A Besieged Communion

Posted on July 11, 2012 by Pete

Psalm 139 has got be among the Father’s most penetrating portions of His holy Word. As you read through this God-breathed song, it needs to be chewed on . . . slowly savored . . . taken in and turned over . . . the wonder of the intimate knowledge of God experienced . . . the implications considered. As I’m reading this morning the words “boxed in” come to mind . . . yeah, within this psalm a “besieged communion” is revealed.

David starts by articulating this acute awareness that nothing about him or in him is hidden from God . . .

O LORD, You have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, You know it altogether. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it. Where shall I go from Your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from Your presence?   (Psalm 139:1-7 ESV)

You sense that David is overwhelmed with the “inescapability” of God. He is hedged in, behind and before . . . talk about your confined spaces . . . talk about not having enough room to breath! The word “hedge” or “hem” is literally “to bind” or “to besiege” . . . “to confine” or “shut in”. Not the sort of state that I’d think I’d want to be in. At first, it’s not intuitive as to why any “free person” would want to be besieged or shut in.

But what’s amazing is that at the end of the Psalm David cries out, “More . . . bring it on!!!”

Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!  
(Psalm 139:23-24 ESV)

Far from trying to elbow his way to get more personal space . . . far from trying to escape God’s consuming presence to come up for a breath of air . . . David says, “Search me more . . . know me deeper.” Why? How can he desire this besieged life . . . why does He welcome God’s inescapable presence and familiarity with all He does?

It’s because that is how life is intended to be lived for God’s creation — in close, close concert with God the Maker. And that God is the Maker is evident. He formed my inward parts . . . knitted me together in my mother’s womb . . . I am fearfully and wonderfully made (v. 13-15). That God is the Director of our lives is just as clear. Seeing my unformed substance . . . before I breathed a single breath . . . He recorded in a book every day that was formed for me (v. 16). I can’t even imagine how vast the sum is of the thoughts God has concerning me . . . “how precious are Your thoughts to me!” (v.17)

That is life and life to the full . . . to live in besieged communion with the One who formed us . . . who made us uniquely according to His one-of-a-kind design . . . who has written in His “to do” book all of our “to do’s”. Think about it!! No wonder David cries out, “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high, I cannot attain it.” (139:6)

I was made to live in Him . . . I was formed to be enveloped in His knowledge and His presence and His divine direction. Though I once was lost . . . outside of His will . . . dead to His care . . . praise God! now I am found . . . alive to Him through a born-again soul interacting through the indwelling Holy Spirit . . . and I can’t escape Him!! Nor do I want to. Search me O God . . . know me . . . hem me in . . . be my air . . . be my daily sustaining food . . . try me . . . test me . . . show me that which displeases You . . . lead me in the way everlasting.

O blessed hedge of God . . . blessed confinement . . . nothing makes me more free nor more complete than this blessed besieged communion.

Search me O’ God . . . for my benefit . . . for Your glory!! Amen!

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Still on the Bike

Posted on July 10, 2012 by Pete

Paul had been forced to let them solo long before he had wanted. They had just barely gotten on the bike before the apostle was forced to kick up the training wheels and let them sputter and weave down the road on their own. He had only been allowed a few weeks with the Thessalonians to “onboard” them into the kingdom of light and it’s implications for living . . . and then he was run out of town. But though these beloved saints were out of sight, they were far from out of mind. And so Paul, because he could no longer bear not knowing, sent Timothy to the Thessalonians to learn about their faith.

For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain.   (1Thessalonians 3:5 ESV)

Paul wanted to know about their faith. And I think it was less about whether or not they could echo back the teaching they had received during those few short weeks Paul had taught them . . . less about whether or not they still confessed Jesus as Savior . . . but more about whether what they had been taught, and about Whom they had believed, was being manifested in how they lived . . . a lot about, in the midst of the certain affliction they were experiencing because they owned Christ as Savior, whether or not they were “keepin’ on keepin’ on.”

Paul wanted to hear from Timothy that what these Thessalonians had professed to believe was evident in how they went about day-to-day life.

