Who Is This?

Posted on April 3, 2013 by Pete

As well as you think you might know someone, sometimes they surprise you. My wife surprised me this past week. For the Good Friday service at our church, she was asked to share a word of testimony . . . and she did! Wasn’t going to at first . . . so not her thing. But a Sunday morning sermon on Abraham, Faith 101, and hearing the call to leave your comfort zone. . . mixed with a bit of Holy Spirit prompting . . . and bam! . . . there she is . . . up behind a pulpit . . . in front of a ton of people . . . doing what’s known as public speaking . . . and doing it quite well. Calm, collected, even mixing in a bit of humor (at my expense, however . . . did anyone catch the license number of that bus that I was thrown under? . . . whatever). And I’m thinking, “Who is this?” Pretty cool when you can be surprised by someone you’ve known for over 30 years.

They had probably been hanging out with Jesus for over a year before that day they stepped into the boat. His disciples had been drawn to Him, believing that He was more than a run-of-the-mill rabbi . . . sensing that He was a man of God unlike any man of God they had ever encountered. They had been with Him long enough to start processing His teaching . . . they had been given ears to hear the things of the kingdom explained in parables . . . they had witnessed His power to heal and to cast out demons . . . they had heard His claim, and witnessed the proof, that He, like God, had authority to forgive sin. After a year they were starting to get to know this One they called Master. But that night when He called them to get into the boat with Him and go to the other side, they had no clue as to what else they would learn about Him.

They’re sailing . . . the Master is sleeping . . . and then, the wind starts howling around them . . . the waves begin breaking on top of them . . . panic eventually overflows within them. And they wake Jesus, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”

And He awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even wind and sea obey Him?”
 (Mark 4:39-41 ESV)

Who is this?!? . . . even the wind and sea obey Him?

I wonder if we’re prone toward getting too familiar with Jesus. By His grace, He’s allowed us to “hang out” with Him for years . . . some of us, since we were just little kids. We’ve heard the stories . . . read the Bible . . . know the lingo . . . and the path becomes a little predictable . . . the walk becomes a little stale . . . the relationship shifts to auto-pilot.

And then He does something . . . like inviting us into a boat about to head into a storm . . . and there shows Himself in a way we’ve never seen . . . displays His power in a way that causes us to say, “Wow!” . . . reveals His faithfulness to His promises in a way that causes us to bow and confess, “Unworthy!” . . . makes known His abiding presence in a manner that compels us to whisper, “Who is this?”

Crazy to think that we could be in relationship with the risen Son of God and not, from time to time, experience some “wow” factor . . . that awe would not sneak up and grab us periodically as He reveals Himself to us. If I’m not asking, “Who is this?” from time to time then maybe I need to check myself.

30+ years with my wife . . . still being surprised. 35+ years with Jesus . . . may I not cease to be in awe and wonder . . . by His grace . . . for His glory.

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Turn Us

Posted on April 2, 2013 by Pete

Backsliding . . . from my experience, not a word the church uses much anymore. Not that it ranked among the “top ten” of most frequently used term, but it seems to me that years ago the word found it’s way into conversation more often . . . used when talking about a brother or sister who was not walking with the Lord . . . used as a warning concerning the danger of allowing our passion and pursuit for the things of the kingdom to wane . . . and sometimes used jokingly of those who chose to sit in the back row at church — we’d quip that these “back-seaters” were in danger of “backsliding”. Maybe the reason I don’t hear the word much anymore is because we have replaced it with a more contemporary word . . . or maybe it’s because the pilgrim path has become so wide, and the “walk that is worthy” has become so diluted, that backsliding is a thing of the past.

But reading Psalm 80 this morning, the word came to mind as I read the psalmist’s thrice repeated plea to the Lord . . .

Restore us, O God; let Your face shine, that we may be saved! . . .
Restore us, O God of hosts; let Your face shine, that we may be saved! . . .
Restore us, O LORD God of hosts! Let Your face shine, that we may be saved!
(Psalm 80:3, 7, 19 ESV)

Psalm 80 is a lament. Things are not going well for Israel. God is angry with their prayers . . . and is feeding them a steady diet of tears (v.4-5). The Vinedresser who transplanted His vine out of Egypt and nurtured it’s growth into that of a mighty nation, has allowed the walls to broken down about the vine . . . and the vine is being pillaged by passerbys and ravaged by wild beasts (v.12-13). And so, the songwriter cries out to the Shepherd of Israel . . . pleads with Him who is enthroned upon the cherubim . . . that He would shine forth . . . stir up His might . . . and “come to save us” (v.1-2).

