Poured Out

Posted on June 11, 2013 by Pete

Some folks at our church recently returned after four weeks in Arizona. Ask them how it was . . . especially the lady who is “always cold” . . . and they’ll tell you it was wonderful . . . wonderfully hot! How hot? Well, hot enough one day for them to experience a rain shower where the rain never hit the ground . . . where you can see the rain leaving the clouds but evaporating before it reaches the earth . . . low humidity and high temperatures result in the atmosphere absorbing the rain before it touches down. That’s hot! It’s also what came to mind this morning as I was reading in Philippians . . .

Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. (Philippians 2:14-17 ESV)

That Paul was the believer’s number one cheerleader is beyond dispute. Next to sinners being saved, Paul was bent on encouraging saints to be solid . . . that they might live in a manner worthy of their calling, worthy of the gospel, and worthy of the Lord who had called them (Eph. 4:1, Php. 1:27, Col. 1:10). That they would work out the practical details of their new life in Christ as God worked in them, enabling them to know Him, to know His will, and to walk in His ways (Php. 2:12-13). That they would be “fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God” (Col. 1:10). (Thanx Bob for putting Col. 1:10 on my radar!)

And to that end . . . Paul would go to the nth degree . . . even if it meant being “poured out as a drink offering” (Php. 2:17).

Drink offering . . . kind of an Old Testament phrase in a New Testament world. The drink offering was an integral component of the Old Testament system of sacrifices . . . wine poured out on the altar of flames . . . most often as an accompanying offering to one of the other “offerings by fire” . . . vaporized . . . only a lingering sweet aroma remaining. Paul said, I’m willing to be that sweet smelling vapor upon the sacrificial offering of your faith.

Paul would gladly pour out his life . . . evaporate . . . leave no indicator of his presence . . . if it propelled those he had seen come to Christ to offer their “bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship” (Rom. 12:1). Like that Arizona rain, he would be privileged to be consumed before “hitting the ground” for the sake of lives lived for the glory of God.

And if Paul had the mind of Christ . . . and he did . . . and if Paul was compelled by the Spirit of God . . . and he was . . . then how can I not pause and reflect on the importance of lives well lived for Christ . . . and, on the sacrificial nature of the beloved apostle. Paul, perhaps the greatest of the apostles, but who considered himself the chief of sinners (1Tim. 1:15), was willing to pour out his life for the sake of the children of God. Paul, who, like His Lord, considered others above himself, emptying himself, taking the form of servant . . . becoming obedient even to death if need be . . . willing to evaporate as a drink offering . . . that others might realize their full potential in the faith . . . and that the Christ of their faith might be exalted in and through them.

How important was a “worthy walk” to Paul? . . . Pretty! How invested would he become that others might walk such a walk? . . . Totally!

O to be poured out for the bride of Christ . . . to be a sweet smelling aroma . . . by His grace . . . for His glory . . .

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Glory Revealed

Posted on June 10, 2013 by Pete

They were blown away . . . no words to describe what they had just seen . . . no context within which to interpret it . . . just jaw-dropping amazement . . . just never-seen-anything-like-it-before awe. They had encountered glory revealed.

That Jesus didn’t look like deity was by design. The Son of God “had to be made like His brothers in every respect, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people” (Heb. 2:17). To bring the knowledge of God to man . . . to bring man into the holy presence of God . . . to offer the once-for-all atoning sacrifice for sin . . . all this required God incarnate . . . God in flesh.

And so the Son, not considering equality with God something to be grasped and held onto, divested Himself of His heavenly glory . . . assumed the very nature of a servant . . . took the likeness of the man He had created (Php. 2:5-7). The glory was contained . . . the light was cloaked . . . the majesty robed in humility.

But there were “leaks” . . . encounters of the divine kind where, for those with eyes to see and ears to hear, the glory could be seen. I read about one of those this morning in Luke.

Well known story . . . Jesus is teaching . . . the people are gathering . . . the house is filling . . . the place is packed–standing room only . . . and then, the roof is crumbling. And next thing you know, these guys are lowering a bed, with their paralytic buddy on it, into the midst of the crowd. And Jesus gets the picture right away and responds. Upon seeing their faith, He says to the paralyzed man, “Man, your sins are forgiven you” (Luke 5:17-20).

