Have you ever noticed how much God likes 6 things jump off the page. He likes new wine (Numbers 18:12); new hearts (Ezekial 36:26); a new spirit (Ezekial 11:19); a new name (Isaiah 62:6); a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17); a new command (2 John 1:5); a new covenant (Jeremiah 31:31); new wineskins (Matthew 9: 17); the New Jerusalem (Revelation 3:12); and a new heaven and a new earth (Revelation 21:1). 

 It should not surprise us, then, that around the throne, as people and multitudes gather, they sing a new song (Revelation 14:3). Would anything else be fitting for a moment like that: People streaming in from all parts of the world and from all moments in time—people whom we have not seen for years who have had such an impact on our lives—all gathering together in praise to Father, Son and Holy Spirit! What could be more fitting than for this multitude to join in singing a new song of praise? 
 

The words of the new song are given in Revelation 5:9-14. There are three stanzas. The first proclaims that the Lamb is worthy to receive the scroll because with His blood He has “purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation” (vv. 9- 10). The second stanza (v. 12) expresses the praise and honor and glory that the Lamb alone is worthy to receive: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise.” The third stanza gives glory both to God and the Lamb together: “To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!” (v. 13).
Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Rev. Dr. Brent L Parrish

Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, O Lord. Psalm 89:15

The word “acclaim” in Psalm 89:15 seems to imply an action on our part. Look up the word in the dictionary and you will find that one of the meanings for acclaim is “to shout approval.” There is, indeed, joy to be found in those who learn to shout their approval and praise unto God. But a closer look at the text reveals God’s action. The English Standard Version is helpful in shedding light on this: “Blessed are the people who know the festal shout, who walk, O Lord, in the light of your face.” The festal (festival) shout mentioned refers to an event in one of the most precious of festivals to Jewish people—the Year of Jubilee. The history of this great festival is found in Leviticus 25. It begins with God’s command that Israel allow the land to rest every seventh year. No crops or cultivation. The seventh year was to be a Sabbath year as the land rested. No planting, picking of fruit, or harvesting of any kind. Israel was asked to trust God that He would provide for their needs during this time: 

 “You may ask, ‘What will we eat in the seventh year if we do not plant or harvest our crops?’ I will send you such a blessing in the sixth year that the land will yield enough for three years. While you plant during the eighth year, you will eat from the old crop and will continue to eat from it until the harvest of the ninth year comes in” (Leviticus 25:20-22). 
 

What an incredible promise—God is promising them a triple harvest. Next, God commanded that the people observe seven consecutive cycles of Sabbaths for the land—49 years of trusting that God would provide for their needs and then some. After these seven seven-year periods, the fiftieth year was to be a Year of Jubilee. When that year arrived, there would be a sounding of trumpets. (The word Jubilee means “the clamoring of trumpets.”) 

 “Then have the trumpet sounded everywhere on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement sound the trumpet throughout your land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you; each one of you is to return to his family property and each to his own clan” (Leviticus 25:9). 

The joyful sound of the trumpet could be heard throughout the land—in every village and every city. Much like the ringing of church bells in our day, the trumpets would joyfully sound. What made their sound so joyful is that this marked the canceling of all debts and restored all goods to the original owner. It freed every servant. If a farmer had fallen into hard times, the Year of Jubilee returned his land and possibly even his family to him. The Year of Jubilee enabled a person to say, “Nothing in my past can be held against me. I am free. That which I lost has been given back to me.” 

Those who learned the meaning of the sound of the trumpets were so joyful as it filled them with confidence and hope even in the midst of depressing and difficult times. Those who knew the joyful sound became fearless as they walked through life. They may be afflicted, but their hearts are at rest in knowing the joyful sound. 

The echoes of this joyous sound reverberate throughout the pages of the New Testament. The message Christ proclaims is that this is our year of the Jubilee. It is so fitting that in His first sermon to His own hometown, Jesus would stand up and say, 

 “The spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Luke 4:18-19). 

 In Christ, I know that my past does not have to be held against me. That which I lost in Adam’s fall, I have now regained in being able to call God my Father. The inheritance is mine once again. Blessed are those who know and have learned the joyful sound. 

It is not a sound that I must wait to hear once every seven years or every fifty. The joyful sound is heard when I drink of His blood and eat of His body and hear the words, “The body of Christ, given and shed for you.” Can you hear the joyful sound in that? It is our Lord proclaiming release to you and me in our poverty and blindness. The joyful sound is heard in the liturgy of the church when the pastor pronounces in the stead and by the command of Jesus the forgiveness for our rebellion and disobedience. The joyful sound is heard in the splashing of water with the words “I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Time after time the joyful sound is heard as God shouts His approval of us on account of what Jesus has done on our behalf. 

