The Limits of Accountability

A word I hear concerning the benefits of Christian fellowship is "accountability."  It seems to be part of being a disciple of Jesus to be held or "hold others accountable."  This can be little more than keeping tabs on someone else, to watch over their shoulder to confirm they are doing the right things or avoiding sin.  The more I think about this concept of what passes as a need for serious discipleship from a biblical vantage point, I wonder if we can actually stand in the way of spiritual growth and maturity.  With a desire to be accepted by others we can seek the favour of an accountability partner rather than seeking God and relying upon His strength to overcome sinful desires of the flesh.  Accountability without the governance of God's love has the potential to become prescriptive, controlling and suggests to find favour with God people must labour to please man.

The Bible does speak about giving an account of ourselves, and the context typically concerns a person giving an account before God in judgment.  Jesus said in Matthew 12:36-37, "But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. ³⁷ For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."   Paul wrote in Romans 14:12, "So then each of us shall give account of himself to God."  A day will come when we must give account of our words and deeds before the living God who will judge the living and the dead.  Since we will need to do so in the future, confessing our sins to one another and praying for one another is a fitting reminder and practice to prepare for that day (James 5:16).  Those who are not born again will face a judgment of condemnation, while believers will give an account of their stewardship and receive rewards or suffer loss.

I have had people over the years ask for me to hold them accountable for a particular struggle they faced, to agree to be a person with whom they could contact to confess sin.  I have been asked to inquire at random intervals with "how someone is doing" concerning an issue they previously discussed.  This is a good thing when important boundaries are established and maintained:  sin is between a man and God before whom he will give an account, and only God is able to forgive and cleanse from sin.  As we bear one another's burdens everyone is to carry their own load, and no effort of the flesh can do the work of the Holy Spirit.  Because sin is between a person and God, in one sense it is impossible for a person to keep anyone accountable because we only know what we are told or see ourselves.  It is God's sovereign role to punish sinners, discipline saints and reward those made righteous by faith--not because they avoided sin or complied with the directives of men.

How important it is to pursue the living God and remain close to Him in faith and obedience!  This is how by God's grace a healthy, growing relationship with Him is found.  It would be a strange thing for a husband to confess to his friend he had been unfaithful to his wife without confessing to her first since he sinned against her by his infidelity.  In a similar way, if we have sinned before God it is important we go to Him first, that there is no one we report to in place of Him or look for support or encouragement besides Him.  Isn't He the One who has called us to walk righteously, given us His word, an example to follow in Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit who fills us, convicts us of sin and the God before whom we will ultimately give account?  Accountability before men is no substitute for fellowship with God.  Giving an account before men has merits, but never allow a person to stand in God's place where favour is received by compliance and disobedience avoided by fear of shame. 

Remembering God

"When you reap your harvest in your field, and forget a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands."

Deuteronomy 24:19

God is able to use forgetfulness or being absentminded as an opportunity for blessing.  God knows that we who remember also have the capacity (and even tendency!) to forget.  If a farmer forgot a sheaf of grain in the field, he was not to go retrieve it:  that would provide food for the stranger, the fatherless and the widow.  I wonder if this happened to farmers as often as I forget a pot on the stove that needs cleaning when washing dishes!  The sink being empty of dishes, I often remove the drain plug only to see another pot or dish to wash I had forgotten about.

A forgetful farmer was to be always mindful of the God who commanded him to leave the forgotten sheaf in the field.  He was to remember the promise of God's blessing upon all the work of his hands should he trust and obey.  It is an amazingly good exchange, to leave a sheaf in the field that will benefit others to receive the enduring blessing of God upon all the works of your hands--forgetful though you might be.  I wonder if people intentionally "forgot" a sheaf in the field, left extra olives on the trees or grapes on the vines so they could be partakers of blessings of God for their liberality to others in need.

There is a beautiful balance here of God's provision for the needy and their need to work for a living.  Ruth did not wait for barley to be shoveled into her bag at home but braved the heat of the day to glean in the field of Boaz.  Olives that remained were high in the trees and needed to be brined before eating; the grain in a forgotten sheaf still needed to be threshed, winnowed and ground into flour, roasted or sprouted.  God is good to provide for the rich and poor alike through many means, and it is a blessing to be able to work, eat and enjoy the profits of our labours.  All our increase is a gracious gift from God, and those who are generous and mindful of God's blessings are even more blessed.  There is even a blessing in forgetting when we remember our great God.

Rest in God's Grace

Zerubbabel was a Jewish governor of Judea who came out of the Babylonian captivity and was used by God to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem.  Haggai and Zechariah were prophets and contemporaries of Zerubbabel who encouraged him in the work.  Great difficulties and obstacles were prevalent:  the busyness of the people in their own affairs, opposition of enemies, and even satanic attacks.  Zerubbabel had a massive task before him that loomed like an impassable mountain.  The foundation had been laid, but how would the work be completed?

In the face of great discouragement and his own inability to do the work, an angelic messenger said in Zechariah 4:6-9:  "So he answered and said to me: "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the LORD of hosts. ⁷ 'Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain! And he shall bring forth the capstone with shouts of "Grace, grace to it!" ⁸ Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying: ⁹ "The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; His hands shall also finish it. Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent Me to you."  By the grace of God the immense job would be accomplished Zerubabbel could not finish by the might of Persia or the power of combined effort.  The Holy Spirit would turn mountains into a plain easily navigated.  God would see the capstone of the temple laid, and in that day it would confirm the truth of what the angel spoke.  God used Zerubbabel to complete this monumental task by His grace.

As we move into a new year there is always the temptation to lament past failures than rejoice in new beginnings.  It would be safe to say this year did not go according to the "plans" many had:  trips and holidays were cancelled as a pandemic swept across the globe, weddings and gatherings were impacted, the economy and jobs were negatively affected and social distancing restrictions imposed upon freedoms we took for granted.  In light of what has happened and all the work that still needs to be done, we might imagine our efforts to accomplish God's work is a waste of time.  On the contrary!  When God is doing the work by the power of the Holy Spirit, His grace is sufficient for all seasons.  Before God what appears to be insurmountable opposition is laid low when His people trust and obey Him.

Explorers have devised ways to conquer the highest peaks on the globe, yet only the Holy Spirit is able to make a mountain a plain by His grace.  Heavy equipment and dynamite have removed great swaths of stone and soil, but we cannot by hard labour be born again, forgiven from sins, or go to haven by our efforts:  it is by the grace of God through faith in Jesus this impossible transformation is done.  Paul wrote to believers in Philippians 1:3-7:  "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, ⁴ always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, ⁵ for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, ⁶ being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; ⁷  just as it is right for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, inasmuch as both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace."  Through faith in Jesus Christ we are blessed with the Holy Spirit by God's grace beginning to end.  Like Zerubbabel, may we be His faithful servants who rest in God's grace.

Jesus Proclaims Peace

"When you go near a city to fight against it, then proclaim an offer of peace to it. ¹¹ And it shall be that if they accept your offer of peace, and open to you, then all the people who are found in it shall be placed under tribute to you, and serve you."