Jesus forgiving . . . religious hypocrites gasping–“Who can forgive sins but God alone?” . . . Son of Man responding . . .

“Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”–He said to the man who was paralyzed–“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.” And immediately he rose up before them and picked up what he had been lying on and went home, glorifying God. And amazement seized them all, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, “We have seen extraordinary things today.”    (Luke 5:23-26 ESV)

And it’s that word “extraordinary” that’s caught my attention this morning. The NKJV says “strange” . . . the NIV, “remarkable” . . . the NIT, “amazing” . . . the original, paradoxos. My study aids tell me it’s the only time this word is used in the New Testament . . . a unique combination of two words . . . para, meaning “near” or “beside” . . . and doxa, most often translated glory. The people were seized with amazement, they were filled with awe, as they had been near glory.

The essence of God, veiled in flesh . . . the majesty of heaven, contained within the holy, perfect, Servant of God . . . “leaked out” a bit that day. The glory was revealed . . . and the people glorified God.

Paradoxos . . . unexpected . . . uncommon . . . incredible . . . wonderful.

Jesus continues to reveal His glory . . . enveloped in jars of clay . . . the light shining through His Word . . . by His Spirit . . . that we too might know the paradoxos.

Oh for eyes to see . . . ears to hear . . . hearts to grasp . . . and mouths to respond. That we might glorify God for the glory revealed in His Son. Amen?

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The Wiring Behind the Walk

Posted on June 7, 2013 by Pete

At first glance, the two statements look the same . . . but a bit of noodling, a bit of digging, and you realize that though they are both about being “worthy”, they each have a different emphasis. The more familiar (to me at least) charge in Ephesians is about conduct . . . how I am to walk . . . how I am to live and order my steps . . . it’s about conduct that is suitable for, or consistent with, the calling of Christ on my life. But the other statement . . . the one I encountered this morning . . . the one I read in Philippians . . . while also encouraging a consistent walk, I think is more focused on what’s behind the walk.

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called . . .    (Ephesians 4:1 ESV)

Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel . . .    (Philippians 1:27 ESV)

See the similarities? Notice the differences?

Both charges suggest that there is a way to do the Christian life that is in line with the Christ who gave us life. To think that we can be saved from the penalty of sin . . . made new creatures in Christ . . . and live like those who haven’t, is foreign to the Scriptures. The privileged position that is ours, through grace, in Christ, should become the practical reality of who we are, through sanctification, by the working of the indwelling Spirit of Christ. Regenerated spiritual DNA should manifest itself in reconstituted priorities, decisions, and actions.

But, while the Ephesian’s charge is about ensuring a “walk worthy”, the Philippians exhortation is more about what’s behind the walk . . . the mindset that says pursuing the walk is worth it . . . it’s about the wiring behind the walk.

The term “manner of life” in Philippians 1:27 is the word “to be a citizen.” The ESV footnote offers the literal translation, “Only behave as citizens worthy.”

A godly walk flows from internalizing that we are citizens of a different place. That as servants of the King, we are to reflect something of our kingdom . . . as children of the Father, we are to model appropriate family behavior . . . as sheep in the Shepherd’s fold, we long to hear the Shepherd’s voice and desire to follow in His ways. It’s knowing who we are that drives how we act.

My citizenship is in heaven (Php. 3:20) . . . that’s home base . . . that’s my heritage . . . that’s where my allegiance should be placed, first and foremost. The values of this place shouldn’t be the major influences of my decision making. The measures of success of this society shouldn’t be what’s setting the priorities on my to do list. The accepted behaviors of this “foreign land” shouldn’t quench the distinctive characteristics of those whose home is “beyond the skies.”

My citizenship is in heaven . . . enabled and secured through the gospel of Christ . . . the good news that He who knew no sin became sin for us, “that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2Cor. 5:21) . . . the good news “that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you by His poverty might become rich” (2Cor. 8:9) . . . the good news that He has gone to prepare a place for us, “and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to Myself, that where I am you may be also” (John 14:3). Because of the gospel . . . the grace of God, the blood of Christ, and the regenerating work of the Spirit, . . . we “desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one” (Heb. 11:16).

