Muscle, Not Machine

I am grateful to be part of the Body of Christ, the church.  1 Corinthians 12:12-14 says, "For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. ¹³ For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free--and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. ¹⁴ For in fact the body is not one member but many."  The world beckons all to celebrate diversity in the vacuum of individualism.  The contrasting beauty of God's design of the church is our celebration of the unity of diverse individuals in Christ.  It is not our differences or unique talents which make us useful, but Jesus Christ who unites us.  It is the Holy Spirit who leads and empowers us as one.

I have found free weights to be the most useful and thus my favourite type of training.  Over the years I have experienced a few injuries, and the vast majority of injuries were the direct result of weight machines.  Interestingly enough, the machines which led to injuries were designed to target specific muscles - like a curling machine, for instance.  Instead of needing to pick up the weights from the ground and involve the whole body in lifting, all I needed to do was adjust the amount of weight with the placement of a small pin.  Convenient, yes.  But it was only a matter of time before I tried to lift more weight than I could physically handle and hurt myself.  Without strengthening connective tissues and all those little important ligaments and tendons, the convenience of machines led to injury and a decrease of fitness for the whole body as I recovered.

In His wisdom, God did not make the church a machine.  He designed it to be a living expression of His love, a united body comprised of many members with Jesus Christ as the Head.  Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:15-16:  "...speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head--Christ-- ¹⁶ from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love."  People are not machines.  We need much more than an occasional adjustment or oiling.  We need to be fed, washed, trained, taught, encouraged, convicted, corrected, and strengthened by our Saviour.  God uses other people in the church to accomplish this daily task.  We need rest, guidance, forgiveness, love, and intimacy with our Saviour.  Muscles require protein and strenuous activity to grow, and we need the milk and meat of the Word of God to be strengthened.  People are not cogs in a wheel that can be replaced with a bolt and a little elbow grease.  When we approach ministry like a machine, it can lead to severe injury.  Labouring in isolation from God or apart from true fellowship with others is always destructive.

How important it is to understand God created the church to be a community, a interdependent group of people who are individually fully dependent upon Him!  Do you see your constant need for Jesus just like at the first?  Or has knowledge or responsibility in ministry weaned you away from complete reliance upon Him?  That is a most dangerous place to be.  Proverbs 18:1 says, "A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire; he rages against all wise judgment."  Jesus is for us wisdom, yet isolation is a sure path to injury of self and potentially others.  Praise the LORD for the accountability, strength, encouragement, and gifts He has given others so the church can be edified and Jesus glorified!  We need to be like the power lifter whose whole body is involved in the lift, not just using a machine trying to grow bigger arms.  I am not the Body, but a part made viable through the Holy Spirit.  How I need Jesus and my brothers and sisters in Christ!

The Good Person

"Most men will proclaim each his own goodness, but who can find a faithful man?"

Proverbs 20:6

This Proverb of Solomon is proved true to this day.  Most people measure themselves selectively against others.  It is easy to find faults in others (perhaps since the sins of others appear more heinous than our own) and therefore most people claim to basically be a "good" person.  Unfortunately the world has dumbed-down the biblical definition of "good" to a ridiculously low level.  Jesus brought this to light when He was addressed as, "good teacher" in Mark 10:17-18:  "Now as He was going out on the road, one came running, knelt before Him, and asked Him, "Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?" ¹⁸ So Jesus said to him, "Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God."  Jesus in essence said to the man and the world:  I am either good and God or I am not good at all, for there is none good.  Not one person save Jesus Christ could ever be rightly called good in God's estimation.

Goodness is synonymous with absolute perfection according to God's righteous standard.  Psalm 14:2-3 gives us God's perspective on the matter, the holy Judge of all the earth.  "The LORD looks down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there are any who understand, who seek God. ³ They have all turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is none who does good, no, not one."  It is God's judgment from a perspective of absolute righteousness - not our personal assessment from deeply distorted and perverse character - which carries any weight at all.  There is no one good but God.  Because I am not God, I am not good.  It is not my job to convince you that you are not good according to God's standard.  The commandments of God were given for this purpose.  None of us measure up.

