Good morning,

On the evening of 18 December 2022, 25th of Kislev on the Hebrew calendar, is the first night of Hanukkah. John 10:22 states, “And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter.” This “feast of the dedication” is a reference to dedication of the temple in 165 BCE.  To understand this verse, we need a history lesson.

The Hanukkah Story

Hanukkah is celebrated for eight days and nights, starting on the 25th of Kislev on the Hebrew calendar (which is November-December on the Gregorian calendar). In Hebrew, the word “Hanukkah” means “dedication.”

The holiday commemorates the rededication of the holy Temple in Jerusalem after the Jews’ 165 B.C.E. victory over the Hellenist Syrians. Antiochus, the Greek King of Syria, outlawed Jewish rituals and ordered the Jews to worship Greek gods. In 168 B.C.E. the Jews’ holy Temple was seized and dedicated to the worship of Zeus. Some Jews were afraid of the Greek soldiers and obeyed them, but most were angry and decided to fight back.

The fighting began in Modin, a village not far from Jerusalem. A Greek officer and soldiers assembled the villagers, asking them to bow to an idol and eat the flesh of a pig, activities forbidden to Jews. The officer asked Mattathias, a Jewish High Priest, to take part in the ceremony. He refused, and another villager stepped forward and offered to do it instead. Mattathias became outraged, took out his sword and killed the man, then killed the officer. His five sons and the other villagers then attacked and killed the soldiers. Mattathias’ family went into hiding in the nearby mountains, where many other Jews who wanted to fight the Greeks joined them. They attacked the Greek soldiers whenever possible.

About a year after the rebellion started, Mattathias died. Before his death, he put his brave son Judah Maccabee in charge of the growing army. After three years of fighting, the Jews defeated the Greek army, despite having fewer men and weapons.

Judah Maccabee and his soldiers went to the holy Temple, and were saddened that many things were missing or broken, including the golden menorah. They cleaned and repaired the Temple, and when they were finished, they decided to have a big dedication ceremony. For the celebration, the Maccabees wanted to light the menorah. They looked everywhere for oil, and found a small flask that contained only enough oil to light the menorah for one day. Miraculously, the oil lasted for eight days. This gave them enough time to obtain new oil to keep the menorah lit. Today Jews celebrate Hanukkah for eight days by lighting candles in a menorah every night, thus commemorating the eight-day miracle.

Why is this important to us? First Jesus and all the Apostles celebrated the “feast of the dedication.” Second, this points to Jesus as being the light of the world. (John 8:12)

Each night a candle is lit, prayers made, and Scripture shared as to why Jesus is the light.

Happy Hanukkah.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com

Good morning,

He will guide us to the end of the journey!

(James Smith, “Daily Bible Readings for the Lord’s Household”) Play Audio!  Download

“He will be our guide, even unto death!” Psalm 48:14

What a precious assurance is this!

Our God is our guide! He . . .
  led us out of the world at first,
  directed us to the cross, and
  conducted us into the path of holiness.

He has led us through all our past difficulties and trials. He leads us by the hand at present, and He will never give up His charge, for He will be our guide even unto death. He will . . .
  choose our way;
  lead us in the paths of righteousness;
  kindly converse with us along the road;
  point out the snares and dangers in our path;
  keep us by His power through faith unto salvation,
  and will patiently bear with us unto the end!

He may . . .
  hide His face,
  refuse communion,
  withhold comforts,
  smite us for our follies, and
  teach us our dependence on Himself by painful experience;
but He will never forsake us, or give us up!

He will guide us to the end of the journey, and will go with us through the last dark valley!

He will not only lead us to the heavenly kingdom, but put us in possession of it!
This He has promised, and He will faithfully perform it.

Beloved, it is our Father’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom!
He will guide us now, and by and by receive us to glory!
   ~  ~  ~  ~

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com

Good morning,

Reader, are you a Christian?

(James Smith, “Good seed for the Lord’s field!” 1856)  Play Audio!  Download

Are you a Christian?

This is a very important inquiry, because many profess to be so, who are not so in reality. And yet no one can be saved, unless he is a Christian.

