To Save Sinners

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Pete

I’ve said it before, while I enjoy having to noodle on some of the more “hidden secrets” of Scripture . . . while I like having to think a bit . . . and dig a bit . . . and cross reference a bit . . . I also love it when I encounter again those simple, “bottom line” truths in God’s inspired word that take little to unwind their meaning . . . but will take an eternity to understand their implications. Came across one of those in Paul’s first letter to Timothy . . .

The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.    (1Timothy 1:15 ESV)

Why did Jesus come to earth? To save sinners. Pretty simple, huh?

Sure, He came to announce that the kingdom of heaven was at hand. And, He came to find lost sheep. He also came to enter into His creation’s life context, that He might be a faithful High Priest able to sympathize with our weakness. But in order to be a reigning King . . . and a great Shepherd . . . and a faithful Intercessor . . . He came to save sinners.

This is a trustworthy saying, and deserving of full acceptance. It’s a truth that can be relied upon . . . even by the vilest enemies of God . . . that Christ came to redeem and reclaim even the most rebellious lovers of darkness. While it might sound like Christianity 101, Paul’s statement is worthy of being received in its fullness by all who have ears to hear. Regardless of past iniquities . . . despite all transgressions against a holy God. In fact, because of such things, Jesus came into the world. That’s what was necessary to save sinners.

Paul was a blasphemer of the Holy Trinity. He was an arrogant disputer of Christ’s claim as God’s Holy One. He was a persecutor and executioner of God’s holy people. He was, by his own assessment, the foremost of sinners . . . or as the KJV puts it . . . the chief of sinners. But such are those for whom the Father sent the Son into the world.

God sent not His Son because the world deserved His favor . . . but because we deserved His wrath. God sent not His Son because we desired His face . . . but because each of us had determined to give Him our back, and had gone astray. Rather, Christ Jesus came into the world because of Heaven’s determination to save sinners.

. . . and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.  
(1Timothy 1:14 ESV)

Overflowing grace towards blasphemers, debaters, and persecutors. Abundant grace for those who loved darkness more than light. Conquering grace, seeding even the faith to believe that Jesus came to love the unlovely and unlovable. Amazing grace . . . how sweet the sound . . . that saved a wretch like me.

Not too complex a thought this morning. But one that will take eternity to plumb the depths of what motivated the blessed Son of God to enter our sphere . . . and offer His life as a ransom for many. An eternity to thank Him, and worship Him, who came into the world to save sinners . . . of whom I am chief.

To Him be all glory . . .

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In Accordance with the Glorious Gospel

Posted on July 28, 2014 by Pete

Reminded this morning that, while there are many facets to church life, there is only one standard. That, while shepherding a flock entails many areas of instruction and counsel, there is only one plumb line against which all teaching should be measured. That, while there are practical out-workings of faith in a local body of believers, it all needs to be built on a single, firm foundation. That standard? That plumb line? That foundation? Sound doctrine . . . in accordance with the glorious gospel.

As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine . . . and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, in accordance with the glorious gospel of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted.    (1Timothy 1:3, 10b-11 ESV)

Paul will deal with a number of “family issues” in this letter to Timothy so that the body at Ephesus would know “how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God” (1Tim. 3:14-15). But, out of the gate, he deals with the essence of the stewardship he had been entrusted with . . . the stewardship he had entrusted to Timothy . . . “the glorious gospel of the blessed God.” And at the heart of being a faithful steward was an unswerving resolve to align all things to sound teaching.

It would seem that it didn’t take long for this fledgling fellowship to move on from “the basics” and get into “more relevant” issues. That while the fundamentals might be fine for those new to the faith, there were more subtle and sophisticated matters which needed to be worked through. And Paul called these “deeper matters” myths and endless genealogies, “which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith” (1:4). Things that caused some to “have wandered away into vain discussion” (1:6).

Seems that since the beginning of the church there has been a propensity by some to move off “the pat answers” and the “plain gospel” and into stuff that deals with real issues and gets below the surface of to what God really wants us to know. But what was needed at Ephesus, according to Paul, was to stay aligned to the fundamentals . . . that stuff which plainly held forth the glorious gospel of the blessed God.

