Knowing the LORD

God has revealed Himself to the world in the person of Jesus Christ, who is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8)  There is no person in the history of this world other than God who can legitimately make that claim, and if the Bible is true it reveals the true identity of Jesus without doubt.  John 1:11-13 says of Jesus, "He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. ¹² But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: ¹³ who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God."  Through faith in Jesus all people can know God through this new and living way.

Throughout history there have been many people who have refused to place their faith in the God who created the sun that shines, plants, animals and people.  Some have claimed the multitudes of gods and beliefs makes it unlikely or impossible to know which deity is real.  Many self-serving excuses have been drummed up to attempt in vain to elude acknowledgement of the God who created us and before we all will appear.  Based on the truth of God's unchanging scripture we can be assured the most stubborn skeptic and avowed atheist will one day know God.  Those who know God through faith in Jesus Christ are assured of His forgiveness, salvation and eternal life, and those who refuse to respond to His gracious invitation will know Him according to His justice.

The prophet Ezekiel had many strong words to say both to the children of Israel as well as the foreign nations who served idols.  Consider the repetition as God through Ezekiel spoke to the people of Ammon, Moab, Seir, Edom and Philistia respectively in Ezekiel 25:7, 11, 14 & 17:  "...I will stretch out My hand against you, and give you as plunder to the nations; I will cut you off from the peoples, and I will cause you to perish from the countries; I will destroy you, and you shall know that I am the LORD...¹¹ And I will execute judgments upon Moab, and they shall know that I am the LORD...¹⁴ I will lay My vengeance on Edom by the hand of My people Israel, that they may do in Edom according to My anger and according to My fury; and they shall know My vengeance," says the Lord GOD...¹⁷  I will execute great vengeance on them with furious rebukes; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I lay My vengeance upon them."  The nations who warred against Israel, instruments God used to chasten His people to repentance, would know God is the LORD when they were judged and destroyed by Him.

This is a most sobering revelation to those who fear the LORD while the unbelieving will shrug it off, content with their own idols.  No idol or man can stand before the living God who will dole out judgment with vengeance upon all who die in their sins.  It is entirely in the character of a God who has revealed His love to all mankind by the humble sacrifice of Jesus to judge eternally proud men who spurn Him as Satan.  In the eternal administration of divine justice all will bow before Jesus Christ and acknowledge Him as divine sovereign in Philippians 2:9-11:  "Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."  Sin is so grotesque and eternally binding Jesus died to save us, and commands all men everywhere to repent because a day is coming when the world will be judged in righteousness by Christ (Acts 17:31).

Dear friends, do you know the LORD God?  How blessed are those whose eyes are opened and hearts are humbled to receive Jesus Christ by faith today.  Hear the words of God in Revelation 21:6-8:  "And He said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. ⁷ He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. ⁸ But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."  Believers bow their knee before God today as their LORD and Father, having been born again by faith in Jesus, and those in eternal torment will bow the knee because they know God is the LORD.  Don't wait to know God after judgment for your sin when we can know Him today as the God who has forgiven all our sin at His own expense.

The Dull One

I am finding a recent study of the book of Hebrews most compelling, relevant and practical.  Perhaps from a worldly vantage point it seems incredible an ancient volume could speak so powerfully today, yet this is the miracle God does daily as we open His word and seek Him.  No one deserves an audience with the Almighty but by God's grace Jesus Christ invites those redeemed by His shed blood into the throne room to find mercy and grace to help in time of need (Hebrews 4:16).

