Find Out What Pleases Him

Last week I was looking at things that rouse God’s wrath, things written about the Israelites in the desert, written to be an example and warning to us so that we don’t miss out on God’s best for us (I Cor.10). Moses thought it crucial for the people to remember the stubborn bent of their hearts.  He reminded them of five concrete events where they’d provoked their God to wrath, instances of: idolatry, complaining, testing God, lusting after things He hadn’t provided, and unbelief. (Deut.9) That’s how far I got last week.  Looking at them.

It’s one thing looking at them, so long ago, so foolish, so stupid.  I can get the impression that I would never react like that.  Who complains when they’re getting the ‘bread of heaven’ delivered to their doorstep daily? Who would be silly enough to cast an idol in the shape of a calf and worship it?  Granted, God is invisible and we’d like to be able to see Him and assure ourselves that He is in fact leading us but… I can go glibly through these examples and disparage the Israelites for their unbelief and stubborn hearts and miss the fact that these are written down for ME!

However, my week didn’t end with theoretical ponderings.  Without warning I found myself in Israelite sandals.  I live in a land of plenty. My freezer’s full of the fruit of the land.  The ‘bread of heaven’ is delivered to my doorstep, in the form of plums and apples and tomatoes and …well, you get the idea.  I have plenty.   But, my ‘neighbors’ have more. 

I am prone to measure my godliness with inaccurate scales, by the sins that don’t readily draw me.  For instance, I can read in Colossians these instructions while doing a mental check-off of ones that don’t apply to me:  “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality (check), impurity, (check), passion (check), evil desire (check?) and covetousness, WHICH IS IDOLATRY.”(gulp)  What exactly would you call it when I stand in my neighbor’s yard surveying all their fruit and nut trees and wishing they were mine?!  Guilty as charged!

How is idolatry somehow less bad than sexual immorality?  Only in my mind.  When I measure my spiritual stature based on sins that don’t hold great temptation for me, I am only deceiving myself.  I could well write a more personal list of ‘Things that make God angry’… It might begin this way…

--When I  want my neighbor’s good fortune for myself, or at least his apples!

Or if I’m to go for the jugular, what about:

--When I despise my neighbor—considering him more foolish than I, using his blind spots to bolster my pride in ‘knowing better’.

Yes, I’ve had to do some repenting this week.  These are things God hates.  They don’t reflect my calling as his dearly loved child: “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Eph.5:1,2

Instead I envy.  I judge.  I criticize.  I condemn.  I exult in pride: “you’ll see”; I ‘know better’; “Poor you”;  “Fool.”  Mind you, I don’t say these things.  But sins of the heart are no less sins.  God hates them.  (And thankfully He prompts me to see them and to hate them too.)

And yet this is only half of the story. God’s wrath is aroused because He loves us. These things he hates destroy His glorious designs for our lives. They are destructive. They mar the holiness we are made to reflect.  We are by nature  children of wrath but He has called us to be His children and to learn His ways and to share in His holiness (Heb.12:10)

And this is the delightful part of the story. “For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” I Th.5:9

We have a good idea what incites God’s wrath, but do we realize
what delights Him?

I’ve spent a lot of time in the Old Testament over the last several months, comparing it to what I’m reading in the New.  You cannot read Leviticus and not be struck with all the bloody sacrifices that had to be made to cover the people’s sins.  God makes it perfectly clear that He is holy and the people He has chosen to be his own are not. Their hearts are endlessly straying to other gods and requiring the slaughter of animals to atone for them.  Sacrifice is endless… You could get the impression that God loves the slaughter of animals, the blood of bulls and goats.  But this is not so.  He’s only laying out a plan.

Then the ‘fullness of time’ comes, and with the New Testament God’s plan unfolds.  He’s made a way for ‘children of wrath’ to be His friends.  He wants them near Him. 

That plan is Jesus—the very Son of God ‘with whom He is
well-pleased’.

What delights God?  Not animal sacrifice, but His Son. 
God Himself provided the propitiation for man’s sin in the perfect Lamb, Jesus.  The blood of bulls and goats only pre-figures this.  Propitiation, ‘the turning away of wrath by an offering’ is exactly what we needed! Jesus was sent into the world to be that offering, the perfect Lamb ‘who takes away the sin of the world’.

“…whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.” (Rom.3:25)

Which brings us to another thing God delights in—faith in His Son. I am not stuck in my sins.  I am not destined either to live in remorse, kicking myself for not being more holy, or in constant struggle to do better.  I am offered by faith the very righteousness of Christ to my account, if I will receive it.  Will I put aside my determination to do better, be better, be good, prove myself worthy (and such rot!) and simply  cast my case on Jesus?  His death and resurrection has covered  my sin once and for all.  My covetousness, my envy, my pride, they are real. I remember them, lest I begin to  think myself beyond need of Jesus’ blood.  But overlaid on the memory of my sins is another remembering.

“But when Christ had offered for all time a a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God…For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified” (Heb.10:12-14) 

Jesus invites me to remember Him:  “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” (Lk.22:19)  Jesus died to cover my sin.  This is enough.  That bread from heaven the Israelites ate, that was a picture of Jesus.  No wonder their despising it was an affront to God.  Jesus is the bread of life; those who eat will live.  Those who demand something more, something else, something other, may get it, but with it death.  There is life only in Jesus.

And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. Jn.17:3

Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. Acts 4:12

There are plenty of things that bring God delight I suppose but they all come back in one way or another to Jesus (“God Saves”). God is pleased with His Son--the perfect spotless obedient Lamb who fulfilled the Father’s purpose and will be the culmination of everything. Eph.1:9,10

Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, "Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body have you prepared for me…And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Heb.10:5,10

This is why faith pleases God when it is placed in His Son. “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” Matt.17:5 
We cannot assume God is pleased with us apart from it. “And without faith it is impossible to please God…” Heb.11:6  Any vestige of confidence that I have something to offer God in and of myself is folly.  It is only when my faith rests in His Son as my only claim to righteousness that God  looks at me with pleasure.

This is a little hard for me to swallow.  I am by birth a ‘pleaser’.  Even as a Kindergartener I was known for my quiet compliant demeanor.  This is not a virtue; I just wanted people to like me.   But God is not fooled.   He does not look and say ‘Oh, what a sweet girl’.  No matter what moral codes of conduct, rules or formulas we’ve found to live by they are not sufficient to gain favor with God.  Only faith in Christ makes us pleasing to God.  No sacrifice, effort, or moral lifestyle can take its place.  God is looking for humble hearts that will acknowledge their shortfall and take Him at His Word:
--All have sinned and fall short of my Glory.
--Sin’s wages are death.
--Believe on Jesus as your Lord and Saviour and you will live.

If you're good enough without Him, Jesus did not come for you.

It’s simple. But it’s humbling.  And it leaves no room for self-justification or self-anything!  The children of Israel in the desert failed in this respect; they had hard unbelieving hearts.  They were stubborn, resisting God’s voice, choosing their own desires over His.  Consequently a whole generation died in the desert, never reaching the good land God had intended for them.

For forty years I loathed that generation and said, "They are a people who go astray in their heart, and they have not known my ways.” Ps.95:10

Even as believers, God is not so much pleased with our efforts and determinations to be good as He is with our faith in His Son. It is only through the Spirit of Christ within us that we can do anything truly good in God’s sight.  “Without Me you can do nothing”.   Again it is humble faith that pleases God and by which we are transformed to resemble Jesus in our thoughts, words and deeds.  We can’t do this life in Christ apart from Christ! 

