A Plan for Life

Ezekiel 18:23 (NRSVue) - Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, says the Lord God, and not rather that they should turn from their ways and live?

Ezekiel 18 speaks of individual retribution.

A common belief at the time was that punishment for sin would be passed on to ensuing generations.

The prophet declares that this is not so.

A child will not be punished by God for the sins of his parent.

Neither will a parent be punished by God for the sins of his child.

Those who do not turn away from their sin and repent will die.

But this is not what God desires.

What God wants is for the sinner to change his ways, repent and live.

Paul discusses this in his letter to the Romans.

Romans 6:23 (NRSVue) - The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

God is not vindictive.

He created us in His image.

It is only logical that God would wish to save us.

And God did just that through Jesus.

So. if God is willing to forgive us, shouldn’t we be willing to forgive each other?

Through Christ, God teaches us how to forgive.

He also teaches us to love.

When it comes down to it, each of us has sinned.

On our own, each of us comes up short.

But by God’s grace and mercy we have been set free.

If God can forgive so much, shouldn’t we forgive what is little by comparison.

We can let go of the desire for individual retribution.

And. we can be happy for those who come to know Him through Christ.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com on Friday, April 26, 2024.

I will be back here on Friday, May 3, 2024

A Place Prepared

Isaiah 43:16 (NRSVue) - Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters,

In Isaiah 43, the prophet speaks of God’s restoration and protection.

He hearkens back to the day when Moses led the people out of bondage.

When pursued by Pharoah’s chariots, God parted the sea for his people,

He provided a means of escape so they could reach the Promised Land.

In John 14, Jesus also speaks of a way out.

He speaks of the means of escape from the cares of this world to the Father.

And just as God parted the sea, God provided us with a way to our own promised land.

God provided us with Jesus as the means of coming home to Him.

John 14:3-4 (NRSVue) - And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way to the place where I am going.

This was not an impulsive decision on God’s part.

This was God’s plan from the very beginning.

Like the people who were delivered from the bondage of slavery, God used Jesus to free us from the bondage of sin.

God used Jesus to free us from fear.

Our salvation is assured,

Our way has been prepared.

The fear of death no longer has any power over us.

Thanks to Jesus, we will close our eyes in this world and open them in the next.

We will then see firsthand the Father welcoming us into His presence forever.

When that happens, fear and darkness will become a forgotten memory.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com on Friday, April 12, 2024.

I will be back here on Friday, April 19, 2024

Faithful in Word and Deed

The closing of 2 Kings 13 recounts how the King of Aram oppressed God’s people.

It then tells how Israel recaptured those cities.

More importantly, it tells why.

2 Kings 13:23 (NRSVue) - But the Lord was gracious to them and had compassion on them; he turned toward them because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and would not destroy them, nor has he banished them from his presence until now.

God showed His people compassion because of His promise.

In the eleventh chapter of Paul’s letter to the Romans, he states God’s rejection is not final.

He also speaks on the salvation of the Gentiles.

Paul then speaks on how Israel will be saved.

Romans 11:29 (NRSVue) - for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

God has always remained faithful to His people.

This is true even when His people have not been faithful to Him in return.

And, as Paul states, God has claimed us as His people through Christ.

He is faithful to us even though we are not always faithful to Him.

As we continue our journey through Lent, may we reaffirm our faithfulness to God.

May our lives demonstrate that to Him.

May our lives demonstrate that to those around us.

May we live out the ministry of Jesus throughout our days.

Christ teaches us through His words.

Christ also teaches us through His example.

May we take both His words and His example to heart.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com on Friday, March 8, 2024.

I will be back here on Friday, March 15, 2024

A Beautiful Gesture

Psalm 22:1 (NRSVue) - My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?

Psalm 22 is a plea for deliverance from hostility and suffering.

Just before His death on the cross, Christ used these words.

Matthew 27:46 (NRSVue) - And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

The question arises: “Why would God forsake Jesus at this critical moment?”

To forsake means to “turn away from.”

So, why did God turn away from Jesus?

The simple answer: because it was necessary.

While on the cross, Jesus took upon Himself the sins of the entire world.

That includes yours and mine.

And when that happened, God, who is completely Holy, had to look away.

Moments later, Jesus died.

His work was finished.

Jesus said as much.

But God did much more than turn away,

He then made one of the most beautiful gestures in all Scripture.

Mark 15:38 (NRSVue) - And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.

The moment Jesus died, the barrier separating us from a completely Holy God was no longer needed.

God tore the curtain that separated us in two.

Nothing stood between us and God anymore!

In this world, we sometimes feel alone.

We might even feel forsaken.

We might feel that God has turned away from us.

But these feelings are not true.

Through Christ, God has made sure we are not alone.

Because of Christ, God has not turned away.

Through the love of Christ, nothing separates us from God.

Three days after his death, Christ rose to life once more and conquered death forever.

But His work in making us right with God occurred the moment He died.

It happened the moment His work was finished.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com on Friday, March 8, 2024.

I will be back here on Friday, March 15, 2024

Continued Love and Mercy

Psalm 118:18 (NRSVue) - The Lord has punished me severely, but he did not give me over to death.

