I was thinking today how it is good to think in terms of 'a career'. At some point we must make the transition of thinking moment to moment and start thinking long term. This applies to work but it also applies to our spiritual lives.
"Thus it is written, 'The first man Adam became a living being'; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual." - 1 Corinthians 15:45-46 ESV
"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." - 1 Corinthians 15:22 KJV
Adam lived but in the end he was known for his failure. Just being alive will not be praiseworthy when we stand before God. Jesus had a calling. He was and Is a quickener. God is very happy with His Son and in Him we find our calling. We have a life through Adam but Jesus gives us a ministry.
"Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election" - 2 Peter 1:10a ESV
We don't have any say in our election. Nor do we have much say in some of the circumstances we find ourselves in. It is good to be sure about why we are in our present circumstances. We are here because God has us here. We are here as called ones. Circumstances are not just things to survive they are stepping stones on a career of faith.
"Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God." - 1 Corinthians 4:5 ESV
Everyone who believes will have praise from God. Anyone who continues believing will have a long list of things for God to commend. It is not our works but our life of faith that is given as a gift from God.
"Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God;" - Romans 14:10 ESV
God's judgement seat is a reward seat. God will reward us and he will reward those around us who have believed. I want to cheer for you when you stand there and not be ashamed because I operated as a judge when I should have been a friend.
"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil." - 2 Corinthians 5:10 ESV
Good here is Agathos (Strong's G18) which means agreeably, useful or lovely and evil is Phaulos (Strong's G5337) which speaks of easy, worthless or something of no account. A believers judgement will be about useful and not useful.
God is going to deal with our career on that day. It won't be about our self life it will be about our career. A professional makes career oriented decisions. Good or bad is useful or not useful. That is how I want to think. What will be useful when I eventually stand before God?
Men are often not known for the little things they do day to day. History records important moments when people made crucial decisions. Those decisions are often not easy ones. A career of faith prepares us to make useful choices in those crucial moments.
It gives new meaning to the common question, 'So what do you do for a living?'
We can say with confidence that we are more than just alive. Believers have careers of faith.
--
Saturday, May 9, 2015
Friday, May 8, 2015
The Scent Of Water
Renewal is a strange wonderful thing. It can't be planned.
"For there is hope for a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its shoots will not cease. Though its root grow old in the earth, and its stump die in the soil, yet at the scent of water it will bud and put out branches like a young plant. But a man dies and is laid low; man breathes his last, and where is he? As waters fail from a lake and a river wastes away and dries up, so a man lies down and rises not again; till the heavens are no more he will not awake or be roused out of his sleep. Oh that you would hide me in Sheol, that you would conceal me until your wrath be past, that you would appoint me a set time, and remember me! If a man dies, shall he live again? All the days of my service I would wait, till my renewal should come. You would call, and I would answer you; you would long for the work of your hands." - Job 14:7-15 ESV
We can plan rest but not renewal. We can apply the paddles to our creative chest to try and jump start creativity. Sometimes that jolt works to restart us and sometimes it doesn't. Creativity happens at interesting times. We get 'new eyes' and suddenly possibilities become visible That we never saw before.
Grace is what often restarts me. Perhaps because it is the antidote for the things that stop me. Grace is the 'scent of water' that causes me to sprout in new configurations.
Human beings are creative creatures. We all have varying degrees of it and it is expressed in different ways and times. Some of us are oriented toward creative pursuits and others would rather things stay stable and continuous. Stability is important also.
"Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them. We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat." - Hebrews 13:9-10 ESV
The creative person will function in unexpected ways in common situations. It is fascinating to watch. The mundane pedestrian landscape turns into a magical flash mob and songs that never echoed down those streets suddenly do in grand fashion.
We have a table to eat from that not everyone knows about and it makes us special. There is a divine presence with us that is not governed by us or anyone. God is with those who believe. He tabernacles among us.
God fill us today. We have the stability and security of eternal rest. We want to walk in the unpredictable creativity of divine grace.
--
"For there is hope for a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its shoots will not cease. Though its root grow old in the earth, and its stump die in the soil, yet at the scent of water it will bud and put out branches like a young plant. But a man dies and is laid low; man breathes his last, and where is he? As waters fail from a lake and a river wastes away and dries up, so a man lies down and rises not again; till the heavens are no more he will not awake or be roused out of his sleep. Oh that you would hide me in Sheol, that you would conceal me until your wrath be past, that you would appoint me a set time, and remember me! If a man dies, shall he live again? All the days of my service I would wait, till my renewal should come. You would call, and I would answer you; you would long for the work of your hands." - Job 14:7-15 ESV
We can plan rest but not renewal. We can apply the paddles to our creative chest to try and jump start creativity. Sometimes that jolt works to restart us and sometimes it doesn't. Creativity happens at interesting times. We get 'new eyes' and suddenly possibilities become visible That we never saw before.