"If we are going to grow in the realization of who we are in Christ, we must come to terms with the reality that we are not yet perfect; the presence and activity of sin is still alive and well within us. The reason we must accept this fact is that we cannot look to Christ for our identity if we are still trying to find something about ourselves to prop up our self-esteem. To really grow in the wonderful reality of who we are in Christ, we must abandon any desire to find something within ourselves that makes us acceptable to God." –Jerry Bridges

Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?  Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? Gal.3:2,3

But here’s the remarkable thing.  These bodies, in which the Spirit of God comes to reside can then become living offerings to God—good and pleasing sacrifices.  Bodies that were once instruments of sin, in thought, word and deed become houses of worship.  Our lives become living sacrifices in honor of the One who designed them for His glory.

Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual worship. Rom.12:1 HCSB

As I yield my heart to learn God’s ways, to say  YES! to Him and NO! to ways the world calls life, I am transformed into a living sacrifice with an aroma that’s pleasing to God.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. (Rom.12:2)

Pleasing aroma—the Old Testament is replete with this expression.  Every sacrifice, every bit of incense, every burnt offering gave off an aroma pleasing to God.  Jesus is the fulfillment of these offerings.  Jesus’ death on my behalf was a pleasing sacrifice.  Now I am brought near to God, reconciled to Him at great cost.  And because He lives in me by His Spirit my life now is said to have a pleasing aroma to God!

For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing,  to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? II Cor.2:15,16

It’s incredible really, but this body of mine that houses the part of me that is bent toward sin, also is God’s instrument for righteousness.  And because I am IN CHRIST He looks and is pleased.  I still fail.  I still fall. I still envy my neighbor and harbor ill will at times.  But Jesus doesn’t.  And by faith in Him I can get up, admit where I’ve fallen and know that Jesus blood was shed for this and God is pleased.  I will never outgrow this dependence on his mercy, this need for his grace and his forgiveness.  I was never meant to.

--LS

For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. Today, if you hear his voice,  do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness Ps.95:7-8

Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant,  equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. Heb.13:20-21

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. Ps.51:17

But I am afflicted and in pain; let your salvation, O God, set me on high!  I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving. This will please the LORD more than an ox or a bull with horns and hoofs. Ps.69:29-31

But the LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love. Ps.147:11

May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the LORD. Ps.104:34

Sharing life over tea

A hot cup of tea with a bit of sugar and some real cream is such a wonderful relaxing, friendly thing to share.  I’m sitting here this evening with the tea things still out and the house suddenly empty and quiet as the mom and her young tribe that came to share some sips and look at all my give-away books has evacuated, a box of homeschool books in tow.  It is Thursday, my quiet evening to ponder and write alone.

Why the door?  It reminded me of the passage I was pondering this morning, that one where Jesus stands at the door knocking, inviting anyone who hears his voice to open the door.  He’s just waiting for the invite to tea—well, to a meal together really.  Who wouldn’t open the door?  Why was it shut with Jesus on the wrong side in the first place?

Although this verse (Rev.3:20) is often used to describe opening one’s heart to Jesus at salvation, the context is not quite that.  It was this context that brought me here this morning.  Jesus is addressing a church that has lost sight of its need for Him.  “You say, I am rich , I have prospered and I need nothing”.  When in reality they are ‘wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked”! Jesus counsels them to come to him for true treasure—for gold refined by fire, (symbolic perhaps of a faith that perseveres through trial; see I Pet.1:7),  and for His righteousness (white garments) to hide their shame.  And for salve to heal their blinded eyes.

He reminds them His reproof is driven by love and urges this lukewarm church to get zealous, not about doing good works, but about repentance! It is out of this context that the words pop out: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock…”

Jesus was on the wrong side of the door perhaps because the Laodiceans felt they were no longer in need of Him.  They are ‘doing very well, thank-you’.  But Jesus’ own teaching makes it pretty clear that it’s not the one who never visibly wandered but the one who returns home, this one that is blessed.  It’s not the ‘righteous persons needing no repentance’ but the sinner who repents that causes all Heaven to party!  It’s not the ‘very well, thank-you’ but the sick, that Jesus came to heal.

As you can see, I haven’t quite shaken that ‘elder brother’ lesson from my mind—the goody-goody brother that never left home but somehow still missed enjoying a healthy relationship with his dad, you know the story.  Well, being ‘good’ dies hard.  I’ve been preaching to myself this week I guess and thinking about those words of Jesus—about all heaven rejoicing far more over the one sinner repenting than over the 99 who feel they are above repentance…

The thing to be celebrated it would seem is repentance, not one’s conscientious ‘goodness’. 

I hear it in the story of the rich young ruler too, approaching Jesus confident that he’s on the right track to eternal life, just needing a bit of assurance, or one more official ‘to do’ and he’ll have it.  What assignment does Jesus give?  Sell all you’ve set your heart on and follow me.  Make me your god, not your own self-sufficiency.  It’s as if he were saying, it’s not your righteousness that matters, but mine.  There’s no premium on ‘goodness’ when it comes to gaining eternal life.  We’re not saved because of it, not favored because of it, not loved more because of it.  It’s His goodness that counts, His name that is to be hallowed, His glory that is to shine through any good that comes from our lives.

I guess that’s why Jesus was always inviting people to Himself: follow me, abide in me, take my yoke and walk with me, come to me, open the door and let me eat with you…Where did I get the idea that my calling was to ‘be good’?  How many times have I admonished my kids to do likewise? 

I came across a blog this week by Emily Freeman that set me thinking more about this business of ‘being good’: 

one thing your daughter doesn’t need you to say

It made the case for NOT pressuring our kids to be a good example!  Because this could just be a primer to believing that  “being a Christian means having it all together, saying all the “right” things, staying a few steps above everyone else.”

She pointed out that requiring our son/daughter to be a good example may set her up to become  “a person people look up to, but …[not] someone they can relate to.” It continued:

“She may be successful at managing her behavior, but she will always struggle to manage people’s opinions.”

“She may have a great reputation, but her character will be clouded with bitterness and anger.”

“She may be a good church-goer, but she will not know how to be a good friend.”

“This may keep her out of trouble, but it will suffocate her soul.”

The author seemed to read my objections (and perhaps yours) “But what about holiness?”  What about being a light in a dark place?  She then points us back to the reality of whose goodness we’re representing.

What’s the alternative to ‘being good’ on the outside and keeping a lid on the rest ‘for example’s sake’?  What truth is missed in this scenario?  Precisely this, that: “Her light comes from Jesus, not from her awesome behavior.”

I found this to be good food for thought, not just for my daughters (and sons) but for myself. Because so easily being ‘good’ can be about my reputation, my appearance, my credentials, my standing before people. Being known as ‘nice’ or ‘sweet’ or ‘quiet’ or any of those bland descriptors used of people we hardly know…What’s the value of all that?  Does it point anyone to Jesus as the One who’s so incredibly good that I owe all I am to Him?

And I sit sipping my tea with all these thoughts as a backdrop.  I pore over my frustrations at not knowing what to do to ‘fix’ situations, at not feeling sufficient for those who ‘need’ me to ‘do something’.  I find myself wishing this knocking were more audible and this conversation over tea with Jesus more literal.  But maybe that’s what faith is for?

It’s soon time to get up and get breakfast going whether I’ve got the advice I’d hoped for or not.  I didn’t, at least I didn’t think so at the time.  But one thing I take away from this encounter with the Living Word is that I think I’m always meant to need Him. Never meant to think myself ‘good enough’ or responsible enough  to do life without Him, never intended to bear the weight of that, to close the door and sort things out in solitude-- doing my best to figuring out what to say, what to ‘do’ because surely somebody’s got to do something(!). I’m not meant to rely on my cleverness or find answers by scratching my own head! 

Could it be He hasn’t called me to be ‘good’ (or clever or responsible)  but to be open to Him, to be ever dependent--inviting Him into my messes, to be ever repentant and forgiven, to be ever listening for His voice.