Deuteronomy 20:10-11

God commanded His people to proclaim peace to distant cities, thus providing an opportunity for lives to be spared.  Those who responded to the offer of peace from Israel and chose to open their doors to them would be spared.  Cities who refused to accept the offer of peace would be beseiged and every male would be slain.  The choice of life and death was placed before the enemies of Israel according to God's grace, and this reminds me how God is not willing any should perish.  In light of God's warning that judgment will someday come to this world, 2 Peter 3:9 says, "The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance."

About 2,000 years ago, shepherds who kept watch over their flocks by night experienced an angelic proclamation of peace God provided to all the world by sending Jesus Christ.  Luke 2:13-14 reads, "And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: ¹⁴ "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!"  To a world languishing under judgment and death as a consequence for sin, the Light of the World Jesus Christ came to save.  There was no room for newborn Jesus in the inn, yet we are given the opportunity to open ours hearts to Him in faith and surrender our lives to Him.  The well-known carol exhorts all people:  "Joy to the world! The Lord is come.  Let earth receive her King!  Let every heart prepare Him room and heaven and nature sing."

When you move into a new house or renovate rooms, there is an opportunity to arrange furniture.  Rooms can be set up to serve as a bedroom, office or theatre.  The pool table can be sold to make room for a lounge, and the cars can be parked outside to convert the garage into a workspace.  It is important we understand that opening our hearts to Jesus at one time does not guarantee He has the place of honour in our lives today.  Like hoarders acquire vast quantities of goods which restrict their movement and access, our hearts and lives can be cluttered with thoughts, ambitions and desires which crowd out Jesus.  In the Song of Solomon his wife couldn't be bothered to rise from bed to let him in!  They shared a bed together, yet his wife was more concerned about the inconvenience of rising to open the door and having to wash her feet again.

This is similar to what happened with the church of Laodicea Jesus addressed in Revelation 3.  They had become self-confident and self-reliant and believed they had need of nothing--yet Jesus revealed to them spiritually they were wretched, poor, blind, miserable and naked.  Jesus Christ said to them in Revelation 3:19-20, "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. ²⁰  Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me."  Jesus stood at the door and called out to the church to open to Him with the promise of renewed fellowship.  We can open the door of our heart and affections to many things:  have we opened up to Jesus, having made room for Him?  He stands at the door of all our hearts and proclaims peace today, and may we open to Him as humble subjects who serve Him joyfully.

Kept From Stumbling

During my pilgrimage of following Jesus, I have received bad news at times which shocked me deeply.  Most specifically, I have been dismayed over allegations and scandals concerning Christians.  I don't know what is more hard to process looking back:  how a Christian or pastor could be in sin or that I felt the sins of which they were guilty were beyond the realm of possibility.  Many times Christians and I have been left with the broken pieces of a shattered testimony of God's faithfulness by stumbling saints.  How easy it is to assume the ones who have the words of life will always follow them without fail!

One of the blessings that come from these tragic moments is the chance to pause for self-examination:  if a pillar of the faith could topple, who can say that could not have been me?  Peter was quick to say he would not be scattered, stumble or deny Jesus but that very same night he did all three.  No man is without faults, and unless these are recognised and repented of time will only magnify them.  2 John 1:7-8 shows the tension between knowing there are deceivers in the world and to ensure we are not one of them:  "For many deceivers have gone out into the world who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist. ⁸ Look to yourselves, that we do not lose those things we worked for, but that we may receive a full reward."  It is good any faith in ourselves or man would be shaken, no, destroyed entirely, lest we imagine anyone can be righteous apart from Jesus Christ.

Another thing I have observed is how Satan delights to use the fall of a Christian as a blemish upon prior fruitfulness by the grace of God.  He would even seek to employ the fallibility and hypocrisy of those who follow Jesus to claim Jesus is not worthy of being followed or trusted.  I am grateful Jesus Christ stands righteous alone, pure and undefiled from the folly of the saints He delights to save.  When saints fall into sin and scandal erupts, many times the faith of people is exposed as shallow and they fall away:  faith in a pastor or ministry leader cannot comfort or save a soul in those trying times.  Jesus prayed for Peter his faith would not fail, and Jesus prays for all His sheep who can be heavily laden with sin and weights.  We will fail Him, but our faithful Saviour will never fail us.

When we place Christian leaders on pedestals their fall becomes greater and more damaging.  We ought to hold all people in high esteem, and we should hold Christians accountable to walk righteously and godly in this present age.  Proverbs 28:13-14 says, "He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy. ¹⁴ Happy is the man who is always reverent, but he who hardens his heart will fall into calamity."  Judas felt the twinge of guilt and hung himself; Peter was broken for sin and chose to repent and return to Jesus.  Since we are not called to judge another man's servant, we do not need to justify the behaviour of an erring servant to others:  that is for his Master to do.  Our call is look upon our righteous Saviour with eyes of faith and consider Him in all we do, that we might be pleasing unto our LORD and not stumble others.

Instead of being lifted up with pride we have not fallen into sin which resulted in scandal, let us humble ourselves under the almighty hand of God that He might exalt us in due time.  If we keep our feet it is the firmness of our foundation which must receive all credit.  As it is written in Jude 1:24-25, "Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, ²⁵ to God our Savior, Who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen."  God keeps us by His grace, so may I keep my eyes on Him with joy and thanksgiving.

The Sin of Suspicion

Suspicion may not be listed among the works of the flesh, but it is certainly a product of the flesh seasoned with the fear of man.  A close relative of Worry and Anxiety, Suspicion causes a person to perceive grave danger which exists only in his own mind.  Those given over to suspicion have lost focus on the sovereignty, protection and power of God, convinced it falls to them to outsmart their enemies.  Praise the LORD He has provided deliverance from this vice that torments all who justify it.  In Lectures To My Students by C.H. Spurgeon, a chapter titled "The Blind Eye and the Deaf Ear" contains a wealth of insight on the matter which all circumspect people ought to take to heart for themselves:

"It would be better to be deceived a hundred times than to live a life of suspicion.  It is intolerable.  The miser who traverses his chamber at midnight and hears a burglar in every falling leaf is not more wretched than the minister who believes that plots are hatching against him, and that reports to his disadvantage are being spread.  I remember a brother who believed that he was being poisoned, and was persuaded that even the seat he sat upon and the clothes he wore had by some subtle chemistry become saturated with death; his life was a perpetual scare, and such is the existence of a minister when he mistrusts all around him.  Nor is suspicion merely a source of disquietude, it is a moral evil, and injures the character of the man who harbours it.  Suspicion in kings creates tyranny, in husbands jealousy, and in ministers bitterness; such bitterness as in spirit dissolves all the ties of the pastoral relation, eating like a corrosive acid into the very soul of the office and making it a curse rather than a blessing.  When once this terrible evil has curdled all the milk of human kindness in a man's bosom, he becomes more fit for the detective police force than for the ministry; like a spider, he begins to cast out his lines, and fashions a web of tremulous threads, all of which lead up to himself and warn him of the least touch of even the tiniest midge.  There he sits in the centre, a mass of sensation, all nerve and raw wounds, excitable and excited, a self-immolated martyr drawing the blazing faggots about him, and apparently anxious to be burned.  The most faithful friend is unsafe under such conditions.  The most careful avoidance of offence will not secure immunity from mistrust, but will probably be construed into cunning and cowardice.  Society is almost as much in danger from a suspecting man as from a mad dog, for he snaps on all sides without reason, and scatters right and left the foam of his madness.  It is vain to reason with the victim of this folly, for with perverse ingenuity he turns every argument the wrong way, and makes your plea for confidence another reason for mistrust.  It is sad that he cannot see the iniquity of his groundless censure of others, especially of those who have been his best friends and the firmest upholders of the cause of Christ...

