Gentle Wind - 2/16/2010

Elijah was the last prophet of God in his day - all the others had been killed. When he heard that King Ahab's wife Jezebel was planning to kill him, he fled to the desert. There, God asked Elijah to stand in front of Him on the mountain, and He would pass in front of Elijah. Moses had to ask God for this honor. Here, God freely offered it to Elijah. Before God passed by though, His power first passed in front of him:

1 Kings 19:11-13, "The Lord said, 'Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.' Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"

God passed in a quiet, gentle sound. A whisper. I love that! The God of all creation could have passed in any display of power He wanted, and His very power did precede Him, but he was not in those displays. To represent His very presence, He chose a quiet, gentle sound. How many times have we sought to hear God, looking for earthquakes and fires and awe-inspiring signs, when we should be listening for a gentle whisper?

God is not one who delights in showy displays of His ability, but one who delights in His children. As a Father, He made Himself approachable in gentleness. After displaying what He can do, He finished by showing what He's like before asking Elijah why he was in the desert.

He did not want to put on a "Hey-look-what-I-can-do-and-you-can't" fireworks show. He wanted to have a conversation with his child. It struck me that God did not comfort Elijah in this moment. If I were the last living servant of God and people were trying to kill me, I might be seeking a kind word or two. Instead, God directed Elijah immediately to his next task. God's presence was comfort enough! God's demonstration of His ability was comfort enough. Elijah had all he needed to be obedient to God, and so much more.

So do we. After Jesus' sacrifice, He gave us the gift of the Holy Spirit - God's presence is always with us. And we have before us a testimony of all God has done. We don't need an earthquake or a fire, we have the Bible, the testimony of believers, and His very creation all around us. We, like Elijah, should be able to stand firm in the middle of our trials and simply receive direction from God; simply listen to that gentle whisper in our heart that would guide us toward the next way we can serve Him.

Thank you, Lord, that yours is the way of peace and gentleness, knowing you have the power to move ... yet instead I am moved.

________________________________________________________________________

Plans - 2/13/2010

2 Corinthians 2:10, "If you forgive someone, I also forgive him. ... I did this so that Satan would not win anything from us, because we know very well what Satan's plans are."

Do we know very well what Satan's plans are, as Paul writes here? He seems pretty clear here that Satan not only exists, but has plans to win something from us. So, what might Satan want to win from us?

I think the more important question actually is not to ask what Satan wants, but what does God want? I heard a convincing argument once that the very nature of Satan and all evil in general is quite simply the opposite of God's nature. What God has declared to be good, Satan purposefully lies about; arguing that the opposite of what is good should not only be acceptable, but normal. Jesus said, "...when [Satan] lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies" (John 8:44).

So, what does God want then? I think getting to know God and His nature - learning to value what He values - will make it clear. Following God is not about following His rules, it is about developing a relationship with Him. Everything else will follow that. This can help us see what Satan wants to win from us.

In this particular scripture, Paul is talking specifically about forgiveness. It seems from this verse that refusing to forgive is specifically how Satan can win something from us. We do in fact know what his plans are! He plans to use unforgiving hearts to turn us against each other - husband against wife, father against son, friend and brother against each other. This will take the focus off of God and put it on each other, and on hate - the opposite of God since He is love. That's what makes it evil. This must be why it is written, "...do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold" (Ephesians 4:26-27).

If we have been so freely forgiven for all the ways we've offended God, how then can we refuse the same forgiveness to others? Remember the parable of the master who refused to forgive his servant after receiving forgiveness himself!

But what about revenge! What about all the crap that goes on unpunished? I remember a pastor asking the question once, "What if your refusal to forgive others replaces the punishment God has in store? What if, according to His law, that person is already being punished by your grudges?" Perhaps that is what is meant by Paul's words, "Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: 'It is Mine to avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord'" (Romans 12:19).

I often think of the quote I share with my students when we study Victor Hugo's Les Misérables, "Forgiveness is for the forgiver, not the forgiven." When you wake up mad at someone, do they share in those emotions? Of course not! They continue living their lives while you suffer in bitterness, the focus taken off of God, and possibly His vengeance postponed or replaced. They do not share in your suffering. So, you forgive them as the only way to release their control in your life, thereby putting the focus back on God, and leaving Him to deal with them as He sees fit since "it is His to avenge." Justice belongs to Christ Jesus - so we must regularly give it back to Him. This can only be done through the regular forgiveness of those who do anything against us - thereby circumventing Satan's plans to win from us all we have gained through Christ.

Thank you Jesus for offering us a relationship with you that allows us to learn about who you are and what you value. Thank you for being good, for being loving, and for your forgiveness.

_______________________________________________________

The Twelve - 2/4/2010

Mark 3:14, "He appointed twelve - desig-nating them apostles - that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach."

Perhaps choosing twelve apostles, or messengers, was necessary - but why twelve of them? What is the significance of choosing a dozen? Why not three or seven or twenty-five?

I think maybe Christ linked Himself with the very foundations of the Old Testament by choosing twelve apostles, in this way affirming once more that He is the son of God; that it was His story laid out and prepared for throughout the generations of Israel's family.

