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Published: 23 October 2014

I’ve heard people say, “These missionaries are always looking for money.”  And so are you.  You don’t work for free.  If your boss came to you tomorrow and said, “I’m not going to pay you anymore, I just want your work to be a “ministry” to this company,” you’d start looking for another job.  You have bills to pay, food to buy and a mortgage company waiting for a check.   Missionaries have needs too.  There are some missionaries who are “bi-vocational”, they earn money doing something other than gospel work and split their time between the two roles, may God grant them strength.  There are some people who want other people’s money so they don’t have to work at all—may God remove them from the scam.  However, there are messengers of the gospel that work hard and work a lot who are not receiving any support from the fledgling works they are establishing.  That is where an established church like Calvary can come alongside and help out.  The apostle Paul established churches all across Asia with the financial support of other churches.  At times he did his tent-making work but often he was solely dependent on the gifts of others.  (Read 1 Corinthians 8 & 9 and Philippians 4)  We certainly need to exercise discernment as we support mission endeavors.  Missionaries need to be accountable to those who are providing their support.  Let’s not allow the bad stories to keep us from supporting those who are truly doing the work.  Gospel ministry in any culture is work and when carried out properly we should remember that the laborer is worthy of his wages.  Sunday is the “Money Sermon”.  The primary reason I preach it at this time of the year is to prepare us for our Missions Weekend, October 30-November 2.  Each year we ask people to commit an amount of money for missions.  If you have been a part of missions through giving…thank you!  If you have been a part of missions through praying…thank you!  If you have been holding back from both, please consider joining the team of people at Calvary that believe we need to proclaim the gospel “Here, There and Everywhere.”  I’ll be preaching about why it is such a good idea this coming Sunday.  Yeah, missions means money!

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Published: 17 October 2014

Since we dumped “cable” I watch more Public Television and I really like Masterpiece Theater.  I’ve liked mysteries since reading Encyclopedia Brown as a kid and the PBS mysteries are intriguing.  One of the interesting distinctions I have noticed between British and American Detectives is that Americans usually shoot the bad guys while the Brits coerce a confession.  Don’t get all Second Amendment on me (if you know me you should know better).  The British Detectives keep gathering information and sorting clues.  I hardly ever figure out who the bad guy is even though the clues are there.  I would be a terrible British Detective.  It’s easier to tell who the bad guy is when he is shooting at the good guy!   By process of elimination the Brits narrow their field of suspects to one, convincingly present the evidence and await the “Yes I did it—and…”  Now that I think of it, Perry Mason was pretty good at getting confessions too, I don’t remember him ever shooting anybody either.  The Confession we plan to study on Sunday from Matthew 16 is not that of a criminal but that of an apprentice of Jesus.  To confess means to “say the same thing”.  It doesn’t always refer to sin but we often think of it that way.  But, a confession of faith is a statement about what one believes.   That’s what Peter did at Caesarea Philippi when Jesus asked, “Who do you say that I am?”  Peter responded, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.”  Jesus was pleased but reminded Peter that he didn’t figure that out on his own.  He had received assistance from the Father.  Peter wasn’t coerced into a confession but he was given clues, discernment and plenty of evidence from Jesus’ life.  We have the same.  One day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father…the evidence will be overwhelming.  It would be far better for us to not wait that long.  Today is the day of salvation, let us call upon the name of the Lord.