David Bahn – Reflections

Light from the Word and through the lens

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In 1968 Jerry Snell opened a door in the hallway outside our first hour chemistry class. He invited me into what I discovered was a darkroom. Soon I was on the school newspaper and annual staff as a photographer. Later I learned that Jerry was a Lutheran who was planning to become a pastor. A few years later I was not only a Lutheran, but I was heading off to seminary to become a Lutheran pastor, too. Jerry followed a year later and served as a pastor in Missouri until his untimely heart attack and death. I thank God for Jerry and enjoy photography still today – not to mention rejoicing in having served as a Lutheran pastor in congregations in Utah, Colorado, Arkansas and Texas. I’ve retired now and serve part time as a Congregational Support Specialist for the Texas District of the LCMS. I also provide coaching and leadership training through various PLI cohorts and with individual congregations and organizations. David Bahn is a follower of Jesus Christ, husband to Diane, father and grandfather. He is an avid amateur photographer. His photo website is “Flowers by God Photos by David” He also publishes a devotional blog DavidBahn-Reflections.com. He and Diane live in Cypress Texas and enjoy visiting their grandchildren who live in the United States and Germany. He graduated from Concordia Theological Seminary in 1979, and earned a Doctor of Ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary in 1991. Diane, his wife, is now retired from PLI (PLIleadership.org). They have offered presentations on Marriage and Ministry Partnership, Leadership, Changing Your Congregation’s Culture, and Missional Living. They look are working with PLI International training pastors and wives of the ELVD Diocese of the Lutheran Church of Tanzania. David’s personal mission statement is “Leading people to realize Jesus’ calling and plans for their lives.”

  • Buildings or Hearts?

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    Acts 7:1, 44-60

    And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 2 And Stephen said:

     “Our fathers had the tent of witness in the wilderness, just as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it, according to the pattern that he had seen. 45 Our fathers in turn brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out before our fathers. So it was until the days of David, 46 who found favor in the sight of God and asked to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. 47 But it was Solomon who built a house for him. 48 Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands, as the prophet says,

    49 “‘Heaven is my throne,
        and the earth is my footstool.
    What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord,
        or what is the place of my rest?
    50 Did not my hand make all these things?’

    51 “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. 52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered, 53 you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it.”

    54 Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. 55 But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 57 But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. 58 Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

    At Least Four Kinds of Cacti | Big Bend National Park | May 2023

    St. John Lutheran Church in Cypress, Texas marks 1853 a the date of the church’s beginning. But I’m not so sure that’s correct. I suspect it was much earlier, since the date is attached to the first church building being completed. I strongly believe St. John’s beginning should be tied to the time the people first began meeting around the Word of God, reading sermons from a book that is still in St. John’s archives, and praying together. That could have been 5 years previous.

    A church is not a building. A church is a gathering of people in fellowship and prayer, around God’s word, the sacraments. This is a minor point of Stephen’s speech here. He is confronting the people in their refusal to listen to the prophets – just like their fathers before them had done. There had been moments of glory such as the exodus from Egypt, the conquest of the Promised Land, and the dedication of Solomon’s temple. But Stephen wanted to show them that in spite of those moments, their fathers had not been faithful.

    This is why God had to act. We never get things right, try as we may. Sometimes we over-correct on the build bigger and more beautiful buildings side. Other times we neglect God’s house and treat it as little more than a repository for used-up furniture for the youth room, or neglected corner we often ignore. Jesus got it right. He overturned the tables of the money-changers when they got in the way of those who would otherwise worship, having turned God’s house of prayer into a den of thieves. But he also taught the people on the side of a mountain when they followed him there.

    God does not dwell in buildings made by human hands. Yet God does promise to show up in such buildings when his people gather in Jesus’ name. Solomon’s dedication prayer says it well:

    “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you; how much less this house that I have built! 28 Yet have regard to the prayer of your servant and to his plea, O Lord my God, listening to the cry and to the prayer that your servant prays before you this day, 29 that your eyes may be open night and day toward this house, the place of which you have said, ‘My name shall be there,’ that you may listen to the prayer that your servant offers toward this place. 30 And listen to the plea of your servant and of your people Israel, when they pray toward this place. And listen in heaven your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive. – 1 Kings 8:27-30

    When God gathers people into a worshiping assembly eventually they will want to gather in a building. Whether a house or an awe-inspiring cathedral, the issue is not the building, but the hearts in which God dwells. There is the kingdom of God: the gracious reign and rule of Jesus in the hearts of believers – no matter what building they may be in.

