Faith and Feelings

When searching D.L. Moody's book Arrows and Anecdotes for a quote, I came across this interaction recorded by the evangelist:

"One night, when preaching in Philadelphia, right down by the side of the pulpit there was a young lady, whose eyes were riveted on me, as if she were drinking in every word.  It is precious to preach to people like that; they generally get good, even if the sermon be poor.  I got interested in her, and after I had done talking I went and spoke to her.  "Are you a Christian?"  "No; I wish I was; I have been seeking Jesus for three years."  I said, "There must be some mistake."  She looked strangely at me, and said, "Don't you believe me?"  "Well, no doubt you thought you were seeking Jesus; but it don't take an anxious sinner three years to meet a willing Saviour."  "What am I to do then?"  "The matter is, you are trying to do something; you must just believe on the Lord Jesus Christ."  "Oh, I am sick and tired of the word, 'Believe, believe, believe!  I don't know what it is."  "Well," I said, "we'll change the word; take 'trust.'"  "If I say, "I'll trust him,' will he save me"  "No; I don't say that; you may say a thousand things, but he will if you do trust him."  "Well," she said, "I do trust him; but," she added in the same breath, "I don't feel any better."  "Ah, I've got it now!  You've been looking for feelings for three years, instead of Jesus.  Faith is up above, not down here."  People are always looking for feelings.  They are getting up a new translation of the Bible here, and if the men who are translating it would only put in feelings, instead of faith, what a rush there would be for that Bible.  But if you look from Genesis to Revelation you cannot find feelings attached to salvation.  We must rise above feelings.  So I said to this lady, "You cannot control your feelings; if you could, what a time you'd have!  I know I would never have the toothache or the headache." (MOODY, Dwight Lyman, and John LOBB. Arrows and Anecdotes of D.L. Moody. Henry Gurley, 1877. Pages 149-150)

Moody is spot on in saying our salvation is by faith in Jesus:  it is not by our works or seeking we are saved but by trusting in Him who has done all for our salvation and redemption.  It is also true that many people seek an arbitrary feeling (or one that matches the experience of someone else they have heard about) for conversion, forgiveness or baptism with the Holy Spirit.  It is faith in God and His word that enables us to consciously lay aside sinful or improper feelings and to choose to believe God despite how we currently feel.  We can choose to love and forgive others because God has commanded us to, not because we feel like doing it.  As Corrie Ten Boom said in an anecdote about her own struggle to forgive others, feelings of love can follow obedience by faith.

It seems to me the feelings the seeking woman experienced were quite different from the feeling of a toothache or headache.  She had been feeling spiritually lost and emotionally frustrated by not experiencing a physical feeling that proved elusive.  It is true we cannot control whether we feel the pain of a toothache or headache, but there can be things we can practically do to prevent and relieve them.  The same is true concerning all manner of feelings that we have--even those that seem stubbornly part of who we are.  When God asked Jonah, "Is it right for you to be angry?" it reveals the way we feel can be right or indicate a fleshly and sinful perspective that requires correction.  The psalmist asked when overwhelmed, "Why are you cast down, O my soul?  Hope in God."  The main reason for even asking this questions is because such a one has already been made aware of God's goodness and power to save.  Anyone else would have justified feelings of hopelessness and despair because of circumstances.

Praise the LORD He has given us feelings, for our feelings have been the impetus from the LORD to  prompt us to desperately seek Him, to repent, to cease from doing wickedly and do what is right.  How many times has gratitude and thanksgiving been accompanied by feelings of happiness and a profound sense of joy.  Instead of rejecting feelings, we ought to embrace them and keep them in their proper place.  Seeking feelings rather than the LORD Jesus is a snare, but a walk of faith with our Saviour involves processing many feelings and experiences He allows us to have.  He that redeems our souls from destruction is able to redeem even bad feelings or lack of feelings for good, like in the case of this young seeker in Moody's day.  Praise the LORD we serve a willing Saviour who makes us new creations by His grace.

The Sanctification Struggle

People are complex creatures, and we only see a fraction of what is really going on with anyone.  We cannot know someone's past by observing them today, nor can we fully appreciate what challenges people are facing in the present.  They may not even realise what they are going through.  When we encounter people who are troubled or struggling, we can find ourselves facing struggles we never knew existed that the situation suddenly brought to light inside of us.  Being married, having children, working with others, being a deeply flawed person and seeking to follow Jesus combines to profoundly impact our daily lives.

The word of God and personal experiences have exposed the ugliness of my own self-righteousness, pride and hypocrisy, and praise the LORD for this.  By His grace He convicts us of sin that works to ruin us and destroys fellowship with Him and others.  He has revealed the folly of a self-centred worldview that viewed the behaviour of my children as a good or bad reflection of me.  I have also been part of a church culture where it was not particularly "safe" to admit you were struggling in some area.  It was easier to pretend the struggle did not exist than to be vulnerable and show weakness.  It reminds me a bit of the king of Israel who, when he tore his clothes at the report of infanticide and cannibalism in Samaria, it exposed sackcloth underneath.  He had been grieving and mourning during the siege of the capital city, but covered his sackcloth with royal robes lest he show weakness before the people--and perhaps lose their respect.  His emotional outburst revealed his hypocrisy.

I'm reading a useful book by Preston Sprinkle titled Embodied.  There was a paragraph that resonated with me on this subject of fostering a culture in the church that allows people to struggle and continuing to love them--whether they are struggling with gender or otherwise.  Sprinkle writes:

"Christians should want trans people--whether non-transitioned or transitioned--to flood our churches.  The more the merrier, I say.  It'll create loads of beautifully complex pastoral opportunities, and some Christians will get uncomfortable and leave.  So be it.  I don't think church should be limited to squeaky-clean Christians who (think they) have all their stuff together or keep their porn, their greed, their pride, and their lack of concern for the poor hidden behind dusty hymnals.  I want churches filled with those who know their brokenness, who don't hide their pain, who ask very hard questions.  If a trans person who has transitioned is coming to your church, praise God.  I hope they are treated with the utmost kindness and respect.  All the difficult questions about what to do now are secondary to creating communities that embody God's kindness which draws people to himself (Romans 2:4)--especially those who've been marginalized by the church." (Sprinkle, Preston M. Embodied: Transgender Identities, The Church & What the Bible Has to Say. David C Cook, 2021. Page 194)

As someone involved in pastoral ministry, I am not personally on a quest for "beautifully complex pastoral opportunities."  My preference would be people wouldn't struggle with anything, and in this and countless ways God proves Himself wiser than me.  When an earthquake or disaster occurs, emergency workers go looking for signs of struggle--for people who are crying out, banging on a pipe or clawing through debris.  The struggles are there in every person who is being sanctified by God's grace, and these will persist over the course of our lives.  Seasons come and go, but people stay the same:  always needing help from God and support from one another to walk wisely in love, grace and goodness towards all.  It will not do to be callous over people who are struggling with sin in the church, nor be cavalier over people who leave the church.  The Pharisees worked to maintain a squeaky-clean image but were dead inside.  The proverb goes a living dog is better than a dead lion (Ecclesiastes 9:4):  better to wrestle with sin and cry, "God be merciful to me a sinner!" and go home justified than to pray to ourselves, proud we don't sin like others and have our sin remain--and stay blind to it.

