Ho-Hum Holiness

Posted on July 14, 2014 by Pete

Sometimes the will of God is kind of hard to know for sure. And sometimes, it isn’t. Paul, writing to the Thessalonian believers says this, “For this is the will of God, your sanctification . . . ” (1Thess 4:3). Your sanctification . . . your holiness . . . that, in part, is the will of God for His children. Whatever else concerning His will we need to be figuring out, this is pretty clear.

God wants us to be who we are. We have been set apart and declared holy in Christ . . . and God’s will is that we would grow into who we are and actually be holy in the world. And sometimes I wonder if, when we consider being sanctified, we don’t “super-size” it in our own minds and make it something that only the “really spiritual” folks have a shot at. When, in fact, Paul says that sanctification is also manifest in the basics. You might call it a ho-hum holiness.

. . . aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may live properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.    (1Thessalonians 4:11-12 ESV)

To be sure our holiness is a call away from the things of impurity (4:7). Specifically, Paul says that God’s people are to free from sexual immorality (4:3b). And to be sure our holiness is a call towards the high and lofty things of the kingdom of heaven. But, for most, if not all of us, where the holiness rubber meets the road is in the day-to-day and the mundane.

Living quietly . . . minding our own business . . . working hard. You want to know the degree to which someone is growing in the grace of knowledge of Jesus Christ? Want to gauge how much their heavenly mindedness is impacting their earthly existence? Check ’em out as neighbors . . . as employees . . . as people you brush up against in the grocery aisles or on the freeway.

Sometimes I wonder if we think our sanctification is really about our “spiritual lives” and not really tied to our “secular lives.” That sanctification starts with “S” and that stands for Sunday. That holiness begins with “H” and that stands for high and heavenly. But if sanctification is the process whereby Christ is formed with us . . . where, we by God’s grace and through God’s Holy Spirit, are made like His blessed Son, then maybe its about a makeover . . . and that starts with “M” . . . and that stands for manifest in the mundane.

Not too flashy . . . living quietly. Not something you talk about a lot . . . minding your own business. Kind of something you expect for a day’s wages . . . to work hard. But it’s the stuff of holiness . . . the stuff of walking properly before outsiders . . . the stuff of being like the Son in a world in need of light by doing just what you gotta do on a daily basis.

Ho-hum holiness. Not that there’s anything boring about becoming Christ-like. But ho-hum in the sense that its in the normal and everyday things of being who we are that we emanate something of the holiness of who we are. God’s will . . . our sanctification . . . even in the ho-hum things.

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

Posted in 1Thessalonians | Leave a comment

Yes!!!

Posted on July 11, 2014 by Pete

Not to be irreverent . . . not, in any way, to lower Jesus to my level . . . but in the spirit of Jesus taking on full humanity and of being made flesh and blood like us . . . something I read in Luke this morning resulted in an image coming to mind of Jesus. An image that made me smile. I imagined Jesus doing something that I’ve seen many a goal scorer in hockey do. I imagined Him looking to heaven . . . pumping His arm by His side . . . and shouting to the Father, “Yes!!!”

What was the Biblical basis for such a “vision?” Here it is . . .

In that same hour He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was Your gracious will.”    (Luke 10:21 ESV)

Off the top of my head, I don’t recall anywhere else where it says Jesus rejoiced . . . and that He rejoiced in the Spirit. Not sure there’s another place where He might have said something like, “Yes! Thank You Father!”

It happened “the same hour.” The same hour the seventy-two returned. The seventy-two that Jesus had appointed and sent out, two by two, to proclaim that the kingdom of God had come near. The seventy-two He sent out as “lambs in the midst of wolves.” But the seventy-two who He had sent out with authority to heal and perform signs and wonders as testimony to the truth of their message.

And when they returned, the seventy-two were pumped! “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name!” They had gone in obedience . . . they had lived the power of Jesus name . . . and they returned rejoicing. And to them, Jesus said, Of course . . . “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven . . . Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” (10:17-20).