  • The Good Old Days

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    Acts 7:1, 44-60

    And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 2 And Stephen said:

     “Our fathers had the tent of witness in the wilderness, just as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it, according to the pattern that he had seen. 45 Our fathers in turn brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out before our fathers. So it was until the days of David, 46 who found favor in the sight of God and asked to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. 47 But it was Solomon who built a house for him. 48 Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands, as the prophet says,

    49 “‘Heaven is my throne,
        and the earth is my footstool.
    What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord,
        or what is the place of my rest?
    50 Did not my hand make all these things?’

    51 “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. 52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered, 53 you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it.”

    54 Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. 55 But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 57 But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. 58 Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

    Mexico in the Distance | BIg Bend National Park | May 2023

    Genevieve Sophia Prigge Dolan, Diane’s mother, fell asleep (cf. v. 60) more than 13 years ago. But if you were to ask her about the good old days, she would allow that they were old. But she did not think of them as good. We have an old butter churn from parents. She wanted nothing to do with having in her home – even when such old artifacts were a decorating go-to. That represented work. She loved modern conveniences. She was a wonderful homemaker, a great mom, faithful wife, and my favorite mother-in-law. I had only one MIL, but she was my favorite. I didn’t have a most-hated one! Jenny was a wonderful woman who had no good-old-days memories.

    Life was tough back then. And I’m not talking about walking-uphill-both-ways-to-school-and-back-in-the-snow tough. I’m talking churn your own butter. Milk your own cows. Grow your own potatoes, and harvest them. Sweep the floor (no vacuums back then, not to mention no Roombas!).

    As Stephen outlines the history of God’s people, he recounts how Moses was directed to build a tabernacle which the children of Israel carried through the wilderness for 40 years. Breaking camp must have been quite an ordeal for those charged with its care. Then, when Joshua took the Israelites into the Promised Land, they had to carry the tent of the meeting with them from place to place. This went on for 400 years or so until God laid out the plans for a permanent place of meeting.

    David had the dream of building the temple. But Solomon, his son, brought it about. I’m sure it was glorious, but I wonder how many of God’s people realized how splendid and convenient it was to have a permanent building rather than carrying a tent from place to place. Although the stories of the wandering were certainly passed down from generation to generation, the realities of that old hard life were only stories. It’s one thing to hear about it. It’s quite another to have lived it.

    Thank God for those who have gone before us and done the hard work of organizing service projects, coordinating evangelistic efforts, building church buildings, and anything else that has sustained the mission of God and furthered the growth of God’s kingdom. Their hard work in the good old days is testimony to the work of God’s Holy Spirit and a blessing for which we may rightly give glory to God.

  • What gets you riled?

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    Acts 7:1, 44-60

    And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 2 And Stephen said:

     “Our fathers had the tent of witness in the wilderness, just as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it, according to the pattern that he had seen. 45 Our fathers in turn brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out before our fathers. So it was until the days of David, 46 who found favor in the sight of God and asked to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. 47 But it was Solomon who built a house for him. 48 Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands, as the prophet says,

    49 “‘Heaven is my throne,
        and the earth is my footstool.
    What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord,
        or what is the place of my rest?
    50 Did not my hand make all these things?’

    51 “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. 52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered, 53 you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it.”

    54 Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. 55 But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 57 But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. 58 Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

    Big Bend Canyon Wall | Big Bend National Park | May 2023

    We were watching the Houston Astros baseball game, and the Astros were playing down to their last-place opponents. Diane knows more about baseball than I do. She will often make a color-commentary remark, only to hear the TV announcer make the same comment. She knows her game. She also has little patience with poor performance. She’ll express her disgust with some energy when the World Series Champions play like first-year Little Leaguers.

    Yes, watching baseball with my wife is quite an experience. Sometimes I try to calm her down. All this is not to say I don’t need calming down when certain things happen. We all have things that rile us up. I might get really animated about poor drivers. Another might let politics wind them around the stem. Football fans might get frustrated when their team’s coach makes poor decisions. Too many people make religious conversations impossible by their ire.