No one ought to be made an offender for a word; but, when suspicion rules, even silence becomes a crime.  Brethren, shun this vice by renouncing the love of self.  Judge it to be a small matter what men think or say of you, and care only for their treatment of your Lord.  If you are naturally sensitive do not indulge the weakness, nor allow others to play upon it.  Would it not be a great degradation of your office if you were to keep an army of spies in your pay to collect information as to all that your people said of you?  And yet it amounts to this if you allow certain busybodies to bring you all the gossip of the place.  Drive the creatures away.  Abhor those mischief-making, tattling handmaidens to strife.  Those who will fetch will carry, and no doubt the gossips go from your house and report every observation which falls from your lips, with plenty of garnishing of their own.  Remember that, as the receiver is as bad as the thief, so the hearer of scandal is a sharer in the guilt of it.  If there were no listening ears there would be no talebearing tongues.  While you are not a buyer of ill wares the demand will create the supply, and the factories of falsehood will be working full time.  No one wishes to become a creator of lies, and yet he who hears slanders with pleasure and believes them with readiness with hatch many a brood into active life." (Spurgeon, C. H. Lectures to My Students: Complete & Unabridged. Ministry Resources Library, Zondervan Publishing House, 1989.pages 327-328)

God Was Pierced

How blessed are the children of Israel, the people God covenanted with on Sinai!  God brought the Hebrews out of Egypt with a mighty hand, revealed Himself in power, destroyed their enemies and spoke to them.  God chose Moses to lead His people out of Egypt as they followed the visible presence of God through the wilderness to the promised land.  After Moses God raised up many judges and priests who upheld God's laws and sent prophets to speak to His people.  Idols and graven images have mouths yet cannot speak, and the God of Israel stands alone as the Supreme Being who speaks.

God has spoken through the Bible, and He still speaks to this day.  Words spoken through prophets who spoke for God are still being fulfilled and provide innumerable insights for how to live today.  I wonder what people thought when the prophet spoke the words recorded concerning what God would do in Zechariah 12:10:  "And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn."  I am certain this prophetic utterance prompted many questions:  how could God be pierced?  What this piercing literal or figurative?  Who is this son God referred to, an only son whose loss would be grieved?

Looking to events already taken place, the questions are easily answered.  Jesus was the Christ, the Son of David.  Even a blind man addressed Jesus by "Son of David" so great was His fame, wisdom and grace.  Jesus was the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.  Immanuel, God with us, was pierced on Calvary with thorns on His brow, nails through hands and feet, and a spear in His side.  When Moses asked God to show him His glory, God told him no one could look upon His face and live.  Yet God chose to put on human flesh when the Holy Spirit sired the Son of God in the virgin Mary, and thus God's face could be seen; the Lamb of God could be looked upon and all can live by faith in Him.  This is no new revelation, but I pray God would open the eyes of people to see Jesus lifted up and pierced as Saviour so they can mourn their sin and celebrate their LORD and Saviour.

The apostle John mentioned the prophecy in Zechariah in John 19:32-37:  "Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who was crucified with Him. ³³ But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. ³⁴ But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. ³⁵ And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe. ³⁶ For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, "Not one of His bones shall be broken."³⁷ And again another Scripture says, "They shall look on Him whom they pierced."  When we look upon Jesus Christ who was crucified, died, buried and rose from the dead, we look upon God who was pierced.  Paul says God has purchased the church with His own blood (Acts 20:28).  God is a Spirit, and the only way He could be pierced or shed His blood was to become a man:  Jesus Christ the Son of God who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

If you will take the words of the prophet of God Zechariah to heart, won't you trust Jesus who is God in the flesh and pierced, the Saviour and Messiah of all who trust in Him?

Jesus Our Example

"If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. ¹⁵ For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you."

John 13:14-15

Jesus set an example of how His disciples were to serve one another by washing their feet.  He did not say, "I washed your feet, so you ought to wash my feet."  He told them to follow His example in their interactions with each other, and doing so to the least of these Jesus receives as being done unto Him.  We often can be swept up by "fairness" of doing good to others who have done to us by reciprocating, but God would have us give and serve in response to what He has done.  It is not looking to others that sets our pace but the good deeds of our Saviour Jesus and all we have freely received from Him.  This is one of the many "one another" commands Jesus gave His disciples, that they should do to one another according to Christ's blessing upon them.

The Bible is in one sense a double blessing to us, for it reveals what Jesus has done for us and what He will ultimately do.  When Jesus observed the Passover with His disciples they hearkened back to God's deliverance of Israel from slavery in Egypt and Jesus directed their gaze to what He would accomplish on Calvary.  God demonstrated His own love for us that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  God is gracious to forgive and save sinners at the expense of His only begotten Son.  Jude 1:24-25 also tells us what Jesus will do for all who have received the Gospel:  "Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, ²⁵ to God our Saviour, Who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen."

With souls regenerated by faith in Jesus, with Jude we can credit God with what He will do as well as what He has already done.  God is able to keep us from stumbling and will present us faultless before His presence with joy, so now we are to rejoice in our Saviour and ascribe glory to Him now and forever.  We are prone to stumbling and falls, yet God is able to keep us upright.  We who deserve eternal damnation for our sins are to rejoice in our Saviour who washes us clean, forgives us wholly and is wisdom for us.  I cannot keep another person from stumbling or supply them with everlasting joy, but God can.  All creation is His dominion and He can transform the hearts of people by His grace.  Having been changed by the love, grace and forgiveness of God what joy is ours coupled with privilege and responsibility:  we are to follow the example of Jesus is serving one another for the glory of God.

Jesus continued in John 13:16-17, "Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. ¹⁷ If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them."  Understanding who Jesus is and all He did guards against the pitfalls of pride, seniority and entitlement.  The blessing is understood by knowledge yet realised when we put Christ's command into action by obedience as we trust Him.  Jesus did not wash feet because He hoped to have His feet washed but to provide an example of how we should serve one another.  Having been purchased with the precious blood of Jesus and cleansed from sin, let us love one another and forgive, speaking gracious words in meekness, edifying and encouraging one another.  Being clothed with humility before men gives God glory and enables us to stand and serve with exceeding joy.

The Singular Christian Pursuit

For about 11 years of my working life I was part of a labour union which provided training, top wages and opportunity for advancement.  The emphasis when I joined was to work "8 for 8" (work all 8 hours for 8 hours of pay), buy American if possible, show up on time, have a good attitude and do quality work.  The training and efficient, quality work our union was known for enabled us to charge top-dollar for our services and actually saved customers money because of the superior product.  Over the years, however, the position of the union shifted in regards to how we could be successful in our industry:  making friends in politics through financial contributions.