Mercifully, He keeps knocking when I forget these things.  He’s seems intent on sharing His life with me.

--LS

"I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer…” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, "Take this, and divide it among yourselves.” …"This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” Lk.22:15-20 

“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;” Is.55:2,3

“Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”
I Pet.1:8,9

“But you are…a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” I Pet.2:9

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You may want to visit Emily at www.chattingatthesky.com  She has some timely words of grace for the ‘good girl’ in need of relief. Her article, “One thing your daughter doesn’t need you to say” is here.

Good News for the ‘Elder Brother’

Do you see him there, off to the side?

It's the big brother, the one with the piously crossed hands, the unfeeling eyes, the 'upright' posture, looking on unmoved as his father welcomes his filthy 'prodigal' brother home.

The prodigal's unsatisfying profligate lifestyle drove him back to the Father but what about his big brother?

What's to be done for him?

The story of the prodigal's return is much celebrated. Songs have been composed, great artwork created, movies made, and books written, all in celebration of the returned prodigal. But what about the older brother? The story is after all, the story of two sons-- "There was a man who had two sons." What's to become of the second son? He didn't leave home on a wild impulse to spend his inheritance. He kept the home fires burning. He was an obedient son. He didn't ask for much apparently. But oh the sense of entitlement he's nurtured!

It seems to me, most of us are born with the propensity toward being either a prodigal or the big brother (sister) to one. We give a lot of thought and pity to prodigals. Their return is a cause of rejoicing in heaven and on earth! But what about the pious older brother? He's really not very likeable. He isn't even happy to see his brother come home. He does not share His Father's heart of compassion. He is thinking only of himself, and with these thoughts come envy and resentment. He has stayed home, denied himself worldly pleasures, done the work, postponed the reward, guarded his shekels and perhaps even anticipated being the sole heir to his father's remaining possessions. But here is this scoundrel brother. He's squandered all that was rightfully his and now he's back to beg for more. And Father's throwing him a grand party—with whose money?! He doesn't deserve it. Why doesn't anyone ever get excited over me? throw me a party? celebrate me? I'm the one who deserves it. The older brother seethes with self-righteous protest, and refuses to be dissuaded or to join the celebration. Here is the really lost son. What's to be done for him?

He too is in desperate need of the Father's mercy. Only he doesn't see it. He only has eyes for his own goodness. Not unlike the Pharisee who stood 'praying' (applauding himself) in the temple "I thank thee that I am not like other men. I fast…I tithe…" (Lk.18:11)

The younger brother had returned to the Father with a new appreciation of Home because his wealth was spent and 'he began to be in need'. The older brother hasn't yet come to such personal destitution. He's still clinging to his good track record… still assuming he's the favored son with a right to everything because he's been 'good'. But he is far from comprehending the Father's heart or finding fellowship there. He turns a sullen ear to His entreaty to come join the celebration. His pride will not let him.

What does it take to bring an elder brother back to the Father?

It is no easy road for a Pharisee. Pride is an enormous stumbling stone. Compassion and a warm welcome may draw those who recognize their personal bankruptcy but not so, a Pharisee. One who has spent his life cultivating 'righteousness' of a sort feels little need of a Saviour. To admit failure feels like personal suicide. To remain oblivious to it requires increasing blindness and hardness of heart. What does it take to convince a Pharisee of the error of his ways?

For Saul (later named Paul) it took a blinding confrontation that knocked him to his knees and commanded his attention. Humbling. Later despite his being 'as to the law, a Pharisee' and 'as to righteousness under the law, blameless' (Phil. 3:5,6) he would profess to being the 'chief' of sinners (I Tim.1:15), and would claim all his merits as rubbish compared to knowing Jesus and sharing in His righteousness by faith.

For Nicodemus, it took watching Jesus' life and having a pointed late-night conversation with Him: "You must be born again." Later he would share the task and expense of wrapping Jesus' body with linen and costly spices. It appears he too had come to believe and to love Jesus.

Other Pharisees would eventually find their way from arrogant self-righteousness to acknowledging their need of forgiveness. But it was no easy road.

It often called for shock treatment to penetrate their resistant veneer. Consider Jesus' own words addressed to the Pharisees:

"You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?" Mt.3:7

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness." Mt.23:27

"Woe to you, blind guides." Mt.23:16

“You fools and blind men!"  Mt. 23:17

“You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?" Mt.23:33

“Woe to you! For you are like concealed tombs, and the people who walk over them are unaware of it.”Lk.11:44

You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. " Jn.8:44

Then there were Jesus' custom-made parables. This story of a father and his two sons is the third in a trio of parables about lost and found things, about the repentance of sinners and the unparalleled joy their return brings the Father. Jesus told these specifically for the Pharisees and scribes, in response to their grumbling at how He mingled with tax collectors and 'sinners'.

He explained first in terms of sheep, likening the finding of a lost one to the repentance of a sinner. "I tell you," He said, "there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance". What were they to make of these statements? They considered themselves righteous and worthy of great honor, clearly above needing repentance, not like these 'sinners' with whom Jesus preferred to keep company. They were offended. Jesus seemed to be putting a premium on repentance… not 'righteousness'. What was He implying?

The next tale was of a long-lost coin being found. He drove it home again with this idea of all the angels in heaven rejoicing, not over one 'righteous' Pharisee but over 'one sinner who repents'. (Lk.15:10)

And the grand finale was this story of a man and his two sons. (Luke 15:11ff) This time the Pharisees are symbolically painted into the picture as the 'elder brother' who sullenly stood by as his long-lost brother was welcomed home after squandering his inheritance on wild living. This time they too are winsomely addressed as the Father comes to personally entreat his bitter son to join the celebration also. He listens to the son's grievances: I've served you these many years. I've never disobeyed your commands. And I've never been given even a goat for a barbecue with my friends. But when this 'no-good' son of yours decides to come home you kill the fatted calf for him!

Then the Father offers his offended son a fresh perspective, reminding him of how much more he has had all along, but somehow missed seeing: "Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours." (Lk.15:31) How is a party and a fattened calf more enviable than living with the Father all along and sharing all He owns? How is riotous living and its bitter consequences something to be envied? How is this sullen, jealous response fitting on such a day?! It makes sense only to the self-righteous son and the story ends without indicating whether he had a change of heart. And the Pharisees to whom it was told are faced with themselves and their very lost condition.

Will they see themselves in the story and come to their senses? The story leaves me wondering which is the harder redemption? that of a sinner who has come to his senses and knows who he is, or that of a sinner deceived by his own valiant efforts into thinking himself above the need for forgiveness?

One has 'blown it' and is well aware he does not deserve to be called a son. He is aware of his unworthiness and has little expectation of acceptance. But still he trusts the Father and returns humbly. This one the Father welcomes home and forgives.

The other, exalted by avoidance of his particular list of 'sins', thinks himself worthy of sonship, sees no need of forgiveness and so remains himself estranged from the Father while he strives to be 'good' on his own.

He's not much fun to be around. He's got a nasty arrogant attitude. What a kill-joy besides! Who wants him at the party? What kind of guy is this that he can't even get excited when his little brother comes home? Truth is, he's miserable. He cannot live up to his own standards and he knows it. His own failure drives him to compare himself with others, to judge and to condemn. He bolsters his ego based on his own biased evaluations, turning a blind eye to his own heart. He's not happy, and certainly not joyful. Counting on his own goodness to commend him to the Father is not working out. He needs just what that 'no-good' brother of his needed—forgiveness and a change of heart.