Psalm 118 is known as a ‘Song of Victory’.

In verse 18, the psalmist acknowledges God’s mercy.

The Lord corrected him, but the Lord did not hand down a sentence of death.

Christ also showed mercy.

He not only healed a man, but He also healed him on the Sabbath.

John 5:5,8-9 (NRSVue) - One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. Jesus said to him, “Stand up, take your mat and walk.” At once the man was made well, and he took up his mat and began to walk.

This was not the only time Jesus healed on the Sabbath,

In Matthew 12, Jesus entered a synagogue.

A man was there with a withered hand.

The Pharisees tried to trap Jesus and asked, “Is it lawful to cure on the Sabbath?”

Jesus not only answered them, but He also healed the man in their presence.

Matthew 12:13 (NRSVue) - Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and it was restored, as sound as the other.

Christ loved the men that He healed.

More importantly, Christ loves all mankind.

Those who experienced His healing touch must have felt special, perhaps for the first time in years.

Today, we are equally amazed when Christ touches our lives,

He still heals the hardest of hearts and turns lives around.

He continues to love those whom society prefers to shun.

As we enter the season of Lent, may we always remember the power of His love for all.

May we be grateful for His continued mercy.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com on Friday, February 23, 2024.

I will be back here on Friday, March 1, 2024

To the End of the Age

Psalm 102:26 (NRSVue) - They will perish, but you endure; they will all wear out like a garment. You change them like clothing, and they pass away,

Psalm 102 is a prayer.

It is a prayer from one in crisis and in need of help.

It is a prayer to the eternal and unchanging God.

Matthew 28 begins with the resurrection of Jesus.

It ends with the commissioning of the disciples.

Jesus concludes this commission with a reminder; a reminder that He is ever present.

Matthew 28:20 (NRSVue) - and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

Our lives, indeed, our world changes.

New islands are formed.

Mountains wear away.

But it is not only the physical world that changes.

Politicians make promises without intending to honor them.

The price of necessities continues to rise.

The list goes on.

But there is something upon which we can rely.

We can rely on an unchanging, ever present, triune God.

The psalmist understood this.

Jesus reminded us of this.

That is something upon which to rely!

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com on Friday, February 9, 2024.

I will be back here on Friday, February 16, 2024

Time Is Relative

Psalm 39:5 (NIV) - You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Everyone is but a breath, even those who seem secure.

In the verse preceding this, the psalmist asks the Lord to reveal his remaining days.

This is to remind the psalmist how fleeting his life is.

But in verse five, he acknowledges that to an eternal God, a human lifetime is very brief.

Paul, in his second letter to Corinth discusses living by faith.

2 Corinthians 4:16 (NRSVue) - So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day.

True, in comparison, our mortal lives are fleeting compared to the eternal.

Even so, God does more than take a casual interest in us.

God plays an active role in our lives and transforms us along the way,

My own family history reminds me of this.

My father died at a relatively youthful age, so he had some time.

My mother, by comparison, lived to her old age and had considerably more.

My brother died in infancy, years before I was born, and so had little.

My own journey continues.

My family history reminds me that not one of us knows how much time we have in this world.

But it has taught me two lessons.

The first is to make the most of the time we do have.

The second is that God is with us throughout our lives.

Our sense of time varies.

Some days seem like they will never end.

Some years seem to evaporate too quickly.

But not a single day goes by in which God does not accompany us on our journey.

This bears repeating.

God is not just a passive observer.

God is an active participant in our lives.

Remember that God spoke to Moses like a friend (Exodus 33).

Remember Abraham believed God and was called God’s friend (James 2).

Therefore God, who accompanies us day by day, is our friend as well.

How quickly or slowly those days seem to pass to us is of little consequence by comparison.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com on Friday, January 26, 2023.

I will be back here on Friday, February 2, 2024

New Year, New Love

Hosea 6:6 (NRSVue) - For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

The prophet Hosea called upon the people to repent.

But repentance was not in their hearts.

They continued to offer their sacrifices, but their hearts were not in them.

God made it clear that sacrifices and offerings were not what he wanted.

What God wanted was their love and for them to come to know Him.

Paul, in his letter to the Romans, reminded them that they were to love their neighbor.

Moreover, it was love, not sacrifice, that fulfilled the law.

Romans 13:10 (NRSVue) - Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.

On the surface, this seems simple enough.

But history has shown us repeatedly that humans find this difficult.

Today’s headlines reveal just how difficult we still find it.

In Matthew 22, an expert in the law tried to trick Jesus.

He asked Jesus which commandment was the most important.

Christ gave him a two-fold answer.

This response must have taken the expert by complete surprise.

Matthew 22:37-40 (NRSVue) - He said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

Christ understood that the commandments were about relationships.

Some are about our relationship with God.

Others are about our relationship with each other.

By keeping both these commandments, we would in effect be keeping all others.

God still wants us to love and get to know Him.

He still prefers this to any other offerings we make.

Christ came into this world to teach us.

He did so by both word and example.

He reminded us to love both God and our neighbor.

That means all people.

As we embark on a new year, let us learn once more what it means to genuinely love God and people.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com on Friday, January 12, 2023.

I will be back here on Friday, January 19, 2024