

Linda said, "If I want to proclaim Him as my Savior, I can do it aloud at home, alone, if I want, right? I don't mind in front of others, but I see this as very personal between Him and me." And she has already been telling many of her new faith.

In the USA
Mark grew up in New York and lives in the US South now with his wife of over 40 years. He's about my age and came to believe and profess faith in Yeshua in April this year. We met the Friday before that and maybe I was part of his story.  He is a professional man and came from a lecture in the afternoon to hear me speak that night. He engaged with my teaching and approached me after the meeting. "I am going to go forward in the Baptist church on Sunday." That's when people accept Jesus, receiving Him as Lord and Savior personally. And he did that. With his mother, sister and daughter watching (he had invited them specifically to be there.) What a significant time in their lives.


For you
And it can be significant in your life as well. Have you ever received Jesus as your personal messiah? Have you been considering this for a very long time? Maybe right now, right where you are, you can also say "yes" to Him. You don't have to close your eyes. You don't have to kneel. But you may. 

Say this prayer out loud, "Father in the name of Jesus, I ask you to forgive me of my sins. Dear Lord, I know you love me and you care about me and want me to know you and to know about life. I have messed up pretty badly, sinning in all kinds of ways in my youthful ignorance, and even lately. And yet, you love me. And you want to be in relationship with me. I'm so sorry for the sins that separate us.

And I understand, although it's a big concept, that Jesus died for my sins and offers me eternal life. I receive His love and forgivenss. I accept Yeshua as my Messiah and savior. I choose to follow you with my heart and with all my life. 

Help me to live for you. In Yeshua's name. Amen."

 Here is my story, Bob's story       
And here are a series of testimonies which you might enjoy seeing/ hearing. Another story

Let me know, won't you?

Sherlock Holmes...action hero?

It's like reading a menu at a New Jersey diner. So much to choose from, so little time (129 minutes). A little CSI and NCIS. A little The Wrestler. Throw in characters from the original Arthur Conan Doyle. A little Butch Cassidy and Sundance. Mix in Da Vinci Code and Columbo, and you might have the movie Guy Ritchie made of Sherlock Holmes, this time around. And we shouldn't forget Indiana Jones.

Kenneth Turan and Michael Phillips didn't rave, in fact Phillips gave it 1.5 stars. Ouch. The queue at Sydney's Fox Studios yesterday went out the door; those folks don't read Chicago or Los Angeles reviews.

My head was in it, but the real thrill was the action. It was cleverly re-hashed before the hashing. In the opening sequence, Holmes is being chased and has to deduce his escape. "First point of attack, right ear," Downey whispers in voiceover. "Two, throat. Three, cracked ribs. In summary, neutralized." Clever indeed!

Ritchie is not the first to do that, but this one really works.

What doesn't work is the demon-possessed Lord Blackwood who wants to usher in a new world order a la The Illuminati and dark brotherhood. The story is contrived, oh wait, all stories are. But this one seems a little too neat and puerile. The guns go blazing, although Holmes insists that guns won't work on him. Even so, Holmes trusts his own fists to do battle in due course with the 'resurrected' villain. Not consistent.

Did I get it wrong or did the casting folks? Mark Strong looked more like Sherlock Holmes in the Conan Doyle version than did Downey, but that's a small point.


I liked the imagery of the Tower Bridge. It was in construction at the fixed time of the movie. The current website of the Bridge carries the history. It took 8 years, 5 major contractors and the relentless labour of 432 construction workers to build Tower Bridge. When it was built, Tower Bridge was the largest and most sophisticated bascule bridge ever completed ("bascule" comes from the French for "see-saw"). These bascules were operated by hydraulics, using steam to power the enormous pumping engines.

Bridges are designed to take someone from one side of a river to the other. But this movie left us all on the same side. I wanted to get to the plot, that is, the single plot, but it was so busy with subplots and subthemes and the diner menu. Still it was an entertaining side of the river to remain on, to be sure.

What works for me is the Beowulf story of evil pitted against the good, and a hero who saves the day. I doubt I'm giving away anything to those people who have yet to see the movie, by saying that there is at least one sequel waiting in the wings.

No matter what else Hollywood dispenses for us in 2010 and beyond, the drama is made good by the hope that we all have, in the theatre and beyond, for a saviour. A hero. A person or group or organization or company or ...someone to knock back the evil and bring in an era of peace and good will. Even an antihero is acceptable as long as the good comes to be and thrive in the new world order. Or so Hollywood says.

And we want a hero to believe in. We want good to come. None of us is as smart as Holmes or Watson. His powers to deduce were so google-speed that it made him a bit too much. I like the speed of Columbo which I think was more 1890 and Conan Doyle, but I'll adjust. After all this is Holmes 2.0 and I can't look backwards anymore. They even upgraded Irene Adler from her mental (only) powers over Holmes to an easy-on-the-eyes seductress.

So we can all use an upgrade. We can all use a bridge to help us cross to the other side. We can all use a hero to save us. Ritchie and Hollywood have that right.

Is Sherlock Holmes an action hero? That's a bit much for me. I'll take Rocky as Rocky. And Falk as Columbo.

But if you want a real action hero who really can help you cross a bridge and get to the other side; if you want a saviour who can overcome the dark brotherhood of Satan, the enemy of all things godly, then trust in Jesus, the Jewish Messiah, the real Saviour of the planet. He needed no bullets, but by his actions demonstrated God's powerful love for all people. He taught and healed and walked on water. He embodied all God wanted for humanity and had wisdom beyond Holmes 2.0. And yet, and here's the rub, he died for us. Willingly. Without sophistication. Without trickery. With one purpose in mind... to redeem us to God and get us back into relationship with Him. Awesome.

No Hollywood trickery in that. Simple. Robust. Real. And it really works. All we have to do is believe.

The sequel is in your life. What will you do with Jesus?