And three times, each time with growing intensity, the songwriter pens the refrain, “Restore us, O God . . . O God of hosts . . . O LORD God of hosts . . . let Your face shine, that we may be saved!”

That term “restore us” is translated “turn us” in both the original King James Version and in the more modern New Living Translation. The sense being not just “turn our situation” but start by “turning us.”

In their prosperity, God’s people had become loose with the things of God . . . in their blessings, they had grown to presume on the favor of God . . . in their freedom, they had chosen to stray from faithfulness to God . . . they had backslidden. They weren’t where they should have been . . . they weren’t being who they were called to be . . . and so the psalmist pleads, “Restore us, God. Turn us again to Yourself.”

And while the trial may have gotten their attention, their restoration would come only as God allowed His face to shine upon them. Only as God, in His grace, made His presence known among them . . . only as the Almighty condescended to manifest Himself among them . . . only as they again tasted of divine communion . . . indulged in His abundant love . . . and received His unmerited favor . . . would they be turned again towards Him. And in that, would their rescue be known.

O’ that I might not need the walls broken down around me to recognize my waywardness . . . might I not need the discipline of God heavy upon me before realizing I have become cold, callous, or careless. But that I might be sensitive to know when my heart is distracted . . . when my soul is diluted . . . when I am backsliding. And then, that I might look to Him who is enthroned among the cherubim to shine His face upon me . . . not because I deserve it . . . but because, in His grace and love, He desires it.

And then, would this backsliding heart turn again toward His shining face. By His grace . . . for His glory.

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Not My Own

Posted on April 1, 2013 by Pete

Salvation is a free gift . . . but it will cost you everything. I heard a preacher state that years and years ago. It came to mind this morning as I hovered over the latter part of 1Corinthians 6. At first, such a statement sounds counter-intuitive, if not out and out contradictory. We want to assume that if something is a free gift then, after we receive it, it should be ours to do with as we please. But what if the gift itself is about being invited into eternal relationship with the God of Creation . . . what if the blessing goes beyond what one has been saved from but what they have been saved to, participation in the divine nature . . . what if that which we received is so much more than what we now possess and more about who possesses us?

Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.     (1Corinthians 6:19-20 ESV)

It would seem that at least some in the Corinth church were viewing the gift of salvation as an add-on to their lives. They walked into church still wearing their popular logo’d t-shirts . . . “All things are lawful for me” printed on the front . . . “Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food” printed on the back. And Paul says, “Yeah, maybe lawful technically, but not helpful” (6:12-13).

In fact, the implications of being washed, sanctified, and justified in the name of Christ, and by the Spirit of God (6:11) were that, not only were their souls being saved, but their lives had been re-claimed by the One who made them for His glory in the first place. Just as God had raised Christ from the dead (He is risen indeed!) so will He also raise up in power those who are Christ’s (6:14) . . . and thus there is this eternal link between the risen body of Christ and the to-be-risen bodies of His people. The bodies of believers having become members of Christ (6:15) . . . those joined to the Lord having become one in spirit with Him (6:17). The free gift resulting in a new relationship with the free gift Giver . . . and thus, there being implications which impacts what we do with these bodies until that time they are raised into His very presence.

We gladly receive the gift of God’s abiding Spirit . . . but what of the responsibility which goes with the privilege of housing God’s divine nature within us? We rejoice in redemption . . . but what of the implications of having had the price paid for our sin? We desire to praise and worship our Savior . . . so what does that mean for us when we leave the building on Sunday mornings?

I am not my own. I have been bought with a price.

While I have been gifted with eternal life, Another has placed a call on that life. While I have freedom in Christ, Another has laid claim on that freedom. I need to lose the t-shirts and popular logo’s of this world and pursue the abundant life that comes from being joined together with Christ.

Therefore, glorify God in your body . . .

Not my own . . . but His alone . . . by grace alone.

