Gathered to Our People

At the memorial service for my dad yesterday, I was greeted by family and friends I had not seen for a long time, over two decades in some cases.  I also met people I had only seen in pictures.  It was like a family reunion of sorts, members of the Body of Christ regathered to honour the memory of Dad who was beloved and respected by many.  While the occasion was tinged with sadness, it was made overwhelmingly sweet by love and kindness of dear friends who attended.

The pastor mentioned Genesis 25:8 as evidence death of the body is not the end for people who fear God:  "Then Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age, an old man and full of years, and was gathered to his people."  The assembly of people at the church was an illustration of how passing away for a believer provides an entrance to God's presence in heaven and joins us to believers gone before us.  Dad's departure from his frail and failed body meant a joyous union with Jesus and all of God's people in glorified in the eternal state.

Abraham was gathered to his people, not by virtue of blood relation, but that of shared spiritual heritage by faith in God.  Psalm 144:15 says, "Happy are the people who are in such a state; happy are the people whose God is the LORD!"  By the Gospel Jesus has opened wide the gates of heaven for all who will trust in Him as written in Revelation 5:9-10:  "And they sang a new song, saying: "You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, ¹⁰ and have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth."  God so loved the world He sent His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.

It is a marvelous thing God has promised the former things will be forgotten and not come into mind (Isaiah 65:17-18), yet we will know God as we are known (1 Corinthians 13:12).  We will not lament who we do not see in the eternal state but rejoice in the LORD Jesus and all His redeemed forever. 1 Corinthians 15:55-57 reads, "O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?" ⁵⁶ The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. ⁵⁷ But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."  What a victorious and joyful entrance to heaven and existence it will be, to be with God and His people--our people--always!

Where the Carrot Leads

Most are familiar with the concept of dangling a carrot from a string in front of a person or animal to motivate them to walk forward.  Their hunger, coupled with the hope of satisfaction that hangs tantalisingly out of reach, will move them to action.  The problem for the one pursuing the carrot is he may never obtain it, and who knows where the efforts to gain that carrot will take them.  Their focus is so much on the carrot people can stray far from where they want to be or end up.  People do not want to end up in the gutter, but many have found themselves there.

The wise will not focus on the carrot but where the pursuit of the carrot will lead them.  The businessman may be pursuing elusive riches and early retirement, but it may lead to the breakdown of his physical health, marriage and family.  A young woman might desire to be a famous actress, but the pursuit may require her to cast aside her values and chastity.  To feel accepted or part of the "in" group ,dabbling in drugs may lead to crippling addiction and poverty.  In the movie Maleficent, an ambitious man who wanted the throne for himself stole the wings and broke the heart of the fairy who loved him.  Knowing the price in the end (which cost him his sanity and life), he may have chosen a different course entirely if he could start over.

The wisdom of thinking where temptation is leading us is true concerning addictions and sin.  People chase the carrot of fun by drinking to excess, but it can potentially lead to violence, sexual assault and a bad hangover.  Some pursue the carrot of lust and fornication that produces shame, emptiness and regret.  No one wants to feel ashamed, and if people would consider where their lusts would lead them they might have have had the resolve to reject temptation.  No one wants to explain to their spouse how they have been unfaithful or be told their partner is leaving them, but that is where straying leads.

Like a clever fisherman, the devil is very good at hiding the hook in attractive bait.  Having been snared by his lies and our own folly at times, one would think we would learn.  But forgetfulness of the sorrow, emptiness, guilt and shame for sin is part of the human condition when a fresh temptation is placed before us.  Having fallen for the ruse before and knowing where it will certainly lead us, by faith in God and by His wisdom we look beyond the temptation--where it is leading us--rather than thinking satisfaction could be found presently in sin or in worldly pursuits.  Our flesh longs for the carrot, but the wise ought to look beyond it to Jesus for guidance and inspiration.

Hebrews 12:1-2 says, "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, ² looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."  Rather than looking to what the flesh desires and cries out for, we are to look to Jesus so we can lay aside weights and sins and run the race God has set before us.  In the middle of a race is not time to veer off course or to head to local shops for a snack.  Jesus does not dangle eternal rewards and blessings before us to tempt us to follow Him, but He gives us Himself and countless blessings for seeking Him today.  Why chase the carrot when He has us and we have him?  In Christ we are satisfied and find rest for our souls.

