December 15 - Oh the Humanity

 Read today’s texts first: James 1-5

MAXIMize YOUR DAY

Our faith should be obvious in
how we speak and what we do.

While I love the entire Bible, cover to cover, two of its books always stand out to me: Philippians, because it has shaped how I live and what I teach, and James, because it challenges me to walk the rest of my talk! This book is so focused on our responsibility that Luther, who emphasized God’s grace and sovereignty, questioned its inclusion in the canon. He felt James contradicted sola gratia (grace alone) and sola fide (faith alone). But there was a good reason for James to emphasize the humanity of our faith - he was the half brother of Jesus.

We call him the half brother because both Jesus and James were sons of Mary, but they had different fathers: James was the son of Joseph and Jesus was the virgin-born Son of God. But James grew up with Jesus, seeing His humanity more than His divinity. He no doubt worked with Jesus in their Dad’s carpentry shop and probably had sawdust thrown in his face by his older brother. It’s understandable that the family of Jesus had trouble at first accepting Him as the self-proclaimed Son of God (Mark 6:1-6).

Yet James witnessed the consistency between the words and actions of Jesus, and eventually became not only a follower of Jesus but the leader of the first church in Jerusalem (Acts 15). It was this unique vantage point of watching Jesus integrate His humanity and divinity that formed James’ perspective on faith, that faith without works is dead (2:14-26). In his epistle, he emphasized the importance of not only hearing from God but doing what He says (1:22-24). Our faith should become obvious in how we speak and what we do (1:26,27).

“Lord, I know that faith in You alone saves me but the Bible also makes it clear that such faith must be expressed through my words and actions. Help me today to maintain integrity between Your Word and my walk!”

December 14 - Stirred but not Shaken

 Read today’s texts first: Hebrews 12,13; Jude

MAXIMize YOUR DAY

Sometimes real love requires real discipline.

As I approach the Christmas holidays my thoughts default to family, which is appropriate context for my Bible reading today. The last chapters in Hebrews talks about our Father God’s loving discipline and Jude applies why that discipline is important, to keep us all contending earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints (Jude 3).

We sometimes get the misguided notion (usually from TV and the movies) that love is always sickeningly sweet support – “oh look at Johnny throwing his Fruit Loops at Suzy, isn’t that cute!” No, that’s not cute – it’s a waste of good cereal!  Sometimes real love requires real discipline (another variation of “discipling”)! My Dad didn’t have to discipline me very often (I was the baby and the most obedient child among the six siblings!). But when he did, I felt his belt on my backside quickly followed by a hug I couldn’t escape (though I was mad enough to try). He would encourage me with profound, unforgettable wisdom, like “it’s not your failure that defines you but what you learn from it.”

That’s the kind of wisdom we find in our readings today: For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines (12:6) and it is for discipline that you endure (12:7). Following these wise words are illustrations of those who failed to learn from their discipline and then fell away from their faith. All of us, from the beginnings of human history, have or will experience a great shaking of our faith, from Mt. Sinai to Mt. Zion, from this world to finally the heavens (12:18-29). That’s why we must not refuse Him who is speaking (12:25). The gentle stirring in our hearts that brings us conviction and correction now, will save us from falling apart when the big one comes, when our whole world starts shaking around us. Bond got it wrong - stirred but not shaken is the better choice!

“Lord, thank You for a loving father who did not let me get away with my sin. He gave me a glimpse, as perfect as the imperfect can be, of how You, my perfect heavenly Father, loves and disciplines me now.”

December 13 - Hall of Faith

 Read today’s texts first: Hebrews 9-11

MAXIMize YOUR DAY

The heroes of our faith family are gathered in the
stands of eternity cheering all of us on. 

My cousin and namesake, the other Robert Buzza, has always served the Buzza family by documenting our family lineage. It’s fascinating to see the consistency of the Buzza heritage, with lumber and Christianity emerging as recurring themes. My Dad owned several lumber companies and was a key elder in my home church. He came by those values quite naturally, going back several hundred years. In 1596, John Boussow (later changed to Buzza), our earliest recorded ancestor and well respected timber dealer, donated the pews for his home church in Cornwall, England.

