Don’t Let Me Miss the Glory

Posted on September 30, 2013 by Pete

For most at that wedding, they never knew what happened. The honored couple had no idea . . . the guests had no idea . . . not even the “wedding planner,” though he recognized something unusual, knew what had happened. Except for a few conscripted servants, and a few called disciples, it went unnoticed. The glory of Messiah had been manifest . . . and most never knew what happened. Oh, don’t let me miss the glory!

In John 2, we read that Jesus, along with His disciples, was invited to a wedding. And, as was the ancient Jewish custom, this would have been a days long affair. The celebration extending beyond just a 45 minute ceremony, a dinner, and perhaps a few hours of celebration. This wedding which Jesus attended went on and on. And eventually supplies started running low . . . including the wine.

And Jesus, though His hour had not yet come to “go public” (2:4), determines to intervene in the most practical of ways.

Now, as Creator (John 1:3, Col. 1:16, Heb 1:2), Jesus had, in a sense, invented wine-making. The turning of water into wine through the agricultural and fermentation processes was of His design. But at this time and in this place the Word made flesh, God incarnate, chose to bypass the natural process. It was the “first of His signs” (2:11) . . . the first of many miracles which would attest to Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah . . . the first demonstration of His divinity . . . the first illustration of Him as the Author of Life . . . the first indication of Him as the Source of Joy . . . the first application of His grace and compassion for those He came to save. And, in turning the water into wine, John writes, Jesus “manifested His glory” (2:11).

Yet most were unaware of it.

To be fair, it was by design. Jesus purposefully worked behind the scenes. Far from making a major production of it, He had the servants fill the six twenty-gallon stone jars with water . . . and then had those same servants draw the wine out of those same jars. The master of the feast didn’t know where this fine wine had come from . . . the bridegroom was just as surprised as the master of the feast that somehow this “good wine” had surfaced towards the end of the feast. The guests could certainly care less . . . as long as there was more liquid joy to be consumed. But the servants had seen what had happened . . . as did Jesus disciples.  And they, for me, are “the hook.” Given that I am also a follower of Christ, they connect me to the story. And they saw the glory!

This, the first of His signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested His glory. And His disciples believed in Him.   (John 2:11 ESV)

The servants knew what happened that day because of their responsibility to “do whatever He tells you” (2:5). The disciples, my people, witnessed the miracle that day because of their relationship with Him who had said to them, “Follow Me.” They attended the wedding with Jesus . . . they stuck close to Him throughout the festivities . . . I’m guessing they were privy to the conversation between the Son of God and the mother of Jesus . . . they heard His instructions to the servants . . . they saw the great jars filled with water . . . they witnessed the fine wine poured from those same jars . . . they heard the testimony of the wine taster . . . they caught a glimpse of the care and compassion of their Master for a people oblivious to His provision . . . they saw the glory revealed. And, it says, they believed in Him. Their faith grew.  Though they didn’t understand all of what they had witnessed, their understanding of Him went deeper . . . their decision to follow Him was confirmed . . . their conviction that He was the Light of the Word was strengthened. Because they were with Jesus, they beheld the manifestation of His glory.

Oh, don’t let me miss the glory! I too have been called into relationship the Christ . . . just like the disciples I have been invited into close communion with the Son . . . and, from that vantage point, I too will have opportunity to see the manifest power of the Master. Mine is to abide with the Savior . . . to be in close relationship . . . to not be snoozin’ at the wheel . . . so that I too might see the glory.

Amen?

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The Good Ol’ Ways

Posted on September 26, 2013 by Pete

Ok . . . so I’m a sucker for nostalgic songs . . . especially if it’s a country song . . . especially, especially if The Isaacs are performing it. Something about guitars, tight harmonies, and singing “Grandpa, tell me ’bout the good old days” that draws me in . . . and mellows me out. To think about a wise and seasoned man rocking on the front porch talking to his grandkids . . . telling them of a day when lovers really fell in love to stay . . . when a promise was really something people kept . . . and families bowed their heads to pray . . . has a way of stirring up the sentimental side of me . . . and wondering what happened to those good old days. The song flooded into my head as I was read something in Jeremiah this morning.

