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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Two Words

Posted on September 12, 2011 by Pete

Two words . . . just two words . . . a total of five letters. But, it occurs to me, they are at the very heart and soul of the gospel. They are the basis for our confidence as believers. They are two words which source a power not of this world . . . two words that resonate with certainty . . . two words that shift the playing field from performance to promise. But the power lies not in the words themselves but in the One who spoke them . . .

“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah . . . For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” (Hebrews 8:8-12 ESV)

I know that, strictly speaking, this new and better covenant has to do primarily with Israel and will find it’s fulfillment when Christ comes back to reign over the repentant and redeemed nation. But it’s also true that the church is a demonstration of the nature of the new dynamic and of the power at work within this new covenant . . . this “I will” approach to calling, creating, and crowning a people for His own possession and glory.

The Old Covenant tells what man must do; the New Covenant tells what God will do. He will establish the covenant and He will enact the promise . . . He will put His laws into His people’s minds . . . He will inscribe His ways on their hearts . . . He will be their God and will make them His people. He will, apart from our best attempt at merit, and despite our greatest failures, He will be merciful concerning our iniquities and He will determine to remember no more our sins. Because He has provided the sacrifice for all sin, through His Son . . . because He has determined to deal with those who come to Him out of the abundance of His grace alone. Oh, the power extended through “I will” . . . oh, the peace experienced because of “I will” . . . oh, the praise evoked to the God of “I will!”

And, it occurs to me, that this “I will” dynamic isn’t just the means for entry into the covenant relationship but is also the basis of living in covenant relationship. To be sure, I have a lot of decisions to make as I do life . . . a lot of levers at my fingertips to manipulate as part of navigating each day . . . but even then, it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me (Gal. 2:20). It isn’t my strength that allows me to power through the storms and get through the valleys, but it’s His all sufficient and freely given grace that renews the inner man . . . that gently prompts, “Keep on keepin’ on.” And, on those occasions where I experience the mountain top and know some measure of the thrill of victory, even then there is no boasting in what may be viewed as my accomplishment, or sense that I somehow deserved it, but only humble recognition that He is working His sovereign purpose in my life as He wills and as I seek to abide in that will.

Yup . . . two pretty powerful words . . . and One Almighty and Awesome God. And because “He will”, I will seek Him . . . because “He will”, I will trust Him . . . because “He will”, I will praise Him.

Amen?

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Our Arm Every Morning

Posted on September 7, 2011 by Pete

Sometimes you just need to call out. You’ve done all you can do . . . but you know that ultimately it’s out of your control. You’ve tried to still your soul . . . but your mind keeps racing. You’re prepared to trust in the Lord with all your heart . . . but deep down you wish it would be for something other than what you know the day holds in store for you. And so . . . you call out . . . just like Isaiah did . . .

“O LORD, be gracious to us; we wait for You. Be our arm every morning, our salvation in the time of trouble.” (Isaiah 33:2 ESV)

There’s an old southern gospel song that asks, “Where could I go but to the Lord?” Don’t know that Isaiah would have been much a southern gospel fan, but I kind of think he’d pick up on the sentiment . . . when you kind of realize that there is no other place to turn, you turn to the Lord. And so he cries out, “Be gracious to me . . . be my strength as I head into the day . . . be my deliverance and my victory when things are getting kind of scary.”

He is “our arm every morning”. He is our strength . . . our power. He can flex muscle . . . He can lift up . . . He can hold secure . . . He can do what we cannot. And, He can do it everyday . . . His mercies are new every morning . . . with each sunrise He is ready, willing, and able to draw alongside as needed.

And so, I call out. Not presuming . . . not demanding . . . but, knowing the Shepherd’s voice and His heart, appropriating the all sufficient grace He has promised. Humbly requesting that I might sense afresh the abiding power of the King of Kings, He who is Victor over all things . . . feebly crawling up on the lap, as it were, of Abba Father as His beloved child of adoption, asking that I might know His abiding presence through the day,

And so “I wait for You.” Looking eagerly upward . . . setting my mind on things above . . . seeking to navigate the realities of the day in light of the realities of the Kingdom. Planning’s done . . . strivings cease . . . and I’ll look up . . . waaayyy up! . . . “I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.” (Psalm 121:1-2)

The LORD is my arm . . . my every morning strength. The maker of heaven and earth is the designer of today’s circumstance. He who upholds all things by the word of His power (Heb. 1:3) holds also the details of the day.

And so I’ll call out . . . and I’ll wait . . .

Where could I go . . . but to the Lord?

Amen?

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After the Order of Melchizedek

Posted on September 6, 2011 by Pete

It would have been a struggle for devout Jews to consider . . . a concept that, in it’s most fundamental nature, didn’t line up. The idea that Jesus could be their forever High Priest before God wasn’t on their radar. The priesthood they knew had been ordained through Aaron of the tribe of Levi . . . it was the Levitical priesthood. Jesus descended from Judah . . . “and in connection with that tribe Moses said nothing about priests” (Hebrews 7:14). The dots didn’t connect for them. How come? Because they didn’t go back far enough . . . the inception of the order of priesthood, of which Jesus was the fulfillment, preceded Moses . . . it went back to Abraham . . . founded after the order of Melchizedek.