Read and ponder the words of Romans 8:1: “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” The past is forgotten. The trumpets are blasting. Blessed are those who have learned the joyful sound. 

There are many ways in which we can respond to Jesus in mission. We can pray, we can serve, we can tell, but there is no more important response than first learning and hearing the joyful sound within our own being.
Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Rev. Dr. Brent L Parrish

“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from who you learned it and how from infancy you have known the holy scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:14-16). 

God wants us to learn His Word, but not as an end to itself. In learning His Word, we gain wisdom in two key areas. First, in the matter of salvation, we get to know Jesus. The Scriptures show us what He has done for us and how we are saved. Secondly, all of our learning is meant to give us wisdom in the area of day-to-day living, as we are “equipped for every good work.” There is a huge difference between knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge, which the world knows much about and values so highly, is fostered by curiosity. Twenty-four hour news coverage—and behind-the-scenes coverage like we have never seen before—feeds our curiosity, increasing our appetite for more of the same. We live in a society that values information and knowledge (i.e., the more you know and have at your fingertips, the more influential and powerful you are in life). Wisdom, however, is fostered by reverence. God says, 

 “Remember the day you stood before the Lord your God at Horeb, when he said to me, ‘Assemble the people before me to hear my words so that they may learn to revere me as long as they live in the land and may teach them to their children’” (Deuteronomy 4:10). 

 God has revealed His Word to us that we might revere Him and stand in awe of Him. This reverence will then draw us in to learn more about Him. Don’t confuse reverence with fear. Reverence, or awe, is a sense of wonder and humility that is created when one is in the presence of greatness and mystery. Fear repels us, causing us to shrink back in terror. Reverence will draw us near in humbleness as we are empowered to live changed lives. Time after time, this is evident in those who are exposed to the teaching of God.  
--Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Rev. Dr. Brent L Parrish

When you know someone well, you know their styles, their likes and their dislikes. It is important for you and them to get to know those kinds of things. As relationships deepen, it is important to not only know the personal preferences of a person, but to also know what their deepest heartfelt desires are in life. 

 Knowing what a loved one desires is part of a growing and vibrant relationship. Furthermore, you not only know what they desire, but what is important to them becomes important to you. The desires of their heart become a part of what you desire in life. This is evident among best friends, in marriages, and in healthy working teams.

It is also evident in one’s relationship with God as it matures and grows over time. It is not uncommon to find some in the faith whose main concern is to escape the fires of hell and make sure they will be in heaven someday. Their faith initially is fairly self-centered—like that of a toddler. Their concern is more on how God can help them with a variety of problems within their life. This does not mean they are not Christians. Their faith, however, needs to mature. Paul spoke about this when he said, 

 “Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good” (1 Peter 2:1-3)
 

We may look inside ourselves and think, “If you only knew . . . If you only knew what I have done and what I have thought . . . .” Jesus does know and His response is, “It’s you I like.”

Listen to what He says: “I have not come to call the righteous but the sinners.” He is not impressed by those who pretend to have their act together and are impressed by their own righteousness—those who see no urgent need for Him. He is, however, touched by those whose hearts are broken and contrite. He is moved by those who know they have failed Him. His promise is there for you: “All that the Father gives me will come to me and whoever comes to me I will never drive away” (John 6:37).
 

The love of Jesus is like no other you could ever know. This does not mean that He winks at our sin. Consider the woman caught in adultery. After He places His own name and life on the line for her, Jesus turns to her and says, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you? . . . Then neither do I condemn you . . . Go now and leave your life of sin” (John 8:10-11). He loves us just the way we are, but He loves us so much that He does not want to leave us that way. 

This promise is not just for you and me. There are so many others that Jesus desires to call to Him. It may be the last person you would ever think about as a possibility because, on the surface, they just do not seem to be open or receptive. Jesus looks at them in a different way. He looks at them the same way He looked at Matthew or the woman caught in adultery— straight into the heart. You know some of these people in your life. These are ones to whom we are called. These are the people who make up the 100 million to whom we can communicate the love of Christ so that their hearts might be ablaze with His love and presence. 

Who is there in your life that might surprise you if you were to look at them in the same way that God looks at them? Would you be willing to pray for them? Pray for their well-being. Pray for their family. Pray for the opportunity to share the love of Jesus with them. Responding to the call of Jesus to be His witness begins with learning about Him personally and about what He desires. It also involves learning about the people who matter to Him.
 