That’s the stewardship. It’s the treasure of God’s good news . . . the truths of God’s redemptive story, from Genesis to Revelation. And, at the core of this stewardship, is a belief that any illumination concerning the Scriptures which is of the Spirit, is for the intent of revealing God’s glorious plan to rescue man from sin and death.

A belief that all that is revealed concerning the essence of man being made in God’s image . . . of the fall of man from his intended place in creation . . . of the promises to a patriarch and his people to be a source of God’s blessing for all nations . . . of the story of God’s ancient people . . . of the songs of David and the inspired declarations of the prophets . . . of the birthing of a new people, called out from both Jew and Gentile, to form the spiritual body of God’s Son, and be a holy people shining forth light in a dark world, all the while being transformed into the likeness of their Savior to, one day, be presented to Him as a spotless bride . . . that all of it has been revealed for the purpose of making known the glorious gospel of the blessed God.

That which varies from this standard is, at best, unprofitable and, at worst, dangerous.

Not to say there isn’t a place for higher and deeper thinking than many of us are able to do ourselves . . . but that, at the end of the day, it’s about a stewardship not an academic exercise.  And that it needs to come back to, and align with, sound doctrine.  And that, in order to profit a world that is dark and church that is called to be light, it needs to be in accordance with the glorious gospel of the blessed God.

Make sense?

By His grace . . . for His glory . . .

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The Josiah End of the Continuum

Posted on July 25, 2014 by Pete

They are at opposite ends of the spectrum. They comprise the two outer most points on the continuum. They are Josiah and Zedekiah, both kings of Judah. Josiah, chosen by the people, became king at eight years of age (2Chron. 34:1). Zedekiah, a puppet king put in place by Babylonian authority, began to reign at twenty-one (2Chron. 36:10-11). Both were presented with the word of God . . . Josiah through the written word when a long lost copy of the Law of Moses was discovered in the temple . . . Zedekiah through the spoken word as Jeremiah, the prophet, spoke to him “from the mouth of God.” But while both were kings . . . and both heard the word . . . that’s where the similarity ends. For their hearts were in very different places.

And when the king [Josiah] heard the words of the Law, he tore his clothes. . . . Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Regarding the words that you have heard, because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before God when you heard His words against this place and its inhabitants, and you have humbled yourself before me and have torn your clothes and wept before me, I also have heard you, declares the LORD.
(2Chronicles 34:19, 26b-27 ESV)

[Zedekiah] did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke from the mouth of the LORD. . . . He stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the LORD, the God of Israel. 
(2Chronicles 36:12-13 ESV)

Josiah read the Word of God and it melted him. This kid king who, at the age of twelve, “began to seek the God of David” . . . and began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of the places established for idol worship, . . . he knew things were not as they should be amongst the people of God. But when the word of God, given through Moses, was read to him . . . when he connected the dots between the judgments of Deuteronomy and the reality of his kingdom . . . he realized, to a whole next level, how far God’s people had strayed.

His heart was tender . . . and the Word had its impact. And the king humbled himself . . . and sought the LORD . . . and the LORD heard him.

Swing the pendulum to the other end of the continuum. Zedekiah didn’t need to look very far to know that things were not as they should be in Judah. And, if he had any doubt as to why, God sent a prophet to reveal the “behind the scenes” workings of God as to why heaven had permitted the Babylonians to come to power over Judah. But instead of submitting to the Word of God and submitting to the authority of Babylon, Zedekiah rebels against Babylon’s king . . . just as he had set his face to defy Heaven’s king. Unlike Josiah, he would not humble himself . . . unlike the tender heart of the kid king, this puppet king hardened his heart against turning to the LORD.

Pretty stark contrast . . . Pretty clear continuum . . .

Tender Heart  <—————->  Hard Heart

Where does my heart lie? Pretty sure it’s not hard like Zedekiah’s . . . but is it as tender as Josiah’s? How supple is my heart in the hands of the Spirit? How ready is it to receive and respond to the Word of God?

I could never make my heart tender. God did that when He redeemed me, replacing my heart of stone with a heart of flesh (Ezek: 36:26). But I can harden that new heart. Through neglect I can allow it to grow tough and leathered . . . losing its holy sensitivity to the things of God. I can drift from the tender area of the spectrum if I turn my face from seeking God’s face . . . if I allow His Word’s access to my heart to be cut off . . . or, I only entertain the Word that I want to hear.