Have you ever said words you wish you could take back?  I would suspect we all have.  I remember vividly one day talking with someone and she said, "You're a good person.  Admit it!"  I protested at first, but finally gave in and acknowledged I was a good person.  I spoke those words privately, but now I say publicly as I have many times since:  I am not a "good" person.  As Paul said, in my flesh no good things dwells (Romans 7:18).  I am fully convinced there is not a single good bone in my body.  I am an ungrateful, selfish, proud wretch who deserves to burn eternally in hell, despite any "good" other men may perceive in me.  The Bible compares the life of man to a vapour, a wisp of smoke, green grass that flourishes one day and is gone and forgotten the next.  In the end, my brief life and futile deeds are without significance.

But the wonderful truth is Jesus Christ is good for He is God!  He came to earth for the express purpose of seeking and saving sinners like me.  He lay down His own life on a cross so sinners could be saved from sin and be reconciled to God.  Jesus loves me in spite of my wickedness, and through the Gospel God has offered me forgiveness and His righteousness.  Because I remain in this corruptible body I am a sinner, yet through faith in Jesus I have been born again by the Holy Spirit.  I am not good, but now I know the God who is good because He lives within me.  Because of God's grace His goodness is now evident through my life and other born again Christians.  It is written in Galatians 5:22-23, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law."  Connected to Christ through faith in Him, His life can be lived out through mine.  Any goodness visible in me is only from Him, and in this I rejoice.

I cannot right the wrongs of that day over 20 years ago when I claimed to be a good person.  That was a grave sin, for according to God's terms I claimed deity.  No amount of doing "right" can undo wrong.  Thankfully God has washed me clean and placed His righteousness upon me.  I am free from all guilt!  I can from this day forward choose to glorify Jesus Christ as His humble servant.  He is the only good man who ever lived, for He is God.  Who can find a faithful man?  I couldn't, for there is no good, no not one.  Praise God that Jesus opened my eyes, found me, cleansed me of all sin, is faithful, and will always remain good.

A Daily Portion

The Bible is beyond profound, packed with eternal significance.  Even historical events are means God utilises to give us a picture of the Christ's power and reality for all who trust in Him today.  Those who approach God in faith find food for their souls in the scriptures.  Last night as a family this truth was confirmed in a passage from 2 Kings 25:27-30:  "Now it came to pass in the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, that Evil-Merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, released Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. ²⁸ He spoke kindly to him, and gave him a more prominent seat than those of the kings who were with him in Babylon. ²⁹ So Jehoiachin changed from his prison garments, and he ate bread regularly before the king all the days of his life. ³⁰ And as for his provisions, there was a regular ration given him by the king, a portion for each day, all the days of his life."

Jehoiachin was a king of Judah who was taken captive and incarcerated in Babylon.  In the year Evil-Merodach became king of Babylon, he released Jehoiachin from prison.  Evil-Merodach's reign precipitated Jehoiachin's release, promotion, and provision.  Jehoiachin's prison garments were removed.  He was given new clothes, a place at the king's table, and was given a regular ration of food by the king, "a portion for each day, all the days of his life."  This is a beautiful picture of what happens when Jesus Christ becomes our King set on the throne of our hearts, our LORD and Saviour by faith in Him.

Jehoiachin's release from prison was a direct consequence of Evil-Merodach becoming king.  When the KING of KINGS Jesus Christ becomes our Saviour through the Gospel, we are freed from the oppressive prison of sin and death.  Our filthy garments are removed and we are given white raiment (Rev. 3:5), a robe of righteousness.  No longer need we remain hungry or eat the water or bread of affliction in a dungeon of darkness, for a place at the King's table has been provided us.  In God's presence every Christian can freely dwell and feast on the daily provision supplied by the Bible, God's Word.  Jesus is the Living Bread that came down from heaven, and all who partake of Him by faith will live forever.