But even more fascinating than my natural family is the spiritual lineage all believers enjoy. I love travelling across North America visiting churches (I’ve done so for many years, leading college tours from 1987-2013). Wherever I find fellow Christians, anywhere around the world, I feel immediately at home. The ties to our spiritual family are profound in this world, but they will become even stronger as we transition into eternity.

That’s why I love this particular passage in Hebrews. It takes us back to the beginning of our faith family and I always get misty-eyed when I read about my famous ancestors. Some were renowned leaders who achieved phenomenal success (11:4-34). But in the middle of verse 35 things change - the names become inconsequential and their lives seem to end in defeat. My voice always catches as I read how they were tortured, scourged, stoned, imprisoned, and sawn in half. But then my spirit lifts when I read the parenthetical thought in verse 38: men and women of whom the world was not worthy. Yes! That’s my faith family!

And then we read how these incredible heroes of the faith are gathered in the stands of eternity cheering all of us on, to help us finish our journeys strong and unencumbered by sin (12:1). “Lord, as I consider the remaining years I have left on this planet, may I not grow weary or faint-hearted, as I run with endurance the race that is set before us, always looking to You, the founding father and finisher of our faith” (12:2,3).

December 12 - Written in our Hearts

 Read today’s texts first: Hebrews 5-8

 MAXIMize YOUR DAY
Those who say they don’t need a crutch like
Christianity, limp along, grasping at anything
but God to prop themselves up.

Last year on this day, I could see it in the faces of my fellow shipmates. They were there for a good time – what could be more relaxing than cruising the calm and balmy Caribbean (especially while missing the snowstorms back home). But at times I could see the emptiness, the loneliness, in their eyes. For many, something was missing!

I saw it in their actions too - their addictions. People so fat they could only move about on wheelchairs or scooters, mostly towards the buffet. Chain-smokers, clouding up the casino as they pushed the air conditioner beyond its limits. Gamblers, banging their heads against slot machines as the hypnotic sights and sounds sucked another $100 through their fingers. Drinkers, who shed more than their inhibitions while playing “adult” games in the ship’s lounges.

Why are we prone to addictions, to excesses? Our reading today provides the answer. We were created in God’s image to walk and talk with Him every day. He is our High Priest, our mediator, One who knows everything about us, experienced everything we have gone through and more, understands our weaknesses, and offers to be with us, helping us to live right every day.

Often my preChristian friends will tell me they don’t need a crutch like Christianity, and then they limp on their way, grasping at anything but God to prop themselves up.  We weren’t created to live by ourselves, for ourselves, in our own strength. Jesus came to earth to break off our sinful attraction to worldly addictions and fill us up with Himself: “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” says the Lord: “I will put My laws into their minds, and I will write them on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people” (8:10).

“Lord, You are all I need. You are my High Priest who is with me always. Your Word is written on my heart, filling my mind and spirit, and protecting me from the empty distractions of this world.”

December 11 - Eating Right

 Read today’s texts first: Philemon; Hebrews 1-4

MAXIMize YOUR DAY

More serious than hardening of the arteries is a hardened heart. Be careful how you feed your soul! 

One of the things we learned on one of our cruises, believe it or not, was the importance of nutrition.  Why would a cruise ship, offering endless buffets of rich food, spoil such decadence with a seminar on healthy eating?  And why would Jan and I attend such a seminar when we know full well ignorance is bliss! Well, after hearing about the toxins we absorb daily through our poor food choices, we made a pact that upon our return (which was about this time of year) we would set up healthy menus for our daily meals, which we would follow resolutely - at least until we started our Christmas baking! Looking back, that’s how long our new-found resolve lasted!

