I'm Back!

Hey folks.......I'm back from a long needed vacation! The houseboat was great and it was fun to just hang out in the water and do nothing. We did get to do some tubing while we were out there which was too much fun. I hadn't done that in YEARS! I also attempted to ski for just the 2nd time in my life and I actually made it up for about 30 seconds or so. Pretty impressive for a short fat guy. However, after all that tubing and very little skiing I did, my body is not liking me at all right now and I think the only part of me that doesn't hurt are my fingers. I'm looking forward to get back in the groove of things and start working towards my next vacation in Oct. Another cruise! whoooo hoooo!!

What if Jesus said "NO"

Luke 18:13--But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" What if Jesus said no? Could you imagine crying out to God for mercy and his reply be "no". Would that be unfair? I mean, don't the rules say that if I cry out for mercy God has to give it. Let there be no mistake about it, there will come a day when it will be too late to cry out for mercy but that day has not arrived yet. Would it be unfair for Jesus to tell us no in this present day? It would not be unfair. I hope we never ask for what is fair with Christ. We have life today because of the unfairness of God. If God pronounced nothing but judgement and wrath upon us, it would be a just judgement. It would be deserved and he would be right for doing so. However, God does not overlook our sin when we are forgiven. Christ paid the penalty for our sin. Our sin was dealt with by Jesus and he took the punishment (the wrath of God) in our place. This is what is meant by substitutionary sacrifice. Christ was our substitute on the cross. This is not fair. Christ being completely without sin was punished as if he were a sinner. In the same breath we must also realize that just as Christ was counted a sinner (even though he was not morally a sinner) we get counted as righteous even though we are not morally righteous. Christ got the credit for our sin and we got the credit for his righteousness. Again, this is not fair. But it is a reality for all who will repent of their sins and believe on him. Jesus will not say no. We have the promise of John 6:37--"All that the father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out." Until the day of Christ's return, he will never say no to those who draw near by grace through faith. It is my earnest desire that we would all realize this truth and stand in awe of the grace of God. It is an awesome thing. It is unfair, but it is a reality. It is the good news!

What if Jesus said "NO"

Luke 18:13--But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" What if Jesus said no? Could you imagine crying out to God for mercy and his reply be "no". Would that be unfair? I mean, don't the rules say that if I cry out for mercy God has to give it. Let there be no mistake about it, there will come a day when it will be too late to cry out for mercy but that day has not arrived yet. Would it be unfair for Jesus to tell us no in this present day? It would not be unfair. I hope we never ask for what is fair with Christ. We have life today because of the unfairness of God. If God pronounced nothing but judgement and wrath upon us, it would be a just judgement. It would be deserved and he would be right for doing so. However, God does not overlook our sin when we are forgiven. Christ paid the penalty for our sin. Our sin was dealt with by Jesus and he took the punishment (the wrath of God) in our place. This is what is meant by substitutionary sacrifice. Christ was our substitute on the cross. This is not fair. Christ being completely without sin was punished as if he were a sinner. In the same breath we must also realize that just as Christ was counted a sinner (even though he was not morally a sinner) we get counted as righteous even though we are not morally righteous. Christ got the credit for our sin and we got the credit for his righteousness. Again, this is not fair. But it is a reality for all who will repent of their sins and believe on him. Jesus will not say no. We have the promise of John 6:37--"All that the father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out." Until the day of Christ's return, he will never say no to those who draw near by grace through faith. It is my earnest desire that we would all realize this truth and stand in awe of the grace of God. It is an awesome thing. It is unfair, but it is a reality. It is the good news!

Checking In

Howdy folks... it's been quite a while since I've posted here at the JMB blog. First things first - Derek got a haircut. Saw him working in Kroger today... His hair is quite short now. Sad thing is, the ladies are still gonna love him. Stinkin' Derek. One of our biggest fans - Nele - has returned home to Germany. We played a concert for her going-away party last week at The Point. We - Derek more than most of us - miss her already. She was fun little German. Hopefully we'll see her again soon. Get us a gig in Germany! New songs are on the way! We'll be rehearsing a bit over the next month of so to learn some new material. Not only originals, but also some new praise & worship songs. Gotta keep things fresh, ya know. Don't worry - I'm sure you'll still hear "Drive" at every concert :-) Live downloads? Be on the lookout for lots of live MP3's on our website. I've been recording our past few shows, and they haven't turned out too bad. We're hopefully gearing up for a new live CD, and possibly a DVD. In the mean time, we're enjoying some time off... hanging out with friends & family, vacationing, etc. August will be busy, and we're looking forward to getting back on stage! See you all soon...

Dull bass player news

For those of you who don't read my blog I think I'll update you a little bit. I will be getting a new bass tomorrow. Although it won't officially be mine until I pay for it (probably Sunday) it will be mine enough to take home and play... which it good enough for me! It's a 1978 Rickenbacker 4001. People unfamiliar with that name may recognize it as the bass used by Paul McCartney (later Beatles and Wings), Lemmy of Moterhead, Chris Squire of Yes, and Geddy Lee of Rush (in earlier years). I'm excited to see how I can use it in JMB shows. We'll see...

Happy 4th of July

I just wanted to wish everyone a happy 4th! I also wanted to pass along some words of a song that really helps us to remember our purpose here. "My first allegiance is not to a country or a land, My first allegiance is not to democracy, but, It's to a King and a Kingdom." As we celebrate the freedom we have, let's remember that even in this land we call America, we are still immigrants and only in Christ can we know freedom. God Bless!