It can be trendy to almost rejoice in our brokenness--not in the sense of humility or contrition--but to bask in the glow of our sinful struggles together.  It used to be people sharing their Christian testimony would go into great detail about their sinful lives before Christ, and the more extreme the better.  Very little if any time was spent sharing what God had done in them since their conversion, what they were experiencing presently on their journey of sanctification, and how He was leading them.  Our current sinfulness or the devastation it has wreaked in our lives ought not to be the common ground we share with other believers but our Saviour who has found, forgiven and redeemed us.  The truth of God's word, the fellowship of believers and being Christlike is to mark our lives as we deny ourselves, take up our cross daily and follow Jesus as His disciples.  Embracing our sanctification can be a struggle to endure with joy, but what is impossible with man is possible with God.  By faith in Him we can praise God despite the toil, and thank God He is our Life who strengthens us.

Sharing in Giving and Receiving

The apostle Paul worked as a tentmaker to cover his expenses so he could offer the Gospel to the Gentiles free of charge.  He remained dependent on God to provide for all his needs, whether it was through labouring with his own hands or receiving gifts from others.  He wrote in Philippians 4:15, "Now you Philippians know also that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church shared with me concerning giving and receiving but you only."  Paul and the church in Philippi shared and engaged in both giving and receiving.  Because we have received all we need through Jesus Christ who is our life, giving is prioritised before receiving.  Yet both giving and receiving have their place in the church and in lives of every believer.

Everything we have is a gift from God as Paul explained to the church in 1 Corinthians 4:7:  "For who makes you differ from another? And what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?"  From God we have received the Gospel, forgiveness, spiritual blessings and physical provision as well.  God supplies our needs through a variety of ways, whether through miraculous or natural means--and this can involve other people.  Because everyone is different, we may struggle with giving, receiving or both.  It might embarrass us to admit we have needs or to receive a gift that seems too generous when others are struggling as well.  We might want to keep the money we acquire by working for ourselves, saving up in preparation for an uncertain future.

We might see giving as virtuous and those who practice are blessed by God, but have you considered we are blessed by God to receive as well?  Paul quoted Jesus on the subject in Acts 20:34-35:  "Yes, you yourselves know that these hands have provided for my necessities, and for those who were with me. ³⁵ I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'"  Paul rejoiced to work to provide for himself and others, for it was a blessing for him to do so.  Though it is more blessed to give than receive, there is still a blessing for those who humble themselves to receive.  All that Paul received from the hand of the LORD for his labour was a blessing, and he was more blessed to give it freely to others.  He was doubly blessed by giving and by others gladly receiving his gift, and all blessing Paul received came from God.

A counsellor might be known for giving sound advice:  such a one is wise to receive counsel too.  Those who rejoice to give ought to rejoice to receive even when it is not what they wanted or asked for.  We can rejoice to receive both good and bad from the hand of our gracious, loving God, knowing He is faithful to supply all our needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.   It is good for us not to limit our giving or receiving to money, for God has given us all the time there is, strength for the day, encouragement in His word, and opportunities to minister His love to others.  We ought to thank God and others for the kindness shown us, and we ought to receive compliments with the aim of giving all glory to Him.  Our possessions and abilities we commit to His hands to direct their use for good.  Sharing with other believers in giving and receiving is a blessing from the LORD we ought to embrace as we follow the example of Jesus.

Rejoicing In Labour

"Here is what I have seen: it is good and fitting for one to eat and drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labor in which he toils under the sun all the days of his life which God gives him; for it is his heritage. ¹⁹ As for every man to whom God has given riches and wealth, and given him power to eat of it, to receive his heritage and rejoice in his labor--this is the gift of God."

Ecclesiastes 5:18-19

King Solomon understood work and the ability to enjoy the good that comes from it is a gift of God.  There is great diversity in what we commonly call work, whether it be the motion of a body or machine, paid employment, mixing, manufacturing, raising children, fabricating, lifting stock, operating equipment, cleaning or managing a business--and the list goes on.  We are resigned to do what we consider to be necessary work, but if something is "extra" work we can look upon it with disdain.  In my generation many people aspired to earn university degrees to work with their minds rather than their hands, creating a false dichotomy that one who works with their hands is not very bright.

Did you know God instituted work and rest from labour from the beginning when He created the heavens and the earth?  He created Adam from the dust of the ground and set him to work by tending the garden of Eden.  Adam was made responsible to keep the garden and also was given freedom to eat of the fruit of it.  It is true that work became harder after Adam's fall into sin, for he would toil by the sweat of his brow to clear weeds and coax fruit, vegetables, herbs and grain from the ground.  The fact work is difficult should not malign this good gift from God and enjoyment of the rewards of our labour.  Not only can work be satisfying in itself, but it brings greater pleasure to enjoy rest God provides by His grace.

Part of the reason work became difficult is because of sin that corrupted the hearts of men made way for selfishness, envy and greed--cruel taskmasters that are never satisfied.  There is a desire to gain the reward of labour by labouring as little as possible, even if it means by theft, illicit or immoral means.  Work and profit can become our god or a means to achieve our desires of riches, ease, possessions and acclaim.  Knowing work is a gift from God we all are called to embrace, the avoidance of work can reveal our sloth and indolence.  Paul rebuked busybodies in his second epistle to the Thessalonians that they ought to work with quietness and eat their own bread.  Jesus said in John 5:17 His Father in heaven was always working, and so did He.  We should take heed to Christ's example to do good works, for unto this we are called and saved.

It is good and fitting for us to eat, drink and enjoy the good of all our labour under the sun, for it is our heritage or portion from God.  When we seek to avoid necessary work we deny ourselves the full reward God has freely provided for us by His grace.  Whether part of the rewards of our labour is to receive financial compensation, the satisfaction of seeing a job completed well or that the work will need to be done all over again from the start tomorrow, we can rejoice in our God who gives good gifts and the ability to receive them.  As servants of the most high God, let us take to heart the exhortation in Colossians 3:22-24:  "Bondservants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God. ²³ And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, ²⁴ knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ."

When our labour is unto the LORD it becomes a sanctified and holy work regardless of how mundane it may be.  We need not be crushed by the daily grind because we realise the reward of our labour is more than hourly pay or a holiday at the end of the year:  today, we get to serve the LORD Jesus in doing our chores at home, tackling tasks on a jobsite or office, managing people and choosing to walk in love towards all.  Our job might be to navigate some intense trials and fix our eyes on God in the face of devastation like Jeremiah who wrote in Lamentations 3:24, "The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I hope in Him!"  Asaph concluded in Psalm 73:26 after observing others who prospered while he suffered, "My flesh and my heart fail; but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."  Happy is the man who receives his portion and rejoices in his labour unto the LORD, for those who fear God realise Jesus is our portion we have received with whom we have fellowship and fullness of joy forever.