I have a great empathy for this older brother… we have more in common than I like to admit. I suspect he was born a 'pleaser'. He learned early that avoiding disapproval was the next best thing to actually being 'good'. Winning accolades for being such a 'good boy', he learned to play the game, and worse yet, to believe that he really was better than that younger brother who got all the spankings! This was the beginning of the slippery slope of pride. He chose to do the 'right' things, but for the wrong reasons. He chalked up his good conduct as 'brownie points' making him superior to most everybody else. He formulated a list of 'do's and 'don'ts and a suspicion of all things pleasurable. These were usually deferred earning him more points for 'righteousness'. And soon he was sure he was entitled to his inheritance; he'd earned it after all.

Hmmm… just my hypothesis, based on someone I know quite well.

And what's to be done for such an elder brother? Why, the same thing that was done for the younger brother. He needs to come humbly to the Father bringing words of repentance. "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son…" And the rest will be the Father's doing—the robe of righteousness, the ring of promised inheritance, the shoes of the gospel of peace…and the fattened calf and the celebration. And I'm invited to join in because the Father has invited me too. This is the Gospel, and it keeps on being good news for me!

"The Christian gospel is that I am so flawed that Jesus had to die for me, yet I am so loved and valued…that Jesus was glad to die for me. This leads to deep humility and deep confidence at the same time. It undermines both swaggering and sniveling. I cannot feel superior to anyone, and yet I have nothing to prove to anyone. I do not think more of myself nor less of myself. Instead, I think of myself less. I don't need to notice myself—how I'm doing, how I'm being regarded—so often." –Tim Keller in The Reason for God, p.187.

--LS

"For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. O Lord, Hear; O Lord, forgive…for your own sake, because your people are called by your name." Daniel 9:18

"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Mt.11:28-30

Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Phil.3:12

The “W” Word

Louie was a dog with a serious side, being of German extraction. Playing 'fetch' was no game. It was growling serious that he 'win', that he possess that stick and keep it from lying lost on the lawn or being snatched away from him…This was his work and there was nothing playful in it. He was focused and serious. I suppose that's why German Shepherds are chosen for police dogs and working occupations…

We made a good pair that way. I too see the serious side of any given incident, even if it's meant to be a joke. I suppose I take even myself too seriously. Always have. It was once about earning A's, pleasing the teacher, and so establishing my identity as a 'good' student. Did I transfer this mentality to God? I wonder sometimes. Do I work still for A's so He'll be pleased?

There's one snag in the whole thing. I'm not really an 'A student' when it comes to the heart of the matter. 'Full of dead men's bones' is how Jesus described anyone trusting in their own performance but not concerned about the hidden matters of the heart. Only Jesus can change that. I've just finished listening to an excellent series of messages by Charles Price, addressing what's to be done to live the Christian life without it becoming a 'try-harder-to-be-good' sort of thing (which is futile, frustrating and a booby trap for prideful self-delusion!)

The concept of welcoming death to self in exchange for union with Christ keeps popping up for me. I'm a slow learner? No sooner did I finish this very encouraging series, then the following morning in church the message was taken from Romans 6—a matter-of-fact presentation on our 'union with Christ'—the key to having any capacity to please God. United with Him in His death—so we have died to our old sin nature. United with Him in His resurrection—so we have a new life, His life, motivating us from within.

So there it was again, this Christ who IS my life. I so readily fall out of grace and into effort. Surely I must need to DO something myself to be really pleasing. I so readily forget it's faith that pleases God and the obedience it engenders. To attempt obedience without faith is to follow Abraham's misguided effort to fulfill God's promise in his own strength. Disaster!

Another tell-tale sign of misunderstanding my standing as one dead, but alive despite myself, is that when I do fail or disappoint (myself or you!) it's a hard blow, as if it threatened my whole identity! God is not disappointed. He knows me through and through, knows my points of weakness, knows what I'm made of and has all that covered with Jesus! From me He expects repentance and a confident coming to the 'throne of grace' for all I lack. It is enough. I am able to resume life, humbled maybe at the recognition of my own propensity for sin, but forgiven and unashamed, accepted in the Beloved. As I write this I am preaching it to myself. It does not come naturally or easily for this would-be-perfect-in-her-own-strength girl. Reminders come.

I guess that's why I've so appreciated Price's messages this week with their emphasis that the Christian life is not about self-improvement but about dependence on Christ to live HIS life through me. The devil's not to blame, (or anybody else!). I am. But that's OK. Repentance is a breath away. And it's a relief to cast myself on One who really is good and wants to live His life out in me. He knows how to do it right!

What's the trick? There is none. The most confusing thing about the Christian life, Price suggests, is its simplicity. You cannot live it without Christ but when you're abiding in Him, by faith, things happen. It's like flying. You can't, until you're in the plane. Then there's nothing more to do but trust the plane to get you there. Even the anxious traveler arrives, though he may miss the pleasure of the trip! It boils down to faith. Just as I came to Jesus in the first place by faith acknowledging my helpless sin-bound state, so this is how He expects me to live the Christian life, by faith, dead to my old self and alive to Him.

I can get in a pretty serious state looking at the 'old mare' and her propensity for selfishness. I can be like Louie, taking life way too seriously. 'This stick is mine and I'm going to see that it stays in my control'…But Louie had another side. A single word could transform him into an ecstatic, tail-wagging, happy bundle of energy. The "W" word, my friend used to call it. And if you have a dog, you know it well.

(shhhh… I'll say it quietly) The word is walk. Why keep it quiet? Well once it's out, there's no rest for the speaker until the leash is fetched and the door opened!

I smile to myself to realize how the "W" word applies also to me. What will rescue me from my moribund hold on good intentions?

The Spirit invites me to WALK with Him. And as I do, all the rest of the Christian life falls into place. He's got the trail planned. He knows the destination and all the highpoints and muddy crossings along the way. He directs my steps. I need only obediently trust His lead. This is the way to live the Christ life, not fixated on the flesh and what it's up to but ambling down the road eager to comply with my Master's directions. By faith heeding his: Heel, Fetch, Sit, Down, Wait… He's got my days planned and my trails are by His appointment. I'm his concern after all. How carefree is that?

And look at the side-effects of walking by the Spirit..Not only will I not gratify the desires of my sin-bent nature (Gal.5:1) which do damage to myself and those around me, but there'll be an overflow of love and joy and peace, patience and kindness and even goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Gal. 5:22,23) Sounds like something to get excited about!

As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him… (Col.2:6)

Did Someone say, "WALK" ?!!!

--LS

For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love. Gal.5:5,6

Having begun by the Spirit are you now being perfected by works of the flesh? Gal.3:3

If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. Gal. 5:25,26

Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. Phil.1:6

Before I scamper off down the trail may I leave you with a poem that grabbed my heart this week. It portrays so well the relief of repentance and the joy that is its reward. Would we not cease to trudge downcast through life if we kept this gracious prospect in our mind's eye?

"Prodigal"

"Come to myself, I trudge down distant roads.
Tired of the husks of life, I hurry home.
Knowing the cross awaits, I still must come,
Prepared to be a servant, not a son.

Your longing love outreaches me, outruns
My tardy progress borne on dragging feet.
Blessed, kissed, forgiven, lifted to my place,
I find the dreaded welcome sudden sweet.

Is this your punishment for sin, dear Lord?
The father's kiss? The ring? The robe? The calf?
Heart-heavy, I had feared repentance, Lord.
I came to cry, and now you tell me, "Laugh!"

--Elizabeth B. Rooney
[from Storing September, 2001, p.75]

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Note:
Charles Price’s series of 5 messages on letting Christ live His life in us were delivered at Prairie Bible College during "Christian Life Week", Sept.25-27, 2012. They can be heard and/or downloaded at Prairie's website under "Special Events" at:  http://www.prairie.edu/page.aspx?pid=450

They are also available on YouTube.

