All posts by : Joel Phillips

AC/DC, Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath, Nine Inch Nails, Megadeth, are the kinds that always make the “Devil Music” list.

The Oak Ridge Boys, The Statler Brothers, The Bill Gaither Trio, Tammy Wynette, and a few other notables, don’t ever make the list, but they should. One of the songs they sing is as demonic as you can get. It is radical and rebellious.

Check out these lyrics:

Now let us have a little talk with Jesus
Let us tell Him all about our troubles
He will hear our faintest cry
He will answer by and by
Now when you feel a little prayer wheel turning
He will know a little fire is burning
You will find a little talk with Jesus makes it right

It’s true we can go to God in prayer; that we can take our troubles and burdens to him. We like the idea of pulling Jesus aside and having a little chitchat with him. But when it becomes a time of informing God of what we think is wrong, what he should’ve done, and what he should do, something’s wrong. When the “prayer wheel is a’turnin’ and fire is a’burnin,’ watch out! Here are some examples:

• Abraham reminded God that he and Sarah were too old to have kids.
• Martha alerted Jesus to the fact that if he had been in Bethany Lazarus wouldn’t have died.
• The Disciples on the Road to Emmaus told Jesus how what they had been hoping for wasn’t going to happen.
• The Apostles after the Ascension asked Jesus if he was going to finally establish his kingdom.
• Peter pulled Jesus aside and rebuked him for talking about going to the cross.

Here’s how God responds:

• “Abraham and Sarah, is anything too hard for the me? I will return about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.” (Genesis 18:14)
• “Martha, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he may die, he shall live.” (John 11:25)
• To the disciples, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” (Luke 24:25–26)
• To the Apostles, “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.” (Acts 1:7)
• And to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” (Matthew 16:23)

He wants us to trust him. He is aware of everything. He’s seen what happened. He knows exactly how it affects us. Nothing escapes his attention, nor has caught him by surprise.

Others may seem to have forgotten you, but God hasn’t. Your life is a total open book before the All-Knowing God. He knows every detail because he wrote it. He knows how you’re doing, what you’re doing, and why you’re doing it. Anything that suggests otherwise, is the makings for some “Devil List” music.

My friend told me a story that I’ll never forget.  It’s about an eight-year old boy named Philip who was born with Downs Syndrome.

In Philip’s Sunday school class several weeks before Easter, his teacher introduced a special project. She gave every child a plastic egg and explained that they were to go outside, find a symbol for new life and put it into the egg.  The children responded enthusiastically.

Back in the classroom the eggs were opened one at a time with each child explaining the what they had put inside.  In the first egg was a pretty flower; in the next a beautiful butterfly, green grass was in a third, and so on.  The children “oohed” and “aahed” as each of the eggs were opened.

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Finally the last egg was opened—there was nothing in it.  “That’s stupid!“ said one child. Another grumbled, “Someone didn’t do it right!”  The teacher felt a tap on her side. It was Philip. He said,

“That’s mine, and I did do right!  It’s empty because the tomb was empty."  
 

There was an unusual silence.  And from that time on Philip was accepted as part of the group. 

Philip continued to struggle with many physical problems. That summer he picked up an infection which most children could easily have shaken off. But Philip’s weak body couldn’t and a few weeks later, he died.  At his funeral nine 8 year-olds came with their teacher and brought a gift and placed it near his coffin. Their unusual gift of love to Phillip wasn’t flowers. It was an empty egg, now a symbol to them of new life and hope.  It was Phillip who had helped his friends see the wonderful hope in the message of Easter. 

The empty tomb reminds each of us of the promise that whoever receives Christ will be raised to eternal life.  Jesus never promised that we would not die.  His promised something much greater.  He promised that, like Him, we will not remain dead!

“But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead.” (1 Co 15:20-21)

When I was a kid, there was a couple in our church named Ray and Dorcas. They were good people, and a sincere Christians.  But whenever there was a call to receive Christ, they would always come forward and kneel at the altar. I learned later that they saw every time at the altar as an opportunity for a fresh start in their lives.

As an adult, I’ve wished many times for a fresh start. Not that my spiritual commitment or relationship with God has changed dramatically. But somehow things get kind of warped and twisted. Habits develop; ways of thinking, feeling and responding that intrude and do not fit with what I want to be, or what God wants. I’d like to wipe them all out and start again with a sense of freshness and restoration. I’d like to make a new beginning.

Nehemiah knew that God was giving his people a fresh start. God was restoring their lives from captivity. 

Although, Israel had never stopped being his people, he was bringing them back where they belonged.  The people of God were to come back to the their land with great expectations to rebuild the temple and the city of Jerusalem.

But it wasn’t long before Nehemiah discovered that the old patterns of life and old values were creeping back into the people’s lives.  In the face of attacks and threats, they had stopped working.  Their hope was lost and they began to settle for rubble. 

In the middle of this bleak situation, Nehemiah responds…

“So I placed armed guards behind the lowest parts of the wall in the exposed areas. I stationed the people to stand guard by families, armed with swords, spears, and bows. Then as I looked over the situation, I called together the nobles and the rest of the people and said to them, ‘Don’t be afraid of the enemy! Remember the Lord, who is great and glorious, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes!’” (Neh 4:13–14, NLT)

This can happen to us when our hopes seem to be on hold.  We begin to drift from God and give up on our dreams.  But Nehemiah tells us that it’s at times like this we need to redouble our resolve to fight.  It’s at times like this that we can experience a fresh start by coming to the Lord who is more great and more glorious than anything.

Ray and Dorcas were way ahead of us.

There’s a great movie from the early 80’s called, “My Body Guard.”  It’s a story of a teenaged boy named Clifford Peache who moves to Chicago and begins getting harassed by some bullies.  He makes attempts to work things out, but it isn’t until he’s befriended by an outcast named Ricky Linderman that he’s able to walk home from school without being beat up.  Whenever the bullies confront Peache, Linderman (who is huge) emerges and stands right behind him.  The bullies soon learn not to mess with either of them. 

This story has a several paralells with our Christian walk: how the devil loves to bully us, and how on our own we’re defenseless.  But there is one part of this story that especially applies to our walk. 

We are called to share our faith with others, however the fact is most of us are intimidated to do so.  George Barna reports that although there over 100 million Christians in the USA, the average Christian in American today will die without ever having shared his/her faith in Christ with another person.  This not only reveals the level of our intimidation, but it shows we have a poor understanding of the Holy Spirit’s role in evangelism. 

Here’s a familiar verse…

“The Lord is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (2 Pe 3:9b, NIV)
 

Now contrast that verse with this verse… 

“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” (Jn. 6:44)
 

In other words, because God does not want anyone to perish, He is drawing people by His Holy Spirit.  When you and I share our faith in Jesus Christ with someone, we maybe intimidated, but God is right there standing with us.  God’s Spirit has been working, is working, and will continue to work on the listener, softening their heart, pushing back hell’s influence, and bearing witness of the truth. 

We have more than a body guard, we have the backing of all heaven whenever we go to do the Father’s bidding!