In the midst of some of the most condemning “thus says the LORD” prophecies . . . surrounded by indictments of a people who had so rejected their God, and so played the harlot, that they were beyond feeling shame, and didn’t even know how to blush (Jer. 6:15), . . . in the dark clouds of the warning of impending judgment . . . the LORD offers this plea to any who might still have ears to hear . . .

Thus says the LORD: “Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls. . . . “ (Jeremiah 6:16 ESV)

There is something about pausing for a moment and looking to the roads before us. They are the crossroads of the narrow way of following Christ and the ever broadening super highway of the world. Roads frequently set before us . . . though often we don’t even take the foot off the gas long enough to recognize the choices. But the Father’s encouragement is to stand by the roads and to look . . . to take notice . . . to perceive . . . to inspect. Another prophet, Haggai, put it this way, “Consider your ways.” Though the world’s current is strong, and perhaps it’s easier to just go with the flow, there is something to be said for standing still for a moment and thinking about the choices before us . . . and then asking for the ancient paths.

The ancient paths . . . not the good old days per se . . . not just the traditions of bygone eras . . . but the paths of the Ancient One . . . the “Plan A” of the One who created us . . . the paths of righteousness, holiness, and communion. The path, though conceived before the foundation of the earth, declared to be a new and living way opened up to us through the work of Christ on the cross . . . a path that leads us to confidently enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus (Heb. 10:19-20). The path where the good way is . . .

Not a way of our making . . . not a way of our sustaining . . . not a way that, in and of ourselves, we can navigate. But through His finished work . . . through His abiding Spirit . . . and with His all-sufficient grace . . . a way that we can walk in . . . the path in which we can find rest for our souls.

O’ tell me ’bout the good old ways. Good because He is good . . . good because He is the Way (John 14:6).

I’m a sucker for a nostalgic song . . . can get kind of sentimental and teary eyed. But I’m also a sinner in need of the reminder of a saving Son. A pilgrim in need of recalibration, from time to time, as to the journey . . . a child of God called to walk in a manner worthy of my calling. Mine is stand by the roads . . . behold and consider the diverging paths . . . and ask for the way of Him who is the same yesterday, today, and forever . . . and then walk in it . . . and find rest for my soul.

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

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Getting Above “Under the Sun”

Posted on September 25, 2013 by Pete

So, I’m thinking that King Solomon might have been a little too smart for his own good. He may have over thought things a tad. I’m suspecting this guy was a bit “type A” . . . a little anal-retentive. I’ve entered the world of Ecclesiastes and it really isn’t the memoirs you’d expect from the guy who built the great temple . . . or from the writer of Proverbs. What happened to this guy? You sense he was a powerhouse in his youth, but in these twilight years you’re kind of sensing a bit of a shell of man. Maybe the clue has to do with something I read in James this morning . . .

But let’s start with my Ecclesiastes 2 reading. “I hated life,” says Solomon (Eccl. 2:17). What? This guy had it all . . . had done it all . . . in fact, he owned it all. Check out the first part of Ecclesiastes 2 . . . he constructed great works . . . built fabulous houses . . . planted amazing vineyards. He not only planted magnificent gardens and fruit orchards but also constructed massive water pools in order to keep them irrigated. And possessions . . . did he have possessions or what? Servants . . . . lots of servants . . . and herds . . . and flocks . . . and silver . . . and gold . . . and special treasures . . . and choirs of singers . . . and musical instruments of all kinds. Anything and everything that could bring pleasure to the senses he had title to. It seems that his was almost a manic pursuit of happiness . . . “And whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I kept my heart from no pleasure, for my heart found pleasure in all my toil, and this was my reward for all my toil.” (2:10). Been there . . . done that . . . got the T-shirt. But his frustration just oozes from the page . . . “Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.” (2:11).

Grasping for the wind . . . that might be kind fun for a little while . . . but if you’re really trying to catch it . . . good luck! Can you imagine being obsessed with capturing the wind . . . with boxing it up . . . with being able to contain it and say, “Here it is!” Crazy man . . . literally. But that’s what it sounds like Solomon’s life experience had become. So what’s the deal? What happened?