Grace is what often restarts me. Perhaps because it is the antidote for the things that stop me. Grace is the 'scent of water' that causes me to sprout in new configurations.
Human beings are creative creatures. We all have varying degrees of it and it is expressed in different ways and times. Some of us are oriented toward creative pursuits and others would rather things stay stable and continuous. Stability is important also.
"Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them. We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat." - Hebrews 13:9-10 ESV
The creative person will function in unexpected ways in common situations. It is fascinating to watch. The mundane pedestrian landscape turns into a magical flash mob and songs that never echoed down those streets suddenly do in grand fashion.
We have a table to eat from that not everyone knows about and it makes us special. There is a divine presence with us that is not governed by us or anyone. God is with those who believe. He tabernacles among us.
God fill us today. We have the stability and security of eternal rest. We want to walk in the unpredictable creativity of divine grace.
--
Thursday, May 7, 2015
Thoughts From 2 Timothy Chapter Four
This morning I'm reading 2 Timothy chapter 4 again and again. It appears this is the Apostle Paul's last book and chapter 4 is the last chapter of the book. Paul is wrapping things up. For a man who 'forgets those things that are behind' he recounts a great deal of pain and love.
"For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia. Luke alone is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is very useful to me for ministry. Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus. When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. Beware of him yourself, for he strongly opposed our message." - 2 Timothy 4:10-15 ESV
Even in this last chapter of his life Paul is suffering because of mistreatment and separation.
The last few days my mind has been flooded with faces and names of people. I have struggled with giving myself grace for not being able to put a name to a face I am praying for.
At times like this I am very aware of secret pain. People have it. I have had it and I'm sure there is more coming. I was crippled emotionally by pain before I believed in God. Then after God converted me and began the healing process I was hurt again and many times since. I have been hurt in His house and out if it. Patches of my hair has temporarily turned white with grief to the point where even though I believed in God there have been times when I could not imagine ever being truly whole and happy again.
I am happy now and I have no bitterness. Memory... Yes. Blame... No. That in itself is miraculous. At the same time I understand why people are bitter and marvel at the depth of what different people go through.
Over time God has given me ways to process pain. I never hurt alone nor do I desire to push away other people's pain the way I used to. God has become my burden bearer. My arms tire from handing Him things but I am learning not to carry them myself for very long. I identify very strongly with Paul. He is not claiming mastery over these very human issues. He is expressing a believable hope as a little person with real needs.
Paul says...
"For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing." - 2 Timothy 4:6-8 ESV
Anyone who has ever 'loved His appearing' will one day be satisfied. There will be a grand reunion.
I think of Timothy learning of Paul's death and then at some point pulling this letter out of a drawer and realizing that it was the last one. No more new guidance was coming to him from that man he loved so dearly. Pain mingled with love. Memory. How many times did Timothy read this letter? How many times have believers reread it?
Paul walked with God and finished his course well. He didn't spend his life safely insulating himself from potentially painful situations. He walked with God and knew he had a crown waiting. Timothy remembered Paul and continued in his call having had an example of endurance in his life.
God, Help us to be mindful of each other. We can't wait to see you. Until then we want to live our lives fully casting down anything that would cause us to be bitter. There are many chapters left to be written. We want them to be filled with faith and freshness. Today we are not as naive as we have been before. Today we ask you fill us with hope and childlike faith for what can be if as believers we will only believe.
--
"For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia. Luke alone is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is very useful to me for ministry. Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus. When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. Beware of him yourself, for he strongly opposed our message." - 2 Timothy 4:10-15 ESV
Even in this last chapter of his life Paul is suffering because of mistreatment and separation.
The last few days my mind has been flooded with faces and names of people. I have struggled with giving myself grace for not being able to put a name to a face I am praying for.
At times like this I am very aware of secret pain. People have it. I have had it and I'm sure there is more coming. I was crippled emotionally by pain before I believed in God. Then after God converted me and began the healing process I was hurt again and many times since. I have been hurt in His house and out if it. Patches of my hair has temporarily turned white with grief to the point where even though I believed in God there have been times when I could not imagine ever being truly whole and happy again.
I am happy now and I have no bitterness. Memory... Yes. Blame... No. That in itself is miraculous. At the same time I understand why people are bitter and marvel at the depth of what different people go through.