O . . . to protect a tender heart. To desire a humble spirit. To respond to a gracious God. To be on the Josiah end of the continuum.

By His grace . . . for His glory.

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Senior Pride-itis

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Pete

The warning of the kings of Judah continues in 2Chronicles this morning. And it’s not so much in the kings who “did evil in the sight of the Lord” . . . that’s not where I am at. But the “watch out for” is demonstrated in another of those kings who did what was right in the sight of the LORD . . . in this morning’s reading, King Hezekiah.

Hezekiah was a good king (2Chron. 29 – 31). The people were better off because of his leadership. Under his rule, the temple is cleansed and restored to full functioning order. Under his rule, worship at the temple is rekindled to a measure of its former glory . . . complete with song-singing, God-praising Levitical choirs leading the people in God exalting homage. Even the Passover remembrance is reestablished . . . Hezekiah calling all of God’s covenant people, those from Judah as well as those from rogue Israel, to come to Jerusalem and to return to their God. And, it would appear, some legitimate revival broke out . . . the hand of God moving the hearts of men to respond to the king’s invitation . . . and, beyond that, God’s gracious and merciful hand moving the people to tear down their idol-worshiping high places in the process.

Hezekiah was also a courageous king (2Chron. 33). He stood fast when the Assyrians came and invaded Judah, laying siege to Jerusalem, and casting contempt on the LORD and His power to save. And the LORD shows Himself mighty on behalf of the king and his people.

And what you sense through all this is that Hezekiah was a praying king. He prayed for those who came to the Passover feast but had not cleansed themselves, asking the LORD to pardon all those who set their hearts to seek God even though they had not done so according to the sanctuary’s rule of cleanness (30:18-19). And the LORD heard Hezekiah and healed the people (30:20). Hezekiah is also found going to prayer when the Assyrians were breathing down their necks outside the city walls . . . crying out to heaven along with Isaiah the prophet on Judah’s behalf (32:20). And God sent an angel to cut off the enemy’s mighty army.

Hezekiah’s life was marked by seeking his God and doing all that he did for the Lord with all his heart. But . . . and, in this case, I hate that word “but” . . . but as he grew older some “senior pride-itis” rears its ugly head . . .

In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death, and he prayed to the LORD, and He answered him and gave him a sign. But Hezekiah did not make return according to the benefit done to him, for his heart was proud. Therefore wrath came upon him and Judah and Jerusalem. (2Chronicles 32:24-25 ESV)

The good king . . . the courageous king . . . the praying king . . . gets older and he becomes a proud king. Oh, what a warning for those of us who have sought to faithfully follow the LORD and now are entering our “senior discount” years. We’re still serving . . . we’re still praying . . . God’s still graciously showing Himself faithful . . . but there seems to be a real possibility that our hearts can be at risk of getting a little puffed up. Perhaps because we’ve seen some fruit along the way . . . perhaps because we’ve come to think that God’s faithfulness to us has been due to the fact that we’ve deserved it for seeking to be faithful to Him . . . perhaps because we’ve let our guards down a bit, and have eased up a bit on doing battle with the old nature.

Whatever the contributing factors, Hezekiah’s a warning. A warning to me to always cling to the cross as my only source of sufficiency . . . to continually acknowledge God’s grace as the only explanation for whatever service has been rendered in His name . . . to passionately pursue the things of the kingdom for the King’s glory, and His glory alone.

O’, that the LORD would keep me from senior pride-itis. By His grace . . . for His glory . . .

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God In, God Out

Posted on July 23, 2014 by Pete

The ask was for direction. The prayer was for guidance. Removing the hindrances . . . making straight the paths . . . that was the request. And that which was in need of a divine “maps app?” The heart. The destination? The love of God . . . and the perseverance of Christ.

May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ.    (2Thessalonians 3:5 ESV)

The Thessalonians were relatively new believers. Grounded in the basics of the faith but placed in the context of advanced persecution. Paul would do all that he could to support them. He would write to them concerning the truth . . . send brothers to them to encourage them in the faith . . . and, blanketing it all, pray for them and their endurance in the faith. But, beyond all his best efforts, Paul knew that the “X factor” for keepin’ on keepin’ on was something beyond his reach. That the “secret sauce” was something he couldn’t apply. At the end of the day, it would be a heart thing. Only the inner man able to sustain the determination to walk in a manner worthy of the upward call of heaven, despite the opposition.

