A Crick in My Neck

Posted on September 26, 2011 by Pete

So what would that have been like? Sure, seeing was believing, but I’m wondering if they couldn’t believe what they were seeing. They thought they had lost Him to death . . . only to again encounter Him again as the foretold resurrected Christ . . . only then to, in a sense, lose Him again in the clouds . . . though, this time their “loss” didn’t result in mourning but in worship. So what would it have been like to have been standing with the disciples at the moment when Jesus was carried up into heaven? Did they get a crick in their neck?

Then He led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up His hands He blessed them. While He blessed them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshiped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple blessing God. (Luke 24:50-53 ESV)

Those post-resurrection days were absolutely life altering for the disciples . . . and history changing for the world. So much of what they had been taught and had experienced while walking with Jesus’ through His three years of ministry must have come together in those days. That Jesus had died on that Roman cross was without dispute . . . but that He was alive and among them, was equally beyond argument.

During those days with the risen Christ, the Scriptures came together as they never had before. The risen Word of Life opened the Scriptures to them . . . and He opened their minds to the Scriptures . . . and, as a result, their hearts were never the same . . . they were set afire with the confirmation of revelation that their risen Master was indeed the One spoken of in “the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms” (24:32, 44-45).

And, during those days with the risen Christ, they were told of “next steps”. They were to wait “in the city until you are clothed with power from on high” . . . until Jesus had sent “the promise of my Father” upon them” (24:49). And then, as His witnesses, they were to take on a responsibility “that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem” (24:47-48).

I can’t imagine that they fully grasped what lay before them . . . what world changing impact they would have. But in that moment, it was less about the future, I think, and all about the present. And that period of post-resurrection fellowship and teaching culminated with them watching Him ascend through the clouds, knowing He was going home . . . perhaps remembering that He had promised it would be their home too. And as they looked up . . . I’m wondering . . . would they have developed a crick in their neck?

And so, they watched as He was carried up into heaven. Separated again . . . but knowing that He would always be present.

And then . . . they worshiped . . . they returned to Jerusalem with great joy . . . and were continually in the temple blessing God (24:52-53) . . . and perhaps, nursing a sore neck.

Oh, may I too develop a crick in my neck . . . as I take time to look up . . . “seeking the things that are above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God” . . . looking up, waaayy up . . . my mind fixed on the Ascended One . . . knowing that “when Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory” (Col. 3:1-4). And then might I worship . . . and rejoice with great joy . . . by His grace . . . and for His glory.

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Knowing the Presence While Clinging to the Promise

Posted on September 23, 2011 by Pete

Part way through Isaiah 63 you kind of get the sense that the prophet “hits the wall.” It’s been 63 chapters detailing the sin of Israel and God’s determination to judge them via the violence and oppression of the nations surrounding them. And too, of God’s righteous judgment upon those nations who, while being His rod of judgment on wayward Israel, would not escape His wrath for their arrogance and vile behaviors. And while it’s true that Isaiah is also given a vision of the mercy of God and the restoration of Israel, that he is informed of the promise of God to send His Holy Servant to redeem His people, he doesn’t really see that happen in his lifetime. Instead, he witnesses the destruction and the judgment of God. And then in Isaiah 63, he pauses, it seems, from being the oracle of God and instead turns his face upward and cries out in need of God . . . and it seems to get very personal.

“Look down from heaven and see, from Your holy and beautiful habitation. Where are Your zeal and Your might? The stirring of Your inner parts and Your compassion are held back from me.” (Isaiah 63:15 ESV)

At some point it’s hard for it not to become about us. While we know the promises of God . . . while we seek to rest in Him and trust Him and wait for Him, let’s not be surprised if there comes a time when we also find ourselves crying out, “Where are You? I know You’re up there . . . in Your holy and glorious dwelling place . . . but I need You to look down . . . or at least let me know You’re looking down.” We can know the promises of God, but sometimes we need to experience the presence of God. Isaiah knew that the Redeemer of Israel would eventually act on their behalf, He just wanted it now!!! And maybe not so much about acting on Israel’s behalf, but how about just a reminder that God cared for Isaiah?

