This question greeted me in bold permanent ink as I closed the outhouse door on the jobsite. As a rule, I never respond to questions written on bathroom walls - especially when God is involved! It is a bad witness to damage property in God's name, and more horrible still to degrade His holy name with the depictions of racism, hatred, and sexual perversion found inside some construction site outhouses. "Jesus loves you" written among that filth is a fitting example of the bright light Jesus brought to this earth. But the grandeur and glory is lost when His name becomes graffiti. He deserves people who live out that truth rather than writing it in hiding.
The temptation to respond on the bathroom door with pen and ink was over before it began, yet the question begs to be answered just the same. Is God an angry God? How can I know what angers Him? Psalm 7:11 says, "God is a just judge, and God is angry with the wicked every day." The word in the Hebrew translated "angry" means "to foam at the mouth, to be enraged." Sin is rebellion against God and His perfect statutes, and He detests sin passionately. It is a perversion of righteousness. It corrupts, destroys, and brings death. As much as God hates sin, He hates how it destroys men. Sin is a cruel dictator that enslaves men and ushers them into hell. God is righteous, and it is right for Him to be angry. The psalmist writes in Psalm 76:7, "You, Yourself, are to be feared; and who may stand in Your presence when once You are angry?"
We have been told that God is a loving God, and this is true. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. But love and anger are not opposed to one another. You can love your husband, wife, or children dearly, but they can still make you angry! When you read of children being kidnapped and prostituted, or a father shooting his kids one by one and piling their bodies in a heap, or the elderly being swindled by crooks, what kind of person has no response? A person who does not care. God cares. He cares more about you and me than we care about ourselves, and that is saying a lot!
God appeared to Moses in a burning bush and instructed him to return to Egypt. God heard the cries of His people and sought to deliver them from the oppression of the Egyptians. Moses began to make excuses: what if they don't believe me, what if they refuse to listen, I'm not good at public speaking. Exodus 4:14 says the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses. Did God's love for Moses or His people evaporate? No. But the unbelief of Moses and his reluctance to obey angered God. How about King Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived? 1 Kings 11:9-10 reads, "So the Lord became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned from the Lord God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, [10] and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not keep what the Lord had commanded." Man's anger is often mood related, but God is not moody. It is sin that infuriates Him. Man is often angry without just cause, but God is just.
I will answer the question on the bathroom door with a question: my friend, have you stirred up the anger of God today? Have you chosen a path of disobedience? After God revealed Himself to you have you walked in opposition to Him? There are two ways to abate the anger of God: repentance or judgment. If we will repent and humble ourselves before God, His anger towards our sin is satisfied. He will abundantly pardon and hold no grudge. Or we can be as Achan who disobeyed God and stole plunder from Jericho. God's anger will burn until justice is satisfied and it was only after the execution and burial of Achan that God's wrath subsided (Joshua 7:26). Your life will decide if God is angry with you or not. God is angry with the wicked every day, but He has provided the way of righteousness through the sacrifice of His precious only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Psalm 2:12 affirms, "Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him."
18 February 2010
17 February 2010
Wounded?
"Time heals all wounds," the cliche goes, and I couldn't disagree more. This assumes all wounds can be healed. In fact, time has no ability to heal in itself. Our bodies have been designed to repair themselves over time, but time has no magical qualities in itself to heal. It amazes me how often cliches and proverbs are casually said without thought of their veracity. Take the slogan, "What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas." It is ironic Las Vegas is called "Sin City" and the last part of Numbers 32:23 says, "...be sure your sin will find you out." I'll save this for another time! Back to wounds, it is not only the elderly that struggle with unhealing wounds: children, singles, parents, and grandparents have the potential to carry not only physical wounds, but emotional wounds that no amount of time could possibly heal.