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The Foundation

Posted on March 29, 2013 by Pete

In the church, bad behavior often is the result of bad understanding. We’ve been talking about this in my Teen’s Sunday School as we’re going through Galatians . . . if I think I have to do stuff in order to be accepted by God it creates a very different church then if I desire to do stuff because I am already fully accepted by God in Christ. If I’m not fully convinced that Christ’s work on the cross is truly “Finished!” . . . then I’m inclined to try and finish it for Him — to add my best efforts, that my salvation might be secure . . . resulting in a “look over your shoulder” fearful Christianity rather than a “march triumphantly” victorious Christianity. Or, if I think that spirituality is somehow tied to a leader, or a special teacher, then the danger is that the One Body of Christ becomes fractured as it lines up under the banners of different men . . . such was the case in Corinth.

Paul had received a report that the church of Corinth was splitting into different camps based on who people thought was the “most anointed” of the evangelists and teachers who had helped establish the church in Corinth. Some followed Paul . . . some followed Apollos . . . some followed Cephas . . . some said they simply followed Christ . . . and this varied follower-ship was leading to division and strife within the Body (1Cor. 1:10-12). Somehow their faith had become associated with their favorite . . . their standing before God was dependent on the speaker they liked the best . . . their holiness became tied to who they deemed to be the most gifted. And so, Paul tries to redirect their focus from the pulpit and to the Person . . . he seeks to break their preoccupation with the sermonizer and remind them again of the Savior . . . he downplays the flash and instead lifts up the Foundation.

For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.    (1Corinthians 3:11 ESV)

Paul was simply a tradesman . . . sub-contracted by the the One who declared, “I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matt. 16:18). His job was to lay the foundation . . . others, such as Apollo or Cephas, where “brought in” to build upon that foundation. The beauty of the building wasn’t determined by its workers but by its Architect. And the strength of the building . . . the utility of the building . . . the durability of the building . . . rested not on the workers, but on the foundation.

How much bad behavior in the church today is because of bad understanding concerning the church’s foundation?

On this Good Friday, as so many of us will focus afresh on the work of the cross, might we remember and rejoice in the foundation. Might we check every thought . . . might we arrest every behavior . . . that declares we are trying to supplement that which is already laid and set. There is nothing to be added to the work of Christ . . . nothing to be mixed into the foundation. The work is finished . . . His grace is sufficient . . .

We build not to be better . . . for we are righteous . . . we are fully accepted . . . we are more than conquerors . . . in and through the blessed Son of God who loved us and gave Himself for us. Instead, we build in order to bless . . . not ourselves, but to bless Him who alone is worthy of blessing.

We are God’s building (1:9b) . . . we are God’s holy temple (1:16-17) . . . built upon God’s foundation, which is Jesus Christ.

To Him be allegiance alone . . . to Him be glory alone . . .

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Resting in the Power of God

Posted on March 28, 2013 by Pete

K.I.S.S. . . . Keep It Simple Saint . . . sometimes I’d do well to do just that. So easy to complicate things . . . anything . . . everything . . . including my Christianity. There’s Scripture to rightly divide . . . doctrinal positions to settle on . . . grey areas to be worked through. Then there’s the self-evaluation . . . am I walking in a manner worthy . . . am I being a faithful steward of the material stuff I control . . . is my spiritual gifting being used within the Body of Christ? Not saying that any of this is bad . . . not at all. Just that sometimes it can make for a complex faith. But as I ‘m reading in 1Corinthians this morning I’m reminded that I need to be careful about straying very far from the basics . . . that I need to remain grounded in the foundations . . . that, rather than worrying about having it all together, I need instead to be resting in the power of God.

And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.      (1Corinthians 2:1-5 ESV)

I’ve read 1Corinthians a few times before . . . I know what’s coming. They were, to say the least, a complex, and somewhat conflicted, church. Amazingly saved . . . wondrously gifted . . . and, it would seem, increasingly dysfunctional. Paul will need to address matters of internal politicking and divisions . . . of sexual immorality in the church . . . of saints suing saints . . of food offered to idols . . . of believers exerting “their personal rights” . . . of spiritual gifts misused . . . of drunkenness and gluttony at the Lord’s Supper . . . and of Body basics out of whack. As Paul addresses the many issues in this church, you sense this local testimony of believers is, to some degree, coming off the rails. Time to get back to the basics . . . time to rest in the power of God.