If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature:
  he is convinced of sin, and mourns over it;
  he hates sin, and departs from it;
  he reads the Word of God, and loves it;
  he hears the gospel of Christ, and believes it.

He becomes a disciple of Christ . . .
  learning His doctrines,
  trusting His promises,
  and doing His will.

He receives the Spirit of Christ, which is a spirit of meekness, love and holiness.

He would rather suffer for Christ, than sin against Christ! He . . .
  loves the person of Christ,
  imitates the example of Christ, and
  observes the ordinances of Christ.

He commits his soul into the hands of Jesus . . .
  to be pardoned through His blood,
  to be justified by His righteousness,
  to be sanctified by His Spirit,
  to be preserved by His power,
  to be used for His glory, and
  to be presented faultless by Him to the Father at last.

He looks for the second coming of Christ with joy, because then he will be like Him, for he will see Him as He is!

Such is a Christian, according to the New Testament.

Reader, are you a Christian?

Can you live without prayer?

Can you be happy without Christ?

Can you neglect or despise the Word of God?

If so, then you are not a Christian!

Every Christian finds . . .
  prayer to be the breath of his soul,
  Christ to be the food of his soul,
  the Bible to be the comfort of his soul, and
  the Lord’s people to be the beloved companions of his soul.

Examine yourself, for thousands bear the Christian name, who know nothing of Christian experience. Multitudes live and die under a delusion, and will say to Jesus at last, “Lord, Lord, we were Christians!“ Then He will say unto them, “I never knew you! Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels!“ This will be dreadful, most dreadful!
   ~  ~  ~  ~

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com

Good morning,

Imitate the loving Jesus!

(Charles Spurgeon, “Christ’s People, Imitators of Him”)  Play Audio!  Download Audio

Let us ever imitate the loving Jesus.

The child comes to Him; He takes it on His knee, saying, “Let the little children come unto Me, and forbid them not.”

A widow has just lost her only son; He weeps at the coffin, and with a word restores life to the dead man.

He sees a paralytic, a leper, or a man long confined to his bed; He speaks, they rise and are healed.

He lived for others, not for Himself. His constant labors were without any motive, except the good of those who lived in the world.

And to crown all, you know the mighty sacrifice He made, when He condescended to lay down His life for man when on the tree, quivering with agony, and hanging in the utmost extremity of suffering–He submitted to die for our sakes, that we might be saved!

Behold in Christ, ‘love consolidated’. He was one mighty pillar of benevolence!

Christ is love!

Oh, you Christians, you should be loving also. Let your love and your beneficence beam out on all men!

Each in your proper sphere–speak kind words, do kind actions. Live out Christ again in the “kindness of your life”. If there is one virtue which most commends Christians, it is that of kindness; it is to love the people of God, to love the church, to love the world, to love all.

But how many have we in our churches of crab-tree Christians, who have mixed such a vast amount of vinegar, and such a tremendous quantity of gall in their constitutions, that they can scarcely speak one good word to you. They imagine it impossible to defend religion except by passionate ebullitions.

They cannot speak for their dishonored Master without being angry with their opponent; and if anything is awry, whether it be in the house, the church, or anywhere else–they conceive it to be their duty to set their faces like flint, and to defy everybody.

They are like isolated icebergs; no one cares to go near them. They float about on the sea of forgetfulness, until at last they are melted and gone. And though, good souls, we shall be happy enough to meet them in Heaven, we are very glad to get rid of them from the earth! They were always so unamiable in disposition, that we would rather live an eternity with them in Heaven, than five minutes on earth.

Don’t you be like this, my brethren. Imitate Christ in your loving spirits. Speak kindly, act kindly, and do kindly–that men may say of you, “He has been with Jesus!“
   ~  ~  ~  ~

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com

Good morning,

WHY does He love me?

(James Smith, “Loved and Blessed” 1860)  Play Audio!  Download Audio

To love, and be loved–is real happiness. Our highest honor and our sweetest happiness below, is to be beloved of God. For if God loves us, He will withhold no truly good thing from us.