Wounds are more than baggage. No medicinal treatment, herbal remedy, or surgeon's scalpel has the power to remove the rot from a wounded soul. I've been watching a documentary recently about WWII and a medic shared a difficult fact. He spoke about having to make tough decisions on the field of battle involving life and death. If a medic came upon a group of men during a battle who were seriously wounded, he would intentionally not treat soldiers who had likely suffered a mortal wound. Morphine and supplies were too valuable to use on a man who would die following treatment. A medic would need to survey the extent of the injury quickly, then decide who he would treat. The treatment of minor injuries would be delayed for the serious ones, and the most serious would be avoided. Thinking back over the interview, the medic never once claimed to have healed anyone. He supplied treatment so the God-designed natural healing process could begin.
If we'd be honest, we tend to treat our physical wounds more thoroughly than our emotional or spiritual wounds. We employ what I like to call John Wayne tactics. When actor John Wayne is shot through an arm or leg, he ties a kerchief over the wound and keeps on fighting. He might pour some whiskey over the spot and take a tug off the bottle. But if someone asks about the injury, ol' John Wayne gruffly brushes it off as "nothing." When it comes to inner hurt, we tend to try to ignore the pain rather seeking treatment. Another extreme is to be so preoccupied with our wounds that we withdraw from those who could help. We are convinced that no one has ever hurt this bad, no one could possibly understand, and we are far beyond healing. Our wounds become our closest companions and the pain overwhelms us. As Job said to his "friends," what miserable companions our wounds are!
It's true no one in the world has lived your life, and no one walking the earth today knows exactly the pain you've experienced. Sometimes we disqualify others from speaking to us on the matter because they have not shared our exact history. But let's say someone has suffered exactly like you. Are they capable of healing you? NO! But there is someone who has suffered more than we could ever imagine, and nothing is too hard for Him. His name is Jesus Christ, the Healer. He does not offer treatment. He supplies the cure. He has the power to heal physically, and is willing and able to heal your soul! Jesus healed lepers, cast out demons, made the paralyzed to walk, the blind to see, and raised the dead to life. Your wounds are severe, and you must willingly expose them for Christ to heal. Just like a doctor cannot examine an unwilling person who refuses to be a patient, Jesus will not force you to cry out to Him for healing. But He is patient, longsuffering, merciful, gentle, loving, and kind. He will not minimize your suffering. He won't say, "That's nothing." He knows too well the pain of rejection, harsh words, physical abuse, torture, and being utterly forsaken.
Which is more painful? To have a bullet pass through the gut or to watch helplessly as the medic passes you by because your wound is too severe? No wound is beyond the loving care provided by Jesus Christ to all who trust in Him. Like the Good Samaritan stopped and helped the wounded traveler, Jesus Christ will never pass you by. He will leave the 99 sheep to find the one who is lost. The words of Isaiah 53:5 are for us today: "But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed." God is eternal, operating outside of time. Time doesn't heal: God does.
Wounds are more than baggage. No medicinal treatment, herbal remedy, or surgeon's scalpel has the power to remove the rot from a wounded soul. I've been watching a documentary recently about WWII and a medic shared a difficult fact. He spoke about having to make tough decisions on the field of battle involving life and death. If a medic came upon a group of men during a battle who were seriously wounded, he would intentionally not treat soldiers who had likely suffered a mortal wound. Morphine and supplies were too valuable to use on a man who would die following treatment. A medic would need to survey the extent of the injury quickly, then decide who he would treat. The treatment of minor injuries would be delayed for the serious ones, and the most serious would be avoided. Thinking back over the interview, the medic never once claimed to have healed anyone. He supplied treatment so the God-designed natural healing process could begin.
If we'd be honest, we tend to treat our physical wounds more thoroughly than our emotional or spiritual wounds. We employ what I like to call John Wayne tactics. When actor John Wayne is shot through an arm or leg, he ties a kerchief over the wound and keeps on fighting. He might pour some whiskey over the spot and take a tug off the bottle. But if someone asks about the injury, ol' John Wayne gruffly brushes it off as "nothing." When it comes to inner hurt, we tend to try to ignore the pain rather seeking treatment. Another extreme is to be so preoccupied with our wounds that we withdraw from those who could help. We are convinced that no one has ever hurt this bad, no one could possibly understand, and we are far beyond healing. Our wounds become our closest companions and the pain overwhelms us. As Job said to his "friends," what miserable companions our wounds are!
