Delighted in God

I've enjoyed reading through a George Muller biography written by Roger Steer titled Delighted in God.  Both encouraging and challenging, it is refreshing to read of a man who was absolutely convinced of God's power and ability to provide for all his needs.  Not only were the needs of George abundantly supplied by the LORD through prayer, but also the needs of staff, thousands of orphans, building projects, supplies, and upkeep.  Here is a memorable snippet from the mouth of William Ready, a young man who spent time in Muller's orphanage:

'How vividly comes back to my mind that last meeting with the father of the fatherless before leaving his care.  He received me kindly when I went into his prayer room at No. 3 orphanage.  Ah!  What wonderful prayers had been offered there on behalf of the orphans and what remarkable answers he had there received!'

Muller put half a crown into his left hand and a Bible in his right. 'You can hold tighter with your right hand than with your left, can you not?'

'Yes, sir.'

'Well, my lad,' said Muller, 'hold to the teaching of that book and you will always have something for your left hand to hold.'

Muller then asked William to kneel, and putting his hand on his head, he committed him to God's keeping.  Helping him then to his feet Muller said, 'Trust in the Lord and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land and verily shalt thou be fed.  Goodbye, my lad, goodbye!'  (Delighted in God, Steer, 1981, pg. 178)

What George Muller believed and lived I have also found to be true.  Those who trust in the LORD will lack no good thing.  What is written in Joshua 21:45 remains true today for God's people:  "Not a word failed of any good thing which the LORD had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass."  If God so clothes the grass of the field which is green today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will God feed and clothe us?

Jesus Comes Unexpectedly

One of the things I have been doing for exercise lately is playing golf.  Walking over uneven ground pushing a buggy has helped me with balance and endurance.  Though it is cold and often foggy early at 6:30am, I brave the chill during a weekday to squeeze in a round as early as possible.  It is a blessed time of quiet with the LORD as I take in the beautiful scenery.  Since I typically golf alone, I am often able to be completely finished by 9am and head off to work.

Because the course I typically play had a competition going this week, I played at another course in the area.  I called in a couple days in advance and was assured I could tee off by 7am.  As is my custom I arrived twenty minutes early, just in case I would be able to tee off earlier.  As I waited by the locked pro shop an elderly member pushed his buggy near mine.  "Still isn't here," the old man said.  "Usually he turns up early, but since the boss is out of town he's taking advantage of it."  We continued chatting for a few minutes.  Ten minutes after 7 he arrived and I headed out into the fog.

The man's words had me thinking.  How typical it is of human nature to take advantage of someone's absence to be slack concerning our responsibilities!  Jesus told several parables which warned against the folly of this approach to life.  Luke 12:42-46 states, "And the Lord said, "Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season? ⁴³ Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. ⁴⁴ Truly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all that he has. ⁴⁵ But if that servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and be drunk, ⁴⁶ the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers."  By his wicked deeds the "servant" was proved no servant of Christ at all, but lived to please himself.  Thus exposed as a false believer, such a one faces eternity separate from God in Hell.  This is a warning all people who profess Christ do well to consider.

Many times in scripture we are told no man knows the day or the hour of Christ's return, but only the Father in heaven knows.  But in another sense, we can know for certain exactly when Jesus will come:  He will come for those unfaithful servants in the hour when they least expect it!  If I was the owner of the golf course and I wanted to see how things truly run in my absence, perhaps I would cut a holiday short and show up unannounced early in the morning when it would be least expected.  The employees who are faithful would be prepared for my arrival, but those who took the opportunity to sleep in and arrive late would face stern consequences.  Jesus is coming back, and His reward is with Him.  All Christians must give account of their stewardship to the One who has committed all things unto them.  Our faithfulness to Christ's call to obedience, our gifts, talents, and resources will all be judged by Jesus to see if we have measured up to His standard of faithfulness.

Let's keep looking to Jesus, knowing the time is short.  Blessed is that wise and faithful servant whom our Master discovers has been obedient to His will.  Jesus is coming at a time we do not expect!

There Remains A Rest

As I continue along the road of recovery from ACL reconstruction, the path stretches beyond me as far as I can see.  In addition to walking, weights, and cycling occasionally, I have begun to add jogging to the mix.  Running on the grass is good for strengthening stabilising muscles and taxes areas of my legs not addressed on the bike.  The knee is a bit sore when I first start running, and afterwards I definitely notice it when walking down stairs.