Believer, do you realise God has supplied a regular ration of spiritual sustenance from the Bible every single day?  The king of Babylon provided a daily supply of food for Jehoiachin, but the responsibility fell upon Jehoiachin to partake of what his king provided.  He could choose if he wanted to eat the king's food, decide to sulk in his quarters because it wasn't his favourite, or go on a hunger strike to prove a point.  But Jehoiachin was not a fool.  The passage tells us Jehoiachin wisely ate regularly before the king all the days of his life.  The implication is it was good food because the king had compassion on Jehoiachin.  It was food fit for and approved by the king, and his gracious hospitality was an invitation Jehoiachin was blessed to accept.  This is what the Bible provides for all those who trust in God and believe Him.

Psalm 81:10 says, "I am the LORD your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt; open your mouth wide, and I will fill it."  When we open our mouths wide, God will fill our mouths with wholesome truth which promotes health and life.  But even as God's people grew weary of gathering and eating manna every day in the wilderness, so God's people can grow weary of the discipline of reading and studying God's Word daily.  Let us not grow weary in doing good, for we shall reap if we faint not.  Remember how helpless you were in bondage, and how God lovingly drew you from that pit of sin, fear, and hopelessness.  He has taken away your rags, given you a place at His own table, and supplied a daily provision for you.  Will you accept His hospitality with rejoicing today and every day?  Tomorrow and for all eternity there will be plenty of the King's food on offer to joyfully receive, for His Word endures forever!

Lying Down in Green Pastures

Near my house there many acres of pasture where cows, horses, and sheep continually graze.  The recent summer rains have made the grass grow green and lush.  Large catchments of water are filled to capacity, and God has supplied enough rain in the last days to ensure well-watered grazing for a month!  As I drove by the property yesterday, it struck me:  I have sped by the sheep in those fields hundreds of times, yet to my knowledge not once have I ever seen them laying down.  Mixed in with the cows and horses, the sheep seem to perpetually stand.  It reminded me of a passage in Phillip Keller's classic, A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23.  Keller writes:

The strange things about sheep is that because of their very make-up it is almost impossible for them to be made to lie down unless four requirements are met.  Owing to their timidity they refuse to lie down unless they are free of all fear.  Because of the social behavior within a flock sheep will not lie down unless they are free from friction with others of their kind.  If tormented by flies or parasites, sheep will not lie down.  Only when free of these pests can they relax.  Lastly, sheep will not lie down as long as they feel in need of finding food.  They must be free from hunger.  It is significant that to be at rest there must be a definite sense of freedom from fear, tension, aggravations and hunger.  The unique aspect of the picture is that it is only the sheepman himself who can provide release from these anxieties.  It all depends upon the diligence of the owner whether or not his flock is free of disturbing influences.  Phillip Keller from A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23 (Zondervon, 1970), 35-36.

From what I have witnessed of those roaming sheep, they have never been under the guidance and protection of a shepherd.  Without the care of a shepherd, it is not surprising the four requirements for sheep to lie down are not met.  The lifestyle of those sheep is similar to the lives of many people who do not have Jesus Christ as their Good Shepherd.  Even Christians can wander from reliance upon Christ and are troubled by fears, tormented by worry, and aggravations.  Jesus is a Good Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep.  He is the one who David spoke of in Psalm 23, the one who "maketh me to lie down in green pastures" (Psalm 23:2).  It is not His negligence which causes us to be troubled and fret to exhaustion, but our self-reliance and unbelief which causes us great anxiety.

Jesus said in Matthew 11:28-30, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."  Jesus is the only one in whom we can find rest for our souls.  We think if only the pesky flies would leave us alone, we would have rest.  We try to create conditions where we feel safe and secure, only to have our problems and difficulties mount.  We feed on all the world can offer us, but remain hungry.  We wish our personal disagreements would be resolved and imagine true rest to be satisfied by a holiday or relaxation.  But it never comes.  True rest, the Bible tells us and experience confirms, is found only through faith in Jesus Christ.  He is the One who makes us to lie down in green pastures, for in Him all our needs are completely satisfied.

You may know Jesus as LORD as Saviour, but are you experiencing His rest today?  You can if you are willing to draw near to your Good Shepherd and seek Him with your whole heart!