And in that same hour, Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and gave thanks to the Father. He was exceedingly glad. In concert with the Spirit, you might say that He jumped for joy . . . that He exulted in His disciples’ experience . . . that He gloried in seeing God’s perfect will played out.

Does Jesus rejoice? Absolutely! Is His heart moved to gladness when He sees His people walking in the ways they were called to? Evidently! Does He express inexpressible joy to the Father when He beholds the fruit of God’s redemptive plan? I’m thinkin’

O that God could use sinners-saved-by-grace to move the King of Kings to rejoice . . . and look to heaven . . . and thank the Father . . . and exclaim, “Yes!!!”

What grace. For the followers were feeble. But they were faithful. And, by His Name, they became fruitful.

By faith they went. Through the power of His name they returned triumphant. And Jesus rejoiced and gave glory to, God.

Kind of makes me smile . . .

. . . and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,
                                so shall your God rejoice over you.    (Isaiah 62:5b ESV)

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Singing Songs in a Foreign Land

Posted on July 10, 2014 by Pete

We finished dinner last night, read the last half of Romans 1, and then had a brief discussion about the state of the world we live in. Dark! And then, as we prayed, we asked that we might be light . . . and be bold to remain as light, anticipating that, more and more, in the name of tolerance and inclusiveness, our “religious views” will be less and less tolerated. Surely we live in a foreign land.

By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion. On the willows there we hung up our lyres. For there our captors required of us songs, and our tormentors, mirth, saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!” How shall we sing the LORD’s song in a foreign land?    (Psalm 137:1-4 ESV)

The question arrested me as I read it this morning . . . “How shall we sing the LORD’s song in a foreign land?” But isn’t that precisely what we’re called to do?

In Psalm 137, the songwriter kind of acts as a foreign correspondent . . . “reporting on location in Babylon.” And we see those who would look longingly towards Jerusalem, seeking not to forget Zion. Though, that is what had led to their downfall in the first place. They had grown complacent with the things of their holy God . . . they had desired more and more to be like the nations around them . . . eventually conceding to their values . . . and setting their hearts towards seeking their gods. Their foreign land experience was simply a physical indicator of where their hearts had already been for generations. The physical barrenness around them a reflection of the spiritual desert within.

And so, like the prodigal eating husks in the muck, they sat and wept by the waters of Babylon, and they looked longingly towards Zion. And as their captors mocked them with requests for some of those “good old tunes from the good old days,” you sense their longing for home, their desire to see again the glory of God, as they mused, “How shall we sing the LORD’s song in a foreign land?”

And while I might relate to their “foreign landed-ness” . . . that really is where the comparison stops. Unlike those bound in Babylon, far from being held captive by the enemy, the people of God today are those who have been set free. We are those who have been rescued out of Babylon. Rescued not because we deserved it or were any better than anybody else, but rescued through God’s unmerited favor. The Father having sent the Son to conquer sin and death and set captives free. The Spirit having wooed us to the Savior, giving us ears to hear and eyes to see. And by faith, we believed . . . and were set free. And, though we wait to be taken to a city not built with hands, whose designer and builder is God, for now we have been left to live in a foreign land so that, through us, more may be rescued.

We may be in a foreign land, but we live in the context of a coming kingdom. And so, as we sit by the waters of this world longing to be home, how shall we sing the LORD’s song? With gusto! At the top of our lungs! With hope and anticipation wrought through the risen life of Christ. With joy and confidence fueled by the indwelling presence of God’s Spirit. That’s how!

We sing the songs of light amidst a world of darkness. We sing the songs of the redeemed . . . exalting the Redeemer . . . and informing those in need of like redemption. We sing the songs of glory! Not the glory of ourselves which is turning to dust . . . not the glory of this world which really knows nothing of glory at all . . . but songs of the glory of God . . . that glory come down in His Son . . . that glory which we will, one day soon, behold face to face!

If anyone should be singing songs in a foreign land, it should be God’s people.

O’ that God would keep us from embracing the world and falling into a captivity which we need not know. But that we would be ever mindful that this world is not our home . . . and keep singing songs of Zion in this foreign land.