Oh, to remember my true citizenship . . . that’s the wiring behind the walk that is worthy.

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

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Gehazi

Posted on June 6, 2013 by Pete

You really need to wonder at what he was thinking. Gehazi was Elisha’s servant . . . the prophet’s attendant . . . where Elisha was, you’d most likely find him too. As such, he had “artist’s circle seating” for most, if not all, of the mighty works performed through this man of God. He knew of the “business plan” Elisha had presented to the widow with no money, a lot of debt, and just a jar of oil . . . her sales of oil sufficient to pay off all her debt and to allow her and her two kids to live on the rest (2Kings 4:1-7). He had been there for the many visits to the Shunammite woman’s home . . . had slept on her roof . . . knew that Elisha had promised her a son in her old age as reward for her hospitality . . . and God delivered (and so did she).

Gehazi was the one who first met that same woman, years later, when she came to the prophet, in bitter grief, over the death of her toddler son. Gehazi had been the one sent to confirm the woman’s son was dead. I’m guessing he saw Elisha walk into the lifeless child’s room . . . and then was summoned by the man of God to go tell the grieving mother to come get her now very much alive son (2Kings 4:8-37). Can anyone say, “Awesome!”

And then, Gehazi was there when Naaman, the commander of the army of the king of Syria, came to Elisha in hopes of being cured of his leprosy. At the word of the man of God (and some gentle persuading towards obedience by the commander’s God fearing servant) . . . along with a bit of water in the river Jordan, Naaman’s flesh is restored, “like the flesh of a little child” (2Kings 5:1-14). Can anyone say, “Amazing!”

So . . . what was Gehazi thinking when he determined he could fake out his boss?

Naaman offers to pay Elisha for “services rendered.” Though he has come to know “that there is no God in all the earth but in Israel” (5:15), the powerful commander of Syria’s army wants to somehow repay the man of God for the favor shown him. But grace doesn’t work that way . . . understandable, the desire to do something in return . . . but God’s free gift is . . . well, a free gift. Thanks, but no thanks, says Elisha, You head home with your money . . . “He said to him, ‘Go in peace.'” (5:19)

But Gehazi thinks not . . . “See, my master has spared this Naaman the Syrian, in not accepting from his hand what he brought. As the LORD lives, I will run after him and get something from him” (5:20). Despite all his time with the prophet . . . despite all he had seen of God’s power . . . despite all he should have known of God’s purposes . . . Elisha’s attendant thinks, “Uh, uh . . . no way. This guy should pay if he can pay. And I should be the bill collector.” And he does . . . Gehazi walking away with over 100 pounds of silver and two sets of “night on the town” type of clothing. But what’s really got my head scratching is how Gehazi think’s his master isn’t going to know. Hello! . . . this is Elisha . . . God’s mighty prophet . . . direct line to heaven itself . . . how did Gehazi think that he could deceive God’s man of God? But that’s what he thought . . . and that’s where I need to take heed.

It was less a plan about deceiving God than it was about a desire for wealth and status. The folly of trying to go clandestine before an omniscient God was lost in the coveting for some reward . . . the insanity of thinking he could hide from an omnipresent God was clouded by the desire for status . . . the nutsness (not a word, I’m pretty sure) of charging for God’s free gift probably wasn’t considered as he became fixed on personally profiting from the prophet.

And I need to know that a wayward heart can lead to some pretty muddled thinking . . . that setting my affections on something other than the God of heaven, and the heaven of God, can cloud what I know about how the kingdom operates . . . that desiring a reward now, and not waiting for the inheritance that awaits, can lead to some pretty goofy reasoning . . . and that all of it can lead me down a path I don’t want to go . . . can cost me more than I’m prepared to pay. Gehazi, the leper (5:26-27), is such a warning.

O’ to be faithful . . . and focused . . . and clear thinking . . . by His grace . . . for His glory . . .