The Spirit makes it so clear through Paul, that the fruit of the gospel goes far beyond the rescue from the judgment of sins . . . though, if that were the gospel’s only benefit, we would eternally thank and praise Him for such a great rescue. But, beyond redemption, the gospel opens the way for living as a new creation in Christ (2Cor. 5:17) . . . for walking in a manner that has eternal significance . . . for doing everyday life in a way that brings the God of heaven pleasure and manifests, in some small way, His glory. Paul wanted to know about their faith.

His fear was that the potential of the gospel might be compromised by the enemy. That the tempter might have have seduced these believers . . . if not to abandon the faith, then to at least go underground and avoid some of the heat. If not to reject Christ, then, in order to take the easy and prosperous way, live as those who had. “After all,” the snake’s voice whispers in their ears, “You’re in . . . but no need to be radical about it. Go with the flow and it will be easier. Look after yourself first . . . pursue the treasure you can see . . . ” If, after receiving the gospel, these believers did not walk in a manner worthy of God, Paul would have considered his labor in vain.

We sell our salvation short if it’s just about a profession and not about a purpose . . . if it’s just about church on Sunday and not about Christ 24/7 . . . if it’s something for our future but doesn’t make much of a difference now.

Oh that we, as God’s people, would live out our faith by His enabling grace. That as we grow in our knowledge of the faith, that the reality of what we believe would be manifest in how we process this world and how we respond to it in our lives. That we would live as citizens of a different land . . . that our values and priorities might be aligned to a different culture . . . that what we do would so backup what we profess.

That, should Paul have sent Timothy to learn of our faith, Tim could report back, “They’re doing well . . . they’re still on the bike . . . still weaving a bit as they go down the road . . . but their faith’s the real deal . . . by God’s grace . . . and for God’s glory . . . “

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Priming the Pump

Posted on July 9, 2012 by Pete

How is it that two people can be sitting in the same pew (or row of chairs) . . . on the same Sunday . . . listening to the same sermon . . . and one comes away dry . . . and the other leaves the building jazzed? How is it that some people open their Bible and yawn their way through their daily reading . . . while others enthusiastically engage the Word as if on a treasure hunt? Probably a number of reasons . . . but one jumps out at me as I continue reading in 1Thessalonians this morning.

And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.  
(1Thessalonians 2:13 ESV)

It makes a difference, it seems, how we approach the word of God. While nothing changes the fact that the Word is “living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb. 4:12), it does seem that the Word’s effectiveness is related to how the hearer, or the reader, engages with it.

Paul says that the Word “is at work” or “puts forth power” in believers. Believer . . . less, I think, about what someone calls themselves . . . and more about what someone brings to the Holy Scriptures . . . bringing a starting presupposition that to open the Word, or to have the Word open to them, is to stand on holy ground . . . coming to the table with a forgone conclusion that the entirety of the Scripture they are about to receive is God breathed . . . priming the pump, as it were, with seeds of faith, believing that God’s word will accomplish God’s purpose when sown in good soil.

The Word doesn’t become true because we want to believe it’s true . . . it’s already the Truth. But when the power of the Truth gets unleashed is when God’s word is engaged with as the word of God.

Paul brought the living, life changing word of God to the city of Thessalonica . . . material capable of divine combustion. Some in the crowds Paul spoke to brought ears to hear . . . hearts ready to receive . . . an expectation that they were listening to God Himself through the Word . . . they brought faith . . . just a spark was all that was required. Mix the spark with the fuel and you have KA-BLAM! The gospel explodes on the scene . . . “not only in word, but also in power and the Holy Spirit” (1Thess. 1:8). Ordinary people receive the supernatural Word and they become children of God — both in form and in function . . . they become imitators of Christ . . . their faith grows . . . their testimony shows . . . and it all starts with priming the pump with a belief that the word of God is THE WORD of God.

Years and years ago, I was taught the importance of doing my part when it came to the Word of God. When the word is preached, mine is to actively engage with the message and discerningly interact with it as the Word of God proclaimed and explained. When I open my Bible in the morning, I should come expectantly . . . less concerned about making headway in my reading plan, but anticipating a close encounter of the divine kind . . . the psalmist’s prayer should be my passion, “Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law” (Ps. 119:18).