A Feast for Our Souls

During the long season in the wilderness after the exodus from Egypt, God taught His people that man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.  At His command living water flowed from the rock, bread from heaven appeared on the ground, and quail flew in on the breeze.  Though God gave His people His Law, revealed Himself in power and sent prophets to speak to His people, at times they forsook Him for false gods.  When God's people in the northern kingdom of Israel refused to hear and obey His word, He sent a famine of hearing the word of the LORD.

Amos 8:11-12 reads, "Behold, the days are coming," says the Lord GOD, "that I will send a famine on the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD. ¹² They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east; they shall run to and fro, seeking the word of the LORD, but shall not find it."  It was not that Hebrews did not have His word written down in a language they spoke fluently, for it was carefully transcribed for generations to this day.  The prophets God sent did not speak in a foreign tongue, for their clear voices were understood perfectly by their hearers.  Yet because the listeners disregarded the word of God and did not obey it, God sent a famine of hearing the words of the LORD.  They prayed and received no answer; they inquired of the LORD and were met with silence.  The heavens were like impenetrable brass to their cries that echoed back to them.

If God's chosen people Israel could be stricken with a spiritual famine of hearing the words of the LORD, so can those who are born again by faith in Jesus Christ.  We can have an assortment of Bibles translated into our own language, read them every day, and not hear God speak because we have not put into practice what we know God has already spoken.  Because we have not walked according to the truth God has revealed, He can send a famine of hearing His word so we might humble ourselves and seek Him.  Imagine, reading the Bible and not hearing from God!  We can sit through a Bible study or sermon where God is quoted often yet not hear from Him ourselves.  We do not likely need to imagine what this is like, for we have also experienced seasons of famine of hearing the word of the LORD.

Should we find ourselves in a midst of a famine of hearing the word of the LORD, God provided a solution for His people in Amos 5:4-7 we ought to take to heart:  "For thus says the LORD to the house of Israel: "Seek Me and live; ⁵ but do not seek Bethel, nor enter Gilgal, nor pass over to Beersheba; for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nothing. ⁶ Seek the LORD and live, lest He break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, with no one to quench it in Bethel--⁷ you who turn justice to wormwood, and lay righteousness to rest in the earth!"  God urged His people to seek Him, not to imagine the cure for their ills lay in a geographic location or performing religious rituals when the issue was one of their hearts and will.  God commanded His people seek Him, and having done so the implication was they were to do what was just and righteous, to walk in His ways.  It was not in the house of God but in the God of the house they would find salvation, redemption and abundant life.

Prayer is more than talking to God but waiting on Him to guide and direct us.  Reading the Bible ought to be more than reading chapters or verses but considering and ruminating on what God is saying and how it is personally applicable to our lives, a call to action by our LORD.  More than gleaning information, God's word works transformation in those who yield to Him in humble faith and obedience.  It is a good question to ask ourselves:  have I heard a word from the LORD today?  When God speaks He goes beyond thoughts in our heads but touches our hearts, and this impacts how we live our lives.  God who created us with ears can also hear, and He who created our mouths and all languages still speaks.  May we be those who are not content until we have heard and walked according to the word of the LORD.  The souls who hear and do what God says enjoy a spiritual feast that is vital for the abundant life God has given us by faith in Jesus.

Freely Given Of God

Just as it is important to eat good food regularly to promote our physical health, feeding on the word of God spiritually is indispensable for spiritual health.  So much of what happens inside our bodies after our food is chosen, chewed and swallowed is done automatically without a thought.  Digestion of food, the absorption and allocation of nutrients, and repair of our bodies is really out of our control.  When it comes to reading and considering God's word, however, this is a conscious mental, spiritual and physical exercise.  We must discipline ourselves to study, apply and put into personal practice what we learn.  We must learn to humble ourselves before our LORD who speaks to our hearts and meditate on what He has spoken to us.

One verse, sentence and single word of God is very powerful to deliver truth we need to hear and understand.  You have eaten many meals before today, but it is what you choose to eat today that will provide a positive benefit for the health of your body moving forward.  This is true also concerning God's word.  We can be familiar with a lot of Bible content and verses, yet we need to be reminded of context and process those words again to be impacted afresh.  I experienced this today as I read 1 Corinthians 2:12 in the KJV, for a single word opened up a new avenue of consideration I had not explored for awhile: "Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God."  I typically teach out of the NKJV, and the rendering of that verse says we have received the Spirit who is from God that we might know the things "freely given to us by God."

These are both good translations of the Bible, and there are many others in English besides them.  I do not believe one must be right and the other wrong because of the variation of the highlighted word:  they both are in total agreement with one another and give us a different perspective of the same truth.  As believers all we have been freely given to us is by God, and there are things we have received that are of God.  He is both the source and the substance of His gracious provision.  When I quote this verse I tend to think in terms of understanding what has been freely been given to us by God when God also gives us spiritual discernment to know what has been freely given us of God.  Paul makes the point in this chapter those who are born again have the mind of Christ because we have received the Holy Spirit.  The mind of Christ is not something off in the distance we can work towards, but the mind of God He has already provided and thus we can receive.

So what are some things we have freely received of God?  Paul referenced many of these things in this chapter:  the ability to declare the testimony of God (ver. 1), in weakness and fear of God to speak in a demonstration of the Spirit and of power (ver. 2-3), to speak wisdom of God ordained from before the foundation of the world (ver. 7), to have spiritual revelation of what God has prepared for those who love Him (ver. 9-10), the indwelling Holy Spirit (ver. 12), the ability to compare and discern spiritual things (ver. 13-14), the mind of Christ (ver. 16).  All these things have been freely given us by God and they are of God.  How amazing it is to know we ourselves are "of God," born again into the family of God by the Gospel.  1 John 4:4 says, "You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world."  Knowing we are of God and what we have freely received of God, let us walk in the Spirit according to the mind of Christ.

Love and Hate

Coming to faith in Jesus Christ is the first step of many as we progress in sanctification.  After being born again by the Holy Spirit and we are exposed to the truth of God's word, we begin to see our need to change--not just in avoiding obvious sins, but in how we process and express ourselves through our thoughts, feelings and actions.  As the light of scripture illuminates our sins and need for repentance, we are also provided directives in how we ought to live.  Over time an embrace of a life by faith in God changes our perspective and we are given the capacity to see everything in a new light.

Knowing God makes all things work together for good to those who love God and are the called according to His purpose, our outlook dramatically changes.  Something we only saw as bad before now carries with it good redemptive purposes in the hands of our loving, gracious Saviour.  We observe the transformation in the disciples of Jesus so profound they rejoiced to suffer shame and be beaten for the sake of Christ crucified for them.  They did not enjoy the physical pain of being flogged or struck with rods, yet they prized their Saviour and the fellowship with Him afforded through suffering.

