I will not leave your orphans
John 14:18
It had been a wild, unpredictable adventure. Danger, constant travel, mystery and political intrigue were interspersed with victory, breath-taking excitement and surprises. Now, the disciples who had followed Jesus for three and a half years were weary, tense and suspecting that everything they longed for was about to come to pass. Success was out there, just past their finger tips, waiting to be grasped. Then, as was often case, Jesus did and said things that made them know they were as clueless as babes. They had gathered for what should have been a celebration dinner. But, it didn’t turn out that way.
The first thing Jesus did was to kneel and wash their feet, showing in that silent service how real love behaved. Then, He shook them to the core by saying He was going to leave them. He had made statements like these many times before, but this time He said it with a finality that alarmed, confused and saddened.
I can sympathize with those feelings. There have been times when I felt like Jesus was leaving me, too. And, if these feelings quickly followed some foolish vanity on my part, it’s been easy to believe that He is forsaking me because I am unworthy of His attention.
That night, long ago, Jesus looked around Him at sad, confused faces then said emphatically, “I will not leave you orphans!”
There are two ways to become an orphan. Either someone gives you birth and cannot take care of you or they give you birth and choose to abandon you. In the first case, the parent may have love but not enough strength to provide care. In the second, they have plenty of strength, but no love. Neither of those was true of Jesus. He had all the strength of the Creator of the universe and was Himself the source of all love. No, they would never be orphans.
Neither will we.
Yet, His statement must have seemed contradictory to those who first heard it for He had just told them He was going away. How could He both leave them and not leave them? The answer was rooted deep inside the mystery of the triune Godhead: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Son (who was God) would return to heaven but the Holy Spirit (who was God) would come to dwell inside believers and be their Comforter.
I can almost see the confusion on the faces of the disciples. How could this mystery be? Forty days later, they knew. They experienced the reality of the Spirit’s coming with power and joy. They were not orphans. His promise was true. Jesus was no longer physically present, but He had not left them alone!
Like the disciples, I too sometimes wonder about the mystery. How could God be with me if I don’t see Him? That’s when I take a moment to reach inside and feel the Spirit’s presence. I risk believing its true, and suddenly I don’t feel like an orphan at all.
Showing posts with label salvation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label salvation. Show all posts
Sunday, March 7, 2010
The Rewarder
[Those] who come to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Hebrews 11:6
One of the hardest things about waiting is the trial of faith. The tempter comes close and whispers that prayer and patients are useless. We hear a hiss of accusation from the shadows saying that God either doesn’t care or that our own inadequacies make us unworthy of His attention.
Have you ever been there? I certainly have. Looking back, I can see Satan’s prints all over such thoughts as these and sense again the dark nights of loneliness brought on by listening to such whispers.
I also see the cunning skill of my enemy for if he can get me to listen—even for a moment—to such suggestions, he can close the door between heaven and my soul.
The author of Hebrews lists the two requirements that are absolutely necessary before anyone can approach God: (1) we must believe that God is real and (2) that He cares enough to reward those who seek Him. So, when the way gets rough, it is often good to pause and ask ourselves how firmly our faith remains rooted in those two concepts.
Do we still believe God is real?
The routine of daily living can dull our sensitivities. Marriage partners drift into taking each other for granted. Children that were once our joy become our chore. Gratitude dissolves into restlessness. Even the wonder of God’s reality slips out of focus as day by day mundane routine forces an awareness of Him into the background.
It may be days ago or years ago that you placed your petition before God. Do you still believe that a real Being out there can actually hear you?
If that belief has slipped, perhaps it is time to reevaluate why you prayed in the first place. What made you hope He was there? Remembering may give fresh wind to your spirit. Is the world here by chance? If you have drifted into thinking so, spend a half-hour contemplating the nearest tree.
What about the second requirement for those who approach God? As you wait, do you believe He will answer? At this level of faith, God becomes personal. It is not just that God can answer prayer, but that He is willing to answer your prayer.
As Jesus drew His sermon on the mount to an end, He invited, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find. [ . . . ] What man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? [ . . . ] If you know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him?” [1]
Do we still believe that? Failure to believe is to question the character of God.
If the enemy is whispering to you this week, go back to the Word. Remember why you first hoped in His reality. Remember His character and His loving assurances. Jesus has His reward with Him [2] and He will reward YOU.
[1] Matthew 7:7-11, edited
[2] Revelation 22:12
Hebrews 11:6
One of the hardest things about waiting is the trial of faith. The tempter comes close and whispers that prayer and patients are useless. We hear a hiss of accusation from the shadows saying that God either doesn’t care or that our own inadequacies make us unworthy of His attention.