I prime the pump with expectant faith . . . He fuels the fire with the Word . . . and the Spirit illuminates the secrets of the kingdom with power.

And the outcome, by God’s grace, is a life a bit more conformed to the image of Christ . . .

For His glory . . .

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Serve and Wait

Posted on July 6, 2012 by Pete

They were examples. They were known throughout the region, and beyond, for their “work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” When the gospel had come to town, it had come in power . . . and when those in Thessalonica, whom God had chosen, heard the word, the word changed them big time. Though it would come with a certain amount of persecution and affliction, the joy of the Holy Spirit propelled them to dive head first into the implications of the gospel . . . into the realities of the kingdom of light . . . into the world of new creations and new things. And though they were pretty new to the faith and had a lot to learn, they “fast tracked” by becoming imitators of Paul . . . and, as they learned more about Jesus, doing what Jesus would do.

They were an example to all the believers. And I guess I’d do well to heed their example. Paul summed them up this way . . .

. . . you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.   (1Thessalonians 1:9b-10 ESV)

Talk about your revival! Paul had only been in Thessalonica a few short weeks (Acts 17:1-10) . . . but during that the time the word was preached . . . the Spirit descended . . . darkness gave way to light . . . idol worship gave way to idol bonfires . . . and a number of born again people started turning their worlds upside down . . . so much so that their reputation was spoken “everywhere.” And all because the Spirit of God moved in them to determine “to serve the living and true God and to wait for His Son from heaven.” Serve and wait . . . not a bad motto to seek to live by.

These sinners made saints traded their chains of bondage to the world and to the flesh for a new type of liberating slavery . . . becoming servants of the true and living God and slaves to righteousness. Their Savior was also their Master. Though they had received the free gift of salvation, they also understand that the gift had come at a great cost . . . they had been bought with a price . . . they were no longer their own . . . they were His redeemed possession (1Cor. 6:19-20). And so they would submit and they would serve . . . a work of faith . . . a labor of love.

And all with an eye to the sky. Oh, how they anticipated meeting God’s Son from heaven. They waited for the One who said He was going to prepare a place for them and promised to return for them so “that where I am you may be also” (John 14:1-3). They imagined what it would be like to have their eyes of faith give way to that first face-to-face encounter . . . to move from sensing His presence through the Sprit to beholding Jesus up close and personal. Having been delivered from the power of sin, they couldn’t wait to be delivered from the presence of sin. And, until then, they would serve.

Encountering the Master as they sought His will and walked in His ways increased the anticipation of being with Him. And the anticipation fueled the desire to be found faithful and to continue to faithfully be about the Master’s business. Heavenly service fed the longing for home . . . expecting Jesus’ imminent return spurred on the passion to lay up treasures in heaven.

Examples to all believers . . . that’s what the Thessalonians are . . .

Serve and wait . . . Wait and serve . . . by God’s grace . . . for God’s glory . . . amen?

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So Not Intuitive

Posted on July 5, 2012 by Pete

I think it must have separated their heads from their shoulders . . . I can see them doing the classic double-take snap of the head as they exclaim, “What?!?” Their brows are furled . . . they are scratching their heads . . . it just does not compute. They had been following Him for about two years . . . during that time they had left everything . . . and they had seen Him do amazing things . . . and they couldn’t help but be wondering, “What sort of man is this?” And just when they thought they were starting to get it . . . just when they were starting to see the picture that all the pieces, when put together, was forming . . . then He drops the bombshell . . .

Then He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered, “The Christ of God.” And He strictly charged and commanded them to tell this to no one, saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”   (Luke 9:20-22 ESV)

Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record this wondrous declaration by Peter . . . and pair it with, what must have been, this mind-blowing revelation by Jesus. Once the disciples had started to get who Jesus was, Jesus then began to teach them that He must suffer and die and rise again. Personally, I don’t think they heard the “rise again” part . . . especially the first time that Jesus told them.