And so, Paul makes the ask . . . O’ that the Lord would make straight paths for your heart to know the love of God and the patient perseverance of Christ.

Reminds me of the basics of computer programming (that would be “software engineering” for today’s generation) . . . G-I-G-O . . . Garbage-In-Garbage-Out . . . that the quality of a program’s output is directly related to the quality of the input. Bad data in . . . bad information out. Good data in . . . good information out.

In the case of Paul’s prayer for the Thessalonians . . . God In . . . God Out.

To the degree that they might know afresh the love of God, that would be the degree to which they would know the steadfastness of Christ. Should their hearts be stirred anew with that love which surpasses knowledge, then their minds would refocus on the promise that they could do all things through Christ who strengthens them. To be flooded with the implications of the cross would result in lives poured out in self-sacrificing determination to faithfully live for Him who is faithful.

God In . . . God Out. His love before us . . . the world behind us.

And it’s only as the Lord directs our hearts. Not our ability to gut it out . . . not our disciplined mind over all in this world that doesn’t matter. But only as God, by His Spirit, stirs our spirits . . . and directs our souls . . . and makes straight paths for our hearts . . . to know afresh His great love toward us . . . will He also direct us to desire the great perseverance so modeled by His blessed Son.

God In . . . God Out . . . by God’s grace . . . solely for God’s glory.

Amen?

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God’s Rebuilding Program

Posted on July 21, 2014 by Pete

On a couple days of vacation . . . not exactly following the normal routine . . . afternoon “morning devo’s” is kind of nice change.

Reading in 2Chronicles this morning . . . ‘er, this afternoon. And a phrase at the beginning of the twenty-forth has an ominous tone about it . . .

Joash was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba. And Joash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all the days of Jehoiada the priest. (2Chronicles 24:1-2. ESV)

Josh, the kid king, did what was right in the eyes of the LORD . . . but here chimes the ominous tone . . . “all the days of Jehoiada the priest.” You just know that what was starting so right isn’t going to finish so well.

While Jehoiada was there providing counsel to the king, there was positive momentum in returning to the worship of the God of their fathers. In particular, the young king was had a laser focus on repairing the temple. He was relentless on raising the funds, and providing the workmen, to restoring the place where God’s glory should dwell to a measure of its former grandeur.

But Jehoiada “grew old and full of days, and died” (24:15). Though he lived to be 130, and had been there for most of Joash’s reign, there came a time when the temple-builder king would have to go solo. And in those days, “the princes of Judah came and paid homage to the king. Then the king listened to them. And they abandoned the house of the LORD, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and the idols” (24:17-18a).

Really!?!? A lifetime rebuilding the temple . . . then come along along some upstart kids sweet-talking him, and Joash drops everything and is drawn into idol worship? Yeah. . . . really. Written for my instruction . . . penned for my warning (1Cor. 10:11).

Godly counsel is great . . . godly accountability is great . . . seeking to rebuild God-ordained religious activity is great . . . but without a new heart, without an internal rebuilding program, at best, it’s fleeting . . . and fades once the external influences are gone or are changed up. It’s when the voice being submitted to is that of the living Spirit of God which has taken up residence within the heart of him, or her, who has received the truth of the gospel by faith . . . and when the temple being built is the one God is building within the believer . . . that, by His grace, we can anticipate finishing well.

As important as attending to the worship of God is, we need to ensure that we are submitting to the rebuilding work He desires to do within us . . . an on-going work . . . a God sustained work . . . the sanctifying work of being conformed, increasingly, into the likeness of the Son.

By His grace . . . for His glory . . .

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Power Praise!

Posted on July 18, 2014 by Pete

I can’t imagine how David could have packed anything more into a twenty-one verse psalm than he did into Psalm 145. Right out the gate, his purpose is clear, “I will extol You, my God . . . and bless Your name forever . . . I will bless You . . . and praise Your name forever . . . Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised and His greatness is unsearchable” (145:1-3).

David’s on a mission with this psalm. He is bound and determined to lift up the wonder and works of our great God . . . he barely takes a breath as he declares the greatness of God. He talks about what God has done . . . he sings at the top of his lungs about who God is. Though God’s greatness is unsearchable, does that stop David from searching? Nooooo! . . . “On the glorious splendor of Your majesty, and on Your wondrous works, I will meditate.” (145:5).