Here’s a clue, I think. I did a quick computer count of the number of times the word “I” or “my” is used in these first seventeen verses of Ecclesiastes 2 in my ESV. Check this out! The word “I” is found in every verse except for one . . . 16 times Solomon talks about what “I did”. And his “my” obsession isn’t a lot better . . . found only in 7 verses . . . but, it’s there 15 times. I, I, I, . . . my, my, my . . . wise man . . . blessed man . . . self-centered man . . . frustrated man. Cue James . . .

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. (James 1:17).

Solomon was way bent out of shape because he saw all his good works as just that, HIS good works. And thus, they were vanity, because time would consume them all eventually. What was the purpose of building his legacy . . . someone else would own it . . . and eventually time would destroy it. It was all under the sun . . . and, as such, was all meaningless. But, if I’m catching what James says, our pleasures . . . our blessings . . . our possessions . . . the pursuit of our dreams . . . far from being just “under the sun” can, in and of themselves, be a connection to heaven itself and the One who is enthroned there.

When we view every nice thing we own as being from the Giver of every good and perfect gift . . . when we consider every accomplishment we may have achieved as being from the hand of Him who never changes . . . when we pursue every desire acknowledging that desire’s root is from the Father of Lights with whom there is no shadow of turning . . . then it all becomes a foretaste of heaven . .. and it all takes on intense meaning and purpose. Far from being about me, it’s all about Him. Far from being vanity, it is a veritable connection with the One who created me, redeemed me by His grace, and has determined to fulfill His perfect will in my life.

Oh, to shift my gaze from “under the sun” to the “Father of lights!” To stop keeping score of my accomplishments and possessions but to count His many blessings. It’s the difference between the frustration with that which is passing and the worship of Him who is eternal. All glory be to the Father of Lights!

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Grace Upon Grace

Posted on September 24, 2013 by Pete

My soul is always stirred when reading these first verses of John’s gospel. “In the beginning was the Word . . . and the Word was with God . . . and the Word was God!” Hook up the fire hose and turn on the water! He was in the beginning . . . all things, yes all things, were made through Him . . . in Him was life . . . and that life came into the world to be the true light shining and overcoming the darkness. And, to all, yes to all, who received Him . . . to all who believed in His name . . . He gave the right to become children of God!

Linger over those words, but for a moment, and your spirit can’t help but soar . . . your soul rises up in worship . . . and body wants to go facedown in humbled thanksgiving.

But why should these words mean anything to me? Why would they stir my soul when, for so many others, they fall as stones to the ground? Why are they food and sustenance for this feeble follower of Christ when for so many in this world they are the words of myth, religion, or simply air? Answer: Grace upon grace!

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. And from His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.   (John 1:14, 16-17 ESV)

Embodied in the Word . . . essential to the nature of Him who was with God . . . and became flesh . . . and dwelt among us . . . is the fullness of grace and truth. And it is out of this fullness that those who have believed, have received. Though we merit nothing, He has given everything. Though we were beyond helping ourselves, He bore the burden fully on our behalf. Though bankrupted by a sinful nature . . . He paid the price in full and imparted a new nature. Out of the fullness of Him who is the Source of Life, we have received.

And that, is grace upon grace! Abundant grace . . . overflowing grace . . . grace without measure . . . grace without end. Grace and truth coming through Jesus Christ!

No other plea this morning than having appropriated the unmerited favor of God offered freely through His blessed Son. No other ground upon which to stand . . . no other credentials by which I may enter into the Most Holy Place . . . no other hope of not crashing and burning today . . . other than casting myself upon grace upon grace . . . that grace which flows freely from the fullness of Christ.

When all is said and done . . . after the desire to be holy . . . after the determination to try and be disciplined . . . after the disappoint of not being has holy as desired or as disciplined as determined . . . there is grace upon grace for those who are in Christ Jesus. O’ marvelous grace!