When we misquote an important line from a poem or film, important meaning is lost.  The same is true concerning the word of God--and this is far more potentially dangerous, for the scripture is a guide of holy, righteous living that pleases God.  Hackneyed, loose cliches can be adopted by Christians as a pattern of life that fail to rise to the glorious heights of biblical truth.  One I heard recently was, "If you aren't hated, you're not doing something right."  Variations of this include how attacks from Satan or opposition from people are solid evidence you are on the right track.  Such views may be common but do not stand up to scriptural scrutiny:  am I called by Jesus to look to the opinion of others as confirmation of my good standing before God, genuine spirituality or the best gauge of my effectiveness as a Christian?  Wouldn't it be better to look to Jesus for guidance and obey Him, the One who will say "Well done!" or "I never knew you?"  

Jesus said something quite different in John 15:17-18:  "These things I command you, that you love one another. ¹⁸ If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you."  We are not commanded to be hated but to love one another.  Rather than rejoicing in being hated or being the target of spiritual attack, we ought to rejoice in our Saviour who suffered for our sakes and gave us the example of being a servant of all we ought to follow.  Who cares if the world hates us as long as Jesus loves us?  Blessed is the man who seeks Jesus to hear His word to obey it.  Looking to others for confirmation we are "doing something right" is looking in the wrong place when we are in Christ by faith and have His word.  If loving one another leads to us being hated, so be it.  It's far more likely we will be hated when we adopt the hateful practices of the world in hypocrisy.

Escape by Grace

We live in a world where we experience toxic or poisonous fumes, chemicals and plants.  In recent times referring to people, a workplace or a relationship as "toxic" has become widespread.  Our mental and spiritual well-being are easily thrown off kilter by our own toxic pride and love of self only Jesus Christ can deliver us from by His grace.

If the air is polluted with toxins, the risk and danger to our health does not eliminate our need to breathe.  So how can we navigate the toxic behaviour and attitudes that can spring up all around us--even within us?  A situation Paul experienced on the island of Malta provides a good example.  Paul, fellow prisoners, Roman soldiers and sailors were shipwrecked and came ashore the island of Malta.  As Paul and others gathered sticks for a fire Acts 28:3-6 tells us:  "But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat, and fastened on his hand. ⁴ So when the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, "No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he has escaped the sea, yet justice does not allow to live." ⁵ But he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. ⁶ However, they were expecting that he would swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had looked for a long time and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god."

We know Paul by faith in Jesus Christ was a righteous man in the eyes of God Who is the Judge of all the earth.  He had wrongly been imprisoned and found himself shipwrecked on an island.  It is one thing for toxins to be around us in the air or water, but Paul had venomous toxins injected into his bloodstream.  The natives who were familiar with the bite of that particular viper expected him to swell up or suddenly keel over dead.  After Paul shook off the viper into the fire, the islanders were shocked Paul suffered no harm whatsoever.  By the miraculous power of God, Paul was spared the deadly effects of the toxin and continued living, helping, healing and blessing those around him.  As God protected Paul from a toxin in his body, so God is faithful to protect us from toxic behaviour around us.

It may seem God is far from us when we are immersed in a situation where hateful and unkind speech is the norm, where complaining and scorn is constant.  We might feel like we have no choice but to be paralysed by it--or at least it seeping into us and corrupt us from within.  God has a solution for this seemingly inescapable, hopeless problem in Psalm 34:17-19:  "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."  When toxic behaviour either within or outside of us works to destroy us, we can cry out to God in broken contrition.  God is more near to us in that moment than venom in our bloodstream or curses in our hearts, and He is able to deliver us from our many afflictions.

We can complain about problems we can do nothing by ourselves to fix, or we can seek God Who hears our cries and has promised to deliver us.  The question is not if God can help or save us, but will we seek God in humility, believing He will be gracious to deliver us?

Advanced in Service

I like how God says it like it is--whether we want to hear it or not.  Yesterday Joshua 13:1 coaxed a smile and chuckle out of me:  "Now Joshua was old, advanced in years. And the LORD said to him: "You are old, advanced in years, and there remains very much land yet to be possessed."  When Moses was old and advanced in years God told him to call Joshua and present him before the LORD, one chosen by God to lead the children of Israel into the land of promise.  There is a time for God's service to pass the mantle to another person, and there is also a time (as in the case of Joshua) to embrace new tasks according to God's command.

I have heard it said you cannot teach old dogs new tricks but humility, grace and obedience to God are all things God's people are called to grow in.  Even as Joshua was directed by God to walk where he had never gone before, even in his advanced age he was called to do things he had never done before:  to divide the land by lot and give it to each tribe.  While God had given all the land and the people of the land into the hands of His people, God held them responsible to rise up and go possess the land.  Victories and successful conquest presented a new danger of being complacent, to stop short of driving out all enemies from the land of their inheritance.  For decades the Hebrews were nomads, and with the opportunity to settle down and enjoy a season of ease a new temptation for selfish laziness arose.

Despite his advanced age, Joshua was not called to hand over his duties to another person or group:  God directed and empowered him to continue in service unto the LORD and people.  A day would come when his earthly pilgrimage would come to an end, yet God had much for Joshua to contribute of value to the nation.  I believe the contribution of Joshua in his advanced age was just as important whether it was on the national stage or in his own household.  It was not that other people or even God "needed" Joshua or his faithful, godly example, but by His grace God ordained and called Joshua to His good purposes.  Before his passing, Joshua urged all the people in Joshua 24:14-15:  "Now therefore, fear the LORD, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the LORD! ¹⁵ And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."

How effective and impactful would this statement and sentiment have been if Joshua was not living out the reality of serving God in his own house?  These would be empty words.  Joshua chose to serve the living God every day, and over the course of his long life Joshua advanced in his obedience, reliance and service unto the LORD.  He did not quit when things were difficult, when he "felt" his age, if there was a more charismatic or skilled leader than himself, nor did he abandon his personal or public responsibilities to pursue his own private interests.  As God gave Joshua and all the people an inheritance, so God gave Joshua guidance and a role both at home and in the greater community.  Age did not disqualify or qualify Joshua:  it was God who ordained and sustained him in his pilgrimage through life and made him fruitful.  Blessed is the one who serves the LORD all their days, and regardless of our age there remains much to do.  Praise the LORD the awesome, eternal God Who created work is with us every step of the way.

Blessed to Fear the LORD

"Blessed is every one who fears the LORD, who walks in His ways."

Psalm 128:1

There are plenty of things in the world which can move us to fear.  These rational and sometimes irrational fears often spring from negligence to consider God, His promises and power.  People who believe in the existence of spirits seek to placate or protect themselves against them.  Charms, amulets and crystals can be utilised in superstitious occultic practices to wield power to benefit the user by warding off evil, attracting wealth or emanate "good" energy.  In the world people's practices and beliefs differ, but fear is a common enemy we all face (or try to avoid!) in various ways and degrees of success.