It struck me today disciples of Jesus at the time did not understand what He was saying, misunderstood Him and other times flatly contradicted Him!  Jesus once asked, "Do you understand what I am saying?"  The apostles assured Him they did, but the Bible reveals they did not!  Those who claimed to understand Him thought Jesus was talking about bread when He was talking about doctrine (Matthew 16:7) and imagined defilement came from outside rather than from within a person (Mark 7:18-23).  After Jesus revealed He was going to Jerusalem, would be killed and rise from the dead the third day, the disciples began debating among themselves who was the greatest (Luke 9:44-46)!  There were countless misconceptions and blatant errors Jesus patiently addressed in the hearts and minds of His disciples, and when He rose to heaven in eternal glory there remained much work to be done in Jesus' disciples.  Having been born again by the Holy Spirit, expect there is still much work God desires to do in and through each one of us. 

The Bible gives us no latitude for saying of the children of Israel in the wilderness, "How could they be so stupid?" or wonder about disciples who walked alongside our Saviour, "What was their problem?"  The writer of Hebrews prefaced a portion of the letter that went on to explain how Jesus has an everlasting priesthood of the order of Melchisedec with this zinger in Hebrews 5:11-12 "...of whom we have much to say, and hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. ¹² For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food."  Over time a boy grows to be a man and a girl grows to be a woman, but spiritually speaking the Hebrews (and us modern-day readers) can remain illiterate, babbling babes when by now we should be showing signs of spiritual growth, maturity and leadership.

The problem wasn't the lack of knowledge but being "dull of hearing."  The believers to whom this letter was penned had their doctrines lined up and the shocking reality is God's word was unable to adjust them more perfectly!  They agreed with doctrine mentally (theoretically), but their lives were not aligned with it practically.  They believed in Jesus Christ, yet they continued to justify themselves according to the Law of Moses; they continued to bring sacrifices to the Temple when Jesus once for all offered Himself as a sacrifice for sin.  Listen:  let us not assume or imagine we agree with or understand all Jesus has said.  We may nod approvingly because we are familiar with Jesus saying it, but do our lives reflect the reality He proclaimed?  Since the example of the children of Israel and Christ's disciples are provided us, we will find ourselves in their "dull of hearing" sandals more than we care to admit.  It is hard to get through to us when our heads are full of knowledge that has never been adopted by faith in practice.

Jesus spoke the truth in love and many disciples chose to leave Jesus and follow Him no more.  They were unable and unwilling to receive what Jesus said as true, that His flesh was food and blood was drink indeed.  It may be those who hear the word of God preached from a sincere heart of love will choose to leave a church, and Jesus knows exactly what that is like.  Though Jesus Himself kept the Law, He did not for a moment cater to the Pharisees despite their political clout or spiritual authority because His authority as God is infinitely greater.  Great dangers for preachers and teachers today are to avoid controversial subjects, cater to those who oppose Christ or to be content to be dull ourselves and remain unchallenged and thus unchanged by all we read in the Bible.  A knife grows dull from use, and it is the dull knife which is set aside because it needs sharpening.  When we realise we are the dull one it is wise seek the LORD who sharpens us by His grace.

Lifting Praise Together

"Lift up His name, with sound of singing; lift up His name in all the earth.  Lift up Your voice and give Him glory, for He is worthy to be praised."

Lyrics from "Holy, Holy" by Tim Hughes

I woke this morning to the lyrics of a song we sung as a congregation last Sunday in my mind.  It is lovely when God wakes us with a song in our hearts as we consider His goodness and faithfulness to us.  God enables us to praise and worship Him as we walk in obedience to the Holy Spirit, and this worship is manifested in many ways:  praying according to His will, personal choices, giving ourselves to Him and gathering as the Body of Christ.

When COVID restrictions ramped up last year and we were unable to meet in person, the sound team at our church worked to organise a live-stream of the sermon and recorded praise songs.  After churches were allowed to gather in person, we mused over whether it was wise to continue the live stream because it might serve as a poor substitute for meeting together with other believers.  A healthy Christian walk requires more than sound doctrine, for we cannot have true fellowship with God and one another should we remain isolated.  We decided to continue the live-stream because it was meeting a need for those who were unable to attend, and the rest we would leave it in the LORD's hands and the conscience of each one.

