I Am... You Are /  by Dale Decker

[Jesus said,] I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. ~ John 15:5

This agrarian metaphor may sound strange to our modern ears, but it gives us an indispensable picture of the Christian life. We are dependent beings. Without Christ, there are no Christians. While this appears obvious, there are those who would use the name Christian, but deny essential elements of who Christ revealed himself to be. The evidence of our union with Christ is in our allegiance to his commandments as demonstrated in the lifestyle (i.e. fruit) we produce. Ultimately, we cannot live in an appropriate manner apart from Christ.

A Prayer for Bible Study /  by Dale Decker

Heavenly Father, give me a diligent heart that I may study to show myself approved, as a servant who does not have to be ashamed. May I search the scriptures and find Jesus Christ that his word would be profitable to me, equipping me for every good work. Help me to find that which will make me wise unto salvation through Christ’s name. Amen.

A Prayer for the Grace to Serve /  by Dale Decker

O Lord, grant me the grace to serve others at their time of deepest need. May I be quick to hear and slow to speak. May your love abound in my heart and overflow in a love for others that shows itself in deed and truth. Amen.

If You Had Been Here /  by Dale Decker

Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died”…  Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” ~ John 11:21 & 32 

Two grieving sisters, two verbatim proclamations.  Mourning together after the death of their brother, Lazarus, I’m sure they had wondered why Jesus had not come when they sent for him.  After all, hadn’t they demonstrated faith in him by imploring him to come and heal their sick brother?  But their faith in Jesus seemingly stopped at the door of death.  His great power was for this life only, or so they believed.  Jesus intentionally waited for Lazarus to die before he came so that he would be glorified as the Son of God when he raised Lazarus from the dead.  This event was a foreshadowing of his own resurrection and a down payment of the resurrection to life of all those who die in Christ.

A Collect from 2 Corinthians 11:16-33 /  by Dale Decker

Heavenly Father, who ensures that the gates of Hell will not prevail against your church, give the leaders of [your church name] the right concern for this congregation that they might be good stewards of the souls entrusted to their care through Jesus Christ the Good Shepherd. Amen.

I Shall Again /  by Dale Decker

Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?  Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God. ~ Psalm 42:11 (ESV) 

Like a boxer hit with a solid blow to the jaw, life can sometimes send us reeling across the ring.  In pain, we stagger around, disoriented and confused.  Perhaps the trouble is bad news at work, an illness in the family, or some other disappointment.  And then come the questions.  Could this have been prevented?  Why is this happening to me?  Hasn’t my family suffered enough?  To where do we turn in such times? 

The Psalmist uses what modern therapists might call “self-talk”.  He directs his soul back to God.  He has hoped in God before and has found the help he needed and has praised God for it.  If he hopes in God now, he will again have cause to praise him. 

We also can find peace in the midst of our turmoil by hoping in God, for he is our salvation.

Led Up /  by Dale Decker

The Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.  And after fasting forty days and nights, he was hungry. ~ Matthew 4:1-2 (ESV) 

In the Western church tradition, the beginning of Lent is marked by Ash Wednesday.  For the Eastern church, Lent begins on Clean Monday.  Lent is the forty-day period (calculated in differing ways) leading up to Easter.  The Lenten season is supposed to be a time of fasting, spiritual preparation, and imitation of Jesus’s withdrawal into the wilderness.  For many these days, Lent is only associated with restaurant specials on fish sandwiches, but its true intent is meant to make our hearts hungry for the miracle of the Resurrection.

Something Improper /  by Dale Decker

“There is something improper in inviting materialists to discuss a religious question.”
— Augustine

Augustine makes this observation in The City Of God. I guess it’s kind of like asking a bachelor for marital advice, his frame of reference is only external; in truth, he has no in-sight, no internal witness of the experience about which he is being asked.

A Prayer from Psalm 22:22-24 /  by Dale Decker

Almighty, Merciful God 

Praise you, O Lord, for you are the God who hears the cries of your people.

Praise you, O Father, for you are the God who does not despise us in our afflictions. 

We praise you today because you are the God who does not turn away from our needs. 

We praise you because you are the God who sees and hears and acts – you are the Living God.