I watched a comedic foreign film where one character was a eastern religious stereotype who did everything he could to placate deities for personal benefit.  Though he didn't receive any measurable benefits from his religious habits and piety, he imagined the key to success in education and life was by paying homage to idols and wearing trinkets for good luck.  In a nutshell, the character in the film was scared to death of failing out of school and returning home in shame.  He needed to commit his life and future to something greater than himself.  With his confidence placed in traditions of men, he always lacked assurance he gained the favour of the gods.  It would be a shame if Christians who know and serve the living God give place to fear when our God lives, speaks, helps and comforts us.

The one who fears the LORD and walks in His ways is blessed, and nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.  The devil and demons have no power to strip us of our blessed Father or of all His great benefits offered us.  A child of God ought to fear God but not the devil, for God's power is infinitely greater.  Fear can prompt us to seek help and comfort, like when a child hears a strange sound in the dark.  The little one runs to their mum or dad for safety, scared by what they heard, thought they saw or imagined was there.  The fear of God attracts us to God rather than repelling us, for we know He is stronger, wiser and capable than we are.  It is good for the sheep of God's pasture to run to Him, not because they are afraid of the wolves that howl nearby, but because they fear the Good Shepherd who loves, protects and provides for them.

A vast majority of fears we give place to are in the realm of the imaginary, what might or could be.  Compared to the goodness and power of God to deliver and save, all fearful things might as well be imaginary.  Who can compare with the greatness of God?  What danger exists that can separate the child of God from the Father's love?  What can man, sickness or spirit do to us without God's guiding, limiting, redeeming hand?  Having established God is love and we abide in Him, 1 John 4:17-19 says, "Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. ¹⁸ There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. ¹⁹ We love Him because He first loved us."  If we are made complete in God's love, fear of man and what might happen is expelled from our hearts.  The one who fears God walks in His ways, and the love of God casts out all fear.

Delivered from Afflictions

"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."

Psalm 34:19-20

It occurred to me recently that I have not given the miraculous preservation of the bones of Jesus on the cross just due:  how many times have bones been broken in innocuous or routine ways?  People have broken bones playing games like hide-and-seek and dodgeball!  Others have broken bones while working, accidentally kicking a table or falling down.  God allowed His only begotten Son Jesus to be cruelly tortured and crucified, yet all His bones were preserved.  He was beaten and battered beyond recognition, yet Jesus did not suffer a broken jaw, tooth, orbital bone or rib--because God's word cannot be broken.

John cited this Psalm after witnessing the death of Jesus on the cross and observed the breaking of the legs of the criminals crucified beside Him.  John 19:33-36 reads, "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."  It is amazing the human hands have 27 bones in them and the human foot 26 bones, and though the hands of Jesus were pierced by nails not one of them was broken.  God sent His Son as a Saviour to be broken on the cross so all who believe in Him can be made whole.  He was afflicted and broken, yet all His bones were preserved.

This is very encouraging for believers given the context of Psalm 34, a song David penned after God delivered him from the Philistines.  David was afflicted when his father-in-law Saul tried to kill him and pursued him without a cause; he was troubled when he heard of the deaths of the priests at Nob.  He was greatly afraid when the Philistines recognised him as a great warrior of Israel as he went to see king Achish.  "This poor man cried out," David sung speaking of himself, "and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles."  David was afflicted but God delivered him out of all his trouble; Jesus was also afflicted, yet God preserved His bones.  We are greatly comforted to know when we are afflicted God will deliver us too, having been made righteous by grace through faith in Jesus.  Jesus was battered, bloodied and died, yet His intact bones are a testimony of God's faithfulness to keep His word and to deliver us out of every affliction.

When afflicted, let us cry out to the God who hears us as David did.  Then the beginning of Psalm 34:1-4 can be our anthem and testimony as those delivered by our awesome, gracious God:  "I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. ² My soul shall make its boast in the LORD; the humble shall hear of it and be glad. ³ Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together. ⁴ I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears."

When A Servant Reigns

I was reminded of a situation that occurred when I was running work as a foreman on board the U.S.S. Nimitz.  I gave an experienced apprentice a list of spaces with the required materials needed to finish covering hot copper-nickel pipes.  Several hours later, I was surprised to see them wandering around without tools or material.  It turned out they were going to all the spaces and determining what materials were needed!  They spent hours "formanizing" when they were supposed to be installing insulation.  Needless to say I learned by 10 wasted man-hours one does not give a list on a clipboard to an apprentice because he misinterprets it as a promotion from working on the tools--and nothing of value is accomplished.

There were people in the dockyards who were skilled at making work last, if you understand my meaning, and I would number those fellows among them.  I imagine those two imagined it might take them all day to find 10 spaces and determine what material was needed for the job, work that already had been done in half an hour by myself alone.  It would have been comical to listen in as the senior apprentice pontificated over the hard work and skill required to ascend to such heights that enabled his mastery to shine:  it was fitting his well-worn tool belt and mastic-encrusted tape measure was laid aside for a clipboard and pen, such was his genius.  Upon meeting these wanderers, I quickly took action to dash all facades of apprentice authority by placing them back on task.

Agur wrote in Proverbs 30:21-23:  "For three things the earth is perturbed, yes, for four it cannot bear up: ²² for a servant when he reigns, a fool when he is filled with food, ²³ a hateful woman when she is married, and a maidservant who succeeds her mistress."  Harmony within a workplace, society and family is promoted and sustained when people walk wisely in the fear of the LORD.  I can identify with those wayward apprentices, for I have misunderstood God's expectations and the proper execution of my role God has given me as His servant in being an older brother, husband, father and foreman.  There always remains the possibility we can use the scriptures God has given us to condemn others or exonerate ourselves of the same errors.  We know the truth and assume it falls to us to utilise it to save or change others when only God can do that.  Just as the apprentice overstepped the mark to do a job I already finished and was negligent to do his own job, I can make the mistake of trying to do God's work without surrendering to Him and others as His servant.  It is amazing God entrusts His priceless word and wisdom into our hands as guided by the Holy Spirit, willing for us to falter and fail on His watch so we might be humbled and grow through the experience.

How those apprentices would have appreciated grace I did not even think to extend to them!  I had benefited immensely from God's grace extended to me, yet the earth was troubled for the manner in which a servant of God dressed down a couple apprentices on that occasion for their oversight which seemed clear to me.  It is good for us to realise we have played the fool so we would not take up that role again; it is good to recognise our behaviour has been hateful, spiteful and we are incapable in ourselves to wield authority wisely.  We will always meddle, lord it over others, resort to threats, deflect, accuse, withdraw or fight.  Being born again and filled with the Holy Spirit is the first step on a journey to learn to humble ourselves before the LORD and walk in love towards all--even when others do not listen, are careless, indolent or proud.  Let not such behaviour not be named among God's people to whom He has given His word and Spirit, for we have learned this from Jesus.