“I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for My anger has turned away from them!” Hosea 14:4

What will God do for His people? He will love them freely!

He will prefer you to all others, setting His eye and His heart upon you.

He will take you into fellowship–the nearest, dearest, sweetest fellowship with Himself.

He will make you happy with the persuasion of the facts . . .
  that He has loved you with an everlasting love,
  that He delights in His love to you, and
  that He will forever love you freely!

O blessed state, that the great, the infinite, the holy Lord God—will love a worm like me . . .
  preferring me even to the angels;
  indulging me with the freest, sweetest fellowship with Himself;
  and sweetly persuading my soul of His eternal love to me!

WHY does He love me? Just because He will. The cause, the reason, is to be found in His loving heart, and sovereign will alone. Not because I am good, or amiable, or can repay His love–for He loves freely, and fixes His love on the most unlikely and unworthy objects!

How precious the Lord’s people are to Him:
  notwithstanding all their unworthiness and sinfulness,
  notwithstanding all their departures from Him, and unkindness to Him.
There is nothing on earth, or in heaven, except His only begotten Son, that is as precious to the heart of God, as His people are!

God’s love is always free and unchangeable. Everything outside of God will change, but His love is immutable!

“Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn you!” Jeremiah 31:3

Lord, help me to believe the love which You have for me, and to love You in return! O shed abroad Your sweet love in my heart, and fill that heart with glowing love to You!

Ephesians 3:18-19, “May you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should–how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is! May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully!”
~  ~  ~  ~

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com

Good morning,

Pardon!

(Charles Spurgeon, “His Name, Wonderful!”)  Play Audio!  Download Audio

Once upon a time, there came to my house one of a black and stern aspect. He smote the door; I tried to bolt it to hold it fast. He smote again and again, till at last he entered, and with a rough voice he summoned me before him; and he said, “I have a message from God for you! You are condemned on account of your sins!”

I looked at him with astonishment; I asked him his name.

He said, “My name is the Law.”

And I fell at his feet as one that was dead.

As I lay there, he smote me.

He smote me till every rib seemed as if it must break. My heart was melted like wax within me. I seemed to be stretched upon a rack–to be pinched with hot irons–to be beaten with whips of burning wire!

An extreme misery dwelt and reigned in my heart.

I dared not lift up my eyes, but I thought within myself, “There may be hope, there may be mercy for me. Perhaps the God whom I have offended may accept my tears and my promises of amendment, and I may live.”

But when that thought crossed my mind, heavier were the blows and more poignant my sufferings than before, till hope entirely failed me, and I had nothing wherein to trust.

Darkness black and dense gathered round me.

I heard a voice as it were, of rushing to and fro, and of wailing and gnashing of teeth. I said within my soul, “I am cast out from God’s sight, I am utterly abhorred of God! He has trampled me in the mire of the streets in His anger.”

And there came one by, of sorrowful but of loving aspect, and He stooped over me, and He said, “Awake you who sleep, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give you light.“

I arose in astonishment, and He took me, and He led me to a place where stood a cross, and He seemed to vanish from my sight.

But He appeared again, hanging there.

I looked upon Him as He bled upon that tree.

His eyes darted a glance of love unutterable into my spirit, and in a moment, looking at Him:
  the bruises that my soul had suffered were healed;
  the gaping wounds were cured;
  the broken bones rejoiced;
  the rags that had covered me were all removed;
  my spirit was as white as the spotless snow;
  I had melody within my spirit,
for I was saved, washed, cleansed, forgiven–through Him who hung upon the tree!

Oh, how astonished was I, that I should be pardoned!

It was not the pardon that I wondered at so much; the wonder was that it should come to ME!

I wondered that He should be able to pardon such sins as mine; such crimes, so numerous and so black!

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com

Good morning,

Christmas, God’s Love Letter to the World.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

This week we will be looking at four things about the Messiah, Yeshua, Jesus.

God is love.

God tells us of the coming Messiah, where He will be born, when He would come, and why He would come.

God has a book.

