Ken Winter
Between the Already and the Not Yet

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As Jesus sat on the slopes of the Mount of Olives, teaching His disciples, He began this particular discourse with the admonition, “be on the alert,” and concluded with the exact same words. In reading His words in the Gospel of Matthew, we see that He directed this message to four distinct “audiences.”

First, He addressed His disciples' specific questions. Second, since Jesus’ earthly ministry focused primarily on the Jewish people, this message was also directed to them. Third, He spoke to His church—those who would follow after Him, including us today, who will be with Him in heaven before the Tribulation. (By the way, as a side note—as His people we will escape the Tribulation, but He never promised that we will escape tribulation.) Fourth, He was speaking to His followers who would come to faith in Him during the Tribulation (after the rapture, but before His second coming).

For those of us in that third group—believers following Him today—we live in a place between the “already” and the “not yet.”

Between the Already and the Not Yet
Ken Winter
Simple Stories, Profound Truths

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When Jesus spoke to the crowds, He often used simple stories (parables) to communicate profound truths about the Kingdom of God. Have you ever gotten confused over what Jesus was saying? If so, you’re in good company because even the apostles were confused—until they were filled with the Holy Spirit. The good news is, if we are followers of Jesus, we have that same Holy Spirit inside of us to reveal all truth.

Once, the disciples asked Him, “Why do You use parables when You talk to the people?” Jesus replied, “To those who listen to My teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them.” He added, “I use parables because they look, but don’t really see. They hear, but don’t really listen or understand.”

Jesus was emphasizing profound truths ….

Simple Stories, Profound Truths
Ken Winter
No More Manna

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Have you recently lost a job or seen a significant income stream dry up? Are you feeling discouraged or confused about what’s happening? Are you struggling to make sense of an unexpected change in your life? There’s a lesson to be learned from the Israelites’ experience soon after they crossed into the Promised Land.

Few Israelites were old enough to remember the days before they ate manna. For them, it had become a basic staple of their diet—like fresh ground peanut butter is for me today. The generation that perished in the wilderness had been the ones grumbling, “If only the LORD had killed us back in Egypt… There we sat around pots filled with meat and ate all the bread we wanted. But now you have brought us into this wilderness to starve us all to death.”God responded to their complaints and miraculously provided them with manna.

No More Manna
Ken Winter
The Staff That Blossoms

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There is a powerful example in the Book of Numbers that illustrates how we should live as followers of Christ. Ironically, this example arose from a dispute among God's chosen people. They were arguing over who should hold the highest position. In some ways, this mirrors the debate among Jesus’ disciples about who would be the greatest in the kingdom. In both cases, selfish ambition reared its head, just as it often does in our own lives.

God decided to put an end to the controversy about who should serve as a priest on behalf of the people. Despite the judgments of death God had already rendered earlier in the passage, He now used a life-giving sign to settle the issue once and for all.

The Staff That Blossoms
Ken Winter
Seen the Cloud? See the Glory!

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If you are a follower of Christ—if you are one of God’s children—He promises to go before you, not just some of the time, but all the time. When we walk in His way and according to His will, He guarantees that every step we take is sure and secure—even when it doesn’t feel that way! As long as we are walking in His way to the best of our understanding, we can trust that every situation and circumstance—whether He placed it there or not—will work for our ultimate good, His purpose, and His glory.

Let’s consider an example of this truth. From the day the Israelites left Egypt, the Lord gave His people a constant reminder of His presence. He sent a pillar of cloud to guide them by day and a pillar of fire by night, so they could travel without losing sight of His leading. In Exodus we read, “The LORD did not remove the pillar of cloud or the pillar of fire from the sight of the people.” This visible reminder was with them for the entire month since their journey began.

Seen the Cloud? See the Glory!

Blessing

The Blessing

The Blessing

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Most every one of us has gone through a period in our life journey when we are walking through the unknown. It’s a journey through unfamiliar territory that can take on many different faces such as disease, financial hardship, the breakup of a relationship, the loss of a loved one, extended unemployment, or the like. Even when you know that God is walking with you through every step, and leading you through it, and drawing you close … it still is a journey that weighs heavily and causes you to become exceedingly weary. You may be walking through just such a journey right now. If that’s the case, my prayer is that this post will provide some respite for you.

The Israelites had been on the journey of their exodus from Egypt for approximately a year; and though they had experienced God’s provision and protection, they were weary and ready for the journey to be over….

A Wilderness Blessing

A Wilderness Blessing

Journeying through the wilderness is never easy. It takes a lot out of you. When you’re on a journey through the wilderness there is often no place to really call home. Whatever there was, is no more because you’ve left it behind, and whatever is ahead, you have yet to experience. You feel displaced. You tend to feel disconnected from the world around you. (Sometimes that’s why God leads us on a wilderness journey – to disconnect us from those things that would otherwise distract us from Him and what He wants to teach us.) But even knowing that, there can be a disquieting in your spirit. 

When i first wrote a portion of this post, my family and i were nearing the end of the fourth month of a similar journey. At the time it seemed like an eternity. We have been on other journeys since that have lasted much longer. Though we counted the time as precious and were thankful for the Lord’s faithfulness, we were ready for our journey to be over! We never expected the journey to take as long as it did. We expected to arrive in our Land of God’s Promise much sooner. We hungered to put down roots in the new land God had planned for us. As grateful as we were for God’s provision and His protection, we were ready for the journey to be over. We were ready to share the testimony of what God had done through the journey, instead of what He was doing….

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