Originally God established the nation of Israel through twelve men. Israel was the name of a man who had twelve sons. These were the great-grandsons of Abraham, with whom God made His covenant and whose descendants God promised would outnumber the stars. All Jews for centuries traced their lineage back to one of these twelve men, using their names to identify the tribes to which they belonged.

This literally was God's family - which is why we sometimes refer to the Israelites as God's "chosen people." This is the family to whom God delivered His word, and He promised to send His son, the Messiah, through this same family. The world would know God and be saved by this family - because it is the one into which Jesus was born. Salvation then was offered to everybody "...because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile." - Romans 1:16.

Christ came to save all men, not just the family or nation of Jews to whom He originally preached, if they just believe His message. So, Jesus chose twelve more men. These men were sent out into the world to preach the good news which, like a fire spreading across a dry wheat field, covered generations and continents, eventually spanning the globe. Those who hear and accept the good news that started with these apostles are then grafted into the family that God made - the same family that started with those twelve other men so long ago. This is why it is sometimes explained that Gentiles are "adopted" into the family of God, like in Ephesians 1:5, "He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will..."

So, what is the one and greatest link between the Old Testament and the New Testament? As a Christian, I believe it to be Jesus Christ. The Old Testament establishes God's covenant and relationship with man, prophesying and preparing the way for Jesus Christ to fulfill the law and embody (literally) God's plan to save man from sin and eternal separation from Him. Much of the Old Testament involves preparing the very family into which God's son would be born - the Israelites.

Twelve men and their descendants set the stage for the arrival of the Messiah. Twelve more men carried the news of the Messiah’s arrival into the rest of the world and are the reason we know today of what Jesus accomplished.

In the book of Revelation, John explains how these 24 men will be honored, since it is by them that God's presence and knowledge spread to all of mankind, making the members of God's family innumerable. Revelation 21:12-14 describes part of the “New Jerusalem,” stating that,

"It had a great and high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and the names were written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel ... And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb."

Surely, if these men are to be memorialized in the city of heaven for all eternity, we shouldn't take lightly how God used them for His glory. By the family of the twelve sons of Israel, the world is able to enter into God's presence - the "gates" to the city as described in Revelation. And once in God's presence, we stand firm on the Truth preached by the twelve apostles - the "foundation stones" of God's eternal Holy City.

Thank you, Jesus, for your plan and your grace, that we might all be saved and come to spend the rest of our days with You.

___________________________________________________

Bread of Life - 2/2/2010

Exodus 25:30, "You shall set the Bread of Presence on the table before me at all times."

Often I don't take the time to think about and try to understand the symbolism God uses. Typically, I will read a passage, take it at face value, and carry on. The other day I was reading Exodus as part of the one year reading plan I'm following and almost did just that.

These first books in the Bible are often passed up because the weighty lists of rules and specific commands about worship can be a dry read. This might be true, but I've also found much of it to reveal the very character of God and what He values.

In this section of Exodus, God instructs Moses on how to prepare the Tabernacle, or Tent of Meeting, which served as the house of God before the temple was built. This is where Moses would talk to God and receive the instruction and information he used to write what is now the first five books of the Bible.

This is also where the Ark of the Covenant (or Ark of the Testimony) was kept. Inside, the ten commandments and a jar of manna. On top, a special lid described by some translations as the "Mercy Seat," where God would be spiritually and audibly present to speak to Moses and deliver His word.

Exodus 25:22, "There I will meet with you; and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, I will speak to you about all that I will give you in commandment of the sons of Israel."

God was present here, but not bodily, since His pure holiness would cause sinful man to literally drop dead before Him if we were to gaze upon His face in such a sinful state, "But He said, 'You cannot see my face, for no man can see Me and live!" - Exodus 33:20.

Instead, God ordered the symbolic bread, the "Bread of Presence," to be on the table before the Ark at all times. This would represent the physical presence of God - His body. Flash-forward now to the life of Christ; the very spirit of God wrapped in flesh that we may know Him now and receive His mercy.

Before Jesus was crucified, He celebrated the symbolic Passover meal with His disciples. In Luke 22:19, it states, "And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them saying, 'This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.'"

The body of God Himself had been represented by bread for centuries. Now, here at the Passover supper, Christ affirmed two things: that He is God (by saying this is "my body"), and that He would die for us (He broke the bread). The "bread of presence" was now in our presence, and its purpose is now made clear - to be broken for us that we may be reconciled with God the Father.

Suddenly the tedious list of rules God delivered to Moses seem more meaningful and purposeful, when at first they seemed excessive and arbitrary. The symbolism used in the Tabernacle seems less abstract - God's body was demonstrated by bread that would be broken for us, and at that time He would then dwell within us. This is symbolized by our eating of the bread during communion (which fulfills the command to "do this in remembrance of me"). The temple which replaced the Tabernacle is no more, and our hearts serve as the current Temple of God; the dwelling He has chosen now that Christ's sacrifice has redeemed us and allowed us to be in God's presence once more!

Thank you, God, for weaving a story so complex, so meaningful even across centuries that it could only have come from your vision of the big picture!

________________________________________________________________________