Thank You, Father, for sending the Son. Thank You, Jesus, for dwelling among us and making known the Father’s glory. Thank You, Holy Spirit, for giving eyes to see and ears to hear.

It is out of this fullness that I have received . . . grace upon grace!

To Him be glory alone . . .

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The Better Altar

Posted on September 23, 2013 by Pete

The writer to the Hebrews is consistent to the end. In his plea to Jewish believers to not drift away, he has repeatedly contrasted the old to the new, demonstrating the superiority of who Christ is and what Christ has done. Again and again, he has pointed out how the Levitical priesthood and it’s sacrifices were but foreshadows of the great High Priest and His once for all sacrifice of sin. And so, as he concludes his letter with a number of practical exhortations, he again brings them back to the old in order to encourage them in the new . . . inviting them come to the better altar.

We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat. . . . Through Him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge His name.
(Hebrews 13:10, 15 ESV)

There was an altar “in the tent” . . . a reference to the tabernacle of old . . . a reminder of the temple at Jerusalem. To that altar, worshipers were to bring their animal sacrifices. The best of the flock brought as an offering for sin. These offerings were taken by the priests . . . sliced and diced . . . placed on the fire . . . consumed by the flames . . . their aroma ascending upward . . . trusting that it would be a sweet smelling aroma in heavenly realms . . . that it would be sufficient atonement until the next time atonement was required.

But, says the Hebrews writer, we have a different altar. An altar “outside the camp” where Jesus suffered “in order to sanctify the people through His own blood” (13:12). And it is to this altar we are invited to come and continue to offer our sacrifices. Not animal sacrifices . . . His blood having completely fulfilled atonement’s requirements. Not sacrifices of our righteousness . . . or of our best efforts. But sacrifices of praise . . . “through Him.”

Jesus is the better voice of God . . . He is the better builder of the house . . . He is the better promise . . . He is the better High Priest . . . He is the better sacrifice . . . and, He is the better altar . . . worthy of better sacrifices.

Some have seen, in this new altar, the Lord’s table . . . others identify the altar as the cross. But I’m thinking it is simply Christ Himself . . . as it is “through Him” that we are encouraged to “continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God.”

As we sit at His feet . . . as we know the intimate communion He promises to those who will open the doors of the heart to His knock . . . as we recline, as it were, at the table with Him . . . it is there where we have our altar. Like the woman of Luke 14, we break open our alabaster flask of precious perfume and pour it upon the head of Him who poured out His blood for us . . . we anoint the feet which bear the nail prints of love . . . we fill the room with an aroma of worship that transcends the place of offering but ascends into heaven itself. It’s the sacrifice of praise . . . offered at the altar which is Christ Himself.

And our offering . . . our alabaster box of perfume . . . is the fruit of lips that confess His name . . . remembering His humanity . . . declaring His majesty . . . ascribing to Him all authority.

Thanks be to God for the better altar . . .

(Have a few more minutes? Check out Alabaster by Rend Collective Experiment by clicking here. )

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You Are Our Father!

Posted on September 20, 2013 by Pete

There are many names for God in the Old Testament, many I’ve encountered as I’ve read through Isaiah. The LORD . . . the Holy One of Israel . . . the Mighty One of Jacob . . . the One who is high and lifted up . . . He whose name is Holy . . . the LORD of hosts . . . the God of the whole earth . . . the LORD, your Maker . . . the everlasting God. And there are more. But there’s one that I came across in my Isaiah reading this morning . . . one that jumped off the page . . . a name of God that you don’t find all that often in the Old Testament . . . a name repeated three times in my reading this morning . . . a name which stirs the heart like no other . . .

For You are our Father, though Abraham does not know us, and Israel does not acknowledge us; You, O LORD, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is Your name. . . . But now, O LORD, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You are our potter; we are all the work of Your hand.    (Isaiah 63:16, 64:8 ESV)

For the most part, when reading the Old Testament, I think I probably expect to encounter the Holy One of Israel . . . the God of Creation . . . the God surrounded by angels declaring He is holy, holy, holy . . . the awesome, powerful, and to be feared God. So, when I encounter the prophet declaring, “O LORD, You are our Father,” it arrests me . . . catches my attention . . . or, maybe it’s just flagged by the Holy Spirit as the Father’s way of saying, “Good morning, my son.”