Our response to what God has done

God loved us. How should we love others?

 “Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.” (1 John 4:11)

“Love suffereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,⁵ Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;⁶ Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;⁷ Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.⁸ Love never faileth: (1 Corinthians 13:4-8a)

Love others.

If you know God’s love, share it with others. If you are not saved, this would be a perfect time to accept God’s provision for your sin.

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com

Christmas, God’s Love Letter to the World

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

INTRODUCTION: Christmas is a celebration of God’s love.

God is love.

“He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.” (1 John 4:8) Man is sinful and corrupt. From Genesis 3 till now, the only way of making reconciliation is a blood sacrifice. God made the first blood sacrifice in the garden of Eden, when He clothed Adam and Eve. Israel sacrificial system covered their sin, but was never permanent.

God tells of the coming Messiah.

“Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14)

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.⁷ Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.” (Isaiah 9:6-7)

God tells where the Messiah will be born.

“But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” (Micah 5:2)

God tells when the Messiah would come.

“But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,⁵ To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” (Galatians 4:4-5)

God tells why the Messiah came.

It was God’s love for His creation that caused Him to send Jesus to be the one-time sacrifice for our sin.

“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. ¹⁷ For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” (John 3:16-17)

“For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” (Luke 19:10)

God has a book.

It was all about the salvation of men and women. God has a book in which the names of all those who have trusted Christ are written. One day this book will be opened and those names not found in it will be cast into the lake of fire.

“And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:15)

God expressed His to love to us by sending Jesus.

“Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (1 John 4:10)

What will we do this Christmas for Him? Step back and take time to remember why Jesus came. What can you do for others during this Christmas season?

God loved us. How should we love others?

 “Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.” (1 John 4:11)

“Love suffereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,⁵ Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;⁶ Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;⁷ Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.⁸ Love never faileth: (1 Corinthians 13:4-8a)

Love others.

If you know God’s love, share it with others. If you are not saved, this would be a perfect time to accept God’s provision for your sin.

READ Matthew 1:18-2:12 and Luke 2:1-38

The Christmas Story

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com

Good morning,

The attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, plunged us into fierce and bitter war. This devotional by Ron Covey explains how good came out of evil. It is fairly lengthy, but worth the read.

Forgiveness and Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

“Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” Luke 23:34

Last Sunday I was away on a trip and missed the opportunity to editorialize a lesson on the subject of “forgiveness” that would have been so appropriate to the date of December 7th. As a lot of you know from personal remembrance and the rest of us know from history studies, on that date 73 years ago, the Japanese, in a Sunday morning surprise attack, bombed Pearl Harbor, Hawaii causing great devastation and a catastrophic loss of life and material. On Dec. 8th, 1941 President Roosevelt uttered the immortal words that have since defined that date and occasion: “A date which will live in infamy.”

But, you might be asking, “How does the bombing of Pearl Harbor have anything to do with ‘forgiveness?” and you’d not be remiss in asking such a question. I’m going to relate something to you that directly pertains to that event and also directly relates to a tremendous lesson on “love and forgiveness.”

Of course, nothing of this temporal, earthly life can compare with the lesson shown to man by Jesus Christ on the cross when he uttered the above cited words, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” The people Christ forgave from the cross were killing the Son of God, the Messiah sent from God to save man from his sins. But, the lesson stemming from this terrible and tragic event of Dec. 7, 1941, which began the long and destructive war with Japan, I feel can be a powerful one.

In setting the scene for our lesson, let me give you a few more dates that will come into play. April 18, 1942; September 2, 1945; the years 1948 and 1949. You will see how these dates come into play as we go through this lesson. And now, let’s get the lesson started.

On the morning of Dec. 7th, 1941, a flying armada of 183 bombers and fighters, led by Captain Mitsuo Fuchida, attacked the various military bases at Pearl Harbor and nearby towns. As earlier mentioned, it was a devastating attack. Capt. Fuchida was the pilot who gave the now-famous radio call “Tora Tora Tora” which signaled the attack. He was also at the Battle of Midway and several other major battles of the war. Was shot down several times and also wounded several times, however he survived each time and was assigned to Japan when the war ended.