By His grace . . . all for His glory!

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Theos Martus

Posted on July 9, 2014 by Pete

That I would encounter similar themes across my readings in the morning probably isn’t too unusual. But that I would notice them . . . that I would see them coming together . . . that, progressively, as I encounter them, they move my heart . . . that, I believe, is evidence of the Spirit saying, “Hey Corak, listen up!” It’s one of the amazing dynamics of reading the Scriptures . . . those times when you are so aware of the illuminating work of Him who has been given to, among other things, lead us in to all truth, convict us of sin, and refine as according to the Master’s plan.

Here’s what I encountered this morning as I was working my way through my reading plan . . .

In 1Chronichles 28, David is making final preparation for his death. He assembles all the officials at Jerusalem and gives them charge concerning the building of a temple for God, something that had been his heart’s desire since ascending to the throne. And then, he turns to Solomon, the son who would succeed him and oversee construction. And to him, King David says,

“And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve Him with a whole heart and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. If you seek Him, He will be found by you, but if you forsake Him, He will cast you off forever.”   (1Chronicles 28:9 ESV)

Then in Luke, I read of Jesus with His disciples, trying to inform them again that “the Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men.” But they, apparently, have more important matters to consider . . . like who’s numero uno among them. An argument arises among them as to which of them was the greatest . . . and then Luke records this,

But Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their hearts, took a child and put him by his side and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in My name receives Me, . . .    (Luke 9:47-48a ESV)

Seeing the common thread? I started to . . . and then I dove into 1Thessalonians . . .

Paul thanks God for the evidence of salvation among this church which sprang up in only three weeks (Acts 17:1-10) . . . evidence of God’s calling upon them as “our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit with full conviction” (1Thess. 1:5). And in speaking further of the coming of the gospel to them, Paul writes this,

. . . but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts. For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed–God is witness.    (1Thessalonians 2:4-5 ESV)

God is witness . . . Theos martus. He knows. Solomon, serve God with all your heart and mind for He searches all hearts and understands every thought and plan. Disciples, quit your bickering, stop the focus on yourself, for Jesus knows the reasoning of your hearts. Paul, preach the word plainly . . declare the gospel boldly. Declare it with integrity . . . not dumbing-it-down or flowering-it-up in order to please the itching ears of men . . . but to please God who tests our hearts. Remembering that Theos martus . . . God is witness.

A Holy Spirit reminder this morning. Nothing hidden . . . nothing concealed . . . thoughts, intents, and motives fully known in heaven. Kind of strikes fear at first . . . remembering that I am wholly known by a holy God. But God’s perfect love casts out the terror fear and the dread fear . . . leaving only the reverence fear and awe fear. He knows my name . . . He knows my frame. I am His workmanship . . . created once through birth, re-created through rebirth . . . made new in Christ . . . given a stewardship to exercise for the kingdom. And, by His grace, and through His power, I am to pursue the kingdom and exercise my stewardship with integrity of heart . . . to serve Him with my whole heart . . . knowing that God is witness.

Yes, LORD!  By Your grace . . . for Your glory  . . .

Posted in 1Chronicles, 1Thessalonians, Luke | Leave a comment

Good That We Are Here

Posted on July 8, 2014 by Pete

Seems like maybe there was a bit of a pattern forming. Jesus retreats with His disciples to pray . . . and, while He communes with the Father, they sleep. I know it will happen in the garden (Matt. 26:36-45), and, as I’m reading in Luke 9, it happened on the hill, too. On that mount Jesus prayed and the kingdom of God came down . . . literally (9:27). Jesus’ countenance is altered . . . His raiment glows an ethereal dazzling white . . . He is transfigured in appearance . . . a foretaste of that day when He will come “in His glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels” (9:26). And the disciples slept.

And then two men appear talking to Him. Identified as Moses and Elijah, they also appear in a glorious state. The men who most embody the Law and the Prophets talk with Him who is the fulfillment of the Law and Prophets (Matt. 5:17, John 1:45). Though the night is dark, the mount is lit up . . . the light of heaven itself . . . the glory of the kingdom manifest. And the disciples slept.

