Following Jesus Son of God …

And it made me cry.

Doing some cleaning in my study today. I decided to drag out various diplomas, ordination certificate, licensing certificate, etc. and scan everything to PDF.

Eventually got that done. Had to enlist my wife’s help in finding my M.A. from Moody grad school, now Moody Theological Seminary and Graduate School.

Cleared some drawers in a couple organizers; threw out a bunch of magazines.

During all the commotion, I found a small, yellowed envelope among some old bank statements addressed to:

Mr. & Mrs. James Scott
Shepardsville, Ind.

No zip code; no street address.

I had forgotten about this. My Uncle Bill must have given this to me on one of my visits to “the old one.” He always chuckled when I said that. He was the last “old one” that lived close enough to visit regularly, and how I enjoyed the family history lessons that he shared.

Such as …

• Visiting the “rich” relatives in Indianapolis and coming home with two new pairs of bib overalls, one for him and one for Dad.
• How he worked and saved money so his little brother (my Dad) could have a suit for his junior high graduation.
• What an excellent baseball player my Uncle Leroy was.
• And what a good patriot and soldier my Uncle Ken was.

(No. You don’t hear me sniffling in the background.)

Anyway, I called my wife into my study because I knew that she would enjoy my discovery also. And I got through one paragraph in which he spoke of taking a study break with a friend to go get a cup of coffee. My dad loved coffee. And how many times we visited and sat down and visited with a cup fresh and not so fresh from their percolator.

And I started crying and couldn’t finish. Where did that come from I wondered? Didn’t expect this emotional display.

Dad was a student at a Bible college in Grand Rapids, Michigan at the time, what is now Cornerstone University if I have my facts correct. You can see my chart below if interested.

Tonight, I picked up the letter again, and although I didn’t cry, I was still impacted more than I thought I would be. I did finish the letter this time. It was actually pretty cool to take this little time capsule adventure.

But the tears were there in my eyes nonetheless.

Dad has been gone since 1993, almost nineteen years. He is in heaven. My sadness is not of that nature. Dad was one of the strongest, most passionate followers of Jesus Christ that I have ever known.

Flawed but ever so beautiful in Jesus Christ he was. How I loved him.

So why the tears?

I guess I just missed my dad.

I know some people talk about missing their parents every day. I don’t think of him like that. I loved him dearly, but he suffered so much the last year of his life.

I was happy for him that he could finally leave this troubled world and meet the Jesus he loved face to face.

I preached Dad’s funeral. Talk about joy and sadness. I felt so led to stand there on Dad’s behalf but had questions right up until the start of the service.

But once the service began, I was speaking about him and for him. I knew what he would want me to say to the many friends and relatives before me. He would want Jesus Christ at the forefront. He would want people to hear his greatest desire for them, that they would know Christ and receive his gift of salvation.

I “did Dad proud” that day. And I honored the Jesus he loved and shared the good news of his shed blood.

So, yes, I do miss Dad. Tears back in my eyes now but in a good way. I will see him again one day. Can’t imagine the stories he and Mom will have to tell.

Okay, too much, I’m going for the Kleenex.

____________________________

• January 1941–1944: Baptist Bible Institute of Grand Rapids, Michigan modeled after the Baptist Bible Institute of Toledo, Ohio located in educational wing of Wealthy Street Baptist Church in Grand Rapids
• 1944–1948: Baptist Bible Institute and School of Theology of Grand Rapids, Michigan
• 1948–1963: Grand Rapids Baptist Theological Seminary and Bible Institute first seminary graduating class of two students, Spring 1949, one of whom was Victor M. Matthews, who immediately began teaching at the school
• 1963–1972: Grand Rapids Baptist Bible College and Seminary
• In Fall 1964, first students arrive at new campus at Leonard & East Beltline NE
• 1972–1994: Grand Rapids Baptist College and Seminary
• January 1977, the new Leon J. Wood Seminary Building opened (dedicated the following month)
• 1994: merged with Grand Rapids School of the Bible & Music and renamed as Cornerstone College
• 1994–1999: Cornerstone College and Grand Rapids Baptist Seminary (28 March 1994); legally renamed as Cornerstone Baptist Educational Ministries (CBEM)
• 1999: Renamed Cornerstone University (8 April 1999)
• 2003: Grand Rapids Baptist Seminary became Grand Rapids Theological Seminary
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornerstone_University

I would like to apologize for the Song of Solomon posts from yesterday on FB. I mean it is the word of God, but left alone for the shock value was a poor choice. This post is what I should have included with the Bible verses. I left too much on the fringe, too much for reading between the lines.

I just finished reading SoS as part of my “reading through the Bible” plan, and I guess I was going for a little shock value. SoS is an interesting study and many people actually believe that there are three main characters in the drama: the King, the Shulammite and a young shepherd. Like so much of the Bible we tend to sanitize what God actually puts before us. We are often more comfortable with the Sunday School version of Scripture than the real thing.

Kind of like the Veggie Tales version of “Little Joe” and Potiphar’s wife. My wife’s SS class of junior high girls was incredulous on a fine Sunday morning upon learning the biblical account as opposed to the Veggie Tales spin. “You mean, he wasn’t just trying to steal a bag of gold?” I think that was the story anyway.

Life is a mess and the Bible presents the mess, but we instead are very careful to present God’s bold statements of the reality of life to fit more our comfort zone than God’s purpose. Yes, SoS is a love story, but whether or not you believe that the Shulammite (spelling varies) was Solomon’s first wife or not, we cannot ignore that this “love story” is about a man who had 700 wives and 300 concubines.

Life is a mess, but when we present the very real truth of God’s word and his gospel and live like people who have been saved by grace …

Instead of taming and sanitizing the words to make ourselves more comfortable …

Then people turn to God’s saving grace. Our world needs to see that we needed to be saved from our sins to realize that they too need a Savior.

” … such were some of you. But you were washed.”

• (1 Corinthians 6:10-11 ESV) nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. (11) And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

” … so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his sins.”

• (2 Peter 1:8–9 ESV) For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.

If we do not realize how far from God each of us who profess Christ was before coming to Jesus Christ for salvation, then we do not know the gift we have been given. When we tone down the evil nature that besets each and every person who is born into this world, then we tone down and take away from the salvation that Christ purchased with his shed blood on the cross.

So I made a clumsy attempt to shock you, and I really hope I didn’t offend too badly.

But as for the Word of God, we should be shocked as we see who we are, and God still loved the world that he gave his only Son.

To God be the glory!