In wanting to do all the right things with all the right stuff God had blessed them with, these Corinthians, it would seem, were leaning heavy to their own understanding . . . and working out their salvation according to their own wisdom and, I suspect, their own power. So Paul begins his letter with Salvation 101 . . . Christ and Him crucified.

Christ the Messiah . . . the Son of God . . . the Lamb of God given for the sin of the world . . . He who knew no sin made the curse of sin on our behalf as He hung on Calvary’s cruel cross. The perfect spotless once-for-all sacrifice able to atone fully for the sins of all who believe. The Son of Man, come not to serve, but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many. Salvation starts with Christ . . . it continues in Christ . . . it will be brought to full and perfect completion through Christ. The risen Christ . . . having conquered sin and death . . . now living in the lives of the sheep of His pasture . . . now being formed within the very fabric of those who have bowed the knee and owned Him as Savior and Lord. Christ, the love of God made known . . . wanting to be manifest today in His bride, the church.

Salvation past, deliverance from the penalty of sin . . . salvation present, deliverance from the power of sin . . . salvation future, deliverance from the presence of sin . . . all of grace . . . all of unmerited favor . . . all of Christ and Him crucified.

While I need to divide the Word rightly . . . and need to walk in a manner worthy . . . and need to serve in a way faithfully . . . I need to recognize the power to do so is only through Christ and Him crucified.

And when it’s about Him alone . . . His blessed person . . . His finished work . . . His unfailing promises . . . then debating the Word in our wisdom becomes discovering the Word through the Spirit’s illumination . . . and the dysfunction gives way to direction . . . and the division evaporates into submission . . . and the spotlight shifts from us and the glory is God’s alone. And our striving ceases . . . our abiding increases . . . and we rest in the power of God.

Even so, Lord Jesus, may I never lose sight of You . . . and You crucified . . . and You risen. All by Your grace . . . all for Your glory . . . amen!

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In Heaven . . . On Earth

Posted on March 27, 2013 by Pete

To some degree, I get where Asaph is coming from in Psalm 73. What is going on around here?!? How can the way of the wicked be gaining such momentum? How can that which is so counter God be becoming so mainstream? If the way of those who scoff at Deity prospers, is it really worth it to keep trying to swim upstream . . . a stream which seems to be growing into a river with class 6 whitewater rapids? The “prosperity of the wicked” almost made Asaph’s feet to stumble, his steps to nearly slip (v.2) . . . until he entered into the sanctuary of God . . . and there, he put what was happening on earth into the context of who is in heaven.

Nevertheless, I am continually with You; You hold my right hand. You guide me with Your counsel, and afterward You will receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides You.
                                                                                       (Psalm 73:23-25 ESV)

Sometimes I need to remind myself to stop looking around and return to looking up . . . I need to try and stop figuring out what’s going down on earth and refocus on what the Scriptures reveal of what’s happening in heaven . . . I need to guard against the deepening darkness of this world from obscuring the marvelous light of glory . . . I need to resist the temptation to walk by sight and return to walking by faith.

And entering into the sanctuary (vv. 16-17) . . . purposefully going to that holy place where God’s people gather for worship . . . is a great place to regain perspective of what I possess in heaven and the implications that should have on earth.

Worship has a way of reviving the heart. In the course of singing His praise, there is often a renewal of His power. In declaring the mighty works of God there is frequently an overwhelming sense of being a “trophy of His grace” . . . the fruit of His labor . . . the object of His affection. Though it’s not about me, raising up in song . . . meditating on His word . . . being still and knowing that He is God . . . can’t help but have an impact on me.

As Asaph reminded himself of the promises of God . . . that God had brought Asaph into eternal covenantal relationship . . . that Asaph was always with the God who had promised to always be with him . . . that he walked as with God holding his right hand . . . that he maneuvered through life with the guidance of Divine counsel . . . and that a day was coming when faith would give way to sight . . . reminding himself of all this, Asaph knew afresh of what He possessed in heaven . . . and of Who possessed him . . . even on crazy old earth. Heavenly context has a way of shaping earthly reality.

The practice of worship . . . the promise of heaven . . . drives a perspective on earth . . .

