Author: Tim Ehrhardt

I'm just a common ordinary pastor, chaplain, father, grandfather, and dog owner who loves the smell of a genuine leather Bible and the aroma of its message. I'm on a quest to track down the best Bibles, how to best read and use them, and to discover the encouragement inside.

Malachi 2:10-3:1

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            They were faithless to one another; faithless to their wives; and, so, faithless to God.  God is described as actually being weary by lots of talk, but no faithful presence and action.  So it was the context and situation for this last little prophecy of the Old Testament.  The answer we are left with is that a messenger will be sent to prepare the way of the Lord.  He is coming, and it will be soon.
 
            Keeping the end of our lives and of history in mind helps bring greater clarity and purpose to the present.  Since Jesus is returning and coming soon we are to be faithful.  Faithfulness toward God means faithfulness to the significant people close to us.  We can pray and attend church and offer many words to God, but if we do not have a faithful presence and commitment to our families then God will not look with favor upon us.
 
            We are told twice in these verses to “guard yourselves in your spirit.”  It is necessary to monitor the condition of our souls and be in touch with the state of our spirits so that we remain faithful.  There must be a willingness to nurture our inner selves so that the outward actions reflect faithful commitment.  There needs to be vulnerability with oneself and submission to basic accountability structures so that we are aware of strengthening the inner person.  Rather than embrace a rabid individualism, communal and certainly familial dedication is a primary way of pleasing God and realizing his blessing upon us.
            Sovereign God, the One who sees and knows all, help me guard my spirit so that I will be faithful in all I do and in all my relationships with others, especially my own family and spouse.  Strengthen my soul to remain dedicated to seeing the coming of Jesus in all his glory.  Amen.

Acts 11:1-18

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            Grace trumps everything.  One of the most scandalous truths of Christianity is that God graces common ordinary people who seem as dead as a bowling ball with the Holy Spirit and gives them life.  The Apostle Peter had to learn this with some difficulty, but he embraced the work of God among the non-Jewish Gentiles.  “The Holy Spirit fell on them just as on us at the beginning” is Peter’s plain account and confession of the reality that God grants repentance that leads to life for all kinds of people no matter what their race, ethnicity, class, or background.  It is a wondrous and astounding spiritual truth that God’s gracious concern is not limited to a certain type of person.
 
            Along with Peter and the other believers so long ago, let us rejoice in the work of God that brings deliverance and transformation.  Grace is and ought to be the guiding factor in how we interact with people.  Losing sight of grace leads to being critical and defensive.  Embracing grace leads to the humility to see the image of God in people very different from ourselves.  Grace tears down barriers and causes us to do away with unnecessary distinctions between others.  Our appropriate response to such a grace is to glorify God for his marvelous and amazing work.  Let it be so.
            Gracious God, just as you saved people from ancient times and gifted them with your Holy Spirit, so today continue your mighty work of transformation in the hearts of people I share the good news of Jesus with.  Amen.

God’s Patience

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Exploring Church Ministry BlogLeave a comment
 
 
The Christian Year begins with the season of Advent.  Advent literally means “anticipation.”  It is an awareness of God’s actions in the past, in the present, and in the future.  While we wait for Christmas and the birth of Jesus, we also anticipate Christ’s second coming at the end of time.  Our Lord’s coming again always stands in the background of our yearly Advent anticipation.
 
We are often impatient people. It is important to understand that God’s timing is different than ours.  There are two words for time in the New Testament:  Chronos and Kairos.  Chronos is where we get our English word “chronological.”  This is time measured by the clock.  This is the way in which much of our lives are governed.  The other term for time, Kairos, is seasonal time.  It is not determined by the clock, but is event-oriented. 
 