Isaiah stood in the fiery ruins of what was once their holy and beautiful temple. He could look around and see that Zion was a wilderness and Jerusalem a desolation. All the physical glory of Israel was laid waste. (Isa. 64:10-11) He knew the promises of God . . . that one day He would restore all things . . . but, for right now, He just needed a bit of a reminder . . . he needed a bit of the presence of God.

Isn’t that what I need sometimes . . . a bit of presence while I wait for the promise? A reminder of God’s zeal and heart for me? Some touch from heaven that assures me of His promise that He will never leave me nor forsake me . . . so that I might confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not fear.” (Heb. 13:5b-6). And so, like Isaiah, I can find myself also crying out . . .

“Oh that You would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains might quake at your presence . . . ” (Isaiah 64:1 ESV)

Isaiah is so ready for the Mighty Redeemer of Israel to step on to the scene, intervene, and make things right. He has seen Him in His glory and might . . . now it’s time to “do it” . . . “Let’s get ready to rumble!!!” Isaiah is looking for the Glorious Appearing of Christ to once for all do battle with His enemies and set up His kingdom of righteousness here on earth.

And I’m reminded that God has come down . . . that the heavens have been breached in Jesus’ first coming . . . and through His death and resurrection the curtain to the Holy of Holies was rend from top to bottom . . . and the need for a “bit of presence” is entirely within my reach. Jesus . . . the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb. 13:8)

Sin has been judged . . . the sinner declared righteous by faith . . . heaven opened up . . . the Holy Spirit descended . . . and I can look up . . . and ask Him to look down and remind me of His thoughts to me . . . and through His Spirit inside me, know a bit of the presence. “The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God.” (Rom. 8:16)

Oh, that I would have ears to hear the Spirit within me . . . that I would keep the way open for His still small voice to speak . . . that I would know a bit of the presence . . . while I cling to the promise . . .

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Let Us

Posted on September 22, 2011 by Pete

Although Hebrews might be considered very doctrinal in nature . . . a lot of teaching . . . a lot of Old Testament context explained in the “better realities” of Christ . . . there’s a fair amount of “let us” as well. In light of such great truths, the writer repeatedly calls upon his readers to respond. “Let us strive to enter the rest” (4:11) . . .”let us draw near” (10:22) . . . “let us run with endurance” (12:1) . . . are just a a few of about a dozen calls to respond to great truth with fitting actions. Came across a couple more this morning in my reading . . .

“Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:28-29)

I’m reminded that I am receiving a kingdom. Not quite there yet, but I’m in line. By the blood of Jesus my “ticket” has been bought . . . my name is written on the RSVP’d list. With the eye of faith, and by the Spirit of God, I can see Mount Zion . . . the city of the living God . . . the heavenly Jerusalem, before me. I can envision an innumerable host of angels gathered in festal chorus . . . I know that there is an assembly of those who have already gone before me, who have already arrived and are registered . . . I see them as they bow before the throne . . . and, though I need to avert my gaze because of the unimaginable glory that shines forth, I catch a glimpse of God, the judge of all . . . and, in the midst, there is Jesus, the mediator of this blessed new covenant (12:22-24).

And the response? . . . the “let us”? I should be grateful that I’m receiving an unshakeable kingdom . . . I should, with reverence and awe, offer God acceptable worship.

Pretty easy to lose sight of the eternal. A lot going on down here . . . enough distraction for the day and then some . . . too many things vying for the hearts attention . . . sometimes a constant roller-coaster ride that ends up throwing you off balance and making you a bit sick to your stomach. Probably not a better time than, when the rides paused for a bit . . . and you’re staggering a bit trying to regain equilibrium, . . . to be reminded of the kingdom through His Word . . . to have your gaze directed again to the King. And then . . . be grateful . . . and then . . . worship.