The writer of Hebrews calls for much better discipline when it comes to spiritual nutrition. In chapter 5:11-14, he exhorts us to move on from being spoon fed baby foods to feeding ourselves with “solid foods” every day. Leading up to that he tells us why. Just us an unhealthy diet of rich or greasy foods will lead to hardening of the arteries, neglecting a daily intake of God’s Word will lead to the hardening of our spiritual heart (2:1;3:7,8,12,13).

These warnings of heart hardening lead up to this famous passage about the Bible: For the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.  (4:12). The two-edged sword of God’s Word is the scalpel we need for open-heart surgery. It can cut away all the contaminated deposits we digest by living in a sin-polluted world (talk about your “toxin cleanse”). It divides away the faulty and fatty attitudes from that which is pure, healthy and organic to God’s will.

And this encounter with God’s Word must be daily:  Encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called "Today," so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin (3:13).

 “Lord, thank You for this season of rest I’ve been able to enjoy and the renewal I’ve experienced by being in Your Word every day. As Jan and I focus more now on eating right physically, help us to never neglect a healthy diet of solid spiritual food as well!”

December 10 - And So On and So On

 Read today’s texts first: 2 Timothy 1-4

MAXIMize YOUR DAY

Lead 1 person to Christ a year, discipling them to do the same, and we’ve saved the world in 1 generation.

Those of us who lived through the big hair era of the early 80’s will likely remember the famous Faberge commercial. Heather Locklear loved the shampoo so much she told two friends about it, and they told two friends, and so on and so on and so on. The split screen effect illustrated the incredible compounding of word-of-mouth advertising (check it out on YouTube).

Faberge was simply recycling the genius of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20). In our reading today, Paul gives his version of the G.C. to his protégé Timothy: the things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also (2:2). That one sentence includes four generations in the chain of discipleship. It was this simple relay of faith from his grandmother Lois to his mother Eunice to himself that eventually led to Timothy becoming pastor of the influential church of Ephesus (1:5).

Do the math of spiritual multiplication.  If one person led another person to Christ and discipled him to do the same thing, and then repeated that every successive year, in 33 years we would see more than 8.5 billion people saved, more than the world’s current population (and not counting the 2.5 billion Christians on planet earth right now). In other words, the world would be reached in less than one generation. This is simply astounding - a simple process with profound results!

“Lord, lead me to the next person I can introduce to you and then teach them to do the same with others. The good news of what You have done for me is too good to keep to myself. I want to tell my friends who can tell their friends - and so on and so on and so on.”

December 9 - Follow the Leader

 Read today’s texts first: 1 Timothy 5,6; Titus 1-3

MAXIMize YOUR DAY

Effective leaders must first learn the art of followership. 

I personally have loved getting older. As my hair began to magically disappear and that which remained turned grey, I suddenly gained more authority. People began to assume that I must be wise, like Yoda. But when I was a young upstart, I tended to strive for position and then flaunt my titles to get people to listen to me. “Hey, I’m a pastor, reverend in fact - I have a license to preach”  (really, that’s what my first Foursquare license said!).

Knowing this about young leaders, I reread Paul’s advice to his protégés, Timothy and Titus, with keen interest. He was urging both of them to be authoritative, especially with those who are divisive (6:3-5; 1:9-11; 2:15; 3:10). But implicit in his encouragement to them to exercise authority is the secret to gaining that respect. As a spiritual leader, the only way to gain authority is to be submitted to authority.

This idea of submission is counter-intuitive to most young leaders. Society then and now believes born leaders are those who cannot follow. Rules to the natural leader, some say, are made to be broken. It’s true that some of the students who gave us grief at PLBC eventually became very effective leaders, but, I would contend, only when they eventually learned the art of followership.

This idea of submission weaves its way throughout the text, and is applied to leaders (5:1;1:6-9), young women (2:4,5), young men (2:6-8), slaves (6:1; 2:9) , and all of us as citizens (3:1). This truth applies to me, even during my current years of “Yoda-like” wisdom (I speak facetiously!). “Lord, may Paul’s advice to young Titus become my prayer: Remind [me] to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.”