Have you ever been there? I certainly have. Looking back, I can see Satan’s prints all over such thoughts as these and sense again the dark nights of loneliness brought on by listening to such whispers.
I also see the cunning skill of my enemy for if he can get me to listen—even for a moment—to such suggestions, he can close the door between heaven and my soul.
The author of Hebrews lists the two requirements that are absolutely necessary before anyone can approach God: (1) we must believe that God is real and (2) that He cares enough to reward those who seek Him. So, when the way gets rough, it is often good to pause and ask ourselves how firmly our faith remains rooted in those two concepts.
Do we still believe God is real?
The routine of daily living can dull our sensitivities. Marriage partners drift into taking each other for granted. Children that were once our joy become our chore. Gratitude dissolves into restlessness. Even the wonder of God’s reality slips out of focus as day by day mundane routine forces an awareness of Him into the background.
It may be days ago or years ago that you placed your petition before God. Do you still believe that a real Being out there can actually hear you?
If that belief has slipped, perhaps it is time to reevaluate why you prayed in the first place. What made you hope He was there? Remembering may give fresh wind to your spirit. Is the world here by chance? If you have drifted into thinking so, spend a half-hour contemplating the nearest tree.
What about the second requirement for those who approach God? As you wait, do you believe He will answer? At this level of faith, God becomes personal. It is not just that God can answer prayer, but that He is willing to answer your prayer.
As Jesus drew His sermon on the mount to an end, He invited, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find. [ . . . ] What man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? [ . . . ] If you know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him?” [1]
Do we still believe that? Failure to believe is to question the character of God.
If the enemy is whispering to you this week, go back to the Word. Remember why you first hoped in His reality. Remember His character and His loving assurances. Jesus has His reward with Him [2] and He will reward YOU.
[1] Matthew 7:7-11, edited
[2] Revelation 22:12
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
The Voice Behind Me
Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it.” Isaiah 30:21
I occasionally become frustrated with the book of Isaiah. Like the other Major Prophets, this book is not easily understood and the narrative thread that holds it together is not always in chronological order. Yet, just when I think I have gleaned all from the book that my weak mind can possibly untangle something new, fresh, and precious jumps from the page.
I had memorized and often drawn comfort from Isaiah 30:21, but never before wondered why the voice of God came from behind His people rather than going on before them. Guides are general up ahead forging the way, not lingering behind. When God guided Moses and roughly three million Israelites through the desert into the Promised Land, He went before them as a cloud by day and a column of fire by night. [1] Jesus said that when He put forth His sheep He would go before them. [2] Yet, here the voice of God comes from behind.
The answer to that riddle starts way back at the beginning of the chapter.
For much of his book of Isaiah is shouting out to the people telling them the exact nature of their sin. This chapter begins the same. The people are rebellious. The people are headstrong. They are sure they have a plan figured out that will keep them safe, but Isaiah shouts a warning of failure.
In verse fifteen, the tone changes and rather than scolding, the prophet relays the tender, pleading voice of God. “For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: ‘In returning and rest you shall be saved; / In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.’” There was a way out. There was safety. But, it was not in the direction that the people were heading. Their safety would be in waiting yet they chose instead to scheme, plan and fight the enemy head on.
What is God’s reaction to this? Isaiah tells us: “Therefore the LORD will wait, that He may be gracious to you.” [3] Because the people refused to wait on God, the Holy Creator of the Universe would wait instead for them. There will come a day when they would cry out in their trouble, and what will happen then? “He will be very gracious at the sound of your cry; / When He hears it, He will answer you.” [4] But, because the people had raced ahead with their own plans, when He spoke, they would hear the guiding voice behind them.
No wonder Isaiah calls God’s actions, “very gracious’ [4]. How much more mercy and grace could He show than to both lead the way before us and when we race ahead of His leading, call us from behind? That’s double grace. The kind of grace I often need.
[1] Exodus 13:22
[2] John 4:10
[3] Isaiah 30:18
[4] Isaiah 30:19
I occasionally become frustrated with the book of Isaiah. Like the other Major Prophets, this book is not easily understood and the narrative thread that holds it together is not always in chronological order. Yet, just when I think I have gleaned all from the book that my weak mind can possibly untangle something new, fresh, and precious jumps from the page.
I had memorized and often drawn comfort from Isaiah 30:21, but never before wondered why the voice of God came from behind His people rather than going on before them. Guides are general up ahead forging the way, not lingering behind. When God guided Moses and roughly three million Israelites through the desert into the Promised Land, He went before them as a cloud by day and a column of fire by night. [1] Jesus said that when He put forth His sheep He would go before them. [2] Yet, here the voice of God comes from behind.