And the three speak of Jesus’ departure (9:31). That word departure it literally “exodus.” Moses and Elijah, in their heavenly glory, met with Jesus, who shone with His coming again glory, and they talked about His exodus. Not a departure that would happen to Him, but the exodus “which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.” This departure was not that of leaving the earth, His ascension would follow resurrection. But the exodus of death. For all that the incarnate Son had experienced as flesh and bone, He had not yet experienced “the valley of the shadow” (Ps. 23:4). O’ to have been privy to that conversation.

What did Moses and Elijah speak of? What “real life” experience did they relate . . . what heavenly insight did they offer? Did Moses speak of God’s presence as he was buried outside of the promised land? Did Elijah speak of God’s power as he was transported from the earth to heaven in a whirlwind, escorted by chariots of fire? Or were they the ones listening? Did Jesus speak of His exodus in the fullest sense . . . though not knowing exactly what the death experience would be like, knowing that through it, His Father would allow Him to lead many captive to sin and death out of bondage and into glorious life? I don’t know. I wasn’t there. But the disciples were . . . and they slept.

But eventually slumber gave way to wakening . . . the darkness of eyes closed became the bright shining light of eyes opened. And when they were fully awake and saw the glory . . . not knowing quite what to say, . . . Peter says the obvious, “Master, it is good that we are here.” Ya’ think?!?

Jesus could have counseled with Moses and Elijah alone. Instead He purposed to bring Peter, John, and James with Him . . . that they might see the glory . . . that they might be eyewitnesses of His majesty . . . that they might sample the power of the coming again of the Lord Jesus Christ (2Peter 1:16). And though Jesus’ spirit was willing, the disciples’ flesh was weak . . . and they needed to sleep. But, in His grace, He would not let them miss the glory. And though they didn’t know what to say . . . and perhaps said too much . . . they encountered the Son as He would be at His second advent . . . and they heard the voice of the Father delight in the Son . . . and they learned something of the glorious preeminence of Messiah.

Jesus invites me to accompany Him to places where His glory might be known. And sometimes, maybe too often, I’m snoozin’. Though I want to be there . . . sometimes the flesh wins out and I’m found napping. But thanks be to God who, according to His abundant grace, and through His indwelling Spirit, awakens me to the light of the glory of Christ and of His gospel. And at times like those, what can you say but, “Master, it is good that we are here!”

For His glory . . . amen?

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He Will Build A House

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Pete

The story never grows old for me. The story of a king, David, who has ascended to the throne through the calling and favor of God. And, as he looks about the surroundings of his palace, he takes note of the ark of the covenant. While David lives in a “house of cedar” the place where the glory of God dwells is “under a tent.” And David thinks there’s something not right about this situation. And so, his heart is moved to build a house fit for the glory of God to dwell. And God’s response? Love this part . . . “the LORD will build you a house.”

The LORD, through Nathan the prophet, informs David that it will not be his hands which build a dwelling place for God. God will first establish David’s line . . . covenant with David to establish David’s throne forever through his offspring . . . and that it would be one of David’s sons that would build a house for God.

“When your days are fulfilled to walk with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for Me, and I will establish his throne forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to Me a son. I will not take My steadfast love from him, as I took it from him who was before you, but I will confirm him in My house and in My kingdom forever, and his throne shall be established forever.”   (2Chronicles 17:11-14 ESV)

To a degree, this prophetic word was fulfilled through Solomon. A son of David blessed by God with wisdom, intelligence, wealth, and peace with his enemies. An offspring of David who fulfilled the desire of his father’s heart and built a magnificent temple for the ark to reside in . . . nothing like it in all the world. If anything on earth might be deemed worthy to be designated as the dwelling place for the glory of God, this was it. But, this wasn’t really it.