A Mighty Rushing Wind

I experienced wind this week—mighty rushing wind, and the waves it whipped into a frenzy. Frightening wind. Uncontrollable, unpredictable, unescapable. We could only keep the sail trimmed and angled to propel us forward and hang onto the tiller, compensating for the tossing about with corresponding shifts of the rudder. It is a fearful thing, a humbling thing, an awesome thing to experience wind. You bow to it; it does not do your bidding.

I couldn't help thinking of the Day of Pentecost that was said to have come with the sound of a 'mighty rushing wind'. Not the wind itself, but the sound 'filled all the house where they were sitting' (Acts 2:2) Was it terrifying? There they were, Jesus' followers, all together for a single purpose. They were waiting as Jesus had commanded them, for the 'promise of the Father' (Acts 1:4) which would empower them to be His witnesses. This was the good gift of the Father to His children—Luke 11:13—sealing their inheritance as sons, a down payment of all that they were to become. (Eph.1:14) And they were sticking together in Jerusalem, waiting, as commanded…

Then came the fire-like flames on each of their heads, and the miraculous gift of speech in languages they had not learned, making them effective witnesses to Christ's Resurrection! And in fulfillment of their calling they spoke forth "the wonderful works of God" (Acts 2:11) The hearers were filled with perplexed amazement. "What could this mean?" they asked. Then tuning in to Peter's explanation they got the whole story. This was God's gracious evidence to all in attendance that Jesus had indeed returned to the Father and sent His Spirit to be with them forever… Acts 2:32,33 The sound of wind accompanied the Gift, a reminder that though we do not know where it comes from or where it is going, Wind comes, with power, and does the work only God can do (Jn.3:8) bringing sinners to faith in their risen Saviour, giving dead folk life eternal…

And what is left for us to do? "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." Acts 2:38

It's not a matter of our might or power, but of the Spirit blowing where He wishes…the mighty rushing Spirit of God, and our aligning our 'sails' with His purpose. When He is on the move, we bow, we do His bidding, not He ours, and one day we will find our little 'bark' has been transported safely Home… It is an awesome thing to be carried by Wind, a humbling thing, a fearful thing…but for the sailor this is the stuff of Life!

“The wind blows where it wishes and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.  So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” –Jesus

--LS

For my further thoughts along this line may I refer you to: Wind and Spirit from the archives… (Oct.8,2010)

Spotting Idols

While I was thinking about the implications of discouragement and how it can be an indicator of idolatry, a very timely article*  came to my "Inbox"  regarding the hopeless spiral of pursuing things other than God, i.e. idolatry. [If you missed last week’s remarks on idolatry you may want to read: Why you are Discouraged]  Commenting on Romans 1:22,23, T.M. Moore demonstrates just how making anything but God our ultimate desire in life sets us on a track destined to lead us into foolishness and ultimately disappointment… He says it best:

When people hope in transient things, they’ll do whatever seems right in their own eyes – whatever they think makes sense or feel to be in their best interests. But these mostly leave them disappointed and looking for somewhere else to place their fading hopes.

The conscience holds and reads the maps of life. It guides the mind and heart through the many options facing us as we pursue our hopes and dreams. When people reject the knowledge of God they do not reject the need for values, priorities, and default choices. Instead, because they are not focused on God and His Word to guide them in tutoring their wills, they lean on created things: wealth, success, fun, fame, attention, power, and all the usual idols of our age in flight from God. Once a person establishes one or more of these as his ultimate objective in life, the tumblers in the conscience fall into lockstep with the demands of their chosen idol, and all their values and priorities line up accordingly.

From that point forward the conscience and will are trapped in a Chinese handcuffs of self-serving, foolish decisions and choices, and sooner or later, most people end up doing really dumb things. Strive and struggle though they may to make their wills bend in more wholesome directions, those who will not embrace the Gospel of Jesus will always fall for a lesser god, which is no god at all, and the whole, sad cycle of folly repeats itself anew. Hopes fade and must be reconstructed; changes disappoint, yet we insist on more; and the ability to do anything different eludes those who are trapped in the downward spiral of sin…

Granted, this writer refers to unbelievers, but clearly idolatry is a temptation for believers also especially when we lose sight of the hope of the Gospel. When we "make anything but God our ultimate desire in life" we are setting ourselves up as idolaters and in the process missing out on the righteousness, peace an joy that are earmarks of our inheritance as subjects of God's Kingdom! (Rom.14:17)

Jonah had a reality check on this. After fleeing from God, choosing to make his own travel arrangements, he was brought to his knees inside a whale after a frightening near-drowning. Here he came to the incisive conclusion that "Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs." (Jonah 2:8) Another rendering of 'worthless idols' is 'lying vanities'. In other words, all things worthless, temporal and 'not-as-they-seem'.

Though Jonah didn't want this mission he was assigned, this dunking 'reset' his sense of appreciation for the one true God whom he was called to serve. It restored him to his senses and he declared: "Salvation belongs to the LORD!" I imagine that as he shook the water out of his ears he resolved to be done with pretending to be his own god or any other such 'lying vanities!' He realized that any strategy for his own ‘salvation’ other than calling on God is worthless!

What vain hopes have I set my heart on instead of, or in addition to, God? What do I believe I need in order to be  truly happy? Have I gladly submitted myself to His rule and calling in my life or am I attempting to pull off an escape route? What strategies do I use to get what I want when my circumstances aren’t quite to my liking?

There is a better alternative than grasping at ‘lying vanities’.  David immortalized the right response when he wrote these words:

"Into thine hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O LORD God of truth. I have hated them that regard lying vanities: but I trust in the LORD.” (Ps.31:3-6)

This line would later be quoted by Jesus on the Cross. Psalm 31 is a precious trove of all things true of our God, that should keep us from ever being tempted to idolatry…

"Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you." (19)
 
It's a beautiful model to follow when times are discouraging, seemingly hopeless, or just plain SCARY, and we're tempted to scramble for relief elsewhere!

One thing I've realized this week is that it's certainly easier to spot potential idols in someone else's life than to recognize my own. I came across some helpful indicators in a sermon, "A Turn to God from Idols" taken from I Thess.1:7-10…**   After asserting that idolatry is a universal and perennial sin that everyone struggles with, Rev. Ligon Duncan went on to define an idol as "anything in which we think we can get ultimate security and satisfaction apart from God." Then just in case that was a little too nebulous he suggested three questions that may help us to pinpoint potential idols in our own lives:

1--What do you think about? What are the things in those quiet moments when you’re away from the press of the immediate demand and the fight of the day, what is that thing that you think about that gives you hope and delight? When you begin to identify that thing or those things, you’re coming close to identifying your idols.

2- How do you spend your time, your resources, and your energy? Because when you look at those three things and you ask that question, you’re going to see the things that you really care about.

3-What disappoints me? What absolutely crushes me with disappointment? And chances are, if you answer that question honestly of yourself you’re going to find an idol. There’s going to be something that you think that you need to have, or something that you desperately want to have that you don’t have, and you’re disappointed by it. It may be a situation that you have in your life that you don’t want. It may be a situation that you do not have in your life that you do want. And you are crushingly disappointed by it. It may have to do with your family life. It may have to do with your vocation. It may have to do with your children or your parents, but you are disappointed by it. And if you’ll think about it for a while, you may well be able to identify your idols.

As I've mulled these over I've re-framed them for myself.

--What preoccupies my thoughts when they're not busy with life at hand?

--What unfulfilled wants hinder me from being fully satisfied with God and worshipping Him with a joyful heart? In other words: What excuses do I make for postponing joy? (Though the fig tree has not yet blossomed will I trust God? )

--What prospect has the ability to fill me with sickening dread, esp. in the middle of the night? ( If the fig tree never blossoms will I still rejoice in my God)

These questions hit closer to home for me, helping to pinpoint those things that tug at my heart and keep it from whole-hearted worship of the only God worthy of my worship. When other things/people/goals capture my heart to the extent that I can't live joyfully without them, I have entered dangerous territory. I now have cause to live in fear, anxiety, depression and discouragement…for what I need could be taken away or never granted! I'm not designed to live this way.