Over time God has given me ways to process pain. I never hurt alone nor do I desire to push away other people's pain the way I used to. God has become my burden bearer. My arms tire from handing Him things but I am learning not to carry them myself for very long. I identify very strongly with Paul. He is not claiming mastery over these very human issues. He is expressing a believable hope as a little person with real needs.
Paul says...
"For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing." - 2 Timothy 4:6-8 ESV
Anyone who has ever 'loved His appearing' will one day be satisfied. There will be a grand reunion.
I think of Timothy learning of Paul's death and then at some point pulling this letter out of a drawer and realizing that it was the last one. No more new guidance was coming to him from that man he loved so dearly. Pain mingled with love. Memory. How many times did Timothy read this letter? How many times have believers reread it?
Paul walked with God and finished his course well. He didn't spend his life safely insulating himself from potentially painful situations. He walked with God and knew he had a crown waiting. Timothy remembered Paul and continued in his call having had an example of endurance in his life.
God, Help us to be mindful of each other. We can't wait to see you. Until then we want to live our lives fully casting down anything that would cause us to be bitter. There are many chapters left to be written. We want them to be filled with faith and freshness. Today we are not as naive as we have been before. Today we ask you fill us with hope and childlike faith for what can be if as believers we will only believe.
--
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
Change From The Inside Out
People make the mistake of trying to change people to change society when God is interested in saving people.
"If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place." - 2 Chronicles 7:14-15 ESV
"For 'everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.' How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!' " - Romans 10:13-15 ESV
A good many preachers spend far to much time preaching against the problem without giving the solution. Perhaps because they themselves believe that behavioral change is the solution. Political figures expound on social changes but it is love that changes people not policy. You can try to regulate the boundaries of behavior but how is the content touched?
God will heal a land if the people in it are humble. The Gospel creates humble people. Transformation is what is needed today. Every age has needed it and this one is no exception. Transformed people become salt and light.
As great as our societies are in history and culture I believe God cares much more for one soul than He does for a society. Culture is a vehicle to carry passengers. It is the lives of the passengers that matter. They have souls. The people are eternal, unique and irreplaceable.
In the context of care, respect and honor we make known the consequences of actions and decisions so that people can make choices.
"I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live," - Deuteronomy 30:19 ESV
I tire quickly of critical analysis of social issues that results in a, 'If people only did this or that' answer. People are often just trying to manage as best they can as flawed human beings who lack and want to fill that lack. It is God that blesses and what He puts His hand on is blessed by divine power. That is what will fill up the lack of the human heart.
People can have and keep their social experiments. I choose life.
"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. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." - John 3:16-18 KJV
"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never ends." - 1 Corinthians 13:1-8a ESV
--
"If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place." - 2 Chronicles 7:14-15 ESV
"For 'everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.' How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!' " - Romans 10:13-15 ESV
A good many preachers spend far to much time preaching against the problem without giving the solution. Perhaps because they themselves believe that behavioral change is the solution. Political figures expound on social changes but it is love that changes people not policy. You can try to regulate the boundaries of behavior but how is the content touched?
God will heal a land if the people in it are humble. The Gospel creates humble people. Transformation is what is needed today. Every age has needed it and this one is no exception. Transformed people become salt and light.
As great as our societies are in history and culture I believe God cares much more for one soul than He does for a society. Culture is a vehicle to carry passengers. It is the lives of the passengers that matter. They have souls. The people are eternal, unique and irreplaceable.
In the context of care, respect and honor we make known the consequences of actions and decisions so that people can make choices.
"I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live," - Deuteronomy 30:19 ESV
I tire quickly of critical analysis of social issues that results in a, 'If people only did this or that' answer. People are often just trying to manage as best they can as flawed human beings who lack and want to fill that lack. It is God that blesses and what He puts His hand on is blessed by divine power. That is what will fill up the lack of the human heart.
People can have and keep their social experiments. I choose life.
"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. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." - John 3:16-18 KJV
"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never ends." - 1 Corinthians 13:1-8a ESV
--
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
Good Directions
I was thinking this morning how hearing about grace is like getting good directions to where we need to go.
"I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel - not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ." - Galatians 1:6-7 ESV
"Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness," - 2 Timothy 2:14-16 ESV
The first word in the phrase 'ruin the hearers' in 2 Timothy is the Greek word Katastrophē (Strong's G2692). The grace message leaves the hearer in a state of approval but other messages are confusing and they explain a route that is impractical or impossible to follow.
Grace points to Christ's cross and says, 'Go that way. That happened for you. That event belongs to You. Pick it up. It's not heavy. That cross will remove your wrong burdens.'
We are called to the grace of Christ. The message beckons us to come and be accepted.
