The Good Teacher

The concept of being able to do something to obtain our desire is attractive to us.  People are willing to make sacrifices, beg, borrow, or steal to achieve their goals.  This is true regarding the attempts of people to gain favour in the eyes of men or God.  A lot of what passes for piety or devotion is not motivated by love for God or faith in Him but what we hope to gain for ourselves.  It is sobering how much selfishness can move us to sacrifice much.

Jesus was approached by a rich young ruler who wanted to inherit eternal life.  Mark 10:17-19 says, "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. ¹⁹ You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery,' 'Do not murder,' 'Do not steal,' 'Do not bear false witness,' 'Do not defraud,' 'Honor your father and your mother.' "  Jesus answered the man's question of how to inherit eternal life by asking a question of His own.  Psalm 14 and 53 said there is none who does good, not one.  Jesus pointed out He could only be truly good if He was God, and the man he addressed was a self-righteous one.  Because it seems the man did not consider Jesus God, so He pointed to the Law of Moses.

Mark 10:20-22 reads, "And he answered and said to Him, "Teacher, all these things I have kept from my youth." ²¹ Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, "One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me." ²² But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions."  The man was willing to drop the "good" from his address to Jesus - indicating lack of faith in Him as God.  He said, "I have done all those things."  Jesus didn't argue with the man, and the fact he was asking Jesus this question showed he lacked assurance of salvation, for righteousness cannot come through the Law.

God spoke to Abraham and told Him to leave his homeland and family and go where God told him.  Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him as righteousness.  Abraham believed God and his faith was demonstrated by obedience.  Jesus commanded the man to do something beyond the rigorous demands of Mosaic Law.  This rich young ruler was unwilling to do the one thing Jesus told him because he did not believe in Him.  Because he was rich, it seemed he had much to lose.  He did not believe, and therefore did not obey.  Perhaps he was unwilling because he could not see how giving his stuff could generate eternal wealth.  The invitation Jesus gave to follow was too great a sacrifice because he did not believe Jesus could deliver.

What a hindrance unbelief is to the abundant and eternal life God invites us to enter into by faith!  Praise the LORD He is faithful, for Jesus Christ is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  IF Jesus is a good teacher, than He is God and worthy of our faith.  And if we believe Him we should obey Him, even if His answer means it will cost us.

Receiving All Jesus Paid For

For years I have had my eye on a Weber smoker, and this week I finally bought one.  One of the big selling points for me is Weber quality and customer service.  The first grill I bought after arriving in Australia was cheaply made (though not cheap in price), and rusted quickly as it was clearly unsuited for the humidity.  The quality components and strong warranty Weber actually honours is a big selling point.  It's true in this case:  a buyer gets what he pays for.

When you pay full price, it makes sense to expect to receive all the products and benefits promised.  As I have been studying the book of Galatians I am struck with the high price Jesus paid for salvation by giving Himself, and how far short we can fall from realising the indescribable benefits He has provided.  Through the Gospel Jesus has redeemed sinners from the curse of the Law and provided the blessing of Abraham, the "promise of the Holy Spirit through faith." (Gal. 3:10-14)  For the Galatians and many believers through the years it is like Jesus paid full price for the smoker, fuel, meat, thermometer, and cookbook, but all they took from this divine transaction was the owner's manual - a framework of belief, some "dos and don'ts."  They have mailed in the form to register their product of salvation, so to speak, but the grace of God hasn't been experienced.

How liberating is the grace of God, that salvation and justification are received by faith in Jesus alone.  I don't know it is possible for humans who cannot know the depth of their own wretchedness to understand and appreciate fully the kindness God has shown us by His grace.  We receive the Holy Spirit by the hearing of faith, and then we are called to abide in Christ as we walk in faith led by the Spirit.  The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus.  Since God has delivered us from the ultimate results of the curse of the Law which is eternal death and separation from God in hell, Jesus has also redeemed us from every curse of the Law.  The next time you read a curse under the Law, you can know with all confidence the blood of the Son of God Jesus Christ has redeemed you from it.  Praise God for His salvation by grace through faith, and let us walk in the righteous freedom Christ gave Himself to provide!

Tragedy and Truth

God can use tragedy to bring realisation of truth because He is a Redeemer.  Circumstances we immediately judge as negative, pointless, and unnecessary God employs in His sovereign plans for good.  A situation in the life of Elijah presents an example.

The background is Elijah was a prophet of the God of Israel, yet king Ahab and many Israelites worshipped Baal:  the god of fertility, weather, rain, wind, lightning, war, and seasons.  Elijah prayed it would not rain, and through the ensuing drought and famine which lasted over three years it was evident Baal was powerless to bring the necessary rain.  God directed the prophet Elijah to live with a poor widow woman and her young son, and God miraculously provided for their needs.