Think about it . . . the lights were finally starting to go on. This man they had been following was anything but “just a man” . . . He was the Christ of God . . . the Anointed . . . the Messiah . . . the Son of God. That was the only explanation for how He could teach with such authority . . . the only conclusion as to how He could know all that He knew about those around Him . . . the only rationale as to where the power came from which allowed Him to perform such miracles. It had to be Him . . . the promised One . . . the heir to David’s throne . . . the hope of Israel. Can you imagine the joy that came over them the very first time they articulated that Jesus must be the Christ. Horns start blaring . . . confetti and streamers start falling . . . the crowd of angels in unseen heavenly balconies are going nuts with applause and cheering, “Yes!!! They’re getting it!!! Did you hear them? . . . they starting to see it . . . they beginning to believe it . . . they said it . . . He is the Christ of God!”

And then . . . smack down! . . . dowse the flame with water . . . snatch away the candy from the baby . . . the Son of Man must suffer . . . be rejected . . . be killed . . . and again, I don’t think they even heard the rise again part.

There’s no way they could have made sense of it. How could the Promise they had been waiting centuries for be rejected? How could the Son of God suffer at the hands of men? How could Messiah die?

And I’m sitting here . . . on the other side of the cross . . . with the Spirit that raised Him from the dead residing within me, illuminating afresh to me this ancient conversation . . . and I’m in wonder as well. How, apart from the Sovereign purposes of grace, does this make any sense at all?

This is so not intuitive . . .

But behold, this is the love of God! . . . this is the good news! . . . this is my salvation!

That Jesus, the Christ of God, would come first as the Lamb of God . . . rejected . . . suffering at the hands of men . . . crucified by those He came to save . . . in order to atone for the sin of all men and women . . . in order to provide a path of reconciliation with God for all who would believer . . . in order to redeem that which was lost.

O, what a Savior!

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Who Am I?

Posted on July 4, 2012 by Pete

It’s a scene that captures my imagination. David’s all alone. If I’m understanding it correctly, he’s entered the tent where the ark is. The tent of animal skins that’s in the shadow of David’s magnificent “house of cedar” . . . the tent that David wanted to upgrade that he might build a house fitting for the glory of God to dwell . . . the tent that God says, “Leave it alone . . . you’re not going to build me a house . . . instead, I will build you a house . . . establishing your throne forever through your descendants” (1Chron. 17:1-15). So David goes into the tent . . . and, it says, he “sat before the Lord”.

One commentary I read says that David’s sitting was probably more what we would consider to be squatting. Makes sense . . . don’t think there was a chair made for the holy place. So I imagine David kind of squatted down . . . sitting on his heels . . . perhaps with his arms around his shins . . . chin tucked into his knees . . . staring hard at the ark of covenant set before him . . . considering deeply the cherubim overshadowing the mercy seat . . . in awe and wonder that he is permitted to approach the holy presence of God. He takes a position of humility . . . the king lowering himself before THE KING . . . the sovereign showing respect to THE SOVEREIGN . . . the blessee bowing before the Blessor.

And quietly he reflects . . . recalling his past . . . considering his present . . . trying to take in what God has promised concerning his future.

And then he whispers into the air . . . speaking toward the dwelling place of God’s glory . . . addressing the LORD who desires to be in the midst of His people . . .

“Who am I, O LORD God, and what is my house, that You have brought me thus far? And this was a small thing in Your eyes, O God. You have also spoken of your servant’s house for a great while to come, and have shown me future generations, O LORD God! And what more can David say to You for honoring your servant? For You know Your servant.”   (1Chronicles 17:16-18 ESV)

Who am I, O LORD . . . and why have You chosen to show me such favor? That such grace would be extended to this shepherd is beyond comprehension. That he who was nothing, would now be king is unbelievable. God, You know Your servant . . . and even in light of that, You have determined to establish his throne forever . . . in spite of his past failures . . . apart from the “crashing and burning” he is yet to do. Who am I, O Lord? What more can I say concerning the wonder of Your love and mercy and grace shown to me?