I'm reminded of the first question in the Westminster Confession:

What is the chief end of man?
The answer—"to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever" as evidenced in such texts as these:

Psalm 144:15: Happy are the people who are in such a state; Happy are the people whose God is the LORD!

Isaiah 12:2. Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation

No wonder the foremost command is to love the Lord with all my heart, soul, mind and strength. There will be no room left for rivals and no need of any!

And this brings Jesus' words about hating family into perspective. "If any [man] come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple." Lk.14:26

My love for Him must be so much greater than my desires for my own flesh and blood, that I will never be swayed from devotion to God by my natural desires for my family's well-being. It begins to make sense. Only in worshiping God with my whole-heart am I prepared to love my family rightly, rather than making their well-being my chief end.

But I am talking to myself now. I will leave you with these thoughts on idolatry. May God teach us to find our satisfaction in Him. Nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. Then discouragements will not defeat us and joy will be our companion even in bitter disappointments. The things of earth grow strangely dim when we focus on Him…

Turn your eyes upon Jesus

--LS

This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: Eph.4:17,18

Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation. Ps.42:5  

Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD. Ps.31:24

For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised;
He is to be feared above all gods,
For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols
but the LORD made the heavens! Ps.96:4,5

 

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*T.M.Moore, "Saved from Foolish Choices" Part 5 of Real Hope. Real Change series, available at ColsonCenter.org .

**Rev.J. Ligon Duncan III, “Living Life in Light of Jesus’ Return: A Turn to God from Idols”.  I Thess. 1:7-10.   May 20, 2012. Transcript available here.

*** Lyrics for Turn your Eyes Upon Jesus available here.

Hit Between the Eyes

 
What do you do when faced with a lifetime built on the wrong paradigm?

Thanks to the conspiracy of the Holy Spirit and the books that have dropped into my life this week, I’ve been reminded of a paradigm shift that is incomplete in my life--one of those belief systems that dies hard and must be weeded out root by root… Mine has been the upbringing of a self-righteous Pharisee. No blame intended, it’s just what I latched onto as a means to satisfy my need to please…

Little by little the Spirit shows me what he sees and what I need to confess and reject. I’m still trying to frame clearly in words this insidious belief system that sabotages my heart. It’s something to the effect of believing that doing the right thing, avoiding mistakes, treading cautiously so as not to slip and fall, living wary of potential failure… all these things are indispensable to maintaining a ‘right-eousness’ that will not only qualify me for the Kingdom but guarantee me an A+ standing. Yep, I got Jesus ‘on board’ at an early age too, as that was clearly the ‘right’ thing to do in my religious community, and I might need His help along the way…. Cultivating a relationship with Him was clearly requisite to maintaining my ‘righteousness’ (and bolstering my insecurities). So I did, as much as a self-righteous sinner can. But I’ve always been goaded by stories that depict great love and adoration, great mercy, forgiveness and compassion. The self-righteous generally are.

Consider, for instance, the publican and the Pharisee going up to pray. Who gets a hearing? Not the “I thank thee that I am not like that lout of a man”, but the miserable repentant sinner who pleads: “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!”(Luke 18).

And what’s this with the prostitute kneeling at Jesus’ feet weeping and washing His feet with her tears, trusting His compassionate heart to forgive: “Her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little." (Lk.7:47) I have long secretly envied her heart-felt extravagance.

“Little love” is not enough to empower a life of self-forgetful service and whole-hearted sacrifice! Anything short of my life a ‘living sacrifice’ is insufficient worship to offer. But giving up my fabricated ‘righteousness’ and dogged self-preservation feels like a life-sentence. Hmm… ‘death to self’ could it be? What would that look like?

I’m reading a book I borrowed from my dad-in-law entitled: Living Sacrifice (Roseveare). It’s been one of those times in my life when books conspire to nail me between the eyes with my condition. Whether Owen Meany* (see last week’s blog) and his sense of destiny to give his life to save others, or Helen Roseveare’s reflections on lessons learned as a missionary in the Congo/Zaire, or the book I have yet to mention that came in the mail this week for me to review…All point to a love that is not only willing but glad to surrender its life for another. If these are not enough hints, there’s Paul’s joyful letter to the Philippians, in which he extols the privilege of suffering for Christ’s sake. It has been granted to us that ‘for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in Him but also suffer for his sake…’ (Phil.1:29).


Paul himself experienced the rigorous life of the true Pharisee with its confidence, zeal, and blamelessness and declared it all a net loss, garbage in comparison to the worth of knowing Christ, sharing His righteousness, His resurrection power and His sufferings. It was the goal of Paul’s life to be like Christ, humbly obedient to the point of death. Where does that kind of self-forgetful zeal come from?

My guess is, love. And Paul’s own words in his letter to the Corinthians confirm it: “For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. II Cor. 5:14,15

This kind of self-sacrificing love is unfamiliar territory for the self-righteous—wise in their own sight, self-sufficient, not cognizant of the grace in which they live and breathe. Thinking they have little to be forgiven, they love little. I wonder if you saw “The Passion of the Christ” (Gibson, 2004) when it came out? I watched alone those moments of Christ’s trial when the pious Pharisees and chief priests in all their regalia were standing smugly by and I was struck with my own culpability. But then with awe I realized that this repugnantly self-righteous lot were among those for whom Christ came to die. His piercing words to them throughout His ministry--calling them ‘white-washed sepulchers’, blind guides, children of the devil—were not meant to condemn but to confront them with their sinful selves so they could repent and be saved.

And even still Christ calls to self-righteous me, to relinquish my rubbish and rely on His righteousness alone. And again, by faith, I trade in my bankrupt agenda for His and trust Him to put His great love in my heart. I can’t serve Him without it.

It’s got to be by faith. Everything else reeks of self and sin. “Whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.” Rom.14:23 I do want to ‘get it right’ but my motives are so skewed. Jesus is not only the founder of my faith, but its perfecter (Heb.12:2) It’s not about the perfection of what I do but of my faith—resting my whole case on Christ from beginning to end. “As you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him.” (Col.2:6) It doesn’t just start with believing I’m a hopeless sinner and He’s my Saviour. It continues that way. He saves me from myself every day by passing day, and my only hope of walking worthy of my calling is by faith, that He is able…thus the fear and trembling of ‘working out my own salvation’ (Phil.2:12) for it is this awesome, holy, perfect, almighty God that is in the process of redeeming my life and making it an instrument of redemption…

Larry Crabb goes so far as to state: “Without an ongoing consciousness of sin, any sense of nearness to [God] is counterfeit. But with consciousness of sin, the fire of purifying holiness will sustain your faith.”(God’s Love Letters to You,44) I’m still chewing on this one.

Helen Roseveare’s stories viewed apart from such a work of God only make me squirm. Such self-sacrificial service was her response to Jesus’ love and death for her, ‘a way to express to God [my] great love for Him.’ When she speaks of this ‘insistent demand in our heart to express to Him our love’ I hesitate in self-examination. But the last enigmatic straw is this willingness to suffer, the costliness of such a love. She speaks of it as the ‘privileged opportunity of sharing in His love’, of ‘jointly demonstrating’ it to others…

Am I willing to give my whole heart, soul, mind and strength for His purposes—the loan of all I am, for His glory, without advance notice of the implications, and without life-time guarantees? This is going to have to be a process He works out in me too, by faith. When I glance through the Hebrews 11 crowd, that great cloud of witnesses to the life of faith, I am stretched.