Arguments can ruin the hearer. They can cause a catastrophe. A person just flees the scene with no direction or resolution and ends up in trouble.
A 'right handling' of the scripture will result in mercy, peace and contentment. That is what the Bible is directing man towards. God is warning us away from disaster and directing us to safety.
The cross is our lighthouse that stands tall and visible in the light and gives off a beacon of light in the fog and darkness. Thank God for His wonderful lighthouse. It has brought me safely home many times.
--
"I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel - not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ." - Galatians 1:6-7 ESV
"Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness," - 2 Timothy 2:14-16 ESV
The first word in the phrase 'ruin the hearers' in 2 Timothy is the Greek word Katastrophē (Strong's G2692). The grace message leaves the hearer in a state of approval but other messages are confusing and they explain a route that is impractical or impossible to follow.
Grace points to Christ's cross and says, 'Go that way. That happened for you. That event belongs to You. Pick it up. It's not heavy. That cross will remove your wrong burdens.'
We are called to the grace of Christ. The message beckons us to come and be accepted.
Arguments can ruin the hearer. They can cause a catastrophe. A person just flees the scene with no direction or resolution and ends up in trouble.
A 'right handling' of the scripture will result in mercy, peace and contentment. That is what the Bible is directing man towards. God is warning us away from disaster and directing us to safety.
The cross is our lighthouse that stands tall and visible in the light and gives off a beacon of light in the fog and darkness. Thank God for His wonderful lighthouse. It has brought me safely home many times.
--
Monday, May 4, 2015
Knowing What We Need
Maybe we think we know what we want but God knows what we need.
"A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever." - Psalm 23:1-6 ESV
A friend came up to after service and posed a question to me...
'How did Adam sin without an old sin nature?'
My answer was simple:
'Adam is our old sin nature.'
We are all descended from that one broken man that did not know what he needed. He met God early in the morning and then forgot about Him when the trial came and picked another option. He was a man with the ability to choose who had a blind spot he was unaware of. The serpent saw it and tripped Adam and he fell and was broken. Adam made a choice he could not return from and became a fallen man.
What we need is a shepherd who will give us mercy. What we need is to be led through trouble into the calm stillness of rest. We need a new start. We need a new nature and once we have that nature given to us by believing in Christ we need to choose the new option given to us.
Old Adam is a failure. He must be covered. God kills an animal to cover him. I'm sure Adam was mortified. He loved and cared for the animals. Cain later refused to kill an animal as a sacrifice. They didn't know what was needed.
"Thus it is written, 'The first man Adam became a living being'; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven." - 1 Corinthians 15:45-47 ESV
"Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness." - Ephesians 4:22b-24 ESV
"Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all. Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive." - Colossians 3:9-13 ESV
We need a shepherd. God appoints men to be shepherds in His place on the Earth. These men aren't perfect but God gives them something that people desperately need. Direction. Like sheep we are prone to wander. Like Adam we are prone to trust ourselves instead of God.
"And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding." - Jeremiah 3:15 ESV
"And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ" - Ephesians 4:11-12 ESV
They are not the great shepherd but they are shepherds none the less. Not all that claim the title have the title but you will know them if you watch awhile. They will take you to green pastures. They help people begin again. They exalt their great shepherd who shepherds them from a seated position in Heaven.
Adam thought he knew what he needed. Jesus never thought that way. He never forgot His father. He shepherded a small flock of disciples on Earth and now has been given charge of the whole herd.
Adam is who we are without God. He is all we know. We can't escape him. Christ is our one way out. Putting on the new nature is our only effective provision and it is effective. God doesn't see Adam when He looks at a believer. He sees Christ. I need to be told that again and again.
--
"A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever." - Psalm 23:1-6 ESV
A friend came up to after service and posed a question to me...
'How did Adam sin without an old sin nature?'
My answer was simple:
'Adam is our old sin nature.'
We are all descended from that one broken man that did not know what he needed. He met God early in the morning and then forgot about Him when the trial came and picked another option. He was a man with the ability to choose who had a blind spot he was unaware of. The serpent saw it and tripped Adam and he fell and was broken. Adam made a choice he could not return from and became a fallen man.
What we need is a shepherd who will give us mercy. What we need is to be led through trouble into the calm stillness of rest. We need a new start. We need a new nature and once we have that nature given to us by believing in Christ we need to choose the new option given to us.
Old Adam is a failure. He must be covered. God kills an animal to cover him. I'm sure Adam was mortified. He loved and cared for the animals. Cain later refused to kill an animal as a sacrifice. They didn't know what was needed.