How can David’s words not be my own? Sure, the details are different . . . but the grace isn’t. It might be a different dispensation . . . but He’s the same God. I might sitting at my desk rather than squatting before the ark . . . but His holiness is just as present through the indwelling Spirit. Mine might not be a promised throne . . . but I’ve been made a joint heir with Him whose throne will be established throughout eternity.

Doesn’t take a lot of noodling before the blessings that I have known by the grace of God come rushing to mind like a great river . . . just a bit of quietness and meditation and the awe-o-meter swings hard to the right . . . only a few minutes in the presence of God considering the promises of God and I can’t help but utter, “Who am I, O LORD God?”

Thank God that it’s not about “who am I?” . . . but all about “Who are You!”

To God alone be all glory . . .

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A Big Deal

Posted on July 3, 2012 by Pete

Some, I sense, view it as the “prelim’s” . . . as the “opening act” before the “headliner” . . . as the five minute warning that the conversation should be wrapped up or the coffee gulped down. For others it’s twenty or twenty-five or thirty minutes a week that are eagerly anticipated . . . a unique opportunity to come together with others of like mind and sing together with common voice. For some it’s just “the song service” which opens the meeting . . . for others it’s an offering . . . the fruit of their lips . . . a sacrifice of praise. For King David, it was a big deal!

I’m reading in 1Chronicles this morning. David has brought the ark of the covenant into Jerusalem . . . with precision, just as God had commanded it should be transported (15:15) . . . with pomp and pageantry (15:16) . . . and with lots and lots and lots of praise (15:28-29). To have the seat of God’s glory dwelling again in the midst of His people was something to be celebrated. To have the holiness of God resident was a reminder of His covenant with His people. To have the presence of God among them was a catalyst to rejoice in the fruit of His wondrous salvation.

After setting the ark inside the tent that David had pitched for it, David surrounds the ark with Levites specifically tasked to minister before the ark with music. Asaph & Co. are charged “to play harps and lyres . . . to sound cymbals . . . to blow trumpets regularly before the ark of the covenant of God” . . . they are to minister before the ark of the LORD, “to invoke, to thank, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel” . . . “that thanksgiving be sung to the LORD” (16:4-7). Kind of big deal. You sense that “when God’s in the house” it’s only fitting that the house be filled with worship.

Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength! Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; bring an offering and come before Him! Worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness.   
(1Chronicles 16:28-20 ESV)

Ascribe . . . come, set before the LORD . . . give an offering . . . provide to the LORD . . . the sound of music . . . the melodies of praise . . . the songs of worship.

Yeah, but that’s Old Testament. True, but check out what I also read in Colossians this morning . . .

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.   (Colossians 3:16 ESV)

It’s what believers should do when they come together . . . when two or three are gathered in His name and He is in their midst . . . when focus on God leads to thankfulness to God. If we are set on having the word of God dwell richly in us then we shouldn’t be surprised when a flash mob breaks out in the singing of spiritual songs . . . when hearts are moved to spontaneously combust in melodic declarations of God’s great salvation . . . when His people can’t help but ascribe to the LORD the glory due His name.

Far from a prelim it’s a privilege. Not just an optional part of the Sunday morning program but a call to acknowledge the person and work of the God of our salvation. An opportunity to step upon holy ground and worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness. Our holiness, as we are robed in garments of righteousness provided through the blood of Christ and worn as we are in Him. His holiness . . . the essence of His character . . . the glory of His person.

Yeah, for King David it was a big deal. How about for me?

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Dependence Day

Posted on June 29, 2012 by Pete

On vacation during the latter part of the week . . . back in the “homeland” for a wedding . . . sleeping in a bit later . . . taking it a bit easier . . . so as I finished my reading plan this morning I went back to some past thoughts and found this one from 2009. Came across the following . . . thought it might be worthy recycling . . .

I always try and keep a few days ahead of my reading plan. So, as I note that my readings today are actually “scheduled” for July 4 it hits me as a bit ironic . . . and causes me to wonder if the reading planners didn’t set this up on purpose . . .