It's true no one in the world has lived your life, and no one walking the earth today knows exactly the pain you've experienced. Sometimes we disqualify others from speaking to us on the matter because they have not shared our exact history. But let's say someone has suffered exactly like you. Are they capable of healing you? NO! But there is someone who has suffered more than we could ever imagine, and nothing is too hard for Him. His name is Jesus Christ, the Healer. He does not offer treatment. He supplies the cure. He has the power to heal physically, and is willing and able to heal your soul! Jesus healed lepers, cast out demons, made the paralyzed to walk, the blind to see, and raised the dead to life. Your wounds are severe, and you must willingly expose them for Christ to heal. Just like a doctor cannot examine an unwilling person who refuses to be a patient, Jesus will not force you to cry out to Him for healing. But He is patient, longsuffering, merciful, gentle, loving, and kind. He will not minimize your suffering. He won't say, "That's nothing." He knows too well the pain of rejection, harsh words, physical abuse, torture, and being utterly forsaken.
Which is more painful? To have a bullet pass through the gut or to watch helplessly as the medic passes you by because your wound is too severe? No wound is beyond the loving care provided by Jesus Christ to all who trust in Him. Like the Good Samaritan stopped and helped the wounded traveler, Jesus Christ will never pass you by. He will leave the 99 sheep to find the one who is lost. The words of Isaiah 53:5 are for us today: "But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed." God is eternal, operating outside of time. Time doesn't heal: God does.
10 February 2010
A prayer for today and always...
Make Me Thy Fuel
From prayer that asks that I may be
Sheltered from winds that beat on Thee,
From fearing when I should aspire,
From faltering when I should climb higher,
From silken self, O Captain, free
Thy soldier who would follow Thee.
From subtle love of softening things,
From easy choices, weakenings,
Not thus are spirits fortified,
Not this way went the Crucified,
From all that dims Thy Calvary,
O Lamb of God, deliver me.
Give me the love that leads the way,
The faith that nothing can dismay,
The hope no disappointments tire,
The passion that will burn like fire,
Let me not sink to be a clod:
Make me Thy fuel, Flame of God.
- Amy Carmichael
(quoted from Start Where You Are, Swindoll, pg. 187)
07 February 2010
Hope for the Hopeless
Have you ever found yourself in a situation that seemed hopeless? Bad situations often become worse. It is easy to be burdened under stress and trials which churn out turmoil without end. Perhaps you have been in an abusive relationship, as a child or an adult. Maybe a loved one is dying with a terminal illness or you have been diagnosed with one yourself. Your expectations have been crushed, your hopes shrouded in frustration and disappointment. Hopelessness occurs when we measure our abilities against a scenario and find them wanting. We are faced with the reality that we do not possess the power to create change in another person or situation. How can we live in the face of our frailty and failures?
In the Bible the Answer to this question is given. To this day, leprosy remains incurable yet treatable. In the days of Christ, it included grotesque disfigurement of the body, living in isolation with others who were suffering like affliction, and certain death. When one contracted leprosy there was no hope for restoration. Luke 17:12-14 tells us an occasion in the life of Jesus Christ: "Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. [13] And they lifted up their voices and said, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!" [14] So when He saw them, He said to them, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed." Jesus enters the village of these hopeless men, stricken with leprosy. They stood afar off, but Jesus went to them. This reminds me of Ephes. 2:13, though I'm a little ahead of myself: "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ." From the depths of their hopeless situation they called out to Christ who was able and willing to bring healing to them as they obeyed. Obedience to God does not mean we will be free from disease, but God is free to accomplish His will in our lives. In this case, Jesus healed these men and changed their lives miraculously, dramatically, and completely.