The answer to that riddle starts way back at the beginning of the chapter.
For much of his book of Isaiah is shouting out to the people telling them the exact nature of their sin. This chapter begins the same. The people are rebellious. The people are headstrong. They are sure they have a plan figured out that will keep them safe, but Isaiah shouts a warning of failure.
In verse fifteen, the tone changes and rather than scolding, the prophet relays the tender, pleading voice of God. “For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: ‘In returning and rest you shall be saved; / In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.’” There was a way out. There was safety. But, it was not in the direction that the people were heading. Their safety would be in waiting yet they chose instead to scheme, plan and fight the enemy head on.
What is God’s reaction to this? Isaiah tells us: “Therefore the LORD will wait, that He may be gracious to you.” [3] Because the people refused to wait on God, the Holy Creator of the Universe would wait instead for them. There will come a day when they would cry out in their trouble, and what will happen then? “He will be very gracious at the sound of your cry; / When He hears it, He will answer you.” [4] But, because the people had raced ahead with their own plans, when He spoke, they would hear the guiding voice behind them.
No wonder Isaiah calls God’s actions, “very gracious’ [4]. How much more mercy and grace could He show than to both lead the way before us and when we race ahead of His leading, call us from behind? That’s double grace. The kind of grace I often need.
[1] Exodus 13:22
[2] John 4:10
[3] Isaiah 30:18
[4] Isaiah 30:19
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Protecting Your Blind Side
As the mountains surround Jerusalem, / So the LORD surrounds His people / From this time forth and forever. Psalm 125:2
Jerusalem was located on top of a mountain and the temple of God was even higher located on the pinnacle within the city walls. It was an uphill journey and pilgrims seeking the presence of the Lord were likely to find the last steps, the hardest.
Perhaps that is why David wrote several songs specifically designed to be sung on the uphill hike. Psalm 125 is one of these Songs of Ascent intended to strengthen pilgrims and reassure them of God’s protection. Families sang together and traveling strangers sang to each other as verse by verse the music encouraged them to keep putting one foot in front of another and not be afraid.
A Song of Ascent was desperately needed when I was a forty-five year old college junior struggling to make financial ends meet while raising a family as a single mom and hoping I could finish my degree before funds ran dry. Fear and insecurity constantly plagued me making a difficult journey almost impossible.
I had begun the program at Liberty University hoping to do all the work from home but soon found that would not be possible. On campus time was required even though they segmented it into concentrated stays of two week duration. I would have to physically go to Virginia. So, leaving two teenagers to fend for themselves, I prepared as best I could and boarded a plane.
The campus was located in a valley completely surrounded by mountain peaks. I had never having been east of the Mississippi river and the new landscape was fascinating. As I looked around I saw land that was higher than where I stood in every direction.
I left the dorm that first morning with a heavy briefcase and a light sweater—wrong combination for winter in the mountains. It was almost a fourth of a mile to the lecture hall and I was feeling very miserable. Then, I looked up and things changed. I wasn’t any warmer but I did become braver.
Several weeks earlier, I had been listening to the radio and heard Psalm 125:2 set to music. The little chorus was easily memorized and as I looked at the mountains it came back to me. “As the mountains are around Jerusalem, the Lord is all around His people.” If that scripture were true—and it was—I had no need to fear, and a little cold air was certainly not the worst thing in the world. If the Lord was all around believers, then He was around me. ALL around. As He looked down, nothing could surprise or take Him unaware. I may not have been warm, but I was safe.
Do you feel you’re on an uphill journey? Do you wonder about surprises and protecting your blind side? Rejoice! Jesus is all around and nothing surprises Him.
Jerusalem was located on top of a mountain and the temple of God was even higher located on the pinnacle within the city walls. It was an uphill journey and pilgrims seeking the presence of the Lord were likely to find the last steps, the hardest.
Perhaps that is why David wrote several songs specifically designed to be sung on the uphill hike. Psalm 125 is one of these Songs of Ascent intended to strengthen pilgrims and reassure them of God’s protection. Families sang together and traveling strangers sang to each other as verse by verse the music encouraged them to keep putting one foot in front of another and not be afraid.
A Song of Ascent was desperately needed when I was a forty-five year old college junior struggling to make financial ends meet while raising a family as a single mom and hoping I could finish my degree before funds ran dry. Fear and insecurity constantly plagued me making a difficult journey almost impossible.
I had begun the program at Liberty University hoping to do all the work from home but soon found that would not be possible. On campus time was required even though they segmented it into concentrated stays of two week duration. I would have to physically go to Virginia. So, leaving two teenagers to fend for themselves, I prepared as best I could and boarded a plane.