The Humble Study

The Jews were chosen by God and given His Law that was to govern their lives.  It contained the proper order of the worship of God, the designs for the tabernacle, priestly vestments and furnishings, outlined blessings for those who kept the Law and the curses for breaking the Law.  The authoritative word of God given to Moses and the people gave them the ability to know and assert objective difference between what was right and wrong.  The 10 Commandments were important commands and prohibitions in the Law of Moses that numbered more than 600.

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 8:1, "Now concerning things offered to idols: we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies."  The Law identified the fashioning, worship and possession of idols to be a sin punishable by death.  It was very easy for Jews to look upon Gentiles with contempt for being given over to idolatry in their ignorance of God and His law.  What the Law did not explain in full, however, was idolatry is not limited to graven images made by craftsmen for veneration, but could be established by the love of self or anything rather than God in the hearts of men.  Jews who did not have images of Zeus, Jupiter or Diana and condemned those who did were not necessarily free of idolatry themselves.  Knowledge of the Law puffed many up and were themselves condemned by hypocrisy.

In my younger days I have been guilty of the same error as a person familiar with the Bible from childhood.  By exposure to the truth of scripture I became aware when a person in the Bible said or did something wrong and I took pleasure in identifying it with self-righteous scorn.  I would have done well to heed Psalm 1:1-2 in my Bible reading:  "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; ² but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night."  God did not give the Law for people to be puffed up but to be humbled by the scope and gravity of their own sin so they might repent.  The LORD has graciously provided His word to learn from the lives of others so we would follow the example of Jesus to walk in love and forsake the pattern of sin common to all other men.

While there are benefits to look back briefly upon our past decisions so we might learn from our mistakes, it is not possible to go back and change what we did.  It does us no good to use our Bible knowledge to criticise the sins of others in the scripture as a fault-finding exercise as if we do not need to repent of our sin or grow in love today.  It is hypocrisy to mock or scorn people for decisions that exposed their lack of faith when we are no better than they--and likely worse given the full revelation of God's word we read.  We ought to use our knowledge to edify the Body of Christ, and it is not loving to jibe or sledge people of faith whose failures are recorded because we fail and fall woefully short.  There's nothing funny about making fun of people God commends for their faith.  If there is humour to be found in a puffed-up approach to Bible study, it might be to realise whenever we did so the joke was on us.

Dead to Sin, Alive to God

What we believe has a major impact on what we do and how we live.  If I truly believed valuable gold coins were being sold in a shop for a fraction of their value, I would purchase all the stock I could.  But if believed them to be lead adorned with gold spray paint, I would not consider buying a single one.  While the cruel dictator rules with oppression the people feign reverence in the presence of his person and images.  Yet when they believe the cruel dictator is dead and beyond power to torture and murder them, they celebrate without fear when statues are torn down and images desecrated.  As beliefs in our minds are lived out, so spiritual realities have a practical impact on our decisions daily.

Paul wrote in Romans 6:8-11:  "Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, ⁹ knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. ¹⁰ For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. ¹¹ Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord."  Christians are those who believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God who died on the cross and rose from the dead, and by faith in Him we are born again.  Because Jesus is risen from the dead, death has no dominion over Him.  This is the reality we appropriate by faith in Jesus practically:  we reckon (consider, credit) ourselves to be dead to sin and alive to God.  Sin and death no longer have dominion over us because we are in Christ.

There is a difference between something being "dead to me" and I reckoning myself "dead unto" it.  To say something is dead to me acknowledges existence of the thing but I am choosing to treat it as if it does not, I don't care about it or want anything to do with it.  This won't prevent us coming into contact with the thing we are pretending is dead to us and it exerting sway over our minds or bodies.  To reckon myself dead unto a thing is quite another.  Everything and everyone in the world can continue as it is by I am not impacted by it at all.  Nothing can have a hold on me because I am dead:  I cannot be tried in a court of law, forced to pay a fine, or serve time in prison.  Paul says we are to reckon or consider ourselves dead to sin, and because we are dead in Christ sin wields no authority or governance over our decisions.  Having been raised to new life by faith in Jesus, we are to reckon ourselves alive to God in Christ Jesus our LORD.

Reckoning ourselves to be dead unto sin and alive unto Christ is not a mind game we play with ourselves, but is the spiritual reality of our new identity in Jesus by faith.  Romans 6:13-14 continues:  "And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. ¹⁴ For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace."  Believing Jesus died and rose and again, we reckon ourselves to be dead to sin, alive to God and present ourselves to God as instruments of righteousness.  Sin does not have dominion over us, yet because we live in bodies corrupted by sinful thoughts and desires we can imagine the only hope for us walking righteously is in the eternal state.  Paul destroys this foolish misconception.  By God's grace through faith in our risen LORD Jesus we can present ourselves to God as being alive from the dead.  Since we believe Jesus died and rose from the dead, on that basis we consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God.  Having been made righteous by faith, by His grace we yield ourselves to walk righteously.

Putting on Jesus Christ

We have a tendency as human beings to ascribe honour to what is undeserving and not give honour to whom it is due.  We credit a person with being a good teacher when it is Jesus Christ Who teaches them.  I have been to "holy sites" in Israel that are crawling with people (literally crawling!) to venerate slabs of stone believed that were  supposedly touched by the body of Jesus.  In the church I attended in my youth, effort was to prevent kids running or wearing hats in the sanctuary because it was "God's house," a place set apart for worship and ministry of the word.  It was easy to think being in that room meant you were closer to God than somewhere else--like in a movie theatre, bowling alley or video game arcade.

There were occasions in the scripture where the LORD told people to remove the shoes off their feet because they stood on "holy ground."  With childlike understanding I imagined Moses and Joshua happened by chance to wander onto a patch of ground that was somehow holy.  It was like the restaurant sign that said, "No shoes, no service."  It seemed as a prerequisite to walking on holy ground, shoes were not to be worn.  What I didn't understand was the ground was holy because the presence the holy God was there!  In the high priest's attire sandals or shoes were not mentioned, and thus many believe those who ministered in the tabernacle and temple did not wear them.  In every case when a person was instructed to remove their shoes, they did so without hesitation.

When Jesus was transfigured and His glory was revealed on the mount with Moses and Elijah, three disciples were with Jesus.  They awoke from sleep to behold Jesus shining like the sun, speaking about His decease and all He would accomplish in Jerusalem.  Not knowing what he was saying, Peter piped up it would be good to build 3 tabernacles, one for Jesus, Moses and Elijah.  He would have memorialised the spot when the presence of God the Father surrounded them.  Luke 9:35 said, "And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!"  The voice of Jesus, God-made-flesh, was to trump the voice of the Law and Prophets who spoke of Him.  Rather than setting up tabernacles that would likely become shrines of a moment or place in history, God directed His people to look to Jesus as their stand-alone Saviour.