    I say too many, because of James 1:19-20, “ Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.”

    We see how true this is in this encounter between the Jewish leaders and Stephen: “Now when the high priest and Jewish leaders heard these things [Stephen’s recounting of God’s faithfulness and the Jewish people’s faithlessness]  they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him.” What was to come was not good for Stephen, for those who put him to death, for Saul (who was watching all this occur), or even the church initially.

    But what starts as bad, God turns to good. This is not good, but God will bring good from it. Stephen’s death is no sweet release. It’s brutal, horrific, distressing, and terrifying. The church was not emboldened in these moments. In fact the church will soon scatter in the face of fierce persecution. Saul will be emboldened to step up his persecution of Jesus’ followers. The Jewish high priest and leaders will be emboldened in their resistance to the people of God. 

    But God will accomplish his will not only through those who believe in him, obey and follow him. That’s most obvious. But God also accomplishes his will in spite of those who resist him, mock and persecute the Christian Church, and seek to stop the message of Jesus.

    The high priest and Jewish leaders were riled up against Stephen – God’s good and faithful witness to the truth of Jesus Christ. It did not accomplish the good things God desires. When we get riled up, we need to keep in mind that God’s will is done in people’s hearts. God’s kindness leads to repentance. We don’t scare people into belief in Jesus. God’s power is made perfect in weakness. When we are weak, we are strong.

    I’m going to try to be riled up in grace, truth, love, and faith. How about you? Let’s see how God uses that!

  • Today’s Psalms for September 17, 2023

    Please pray these psalms with me on this Lord’s Day

    Psalm 17:6-9, 15

    I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
        incline your ear to me; hear my words.
    7 Wondrously show your steadfast love,
        O Savior of those who seek refuge
        from their adversaries at your right hand.

    8 Keep me as the apple of your eye;
        hide me in the shadow of your wings,
    9 from the wicked who do me violence,
        my deadly enemies who surround me.

    15 As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness;
        when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness.

    Psalm 47:6-9

    Sing praises to God, sing praises!
        Sing praises to our King, sing praises!
    7 For God is the King of all the earth;
        sing praises with a psalm!

    8 God reigns over the nations;
        God sits on his holy throne.
    9 The princes of the peoples gather
        as the people of the God of Abraham.
    For the shields of the earth belong to God;
        he is highly exalted!

    Psalm 77:11-20

    I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
        yes, I will remember your wonders of old.
    12 I will ponder all your work,
        and meditate on your mighty deeds.
    13 Your way, O God, is holy.
        What god is great like our God?
    14 You are the God who works wonders;
        you have made known your might among the peoples.
    15 You with your arm redeemed your people,
        the children of Jacob and Joseph. Selah

    16 When the waters saw you, O God,
        when the waters saw you, they were afraid;
        indeed, the deep trembled.
    17 The clouds poured out water;
        the skies gave forth thunder;
        your arrows flashed on every side.
    18 The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind;
        your lightnings lighted up the world;
        the earth trembled and shook.
    19 Your way was through the sea,
        your path through the great waters;
        yet your footprints were unseen.
    20 You led your people like a flock
        by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

    Psalm 107:1-3, 43

    Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
        for his steadfast love endures forever!
    2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
        whom he has redeemed from trouble
    3 and gathered in from the lands,
        from the east and from the west,
        from the north and from the south.
    43     Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things;
        let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord.

    Psalm 137:1-6

    By the waters of Babylon,
        there we sat down and wept,
        when we remembered Zion.
    2 On the willows there
        we hung up our lyres.
    3 For there our captors
        required of us songs,
    and our tormentors, mirth, saying,
        “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”

    4 How shall we sing the Lord’s song
        in a foreign land?
    5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
        let my right hand forget its skill!
    6 Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth,
        if I do not remember you,
    if I do not set Jerusalem
        above my highest joy!

    English Standard Version (ESV)
    The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016.
    Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

  • When will we ever learn? [Minor Edit #2!]

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    Acts 7:1, 30-43

    And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 2 And Stephen said:

    “Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. 31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and as he drew near to look, there came the voice of the Lord: 32 ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and did not dare to look. 33 Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.’