While the names of God declare the nature of God, “our Father” reminds me of the Creator who desires relationship with His creation . . . the Potter who has made Himself known to the clay . . . the God who has redeemed for Himself a people He owns as His children.

You are our Father. Let that be the meditation of my heart this morning!

I know that the only reason this stirs my soul is that, by grace, I have received the Spirit of adoption . . . that, through faith, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into my heart, crying “Abba! Father!” (Rom. 8:15, Gal. 4:6). The communion I enjoy being nothing I could have earned . . . but something which God alone, through Christ alone, has made provision for, so that “to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12-13).

Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!    
(1John 3:1 NKJV)

While “the LORD of hosts” would propel me facedown in awe and worship as I contemplate His power and glory . . . “our Father” lifts my head and draws me near as I’m reminded of His great, great love for those He desires relationship with. To address Him as Father is to be reminded that I am His child . . . that He has redeemed me into His forever family . . . that His Son would call me brother . . . that I have been made a joint heir of the things which are Christ’s. O’ what manner of love!

You are my Father. That which it evokes within me is more easily felt than tell’t . . . but to say, “Thank you, Lord!”

I love all the multi-faceted names of God . . but how I praise Him this morning for the privilege of calling Him, “Our Father!”

To Him be all glory . . .

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All That’s Left is the Ride Up!

Posted on September 19, 2013 by Pete

It’s been a number of years now, but I was reminded of a time we took some out of town guests to Seattle for the day. It was a beautiful day and so we did the Space Needle. We parked the car . . . bought the tickets . . . and waited to get on the elevator and go up to the top. So when did we actually get to the Space Needle? I’m thinking that if you had asked me, “Where are you?” while I was standing in line, that I would have replied, “I’m at the Space Needle.” Even though I wasn’t actually on the structure . . . not yet physically standing on the observation deck . . . I probably would have considered myself “there.” My ticket was bought . . . I could look up from the base and see where I was going . . . and, I knew how I was going to get there — by the elevator. For all intents and purposes I was there. All that was left was the ride up. Hebrews reminded me this morning that heaven’s kind of like that . . . I’m there . . . all that’s left is the ride up.

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the Mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.    (Hebrews 12:22-24 ESV)

Sometimes I can think that it is so far away . . . so distant. But the Spirit says that believers have come to the city of the living God . . . that it is a done deal . . . that we’re there . . . standing in line . . . all that’s left is the ride up.

I have come to heaven’s gates.  Oh, that I would set my mind and my focus on things above. That, through the eye of faith, I might see Mount Zion before me . . . the heavenly Jerusalem, city of the living God . . . knowing that just “up there” is a drop-you-to-your-face throng of heavenly beings. That, having been made part of the assembly, I’m registered as a citizen of heaven. Knowing that my name is written in the book . . . my reservation is recorded . . . and I’m just this side of being with that group of people who have been redeemed from every tongue, kindred, and nation.

I have come to God . . . He who is the judge of all and who, by His mighty hand, has provided the means for justification of all . . . so that whoever believes would know the imputed righteousness of Christ and, themselves, be counted as righteous and perfect. The awesome, holy, majestic God is just before me . . . and surrounding His throne are those who, like myself, have been declared “just by faith” and have already made the trip.

And, I’ve come to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant. I’m there . . . just a short ride away from beholding my great High Priest . . . facedown before my Savior, the One, who with His own blood, sealed God’s better promises . . . the One through whom God has spoken a better word.  I’m not gonna be there . . . I’m there . . . able now to enjoy His presence . . . able now to fellowship with Him through the indwelling Spirit of God . . . able now to bow before Him and worship Him.

What a difference it can make to know afresh that we have come to the city of the living God . . . our ticket has been purchased by the blood of the Lamb . . . our passage has been secured by the power of His Spirit and the abundance of His sustaining grace . . . and, while our final transport will either be by death or by air at His return, transported we will be. All that’s left is the ride up!