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Sure of This

Posted on June 5, 2013 by Pete

Very few things in this life that we can be absolutely, one hundred percent sure of. Apparently it was Benjamin Franklin who said “The only sure things in life are death and taxes” . . . way to go, Debbie Downer! Really? That’s it? He probably wasn’t overly familiar with the Scriptures. This morning, as I started in on Paul’s letter to the Philippians, I was reminded of something else that the believer can be sure of . . .

And I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.   (Philippians 1:6 ESV)

What God starts, He will finish . . . we can be sure of this. And our salvation is His work . . . our sanctification is His work . . . a work that He has started . . . a work that He will bring to a “flourishing finish” (MSG) . . . we can be sure of this.

This promise in God’s Word has been on my radar since the very beginning of my Christian walk. In fact, it was a significant anchor during the “toddler phase.” In those first few years, after having believed the gospel and received the Savior, when there were doubts . . . when there were fears . . . when there were failures . . . and more than once, when my faith was being rattled, the Spirit assured me of the reality of this promise . . . that what God had started in my life, He was determined to finish . . . and not just determined to finish, but able to finish.

Today, there are fewer doubts . . . smaller fears . . . still way too many failures . . . and the anchor still holds. My confidence being not in my ability to perform my way to spirituality but in His purposes and power to take that which He has redeemed . . . and regenerated . . . and remake it in the image of His blessed Son . . . for His eternal glory.

It’s when I slip into thinking that somehow it’s up to me to take what God has started, and turn it into what He is expecting, that my legs can get a bit wobbly. To be sure, I have the responsibility to seek to “walk in a manner worthy” of the calling . . . to pursue His kingdom . . . to submit to His lordship . . . to know and obey His Word . . . to be led by His Spirit . . . but even the ability to fulfill that responsibility is His working in and through me. My holy determination . . . but His divine work.

And it’s not so much that being sure of this is a “safety net” . . . or a reason to coast. Instead, it is motivation to the max! It’s the reason every time I trip up, I can get back up . . . being sure of this, God will complete the work. It’s the basis for rejecting the voice of the enemy, the accuser of the brethren, when he whispers, “You’re never gonna get it . . . quit trying” . . . being sure of this, God will have no unfinished projects. It’s the encouragement every time I’m reminded how much a jar of clay I am — a cracked, brittle jar of clay . . . being sure of this, He is the potter and is determined to display me as a trophy of grace to manifest His greatness.

He has begun a work. He has called it a good work . . . not because of who I am and what I can do, but because of who His Son is and what He has accomplished on my behalf. He will bring that work to completion . . . that which He begun by grace through the Spirit, He will finish by grace through the Spirit, for His eternal purposes and glory. And today’s work-in-progress will be fully heaven ready on the day of Jesus Christ . . . when faith gives way to sight . . . when we behold Him . . . and are presented to Him “in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing . . . holy and without blemish” (Eph. 5:27).

I’m sure of this . . .

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Good to the Last Drop

Posted on June 4, 2013 by Pete

Sometimes I’ll read Paul’s letters the same way I’ll drink a jug of milk. I’ll consume the milk glass by glass . . . but then, often, throw away the jug when there’s still a little left in it. Sometimes I’ll do the same with Paul’s letter . . . reading it though section by section . . . but then, when I come to his final greetings . . . when I start to read his last lines . . . then, if I read them at all, I’ll just skim over them. This morning, for some reason (maybe a Holy Spirit reason?), as I read the final portion of Ephesians I read it to the very end . . . took in Paul’s final words to these believers . . . and it was good to the last drop.

Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible.
(Ephesians 6:24 ESV)

Paul’s last words to his readers at Ephesus. At first glance, it might look like a conditional blessing . . . grace for those who love Jesus with a special kind of love. But that isn’t the nature of grace . . . conditional on our ability to love in a certain way . . . to perform to a certain standard. To be sure, you can frustrate grace (Gal. 2:21) . . . and you can fall from grace (Gal. 5:4) . . . but that happens when you stop relying totally on grace, instead thinking that full justification occurs when we have our spiritual act in order . . . or that sanctification is something that I work for rather than a work God does in me. So grace isn’t dependent upon my ability to love with a love incorruptible . . . but love incorruptible is the manner of love infused within me by the abundant grace of God.

