Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Amyotrophic  Lateral  Sclerosis

          I was challenged to participate in the "ice bucket challenge" that is popular right now to "fight ALS".  ALS is also called Lou Gehrig's Disease after the famous baseball player who was struck down by it.  He was called the "Iron Horse" because of his career in which he set a record for most consecutive games played.  It was this disease that ended his streak and career.

          An article on the ALS website describes the disease as:  "a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. Motor neurons reach from the brain to the spinal cord and from the spinal cord to the muscles throughout the body. The progressive degeneration of the motor neurons in ALS eventually leads to their death. When the motor neurons die, the ability of the brain to initiate and control muscle movement is lost. With voluntary muscle action progressively affected, patients in the later stages of the disease may become totally paralyzed."

          While it is a noble and worthwhile endeavor to try to find a cure with the hope lives can be saved, I want to take this "teachable moment" to share my thoughts on the matter.  I do not in any way belittle the efforts that are being made with a sincere desire to eradicate a disease.  But let's lift our thoughts a little higher.

          This world is filled with disease and trouble. But new problems and more dangerous diseases are constantly arising. There is only one sure cure for all these problems, and that is the Second Coming of Jesus.  At that time all sickness and disease will be destroyed.  Those who are ready and welcome His return will be instantly changed and given immortal bodies that will never again be subject to disease.  We have the sure promise of God that: "there the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick..."   (Isaiah 33:24)   "God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. There will be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain:  for the former things are wiped away.  He that sat on the throne said: Behold, I make all things new..."(Revelation 21:4-5)

     I am only one person.  I cannot do everything, but I can do something.  While a cure may give a few more years of life here, or prevent a painful death; if they are still eternally lost then it means nothing.  Therefore I choose to put my efforts, my money, my time, into seeking to prepare people to be ready when Jesus comes again.  There are many good causes, but rather than scatter my efforts I choose to aim at the one and only sure solution to the problems of this world.  People need a heart change, and that can only be done by the power of God, Who is working here to prepare us for there.  I did the video since I was challenged, but my money goes to those who are working to prepare people for the coming of Jesus. "Prepare to meet your God" (Amos 4:12) is God's message, and my message, for all.  

How Long O People

            We do not usually think of God as crying out to us:  "How long do I have to keep waiting for you people to get ready for the coming of My Son Jesus?"  We cry out "how long" thinking from our desire, but let's stop being self centered and think of it from God's desire.

            God's people have always clung too tightly to sin and this world.  In Exodus 16:28 we read:  "How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws? In Numbers 14:11  "And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have showed among them?"  Joshua 18:3  "And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, How long are ye slack to go to possess the land, which the LORD God of your fathers has given you?"

            It wasn't just the Hebrews who came out of Egypt and wandered longer than God's plan had been for them.  Read this from Psalm 4:2  "O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? how long will ye love vanity, and seek after lies?  God's call through Jeremiah applies to us today:  Jeremiah 4:14  "O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, so that you may be saved. How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?"  Jesus asked the same question when He was here in Person:  "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I  bear with you?”  It is such an important question that it is recorded in Matthew 17:17, Mark 9:19, and Luke 9:41.  It is as if the Holy Spirit holds these words up in front of our face trying to impress us with the truth that we are delaying God's work!

            We sometimes think of this text in 2Peter 3:12  "Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God", as a reminder that it is within our power to hasten the day of Christ's return.  But study this text in Isaiah 16:15:  "And in mercy shall the throne be established: and he shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting (to hurry or speed up) righteousness."

            Jesus rebukes us because we ignore the important things of the gospel:  "(you) have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith".  In Scripture Judgment and mercy are often linked together as good and necessary.  Hosea 12:6  "Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment, and wait on thy God continually.”   Psalm 101:1  "I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will I sing." 

             We have a tendency to have mercy on ourselves and harsh judgment against others.  It should be the other way around.  We should hold ourselves up to a high standard, judge ourselves closely, while having mercy on those around us.  "Thus speaks the LORD of hosts, saying, Execute true judgment, and show mercy and compassion every man to his brother." (Zechariah 7:9)   Our Heavenly Father executed  judgment on Himself, that He might show mercy to us. 

            Jesus wants to put an end to sin and suffering.  He has no pleasure in all the terrible things we see around us that are the result of sin.  He longs to come back and take His redeemed people home to heaven.  He wants to see the end of sin.  But in mercy He waits because we are not ready.  If we will concentrate on obeying His word, we will be representing Him and the world will take notice.  The gospel of His power to save will be demonstrated to the world and Jesus will be able to return and sin will be at an end. 

            Isaiah 30:18  "Therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him."

EBOLA VIRUS!

          With current news about the Ebola Virus in the News here in the US, several thoughts have presented themselves to me.   First I am reminded of this passage from the book of Haggai 2:12-13. "If someone carries holy meat in the fold of his garment and touches with his fold bread or stew or wine or oil or any kind of food, does it become holy?" The priests answered and said, "No."   Then Haggai said:  "If someone who is unclean by contact with a dead body touches any of these, does it become unclean?"  The Priests answered:  "It does become unclean."

            What does this have to do with the Ebola Virus?  In the text the "uncleanness", or disease virus, is transferable while the "holy" or "wellness" is not transferable.  With Ebola, while the mere touch of a person does not transfer the virus to someone else, the touch of any bodily fluid from an infected person to one who is not infected can transmit the virus and make the person sick.  The person who is well, or whole (holy), can get the disease from the sick person.  But the sick person cannot be made well even by the close, personal contact of the well person.  The healthy person must take careful precautions in order to not be infected by the person he is trying to help.

            It is much like sin.  Sin is a deadly virus.  It is easily transferred from one person to another.  A good person will readily "catch" the sin of the world they live in unless they take careful precautions to keep "unspotted from the world".  (James 1:27)  It is "easy" for sin to take over our life.  It is NOT easy for holiness to take over our life. 

            Except in the life of Jesus.  First of all, God sent His Son into our world with the full risk that sin could overcome Him.  Jesus lived among us as a man, with the same tools we have.  He could have sinned, He could have failed.  That is the risk the Father, because of His love for us, was willing to take in order to save us.  Think about that for awhile.  The Son of God came down to this evil world that Satan claimed as his own.  He came as a human baby, grew as a human child, and lived as a human man.  He lived in a town so filled with sin that the first question Nathanael asked when hearing He was from Nazareth was:  "Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?"  Yet He did not "get the sin virus".

            Throughout His life Jesus worked with sinners, ate food prepared by them, touched the lepers and those with all kinds of "issues", yet He did not become contaminated.  He, the Holy One of God, touched, and kissed, the unholy and "unclean".  Yet it was the "unclean" who "caught" the "holy virus" from Him!  Because of the Holy Spirit that was there at His conception He was called "that Holy Thing"  (Luke 1:35).  Everywhere He went people were transformed.  They were healed of all different kinds of diseases, but most of all from the disease of sin.

          Jesus is still in the healing business.  He longs to make us impervious to the sin virus. Make us holy as He is holy.  "Be filled with the Spirit" is still His invitation to us.  Invite the Holy Spirit into your heart today, and surrender yourself to His control.  If we will accept Jesus into our hearts, His promise is that from us will flow waters of healing to all we come in contact with.