Context . . . right? We deal with the stuff of the “here and now” in the light of the realities of the “there and then.” While our feet are on this earth, we’re reminded that we’ve also been seated together with Him in the heavenlies (Eph. 2:6) . . . and so we look to things above. While what’s in front of our noses is the agenda for the day, we are reminded that faith is substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen (Heb. 11:1 NKJV). And so . . . we gaze upon the city of God we’ll soon inhabit . . . and to it’s King . . . our mediator . . . our Shepherd . . . my Jesus . . . “and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.”

And then dear saint, let us be grateful . . . and let us worship . . . by His grace . . . and for His glory!

Let us! Amen?

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Through the Tears

Posted on September 21, 2011 by Pete

Tears have a way of clouding the vision. Often they make you want to close your eyes. They can become your sole focus as you concentrate on them flowing down your cheeks. But the word of God tells me this morning to look through the tears. Not to be ashamed of them . . . not suppress them . . . not ignore them . . . not pretend they never happened . . . but to look through them.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the Founder and Perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured from sinners such hostility against Himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.” (Hebrews 12:1-3 ESV)

Perhaps I’m taking it a bit out of context . . . but not too much, I think. For the previous 40 verses in chapter 11 I’ve been reminded of a host of saints who walked their walks by faith. Who stepped out in faith . . . who suffered in faith . . . who showed up everyday in faith. And, in light of such a “great cloud of witnesses”, I’m encouraged to “run with endurance” the race before me. Not a sprint, as I’ve been so frequently reminded . . . but a marathon. Though sometimes it’s run on nicely groomed, even tracks . . . other times it’s more like a mountainous cross-country trail with very limited ability to see what’s around the bend. Sometimes, it’s just plain hard. So hard, it brings you to tears. That’s when I need to look through the tears . . .

Looking to Jesus . . . turning my eyes away from other things and fixing them on Him alone.

He is the Founder and Perfect of my faith . . . the Lamb who purchased this lost soul with His own blood . . . the Shepherd who sought and found this lost sheep . . . the Risen Christ who, even now, is at the right hand of the God making intercession for me and those I feebly attempt to bring before the throne of grace. Look to Jesus . . . turn your eyes on Him . . . through the tears.

Consider Him . . . think Him over . . . ponder Him . . . focus on Him.

Consider His race . . . humbly coming to His own, yet rejected . . . a perfect man, yet condemned as a criminal . . . without sin, yet made sin for me. And so, He endured the cross . . . made nothing of the shame . . . all because of the joy that was set before Him. He too looked through His tears to the Father, saying, “Nevertheless not My will, but Yours be done.” Consider Him . . . through the tears.

Look to Jesus . . . consider Him . . . so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. Tears have a way of draining you. Looking through them . . . and seeing Jesus . . . has a way of reviving you. Maybe it doesn’t seem enough of a boost for the entire marathon, but it’s enough for the next leg . . . the day before you.

Father, I would see Jesus . . . through the tears . . . by Your grace . . . and for Your glory . . . amen.

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I Come

Posted on September 20, 2011 by Pete

It really is a pretty compelling invitation. Spend just a couple of minutes hovering over it, and though you might not strictly be within “the context” of the invite, the Spirit within you testifies that the envelope that carries this request for “the favor of your presence” is addressed with your name on it. Your circumstance isn’t exactly what was originally addressed, but somehow you know that the application to your situation is just as real. And so, there it is . . . one word . . . four letters . . . the Master requests of you, “Come!”

“Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to Me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, My steadfast, sure love for David.” (Isaiah 55:1-3 ESV)

In the day, it was an offer to a rebellious people who had known severe discipline for their spiritual adultery. It was an overture to a people who had rejected the living God for goofy graven images made of wood and stone . . . who had learned the hard way that idols don’t deliver. Their judgment had been used as a means to purify them . . . to burn away the confused thinking . . . to point them again to the God of their fathers . . . to set their eyes again upon the One who had called them . . . to ready them for the invitation, “Come!”

What little life-investing currency and resources they had, they had wasted on stuff that didn’t satisfy, but now the offer was before them. Though spiritually bankrupt, they could buy without money . . . they could invest though they had no resource of their own. Available to them was water for the thirsty . . . wine and milk and bread for the famished. The promise was theirs to be appropriated, “Eat what is good . . . delight yourself in the food that satisfies . . . consume without measure that which makes the soul come alive. And be filled by His everlasting covenant . . . a forever feast . . . catered by heaven itself . . . sourced in the steadfast, sure love and compassion of God Himself.”