I found the shift from doing quality work to seeking political sway as our primary way of profitability, sustainability and survival most concerning.  Instead of the union existing to support the membership, it had become cannibalistic, increasing dues from members to neutralise threats to "our work" by greasing the palms of politicians.  It is bad enough when this happens in labour unions, yet it is even more shocking and despicable when this occurs in the church or faith-based "parachurch" organisations that seem to think gain is godliness (1 Timothy 6:5).  I remember going to a youth conference years ago that was actually a massive infomercial, glossing over the ministry opportunity right before them with the promise of bigger and better next year.  For a fee this "ministry" would help churches help others--when it required increasing support of Christians to survive at all.

There are countless ministries which are great benefit to the Body of Christ and bring glory to God.  I do not want to paint a negative picture with a broad brush, but I do believe it is profitable for self-examination:  am I content to pay others to do what God is calling me to do myself?  Do I prefer the convenience of giving financial support to a ministry in lieu of getting my hands dirty?  Am I seeking gain for the kingdom of God or to promote myself or a local ministry?  How easy it is to drift from the purpose God has called us to labour in the Word and be caught up in politics, to abandon the rock-solid foundation for shifting sands.  Having renounced the love of money and lust for gain 1 Timothy 6:11-12 says, "But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness. ¹² Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses."

Instead focusing on what we need to do, Paul urged Timothy to become the man God created Him to be.  Huge difference!  It was not about what strategies Timothy needed to employ to secure greater attendance, followers or likes:  he was to pursue Jesus Christ and follow His example.  He was to put off the works of the flesh and be filled with the Holy Spirit, bearing fruit according to God's design.  This fight was not against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers who had been overcome by the blood of Lamb and walk worthy of the salvation received by the grace of God.  Praise the LORD our salvation does not depend upon a pastor, ministry or organisation, for Jesus Christ is our Saviour and all in all.  As our Good Shepherd He will lead us in ministry and service, and may all our efforts be united for His glory alone.

Glory in God

When the children of Israel returned from captivity in Babylon, they rebuilt the temple.  They did not possess the wealth of King Solomon who lavishly adorned the first structure built roughly 450 years before.  The new temple was modest by comparison and was hardly an impressive edifice even to those who laboured to construct it.  Rebuilding the temple in the city God placed His name was a most worthy effort, yet the new building failed to capture the former glory of that which Nebuchadnezzar destroyed.

Haggai 2:1-3 reads, "In the seventh month, on the twenty-first of the month, the word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet, saying: ² "Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of the people, saying: ³ 'Who is left among you who saw this temple in its former glory? And how do you see it now? In comparison with it, is this not in your eyes as nothing?"  There were elderly people among the captives who returned to Jerusalem who had seen the previous temple and thought the new temple didn't measure up.  God confronted the rulers of Israel, the high priest and remaining people about how they were critical of the current work.  Building the temple was God's work, but it wasn't as awesome as before.  This reminds me how reports of revivals in times past seem to outshine the work God is doing in the midst of His people today.

God continued in Haggai 2:4-5:  "Yet now be strong, Zerubbabel,' says the LORD; 'and be strong, Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest; and be strong, all you people of the land,' says the LORD, 'and work; for I am with you,' says the LORD of hosts. ⁵ 'According to the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt, so My Spirit remains among you; do not fear!'"  God's word worked to shift the critical perspective of the building and the results of their efforts to God who was with them.  God said, "Be strong and work for I am with you."  Though Jerusalem lacked walls, protection and an army at the ready, the Spirit of God remained among His people.  They were exhorted to be without fear because God kept His word and covenant with them, though over the years they had been unfaithful to Him.

Haggai 2:6-9 concludes, "For thus says the LORD of hosts: 'Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; ⁷ and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,' says the LORD of hosts. ⁸ 'The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,' says the LORD of hosts. ⁹ The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,' says the LORD of hosts. 'And in this place I will give peace,' says the LORD of hosts."  The temple which seemed a shadow of its former glory would be filled with the glory of the LORD, and God promised the glory of this latter temple would be greater than the former.  The children of Israel could not have seen or predicted what God would do in the future and how peace would come to a shaken world through Him.

May all the servants of the LORD take heart in this, even when our service does not seem to be as glorious or magnificent of those who have gone before:  we ought to be strong and work because God is with us.  It is not great buildings, gold, silver or fame among men which we ought to prize but our glorious God who is the Desire of All Nations, the One who provides perfect peace for all who trust in Him.  Jesus Christ is our great High Priest and KING OF KINGS, the one whose glory fills heaven and earth forever.  A day is coming when He will return and establish His kingdom in Jerusalem, and eyes of faith see Him drawing near according to His promise.  Praise our glorious God, you His people, for the glory that awaits us is greater than the former.

Complete In Christ

Even in western society that places small value on images as object of worship, idolatry is a real danger in the lives of Christians.  During our pilgrimage on earth, similar to the children of Israel whether in the wilderness or in Canaan, we will face temptations to look to people or things rather than God.  Our idolatry is not as obvious as a shrine with candles and incense because it is fundamentally a matter of the heart.

A pastor recently told me an interesting observation during marriage counselling over the years.  He noted the tendency of people to make demands of marriage to be something God never intended, to provide for their needs how only God can.  A single person who seeks fulfillment, satisfaction and belonging from life through a romantic relationship alone will ultimately be disappointed.  There is a persistent myth that we are incomplete without a spouse or sex.  It is ironic the very thing we seek and obtain can be the source of great consternation and frustration after it is revealed to be incapable of meeting our expectations.

See what Paul wrote to believers in Colossians 2:8-12 (bold emphasis mine):  "Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. ⁹ For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; ¹⁰ and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power. ¹¹ In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, ¹² buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead."  In Jesus alone we are complete regardless of marital status, having been joined to Him in faith.  Through the Gospel Jesus Christ has done a work within us and therefore we work by the power of the Holy Spirit.

This connection with the Body of Christ is not without pitfalls, for as people can look expectantly to a spouse to meet needs only God can, we can look to a church or ministry leader in a similar fashion.  People can feel disenfranchised in a church because of legitimate flaws and because they suppose programs or people within the church ought to provide and meet needs God alone can.  Those who serve in church ministry can also labour for self-serving purposes:  to feel accepted, needed, for praise and to belong.  Church ministry can become a demanding mistress which ironically works to turn the minister's heart away from dependence and reliance on God.  The child of God who realises he is complete in God alone will not be worried about pleasing men or dwindling numbers, for he is already full and lacks nothing that pertains to life and godliness forever.

I'm learning the more I feel I look for positive affirmation by people or quantifiable "fruit" from my efforts I can see, it is a dead-giveaway I have forgotten I am already complete in Jesus.  And I am easily forgetful.  My perspective at times can be like the person who goes to the gym and puts out consistent effort and becomes disappointed when the pounds are not melting away and painful injuries are setbacks that overwhelm any gains.  Life is no easier for the bloke with bigger biceps or the woman with washboard abdominals, and it would be foolish to think the Body of Christ cannot be fruitful or useful unless we measure up to some arbitrary, unwritten ideal.  How refreshing and joyous a revelation it is to be complete in Jesus Christ!  Instead of us grasping with futility for the wind we are held close by the love of God and made useful for every good work.