. . . and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. . . . God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
(Romans 5:5, 8 ESV)

Poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit . . . poured, spilled out into our very souls and spirits . . . the picture being that of something gushing out into an empty vessel. Empty vessel . . . that would be us without Christ. Spilling abundantly into us . . . that would be the Father spilling into us through the Son. Love incorruptible . . . that would be the heavenly substance running out into us.

The other reason I don’t think Paul’s closing words are a conditional statement is because of the type of love we are talking about. While the NKJV translates it loving in “sincerity,” the idea behind the word is that of something that is imperishable . . . immortal . . . and thus, incorruptible. It is an eternal love . . . a love with unending existence. Don’t know that I can manufacture that type of love . . . but by God’s grace, and through the work of the Holy Spirit, I can be a receptacle of such love . . . and as such reflect something of that pure, everlasting love.

We love because He first loved us. (1John 4:19 ESV)

And I know from “reading ahead” that it is possible to “abandon the love you had at first” . . . as did the Ephesians (Rev. 2:4). Even for those who are keepin’ on, as did the Ephesians, the love can wax cold . . . but I don’t think it’s because of what we don’t do as much as what we stop relying on . . . and Who we stop pursuing on a daily basis.

I’m but an earthen vessel . . . possessing the treasure of the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ — having the love of God poured out into me by the Spirit of God . . . evidencing that the surpassing power of imperishable love belongs to God and not to me (2Cor. 4:7).

Love incorruptible . . . poured out into jars of clay . . . good to the last drop. Amen?

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Lessons From A Weary Prophet

Posted on June 3, 2013 by Pete

I guess there’s no way he saw it coming. Mt. Carmel should have turned the tide . . . it should have been game, set, match for the God of Elijah . . . and by extension, for Elijah himself. The victory had been decisive (1Kings 18:20-40) . . . fire from heaven . . . people on their faces proclaiming, “The LORD, He is God; the LORD, He is God” . . . 450 dead prophets of Baal . . . surely it was over. Evidently not. Crazy Jezebel, with a credible track record for taking out the prophet’s of God, starts pinning up “Wanted, Dead or Dead” posters, with Elijah’s face on them, all over the place . . . giving herself 24 hours to ensure Elijah joins the prophets of Baal in the grave (1Kings 19:1-2). And it shakes Elijah to the core . . . you sense, almost breaking him.

The contrast is stark . . . from standing in victory on the Mt. Carmel to hiding under a bush in the wilderness. From crying out to the Lord to consume the water soaked sacrifice that the people might know He is God . . . to pleading with God that he might die . . . enough’s enough, he says. From the adrenaline rush of seeing God act in so mighty a manner . . . to being so overcome with hunger, exhaustion, and depression, that all he wants to do is sleep.

I can imagine Elijah thinking that Mt. Carmel should have been the victory to end the war . . . that somehow things should have become easier after such a display of God’s might . . . but it didn’t. I can picture him tired . . . fearful . . . confused . . . frustrated . . . despondent. He’s weary . . . time to go home, Lord.

And though God graciously deals with his burned out prophet . . . gently addressing his physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of His faithful servant . . . you wonder if Elijah was ever quite the same again. God provides food in order to restore Elijah’s physical strength (19:5-8) . . . and then the LORD reveals Himself again to Elijah in a gentle, small voice in order to renew him spiritually (19:12) . . . and then Elijah is “put back in the game,” God giving him a new set of tasks to undertake . . . one of which is to anoint his successor, Elisha. But I wonder if the heart of Elijah was not as “into it” as it may have once been.

James says that “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours” (James 5:17) . . . so what are the lessons to be learned from this weary prophet?

Perhaps first I need to be reminded that we’re not home yet . . . that yesterday’s victory doesn’t mean there won’t be a tomorrow’s battle . . . that, though I know how I want the script to be written, I’m not the author. Mine is to trust in the Lord.

And I guess the other take away is God’s faithfulness . . . and gentleness . . . in dealing with weary servants of God. Meeting the need . . . addressing the questions . . . getting them back in the game. As long there are “ears to hear” there will be a still, small voice sent from heaven to encourage and restore.