It is intriguing after Jesus Christ the Son of God assumed human form and put sandals on his feet, there is no mention of holy ground.  Peter, James and John did not need to remove their sandals from their feet or even wipe the sleep from their eyes before beholding the glory of Jesus Christ.  Jesus has revealed the glory of God to us lost sinners, and by grace through faith we stand with feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace.  We are not to put off the Holy Spirit, the spiritual armour He provides, His fruitfulness or gifts, for it is only through Him we are empowered to deny ourselves, take up our cross daily and follow Jesus.  It is ourselves we are called to put off having been made holy by spiritual regeneration:  by faith in Jesus it is by denying ourselves we discover the true, abundant life God provides by grace.  It is not places, things or people we are to venerate but Christ Whom we love, trust, follow and hear.

Rather than taking shoes off our feet to stand in God's presence Romans 13:12-14 tells us:  "The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. ¹³ Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. ¹⁴ But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts."  The shoes we wear or the life we lived before Christ did not lead us or result in us finding life, but putting on the LORD Jesus Christ by faith Who is our life is to walk in holiness.  Whether we are on a mountain or wearing shoes on our feet is of little consequence to our good standing before God by grace through faith.  Praise the LORD for all Jesus accomplished!

On Keeping the Law

"Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law."

Romans 3:31

The Law of Moses is good when used lawfully under the New Covenant established by Jesus Christ, for by Law is the knowledge of sin.  Unless there is a righteous standard in force that holds man accountable before God, there would be no righteous judgment of grace possible.  The Law's power to condemn a Christian has been nailed to the cross, even as our sin has been destroyed forever by atonement in Christ's blood.  We have been justified by faith and held to a higher standard than that of Law.  The fact Jesus did not come to destroy the Law but to fulfill does not mean "Law-plus" for the Christian.  No one but Jesus ever kept the Law or even came close, nor does God call Gentiles to to live as Jews.  This was clearly established in the early church when Jewish believers were pushing circumcision and keeping the Law of Moses as necessary for salvation after people believed on Christ.

They were not saved by the works of the Law, but there was a legalistic draw for them to place upon others a yoke they nor their fathers were able to bear.  Did they forget what Jesus said about the Law on the Sermon on the Mount:  "It has been said...but I say unto you?"  Since Jesus is the substance, Christians are no longer obligated to keep the Law that was a shadow of the Righteousness Who has now been revealed.  We are justified by faith in Jesus Christ alone by God's grace.  Now if we do what is written in the law by faith in God we do not sin nor are condemned, but to lay this yoke or requirements upon others for salvation or good standing with God is clearly in error.  The Galatians returned to what Paul called the "beggarly elements" in their zeal without knowledge or consideration of all Jesus accomplished, and we can too.

To fail to keep the Law in one point means a person is guilty of breaking the whole Law.  Legalism is the demand placed upon others to keep the Law (usually picking and choosing because much of it is impossible to keep today regarding feasts, sacrifices, etc.) as the standard God has called us to live up to when Jesus leads us to go further.  Instead of merely honouring our father and mother God would have us also love them--including all our enemies.  The legalist pushes against lawlessness; antinomianism pushes against the idea God holds Christians accountable to any moral standard.  Antinomianism means "against Law," and this view discards the Law as completely irrelevant and unnecessary when it still is profitable to bring knowledge of sin, establishes a righteous standard for living, and magnifies God's grace.  God did not save us to keep the Law of Moses, nor are we to be lawless, immoral or use grace as a cloak for our sin.

Jesus has fulfilled the Law, added to it, and finished it.  It does not need to be kept (as far as legalistically followed as a means of earning good standing before God) but it should be kept (as in retained and considered) because it is God's word and His righteous standard that reveals man's sinfulness and need for a Saviour, leading us by the hand to Jesus as LORD.  Our confidence ought to shift from our efforts to keep the Law to our LORD Jesus Who fulfilled it, provided atonement for our sins, and gives us commands to obey.  Rather than keeping the letter of the Law, Jesus has given new commands founded upon His love.  1 John 5:1-3 says, "Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. ² By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. ³ For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome."  Having been justified by faith, we are called to love God, one another and obey Jesus Christ.

My Times in God's Hand

"But as for me, I trust in You, O LORD; I say, "You are my God." ¹⁵ My times are in Your hand; deliver me from the hand of my enemies, and from those who persecute me."

Psalm 31:14-15

With our busy schedules, meetings and deadlines it can feel like we are being governed by time.  The word "inconvenient" can suggest an unwanted obligation to waste effort and time.  It is inconvenient to be in a rush to be on time and then be stuck in traffic or have a flat tyre.  It is disappointing to need to cancel and reschedule an appointment or party because someone is ill--and who knows when people will be able to set aside time to gather in the future.

Today I was lamenting the timing of a unexpected illness in our household that impacted my plans for the day.  But then I remembered this scripture when David said of God, "My times are in Your hand."  Since God is sovereign over all and my times are in His hand, despite the inconvenience of rescheduling a service call or the extra effort required to cancel plans, there remains rest for my soul by faith in God.  When things seem to be perfectly timed to maximise inconvenience, the believer in God can rejoice and be thankful He knows all and will supply all my needs in due time.

When Jesus walked this planet, He often remarked how His hour had not yet come.  God not only marks our times but our hours.  It is fitting this psalm also contains the verse quoted by Jesus as He breathed His last on the cross in Psalm 31:5:  "Into Your hand I commit my spirit; You have redeemed me, O LORD God of truth."  Jesus' hour finally did come when He would lay down His life on Calvary to provide atonement for lost sinners so they could be saved.  Jesus committed His life, times and even His hour to the care of His Father in Heaven Who would accept the price paid and redeem sinners from death for eternal life.

In our lives there will be delays, cancellations, disappointments and bad timing that seems so inexplicably precise it is funny, but we have assurance from God's word our times are in His hands.  These situations that test our patience are also opportunities to place our faith in God, His purposes and plans that are higher than ours.  Let's keep trusting in Him when we feel we have waited long and done enough, for God is still working His wonders in situations we would rather avoid if it was all up to us.  We wouldn't have considered crucifixion of one Man as the means to redeeming His adopted children, but praise the LORD He did. :)

Receive Encouragement

"And from there, when the brethren heard about us, they came to meet us as far as Appii Forum and Three Inns. When Paul saw them, he thanked God and took courage."

Acts 28:15

As Paul's voyage continued towards Rome, brethren who heard of them came quite a distance from Rome to meet with them.  Instead of being content to wait until Paul and those who travelled with him arrived, they took the initiative to introduce themselves and extend a gracious welcome.  Paul responded by thanking God and he took courage.  Their difficult voyage over many months was finally coming to an end and God had been faithful to bring them all safely to Rome as He promised.

A popular worship song begins, "Everyone needs compassion..." and I think it is also true that everyone needs encouragement--even a bold and hardy fellow like Paul.  Webster defined "courage" as "Bravery; intrepidity; that quality of mind which enables men to encounter danger and difficulties with firmness, or without fear or depression of spirits; valor; boldness; resolution."  Paul took courage from the interaction with the brethren who came to meet him, and it is possible he did not realise how much he needed encouragement on the cusp of finally arriving at Rome.  A difficult, protracted voyage was coming to an end but many new challenges awaited him that would require refreshed bravery to navigate resolutely.