Solomon’s kingdom would fail. His heart would falter . . . his faithfulness would fade . . . and his throne would eventually be divided. The temple of Solomon would also atrophy. The worship would become mechanical . . . the courts would be defiled . . . and eventually the glory would depart. So, if Solomon and his temple weren’t the fulfillment of God’s promise to David, then who was? I know!!!

Jesus, the greater son of David, born through David’s lineage but not by human seed, would be the one to build a forever kingdom. It would be His throne established for eternity. The incarnate Christ would be the prophesied Son. The Son of God, forever rooted in the love of God as He Himself, being one with the Father and the Spirit, is the source of love. And, says the prophet, “He will build a house for Me.”

And the King has come and declared the kingdom of heaven is at hand. And He has been building a house ever since. A temple not made with hands, fit to house the glory of God. A place where the holy presence of God abides. A house not made with bricks and mortar, but with living stones . . . men and women, boys and girls, redeemed by grace through the work of the cross . . . being built into a “dwelling place for God by the Spirit” (Eph 2:22).

He will build a house . . . and God will establish His throne forever.

O’ the wonder of David’s greater Son . . . O’ the assurance of God’s eternal promises . . . O’ the privilege to part of the house . .

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

Posted in 2Chronicles | Leave a comment

Take Care How You Hear

Posted on July 3, 2014 by Pete

We are starting a new preaching series for the summer . . . Kingdom Stories. Going to take the next number of weeks to look at some of the parables. Last week, I was asked to kick off the series by addressing, “Why did Jesus speak in parables?” Based on Matthew 13:10-17, I suggested at least three reasons.

First, because of the subject matter . . . the kingdom of heaven. Jesus had been declaring that the kingdom of heaven had come . . . that it was to be found in the midst of those who, by faith, submitted to the rule of God in their lives. It was something unlike anything they had been prepared for. So, these simple stories, founded on realities they knew well, would be helpful in explaining the dynamics of the workings of a spiritual realm they were just being introduced to.

Second reason Jesus spoke in parables? Because of his mixed audience. For some, those who, by faith, were receiving the kingdom, the stories revealed spiritual truths. For others, those Jesus called “them,” the parables were intended to conceal how the kingdom of heaven operated. Because “them” had rejected the King, the kingdom was not theirs to understand. Because they refused to respond to the light they already had, no more light would be given.

And the third reason Jesus spoke in parables was because of a kingdom principle. I taught on it last Sunday from Matthew . . . I encountered it again in one of this morning’s reading in Luke. Simple principle . . . huge implications.

“Take care then how you hear, for to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away.”   ~ Jesus     (Luke 8:18 ESV)

It’s kind of a “use it or lose it” proposition in the kingdom. For those who receive and respond to the light given, they will be given more. To those who do not, even the light they may have had will fade and, eventually, disappear. The way of the kingdom doesn’t know anything about a static status quo.  Subjects of the kingdom are receiving, believing, and receiving more or, they atrophy spiritually. If we’re not growing, we fool ourselves to think that we’re remaining steady.  To not grow is be withering. In the kingdom, if we’re not progressing, then we are regressing. If I’m understanding the King’s teachings correctly, that’s how it works.

“Take care then”, says Jesus, “how you hear.”

Literally, see what you hear. Not just receive, but perceive. Take notes, yes . . . but also take notice. Pick up what’s being laid down . . . catch what’s being thrown.

Now, illumination is not something we make happen based on how disciplined we are in listening. But the Spirit’s work of leading us into truth isn’t going to happen if we are not actively engaged in hearing and responding to the Word of God. Revealing the secrets of the Kingdom is God’s work through God’s Spirit, but the dynamics of the kingdom call for active participants in the kingdom to “have ears to hear.”

O’ that I might have ears to hear. Might I be kept from carelessly or callously receiving kingdom secrets. Instead, whether through my reading or by it’s proclamation, might I take heed and be careful with the precious Word of God graciously allowed to flow to my ears. Might more be given . . . might more be received and believed.