God is not time-oriented in the sense that we are; that is, God is not ruled and controlled by the clock.  God is actually event-oriented which is why God’s understanding of time is that a thousand years are like a day and a day like a thousand years (2 Peter 3:8-15).  In others words, God does not measure time like we do.  When the Bible says that Christ is coming soon, that means there are no redemptive events left in the course of history except the Day of the Lord, the return of Jesus to judge the entire world.
 
I admit that I am a clock-oriented guy.  I also admit that my wife and girls are not.  Since this is our reality as a family, I end up waiting on them – a lot!  I have spent countless chronological hours of my life anticipating their readiness to go somewhere.  I used to get frustrated and impatient because I thought they should be clock-oriented like me.  But, over the years, I have learned to accept this reality.  Now I take the time of waiting and read.  I have actually read a lot of books over the years through my waiting.
 
What we need to get a hold of is that God has all the time in the world, and he is not frustrated about it.  It is us that get antsy and impatient because we think that God has to operate on our time schedule.  But what looks like tardiness to us is really something else.  God seems slow in keeping his promises because of his mercy. 
 
In the face of so much that is not right with the world we might wonder why God is not just stepping in and taking care of all the evil and unjust situations on this earth.  The truth is:  God is patiently waiting for all kinds of people to come to the point of repentance.  God is waiting for that lost soul to make his/her way to himself.
 
But the repentance that God is looking for is not just for other people outside the church; it is for Christians, as well.  God is waiting for us, too.  What should we be doing in the meantime while we wait for Christ’s Advent?  We ought to be living holy and godly lives as we look forward to Christ’s coming and speed its coming.
 
When I worked a factory assembly line, the reality of the situation was that the assembly line is only as effective as its slowest worker.  One person could determine the outcome of getting the product out the door in a timely fashion, or not.  God is not a factory manager, but the principle is still the same:  the church is often only as effective as its most mediocre member.  In other words, God has chosen to use us to accomplish his purposes.  If we do not participate in those purposes or procrastinate, the next event on God’s agenda (the Lord’s return) may well be slowed.  God has all the time in the world, and he is waiting. 
 
God is gracious.  He is not going to kick and prod you like an earthly boss.  He is not going to bully us or strike us with lightning when we disobey by failing to do his will.  God does not operate like us.  If we sin or disobey, he is patient, wanting us to come to him to receive mercy.  He is waiting for us to avail ourselves of his help to live holy and godly lives.  Our Lord’s patience means deliverance from all that disconnects us from Jesus so that we might rightly attach ourselves to Christ.
 

 

There is no better season to mend fences and deal with all that divides and angers.  The Lord is coming.  Let us be ready by living grace-filled lives reflecting our status as God’s people.

Psalm 27

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            The message of the Advent season is perfectly and succinctly encapsulated in the last verse of this real and raw psalm:  “Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!  Oh, how impatient we can be as people!  Not only do we anticipate the celebration of Christmas with the coming Christ child, but we long for deliverance, courage, help, strength, and, of course, patience.
 
            This verse is much needed to fortify us for hope.  Whatever it is that we desire to see realized – the return of a wayward son or daughter; revitalization and revival within the church; courage to face the high wall of adversity; protection and deliverance from mean-spirited people – whatever the situation we long for, patience is to be our breakfast every morning to help us through each day.
 
            Without the ability to wait upon the Lord we will lose our spiritual zeal and settle for a mediocre existence with tepid relationships.  But God desires much more than simply having a marriage in which two people only exist under the same roof; his will is for church to be much more than attendance and putting some money in the offering place once in a while; he sent his Son to bring reconciliation to the broken relationship with the person that only offers small talk and platitudes.  No, rather than lose heart we must be strengthened with patience that comes from daily hope.  Persevering in prayer and tediously laboring on obeying the revealed will of God is our work while we wait upon God.
            O God Almighty, from whom all blessings flow, I am weary and emotionally exhausted.  Lift me up.  Do not let the enemy triumph over me.  I patiently wait upon your deliverance and your blessing, through Jesus Christ my Lord in the power of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.