    35 “This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years. 37 This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers.’ 38 This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. He received living oracles to give to us. 39 Our fathers refused to obey him, but thrust him aside, and in their hearts they turned to Egypt, 40 saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who led us out from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ 41 And they made a calf in those days, and offered a sacrifice to the idol and were rejoicing in the works of their hands. 42 But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets:

    “‘Did you bring to me slain beasts and sacrifices,
        during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
    43 You took up the tent of Moloch
        and the star of your god Rephan,
        the images that you made to worship;
    and I will send you into exile beyond Babylon.’

    Big Bend Dry Waterfall -II | Big Bend National Park | May 2023

    As I’ve said before*, “The Old Testament is one giant object lesson on what does not work.” I think maybe Philip Yancey said it. His book, Disappointment with God, offers an insightful look into three significant questions about God: Is God unfair? Is he silent? Is he hidden? The point Yancey makes about God is that when God spoke directly with men and women it didn’t work. Adam and Eve sinned even though they had it all. When God sent judges and Kings to lead his people (at their request!), that didn’t keep Israel from going astray and falling into great sin and idolatry. When God sent the prophets, the people and leaders didn’t listen.

    Moses said to the people of Israel 3500 years ago that God would raise up a prophet like him from among them. That may have been somewhat of a farewell address. It comes in Deuteronomy the last book of Moses as he bids farewell to his people before they go on into the Promised Land and before he dies.

    But let’s be clear about what does and does not work. Nothing apart from God’s goodness and grace works in the final analysis. I believe that God was guiding people toward himself, the redemption and salvation he has for us.

    There was a faint foreshadowing of the ultimate deliverance of God in the Exodus of the Jewish nation and their ultimate entrance into the Promised Land. That faint shadow has become reality in Jesus’ life, ministry, suffering, death and resurrection. It’s full expression and ultimate experience will be on the Great Last Day when Jesus returns and all of his people are brought into the promised New Heaven and New Earth.

    Once we’re there, we’ll join in an eternal paean of praise for God’s glorious grace. This is how Paul expresses this in Ephesians 1:3-8:

    All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.

    All the trials, missteps, misunderstandings, and failures – those things that didn’t work – will be forgotten. Tears will be wiped from our eyes. And we will be forever with our Lord, having learned how truly good, gracious, and glorious he is. One day we’ll learn it fully!

    * “As I’ve said before,” is a progression of quoting others. First time, “As Philip Yancey has said…” Second time, “As I’ve said before…” Third time and every time thereafter, “As I’ve always said…” I may almost be able to say, “As I’ve always said…” about this quote very soon. I’ve quoted Yancey many times.

  • When will we ever learn? [Minor Edit]

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    Click here for an audio version of this blog post.


    Acts 7:1, 30-43

    And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 2 And Stephen said:

    “Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. 31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and as he drew near to look, there came the voice of the Lord: 32 ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and did not dare to look. 33 Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.’

    35 “This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years. 37 This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers.’ 38 This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. He received living oracles to give to us. 39 Our fathers refused to obey him, but thrust him aside, and in their hearts they turned to Egypt, 40 saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who led us out from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ 41 And they made a calf in those days, and offered a sacrifice to the idol and were rejoicing in the works of their hands. 42 But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets:

    “‘Did you bring to me slain beasts and sacrifices,
        during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
    43 You took up the tent of Moloch
        and the star of your god Rephan,
        the images that you made to worship;
    and I will send you into exile beyond Babylon.’

    Big Bend Dry Waterfall -II | Big Bend National Park | May 2023

    As I’ve said before*, “The Old Testament is one giant object lesson on what does not work.” I think maybe Philip Yancey said it. His book, Disappointment with God, offers an insightful look into three significant questions about God: Is God unfair? Is he silent? Is he hidden? The point Yancey makes about God is that when God spoke directly with men and women it didn’t work. Adam and Eve sinned even though they had it all. When God sent judges and Kings to lead his people (at their request!), that didn’t keep Israel from going astray and falling into great sin and idolatry. When God sent the prophets, the people and leaders didn’t listen.

    Moses said to the people of Israel 3500 years ago that God would raise up a prophet like him from among them. That may have been somewhat of a farewell address. It comes in Deuteronomy the last book of Moses as he bids farewell to his people before they go on into the Promised Land and before he dies.