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

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Hidden Treasures

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Pete

That Paul was working up a sweat is clear. He makes a point of letting his Colossian readers know that he was working himself to the point of exhaustion for their sakes . . . that he was contending as an athlete might contend in a gymnastic games or as a soldier might battle against adversaries . . . that he struggled, and toiled, and greatly labored to achieve the prize that he had in view. And it wasn’t that he might realize the prize, it was that the saints at Colosse would know the taste of sweet victory . . . that they would kiss the trophy, as it were. The prize? Hidden treasures.

Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all His energy that He powerfully works within me. For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.    (Colossians 1:28-2:3 ESV)

In Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. In Him are the riches for all that is required to understand the dynamics of life on this world and of the nature and workings of the God beyond this world. In Him, there is the understanding of the remedy for our disease . . . His atoning sacrifice for all our sin . . . His imputed righteousness to cover our filthy rags . . . His once for all victory over death for our eternal glory. Through knowing Him, we know the Creator . . . in gaining the Son’s mind through the Spirit’s active agency, we find insight into the Father’s heart . . . in discovering the “mother lode” of wisdom and knowledge that are found in the Savior, we discover the foundation of full assurance as to our rescue and our hope.

So Paul worked his fingers to the bone that his kids-in-Christ would attain to the knowledge of the mystery of God’s love and grace found in Christ. He relentlessly labored so that he might present everyone mature in Christ. He toiled to the point of exhaustion that they might discover the hidden treasures found in the Son of God.

And I am of two minds as I reflect on this. One of awe . . . the other of determination.

Awe, in the reminder of the treasures and riches that are to be discovered in Christ. Fresh amazement as to the riches that are found through relationship with Him who is the image of the invisible God . . . the treasure to be discovered as we desire to know, ever more deeply, the fullness of His person and the beauty of His face toward us. Nothing on earth . . . no gain to be found on this planet . . . compares with the hidden treasures that are ours to discover in the risen Lamb of God.

Determination, in that I know my tendency to be distracted by so many other things. Determination to, by His grace and through the power of His Spirit, be more of an all out treasure hunter . . . seeking first the kingdom and its King . . . counting all things as loss but for the “surpassing worth of know Christ Jesus my Lord.”

If Paul so struggled and toiled that the children of God might find the treasures of wisdom and knowledge found in Christ, how much should I labor to pursue the riches that are mine in the One who has called me to be His own?

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

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Christ in You

Posted on June 30, 2014 by Pete

Some passages of Scripture are almost too much to handle. Too much “high and lofty” and “His ways are above our ways” stuff to pack into my puny brain. You read through the passage and it’s not long before you realize that the spiritual caloric intake per “bite” is huge . . . and you start feeling kind of full . . . but it keeps coming. The Word “tastes” so good . . . but you don’t think you can take in anymore . . . but it keeps flowing . . . the truth of what you’re reading almost becomes overwhelming.

And then, you find yourself wanting to respond like Peter did when He encountered the glory of Jesus that morning at the seaside and fell to his knees before Jesus saying, “Master, leave. I’m a sinner and can’t handle this holiness. Leave me to myself” (Luke 5:8 MSG). The truths of the passage you’re reading revealing the glory of God and the magnificence of His Son such that they compel you to go facedown in humble contrition.

Colossians 1:15-29 is one of those passages of Scripture. Don’t take my word for it . . . go read it and chew on it for yourself . . . see you on the floor!

The passage is all about the superiority of Christ. He is Number One . . . He is at the top of the charts . . . He is above all, standing on the highest podium. Nothing else compares . . . nothing else competes . . . nothing else is close. God having determined “that in everything He might be preeminent” (Col. 1:18).

Check out the reminder of who He is! He is . . . the image of the invisible God . . . the firstborn over all creation . . . the One by whom, and through whom, and for whom, all things were created. He is . . . before all things . . . and holds all things together . . . the head of the body which is the church . . . the firstborn from the dead. It pleased the Father that in Christ all the fullness of the Godhead should dwell.