It doesn’t have to be idolatry . . . there are other things that can distract me . . . other dynamics that cause me to take a detour on “Self Sufficient Highway.” It could be a trial . . . change and uncertainty . . . some hard stuff that’s in the way. Or, it might even be a victory . . . a success . . . a patch of road with no potholes where I think I’m capable of taking the wheel. Either one has the potential to drain my soul’s bank account on attitudes and efforts that leave the Father out of the picture and invest in that which doesn’t satisfy. Precious internal resource wasted on worry . . . or, valuable gifts wasted on self-serving pride . . . neither satisfies . . . both will drain the account. Time to hear the Father’s invitation, “Come!”

For me . . . today . . . it’s the trial. The world’s been rocked a bit . . . thinks aren’t what they were . . . my assumptions about the future have been rattled . . . more questions than answers . . . easier to worry than to pray . . . easier to look out over a cloudy horizon than to look up to my unchanging God. And, by His grace, through these ancient words I hear, “Come. Come and buy of Me.” And I hear too the words of the blessed Son of God, “Come. Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 29:11).

Mine is to RSVP . . . to respond in the affirmative . . . to feebly seek to avail myself of the resources of heaven . . . offered freely by the God of grace . . . made available through the blood of His Son . . . infused and made real by the Spirit who indwells.

Just as I am, without one plea . . . But that Thy blood was shed for me . . .
  And that Thou bidd’st me come to Thee . . . O Lamb of God I come! I come!
Just as I am, tho tossed about . . . With many a conflict, many a doubt . . .
  Fightings and fears within, without . . . O Lamb of God, I come! I come!

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A Nomination

Posted on September 19, 2011 by Pete

It was a pretty bold move. Bold because it required him to go directly to Pilate . . . bold because he had already been a dissenting voice on the decision and the action . . . bold because he was taking a stand that, if discovered, would not be popular. And, as I read the brief account by Luke on Joseph’s bold move, a phrase captures my attention . . . a phrase which I think indicates he was a saved man . . . and a phrase which I think demonstrates that he’s also Hebrews 11 material.

“Now there was a man named Joseph, from the Jewish town of Arimathea. He was a member of the council, a good and righteous man, who had not consented to their decision and action; and he was looking for the kingdom of God. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then he took it down and wrapped it in a linen shroud and laid Him in a tomb cut in stone, where no one had ever yet been laid.” (Luke 24:50-53 ESV)

Joseph had believed Jesus . . . and so, he was looking for the kingdom of God . . . and, even though he couldn’t make any sense of what had just happened on the cross, he was compelled to boldly step out and honor Jesus in the way available to him. What a dead Messiah had to do with the kingdom of God was probably a bit beyond him, and yet he acted. Talk about faith? Talk about my nomination to make Joseph an honorary member of the Hebrews 11 “Hall of Faith.” He had the same stuff . . . check this out . . .

“These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared for them a city.” (Hebrews 11:13-16 ESV)

There is something about believing that this world is not the final answer . . . that beyond this time and space there is a kingdom . . . a city prepared by God . . . a better country to be part of . . . a heavenly citizenship to embrace. And, it seems, when that clicks, the fire of faith is fueled and bold acts follow. And that’s the stuff of the examples listed in Hebrews 11 . . . great men and women of faith . . . not just believing faith but bold, taking action faith.

Faith doesn’t necessarily mean we’ll fully understand the whys . . . doesn’t necessarily mean that “we’ll win” . . . doesn’t necessarily promise a happy ending (this side of heaven). But, when through Spirit of God, and by the grace of God, we become wired to look for the kingdom . . . to seek for the homeland . . . to desire a better country . . . then, I’m thinking, it affects our decision making and action taking here and now.