    But let’s be clear about what does and does not work. Nothing apart from God’s goodness and grace works in the final analysis. I believe that God was guiding people toward himself, the redemption and salvation he has for us.

    There was a faint foreshadowing of the ultimate deliverance of God in the Exodus of the Jewish nation and their ultimate entrance into the Promised Land. That faint shadow has become reality in Jesus’ life, ministry, suffering, death and resurrection. It’s full expression and ultimate experience will be on the Great Last Day when Jesus returns and all of his people are brought into the promised New Heaven and New Earth.

    Once we’re there, we’ll join in an eternal peaen of praise for God’s glorious grace. This is how Paul expresses this in Ephesians 1:3-8:

    All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.

    All the trials, missteps, misunderstandings, and failures – those things that didn’t work – will be forgotten. Tears will be wiped from our eyes. And we will be forever with our Lord, having learned how truly good, gracious, and glorious he is. One day we’ll learn it fully!

    * “As I’ve said before,” is a progression of quoting others. First time, “As Philip Yancey has said…” Second time, “As I’ve said before…” Third time and every time thereafter, “As I’ve always said…” I may almost be able to say, “As I’ve always said…” about this quote very soon. I’ve quoted Yancey many times.

  • When will we ever learn?

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    Acts 7:1, 30-43

    And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 2 And Stephen said:

    “Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. 31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and as he drew near to look, there came the voice of the Lord: 32 ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and did not dare to look. 33 Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.’

    35 “This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years. 37 This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers.’ 38 This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. He received living oracles to give to us. 39 Our fathers refused to obey him, but thrust him aside, and in their hearts they turned to Egypt, 40 saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who led us out from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ 41 And they made a calf in those days, and offered a sacrifice to the idol and were rejoicing in the works of their hands. 42 But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets:

    “‘Did you bring to me slain beasts and sacrifices,
        during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
    43 You took up the tent of Moloch
        and the star of your god Rephan,
        the images that you made to worship;
    and I will send you into exile beyond Babylon.’

    Big Bend Dry Waterfall -II | Big Bend National Park | May 2023

    As I’ve said before*, “The Old Testament is one giant object lesson on what does not work.” I think maybe Philip Yancey said it. His book, Disappointment with God, offers an insightful look into three significant questions about God: Is God unfair? Is he silent? Is he hidden? The point Yancey makes about God is that when God spoke directly with men and women it didn’t work. Adam and Eve sinned even though they had it all. When God sent judges and Kings to lead his people (at their request!), that didn’t keep Israel from going astray and falling into great sin and idolatry. When God sent the prophets, the people and leaders didn’t listen.

    Moses said to the people of Israel 3500 years ago that God would raise up a prophet like him from among them. That may have been somewhat of a farewell address. It comes in Deuteronomy the last book of Moses as he bids farewell to his people before they go on into the Promised Land and before he dies.

    But let’s be clear about what does and does not work. Nothing apart from God’s goodness and grace works in the final analysis. I believe that God was guiding people toward himself, the redemption and salvation he has for us.

    There was a faint foreshadowing of the ultimate deliverance of God in the Exodus of the Jewish nation and their ultimate entrance into the Promised Land. That faint shadow has become reality in Jesus’ life, ministry, suffering, death and resurrection. It’s full expression and ultimate experience will be on the Great Last Day when Jesus returns and all of his people are brought into the promised New Heaven and New Earth.

    Once we’re there, we’ll join in an eternal peon of praise for God’s glorious grace. This is how Paul expresses this in Ephesians 1:3-8:

    All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.

    All the trials, missteps, misunderstandings, and failures – those things that didn’t work – will be forgotten. Tears will be wiped from our eyes. And we will be forever with our Lord, having learned how truly good, gracious, and glorious he is. One day we’ll learn it fully!

    * “As I’ve said before,” is a progression of quoting others. First time, “As Philip Yancey has said…” Second time, “As I’ve said before…” Third time and every time thereafter, “As I’ve always said…” I may almost be able to say, “As I’ve always said…” about this quote very soon. I’ve quoted Yancey many times.

  • Does cred mean anything to you?

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    Click here for an audio version of this blog post.


    Acts 7:1, 30-43

    And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 2 And Stephen said:

    “Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. 31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and as he drew near to look, there came the voice of the Lord: 32 ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and did not dare to look. 33 Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.’