Full enough? It’s just starting. Beyond who He is, noodle afresh on what He’s done! He reconciled all things to Himself . . . He made peace through the blood of His cross . . . He reconciled me (getting kinda’ personal, huh?) in the body of His flesh through death that He might present me holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight! Don’t know about you, but I’m not sure I can handle much more intake . . .

But it ain’t done yet . . . three words to come that are enough to make you burst . . . that last bite which you don’t think you have any room for is about to be fed to you . . . you gotta’ loosen your belt . . .

CHRIST IN YOU!

To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.   (Colossians 1:27 ESV)

Paul says that’s he was given a stewardship. That he was to “make the word of God fully known.” That he was to reveal a “mystery hidden for ages and generations” . . . a mystery now revealed to His saints. That to them . . . to the saints . . . to those called out and set apart and declared holy . . . that to them they might comprehend, in some measure, the glory of this wonderful mystery . . . the glory of Christ in you.

You go back and read and re-read about who He is . . . and what He’s done . . . and the needle goes off the “awe-o-meter.” But then, to have added to it all, that same Christ is in you . . . and how can you help but sit back and shake your head in jaw-dropping wonder! Christ in you . . . Christ in me . . . unreal!

The fullness of the Godhead dwells in Him . . . and He lives in me. He created all things . . . and now resides within His creation. In Him all things consist . . . and, in Me, He communes. Oh, the glory of God . . . the magnificence of Christ . . . the overwhelming blessing of salvation. Christ in you.

Don’t take my word for it . . . go read it and chew on it for yourself . . . see you on the floor!

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Just Giving Thanks for Being Saved

Posted on June 27, 2014 by Pete

Years and years ago . . . and I mean years and years, like 30+ years . . . not too long after my brother came to know Christ, I recall him once relaying how, when he was getting ready one morning, he looked into the mirror and said to himself with wonder, “I’m shaving the face of a saved man!” It was still fresh. The awe factor had not diminished because of the passage of time. He looked in the mirror and he saw a blind man who now had sight . . . a lame man without hope who could now leap with joy . . . a lost man who now was found . . . a poor man who now was heir to a glorious inheritance. Sometimes, I think I need to be more like my brother was that morning so long ago. I need to look in the mirror and just give thanks for being saved.

May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.    (Colossians 1:111-14 ESV)

Give thanks to the Father . . . who has qualified you . . . who has delivered you . . . who has transferred you . . . all because, in His sovereign grace, He determined to redeem you. Just give thanks for being saved.

There is so much that can occupy my attention. So many things to get ready for . . . so many things to attend to . . . even so many things to give thanks for. But sometimes, I think I just need to look in the mirror in the morning . . . stare down that sinner-saved-by-grace looking back at me . . . and marvel that I’m standing face to face with a man rendered fit to share in the inheritance of the saints. To stand in awe that I have been stamped “A-1” . . . declared “5 stars” . . . found to be, in Christ, sufficient to partake of a future glory I cannot even imagine now. I just need to give thanks for being saved.

As I look at the mug in the mirror, I should see the countenance of one who was in bondage to the domain of darkness but has now been brought into marvelous light . . . being reminded of dingy streets of the world that I once called home, as I reflect on the kingdom that I have been translated into. And that countenance has a certain glow to it . . . the glow of Moses . . . the aura of one who has been in the presence of a holy God and has come away with a bit of that glory emanating from me. Not my glory . . . His. Not my doing . . . His. Not because I am anything . . . but because He is everything!

One other thing . . . my understanding is that punctuation isn’t necessarily found in the original . . . so I think I might move a comma, as have some other translations . . .

May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience [comma] with joy giving thanks to the Father . . .

Maybe if we spent more time in wonder at the saved face in the mirror, we would know more joy. Our joy fueled by who we are, and what we are, in Christ . . . and not dependent on what we’ve done or are going to do, or what we have or want to have. Just simply, with joy, giving thanks to the Father for being saved.

Sometimes that guy looking back at me in the morning isn’t all I’d like him to be . . . but He is a saved man . . . by God’s grace and for God’s glory.

And for that, and that alone, I’ll just give thanks. Amen?

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