Doesn’t change the nightly news . . . but puts it into an eternal reality . . . and ignites a daily focus . . . and there is nothing on earth I desire besides You.

Time to enter the sanctuary . . . by His grace . . . for His glory . . .

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Dwells Between His Shoulders

Posted on March 26, 2013 by Pete

He was the mama’s boy that mama never knew. Rachel literally gave her life in giving him his. As he left the womb, she left this world. In those last moments she named him Ben-Oni, son of my sorrows . . . but his father would name him Benjamin, son of the right hand . . . my boy of favor (Gen. 35:16-18). He was the youngest . . . after Joseph was thought lost, he was the favored and protected . . . he was baby brother Benjamin. And as I’m reading Moses’ final blessings on the tribes of Israel, it’s what’s said of precious Benjamin that grabs me this morning.

Of Benjamin he said, “The beloved of the LORD dwells in safety. The High God surrounds him all day long, and dwells between his shoulders.”
                                                                           (Deuteronomy 33:12 ESV)

One of those verses that causes one to pause . . . and, at least in my case, causes me to have an initial reaction of, “Huh? God dwells between his shoulders? Don’t know exactly what it means . . . but it sounds right . . . whatever it is, it sounds like something a favored son might know.”

I do a bit of digging and see that other translations say that “he dwells between his shoulders” (NASB) opening up an interpretation that it is Benjamin who dwells, or rests, between the shoulders of God . . . as in, is carried on His shoulders . . . which is where the NIV translators land with it . . . “and the one the LORD loves rests between his shoulders.”

Could be . . . makes sense. That the children of favor are carried between the shoulders of their God and Redeemer is born out in Scripture . . . and in the child of God’s experience.

But the more literal translation in the ESV doesn’t leave open the ambiguity . . . instead it lands on the side that the High God will dwell between Benjamin’s shoulders.

Quickly reading a couple of commentaries, this rendering would suggest an interpretation of where the temple of God would rest . . . if not in the territory of the tribe of Benjamin, then at least on it’s borders. Moses foretelling that the glory of God would tabernacle in the midst of Benjamin . . . would dwell between his shoulders.

And now I’m thinking of the place where God dwells . . . the place where He determines to let His glory tabernacle . . . and I’m thinking the church . . . and how the church can be seen, to some degree, in Benjamin.

The son of sorrows . . the church birthed through the death of the Man of Sorrows (what a Name!). The blood of Jesus shed, the life of Jesus given, that those born of the Spirit might be given new life . . . His life . . . through justification by faith in His finished work . . . and through the sanctification by the active agency of His Spirit.

And isn’t the church also, the son, and the daughters, of His right hand? Adopted as children of God . . . joint heirs with Christ . . . raised up to a place of favor . . . seated together in the heavenlies with God’s Son . . . hidden in Him . . . Who, even now, is at the right hand of the Majesty on High. Christ’s bride . . . God’s children . . . a people of favor . . . the apple of His eye. How special are we in Him? Pretty!!!

And, as the beloved of the LORD, we dwell in safety . . . safe in Him. Eternally secure . . . and presently supported . . . our feet on the Rock . . . our hope in the One who has gone to prepare a place for us. Even more, just as was promised of Benjamin, the High God surrounds us all day long . . . sealed with His precious Holy Spirit . . . indwelt by deity . . . empowered by Him who raised Christ from the dead.

And lastly, He tabernacles between our shoulders. His glory resting in our midst. His presence graciously resting upon the “building” He is constructing out of living stones . . . and inhabiting by His Spirit.

Mama’s boy . . . Abba’s delight . . . and He dwells between his shoulders.

Even so, Father, dwell . . .

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I Can’t Even Walk . . .

Posted on March 25, 2013 by Pete

Coming to the end of Deuteronomy. Moses lays out the way of blessing and the warning of curses for the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Blessings follow obedience . . . but if their hearts turn away and are drawn to worship and serve other gods, then they would perish in the land God is giving them. Moses sets before them life and death, blessing and curse . . . “Therefore,” Moses says, “choose life” (Deut. 30:15-20). But there’s a verse in chapter 29 that has kind of captured me this morning . . . . insight as to the nature of the heart of man and the need for a sovereign work of grace by God . . . or, as a songwriter once said, “I can’t even walk, without You holding my hand.”