In just a few days it’ll be that day of the year where, here in the USA, the bombs will once again be bursting in air . . . and all around there will be rockets casting forth their red glare . . . and, what seems like a gazillion dollars will go up on smoke. You gotta love the bit of craziness that grips this land on July 4, Independence Day. There is something about the human spirit and independence that connects . . . you see it the first time you kick up the training wheels on the little kid’s bike (assuming they don’t then crash and burn) . . . you felt it big time when you got your license and could start driving yourself around. But be honest, with independence comes a whole new set of anxieties . . . I remember moving out of the house into my first apartment and wondering if I’d know how to the pay the bills. However, you gotta admit, in general most people love to strive for, and maintain, their independence.

So, on the verge of “the fourth” and a great celebration of independence, it’s a little ironic that Psalm 127 would be one of the scheduled readings . . . it’s focus is anything but independence . . . in fact, it celebrates “dependence day.”

Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stay awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for He gives to His beloved sleep. (Ps. 127:1-2 ESV)

Not too difficult to pick up what Solomon’s layin’ down . . . not hard to catch what he’s throwing . . . only takes a few minutes of meditation to receive what he’s sending. Build a house? Great! Guard a city? Noble task . . . knock yourself out. Get up early . . . go to bed late . . . work hard to put food on the table . . . just do it! But do it apart from the Lord and, in the end, it’s vanity . . . empty . . . of no lasting value. Do it apart from the Lord, and that bread which should taste so good is eaten with sorrow and anxiety and worry about making sure there’s more of it around for tomorrow. Such is independence . . . my work, my house . . . my city, I’ll protect it . . . my 24 hours in a day, I’ll labor through most of it and worry through the rest . . . my food, I’ll choke on it.

It’s not that we shouldn’t build the house or guard the city or work hard at whatever task our hand finds to do . . . but to do it apart from a dependence on LORD? . . . well, that’s just dumb . . . not to mention, just plain wearisome. But to those whose “Master Contractor” is the Lord . . . to those who keep a watchful eye with the knowledge that God is never “off duty” . . . to those who work but trust that the Lord gives the increase . . . there is rest . . . “for so He gives His beloved sleep.”

God gives a rest to those who depend upon Him. The writer to the Hebrews says it too . . .

So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from His. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest . . .   (Heb. 4:9-11b ESV)

I have depended on Him for my salvation . . . I have depended on Him for the building of my house . . . I have depended on Him to guard that which I’ve committed to Him . . . I have depended on Him for my daily bread. And in that, by His grace and through His abiding presence, I have rested in the rest of the redeemed because He is dependable . . . He is faithful . . . He is trustworthy.

Isn’t that worth letting off a few fireworks over . . . praise God for dependence day!

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Love Much?

Posted on June 28, 2012 by Pete

Luke 7:36-50 records what has to be one of the most dramatic . . . one of the most stirring . . . one of the most convicting episodes in the life of Jesus. Altogether . . . in one room . . . you have the righteous, upper-class Pharisee . . . you have a woman who is a known sinner (aka harlot) . . . and you have the young, traveling Rabbi from Nazareth who’s creating quite a stir with His open displays of healing, His radical teaching concerning the kingdom, and His blasphemous claims that He, like God, can forgive sins. Three people . . . all in one room . . . with a host seated at the table around them . . . and the drama plays out . . .

The Pharisee and the Rabbi are eating . . . enter the woman . . . and far from trying to avoid the limelight and hide in the shadows and look at the One she knew to be Messiah from afar . . . she, instead, walks up behind Jesus . . . starts crying — overcome with her sinful condition and her need of help . . . and she kneels and allows her tears to fall on Jesus’ feet . . . and then, using her long, beautiful hair — the hair which she had used to lure many a man into sin — she washes the dust from His feet. And, as if she hasn’t made enough of a scene yet, she then kisses the feet of Jesus . . . and then anoints them with fragrant oil. No one around that table is unaware of what’s going on . . . all their senses have been engaged in this spectacle . . . they have seen her . . . that have heard her cry . . . they have smelled the perfume, perhaps even tasting it as it wafts through the room . . . the only thing they haven’t done is touch her . . . that will be left to Jesus.