Sometimes we pilgrims can get weary . . . but all the time our God’s grace is sufficient . . . His love never ending.

To Him be glory . . .

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Father, May I Present to You . . .

Posted on May 31, 2013 by Pete

Hands down . . . it is a glorious passage. That it is sometimes avoided, being considered controversial, is tragic. First, because the “controversy” surrounds God’s plan for marriage . . . second, because, by avoiding the passage, the insight it gives concerning “the mystery” isn’t savored. The passage is like a kaleidoscope. You can look at the kaleidoscope itself and not be too impressed . . . kind of plain shaped . . . maybe dressed up a bit in some wrapping paper . . . so what? But look THROUGH the kaleidoscope . . . and that’s when the jazz factor kicks in . . . behold the multi-faceted pattern . . . take in the splendor of the all the color that is seen through the instrument. Marriage is kind of like a kaleidoscope . . . in looking through it we see the glorious beauty of a Savior, a Sanctifier, and a Presenter.

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, His body, and is Himself its Savior. . . . Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her, that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that He might present the church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.   (Ephesians 5:22-27 ESV)

Paul lays out the dynamics of a marriage that will be manifest in those who are “filled with the Spirit” (5:18) . . . these dynamics being founded and fueled after the demonstration of God’s amazing grace and awesome love. And in doing so, Paul invites us to look through the lens of marriage in order to behold the beauty of Christ, our Lord.

He is Savior . . . having given Himself as the once for all sacrifice for our sin. He is the atonement for our transgression, His work on the cross being a finished work . . . His resurrection from the dead being the assurance of victory over sin and death . . . His way into the holy of holies being an open way for all who believe.

He is Sanctifier . . . having redeemed a people, He begins a work to renew a people. Set apart for His glory, through the washing of the word, and the renewal of the mind, He transforms us . . . and conforms us . . . to His own blessed nature. The righteousness that is imputed, or credited to us, through salvation is then imparted, or made more and more real in us, through sanctification.

Glorious Savior . . . Wonderful Sanctifier . . . but what really grabbed me this morning is that my Lord . . . my Head . . . is a Faithful Presenter.

When I first believed, Christ presented me to the Father as a new born child of God in Him . . . I was taken from the mire and seated in heavenly places in Him . . . I was ushered into the very holy presence of God, my sin-stained garments having been covered in His robe of righteousness. Father, He says, may I present to You my blood-bought brother . . .

As I stumble along this pilgrim path, Jesus continues to present me before the throne as He determines to “save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them” (Heb. 7:25). He intercedes through my trials . . . He entreats through my temptations . . . He advocates when I trip up, confess, and once again plead the cleansing blood of Christ. Father, may I present to You my work-in-progress follower . . .

And one glorious day . . . when faith gives way to sight . . . when all the saints are gathered as one . . . the risen Christ will again present me as part of splendorous body, without spot . . . without wrinkle . . . holy and without blemish. Father, may I present to You my beautiful bride!

To be sure, much in the passage to take to heart concerning my marriage. But looking beyond the pattern, might I see the Person . . . looking beyond the earthly dynamics of a God ordained relationship, might I have eyes to see into the portals of heaven itself and see my God sent Redeemer . . .

Father, may I present to You . . .

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Figuring Out the Details

Posted on May 30, 2013 by Pete

For all that the Bible is, it is not a prescriptive, step-by-step, manual on how to navigate every circumstance of life. For all that the Holy Spirit is, His is not to “call an audible” in every situation with a choice, nor to act as a perpetual GPS voice telling us when to turn left . . . when to turn right . . . when to make a u-turn. Now to be sure, God has, through His Word and through His Spirit, given us everything we need for living a godly life (2Peter 1:3-4) . . . and, to be sure again, God works in us both to will and to do His good pleasure (Php. 2:13) . . . but in that, we still need to “work out our own salvation with fear and trembling” (Php. 2:12) . . . we still need to figure out the details.