This psalm is an absolute powerhouse of praise. Talk about your “pick me up” . . . talk about your “lift Him up!” And, it’s in the midst of this symphony of awe and wonder and worship that a couple of verses in particular catch my attention . . .

All Your works shall give thanks to You, O LORD, and all Your saints shall bless you!
         They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom and tell of Your power, . . .       (Psalm 145:10-11 ESV)

I saw the words “your saints” and thought, “Hey, that’s me! Listen up Corak!” Ok, so I ain’t really no saint if you’re thinking of a saint as some super spiritual, has-totally-got-his-act-together”, perfect person . . . just ask my wife or daughters. But, if we’re talking about saint as in “those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints” (1Cor. 1:2) . . . and we are . . . then, we’re talking about me. A child of God . . . one of His redeemed . . . called and set apart as member of His family . . . a citizen of His holy nation. So, if I’m a saint, then these couple of verses in this song are directly and specifically talking to me.

And what will the saints (aka me) do? We are to bless God . . . speak of the glory of His kingdom . . . and tell of His power. And I hover over that last part, “tell of His power.” As a set apart one . . . as a meditator of the glorious splendor of majesty (145:5) . . . as a blessor of God (145:1) . . . as a commentator of the glory of His kingdom (145:11) . . . I am to tell of His power.

And so, I sit back and think, “What do I know about the power of God? What would I talk about? What would I declare?”

First, I would have to testify of His power to save because, without that, all other evidences of His power would be hidden to me, the “god of this age” having blinded the minds of unbelievers to God, His glory, and His gospel (2Cor. 4:4). I once was blind . . . I once cared nothing for the things of God . . . I once was so wrapped up in myself and my sin that God could have been standing in front of me and I wouldn’t have recognized Him. Blind eyes . . . deaf ears . . . heart of stone . . . that was me. But I will talk of His power to save. The LORD who is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and great in mercy (145:8), took me to a place where He could do some spiritual “reconstructive surgery.” Unfortunately, it took some actual surgery first to get my attention, but the God of grace started to soften my heart such that I’d be open to hearing His word. He “tilled the soil” so that the powerful Word of God might be planted and take root. His word being received, He then gave me ears to hear what the Spirit says, and opened my eyes to love of God manifest in the person of His Son, Jesus my Savior!

Oh, this saint will talk of Your power! And not just of the power of the past . . . but Your power in the present, Your power to preserve this saint. Your mercies are new every morning, O Lord . . . great is Your faithfulness. Through the Holy Spirit, which You have sealed me with, Your power presides. By Your might You are able to uphold me when I fall and to raise me up when I am bowed down (145:14). You are near to all who call upon You (145:18) . . . You preserve all who love You (145:20).

And so, I will tell of Your power! Let my voice be lifted up with “Power Praise!”

My mouth will speak the praise of the LORD,
       and let all flesh bless His holy name forever and ever.     (Psalm 145:21 ESV)

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The God Who Stretches Me

Posted on July 17, 2014 by Pete

Honestly, there are some passages of Scripture, I’d just as soon skip over . . . some I’m inclined not to think too much about . . . ’cause I get uncomfortable with what they’re saying. I don’t think that’s the norm with the “commands to obey” passages. And it certainly isn’t the case with the “blessings of God” verses. But it occurs every so often with those “what do I learn about God” portions of Scripture that place God outside the box I want to keep Him in. Those insights to the workings of God that are outside my comfort zone. But I think I realize that it’s because of my tendency to want to start with a view of God and wrap Scripture around it . . . rather than let God’s word teach me about God. Such is the case with an incident I encountered in 2Chronicles 18 this morning.

The background. King Jehoshaphat of Judah . . . good king . . . teams with King Ahab of Israel . . . bad king. Ahab convinces Jehoshaphat to go to war against an enemy of Israel. Jehoshaphat consents if it’s the Lord’s will. So Jehoshaphat says, “Inquire first for the word of the LORD” (18:4 ESV). Problem . . . Ahab’s not exactly walking with the Lord. Ok . . . maybe that’s understated. Ahab is over the top in rejecting God and His ways and pursuing the worst of the worst evils associated with pagan worship. But there is one prophet of God in Israel that Ahab can summon, Micaiah. “But,” says Ahab, “I hate him, for he never prophesies good concerning me, but always evil” (18:7). Ya’ think?!? Nevertheless, the prophet of God is called . . . and the prophet of God speaks . . . and the prophet of God speaks the words of God (18:13). And, in doing so, the prophet provides an insight into some of the workings of God. And that’s where it gets a bit uncomfortable for me.