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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

1 Timothy 2:1-6 “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercessions and thanksgiving be made for everyone . . . This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved . . . For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men . . .”Do you hear the recurring theme as to who matters to God? Everyone! Christ gave Himself as a ransom for all men—not just some or most—but all men. 

I have heard it said that numbers are not important when it comes to matters of faith. Don’t tell that to God. A book of the Bible is named “Numbers.” If you read the book of Acts, you will very quickly get the impression that numbers do matter to God and to the early Christian Church—twelve, to begin with, and then one hundred twenty. Soon there were three thousand added to their number. But who’s counting? God apparently was. Why? Because numbers matter to God. 

 Remember what Jesus said about the shepherd: One, two, three, fifty-six, fifty-seven, eighty-nine, ninety-one, ninety-nine—where is number one hundred? The shepherd went out looking for the one. Why? Because numbers mattered to the shepherd. 

Who matters to God? Everyone! God wants all to be saved! Not most. Not a majority. He wants all to be saved. So, He keeps count. Like the woman with the coins and the shepherd with the sheep, numbers matter to God. Not numbers in themselves, but who those numbers represent. Each number represents a soul for whom Jesus gave His life as a ransom. He paid the debt that each of us owed to God on account of our disobedience. His final words, “It is finished,” literally mean “paid in full.” 

 Numbers matter to God because each and everyone of them is someone for whom blood was shed. Jesus tells us that the angels celebrate and party in heaven when just one person repents and comes home to God. Why? Because numbers matter to God. He is keeping count.
Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,
Rev. Dr. Brent L Parrish

Jeremiah 9:23-24 “Thus says the Lord, “Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts of this, that he understands and knows me. That I am the Lord who exercises loving kindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things."
 

They had met only a few weeks ago. Since then, there was flurry of e-mails and phone calls and notes. They talked into the wee hours of the night, not seeming to mind the loss of sleep. Their hunger to know about each other was almost insatiable. Such is the nature of love. When two people are attracted to each other, there is a desire—even a need—to learn as much as you possibly can about the other. Love feeds on this kind of information with a ravenous hunger. The more you get to know the person, the deeper the love grows. Should it be any different in our relationship with God? God doesn’t think so. Listen to what He says: “. . . let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows me.”
It seems so obvious. God wants us to know Him and understand Him. Yet, if we are honest, this is not a high priority with us as much as it should be. When we turn to His Word, it is not necessarily to know Him better. We are in search of understanding our life better: What are we supposed to do in life? What are we not supposed to do? How do we quit worrying? How can we overcome a grudge? What do we do when we are lonely or depressed? You know the list. Where do you turn when you are ___________? (Go ahead and fill in the blank.)
There is nothing wrong with seeking that kind of help. That is why God put those truths in the Word in the first place. But why is it not a priority of our hearts to first learn about His heart: What makes Him sad? What does He delight in? God has feelings. He gets jealous. He delights in our offerings. He gets angry. He yearns for fellowship with us. The more I learn about Him Learn of Me in His Word, the more my heart is ablaze with His joy and His love.
This is what He wants us to learn. God is not one to delight in suffering or unfairness. There is much in life that causes confusion as to why God allows certain things to happen. But the more we learn of Him, the more we will see and understand Him to be a God that delights in showing us kindness and in doing what is right. He can be trusted. No where better can His desire to exercise kindness, justice and righteousness be witnessed than on the Cross. The Cross alone helps us to learn all that we need to know about Him. 

What difference would it make in your walk—in its pace and in its direction—if Jesus were to open His Word to your heart?
Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Rev. Dr. Brent L Parrish

John 14:6  I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

"Many roads go up the mountain, but they all get to the top."

"All religions are essentially the same."

"One religion is as good as another."

Weird statements, right? The funny thing is, often the same people who make these statements select their one doctor very carefully!

These commonly heard views summarize what is known as "universalism," the myth that ultimately all people will be saved regardless of what they believe or what religion they follow.

But the "Gospel in a nutshell" says, "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16).

There is the universal salvation. God offers salvation to all people but only through belief in Jesus Christ. And that atonement, grasped by our Spirit-empowered faith, affects our justification: We are declared righteous, forgiven, by God. We are saved, that is, rescued from our sins, and made God's children and heirs of eternal life through the death and resurrection of His Son.

This is why it's so important to get the Good News about Christ out to everyone in the world as quickly as possible. And we must not forget to be faithful witnesses to Him in our own backyards.

We thank God daily for the salvation He offers to all believers. We pray that all humanity may come to know and believe in Jesus Christ, the only way to the Father and eternal life.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Rev. Dr. Brent L Parrish