Rejoice in Our Saviour

Hebrews 11:1 describes faith like this:  "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."  Everyone, to some degree, daily demonstrates a measure of faith.  After buying a new car we trust the sensor on the fuel tank is reasonably accurate.  We trust motivated workers to finish the task they were assigned without feeling the need to check on them.  When we place our faith in God as revealed in scripture we are also are convinced and sure of unseen realities.  The Bible gives us insight to the character and power of God to save, forgive, help and save.  Without ever seeing Jesus Christ many people trust and love Him, not because they are weak-minded or mentally unstable, but because of the historical account of His life, death and resurrection.

One of my favourite passages that explores the victorious, sustaining faith in a child of God is seen in Habakkuk 3:17-19:  "Though the fig tree may not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines; though the labour of the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food; though the flock may be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls--¹⁸ yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. ¹⁹  The LORD God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer's feet, and He will make me walk on my high hills."  The prophet Habakkuk had no hope of a harvest of figs because the fig tree did not blossom.  It seemed there would be no wine because there was no fruit on the vines.  Food was scarce because the fields yielded no produce and there were no flocks or herds.  In the midst of a hopeless situation, Habakkuk was able to rejoice in the LORD because God was his Saviour.  We are excited at the prospects of a fruitful harvest and seeing our resources multiply, yet we are called to walk by faith and not by sight.  All hope is not lost when all seems lost because our rejoicing is in our God.

These verses in Habakkuk show me the folly of substituting good prospects for God.  In the midst of the trial we see "the light at the end of the tunnel" and find solace our troubles will be soon resolved.  This may be little more than a mirage which plunges us deeper into despair when our hopes are deferred again.  We soothe ourselves with the chance of small gains rather than in God who has already given us all things.  The LORD God is our strength, wisdom, redemption, righteousness and nothing can separate us from His love.  Jesus said He is preparing a place for His followers and will come again and receive us.  Shouldn't Jesus be who lifts our heads because our Salvation draws nigh?  Our LORD and Saviour is able to sustain His people with water from the rock, Living Bread from heaven and the comfort of His presence.  Our Good Shepherd is able to lead us safely through fire and flood, drought and storm day and night.

See the victory provided by faith in Jesus for those who are grieved when all other hopes are exhausted in 1 Peter 1:6-9:  "In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, ⁷ that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, ⁸ whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, ⁹ receiving the end of your faith--the salvation of your souls."  When Job was critically ill by the hand of Satan he uttered these inspired and immortal words in Job 19:25-27:  "For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; ²⁶ and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God, ²⁷ whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!"

Hope in God, you His people!  Rejoice in your Saviour, all who look to Jesus in faith!  The LORD is our strength and will enable us to stand now and forever in His glorious presence.

Life Worth Investigating

Children are impressionable and parents have a great privilege and responsibility to raise them to know and honour God.  Christian parents can sabotage their efforts to teach their children about God when they reduce the relationship to rules.  There is a smug satisfaction that feeds our pride that we know and do what is right compared to a sinning, heathen world outside.  Believing sound doctrine is good, yet if pride in ourselves for a righteous stand (however costly) and still despise others without repentance we are no different than the self-righteous Pharisees who did not recognise the Saviour Jesus Christ who walked among them.  It is not doing one thing rather than another that makes us acceptable in the eyes of God but faith in Christ who regenerates us and empowers us by the Holy Spirit to walk in love.

After the exodus of the Hebrews from Egypt, God commanded His people to continually teach their children about Him, His word and all He had done for them.  They were to follow God's commandments in accordance to the covenant He made with them.  Deuteronomy 6:20-24 reads, "When your son asks you in time to come, saying, 'What is the meaning of the testimonies, the statutes, and the judgments which the LORD our God has commanded you?' ²¹ then you shall say to your son: 'We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand; ²² and the LORD showed signs and wonders before our eyes, great and severe, against Egypt, Pharaoh, and all his household. ²³ Then He brought us out from there, that He might bring us in, to give us the land of which He swore to our fathers. ²⁴ And the LORD commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is this day."  This directive is so insightful on how to instruct our children to follow God and exposes common pitfalls in raising godly children who continue on to maturity in faith.

Notice the transfer of knowledge does not begin with the parent telling the child what is right or wrong but the child, seeing the God-honouring conduct of his or her parents, is curious to know the meaning of God's word and why they follow God at all.  We fail in our witness to our kids and others when our "faith" in God is little more than words, esteeming agreement with certain doctrines and being heavy on what we reject.  These "anti" views are established as ideology within impressionable minds that might actually lack a relationship with the living God.  Zealous as devout Pharisees, these little ones at a young age are keen to reject dressing up for Halloween or promoting Santa Claus; they will hold signs protesting abortion and help feed the homeless.  They will for a time follow their parent's example to avoid distasteful movies or music.  However, a day will come when a child begins to question the ideology of their parents as they think for themselves.  Like the second generation of Hebrews in Canaan who did not know the LORD, a vast majority of these "churched" kids will know Bible trivia and stories but never know God personally.

Contrast this lamentable situation with the passage in Deuteronomy 6:  children were moved to ask their parents the meaning of God's testimonies, statues and judgments He commanded them.  The explanation of the parents is different than the explanation we might give because it starts with a personal testimony of who God is and all He had done for them.  The parents recalled the time when they were slaves in Egypt and how God brought them out with a mighty hand, with signs and wonders they witnessed with their eyes.  God brought them out of Egypt to bring them into a land He promised to give them.  Since God saved them and was their Sovereign, they observed His commands and feared the LORD their God because their lives depended on Him.  The God who was faithful to deliver them in the past would protect and provide for all their needs, now and forever.  Their answer was not an ideology, philosophy or tradition that included God, but their lives provided evidence of God's personal connection with them.

It is one thing to have a testimony of God's goodness, faithfulness and love from scripture, but do you have a life which is lived by faith in obedience to Christ's commands?  A verbal testimony is only of value when our lives are first lived unto the LORD.  The teaching of Jesus was confirmed by the miraculous works He did:  the two went together like faith and works.  James wrote that faith without works is dead, and we can conclude if faith is dead it has not regenerated a soul to eternal life.  James 2:17-18 states, "Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. ¹⁸ But someone will say, "You have faith, and I have works." Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works."  Words and works by themselves are nothing, yet if our faith in God is genuine our lives will be marked by words and works which honour Him, by love for one another as Jesus loves us.  It is important we and our children believe the word of truth, yet how can we claim to believe what we do not adhere to ourselves?

A little girl of 4 years old impacted me by something she said about a movie.  "I don't like that movie because it has bird-killing," she said.  "Why should birds be killed when they should be free?"  It dawned on me if she had raised on a farm and viewed chickens and ducks as a primary food source for survival her views likely would have been different.  She had been fed an ideology by her parents, and we can do the same thing with Jesus Christ that can pass as faith for awhile.  Over time her views may lead her to be a vegetarian, or perhaps in her adulthood she would look back upon it as a silly phase of life--and this happens concerning Jesus and the Gospel as well.  If we will train our children in the way we should go, we must first live lives worthy of investigation because we have a relationship with the almighty God and our lives are aligned with the fear of God and the glory of His name.  We are not called to act differently from the world:  having been born again by faith in Jesus Christ our LORD and Saviour we will be different because we have been transformed by God.  Ideology or belief in itself never saved a soul.  A relationship with the living God which impacts daily life is what all saved souls share in common.