Help us to trust you when we are in need. Help us to seek you when we are afflicted. Help us to turn to you and seek your face. Help us to know that our deepest need, our most pressing affliction – our sin, finds its remedy in the love of Jesus Christ our Lord, who gave himself for us. In his name we pray, Amen.

His Glorious Might /  by Dale Decker

May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. ~ Colossians 1:11-12 (ESV) 

The life of the Christian is to be marked by gratitude. And we are fortunate in that we have a specific person to whom we can express our thanks. Those who do not believe in God may have a sense that they do not really deserve their families, jobs, friends, or any of the good things that have come into their lives; but they are left to attribute their blessedness to luck, or fortune, or, even worse, their own abilities. Like Bart Simpson saying grace over a meal, “Lord, we got this food ourselves, so thanks for nothing”, no recognition is made of their dependence on the Creator who fashioned everything and provides the raw material for all human industry. So let us be thankful, for sure, but let us also be specific in whom we thank.

Don’t Just Assent /  by Dale Decker

“We don’t just assent to propositions. Christianity is not propositional. Propositions can explain some things about the faith, but Jesus Christ is a person.”
— Hans Jacobse

This assertion is made by Hans Jacobse in his presentation Pastoring Young Men Into Manhood at the 2018 Touchstone Conference.

I heartily agree. We can never let our doctrinal statements, our systematic theologies, our acronyms or acrostics take the place of knowing Jesus in the power of his resurrection and in the fellowship of his suffering.

For In This Way /  by Dale Decker

Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to make your calling and election sure, for if you practice these qualities [faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love] you will never fall.  For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. ~ 2 Peter 1:10-11 (ESV) 

How can we be sure to get into heaven? Peter tells us. He lists the qualities necessary for a stable Christian life, one that will make sure we never fall. Then he talks about how these qualities will affect our entrance into Christ’s kingdom. He says that the qualities listed will richly provide for us an entrance, but what does that mean? Well, imagine that you are taking several friends out to an expensive restaurant for dinner. If you are like me, you mentally calculate about how much the cost will be so that you are sure you can pay for the evening. Do you think Bill Gates does this? Probably not, because he has plenty of resources and need not worry about one evening out with friends. The same principle applies to our entrance into heaven. If we pursue the qualities listed by Peter, we will not have to fret over what sort of entrance there will be for us – it has been richly provided for in Jesus Christ – and we are living diligently in him. Conversely, we can live our lives in such a way that we may always be left wondering if we will be able to get in at all.

Where God Looks /  by Dale Decker

“Standing in the gap is more dangerous and troublesome than getting behind the hedge. In the latter place you may be more secure and under the wind, but it is better to be where God looks for a man.”
— Jeremiah Burroughs

By this allusion to Ezekiel 22:30, Jeremiah Burroughs reminds us that the Christian life is one of striving against the forces arrayed against Christ and his Kingdom. But rather than the spear and the sword, Christians are to overcome evil with good.

He Makes Known /  by Dale Decker

The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant. ~ Psalm 25:14 (ESV)  

Fear of the Lord is the initiation into numerous benefits. The Preacher records some of them in the book Proverbs – wisdom, knowledge, prolonged life, confidence, and better behavior. Above all, though, would be the benefit of friendship with the Lord. With that friendship comes an encounter where the Lord makes known his covenant, his promise. This goes beyond bare information and is something which is worked in our hearts. The record of the promise is found throughout Scripture, “I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”

A Desire To Receive /  by Dale Decker

“The prayer life of a mature disciple reflects a desire to receive from God those good gifts that will help him or her reflect Jesus’ heart and actions more closely, combined with the confidence that God will answer such prayers.”
— David A. DeSilva

This insightful observation is made by David A. DeSilva in A Sacramental Life: Spiritual Formation Through The Book Of Common Prayer

If You Abide /  by Dale Decker

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” ~ John 8:31-32 (ESV)

 Jesus dealt with his share of hypocrites.  In these verses we see Jesus interacting with some who had attached themselves to him.  Jesus does not accept their declaration at face value, but instead predicates their sincerity on their constancy.  True disciples abide (i.e. live and dwell) in Christ’s word and there find freeing truth.  The Word of God is like a mirror, though we may not always like what it shows us about ourselves.  Seeing the truth frees us from self-deception and false piety to then be true disciples.