    35 “This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years. 37 This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers.’ 38 This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. He received living oracles to give to us. 39 Our fathers refused to obey him, but thrust him aside, and in their hearts they turned to Egypt, 40 saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who led us out from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ 41 And they made a calf in those days, and offered a sacrifice to the idol and were rejoicing in the works of their hands. 42 But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets:

    “‘Did you bring to me slain beasts and sacrifices,
        during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
    43 You took up the tent of Moloch
        and the star of your god Rephan,
        the images that you made to worship;
    and I will send you into exile beyond Babylon.’

    Big Bend Dry Waterfall | Big Bend National Park | May 2023

    Do you know what cred means? Check out these quotes:

    The optional carbon-ceramic brakes add cred to the M in front of the Gran Coupe’s 8 and better withstand the abuse of a track day.—Austin Irwin, Car and Driver, 18 July 2023

    World of Hyatt The brand added considerable indie cred in 2018 with its acquisition of Alila Hotels & Resorts and Thompson Hotels.—Katie Seemann, Travel + Leisure, 3 June 2023

    Merriam Webster says that cred means: CREDIBILITY specifically : the ability to gain acceptance as a member of a particular group or class.

    Moses had cred. Stephen lists it out here:

    “This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush.36 This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years. 37 This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers.’ 38 This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. He received living oracles to give to us.

    It’s a way of saying he’s the real deal. He’s worthy of our trust. He’s the one we need to follow. He is no faker. Not a wannabe. 

    There are others who would deserve to be considered the real deal: Saul of Tarsus (who will soon take the name Paul when he goes to the Gentiles with the Good News of the gospel). Peter, son of Zebedee. Justin Martyr. Jan Hus. Martin Luther. These don’t mail it in when it comes to their faith. They put their lives on the line. They are sold out to Jesus.

    You likely can name others. They are people worth listening to. They merit our attention. They deserve our respect.

    But Stephen is teaching a lesson to these Jewish leaders. He’s setting them up when he praises Moses because he knows they and the generations before them failed to listen to Moses as they should. In fact, Peter will make a point some time later saying, “So why are you now challenging God by burdening the Gentile believers with a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors were able to bear? (Acts 15:10)

    All those attributions of greatness given to Moses were meant to point people to him as God’s chosen leader. Even those who considered him their great leader failed to follow him as they should. Even we who put Jesus above all others fail to follow him as we should.

    But we try to follow Jesus because he redeemed us, and forgives us when we fall short. That’s something Moses could not do – at least not to the full extent that Jesus did. Jesus’ cred includes his miracles, teachings, faithfulness even to death, and his resurrection from the grave. He has shown himself to be worthy of all honor and glory, faith and love, trust and obedience.

  • What is your idea of God?

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    Acts 7:1, 30-43

    And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 2 And Stephen said:

    “Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. 31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and as he drew near to look, there came the voice of the Lord: 32 ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and did not dare to look. 33 Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.’

    35 “This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years. 37 This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers.’ 38 This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. He received living oracles to give to us. 39 Our fathers refused to obey him, but thrust him aside, and in their hearts they turned to Egypt, 40 saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who led us out from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ 41 And they made a calf in those days, and offered a sacrifice to the idol and were rejoicing in the works of their hands. 42 But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets:

    “‘Did you bring to me slain beasts and sacrifices,
        during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
    43 You took up the tent of Moloch
        and the star of your god Rephan,
        the images that you made to worship;
    and I will send you into exile beyond Babylon.’

    On the Way to Box Canyon | Big Bend National Park | May 2023

    Compare these two statements:

    God cares for us out of his fatherly, divine goodness and grace.

    I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow.

    The first is from Luther’s Small Catechism. The second one is from Matthew 25:24.

    The first one is the statement of one who fears, loves, and trusts in God above all things. This is one who sees God as redeemer and ruler – not as ruler and judge (in the pejorative sense of the term). The first one is from one who sees God as ruler and redeemer. Between those two understandings of God is a chasm of eternal proportions.

    The Hebrew in Egypt accused Moses of usurping the role of ruler and judge. God had determined that he would be redeemer and ruler. The former would question every order, directive, idea, or motive of Moses. God had intended that Moses be followed, trusted, obeyed, and honored.