• choosing mistreatment with God’s people rather than ‘the fleeting pleasures of sin’
  
• considering ‘the reproach of Christ’ greater wealth than Egypt’s treasures because of the reward in view…
  
• enduring ‘as seeing Him who is invisible’
  
• refusing release ‘so that they might rise again to a better life’
  
• ‘of whom the world was not worthy’
  
• ‘for the joy set before Him’ enduring the cross
  
  All of them were looking ahead to another reality—an unshakeable Kingdom, which made their present losses of no account. Not living under persecution or great hardships it is easy to get lulled into clinging to present comforts and shunning discomfort. I’m challenged by the perspective Larry Crabb champions in his recent book God’s Love Letters to You (Thomas Nelson, 2010) These devotional excerpts certainly don’t read like conventional ‘love letters’. They continuously point to a greater hope than the present, a bigger purpose than present ‘blessings’--God’s sort of ‘tough love’--designed to prepare us for Kingdom living. For instance:

“The greatest danger My people face today is prosperity, blessings that reinforce the false hope that nothing serious will ever go wrong in their lives if they just keep believing, expecting, trusting, and smiling….When every expectation of how your life should turn out is shattered; when I seem to you like an indifferent, cold sovereign, a promise breaker, a useless God, an abandoning parent, rejoice! You are ready for the unveiling, to meet Me as I am.” (47)

“When your life hits a bump that I could smooth but don’t, will you continue to think I should surrender My wisdom to yours and do what you think best?”(50)

“My people in Judges never repented. They remained in love with their own sense of well-being, with no understanding that love, real love, the love that defines Me, involves suffering the loss of well-being for the sake of another….You…are inclined to depend on Me for the good life of blessings and to mistake that dependence for love. You’re more afraid of losing the good life than of losing (or never gaining) a close relationship with Me. You do not yet see that being with Me is your greatest blessing, no matter what else may be happening in you life.”(20)

“Know this: those who live by faith will struggle in ways that those who live to make their lives work will never know. It is that struggle, to believe despite desperate pain and confusion that a good plan is unfolding, that will open your eyes to see Me more clearly. Is that what you want? Will you pay the price?

“The price is this: you will tremble in agony as you live in a sinful, self-prioritizing world. You will learn to wait in emptiness and frustrated desire for My plan of love to reveal itself…”(53)

And so, God loves, and we believe, as we bank on His righteousness being sufficient. And we wait for our full redemption, ‘prisoners of hope’, confident that God is working in us to make us like His Son and love the world through us in the meantime.

“Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe” (Heb.12:28)



God be merciful to me, a sinner,

LS


*My book review of: A Prayer for Owen Meany is at: http://thestackofdawn.blogspot.com/2011/07/prayer-for-owen-meany.html

Of Sadness and Gladness

 Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! 

Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! (I Chr.16:10,11)

It is easy to be sad, counter-intuitive to be glad, at least for me.  I’ve been thinking lately about reasons for good cheer.  There are plenty of evident indicators for sadness, and even if they weren’t so obvious I have this uncanny bent toward brewing them up.  If you’ve ever read Owl at Home (by Arnold Lobel) to your kids, you’ll remember the story of ‘Tear-Water Tea’.  (At least that’s the one I found most memorable. Hmm, wonder why?).  In this story, Owl concocts a salty tea by thinking of all the sad things he can remember…both silly and poignant—pencils too short to use, a book that can’t be finished because a page is missing, mornings nobody saw because everybody was sleeping, songs that won't be sung because no one remembers the words.. sad things, broken things, lost thing, wasted things.  It’s a melancholy little tale but the tears are put to good use with the resultant salty tea. I have this propensity myself even when ‘all is well’.

But then there are the seasons when so many things really seem so very sad.  Whether in the world at large—earthquakes, violence, persecution, Hell looming for so many-- or the Body nearer home-- a baby born sightless, a young father losing a leg, a teenager killed in a car crash, a husband dead from cancer (these things are happening in our Body here).  Or even closer to home, family things—a favorite uncle dies suddenly (this week), having just visited his brother (my dad) who is lost in the lonely anguish of Alzheimer’s, a mother tries to hang on to hope…And the details could go on ad infinitum. A mother’s heart is always under some tension or another and can easily be swamped by sadness.  And yet…

Speaking of swamped, I had my first sailing outing of the season this week. It was sunny but a bit surly wind-wise.  I no longer fear being capsized but being sea-sick is very real on such days!  So I headed down below to curl up eyes-closed and meditate on other things.  These words came to mind from a passage I’ve tried to memorize—“Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!”.  I am authorized, even commanded to rejoice in the process of problems so long as I am seeking the Lord.  It is not only in the resolution of conflict, pain, and loss that there is cause for celebration, but in the middle of it.  This is so because my Saviour is unchanging, faithful, good, just, all-knowing, all-seeing, and all I need!  And if I’m seeking Him, I’m right on course for good cheer.

In fact, if I could see every sad thing from eternity’s side there would be a luster of gold from the strands being woven for God’s glory.  If He is over all and through all and in all (Eph.4:6) how could this not be so?  On the back-side of each bleak reality in this world shines hope and grounds for joy.  And this joy is not just in the here-after!  It’s my rightful heritage now.

I’ve been gleaning thoughts on the why’s and wherefore’s of joy this week.  Another passage that came to mind on the boat had this to say when I got home to see the whole context:

Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the LORD.
Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, O righteous,
and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!
and further along: Shout for joy in the LORD, O you righteous! Praise befits the upright. (Ps.32:10,11; Ps.33:1)

Of course believers too experience sorrow, but we don’t sorrow as those without hope, without understanding, without God in the world!  I’ve been reading Ephesians and the contrast there is so clear.  We have hope, an inheritance, immeasurable power at our disposal!  We are not stuck in futility, pursuing our passions mindlessly, alienated from God and the meaning of life.  We are saints—chosen, loved, destined for glory, children of light!  In view of this calling we hang on to hope, we are shielded by faith in an evil world and we can go on our way with a melody in our hearts, thankful and celebrating God’s goodness in our conversations.  This is pretty radical.  No place for tear-soup here.  But when there are tears, we can rest assured God sees.  David said: “You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.” (Ps.56:8)  And we know that seeds sown with weeping will yield sheaves with shouts of joy! (Ps.126:6)

I was looking in the Gospels at reasons for joy… 

• There’s the call to rejoice when persecuted for sharing the Gospel, because a great reward is coming (Mt.5:12)
• There’s Jesus’ admonition to the disciples to rejoice that that their names are written in heaven, not merely that demons submit to them! (Lk.10:20)
• But the passage that particularly caught my eye was in Luke 15: “…there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance…”  This is the sort of thing that makes God rejoice!

And of course, the story that illustrates this is the Prodigal Son and his elder brother.  We know all about the prodigal and the father’s warm welcome and the big celebration of the prodigal’s homecoming.  But it was the other son that caught my eye.  The joyless one.  Why was he joyless?  Why did he fail to share the Father’s joy?  He boasted of his own goodness and faulted the Father for not ever having given him a goat for a party with his friends.  Had he ever asked?

The Father’s gentle response reminds me of someone I know well who is prone to take so much for granted and forget the awesome truth she lives in: “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.”  What more is there?  Had the older son realized he was living in his inheritance—it was not all a future thing!? Have I?   When Peter says God has given us ‘all things that pertain to life and godliness’ what does that mean?  Is that not everything?  Of course it’s important to notice that these things are granted “through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence”. (II Pet.1:3-4)  The elder son apparently did not know His Father’s heart, did not live in close proximity to Him, had not become ‘partaker of the divine nature’.  He had followed the letter of the law, but not understood his father’s heart for him.  I’m reminded here of Jesus’ promise to his disciples: “Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” (Jn.16:24) God does not begrudge us joy.  He invites us to share His joy, not just in the hereafter, but now, offering all we need for life and godliness. 