The LORD is Near

When appliances, electronics and toys grow old and break, often they are not worth repairing.  Long gone are the days of VCR and TV repair because of factors like the rapid advancement of technology that renders older obsolete, the difficulty of sourcing parts and the high expense of repair is greater than buying new.  Though parts can sometimes be recycled or repurposed, typically broken items that no longer perform their designed function are useless and only fit for the rubbish bin.  When my coffee machine stopped working, I removed it from the kitchen bench.  In a broken state it was a waste of space.

I am most grateful God does not treat us like we treat our damaged or broken goods.  Instead of throwing us away, God delights to draw near to us in our brokenness.  Our pains attract Him to hear, help and save us when our broken hearts cry out to Him.  See what Psalm 34:18 says:  "The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit."  There is a caveat here.  As long as we proudly imagine we are sufficient and do not need God's assistance, our sinful pride creates distance between us and God who loves us.  Yet when we are broken and humbled, recognising our need for help and desiring to draw near to God, He will draw near to us.  Psalm 145:18 also reads, "The LORD is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth."  It is comforting to know the LORD is near at all times and especially when we are humble and call upon Him in truth.

After he explained how God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble, James exhorted in James 4:8-10, "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. ⁹ Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. ¹⁰ Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up."  The almighty God is not in a far off place sequestered or insulated from the pains we endure.  He is not frustrated by our neediness, nor does He desire our voices be silenced to save Him pains.  God is near and able to save us:  it is our self-reliance and pride that leads to our suffering being prolonged.  Our lack of humility in our brokenness prevents us from being healed.  God is near to the one whose spirit is crushed and can look nowhere else but to God with the expectation of help and salvation.

Reading the Psalm 34 passage in context illuminates how God has already provided all we need in Jesus Christ.  Psalm 34:17-22 says, "The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles. ¹⁸ The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit. ¹⁹ Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all. ²⁰ He guards all his bones; not one of them is broken. ²¹ Evil shall slay the wicked, and those who hate the righteous shall be condemned. ²² The LORD redeems the soul of His servants, and none of those who trust in Him shall be condemned."  There is none good but God, and Jesus Christ is the perfect lamb of God who cried unto the Father and was heard:  though Jesus experienced the pain of crucifixion, not one of His bones was broken.  Through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus and His resurrection from the dead redemption by the Gospel has been provided for all who place their faith in Him.  Many afflictions are part of our life on earth, and we can have all confidence God is near and saves.

Learn to Discriminate

As a speaker of English it is interesting how the definition and meaning of words can change over time. 
It is not uncommon for the meaning of a word understood for hundreds of years to be easily overturned and narrowly re-defined as offensive.  A word which was once neutral can develop an overwhelmingly negative connotation and be viewed as bad in itself.  As a reader primarily of non-fiction by authors spanning hundreds of years, these shifts are not difficult to find.

One word that did not always have a negative meaning was "discriminate."  To "discriminate" is akin to a cardinal sin these days, yet see how it is defined in the Webster's 1828 dictionary (follow link for the full definition):  "To distinguish; to observe the difference between; as, we may usually discriminate true from false modesty.  2. To separate; to select from others; to make a distinction between; as, in the last judgment, the righteous will be discriminated from the wicked.  3. To mark with notes of difference; to distinguish by some note or mark. We discriminate animals by names, as nature has discriminated them by different shapes and habits."  From infancy we are taught to identify the difference between colours, shapes, sizes and kinds of animals.  For safety a child needs to discriminate between playing ball in the yard or in the street.  Discrimination according to this definition is good and necessary:  the process of distinguishing between two becomes wholly tainted when bias, favouritism, racism, nepotism, sexism, ageism, bigotry or selfishness in the heart guides our discriminating.

The Cambridge dictionary defines "discriminate" in accordance to a more modern interpretation:  "to treat a person or particular group of people differently, especially in a worse way from the way in which you treat other people, because of their skin colour, sex, sexuality, etc.; 2. to be able to see the difference between two things or people."  Every true or false question on an exam demands a student discriminate correctly and rewards those who do.  People often follow "discriminate" with "against," loading the term with personal offence.  Regardless of your political or personal beliefs, you cannot hold any view unless you first discriminate--to note the difference between points of view and determine which ones you uphold or reject based on facts, personal convictions and experience.  It is of utmost importance a child of God learn to discriminate according to God's will and guidance.  Today people use the word "discern," yet the word discriminate carries in addition to the knowledge of God and His word the rejection of all sin and falsehood.

Interestingly as these thoughts were running through my mind, as I read C.H. Spurgeon's Lectures to My Students he touched on this theme precisely.  This is an excerpt from an address he gave to seminary students at a college for pastors in the 19th century:

"I have said that we must also learn to discriminate, and at this particular time that point needs insisting on.  Many run after novelties, charmed with every invention:  learn to judge between truth and its counterfeits, and you will not be led astray.  Others adhere like limpets to old teachings, and yet these may only be ancient errors:  prove all things, and hold fast that which is good.  The use of the sieve, and the winnowing fan, is much to be commended.  Dear brethren, a man who has asked of the Lord to give him clear eyes by which he shall see the truth and discern it bearings, and who, by reason of the constant exercise of his faculties, has obtained an accurate judgement, is one fit to be a leader of the Lord's host; but all are not such.  It is painful to observe how many embrace anything if it be but earnestly brought before them.  They swallow the medicine of every spiritual quack who has enough of brazen assurance to appear to be sincere.  Be ye not such children in understanding, but test carefully before you accept.  Ask the Holy Spirit to give you the faculty of discerning, so shall you conduct your flocks far from poisonous meadows, and lead them into safe passage.

When in due time you have gained the power of requiring knowledge, and the faculty of discrimination, seek next for ability to retain and hold firmly what you have learned. In these times certain men glory in being weathercocks; they hold fast nothing, they have, in fact, nothing worth the holding.  They believed yesterday, but not that which they believe to-day, nor that which they will believe to-morrow, and he would be a greater prophet than Isaiah who should be able to tell what they will believe when next the moon doth fill her horns, for they are constantly altering, and seem to be born under that said moon, and to partake of her changing moods.  These men may be as honest as they claim to be, but of what use are they?  Like good trees oftentimes transplanted, they may be of a noble nature, but they bring forth nothing; their strength goes out in rooting and re-rooting, they have no sap to spare for fruit.  Be sure you have the truth, and then be sure you hold it.  Be ready for =fresh truth, if it be truth, but be very chary how you subscribe to the belief that a better light has been found than that of the sun.  Those who hawk new truth about the street, as the boys do a second edition of the evening paper, are usually no better than they should be.  The fair maid of truth does not paint her cheeks and tire her head like Jezebel, following every new philosophic fashion; she is content with her own native beauty, and her aspect is in the main the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever."  (Spurgeon, C. H. Lectures to My Students: Complete & Unabridged. Ministry Resources Library, Zondervan Publishing House, 1989. pages 207-208)

Once we are born again through faith in Jesus Christ we are divinely enabled to learn to discriminate as Spurgeon exhorts:  to know the truth and hold fast to it.  The presence of the Holy Spirit within us guides us into truth, convicts us of sin and reveals the wickedness in us which loves some people more than others.  We can renounce our wickedness revealed by our sinful discrimination because God has discriminated between truth and error in His word and in our hearts.  For the glory of God and our good we are wise to learn to thus discriminate, not because we are God but because we fear and seek to honour Him above all.  Society can base beliefs and practices on the sinking sands of political correctness, fear of reprisal or censure by man:  as followers of Jesus Christ we ought to love one another as He loves us, give more grace and walk in compassion towards all.  It does us no benefit to point out tendencies of others to unfairly discriminate until we first learn to discriminate truth from error and walk with Jesus (who is the Truth) faithfully ourselves.