So what do we do while we’re standing in line?

Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe . . .    (Hebrews 12:28 ESV)

Let’s do it!

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Have A Seat!

Posted on September 18, 2013 by Pete

The implications are clear . . . the purpose for the tour is driven home. As we leave Faith’s Hall of Fame in Hebrews 11 the “so what” is delivered without ambiguity . . .

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us . . .    (Hebrews 12:1 ESV)

Look up, says the writer, and envision a grand, tiered stadium filled, level after level, with champions of the faith . . . those who have “been there and done that.” And see them cheering us on as those who now grip the baton and are called to run with endurance the race set before us. Look up and lay aside that which would hinder from running the race. The glow of Hebrews 11 is intended to give way to the holy determination to, by His grace, keep on keepin’ on.

But not only are we to be mindful of “so great a cloud of witnesses” but, as we run the race, we are to keep our eyes fixed upon the One who has already gained the victory on our behalf . . .

. . . looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.     (Hebrews 12:2 ESV)

And as I “look to Jesus” in this verse I see a familiar phrase . . . that He is “seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” This is the fourth time in Hebrews that I have encountered this fact (1:3, 8:1, 10:12, 12:2). If repetition in Scripture is intended to emphasize a truth, and it is, then I need to consider this attribute of Jesus with exclamation points attached to it . . . Jesus is seated at the right hand of the throne of Majesty in heaven!!!!

Seated because His work is finished, our great High Priest having offered Himself, once for all, as the final sacrifice for sin (John 19:30). Seated at the right hand in order to intercede on behalf of us as we run the race (Rom. 8:34). Seated at the throne of Majesty having been exalted, bearing the Name above all names (Eph. 1:20-21). Seated at the right hand of the Father as He awaits His inheritance, when all creation will be delivered under His authority (Luke 20:41-43).

And as I’m chewing on this . . . the importance of Christ now being seated at the God’s right hand . . . something comes to mind (thank You, Holy Spirit) . . . that I am seated too . . .

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ–by grace you have been saved–and raised us up with Him and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus . . .    (Ephesians 2:4-6 ESV)

Seated with Him! Really? Yeah, I think that’s what it says. Running the race yet raised up and seated with Him!

Enveloped in the Victor . . . secure in the embrace of the Mediator . . . a participant in His exaltation as a trophy of His grace . . . waiting, with Him, for the blessed day when all things come together for His glory.

What position! What privilege! What a Savior!

Have a seat!

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RSVP

Posted on September 17, 2013 by Pete

We almost missed a wedding. We were invited . . . but didn’t know it. The invitation went out over Facebook. Sue doesn’t have a Facebook account . . . and I wasn’t a “friend.” We knew they were getting married . . . just weren’t quite sure if we were invited. My girls, all “friends,” knew of the event and, being our friends too, let us know that we were intended recipients of the invite as well. Would have been sad to have missed the blessed event . . . would have been bummed to not have had a chance to RSVP.

Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. (Isaiah 55:1 ESV)

As I read Isaiah 55 this morning, I’m noodling over another invitation. It’s an invitation I RSVP’d to decades ago . . . an invitation, it occurs to me, which I still need to respond to. It is an offer of rich food (55:2b) . . . of drink and sustenance that makes the soul come alive (55:3) . . . a feast of grace by which God will abundantly pardon (55:7b). A table spread according to the great love and compassion of a God who desires to be a heavenly Father . . . a banquet table available without cost, sponsored, as it were, by the eternal promises of God.

And so, the invitation is to come . . . to come, buy and eat . . . to listen diligently and incline my ear (55:2-3) . . . to seek the LORD while He may be found and call upon the LORD while He is near (55:6) . . . to forsake my selfish ways and return to the One who desires to shower me with His infinite, marvelous grace (55:7).

Mine is to RSVP . . . Yes, LORD!