. . . and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. (Ephesians 5:10 ESV)

It’s often said that “God has a plan for your life” . . . true enough. But it’s not like that plan is delivered to us in some script . . . our lines aren’t written out for us . . . we don’t really get to read ahead and know how the plot turns out . . . and there certainly isn’t some dude sitting in a director’s chair bellowing at us when to “enter stage left” and “exit stage right”. We know there’s a plan . . . we know generally how to “get in character” . . . on some matters we have some pretty explicit “thou shalls and thou shalt nots” . . . but beyond that, we need to discern what’s pleasing to the Lord.

We need to take the Bible’s principles for life and map them to the specifics of life. Through the help of the Spirit, we need to test, examine, and scrutinize, the paths before us and seek to recognize the way well pleasing to the Lord. Though God is Sovereign, we are to be circumspect . . . “looking carefully how we walk” . . . seeking to walk as wise and not as the foolish (Eph. 5:15).

How tragic when believers are doing life on auto-pilot . . . handing over the controls to whatever “feels good” . . . or merging onto the world’s “express lanes” and going with the flow in order to make good time.

Instead, we are to be discerners . . . we are to test our choices . . . we are to examine the forks in the road before us . . . and seek, through the Word of God in front of us and by the mind of Christ inside of us, to ascertain the best choice and to take the right road and so, “walk in a manner worthy of our calling” (Eph. 4:1).

It’s kind of exciting, actually (maybe exciting like an extreme roller-coaster sometimes) . . . to consciously submit our wills to His . . . to purposefully seek to have His mind be ours . . . to engage in the walk and the work He has prepared in advance for us . . . experiencing the reality of a living Word . . . hearing the inner voice of an ever-present Holy Spirit. Being discerning is interacting with the divine.

May not always get it right, but that’s when we trust in a Father who will bring us back to paths of righteousness for His name’s sake (Ps. 23:3).

Figuring out the details . . . by His grace . . . for His glory . . .

Amen?

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Dispensers of Grace

Posted on May 29, 2013 by Pete

Grace. When we talk about grace, we often speak about amazing grace . . . and all-sufficient grace. We think about grace abundant enough to cover our sins . . . about receiving grace when we deserved wrath. The well of grace is deep . . . and I, for one, love drinking of its waters. By default, I’m thinking, when we think of grace we think of how grace has been shown to us . . . we glory in being recipients of God’s unmerited favor. But what about being dispensers of grace?

Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. (Ephesians 4:29 ESV)

Paul has shifted in his letter to the Ephesians from the doctrinal to the practical. After three glorious chapters of revealing who we are in Christ, he changes gears to exhort the believer to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called” (4:1). And, if I’m picking up some of what he’s laying down, then part of “walking in a manner worthy” is to be a dispenser of grace.

That the Scriptures recognize the power of the mouth is evident . . . that I so often am not mindful of the impact of words is, unfortunately, also all too evident.

James says that, though the tongue is a “small member,” yet it can set forests ablaze . . . stir up a world of unrighteousness . . . stain the whole body . . . spew deadly poison. It is a small member that no human can tame . . . and with it we “bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God.” “My brothers,” he says, “these things ought not to be so” (James 3:5-10).

Jesus says the mouth is a window into the heart . . . “for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matt. 12:34) . . . that “what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart” (Matt. 15:18).

So, according to James, we need a regenerated tongue . . . what man cannot tame, the Spirit of God can. For those who have believed the gospel message . . . who have been redeemed . . . who have been born again . . . operation “Tame the Tongue” has begun. And according to Jesus, if now, as objects of God’s great love, we have come to be filled with overflowing grace . . . if our hearts have become cisterns collecting the living water of heaven poured out into our lives . . . shouldn’t what comes out of mouths reflect some of that living water . . . some of that amazing grace . . . some of that all-sufficient grace?

So easy to be mindful of being recipients and dull concerning being dispensers. So natural to lift our faces heavenward, open our mouths wide, and invite the rain of heaven to fill and refresh us anew . . . and not think twice about the privilege and opportunity we have to serve up some of that heavenly refreshment such that others might be built up and encouraged, as well.

To be a dispenser of grace . . . to speak words that reflect the compassion of Christ and the heart of God . . . to take a pass on “brutal honesty” and instead draw alongside with gentle encouragement.

That, by the grace of God, we might impart the grace of God . . . for the benefit of His people . . . for the glory of His Name. Amen?

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