The Perfect Work of Patience

"My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, ³ knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. ⁴ But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing."

James 1:2-4

Yesterday the sermon at Calvary Chapel Sydney included this exhortation and encouragement for all followers of Jesus Christ.  God allows trials and adversity of all kinds to accomplish His good purposes.  Instead of being annoyed, frustrated or worried about the outcome we can count it all joy to face trials which test us.  Just like a student sits an exam because he is included in the class, God tests and disciplines us because we are His children He loves.

A precious metal is placed in a crucible and intense heat is applied because it is a precious metal which requires further refinement to be even more valuable.  A child of God can know the various trials He allows are not for our destruction but an opportunity for the fruit of the Spirit of joy (among others) to be manifested in our lives.  In contrast to the works of the flesh Paul wrote in Galatians 5:22-23, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law."  The testing of our faith produces patience which can be described as cheerful endurance and continuance.  Our joy is according to the knowledge God intends to perfect and complete us so we can rejoice in the process as well as the result.

We understand a baby needs time to develop in the womb to survive and be a healthy infant.  Slow cooked BBQ needs to be cooked well past being "done" for tough cuts to become tender.  Bread and cakes need to be baked through to have a soft and spongy texture.  The process isn't just something to be endured but can be celebrated because without it there will be no fresh sourdough or delicious chocolate cake in the end.  It is good to recognise God's ends can be different than ours:  we are focused on finishing a task or ending suffering but God uses adversity to refine our faith.

Solomon spoke the uncomfortable truth in Ecclesiastes 7:2-5:  "Better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for that is the end of all men; and the living will take it to heart. ³ Sorrow is better than laughter, for by a sad countenance the heart is made better. ⁴ The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth. ⁵ It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise than for a man to hear the song of fools."  It is God who enables us to endure because He is the God of all comfort and is able to comfort us in all affliction (2 Cor. 1:3-5).  In the trial and affliction is when we realise afresh how much we lack and how we are insufficient in ourselves to endure.  This leads us to learn to rely upon God, seek and enjoy rest in Him--and not merely to seek strength or power from Him.

Freedom Within Boundaries

"This is what the LORD commands concerning the daughters of Zelophehad, saying, 'Let them marry whom they think best, but they may marry only within the family of their father's tribe.'"

Numbers 36:6

The daughters of Zelophehad came to Moses with a concern.  Because their father only had given birth to daughters and the inheritance of land was passed down through sons, in years to come their land would pass to a different family and tribe.  Moses brought their case before the LORD who provided guidance in how the issue was to be rectified.  They were free to marry whomever they thought best but were to marry within their family.  Marrying a first cousin was a very common practice in the ancient world and remains a norm in middle eastern countries to this day.  Their obedience to God's directive would ensure the inheritance of land given them by lot would remain in the family for generations to come.

This concept of complete freedom within the boundaries God set is seen frequently in scripture.  Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden were free to eat from all the trees in the garden except for the tree right in the middle:  the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.  If they desired to live, they needed to heed the limits God had set.  The freedom God gives people is to be fully enjoyed within the confines of God's righteousness, goodness and love.  The freedom Christians have in our relationship with God through faith in Jesus is not to be used as an excuse or license to sin, but it is the freedom to do righteously according to the leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit.  This freedom is within the boundaries of God's love.  As sheep of the Good Shepherd Jesus Christ we can use our freedom to foolishly wander from the flock, but the best use of our freedom is in the pasture God has graciously provided in the presence of our Saviour.

The pattern of freedom within the boundaries God establishes can be seen in many aspects of life:  in a marriage relationship, family, work, ministry and worldly pursuits.  All is lawful but not all edifies, and it is good when we walk wisely and circumspectly in obedience to Jesus.  God has given us a will that is best surrendered to the will of God to do what we know is right according to Christ's example and God's word.  When Paul compared the Christian walk to an athlete competing in a match, he reminded believers of the importance to strive lawfully according to the rules of the event.  Those who transgress the rules will be disqualified by the judge, and the same idea applies to our need to walk in God's love, forgiveness and grace towards all.

The boundaries for the Christian walk are not supplied by the Law of Moses but by the Holy Spirit who dwells within us.  2 Corinthians 3:17 says, "Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty."  This liberty is freedom from the slavery of sin and freedom to do what pleases and glorifies God.  By faith in Jesus we are all made part of the Body of Christ, and the function of a hand is not to benefit only itself alone but the entire Body.  In the context of having Jesus as our head Ephesians 4:16 says, "...from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love."  Praise God for the freedom we have in Jesus and for the infinite boundaries of His love!

The Unexpected Miracle

God is always working, and He works miraculously in unexpected ways.  Like Namaan who imagined the prophet Elisha would wave his hand over him to heal him of leprosy and was disappointed when directed to dip seven times in the Jordan river, we can assume the best course of action for God to take.  Dipping in water wasn't nearly as flashy as invoking the power of God with a wave, but God sovereignly required faith by humility and obedience to a basic task Namaan needed to do.  Namaan's miraculous cleansing shows God is faithful and worthy of our trust.

Yesterday afternoon I was blessed to see the LORD work in an unexpected way through a lost pair of glasses which were swept away in the surf.  Upon hearing the news, I returned to the area where the glasses had been washed away.  I had no idea where the glasses were, and the chances of me finding them washed on the beach were minuscule.  As I walked alone on the beach with eyes scanning the breaking waves, I prayed God would provide the glasses my friend needed to see and participate in the group's activities.  Confident God knew where the glasses were and his need, I prayed they would be deposited miraculously at my feet.  There was not a shred of doubt God was able or willing to answer the prayer of faith.  After awhile I walked away from the shore without the glasses in hand.

I was unable to find the lost glasses, but my prayers were more than answered.  A friend of ours living almost 2 hours away was able to pick up another pair of glasses from the home of my sight-challenged friend and brought them to us by nightfall.  The needed glasses were not thrown at my feet scratched with sand according to my request but carried safely to him personally by a brother in Christ who demonstrated the generous, sacrificial love of Jesus.  What do you think is more amazing:  that God could cause an ax head to float, lost glasses to beach themselves on the shore or for a person to willingly, cheerfully drop everything to drive nearly four hours in total to deliver a pair of glasses because he was asked?  That to me is the most marvelous, for in this deed the love of Jesus is manifested.