Remembering what this parable is illustrating takes me back to the condition for joy—‘one sinner who repents’.   This brings God more joy than 99 elder sons who try to work their way into His good graces and never ‘cash in’ on all He means to be to them.  Wow.  Repentance-- coming back to the Father, agreeing with Him about everything, refusing to take life in my own hands and ‘do it my way’… herein is JOY! For Him, and for me.

Daughter, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours… Now that’s an inheritance! Sounds like I’m richer than I realize.

So who needs tear tea?  And why not call for a party?  Can I not live in perpetual repentance and rejoicing, thankful to the One who is always with me providing all I need for life and godliness?  It’s a high calling. Is this the kind of living Paul was picturing when he prayed for the Ephesians that God would give them ‘a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him’ so that they would really KNOW ‘what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe!' (Eph. 1:17-19).  I’ve been praying this a lot lately.  It’s the stuff of heady joy.

Maybe good cheer, joy and gladness are not so counter-intuitive.  Depends on what factors I’m ruminating on… I love this passage in I Peter 1 that concludes: “Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”


And the first part just exudes enthusiasm about the living hope we’ve been born again into—‘to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you…in this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials…’ and even these, Peter makes clear, are part of a  priceless refining process that will yield a faith more precious than gold…
So I’m switching teas.  Not settling for the salty homebrew.  God grant us all eyes to see through the sadness to His reasons for gladness and so to hang on in the hope of our glorious inheritance!

'He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken it. And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.' (Is.25:8,9)

“In this world you will have tribulation but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” –Jesus Jn.16:33


“And this is the victory that has overcome the world—even our faith.” I Jn.5:4




--LS


P.S. Feel like singing?  May I suggest Kim Walker’s upbeat “I Have Found”
 
I have found a peace that ploughs on through the storm.
I have found a joy that jumps over sadness.
I have found a love that lights up every room.
I have found, I've found You!

Chorus:
You are all I want, You are all I need,
Everything my heart could hope for.
We are longing for, the Glory of the Lord,
Cause we know there's so much more!

Of Quagmires and Quandaries

I get myself in a quagmire every so often. It starts like this. I start reading from the Gospels. This time it was Luke 12, mostly red letters. Should be lots of good stuff just for me from Jesus right? Takes about 2 verses before I begin to get this sinking feeling, this sense of condemnation that Jesus is talking about me and what He says is true and… what am I to do with that?
Watch what you say. Nothing is hidden that will not be known. (Gulp.) Have you ever said anything (or thought anything) that you’d not want repeated out loud? OK well keep moving…

Ah a ‘have no fear’ passage. That always hits the nail on the head for me. Strike two. Oh and it continues with one about being a bold witness for Christ…hmm. That sounds like a Strike Three!

But there’s no stopping. Soon we’re into the Rich Fool’s story. He loved his stuff. Enough to enlarge his storage spaces for it so he could relax, assured that he would have enough in case of come-what-may… Not a happy ending to that one. Do you know anyone like that, any pack rats hoarding treasures?

And on we go while the sinking feeling grows. Never mind fear, now we’re dealing with anxiety. None needed, not over your life, your food, your body, your clothes… what’s left to direct my anxiety towards? It’s all about priorities. Am I seeking the Kingdom first or looking out for myself? My heart will be wherever my treasures are.

OK. Maybe I’m just too introspective but I find it hard to be around Jesus’ words for more than a sentence or two without a sense of my own shortcomings. And it’s not like I can just reach down and pull up my socks. This stuff gets to the core of who I naturally am. If I try to be brave and keep reading it gets worse. Jesus is coming back. Will He find me doing His will (that’s a little elusive at this point, or maybe not elusive enough, depending how you consider it) when He comes. Because, oh here’s a ‘cringer’ “Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required”. I know I have been given much. What do I have to show for it?

I am at this point pretty well mired in guilt. Jesus has a lot to say that shows up who I am at heart. Continuing to Chapter 13 we have a tower falling and killing 18 people who are no more guilty than myself. And the warning, ‘unless you repent you will all likewise perish’. (Gulp again.)
Repentance is pretty key here, and is perhaps the answer to my quandary over how to take these words and find life in them, not just guilt.

Then Jesus tells a parable of a pathetic fig tree. It’s not bearing fruit despite being planted in this man’s vineyard. He says, “Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground.” Yikes! Fortunately he decides to give it one more chance—some tilling and manure and a year’s time to get producing. And I’m feeling like an unproductive fig tree now.

Need I go further to explain the quagmire I find myself in. Here are Jesus’ words, words meant to give life, to reveal a radical ‘nother Kingdom, a high calling. And here am I, living out of keeping with this kingdom. And trying to straighten myself out. Yes, that’s why I’m reading Jesus’ words in the first place! And facing guilt and death instead of life and peace. But do you know what comes next? Jesus comes across a woman who has had ‘a disabling spirit’ for eighteen years and could not fully straighten herself. Ah, here I am, disabled by guilt unable to straighten myself out. And what does Jesus do? He calls her over and simply says, “Woman, you are freed from your disability, and He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God.” (Luke 13:10)

I went to bed last night chewing on these things and trying to find resolution. Is it in repentance? Trying harder is not going to ‘cut it’; I know that. What is my problem anyway? Bouncing these things off my best counselor and friend this morning we reasoned that it seems to be an issue of unbelief. For every one of these instructions of Jesus there are reassurances of God’s care, God’s promises, God’s provision for every need. In short, things to be believed. Why then do I focus on the negatives? I could blame temperament. Mine is surely fallen. I have need of vision of how God designed me to function within this personality without the sinful habits of negative, unbelieving thought. This is surely wrong thinking that I should cringe to read the Words of the One who comes to feed my my daily bread and wash my feet along the journey… Lord, forgive, straighten, heal…for Your glory, that this old fig tree may yet bear fruit worthy of its Keeper.

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The Sequel—Justified Freely by His Grace

It occurs to me that I have been praying recently to be shown my own sinfulness lest I take my salvation for granted and hum along in a smug self-righteous state. Hmm. Could be I’m seeing it. What do you think?

But also this passage (Acts 26:18) grabbed my attention. Jesus is giving Paul his mission to the Gentiles—“to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.” Dealing with sin is the point of the Gospel, and not just our initial salvation but also our sanctification is by faith. Where did it start to be about my effort to get things right?

Paul goes after the Galatians for this and how many times must I read it to drill it home?! Apparently once more: “Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?…Does He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith?”(Gal.3:3-5) There it is again, faith. Hearing with faith. It’s not about whether I feel forgiven, accepted in the Beloved, justified by His grace… It’s about standing up straight, looking Jesus in the eye as He leans over and says, “Woman, you are freed from your disability” and believing the work is already done. What else does “justified freely by His grace” mean? It’s about God’s righteousness, not mine, that he made this plan to justify the one who has faith in Jesus. (Rom.3:24ff). And my part? to acknowledge where I am and to believe that He will fulfill all these good words in me in His good time…

So where’s the quagmire? Where the quandary? I had a friend once look me in the eye after I was finished reciting my woes and say, “I don’t think you really have any problem…” Took me kind of by surprise. Reminded me of my tendency to magnify what I perceive as negative. And it may be just the counsel I need to hear this time. I am disabled only by my unbelief. In all truth I have “redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of [my] trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon [me], in all wisdom and insight….to the praise of His glory!” Eph.1:7,8ff What more is there?

Only thanksgiving for His glorious grace that reaches down to straighten a disabled woman and show mercy on a barren fig tree…

"Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin." (Rom.4:7,8)

It's amazing, this grace in which we stand! May He give us eyes to see it more and more...

--Linda

P.S. If you've made it to this point, you deserve a break! Come by and we'll have tea ( ; And bless you for sharing my mental meanderings. It means much. --LS