Rebels Against the Light

"There are those who rebel against the light; they do not know its ways nor abide in its paths."

Job 24:13

During Job's discussion with his friends, he spoke of murderers, adulterers and thieves who operated under the cover of darkness.  Their sin was premeditated and meticulously planned, for they made disguises to avoid detection and scoped out properties during the day to return to plunder after dark.  These are those who "rebel against the light," who know what they are doing (and are planning to do) is wrong, but they choose to do it anyway.

God who created the sun to shine by day and the moon to shine by night has given every man the light of his own conscience, the ability to reason and make judgments and provided the light of God's word.  Even young children have a sense of morality built into them and express their displeasure over what seems unfair.  This concept of fairness is not cast off in our adulthood but further refined according to our worldview.  No other beast or creature God made on earth possesses this capacity for convictions we can declare, promote and live by.  Human beings by God's design can override the mindless reactions of instinct, follow our convictions and walk guided the light of our conscience when others walk in darkness.

It is a grave thing indeed to rebel against the light, for it is willful departure from what we know is right.  People wrongly paint God as a cruel ogre who punishes people for what they are ignorant of, but the truth is He will hold all accountable for the light they have been given, what they know and have chosen to intentionally violate.  Sin against the light is a sin is blatant hypocrisy and rebellion God will certainly hold to account.  God did not only cause the light of the sun to shine or the light of His Scripture the Bible, but He sent Jesus Christ as the Light of the World to plainly speak and demonstrate what righteousness looks like:  love from a pure heart.  It is by knowing Christ by faith and abiding in Him we can walk in the light.

Jesus revealed Himself to be the true Light that shines in the darkness, and He said in John 3:19:  "And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."  John 8:12 says plainly, "Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."  Seeing light shine is one thing, but walking in the light by following Jesus in submission and obedience and having the light is another.  Those who rebel against the light rush to ruin though they reign on earth, for God will bring such down to the dust in death and to hell forever for their folly.  Let us choose to walk and abide in the Light rather than rebelling against light we have received and know.

God Declares Truth

There are many sayings and cliches we hear that promote a message we wish could be true.  My uncle was quoted as saying something like, "If your heart can conceive it and your mind can believe it, you can achieve it."  There is evidence to support this could be true--though our desires and belief have no guarantee of fulfillment.  I wanted to bowl a perfect game and believed I could do so, but despite training and practice I never managed to achieve the milestone.  Of all the games I bowled in my adult life I only started a game with 9 strikes in a row once, and I finished with a 279.  Inspirational sayings may be nothing more than wishful thinking when results depend upon our efforts.

What prompted these thoughts to percolate in my mind was due to a slip of paper in a fortune cookie I read yesterday:  "Affirm it, visualize it, believe it, and it will actualize itself."  This statement goes far beyond wishful thinking because it is plainly ridiculous.  Our observations and life experiences show us nothing in this world can actualize itself, that something imagined could by itself become a concrete reality we benefit from.  It is a very good thing declaring something to be true, visualizing and believing it does not make it actualize itself, for this is the thing nightmares are made of.

I love that God's plans and purposes for our lives exceed our wildest dreams and most fervent desires.  Christians know this is true because God's love is not of this world, a thing we never could have imagined until Jesus revealed His love for all by dying on the cross for us sinners.  Our greatest imaginations and conceptions of heaven are far too small even when the eternal state is described in the pages of the Bible.  We often see as in a mirror dimly, a hazy faint image of a future we cannot grasp or clearly make out.  But the glories of heaven are entirely believable because Jesus rose from the dead and ascended to heaven in view of His disciples--some of whom joyfully embraced martyrdom rather than deny Christ, so great was their confidence in Christ's promise of eternal life to all who trust in Him.

Better than affirming, visualizing and believing in what we can imagine or conceive in our minds is the reality God has declared of His existence, sovereignty and power broadcast through the heavens that declare His glory for all to see.  God alone has the power to speak things into existence, for He is the creator of the heavens, earth and all living things.  Man longs for this power and seeks it for himself, yet this is God's sovereign territory as it is written in Lamentations 3:37:  "Who is he who speaks and it comes to pass, when the Lord has not commanded it?"  Man naturally values his imaginations and what could be more than the reality of God and what He has commanded and declared to be true.  Faith in God opens our hearts and minds to comprehend Him and what is even when it is beyond our understanding, and this reality is better than man's fantasies.