Kind of sad, if I miss the invitation. It’s not like I’m not a “friend” . . . not like I’m not “connected” . . . not like the Word of invitation hasn’t been given to me. If God’s people spent as much time checking the Word as they do their Facebook accounts, I’m guessing there’d be a lot more coming . . . and listening . . . and seeking . . . and returning . . . and buying of that which satisfies.

Sadder still, if, after having read the invitation, I fail to RSVP. If somehow I think that I’m ok with the food and drink which I can provide myself. If I continue to spend my resources “for that which is not bread” and expend my effort “for that which does not satisfy” (55:2). If, somehow, I think I have enough of God and fail to seek more . . . if for some reason, I believe that He can be number 2 on my priority list, and rob myself of pursuing Him as Number 1.

Maybe we don’t think to come because we fail to recognize our thirst . . . because we’ve grown accustomed to our hunger. Our pursuit of the things of this age have made dull our senses towards the things of the age to come. Though malnourished with the junk food of this world, we’ve been deceived into thinking that we’re enjoying the “good life” and the blessings of God. When, in fact, He wants us to come . . . and eat of the food which He provides . . . without price and cost to ourselves . . . provided wholly through the finished work of Christ . . . served up daily through the abiding Spirit of God . . . available to all who hear and RSVP.

Just as I am, without one plea,
but that Thy blood was shed for me,
and that Thou bidst me come to Thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, Thou wilt receive,
wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve;
because Thy promise I believe,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, Thy love unknown
hath broken every barrier down;
now, to be Thine, yea Thine alone,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
                                                       – Charlotte Elliot 1789 – 1871

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Uh, That Would Be Me

Posted on September 16, 2013 by Pete

I’m not looking for myself in Scripture. I do want to ask the “so what” question . . . and seek application from the inspired Word . . . but, fundamentally, I think I know that it’s not about me . . . that it’s really not about my story . . . that it’s all about His story. Having said that, sometimes, there I am. It might be in a bible character’s failure (way too often it’s there) . . . or, as it was this morning, in finding myself as a recipient of amazing grace.

Who has believed what they heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
                                                                                                                (Isaiah 53:1 ESV)

Uh, that would be me.

Reading Isaiah 53 is truly stepping onto holy ground. Here we “behold, My servant” (52:13). We look upon Him who “had no form of majesty that we should look at Him, and no beauty that we should desire Him” (53:2b). We consider this One of God who was “despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief . . . and we esteemed Him not” (53:3). Oppressed, afflicted, like a lamb led to the slaughter . . . such was God’s precious Servant.

Why would God subject His anointed One to such humiliation? It was for our griefs and our sorrows . . . He was pierced for our transgressions . . . He was crushed for our iniquities . . . the Lord laid on Him the iniquity of us all . . . that, by His wounds, we might be healed . . . that, through His chastisement, we might know peace (53:4-6).

That’s Scripture’s claim concerning God’s Servant. But any claim, though it might true, has little value unless it is received as truth. And so the prophet asks, “Who has believed what they heard from us? To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” And I find myself responding, “Uh, that would be me.”

And I respond that way with a sense of awe as I take no credit for any part of having believed. In fact, I was a sheep who had gone astray . . . having turned to my own way . . . relying on my own intellect . . . trusting in my own wisdom . . . in my ignorance, telling God that I would leave Him alone if He left me alone and we’d figure out heaven later. But, it was while I was yet a lost, blind, sinner, that God, in His grace, determined to introduce the light of the gospel, in the face of Jesus Christ, into my dark life. And the arm of the LORD was revealed, . . . the Righteous One, His Servant (53:11a), . . . Jesus, the Son of God. And by His patient, abundant grace, I believed what I heard.

That I would open Isaiah 53 this morning and have my soul stirred anew is a reminder of the reality of His saving work . . . evidence of His sanctifying work. That my heart would break again at the thought of His suffering for my sin . . . and yet, my spirit soar with the fresh wonder of Him redeeming me from that sin . . . is further confirmation that He who formed me for Himself, and called me to Himself, has made Himself known in such a real way.

Faith is the substance of the things hoped for (Heb. 11:6). The arm of the LORD has been revealed! Who has believed that report? Uh, that would be me.

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

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