Jogging around the park yesterday was not for the fun of it, I assure you.  My whole body hated the experience.  I had set a goal for myself to run at a good pace around the park three times.  About halfway through each lap, I so wanted to stop and walk.  But you know what kept me going?  The promise of a break when it was all over.  Looking forward to the rest helped me to push through pain with determination.  The pain I was experiencing would soon be over, and I would carry the benefits of the strain with me long after I caught my breath.

The same thing is true in the Christian life.  The mistake people make is looking to rest which cannot supply our deepest needs.  We look to the weekend to help ourselves through a trying week at work.  We look forward to sleeping in or lounging around, hoping to recharge.  We look with great longing on the holiday we have booked for ourselves, thinking that break will revive us.  The truth is, the cessation of activity or alteration of a busy schedule does not provide rest for our souls.  No weekend, holiday, or break can provide the rest found only in Jesus Christ.  Isn't it ironic Jesus said if we will take His yoke upon us - to do His work with Him - it is in that working posture we will find rest?  To be sustained, we must look to the eternal rest God has promised us when our life has been spent for God's glory.

Jesus promised 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 Way spoken of by the prophets of old, for it is in Him we find rest for our souls (Jeremiah 6:16).  It is possible, the writer of Hebrews pointed out, that even those who have trusted in Christ may not enter into the rest provided freely through faith in Christ.  Hebrews 4:1 says, "Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it."  If my efforts to please God become my focus over Christ Himself, I will not experience the rest He offers.  If I look to weekends or holidays when I should be looking to Jesus today I will find myself burning out, like a flame starved of oxygen.  I will come back from my holiday just as depleted as when I left.  When I find my rest in Jesus despite the circumstances of life, pain, or busyness, the Holy Spirit supplies all the fuel I need to shine bright in a world darkened with sin.

Let Christ be your motivation and your Way as you run the race God has set before you.  Are you at rest?  Have you learned in every situation to be content?  Consider again the words of Hebrews 4:8-12:  "For if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day. ⁹ There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. ¹⁰ For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. ¹¹ Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. ¹² For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."  There is a rest remaining for all who are in Christ.  It is a rest to be experienced now, and also a rest remaining for us in the heavens.  We are to labour hard while it is yet day, for night is coming when no one can work.  For some of us, our break from earthy labour lies just ahead.

Keep going!  The scripture lays out the divide between truth and error, and this truth must be applied to our lives.  Stick to the old path; keep on the good way.  Jesus will transform us as we take His yoke upon us and learn from Him.  He has much to reveal to us, and will teach us to enter into His rest!

As Little Children

When the disciples of Jesus asked Him honest questions, He provided wise answers.  Jesus often appealed to simple visual illustrations to provide deep spiritual truth.  We read of such an interaction when the disciples asked Jesus in Matthew 18, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"  Jesus answered their question in a profound way.  Matthew 18:2-4 reads, "Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, ³ and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."

To answer their question, Jesus simply called a little child to himself.  We do not know who this child was or what he was doing.  It could have been a son or daughter of Christ's disciples, or it could have been a street urchin working his way through the crowd.  Who it was was not as important as what the child did:  at the call of Christ the child heard His voice, stopped what he or she was doing, and obediently came to Jesus.  The child likely was not highly educated, and certainly had no seminary training.  All the things the disciples measured themselves against one another melted away into insignificance.  "If you want to be great in the kingdom of God, you must be as this little child."  Huh.  This was likely not the answer the disciples were expecting or looking for!

Jesus said to enter the kingdom of heaven, we must be converted and become a little children.  The word "converted" in the Greek means, "to twist, i.e. turn quite around or reverse." (Strong's Concordance)  The child had been heading one direction, and upon hearing the call of Jesus turned around and obeyed Him instead.  There was implicit faith in the actions of the child to do so.  A humbling of self was involved, to put aside his own plans and heed the call of the Saviour.  The call of Christ is one of repentance, obedience, and to trust in Him.  There are no adults of heaven, only children of God.  The greatest in God's kingdom are those who come to Him as children, choosing to embrace humility and even suffering for His name's sake.

Are you willing to humble yourself before your Maker?  God does not value the things we tend to value:  knowledge, experience, the ability to speak eloquently, position in a church, or social status:  He is looking and calling for people to hear His voice and come to Him in humility, yielding themselves to His will in absolute surrender and trust.  We are living in the last days, and no man knows how short his remaining time of earth is.  Allow me to remind you of the words of Jesus in John 7:37-38, "On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. ³⁸ He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."  Jesus calls to all who thirst today.  Are you thirsty?  Repent and respond to the call of Jesus right now.  He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  Only those who humble themselves as children before Him will enter into the kingdom of God!