The Pharisee is indignant and says to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him. She’s a sinner!” And “this Man” is a prophet . . . and He knows what His “righteous host” is thinking and so He addresses it with a simple parable. “”A man loaned money to two people–500 pieces of silver to one and 50 pieces to the other. But neither of them could repay him, so he kindly forgave them both, canceling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that?” Bam!!! That’s the million dollar question!!! There’s the whole point of this Divinely ordained coming together of these 3 people . . . an object lesson leading to a penetrating question . . . a question that rocks the complacent heart!

The Pharisee, though saying he was inviting Jesus as a guest into his home, did not offer the customary water to clean His feet. Though pretending to welcome Him to his table, the Pharisee offered Him no kiss or other sign of greeting. Though he appeared to exalt Jesus as the guest of honor at his table, the Pharisee did not offer any oil for the anointing of his honoree. The sinner woman, on the other hand, washed Jesus’ feet with her tears . . . and then humbled herself and exalted Him by kissing His feet . . . and then, at great personal expense, honored Him by anointing those feet with fragrant oil. The point of it all? “A person who is forgiven much, loves much . . . but to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.”

And you can’t help but read this story and ask yourself . . . who am I in this drama? Am I the one that knows he has been forgiven much and therefore loves much? Or, am I the one who loves little because I have lost sight of the depths of the sin within me that, at one time, separated me from God? Do I give Jesus lip-service and desire only to encounter Him “across the table” . . . or am I pressed to reach out and worshipfully touch Him in the depths of humility?

Oh that I might know afresh the depths of the demonstrated love of God .  . . and not diminish the high cost paid that I might be forgiven of a debt I could not pay . . .

. . . oh, that I might love much.

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HBaR

Posted on June 27, 2012 by Pete

Some people go to school and work very, very hard to achieve the right to put certain letters behind their name. To be able to put designations such as MD or PhD or MBA or MDiv behind one’s name indicates something of the effort and work that has been put into meeting an accredited standard. It’s also a pretty good indicator of what roles an individual should be capable of filling. This morning as I continue to read in Colossians, I realize afresh that, although I’ve never graduated from a degreed program, I do have my own designation . . . there’s a set of letters I can put behind my name . . . may I introduce to you Peter J. Corak, HBaR.

And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, He has now reconciled in His body of flesh by His death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before Him . . .   (Colossians 1:21-22 ESV)

Holy, Blameless, above Reproach . . . HBaR

Thing is about this designation is that there wasn’t anything I could do to earn it. Of myself, I wasn’t able even to enter the program . . . didn’t want to, in fact. I was a stranger to the subject matter . . . and what I thought I knew about it, I resisted . . . sometimes mocked it . . . more than once derided it. I would have far rather pursued the ways of this world than have registered (even if I could have) for an HBaR designation.

But while I didn’t want it . . . couldn’t afford to enter the program . . . and had no hope of achieving the designation based on my own capability . . . I had a Benefactor who had determined, before the world began, that those letters would go behind my name.

He paid the full tuition price . . . through the blood of His cross. He wrote the entrance exam for me . . . acing it . . . perfect score . . . spotless, without any defect. He recruited me . . . don’t know why . . . but gently, persistently, He drew my heart towards the program . . . opened my eyes to the prize. And then, although I am so far from being finished all the course work, He conferred upon me the designation HBaR . . . with the promise that what He declared to be true “positionally” He would one day make to be true “practically” . . . Holy . . . Blameless . . . above Reproach.

Amazing designation . . . not because of who I am, but because of what He’s done . . . not because of what I’ve done, but because of who He is.

Amazing grace . . . how sweet the sound . . . that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now am found . . . was blind, but now I see.

Talk about your transformation . . . about going from one end of the spectrum to the other . . . about ending up in a spot that is so, so different from where you started. Isn’t that the glory of the gospel?

Oh, what a Savior . . . to Him be all glory . . . and honor and praise!

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