Wherever He Leads

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." ESV Matthew 28:19-20

Just about two and a half years ago we had a men’s conference here in Russellville that was called “a man of HIS Word.” Some of you may remember it. About 150 men from several counties showed up at the Todd Centre to listen to the five messages about biblical manhood. All of the messages were good, but the final message pierced my soul.

That last message was delivered by Al Jackson. He’s affectionately known as Brother Al in Auburn, but more importantly, he’s known to be a man of God; a man of His Word. He’s also known across his denomination for his burning passion for preaching the gospel around the globe. So fittingly, that afternoon Al delivered a message titled “a man on HIS mission.”

The day ended without a lot of whooping and hollering. As a matter of fact it ended sort of quiet and reverent with the words of an old hymn playing in my mind; wherever he leads, I’ll go.

That was the year I got a passport. Since that time, I’ve had many opportunities to travel internationally, but never with a sense of calling. And quiet frankly, I’ve not been up for a Christian vacation abroad, so my passport has sat in a drawer unstamped.

But things took a turn last April. I was visiting after a service with a missionary and offhandedly remarked that I had a desire to preach in a place where folks had not been bombarded with the word to the point of numbness. Without hesitation, he looked me straight in the eyes and replied, “Then brother, you should go to Peru with me this year.” Somehow, I knew at that very moment that I had received the calling that had been missing before.

Well, one thing led to another and barring something totally unforeseen, by the grace of God, as you read this article, I am camped on the eastern side of the Andes Mountains in the high jungle of Peru preaching from the book First John at a conference for church leaders and missionaries.

They tell me I’ll get an opportunity to preach eight times in four days in the compound. Never been there. Never done that. I’m in uncharted territory and I’m depending on the grace of God to keep me healthy and mentally alert.

Pray for me this week. Pray that this trip will be for the glory of God.

-Ken Askew

1gspl4all

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, ¹² training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age,” ^ESV Titus 2:11-12

My mom was a legal secretary when I was a baby. I have no recollection of it at all other than the memory of being fascinated by shorthand notations. I never learned to read or write in shorthand, but I understand it to be a way of writing that uses odd shapes and symbols to denote words and phrases. Hey, wait a minute; Mom was text messaging way before it was cool!

Well, it might cool to use shorthand in an email, an article or even a letter to communicate; there is simply no shortchanging the gospel and its far reaching power to save what was lost and keep it forever.

Some months back I wrote a series of articles inspired by Jerry Bridges’ comment that “we all need a daily appropriation of the gospel.” That thought was rekindled in me this week as I listened to Matt Glass preach about the gospel in our church; specifically mentioning the verses above. Let’s explore them briefly.

In verse eleven, we see right away that Paul is talking about Jesus. Jesus is the grace of God and he has appeared to us here on earth. And for what purpose; why did the grace of God appear? So that salvation might be had by all. So that sinners might be reconciled through faith and repentance to God. But is that the only reason? No, the gospel has other purposes too.

Look at verse twelve with me. The grace of God has also appeared for those who have already been saved. We see right away that the gospel is good for training Christians too! In a negative sense, the gospel causes Christians to recognize ungodliness and worldly passions in their lives; both of which separate us from the joy of our salvation. And the same gospel enables Christians to renounce these things too.

Now look at verse twelve in a positive sense. The gospel is that fuel which enables Christians to live self controlled, upright and godly lives. And each of these attributes, exercised for the glory of God, serve to increase the joy of our salvation; to bring us closer to God with each passing day.

The simplicity of it all is fascinating. Think about it. One God; One Saviour; One Gospel; One Way. The same gospel that saves also leads, guides and directs Christians in their daily walk. So there really is -young or old, skinny or chubby, pretty or homely, lost or saved - just one gospel for all; 1gspl4all.

-Ken Askew

Scripture Sandwich

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. ESV 1 John 1:8-10

Ever notice how easy it is to forget things? Tell the truth, have you ever walked into a room and wondered what you went in there for? I thought so. If you can’t relate to that, how about this; you tell your child no to a request (in no uncertain terms mind you) only to have them tugging at your leg with the same request a few minutes later.

We all need little reminders along don’t we? In the book of 1 John, John was reminding his flock of some basic Christian truths that he and the other Apostles had already shared with them.

Our passage today is what I like to call a scripture sandwich; which is a real, distinct, meaty verse sandwiched in between two related verses.

In verse eight, John points out that regardless of how pious, righteous and holy that his readers think they are living; they are kidding themselves if they think they have eradicated sin in their lives. Of course sinless perfection is something all Christians should strive for, but we won’t be completely victorious until we are removed from the very presence of sin; at home in heaven.

John uses even stronger language in verse ten. There he warns them that if we claim to have never sinned, then they are going way beyond kidding ourselves. He says that if we make this claim, we are in essence making God out to be a liar. Paul confirmed this in his letter to the Romans when he said “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

But wedged in between these two related verses lies the remarkable verse nine which says that if “we confess our sins…he will cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” I confess to having difficulty wrapping my arms around this verse. Think about it for a minute. Here’s a promise, from God Himself, to cleanse us of all unrighteousness if we will recognize sin for what it is and confess it to him; wow.

Christians, be honest this week. Don’t deceive yourself by claiming you are living in sinless perfection and don’t make God out to be a liar by denying that you’ve ever sinned. Either answer should give you reason to doubt that the truth is in you. Instead, in absolute humility, confess your sins to the Redeemer and He will be faithful to cleanse you of all unrighteousness.

-Ken Askew

Pastor John

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life- ² the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us- ³ that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.

^ESV 1 John 1:1-3

Some months back during a lunch conversation a pastor friend of mine asked: “Ken, what are you passionate about?” After some reflection, the answer became clear; Truth Matters! In hindsight, I don’t know why the answer required any thought at all; you’d think it would have been on the tip of my tongue.

As I read through John’s letters, especially 1^st John, I get the sense that John felt the same way. In all of his letters, John exposes the errors of the day and points his readers towards truth. For John, truth mattered.

While I have often thought of John as the Beloved Disciple, I confess to have never thinking of him as a pastor until recently. But his letters are no doubt pastoral in nature; meant to guide and shepherd his flock in truth. So in the coming weeks, instead of looking at John the Beloved, or John the Apostle, lets think of him as Pastor John.

He begins by affirming a central truth about Jesus. Jesus is eternal. I suppose the correct theological terminology would be that Jesus is eternally begotten by the Father, but my mind is sufficiently stretched by simply thinking of Him as being around forever; past and future.

But the next three things John mentions really catch my attention. John says that he has heard Jesus; seen Jesus; even touched Jesus in the flesh! Think of the strength of John’s testimony. He’s walked with Jesus! If I may be so bold as to put words into his mouth, John is saying ‘I’ve seen Him with my own two eyes!’

In our verses today, John points out twice that Jesus was made manifest to us; meaning that Jesus descended from the heavenly realm to abide with us in the flesh. He also points out that Jesus is the word of life and the eternal life that has come from the Father to earth.

And for what purpose? Why did Jesus come to earth and why is John going to such lengths to establish this truth? So that his readers might know the truth and enjoy the same fellowship with God the Father and God the Son that John and the other Apostles enjoyed.

Pastor John knew Jesus; do you know Him? More on this in the coming weeks…

Ken worships at Tharptown Baptist Church in Russellville where he leads an adult Bible study. Comments are welcome and may be sent to kenaskew@charter.net.