Micaiah tells the two kings that He “saw the LORD sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing on His right hand and on His left” (18:18). Ok, so far . . . that’s what I’d expect from a high and holy, majestic God. But then there’s this conversation in heaven. A conversation kind of like you find in the first couple of chapters of Job.

God has determined it’s time to judge Ahab . . . and, He will use this battle that Ahab is determined to enter into . . . and so, God says, “Who will entice Ahab the king of Israel, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?” (18:19). There’s some conversation with some angelic beings and then, what would appear to be a demon, in some manner approaches God and stands before Him and says, “I will go out, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.” God says, “You shall succeed . . . go do it.” (18:20-22) And that, my friends, makes me a bit uncomfortable. The whole idea of God interacting with lying spirits and leveraging them to accomplish His purpose. What do you do with that?

First, I recognize that what is recorded here is “God-breathed” . . . all Scripture is inspired of God . . . and God has determined to provide this insight into “His world” and how it sometimes works. I also know that with God there is no unrighteousness . . . and that He is not the source of lying . . . and that Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44). But I also know that God is Sovereign . . . and that God will Judge evil. And, should God chose to allow demonic spirits, who are liars and who hate mankind and who delight in destruction, to be used for His purposes, then that is the prerogative of a Sovereign Judge.

And yet, I also see the grace of God working here . . . God providing Ahab every opportunity to come to his senses and repent. Here’s Ahab standing before someone he acknowledges speaks for God . . . and this prophet is telling him that Ahab’s other pagan prophets are being duped by a lying demonic spirit . . . and that God has determined to bring disaster upon Ahab because Ahab refuses to seek the One true God and instead follow the ear-tickling advice of these false prophets. It’s not like Ahab doesn’t know what’s going on. And it’s not even like he doesn’t believe it because he disguises himself in battle and sets up Jehoshaphat to “take the bullet.” No, despite the word of God being spoken to him, Ahab, in his arrogance and wickedness, determines of his own free will to listen to lies and to think he can outsmart God. Bad move on Ahab’s part.

So, as one commentator summarizes it, “It is not without the divine permission that the devil deceives men, and even thereby God serves His own purposes” (Matthew Henry). And while I get that . . . and believe that . . . it is one of those things that stretches my understanding of God rather than conforms to the image of God I tend to want to build. And as I sit back and chew on it a bit, isn’t that how it should be, from time to time, when I encounter the God whose thoughts are not my thoughts . . . and ways are not my ways . . “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts” (Isa. 55:8-9)?

I believe in the Sovereignty of God . . . I believe in the Righteous Judgment of God . . . I believe in the Grace of God. It’s just trying to package it all into this small earthbound brain that sometimes stretches me. But then again, it’s not about me.

Glory to the God whose ways are above my ways . . . yet, who draws me into relationship with Him . . . revealing Himself to me . . . even when it stretches me.

Amen?

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He Will Surely Do It

Posted on July 16, 2014 by Pete

Sometimes you just need some bottom line assurances. You know you gotta fight the good fight . . . and you gotta run the race . . . and you need to walk in a manner that’s worthy. And by God’s grace, and with some holy determination, you enter the battle . . . you set your face on the goal . . . and, relying the on Spirit’s power, you put one foot in front of the other as you enter another day of pilgrimage. But sometimes, it’s like a cup of fresh water to be reminded that, although we’ve been called to pursue and grow in our faith, . . . that, at the end of the day, He will surely do it.

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; He will surely do it. 
(1Thessalonians 5:23-24 ESV)

You gotta know that Paul was a bit anxious concerning his children in the faith at Thessalonica. He had been able to spend only a very limited time with them. They had come to faith in the risen, saving Christ . . . and Paul had started to instruct them in the things of God and His Kingdom . . . but then opposition had forced him out of town. So, there he is . . . at a distance . . . hearing of their progress in the faith and the fruit of their salvation . . . but knowing that theirs was a hostile environment . . . and aware that some had already come in and were messing up their minds with false teaching.