It sure did with Joseph. It would have been the simplest and least risky thing just to walk away with the rest of the crowd after the execution. Or, at the very least, have “stood at a distance” with the other followers of Jesus (24:49). But no. Instead, even though he didn’t make a big show of it (John 19:38), he took a step forward from the rest of the line . . . a courageous step forward . . . compelled to honor this Jesus Whom he had come to believe in . . . and boldly asked for His body . . . and buried it in a tomb that others would know was his. And so, Joseph of Arimathea is my nomination this morning for consideration to be inducted into the “Hall of Faith” . . .

By faith, Joseph exalted Christ even in His death, because he looked for a kingdom, the kingdom of God. Amen?

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The Comer

Posted on September 16, 2011 by Pete

I’m thinking it’s true that everyone lives life within some context. There is a big picture view held by every person which acts as a filter when working through and processing the details of life. Even if it’s a belief of unbelief . . . . that there is no big picture . . . even that view becomes, in itself, an overarching framework for concluding that whatever happens occurs for no reason or purpose other than “stuff happens.” So, what causes me to wax philosophical (sorta’) this morning? It is the consideration of the context of “The Comer” . . .

“For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. For, ‘Yet a little while, and the Coming One will come and will not delay; but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.’ But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.” (Hebrews 10:36-39 ESV)

The writer to the Hebrews is contending for their faith. It would seem that some who had embraced Jesus as Messiah were wavering . . . the price they were having to pay was causing second thoughts to emerge. And so the author of this letter has launched into a masterful treatise of the superiority of Christ over all things which formed the foundation of the Jewish faith. Christ is a better way of communicating to man by God . . . He is better than the angels . . . better than Moses . . . a better high priest . . . a better covenant . . . a better sacrifice . . . a better access for God’s people into the very presence of God.

Therefore, says the writer, given that we have confidence to enter the most holy place by the blood of Jesus and given we have a great Priest over the house of God . . . let us draw near . . . let us hold fast . . . let us stir one another up . . . “and all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (10:16-25). There it is! There’s the big picture . . . the context . . . the eternal filter for working through the day to day details . . . “you see the Day drawing near.” And again, in verse 37, “Yet a little while, and the Coming One will come and will not delay.”

The Comer will come. That’s the context . . . that’s the big picture . . . that’s the filter through which I try and do life.

Jesus is coming soon. In a little while the things of earth will give way to the glories of the Kingdom of Heaven. That’s the end game . . . whether it happens in my lifetime or not, doesn’t really matter. Regardless, I can live life in the context of that victorious reality. Whether I am caught up in the clouds at His return . . . or accompany Him in the clouds to call home those who follow after me . . . I “will always be with the Lord” (1Thess. 4:15-18). The Comer will come . . . and that has away of putting everything else in perspective.

Jesus is coming soon. The King who I now know through His blessed Spirit residing within me, will one day be my “face to face” Sovereign . . . beheld in all His glory . . . exalted before God’s eternal throne in heaven. And that future assurance has a way of helping with my present realities. Confused? . . . Weary? . . . Done? The Comer will come . . . don’t shrink back . . . lean into life’s circumstance knowing that He has promised that His grace is sufficient and His power is made perfect in weakness (2Cor. 12:9) . . . knowing that He has promised we can do all things by His strength (Php. 4:13) . . . knowing that He will meet the need for the day from the riches in glory (Php. 4:19) . . . knowing that He has said He is preparing a place for us and will come and take us to be with Himself (John 14:1-3) . . . knowing that “He who promised is faithful” (Heb. 10:23).

So, says the writer to the Hebrews, draw near . . . hold fast . . . encourage one another . . . endure . . . keep on keepin’ on . . . do the will of God . . . receive His promise. The righteous shall live by faith . . . knowing . . . believing . . . resting . . . in the reality that the Comer will come.

How’s that for a big picture view? Even so, come Lord Jesus!

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The Poured Out Spirit

Posted on September 15, 2011 by Pete

Have you ever seen a picture of molten metal being poured into something? As the container it resides in is tipped, the liquid metal comes gushing forth . . . nothing’s going to stop it . . . it fills every inch of the cast . . . seeps into every part of the mold. That’s the picture I’m getting this morning of the Holy Spirit . . .