The unexpected miracles God does in and through people who trust in Jesus should not passed over for the overtly supernatural manifestations of God's power.  Whether God answers our prayers immediately in the way we think He should or not, let us continue to ask believing, knowing He will accomplish His good purposes even in a mundane thing like a lost pair of glasses.  Praise the LORD who only does wonderful things!

A Day of Thanksgiving and Praise to God

History is an excellent teacher that reveals how society tends to drift from the intended purposes of forefathers.  The national holiday of Thanksgiving in the Unites States is a testimony of this.  When I went to school, in connection with Thanksgiving we learned about the Mayflower and Plymouth Rock, dressed up as pilgrims and Native Americans, and traced our hands to draw turkeys.  We were taught the pilgrims and Indians gathered for a meal to give thanks to God.  In recent years Thanksgiving has almost wholly given way to "Turkey Day" in the media.  This year was the first year I heard people wanting the holiday struck from the calendar because of the assertion at its root Thanksgiving is a celebration of colonisation and subjugation.  This accusation is far from the truth.

I decided to look into the history of Thanksgiving as a national holiday and was pleasantly surprised to see no mention whatsoever of the voyage on the Mayflower, no reference to Native Americans or turkeys:  it was a day appointed by president Abraham Lincoln for all the United States to give thanks to God.  The time frame of this day of thanksgiving and praise to God is compelling because in 1863 the United States were in the midst of a prolonged and bloody civil war.  George Washington and individual States had set apart various days for thanksgiving to God, but Abraham Lincoln is the one who enshrined Thanksgiving as a national holiday.  Here is a copy of Abraham Lincoln's "Thanksgiving Proclamation" for all to read:

"The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war of unequalled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle or the ship; the axe has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom. No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union."  --Abraham Lincoln

In the midst of a global pandemic God remains as worthy of thanksgiving and praise because He remains glorious and good.  When all the trappings of what many celebrate as "Turkey Day" are stripped away, God shines forth with undimmed grace, provision and kindness despite our sinful, idolatrous and wicked ways.  Even when people are at war with God and all that He stands for, He offers hope, peace, liberty and eternal life to all who trust in Him.  May our lives be a proclamation of thanksgiving and praise to God for the wonderful blessings He has provided us and the healing available to souls and nations who honour Him.

Marvelous are God's Works

I read a news article yesterday about a "monolith" being found in Utah desert that hearkened back to the ground-breaking science fiction film by Stanley Kubrick, 2001: A Space Odyssey.  As a person who believes the biblical account that God created the heavens, the earth and all living things, the irony of the situation is most amusing.

The 9NEWS article begins, "A bizarre four-metre high metal block found in the isolated wilderness of the Utah desert is the work of a dead sculpture artist, his former agent believes.  Officials from the Utah Department of Public Safety Aero Bureau stumbled upon the shiny monolith on November 18 while conducting a survey on big horn sheep.  The object has no signifying marks but appears to have been bolted to the ground with "human-made rivets".  The metal block in isolated wilderness is called "bizarre" because reason tells us polished stainless steel never presents itself naturally in erect monoliths.  Based upon our knowledge of the world and the identification of rivets (which are always man-made with a matching male/female components and pressed together) confirms without a doubt it was placed there by someone.  The debate is only about who might be responsible--with no one arguing this shiny block occurred by chance.

Isn't it ironic people debate the sudden appearance of a stainless steel object in a desert but little consideration is given to countless living things which teem upon the earth and reproduce after their kind?  In 2001: A Space Odyssey the existence of primates living in a barren wilderness to me is a far more curious and improbable development than the sudden appearance of a looming, inert monolith.  The same living, reasoning people who assume a monolith must have been constructed by someone because of the design cannot see and refuse to acknowledge their existence on this planet is far more impossible and necessitates being created.  Is not a human being infinitely more complex than a sculpture of steel?  When I consider the intricacies of the human body and the ability of people, plants, animals and insects to reproduce after their own kind, I gaze upon living beings which cannot reasonably have arisen by chance and natural selection alone.  It would be infinitely easier for a block of steel with "human-made rivets" to appear in the desert without a sculptor than for a male and female human being to exist at the same time on this planet and produce a healthy baby without a Creator.

David acknolwedged God as his Creator who knows all and does marvels in Psalm 139:11-19:  "If I say, "Surely the darkness shall fall on me," even the night shall be light about me; ¹² indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, but the night shines as the day; the darkness and the light are both alike to You. ¹³ For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb. ¹⁴ I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well. ¹⁵ My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. ¹⁶ Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them. ¹⁷ How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! ¹⁸ If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; when I awake, I am still with You."  It is a small marvel a block of shiny metal would be erected in the desert compared to the marvel God is who created man and does miraculous things, whose thoughts toward us are more numerous than the grains of sand.  Great is the LORD and worthy to be praised!

What God has Done!

When we moved into our house, we were tasked to point out flaws in craftsmanship with painter's tape to be repaired by the builder.  For months the blue tape had become familiar decor, signposts and reminders of flaws all around.  Since our builder has "done a runner" (as we say in Australia) and will not be back to rectify the blemishes in the walls and paint, this morning I went throughout the house and removed all the tape.  I can't tell you how much better things look without those attention-grabbing bits of tape.  There are actually more blemishes now, seeing as the tape removed some poorly adhered paint, but the eye is not drawn to the defects as before.

As I picked the tape off the walls, ceiling and woodwork, it provided insight of our tendency as humans to find faults in ourselves and draw attention to them.  There is no question we all have our faults and one common to man is to look for flaws and focus on them.  Our power to see and perceive is a blessing but we can turn it into a curse.  The irony is we are drawn notice the flaws of others because we are flawed ourselves, for we do not need to be perfect to find fault.  All is faulty before the holy, righteous God who chooses to bless instead of curse:  He gives grace and justly imputes righteousness to those who trust Him.

Balak hired Balaam to curse Israel, but all he could do was bless God's people.  These people at times had sin in the camp, yet God's view of them was most favourable.  Balaam announced in Numbers 23:20-23, "Behold, I have received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot reverse it. ²¹ "He has not observed iniquity in Jacob, nor has He seen wickedness in Israel. The LORD his God is with him, and the shout of a King is among them. ²² God brings them out of Egypt; He has strength like a wild ox. ²³ "For there is no sorcery against Jacob, nor any divination against Israel. It now must be said of Jacob and of Israel, 'Oh, what God has done!'"  What favour God had shown His people!  What grace, that God would dwell among His people and not focus on their faults because their sin was covered by an atoning sacrifice.

Like my eyes are drawn to blemishes in building, so our eyes can be drawn to focus on our own faults and those of others.  Those who cover their sin shall not prosper, and neither is it profitable to judge others critically without God's grace.  Freely we have received God's grace, and freely we should give it.  Take the tape off the walls, and remove the fault-finding blinders from our eyes which are common to men.  It is not that people are perfect but we do so because our great God is perfect and has beauty beyond this world who loves, accepts and forgives us by His grace.  In light of poor workmanship we could ask those who painted our house, "What did you do?"  We are far better served to dwell on "What God has done!" with praise to Him.