"Thus it is written, 'The first man Adam became a living being'; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven." - 1 Corinthians 15:45-47 ESV
"Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness." - Ephesians 4:22b-24 ESV
"Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all. Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive." - Colossians 3:9-13 ESV
We need a shepherd. God appoints men to be shepherds in His place on the Earth. These men aren't perfect but God gives them something that people desperately need. Direction. Like sheep we are prone to wander. Like Adam we are prone to trust ourselves instead of God.
"And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding." - Jeremiah 3:15 ESV
"And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ" - Ephesians 4:11-12 ESV
They are not the great shepherd but they are shepherds none the less. Not all that claim the title have the title but you will know them if you watch awhile. They will take you to green pastures. They help people begin again. They exalt their great shepherd who shepherds them from a seated position in Heaven.
Adam thought he knew what he needed. Jesus never thought that way. He never forgot His father. He shepherded a small flock of disciples on Earth and now has been given charge of the whole herd.
Adam is who we are without God. He is all we know. We can't escape him. Christ is our one way out. Putting on the new nature is our only effective provision and it is effective. God doesn't see Adam when He looks at a believer. He sees Christ. I need to be told that again and again.
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Friday, May 1, 2015
In A Name
"But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.' " - Matthew 1:20-21 ESV
The Bible has many names for God. Vishnu is not in the Bible nor is Buddha. Zeus is not the God of the Bible by another name. There are great lists you can find of God naming Himself in the scriptures. His names speak of His attributes.
This naming strikes me this morning. The angel told Joseph what to name the child. Call Him Savior. This Jesus would be revealed to be the anointed Christ and titles would be attributed to Him later. Savior needed to be His first name.
"I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star." - Revelation 22:16 ESV
" 'I am the Alpha and the Omega,' says the Lord God, 'who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.' " - Revelation 1:8 ESV
"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." - Isaiah 9:6 ESV
At first we are told the name we should give to Him. Name Him 'Savior.' He Is not a curse word to be said when we hit our thumb with a hammer. He Is not just a historical figure. He may have once been that to us. The messenger comes and tells us who He Is and asks us to name Him as our Messiah.
Many won't name Him that.
"I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all." - Ephesians 1:16-23 ESV
Jesus' name has grown in my estimation over the years. To me He Is many things. He holds many titles. I have things because of Him. I have lost things also. He Is a matchmaker and a friend giver. He Is my tour guide to crazy places I never would have gone. He Is my banker. He lifts me up when I fall down. He Is the friend I can fool around with and talk to when no one else would understand. He is an activist who shares His causes with me and convinces me that my life can spent in better ways.
As time goes on He will have more names because I will discover more about Him. But, I won't be finding out anything that the Bible hasn't already told me. He Is who He has been and will be.
My Savior is also royalty.
"Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." - Luke 12:32-34 ESV
Jesus said this to Israelis living under Roman occupation but the words speak to me now today. Where Is my treasure? I guess it depends on the name I bestow on this one mysterious person.
Who Is He? I find my own name when I find His.
--
The Bible has many names for God. Vishnu is not in the Bible nor is Buddha. Zeus is not the God of the Bible by another name. There are great lists you can find of God naming Himself in the scriptures. His names speak of His attributes.
This naming strikes me this morning. The angel told Joseph what to name the child. Call Him Savior. This Jesus would be revealed to be the anointed Christ and titles would be attributed to Him later. Savior needed to be His first name.
"I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star." - Revelation 22:16 ESV
" 'I am the Alpha and the Omega,' says the Lord God, 'who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.' " - Revelation 1:8 ESV
"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." - Isaiah 9:6 ESV
At first we are told the name we should give to Him. Name Him 'Savior.' He Is not a curse word to be said when we hit our thumb with a hammer. He Is not just a historical figure. He may have once been that to us. The messenger comes and tells us who He Is and asks us to name Him as our Messiah.
Many won't name Him that.
"I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all." - Ephesians 1:16-23 ESV
Jesus' name has grown in my estimation over the years. To me He Is many things. He holds many titles. I have things because of Him. I have lost things also. He Is a matchmaker and a friend giver. He Is my tour guide to crazy places I never would have gone. He Is my banker. He lifts me up when I fall down. He Is the friend I can fool around with and talk to when no one else would understand. He is an activist who shares His causes with me and convinces me that my life can spent in better ways.
As time goes on He will have more names because I will discover more about Him. But, I won't be finding out anything that the Bible hasn't already told me. He Is who He has been and will be.
My Savior is also royalty.
"Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." - Luke 12:32-34 ESV
Jesus said this to Israelis living under Roman occupation but the words speak to me now today. Where Is my treasure? I guess it depends on the name I bestow on this one mysterious person.
Who Is He? I find my own name when I find His.
--
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