Abraham’s encounter with Melchizedek is barely a blip in the Genesis story (Gen. 14:17-20) . . . a “chance” encounter after Abraham’s rescue of Lot . . . no real explanation as to why Melchizedek blesses Abraham and why Abraham, in return, gives Melchizedek a tenth of everything. And then, except for an isolated verse in the Psalms (110:4), you don’t hear about Melchizedek again . . . that is, until the book of Hebrews . . . and then things get lined up . . . the dots are connected . . . the relationship becomes clear . . . and the awe factor sets in . . . Jesus, “a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek” (Heb. 5:6, 5:10, 6:20, 7:17).

“For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, and to him Abraham apportioned a tenth part of everything. He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace. He is without father or mother or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever.” (Hebrews 7:1-3 ESV)

Melchizedek was “pre-release trailer” for Jesus. He is a “type” or a foreshadowing . . . a mystery introduced in the Old Testament, then revealed and explained in the new. He was a priest of the Most High God . . . so is Jesus. His name means “king of righteousness” . . . Jesus is THE King of Righteousness. He was the king of Salem, the king of peace . . . Jesus is the Prince of Peace (Isa. 9:6). There’s no genealogical record associated with Melchizedek, he has no beginning or end of days . . . Jesus is “the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end” (Rev. 22:13).

But here’s the kicker . . . the connection that, for me, tops all other connections . . . drum roll please . . . let the orchestra hit a mighty crescendo . . .

“This becomes even more evident when another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek, who has become a priest, not on the basis of a legal requirement concerning bodily descent, but by the power of an indestructible life.” (Hebrews 7:15-16 ESV)

The power of an indestructible life . . . that’s what qualifies Jesus for this order. It is because He is, and was, and forever more shall be . . . because He is the same yesterday, today, and forever . . . because He has gone head to head with death and conquered it, rising again from the tomb on the third day . . . that Jesus has become “the guarantor of a better covenant” . . . that Jesus has introduced “a better hope, through which we draw near to God” (7:19) . . . that Jesus can make once-for-all atonement for sin by offering offered Himself as the perfect and final sacrifice (7:27) . . . that Jesus is “able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them” (7:25).

How powerful is Jesus’ priesthood? . . . how enduring? . . . how amazing? . . . Pretty!!! How sufficient? . . . ALL!!!

A priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek. And, by His grace alone, He is my priest . . . present here and now, . . . knowing my need and the needs of my family . . . drawing near through His blessed Holy Spirit . . . speaking words of intercession before the Father on our behalf . . . for our blessing . . . for His glory. Amen.

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The Anchor Holds

Posted on September 5, 2011 by Pete

I’ve mentioned it before . . . one of the things I’m on the “prowl” for when I’m going through my reading plan in the morning are promises. They are scattered throughout God’s Word . . . in the ancient books of Moses . . . in the prophets . . . in the wisdom literature . . . in the chronicles of the life of Jesus . . . in the letters of instruction to the church by Paul and others. Sometimes they are specific and direct . . . other times they are more applied to situations beyond the immediate context of the Scripture. But one thing about the promises of God that I’m reminded of this morning is that they never fail . . . they can be counted on . . . they are worthy of establishing the foundation for life . . . they are an anchor for the soul.

The latter portion of Hebrews 6 is about the certainty of God’s promise to Abraham. Back in Genesis God promised Abraham that he would have a son . . . and from that son a nation would arise . . . and from that nation “all the families of the earth will be blessed” (Gen. 12:2-3). And so God established a principle for dealing with men that is founded on “heirs of the promise” realizing the assurances of God through faith. Through faith . . . not in themselves, but in the God who called them to receive the promise. Not because of their merit . . . not because of their potential . . . but because of “the unchangeable character of His purpose” (6:17) . . . because “it is impossible for God to lie” (6:18). That is the power of the promises . . . the immutable nature of God Himself. And as such . . . they are an anchor for the soul.

“We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.” (Hebrews 6:19-20 ESV)

The promises of God spawn hope . . . and hope becomes a sure and steadfast anchor . . . secured to the throne of God by our Great High Priest, Jesus . . . “For all the promises of God find their Yes in Him. That is why it is through Him that we utter our Amen to God for His glory” (2Cor. 1:20).

Chew on it . . . an anchor of the soul . . . tethered to the Holy of Holies . . . tied to the very throne of God. Secured there for us by Jesus Himself . . . the forerunner . . . the “Advance Man.” Administered at the right hand of Majesty on High by Jesus the Great High Priest . . . the Author and Finisher of the promise . . . our forever Intercessor. And so, the anchor holds . . . ya’ think?

Oh, to pause in the midst of the storm and know the anchor holds. To take a moment and reflect on the steadfastness of God’s promises . . . to allow His Spirit to infuse hope and assurance . . . to experience the “it is well with my soul” peace that comes only as a result of knowing the love of God and the God of love.

I’ll be honest . . . I’d just as soon avoid the tempest . . . smooth sailing would be my preference. But I also know . . . in my head and through past experience . . . that it is in the trial where God is so often most deeply known . . . that it is in the surreal circumstance of the unexpected that the reality of the faith is most acutely realized. While the anchor is always there, never is it more recognized or more appreciated than when gale force winds are trying to rip me loose from it. Yes . . . the anchor holds . . . for His glory . . . amen.

Click here if you have a few more minutes to reflect on the reality of this truth . . .

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