Paul and Silas provide another example of a hopeless situation changed by the grace of God. There was a fortune-telling slave girl who had a demon which Paul cast out of her in the name of Jesus Christ. When her masters saw their hope of making money through her was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and the whole city was in an uproar. They had delivered a girl from the enslavement of the demon but were incarcerated themselves. Acts 16:22-23 says, "Then the multitude rose up together against them; and the magistrates tore off their clothes and commanded them to be beaten with rods. [23] And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely." They were stripped, beaten severely, and thrown into prison. This was a seemingly hopeless situation. Paul and Silas were traveling through Macedonia and found themselves bleeding in a dungeon, chained in stocks, with their clothes ripped to shreds.
Instead of Paul and Silas bemoaning their situation or focusing on themselves, they praised God. Acts 16:25 tells us, "But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them." There was a great earthquake, the doors flew open, and all the chains were loosed. Acts 16:27-34 says, "And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself. [28] But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, "Do yourself no harm, for we are all here." [29] Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. [30] And he brought them out and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" [31] So they said, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household." [32] Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. [33] And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately he and all his family were baptized. [34] Now when he had brought them into his house, he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household."
The prison guard prepared to fall upon his own sword, his life being forfeit if a prisoner had escaped. To die by his own sword would be better than enduring the torture performed on those who failed in their duties as a Roman guard. Paul called out, preventing the man's death. The guard called for a light and said, "What must I do to be saved?" At midnight in a Roman dungeon, he had seen the Light of Salvation shining brightly in these two bloodied prisoners who sang and prayed with all their might out of the darkness. Paul explained that trust in Jesus Christ as LORD is the path of salvation. Though Paul and Silas could have drowned in hopelessness and self-pity, they rejoiced and praised God who had given them life which they could share with others. Notice that the passage ends with the guard rejoicing, "having believed in God with all his household." The Bible is clear in teaching that Jesus Christ is God. This passage provides ample irrefutable proof of that! As Jesus says in John 14:6, He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Him.
As Christians, we live in a dark world that we are powerless in ourselves to change. We see people everywhere sick in sin and without hope. They numb themselves with alcohol, mask their depression with pills, cut themselves, binge, purge, hate, lie, and bounce from one abusive relationship to another. These people go to church every Sunday morning. There is hopelessness that creeps into our hearts when we think about the people we are forced to deal with, situations at work that will not change, sickness in a loved one, and broken relationships having split in divorce. Tack on the earthquake in Haiti, starvation, exploitation of children and adults in the sex trade, addictions, racism, violence, abortion, and the downward spiral of morality in the world, and we can be overwhelmed!
The answer to hopelessness is Jesus Christ. If we focus on the problems, we will never find the solution. If we try to find the answer within, we find we are bankrupt. Even if we had all the money in the world, we could not ensure children would not be beaten or molested, or that food would be provided for everyone. Money does not buy happiness, nor can it buy hope. But if Jesus could bring hope and healing to those lepers suffering from an incurable disease, He can bring hope and healing to you today. Christ provides not only the answer but power for living through the Holy Spirit. If God is able to bring hope and deliverance to men who were beaten and locked in a Roman dungeon, He can bring hope and deliverance to you right now. If Jesus Christ could bring salvation and rejoicing to a Roman guard, He can bring salvation and rejoicing to you today. He is not dead, for He is risen! Jesus is not the God of the dead, but of the living. He brings life and hope to all who trust in Him.
Praise Jesus Christ! Pray with thanksgiving, for in Him we have the unfading hope of eternal life! Do not be overcome with evil, but overcome evil with God. Hopelessness comes from a perspective not focused solely upon Christ. This is hope we can share with all who hunger and thirst for it! May the words from the famous hymn ring true: "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame but wholly lean on Jesus' name. On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand."
In the Bible the Answer to this question is given. To this day, leprosy remains incurable yet treatable. In the days of Christ, it included grotesque disfigurement of the body, living in isolation with others who were suffering like affliction, and certain death. When one contracted leprosy there was no hope for restoration. Luke 17:12-14 tells us an occasion in the life of Jesus Christ: "Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. [13] And they lifted up their voices and said, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!" [14] So when He saw them, He said to them, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed." Jesus enters the village of these hopeless men, stricken with leprosy. They stood afar off, but Jesus went to them. This reminds me of Ephes. 2:13, though I'm a little ahead of myself: "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ." From the depths of their hopeless situation they called out to Christ who was able and willing to bring healing to them as they obeyed. Obedience to God does not mean we will be free from disease, but God is free to accomplish His will in our lives. In this case, Jesus healed these men and changed their lives miraculously, dramatically, and completely.