On the date of April 18, 1942, sixteen B-25 Mitchell bombers, led by LtCol. Jimmy Doolittle took off from the USS Hornet and bombed Japan. After the raid, one of the planes landed in Russia with the rest going on to China where all of them crash landed off the shore or on land. Some were captured and executed, some were saved by the Chinese and others were captured and taken to Japan as prisoners.

On Sept. 2, 1945 Japan officially surrendered to the U.S. on the deck of the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay following the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Capt. Fuchida was present at the surrender signing. He had also been in Hiroshima on military duty until the day before the atomic bomb was dropped there.

After the war, Capt. Fuchida was very bitter and was determined to prove that the U.S. had mistreated Japanese prisoners of war and began interviewing the returning POW’s for this purpose. He found that he could not substantiate any mistreatment, in fact, several of them told him about how well they were treated. Especially by a young 18 year old social worker by the name of Margaret “Peggy” Covell at the POW camp. They told of how much love she showed them while they were there.

He eventually met “Peggy” Covell and learned from her that her parents had been missionaries in the Philippines and had been beheaded there by Japanese soldiers. Because of that fact he could not understand her showing such loving care towards Japanese POWs at the camp. She told him that she knew that her parents had forgiven their captors before they killed them and Capt. Fuchida said that he later determined this to be true.

Intrigued by Miss Covell’s attitude of forgiveness, Capt. Fuchida bought a Bible in 1948 and began reading it. It was also around this time that he saw an American passing out pamphlets entitled “I Was A Prisoner Of Japan” and he took one. This American was Jacob DeShazer, one of the captured crew members from the Doolittle raid and who had spent 40 months in a Japanese prison. He had returned to Japan after the war as a missionary and was teaching “forgiveness to one’s enemies” as taught by the Scriptures.

Capt. Fuchida said that he did not understand what motivated these two people, Miss Covell and Jacob DeShazer, to show the forgiveness and love towards those who had wronged them so much. Then, in 1949, he read Luke 23:34 and realized that this was the source of their love for their former enemies. Capt. Fuchida subsequently converted to Christianity from Buddhism and, because he was revered as a hero of the Japanese Empire for his exploits during the war, was reviled severely for having done so. He became a world traveling missionary himself and wrote a book entitled: “From Pearl Harbor to Calvary.”

I’m going to close with a statement made by Capt. Fuchida in 1970 that I feel speaks directly to our lesson here. Read them with me and see if you don’t agree that his words can’t be echoed by all of us when it comes to “forgiving” and understanding the source of our strength to change our lives and be able to “forgive.”

“I would give anything to retract my actions of 29 years ago at Pearl Harbor, but it is impossible. Instead, I now work at striking a deathblow to the basic hatred which infests the human heart and causes such tragedies. And that hatred cannot be uprooted without assistance from Jesus Christ. He was the only one powerful enough to change my life and inspire it with His thoughts.”

How many of us would “give anything” to “retract” some of our past actions? But, as Capt. Fuchida said, “it’s impossible.” What’s done is done. But, also like Capt. Fuchida, we can change. With the help of Jesus Christ, we can change our “heart,” cleansing it from the evil and hatred that brings about those “actions” which we wished we hadn’t done and will keep us from doing them in the future. If we remove “hatred” we can “forgive.”

Ron Covey

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Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com

Good morning,

Christmas, God’s Love Letter to the World.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

This week we will be looking at four things about the Messiah, Yeshua, Jesus.

God is love.

God tells us of the coming Messiah, where He will be born, when He would come, and why He would come.

God has a book.

Our response to what God has done.

God has a book

It was all about the salvation of men and women. God has a book in which the names of all those who have trusted Christ are written. One day this book will be opened and those names not found in it will be cast into the lake of fire.

“And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:15)

God expressed His to love to us by sending Jesus.

“Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (1 John 4:10)

What will we do this Christmas for Him? Step back and take time to remember why Jesus came. What can you do for others during this Christmas season?

Is your name written in the “…book of life…”?

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com