“For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.”  (Isaiah 44:3  ESV)

That’s how the Holy Spirit is encountered . . . He is poured out. Think about it . . . we talk about “meeting Jesus” . . . but I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone ask, “Have you met the Holy Spirit?” You don’t meet Him . . . you kinda get drowned by Him. Jesus stands at the door and knocks . . . the Holy Spirit descends like flames of fire . . . the Spirit is poured out on people.

The word pour has the idea of casting metal . . . carries the idea of a massive volume of molten steel overflowing into a mold. Isaiah though says that it’s also like water being poured on him who is thirsty . . . like floods coming on dry ground. You get the sense that this Spirit who “seals us” (Eph. 1:13) and who has been given to us as a “deposit guaranteeing what is to come” (Eph. 1:14), can be something far more than a gentle dove descending on a soul. There’s a sense of strength . . . a sense of a overwhelming blanketing of one’s whole being. As He’s poured into the molds of our lives, He fills every nook and cranny, and then starts to “harden” as He “takes shape” . . . and while it might be our shape, it is His character which forms . . . His way which prevails . . . His mind which directs.

I think it’s the dynamic spoken of in Hebrews when the author quotes Jeremiah, “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord; I will put My laws into your hearts, and in their minds I will write them” (Heb. 10:16, Jer. 31:33). How does God implant His mind into ours? Through the pouring out of the Holy Spirit into our lives. How does God take sinners and form them into the image of His Son? Through the pouring out of the Holy Spirit into our lives. How committed is God to redeeming us to “the uttermost?” So committed that He has poured His Spirit upon us . . . and into us. Ok . . . so is this something to get a bit excited about?

The Spirit isn’t doled out in measure . . . a little now . . . a little later. No, He is poured out in such “quantity” that He will fill us to the full. He will so consume us that the mind of God will form within our minds. He will so flood us that the deserts of our lives will give way to vibrant pastures. By the bucket, He will dump water such that any thirst can be quenched. I’m thinking that’s some of what the “poured out” Spirit desires to do in our lives.

But while He may be poured out . . . though He can fill and flood . . . though there is no stopping Him . . . He also will not force Himself into spaces which are not open to Him. We can quench the flaming molten liquid being poured into us (1Thess. 5:19) so that He is prevented from fully forming in our lives. In fact, Paul says we very much have a responsibility in the active agency of the Spirit in our lives, “Don’t be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, be [continually] filled with the Holy Spirit” (Eph. 5:18 NLT). If we choose to fill the mold with other stuff . . . like wine . . . or other lustful pursuits . . . or worldly goals . . . then this powerful, raging, overflowing Spirit will cede to our will. But if we will determine to give way to His presence in our lives, then watch out . . . flood gates will be opened . . . rivers of Christ conforming spiritual metal will be cast into the molds of our lives . . . and we will never be the same . . . we will thrive spiritually . . . we will possess the mind of Christ . . . His laws will be written on our hearts . . . and He will get all the glory.

Father, thank You for pouring out Your Spirit upon this life. Help me to hear His voice . . . to recognize His presence . . . and to get out of the way . . . so that He might do Your perfect work in my life . . . .amen.

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Called By Name

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Pete

Ok . . . so I’m thinking it might be somewhat self-centered to have finished reading Isaiah 42 and 43, along with Hebrews 9, and end up with a thought about me. Magnificent is how I might describe Isaiah’s declaration of God’s sent Servant. Amazed is how I respond to the fact that this Servant is the “better sacrifice” described in Hebrews. And in the midst of the high and holy . . . as I take in the grand truths of God’s wonderful salvation . . . I find me . . .

The Lord, through Isaiah, leads me to “Behold My Servant, whom I uphold, my Chosen in whom My soul delights” (Isa. 42:1-2). And my soul delights in Him too . . . so that I will “sing to the LORD a new song, His praise from the end of the earth” (42:10). He is the Lord, besides Him there is no Savior (43:11) . . . He blots out transgressions and remembers sins no more, for His own sake (43:25) . . . there is none who can take from His hand that which He is determined to claim for His own (43:13) . . . He is the Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel (43:14) . . . and He is doing a “new thing” as He graciously provides living water “to give drink to My chosen people, the people whom I have formed for Myself” (43:21). Behold God’s blessed Servant . . . Behold His salvation!