And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them: “You have seen all that the LORD did before your eyes in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land, the great trials that your eyes saw, the signs, and those great wonders. But to this day the LORD has not given you a heart to understand or eyes to see or ears to hear.   (Deuteronomy 29:2-4 ESV)

They had all the facts and data . . . the “delivered-from-Egypt” experience was their experience . . . been there, done that . . . yet, apart from God giving them a heart to understand, they would remain in bondage. Though GREAT GOD + GREAT DELIVERANCE + GREAT PROMISES should have resulted in GREAT DESIRE TO FOLLOW GOD, somehow their hearts were still prone to wander. Somehow they grew to believe they deserved deliverance . . . over time the promises of a future were drowned out by the pleasures and pressures of the day . . . and God became one of many gods — others, for whatever reason, being deemed more worthy of their worship. Though they had experienced the power of God, their eyes failed to see it . . . their ears were stopped from hearing it . . . their hearts failed to process it . . .

Apart from God giving us ears to hear, we miss the obvious. Apart from God opening up our eyes, we fail to see the glorious. Apart from replacing hearts of stone with hearts of flesh, and then implanting His word within it, we come up short of desiring Him who first desired us.

The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us . . .    (Deuteronomy 29:29a ESV)

It’s the things that are revealed that make the difference. Less about high halls of learning than it is about Spirit enabled illumination. Not so much what you know but HOW you know it. And for that, the child of God can take no credit.

No boasting on our part . . . nothing to claim. But our boasting is in the God who gives sight to the spiritually blind . . . who speaks words to the spiritually deaf . . . who gives new hearts to the spiritually dull.

I can’t see apart from Him providing the light . . . I can’t hear without Him unstopping my ears . . . I can’t understand unless He tunes my heart to to heaven’s frequency . . . I can’t even walk, without You holding my hand.

All by His grace alone . . . and for His glory alone . . .

Amen?

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Navigating the Grey Space

Posted on March 22, 2013 by Pete

There is a fascinating partnership between God and those in the church when it comes to the work of sanctification in a believer. Romans 14 gives us great insight to this dynamic. On the one hand, we are told to stop judging each other on “the minors” because sanctification is God’s work and He is able to finish that which He has started in our lives (14:3-4). My brothers and sisters in Christ are just that . . . in Christ . . . they are God’s servants . . . God has saved them by grace just as He has me . . . and God has started His work in their lives . . . and God will finish the work . . . He is able to make them stand . . . He doesn’t need my critique . . . I need to let God work in the lives of those around me.

But on the other hand, I do have a role . . . I’m to pursue that which builds up my brothers and sisters in Christ . . . careful not to “destroy the work of God” begun in their lives (14:19-20a). I’m to live for others . . . consider my actions in terms of whether they will help other believers or trip up other believers. You can’t get around it . . . we are not our own . . . we are not free to choose to do what we want without considering the impact to others . . .

It’s about how to walk in this community we call “the fellowship of Christians” . . . and it’s about how we think as we navigate the grey space.

At the center of it is this declaration by Paul, “For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God . . . each of us will give account of himself to God.” (14: 10b, 12). Paul’s talking about “us” . . . believers . . . each of us giving account of himself or herself to God at His seat of judgment. This is not the judgment place we read of in Revelation . . . this is not about heaven or hell . . . this is about “how did we live here on earth as members of God’s kingdom?” We will certainly give account for disobedience and engaging in what God’s word declares to be sin . . . but, we will also give account for how we lived in the “grey areas of life” . . . the grey space . . . that area where Christians dispute over whether something is right or wrong for a Christian to be engaged in.

And I don’t think the question will be so much on “What did you do?” or “What didn’t you do?” because Paul says that, “I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing unclean in itself” (14:14). Instead, if I’m getting Romans 14, the questions will be, “Why did you do that? What were you thinking?” . . . “Who else did it impact?” . . . “What was the impact to My kingdom on earth?” (14:17) . . . “Did it make for peace and build up others or did it tear down?” (14:19) . . . “Did it strengthen your brother or sister in Christ, or did it trip them up and weaken them?” (14:21) . . . . “Did you really think it through and seek the Spirit’s mind — were you fully convinced in your own mind about this action?” (14:5) . . . “Were you just thinking about yourself or were you living for the Lord?” (14:8) . . . “Did you allow what you consider good to be spoken of as evil?” (14:16).