Over the course of time the little boy became ill and died.  The heartbroken woman was distraught and 1 Kings 17:18 reads, "So she said to Elijah, "What have I to do with you, O man of God? Have you come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to kill my son?"  In her grief the woman felt judged by God because of the unthinkable tragedy of losing a child to illness.  Perhaps she felt extending hospitality to a man of God ought to bring blessings, and the death of her only son seemed a curse.  Elijah took the body of the deceased child and placed him on his own bed.

1 Kings 17:20-22 says, "Then he cried out to the LORD and said, "O LORD my God, have You also brought tragedy on the widow with whom I lodge, by killing her son?" ²¹ And he stretched himself out on the child three times, and cried out to the LORD and said, "O LORD my God, I pray, let this child's soul come back to him." ²² Then the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came back to him, and he revived."  James says the fervent prayers of the righteous avail much, and Elijah cried out to God.  The woman who kindly received Elijah lost her son to sickness, and for some reason God allowed it as the giver of life.  In his praying Elijah did not tell God reasons why He ought to answer, but cried out to the LORD for the boy to live again.  God heard the prayers of Elijah and the child miraculously revived.

The ways of God are higher than we can comprehend, yet one purpose behind God's revival of the child is found in the mother's response in 1 Kings 17:23-24:  "And Elijah took the child and brought him down from the upper room into the house, and gave him to his mother. And Elijah said, "See, your son lives!" ²⁴ Then the woman said to Elijah, "Now by this I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in your mouth is the truth."  The widow called Elijah a "man of God" likely sarcastically in derision before, but after the revival of her child she acknowledged the power of God, Elijah was God's prophet, and the word of the LORD spoken through him was truth.  As in the life of Jesus and His followers, the miraculous confirmed the truth of what they spoke.

When Elijah first met this woman, she was resigned to starvation because she only had a little flour and oil left.  Though she daily witnessed the provision of God by causing the meal and oil to last days, weeks, months, even years, she did not believe the word of the LORD spoken by Elijah.  It seems it was only after her son died, her heart was crushed, and he was graciously revived that her perspective changed.  It took tragedy to make way for truth.  This passage had a happy ending:  not that the boy was raised from the dead (as awesome that it is), but the woman came to realise God is the LORD and His Word was true.  May tragedy cause us to seek and trust God more, not run from Him in denial.

Celebrate God's Grace

Every day is a fitting time to celebrate the grace of God.  Appreciation of God's grace springs from the acknowledgement we are undeserving of any good thing.  If there is a moment circumstances fill us with the feeling "Life is good," it is only good because God is good and gracious.  When we feel like is a drag and a bummer, it is evident we have ceased looking to God and are either focused on ourselves or problems - something other than God.  In Jesus alone is abundant, eternal life, and He offers it freely to all who trust in Him.

The grace of God stands in contrast to all who clamour for rights, equality, and social justice.  Our very existence on this planet is by the grace of God alone.  These humanistic approaches claim all people are entitled to an arbitrary standard of living based upon what others have, not because of who they are:  people created and loved by God for Him.  The reach of human rights and justice is limited, but grace goes beyond what is required out of love.  Man's problem is seeking to make ourselves equal or superior to God, and when we do so we selfishly rob ourselves of countless blessings, peace with God, contentment, and divine provision to help others.  The reality of God far surpasses human idealism or legislation.

How gracious and good God is to provide eternal life when we deserve death because of sin.  We have all rebelled against God in our wickedness, but He has drawn near to us by grace.  1 John 5:11-13 says, "And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. ¹² He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. ¹³ These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God."  What peace and joy we are given by God's grace, to have absolute security and certainty of an eternal, glorious future with Jesus.  He has provided everlasting life as a free gift paid for by an immense cost, for Jesus laid down His life on the cross for sinners.

The God who preserves our souls eternally will not forsake us during our lives on earth, knowing what we need to live.  David wrote in Psalm 37:25, "I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his descendants begging bread."  If God provides food for the birds of heaven, won't He supply the food we need by His grace?  He will not forsake us, and the infinite grace He extends towards us provides cause to trust and praise Him.  Psalm 37:1-5 tells us, "Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. ² For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. ³ Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. ⁴ Delight yourself also in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart. ⁵ Commit your way to the LORD, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass."

God is faithful and gracious, and as we delight ourselves in Him all our needs will be supplied.  He's sustained you many years to be able to read this, right?  Won't He continue to guide us and supply all our needs in a world where our only future certainty is our demise?