    Consider how you think of God. Is he one to be followed, trusted, obeyed, and honored? Or is there a place in your life that you reserve to yourself, thinking that God is only ruler and judge. Do you see God as good and gracious, just and loving? Or do you think of him as aloof, judging, and condemning; one to be appeased. The way you think of God will shape your willingness to fear, love, and trust him. It will determine whether you call on God in humility, awaiting his answer, or you cower in fear and do all you can to stay out of his way, and off his radar.

    Sometimes we forget. Surely the Hebrews did – as Stephen testifies here. They abandoned Moses and rejected God’s gifts, making a false idol, a golden calf. It’s a wonder that God didn’t completely reject them. But even though they had to wander in the wilderness for 40 years before they entered the Promised Land, eventually the Hebrew nation did enter the Promised Land.

    All this is by God’s grace. That grace reaches to us as well, when we realize we’ve thought wrongly of God and failed to trust him. Think of God as redeemer and ruler. Fear, love, and trust in him.

    Say outloud or in your heart: He has redeemed me. I will live under him in his kingdom. Check this out:

    Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord,

    who has redeemed me, a lost and condemned person, purchased and won me from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil; not with gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death,

    that I may be His own and live under Him in His kingdom

    This is most certainly true. – from Luther’s Small Catechism, 2nd Article of the Creed

  • I guess it shouldn’t surprise me

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    Click here for an audio version of this blog post.


    Acts 7:1, 30-43

    And the high priest said, “Are these things so?” 2 And Stephen said:

    “Now when forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. 31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and as he drew near to look, there came the voice of the Lord: 32 ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and did not dare to look. 33 Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.’

    35 “This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years. 37 This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers.’ 38 This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. He received living oracles to give to us. 39 Our fathers refused to obey him, but thrust him aside, and in their hearts they turned to Egypt, 40 saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who led us out from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ 41 And they made a calf in those days, and offered a sacrifice to the idol and were rejoicing in the works of their hands. 42 But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets:

    “‘Did you bring to me slain beasts and sacrifices,
        during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
    43 You took up the tent of Moloch
        and the star of your god Rephan,
        the images that you made to worship;
    and I will send you into exile beyond Babylon.’

    Trumpet Lily-II | Big Bend National Park | May 2023

    I guess it shouldn’t surprise me, but it does. When things about Jesus crop up in the Old Testament I’m surprised. Sometimes it’s obvious: A virgin shall conceive… Other times it’s more subtle, like this one, God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers. In either case the promise of a Savior reaches far back, even to the foundations of time. God told Satan, I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your seed and her seed. He will crush your head and you will bruise his heel. This is known as the protoevangelium, the first gospel promise.

    Here we have not only the promise that God will raise up a prophet from among his own people, but the example and identification of Moses as the ruler and redeemer. Moses was the great deliverer for the Old Testament people of God. He brought them out of slavery in Egypt. And I have a special place in my heart for those enslaved brick-makers. I worked in a brick factory for the 7 months after graduating from college and prior to entering the seminary. I know a thing or two about making bricks. I know the hard cold facts, or rather the hard HOT facts. A 1500 degree kiln running through the middle of the building was fine in the winter time. But come summer…no thanks! And Egypt would likely be more of a continuous summer. There may not have been a 1500 degree kiln, but it’s certain there wasn’t an airconditioned break room! Brick making is hard work.

    And Moses delivered them from that abject life of pain and suffering. This was the great salvation event for the people of God in the Old Testament times. It was their go-to memory and source of encouragement. God had delivered them mightily. He would surely do it again.

    But Stephen’s testimony is clear: in spite of God’s deliverance through Moses, the people rejected him and decided they wanted to go back to Egypt.

    I guess that shouldn’t surprise me either. We’re living that dream now 3500 years later. We have been delivered from sin, death, and damnation by the curtain-splitting death and earth-shaking resurrection of Jesus. We’ve been saved. But we too want to go back to Egypt. We give in to temptation. We yearn for the forbidden fruit. We are a broken people who need Jesus, but too often we look to other redeemers and rulers.

    Yet there is no other. We must not return to Egypt, but rather return to our Lord. For in Jesus alone is found true refreshment, satisfaction, comfort, peace, and joy.