And this Servant is the Christ spoken of in Hebrews 9 . . . He who has “appeared as a high priest” . . . and has “entered once for all the holy place . . . by means of His own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption” (Heb. 9:11-12). The blood of Christ “purifying our conscience from dead works to serve the living God” (9:14). He is the “mediator of a new covenant” (9:15) . . . have sealed the deal through the “better sacrifice” (9:23) . . . appearing “once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself (9:26) . . . entering into “heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf” (9:24)!

Oh, catch your breath! Behold the Servant! . . . Behold the Sacrifice! . . . Behold Your Salvation! And in the midst of these grand themes . . . this jumps out at me . . .

“But now thus says the LORD, He who created you, O Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are Mine.'” (Isaiah 43:1 ESV)

A word to descendants of Jacob . . . specifically targeted for the nation of Israel . . . but does it not have application to me as well? I’m thinkin’!

And so, enveloped by the greatness of my God, and the wonder of an eternal salvation, I hear Him say, “I created you . . . I formed you . . . I have redeemed you . . . I have called you by name . . . you are Mine. Fear not.”

Called by name. Known individually. My sins, covered by His sacrifice. My name, written in His book. My days on earth, ordered by His hand. My circumstance, His concern. My future, secured by His promise.

And so I rest. A tiny mite amidst a great big God. A sinner saved by grace, on the radar of the God of grace. Knowing it’s not about me . . . but that He has chosen to make it about me . . . that I might make it all about Him . . . that I might declare His praise . . . and give Him all the glory. Amen?

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My Hand in His

Posted on September 13, 2011 by Pete

When Sue and I go for our walk around our neighborhood, we most often will hold hands (until they get too sweaty). We interlock our fingers, leveraging the sense of touch as a reminder of our closeness. We go palm to palm as a silent way of saying that each of us is happy to be with the other. We give each other a little squeeze as a reminder that we are one and, as much as lies within us, we will not be separated. Yeah, there’s something about holding hands with the one you love. So check out the words of Almighty God . . .

“For I, the LORD your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, ‘Fear not, I am the one who helps you.’ ” (Isaiah 41:13)

I know the context is not that of a lover’s stroll down the street . . . but the thought of God, “the LORD your God”, holding my right hand just blows me away.

Leading up to this promise has been a magnificent summary of the greatness of God. Isaiah 40 cries out, “Behold your God!” (40:9). Behold the One who holds the waters of the earth in the hollow of His hand . . . the One who stretches that same hand out and the span of it marks of the heavens I can scarcely take in at night (40:12). It is He who sits in the overarching balcony which hovers over the earth (40:22). “The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth” (40:28).

“To whom will you liken God?” asks the prophet (40:18). “To whom then will you compare Me?” says the Holy One (40:25). No one! Nothing! Final answer!

My God is a great God . . . a great big God . . . and a great and awesome God! And my God says, “Fear not . . . I’m the one who helps you . . . I will hold your right hand.” Unreal!

Oh to think that God would graciously seek to draw so near. That He would, as it were, interlock His great big God fingers within my puny hand and walk beside me through the flames. That not only has the curtain been torn down so that I might enter into the presence of the Holy, Holy, Holy God, but that I might go palm to palm with Him as His adopted child . . . having my hand enveloped within the hand of the One I know as Abba Father. To feel the squeeze through the inner voice of the Spirit of God . . . infusing power . . . giving strength . . . providing encouragement . . . renewing the inner man . . . gifting a steadfastness, though the world around seems to be on pretty shaky ground.

How great is My God? Pretty! How comforting is it to know the touch of His hand? . . . to know He will take my right hand within His? . . . and lead as He walks side by side? . . . Very!

Yeah, there’s something about holding hands with the One you love . . . with the One who has loved You, and loved you to the end (John 13:1).

Let’s go for a walk . . .

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