Recently I was thinking back on the church I attended in my youth and how people treated the time of worship as a sort of buffer before the sermon.  Because there were few in attendance the team would start a little later, and as people noticed the team starting later they would arrive later still.  Now I do not believe it is a sin to arrive late to church, but it is fitting to consider what your lifestyle says about your priorities.  There are things we are never late for:  your wedding, a job interview for our dream role, the HSC exam, when you are playing in the grand final, when you have tickets to your favourite live show, responding to a summons for court or an appointment.  The reality is none of these things are as important as the appointed hour to draw near to God in faith on a Sunday or whenever the Body of Christ gathers.  This gathering together is elevated far beyond any social duty, a spiritual discipline and exercise of grace.

Now these views may seem extreme, but there is no biblical support to overrule them.  Church attendance ought not to be used as a primary gauge for spiritual health.  Those who arrive early every week are not more righteous than one who sleeps in or must work and misses church entirely because both are born again by faith in Jesus.  Meeting together in obedience to God for fellowship with the saints is a great opportunity to serve, praise and glorify God together as one, to lift up His name with the sound of singing and open His word to hear what the almighty God says to us.  Those who miss church really miss out on the blessing of serving, ministering His truth to others and affording more opportunities for others to serve.  It is more blessed to give than to receive, yet how can one give unless one is there to receive it?  It is a blessing to receive from God all He supplies by His grace, for He is worthy to be praised.  Gathering in one accord is more important for a healthy Christian than for a deathly sick person to go to hospital.

As long as the church is comprised of human beings on this earth, some things will remain true:  people  will miss church, at times be late, and will avoid the front row like the plague.  But until our LORD Jesus gathers His church to Himself, let us continue to consider one another--those who have prepared lessons for the children, the worship team, those who greet, serve and pray.  Let us consider the lonely, the hurting and troubled souls among us as it is written in Hebrews 10:23-25:  "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. ²⁴ And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, ²⁵ not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching."  We are a peculiar bunch to be sure, but we are Christ's, He is ours and we are one in Him.

The Grace Perspective

My wife and I have been working to compile hard copies of documentation as evidence at an upcoming meeting with the New South Wales Tribunal to resolve issues with the builder of our house.  We are blessed the Australian government has provisions in place that supports consumers and holds contractors accountable to the contracts signed by both parties.

During this process it occurred to me in the justice system the burden always falls upon the victim to take legal action to receive the benefit.  In our case it meant filling in applications online, providing all requested information, paying fees, providing access for Fair Trading to inspect the home, making inquiries with involved parties, printing copies for the Tribunal, cancelling other plans to attend the Tribunal meeting and affirm we are honestly telling the truth.  I have never heard of guilty parties commencing legal action against themselves!  It falls to the victim to take the initiative in the pursuit of justice.

Going through this legal process has further opened my eyes to the grace of God.  When man sins, He sins against the righteous God who created the universe and all mankind.  God sent Jesus to earth as the innocent party though offended and disgusted by man's sins and transgressions that never came into His mind (Jeremiah 19:5), and chose to take legal action at the expense of His own beloved Son to redeem and forgive the guilty parties!  God loves Jesus His righteous only begotten Son, and He also loved sinners enough to make Jesus an offering for sinners so we could be justified by grace through faith in Him.  A hurting victim desires the book thrown at the guilty party, yet God took action to save souls by His grace and provide eternal life, forgiveness and perfect peace.

The marvelous grace God has extended to us ought to shape our hearts and minds as it says in Hebrews 12:28:  "Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear."  Without faith we cannot please God, and without grace we cannot acceptably serve Him.  It is appropriate for Christians in the world to make use of the justice systems governments have put in place to protect citizens knowing we are saved by grace through faith.  Instead of bitterness, our hearts ought to be flooded with blessing.  God's grace brings gladness that will not be shaken even when the justice system on earth falls short of expectation.