Oh, how I need to be thoughtful about what I choose to engage in and the implications for others. It’s not about something being right or wrong . . . it’s about recognizing that I am not to live for myself . . . but for the Lord . . . and for others. God first, others second, me a distant third. That’s what I think the judgment seat of Christ is going to be probing . . . selfishness will be exposed. How thoughtful I was . . . or wasn’t . . . in pursuing a course of action will be brought to light. The degree to which I acted “by faith” in going into “disputable territory” will be revealed and “whatever is not from faith” will be declared sin. (14:23).

In this grey space some will do and some won’t . . . some will eat and drink and some won’t . . . but the acid test before the judgment seat of Christ will be whether or not we prayerfully considered the grey space before Christ and were fully convinced in our minds about our action. Did we consider its impact on brothers and sisters who we thought might would struggle in this grey space . . . did we place priority on things which made for peace and edified other believers or did we knowingly risk stumbling a fellow Christian.

Navigating the grey space . . . tough stuff . . . no easy answers . . . but, some pretty sound principles . . . because I hang in community with some pretty amazing people . . . those redeemed by some pretty amazing grace . . . all for the glory of a pretty amazing God.

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To Him Who Rides

Posted on March 21, 2013 by Pete

That God has always had His enemies is clear from the beginning. That those who oppose Him should oppose His people is attested to throughout history. But that God is also a warrior is just as clear. Though He is gracious and longsuffering toward men, when it is time to do battle He will enter the fray . . . and He will always emerge victorious. And, as the people who rest under His banner, we are to arise and exult Him who does battle on our behalf . . . we are to lift our voices to Him who leads His people in triumphant procession . . . we are to ascribe power and majesty to Him who is the victor . . . we are to sing praises to Him who rides.

Sing to God, sing praises to His name;
     lift up a song to Him who rides through the deserts;
His name is the LORD;
     exult before Him!
O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God;
     sing praises to the Lord, Selah
   to Him who rides in the heavens, the ancient heavens;
     behold, He sends out His voice, His mighty voice.     (Psalm 68:4, 32-33 ESV)

As I read this psalm this morning what catches my attention is that my God rides. He rides through the deserts . . . He rides in the heavens. And what am I do with a God who rides? Sing to God . . . sing praises to Him . . . exult His name . . . and listen for His mighty voice.

It is the image of a victor. A conquering warrior mounted upon a mighty steed. He is the one in the front of the parade. Behind Him are those He has led into battle . . . enjoying the spoils of victory. Behind Him are a host of captives following in His train . . . those who have bowed to His might . . . those who attest to His glory. And the Victor, surrounded by a throng of His people, is to be praised.

And it’s the contrast that grabs me. He rides through the deserts . . . He rides in the heavens. That He rides in the heavens is no surprise . . . He is the King of Heaven . . . He is the One seated upon the throne . . . there, the glory is visible . . . the victory is tangible . . . the majesty is unavoidable. That He rides in the desert, though perhaps not a surprise, is certainly a reason to pause in wonder and worship.

That He who inhabits the heavens would choose to descend in order to ride through the wilderness is awe-invoking. That He, whose domain is that of the worlds from which the universe was created, would touch down on this earth is amazing . . . that He would do so in order to redeem and lead out a people for Himself is beyond amazing. My God rides through the deserts . . . drawing to Himself those who are thirsty and beat up by the elements . . . leading those who, by faith, have entrusted themselves to following the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night . . . saving those who have bowed to Him from the harsh wilderness realities . . . blessing those who, by His grace, seek to follow Him with living water . . . able to satisfy all their needs.

Blessed be the Lord,
     who daily bears us up;
     God is our salvation. Selah
Our God is a God of salvation,
     and to GOD, the Lord, belong deliverances from death.
                                                                          (Psalm 68:19-20 ESV)

My God rides . . . as Deliverer from the desert . . . as Victor in the heavens. And mine is to pause long enough to consider such things . . . to meditate enough so that such things might seize my heart afresh . . . and to respond to such things with songs of praise.

To Him who rides be all glory! Amen?

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