And so he writes to them. Wanting to encourage them. Wanting to instruct them. Wanting them to be all in Christ that they were called to be.

And he wraps up his letter with a string of instructions concerning how they should live as God’s people. Commands to obey. Tips for fighting the fight . . . running the race . . . and walking in a manner worthy. But at the end of it all, though Paul wanted to be there to oversee their faith-fueled obedience, he commends them to the One who had actually begun the work in Thessalonica . . . and the One who promised to faithfully complete it.

It might be their obedience and effort, but it was God who would sanctify them completely. They might set their hearts wholly on being holy, but it would be the active agency of God through His Spirit who would make them holy. They might do their utmost to keep themselves from sin and the trappings of the flesh, but only through the finished work of the cross and the ever-cleansing blood of the Lamb would they stand one day before their blessed LORD blameless and without spot.

And, sometimes I just need to be reminded of that. He will surely do it.

Sure, my willful participation . . . but His wondrous work. My desire to seek the kingdom . . . His determination to set eternity within my heart. My confession of sin and failure . . . His once for all sacrifice the basis for a just God to forgive my sins . . . the blood shed that I might be cleansed from all unrighteousness.

Bottom line? It’s His work. And He who has called me is faithful. And He will surely do it.

For His glory alone . . . amen?

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Cave Prayers

Posted on July 15, 2014 by Pete

Sure, he had known the thrill of victory . . . many times! David could have thought back to all those occasions where God had shown Himself mighty on his behalf . . . before wild animals . . . before arrogant giants . . . before enemy armies. But now his spirit fainted within him . . . as did those memories.. He was trapped . . . the victor was now in desperate need of deliverance from his persecutors.

And sure, he was a man of many promises. Anointed by the prophet . . . promised to one day reign . . . waiting for when the time was right to ascend to the throne. But now, right now, there was no thought of a future kingdom, just the oppressive darkness of a cave . . . a dark abandoned cave. A cave where no one took notice . . . a place that offered no real refuge . . . a prison where “no one cares for my soul.” And it was there, in the cave, that David prayed.

With my voice I cry out to the LORD; with my voice I plead for mercy to the LORD. I pour out my complaint before Him; I tell my trouble before Him. . . . I cry to You, O LORD; I say, “You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.” Attend to my cry, for I am brought very low! Deliver me from my persecutors, for they are too strong for me! Bring me out of prison, that I may give thanks to Your name! The righteous will surround me, for You will deal bountifully with me.    (Psalm 142:1-2, 5-7 ESV)

I’m guessing we all have known a cave at one time or another. Gloomy places . . . places where it’s hard to see a way out . . . places where we can feel so alone that only the echoes off of a cold wall keep us company. Places where, even if we could see a way out, we’re pretty sure it would be more dangereous out there than in here. Something about caves that saps our strength . . . both physical and mental. And it’s in these places where, by the grace of God and through the groaning intercession of the Spirit, we need to do perhaps the only thing we can do . . . cry out to the LORD . . . with our voices, plead for mercy and deliverance.

David would spill out all his anxieties . . . and he would spell out all his distress. Not because he thought God wasn’t aware of His situation . . . but because He knew God was . . .

When my spirit faints within me, You know my way!    (Psalm 142:3a ESV)

And so He would cry out, in faith, to the One he trusted as His refuge . . . the One, who when everything else seemed removed, was David’s “portion” in the land of the living . . . even when that land was but a small plot of dirt in a dark cave. Though the cave was where he hid . . . God was the ground on which He stood. Though it was dark and gloomy . . . the LORD had promised to be his light. Though his surroundings drained him of all his energy . . . Jehovah would be his strength. Though he had been brought very low . . . He believed His deliver would again lift him up. And so David prayed, and would later put to music, cave prayers.

He looked beyond his earthly circumstance towards His heavenly Father. He forced his mind beyond the hopelessness of the situation and back to the promises of His God. He anticipated, with all his heart, that time when his cry of despair would give way to offerings of thanksgiving. He believed that the cold walls which enveloped him, would soon give way to the righteous surrounding him. All because He knew the God who had promised to deal bountifully with him.

Cave prayers aren’t easy prayers. O’, but that by the mercies and lovingkindness of God, we would know such songs in the night . . . and then, joy in the morning.

By His grace . . . for His glory . . .

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