Paul and Silas provide another example of a hopeless situation changed by the grace of God. There was a fortune-telling slave girl who had a demon which Paul cast out of her in the name of Jesus Christ. When her masters saw their hope of making money through her was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and the whole city was in an uproar. They had delivered a girl from the enslavement of the demon but were incarcerated themselves. Acts 16:22-23 says, "Then the multitude rose up together against them; and the magistrates tore off their clothes and commanded them to be beaten with rods. [23] And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely." They were stripped, beaten severely, and thrown into prison. This was a seemingly hopeless situation. Paul and Silas were traveling through Macedonia and found themselves bleeding in a dungeon, chained in stocks, with their clothes ripped to shreds.
Instead of Paul and Silas bemoaning their situation or focusing on themselves, they praised God. Acts 16:25 tells us, "But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them." There was a great earthquake, the doors flew open, and all the chains were loosed. Acts 16:27-34 says, "And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself. [28] But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, "Do yourself no harm, for we are all here." [29] Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. [30] And he brought them out and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" [31] So they said, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household." [32] Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. [33] And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately he and all his family were baptized. [34] Now when he had brought them into his house, he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household."
The prison guard prepared to fall upon his own sword, his life being forfeit if a prisoner had escaped. To die by his own sword would be better than enduring the torture performed on those who failed in their duties as a Roman guard. Paul called out, preventing the man's death. The guard called for a light and said, "What must I do to be saved?" At midnight in a Roman dungeon, he had seen the Light of Salvation shining brightly in these two bloodied prisoners who sang and prayed with all their might out of the darkness. Paul explained that trust in Jesus Christ as LORD is the path of salvation. Though Paul and Silas could have drowned in hopelessness and self-pity, they rejoiced and praised God who had given them life which they could share with others. Notice that the passage ends with the guard rejoicing, "having believed in God with all his household." The Bible is clear in teaching that Jesus Christ is God. This passage provides ample irrefutable proof of that! As Jesus says in John 14:6, He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Him.
As Christians, we live in a dark world that we are powerless in ourselves to change. We see people everywhere sick in sin and without hope. They numb themselves with alcohol, mask their depression with pills, cut themselves, binge, purge, hate, lie, and bounce from one abusive relationship to another. These people go to church every Sunday morning. There is hopelessness that creeps into our hearts when we think about the people we are forced to deal with, situations at work that will not change, sickness in a loved one, and broken relationships having split in divorce. Tack on the earthquake in Haiti, starvation, exploitation of children and adults in the sex trade, addictions, racism, violence, abortion, and the downward spiral of morality in the world, and we can be overwhelmed!
The answer to hopelessness is Jesus Christ. If we focus on the problems, we will never find the solution. If we try to find the answer within, we find we are bankrupt. Even if we had all the money in the world, we could not ensure children would not be beaten or molested, or that food would be provided for everyone. Money does not buy happiness, nor can it buy hope. But if Jesus could bring hope and healing to those lepers suffering from an incurable disease, He can bring hope and healing to you today. Christ provides not only the answer but power for living through the Holy Spirit. If God is able to bring hope and deliverance to men who were beaten and locked in a Roman dungeon, He can bring hope and deliverance to you right now. If Jesus Christ could bring salvation and rejoicing to a Roman guard, He can bring salvation and rejoicing to you today. He is not dead, for He is risen! Jesus is not the God of the dead, but of the living. He brings life and hope to all who trust in Him.
Praise Jesus Christ! Pray with thanksgiving, for in Him we have the unfading hope of eternal life! Do not be overcome with evil, but overcome evil with God. Hopelessness comes from a perspective not focused solely upon Christ. This is hope we can share with all who hunger and thirst for it! May the words from the famous hymn ring true: "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame but wholly lean on Jesus' name. On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand."
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