We don't often realise we need encouragement until we receive encouragement.  Only then do we say, "Thanks, I really needed encouragement!"  It is after eating a hearty meal that we sit back satisfied afterwards and say, "I was really hungry!"  The satisfaction of hunger pangs reveals we had been feeling them more than we realised before we sat down to eat.  I believe the same is true concerning in-person Christian fellowship.  It is only after people have been away for a week or a month from genuine, loving fellowship in the body of Christ they realise what they have been missing.  Fellowship resulted in Paul giving thanks to God and taking courage, and engaging personally with other believers at church services can have a similar result for us.

The thing about taking courage is we must be willing to receive it.  Undoubtedly God has brought much encouragement our way that led to increased discouragement because we were unwilling to trust God and thank Him in our current circumstances.  There is much that happens (like a shipwreck) or bad feelings (like rejection) that can lead to fear, weariness or despair.  The one who chooses to place their faith in God despite what has happened, is happening or might happen can take courage in Him.  The little things like meeting up with people for a couple hours suddenly become a big encouragement to keep going.  When we see fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, let us thank God and take courage.  Our faithful God is with us and has good purposes and plans in what we have experienced and where He is leading us.  Thank the LORD!

Communion of Bread and Body

"The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? ¹⁷ For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread."

1 Corinthians 10:16-17

Jesus Christ is the Head of the body, the church which is comprised of all nations, tongues and tribes of all the earth who trust in Him.  By the offering of Jesus on the cross for sinners He perfected forever those who are sanctified, set apart as people holy unto the LORD.  The worship of believers and receiving of communion together was an act of unified worship that illustrated the spiritual reality Jesus makes possible by the Gospel.

As I considered the broken bread and cup partaken of during a communion service, it struck me that it was the same for everyone in attendance.  It was not only for the pastor but all parishioners; the rich do no receive a double portion, nor do believing visitors to the church service receive less.  As much as we hear about equity and equality in this world, nothing comes close to the full measure of grace God extends to every one of His born-again children.  When a person books a flight, there are many upgrades on offer to those willing to pay the price.  Though the same aeroplane transports all passengers, people travelling first class and business class board first and are seated separate from economy customers.  Their drink, menu options and amenities are a cut above others.

It is not so for born-again children of God by faith in Jesus.  We are all partakers of that one Living Bread come down from heaven; we all drink of the same cup that symbolises His blood shed for us.  This does not mean we are all clones, nor are we faceless and nameless passengers all crammed together:  we are beloved children of God given specific roles and spiritual gifts according to the will of the Holy Spirit (Heb. 2:4).  We cannot tell where one cell of our bodies begins or ends, yet God knows and loves every member of the body of Christ individually and intimately.  God who knows the number of the sand on the seashore and calls every star by name knows and keeps His eye on us, for not one sparrow falls without Him knowing.

How amazing, that we can all have forgiveness, eternal life and fellowship with God by faith in Jesus!  No one has special privileges others are given or denied because of age, wealth, family associations, or worldly success.  Just like God has given each of us all the time there is during the span of our lives on earth, He has freely offered Himself as our Saviour for continual communion and fellowship.  Hebrews 13:8 says, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever."  How blessed Christians are to be afforded all goodness that is and will ever be by God's grace through Jesus Christ Who unites us as one.

Invocation of Truth

When I went to university, the questions people asked and beliefs they espoused revealed a worldview completely different than mine.  In one sense I felt unprepared for the questions because at the core they denied fundamental beliefs my outlook was based upon.  Answering the question directly--instead of answering the questioner--put me in the position to always answer incorrectly and face the wrath or ostricisation of people I hardly knew and thus would likely never stick around for me to have the opportunity to explain why.  The result was a "for" or "against" mentality where deviation from secular, humanistic values was unacceptable and thus freedom of expression was stunted.

During my time in public and tertiary education I encountered many respectable teachers and professors who were open to a vast array of liberal and conservative perspectives.  But as time went on the pursuit of objective truth (if it existed at all) lagged far behind the pursuit of self-expression and personal truth which was defined by individuals with the unwavering expectation and demand all others must pay homage to it.  Those who resisted at all were often branded as "phobic" in some way, ironically an anathema to intelligence and worthy of scorn.  While it is not pleasant to be hated or mocked for your beliefs, it is wise to consider the perspectives of others and see we do not adopt their tactics.  We are not to answer a fool according to his folly lest we be like him. Our call as followers of Jesus Christ is to love others, pray for them and bless them rather than cursing.

In a film I recently viewed, it was evident people with conservative and liberal leanings have worldviews founded on different beliefs and thus work towards different ends.  The conservative man was on a quest for truth according to reality he believed people are happiest when they submit to it, whereas the liberals sought the happiness of others by affirming whatever they said.  One of those interviewed said something insightful, that "invoking truth is rude and condescending."  The word "invoking" has a religious connection, to call upon a deity for aid.  His complaint was the conservative made truth his deity when his worldview made each person his own god beyond all criticism.  In academia and beyond, it is largely considered rude and condescending to appeal to truth to which others must submit, even if it is scientifically verifiable.  It was an ad hominem attack to avoid the uncomfortable truth of God's sovereignty that nips at the conscience God created inside every human being.

It is amazing Jesus referred to Himself as the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  If there was anyone who ever spoke with complete authority and objectivity, it is Jesus Christ.  The religious and intellectual elite absolutely hated Jesus because He spoke with authority and not like the scribes who couched their statements with precedent.  Jesus trumped even the Law of Moses by saying, "It has been written...but I say unto you..."  People observed, "No one ever spoke like this man."  Being the Truth, Jesus Christ has authority no one else on earth does.  Christians are called to speak the truth in love--in the love of God and love of other people.  As people hated Jesus for speaking the truth, when we speak the truth in humility we will be hated.  We can submit to being hated and ostricised by men knowing we are loved and accepted by God because He is gracious.  Rather than seeking to confront or argue with those who do not know or fear God, let us continue to live and speak according to the truth, led by the Holy Spirit.

As God's redeemed we are in the world but not of the world.  In His wisdom God has left us in the world so we might be for those who do not know Him like the liberals were for me in university.  Without their input I would have remained in a lazy bubble of my own thoughts, assuming everyone else should think as I did--even when I was in the wrong.  We need not fear the indoctrination of empty worldly philosophy when we are grounded in the word of God, for what is the chaff to the wheat?  Not all of us are skilled at debate or think fast on our feet, but we can carefully consider different views in light of scripture; we can examine our own hearts and see we walk in truth.  We can invoke the aid of Jesus Christ to help us and others to draw near to Him:  the God who opens blind eyes, heals the lame and raises the dead.