The campus was located in a valley completely surrounded by mountain peaks. I had never having been east of the Mississippi river and the new landscape was fascinating. As I looked around I saw land that was higher than where I stood in every direction.
I left the dorm that first morning with a heavy briefcase and a light sweater—wrong combination for winter in the mountains. It was almost a fourth of a mile to the lecture hall and I was feeling very miserable. Then, I looked up and things changed. I wasn’t any warmer but I did become braver.
Several weeks earlier, I had been listening to the radio and heard Psalm 125:2 set to music. The little chorus was easily memorized and as I looked at the mountains it came back to me. “As the mountains are around Jerusalem, the Lord is all around His people.” If that scripture were true—and it was—I had no need to fear, and a little cold air was certainly not the worst thing in the world. If the Lord was all around believers, then He was around me. ALL around. As He looked down, nothing could surprise or take Him unaware. I may not have been warm, but I was safe.
Do you feel you’re on an uphill journey? Do you wonder about surprises and protecting your blind side? Rejoice! Jesus is all around and nothing surprises Him.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Feeling Blessed Today?
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places Ephesians 1:3>
Do you feel blessed today? You should! The truth is that your ARE blessed whether you recognize that fact or not. The blessings are flowing all around you. God’s Word says so!
One of the nicest things about Ephesians 1:3 is that the verbs are past tense. God HAS blessed us. Not that He is planning on blessing us someday or that He may bless if we faithfully stick it out through the hard times. No, this is a done deal. It is finished. Settled, Complete. Nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. This blessing of God has already happened!
We sometimes experience a pleasing event and declare ourselves “blessed” because the event feels good and we are grateful. There is nothing wrong with that. Happy and at times unexpected things do indeed come from our Father. But, those are not the kind of blessings referred to in Ephesians. The past-tense, done-deal blessings that Paul focuses on are spiritual blessings found in heavenly places. That’s what makes them superior to and more to be desired than any feel-good, pleasing for the moment events we may encounter.
This world is passing away. If you are “blessed” with good health today, it will fade as you age. If you are “blessed” with a good job and new car, both will eventually vanish. Earthly events, things and circumstances are like that. They come, and they go. But things in the heavenly realm last: Character growth, knowing how to be content, recognizing the smile of God, eternal life and eternal rewards; these things don’t fade. They are here to be enjoyed now and only multiply as we pass through this life and into eternity.
Right now—today—God’s smile is toward those who are bought by the blood of Jesus (Romans 8:1) His favor is raining down (Ezekiel 34:26) God seeks our good, not our hurt (Jeremiah 29:1). He has made us accepted in the beloved (Ephesians 1:6). Nothing and no one can ever separate us from His Divine protection (Romans 8:31-35). We are citizens of heaven (Philippians 3:19-21 NKJV). We are blessed to such a degree that the God of Glory has even destined us to be kings and priest before Him forever (Revelation 1:6).
We have all these things because we have experience a royal birth (I Peter 1:23). And, just like earthly royalty, our birth status doesn’t change. No matter where we are, no matter what our circumstance, no matter if others recognize it or even if we ourselves deny it (II Timothy 2:13) once born royal, we can never be unborn.
Lift up your head today. You ARE blessed and there is nothing your day or your world can throw at you today that will make your status any different.
Do you feel blessed today? You should! The truth is that your ARE blessed whether you recognize that fact or not. The blessings are flowing all around you. God’s Word says so!
One of the nicest things about Ephesians 1:3 is that the verbs are past tense. God HAS blessed us. Not that He is planning on blessing us someday or that He may bless if we faithfully stick it out through the hard times. No, this is a done deal. It is finished. Settled, Complete. Nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. This blessing of God has already happened!
We sometimes experience a pleasing event and declare ourselves “blessed” because the event feels good and we are grateful. There is nothing wrong with that. Happy and at times unexpected things do indeed come from our Father. But, those are not the kind of blessings referred to in Ephesians. The past-tense, done-deal blessings that Paul focuses on are spiritual blessings found in heavenly places. That’s what makes them superior to and more to be desired than any feel-good, pleasing for the moment events we may encounter.
This world is passing away. If you are “blessed” with good health today, it will fade as you age. If you are “blessed” with a good job and new car, both will eventually vanish. Earthly events, things and circumstances are like that. They come, and they go. But things in the heavenly realm last: Character growth, knowing how to be content, recognizing the smile of God, eternal life and eternal rewards; these things don’t fade. They are here to be enjoyed now and only multiply as we pass through this life and into eternity.
Right now—today—God’s smile is toward those who are bought by the blood of Jesus (Romans 8:1) His favor is raining down (Ezekiel 34:26) God seeks our good, not our hurt (Jeremiah 29:1). He has made us accepted in the beloved (Ephesians 1:6). Nothing and no one can ever separate us from His Divine protection (Romans 8:31-35). We are citizens of heaven (Philippians 3:19-21 NKJV). We are blessed to such a degree that the God of Glory has even destined us to be kings and priest before Him forever (Revelation 1:6).
We have all these things because we have experience a royal birth (I Peter 1:23). And, just like earthly royalty, our birth status doesn’t change. No matter where we are, no matter what our circumstance, no matter if others recognize it or even if we ourselves deny it (II Timothy 2:13) once born royal, we can never be unborn.
Lift up your head today. You ARE blessed and there is nothing your day or your world can throw at you today that will make your status any different.
Monday, December 7, 2009
Reading the Verbs Backward
For "whoever calls upon the name of the LORD shall be saved." How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they be sent? Romans 10:13-15
As a writer, I know that the last word in a sentence and the last thought in a paragraph are the ones which carry the most weight. I've rewritten many sentences carefully making sure that the idea I want the reader to remember comes last. Consequently, when I read Romans 10:13-15, I saw "preach" and "sent" but little else.
Perhaps that is why I was surprised when Jerry Bridges (Holiness Day by Day) suggested the reader select four key verbs and study them in reverse order. He said, Preach, hear, believe, and call form a path leading seekers to the entryway of a new life.
Preach: Our culture is permeated by Christian language, customs, messages and music. Admittedly not all of this "preaching" is either good or accurate but, just the same, most people have been exposed to the basics of Christian doctrine. Even a debate over whether or not a nativity scene can be displayed on the courthouse lawn exposes others to the basic claims of Christianity. However, if we want to be born again, our experience must go beyond this rudimentary level. Someone must not only preach at us, we must also hear, believe and call.
Hear: The word means to give attention to what is being said. When someone is exposed to preaching, they must understand the claims being made and pause to consider them. Jesus said He was God. He came to our planet with a mission, fulfilled it, and left to go back where He came from. That is amazing.
Believe: To believe something is to accept it as true. In order to become a Christian we accept both what Jesus claimed about Himself and what He claimed about us: He said He is God and that we are sinners. Because of this truth, a vast gulf separates us from Him.
Call: This is an act of faith. To "call" is to reach out from our inner being and trust that Someone on the other side can hear and respond to our plea. We ask God to forgive our sins and grant us the holiness of Jesus because we cannot be good enough to merit heaven on our own.
If you have been exposed to preaching, will you hear (give the claims of Christ your attention), believe (accept that what He said was true) and call (reach out asking Him to accept and make you pure)? If you will, He is loving and waiting to receive you.
As a writer, I know that the last word in a sentence and the last thought in a paragraph are the ones which carry the most weight. I've rewritten many sentences carefully making sure that the idea I want the reader to remember comes last. Consequently, when I read Romans 10:13-15, I saw "preach" and "sent" but little else.
Perhaps that is why I was surprised when Jerry Bridges (Holiness Day by Day) suggested the reader select four key verbs and study them in reverse order. He said, Preach, hear, believe, and call form a path leading seekers to the entryway of a new life.
Preach: Our culture is permeated by Christian language, customs, messages and music. Admittedly not all of this "preaching" is either good or accurate but, just the same, most people have been exposed to the basics of Christian doctrine. Even a debate over whether or not a nativity scene can be displayed on the courthouse lawn exposes others to the basic claims of Christianity. However, if we want to be born again, our experience must go beyond this rudimentary level. Someone must not only preach at us, we must also hear, believe and call.
Hear: The word means to give attention to what is being said. When someone is exposed to preaching, they must understand the claims being made and pause to consider them. Jesus said He was God. He came to our planet with a mission, fulfilled it, and left to go back where He came from. That is amazing.
Believe: To believe something is to accept it as true. In order to become a Christian we accept both what Jesus claimed about Himself and what He claimed about us: He said He is God and that we are sinners. Because of this truth, a vast gulf separates us from Him.
Call: This is an act of faith. To "call" is to reach out from our inner being and trust that Someone on the other side can hear and respond to our plea. We ask God to forgive our sins and grant us the holiness of Jesus because we cannot be good enough to merit heaven on our own.
If you have been exposed to preaching, will you hear (give the claims of Christ your attention), believe (accept that what He said was true) and call (reach out asking Him to accept and make you pure)? If you will, He is loving and waiting to receive you.
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