The Praise of God

"Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; ⁴³ for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God."

John 12:42-43

It is remarkable those who heard and saw all the things Jesus did would be hesitant to proclaim their belief in Jesus because of what they stood to lose over what they could gain.  The favour of man is fickle, temperamental and temporary, but the favour of God is glorious and eternal.  What I find more amazing than there were people who loved the praise of men is that the praise of God is on offer for all who declare Jesus their King.

Think of it:  the eternal God in heavenly glory, the Creator of all things Who alone is worthy of praise, delights to praise those who fear Him!  The grace of God simply overwhelms the soul who believes in Him with love, mercy and truth.  As children we beamed with pride when commended for doing well, and as born again children of God through faith in Jesus this pride melts away in the humble knowledge of who God is and our unworthiness of consideration by Him.  Jesus taught in Luke 17:9-10, "Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. ¹⁰ So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, 'We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.'"  Observe the perspective of the child of God and faithful servant who has been obedient to his duty before the almighty.  Instead of clamouring for recognition, the follower of Jesus is joyfully resigned to serve His Saviour.

In the Parable of the Talents, Jesus spoke of a master who rewarded his dutiful servant in Matthew 25:21:  "His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.'"  Jesus struck a contast between the servants who were faithful and the unprofitable, and explained how one day He would divide them as a shepherd does the sheep from the goats.  Matthew 25:34-40 says, "Then the King will say to those on His right hand, 'Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: ³⁵ for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; ³⁶ I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.' ³⁷ Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? ³⁸ When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? ³⁹ Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?' ⁴⁰ And the King will answer and say to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.'"

Those blessed of the Father and redeemed with the blood of Jesus did not trot out their good deeds or sacrifices before their King.  Since all authority, knowledge and dominion is Christ's in all heaven and earth, He is acutely aware of every time His people do what pleases Him in obedience.  He is not looking to destroy them for their faults already cleansed by His shed blood, but to reward them with praise and a glorious kingdom in His presence which shall never end.  Kindness shown others He owns as done to Himself to provide blessing, even as He has taken all our sins upon Himself to provide atonement and turn aside God's wrath.  To hear "Well done!" from the mouth of our Saviour will be among the sweetest words we could ever hear.  Blessed is the one knows Jesus and follows Him, and our righteousness is in Him.  Grace upon grace, now and forever!

Lamp On the Lampstand

Today I listened to a sermon which addressed a parable spoke in Mark 4:21-23:  "Also He said to them, "Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not to be set on a lampstand? ²² For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light. ²³ If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear."  The sole purpose of lighting an olive oil lamp is to provide light, and it would be foolish to light a lamp and place it under a basket or bed.  Not only was placing a lamp under a basket or bed be contrary to the point of lighting a lamp but it would be hazardous!  Jesus is the Light of the World, and the truth He has spoken is to be made plain for all to see, even as the parable of the soils exposed the different conditions of the hearts of men.

Pastor Terry of Calvary Chapel Newcastle focused on the bushel basket and bed in contrast to a lampstand to apply this parable personally in examining our own priorities.  In business people measured grain by the bushel, and they also slept upon beds so their energy could be restored to work the following days.  While rest and profitable business are gifts from God, it would be foolish for Christians to allow labour or laziness to crowd out and undermine our godly witness.  The truth of the Gospel and the transforming, saving relationship we have with God can be displayed by when and why we rise and how we approach our business.  Instead of hindering our walk with Jesus, the priority we give Jesus Christ in these basics of life provide great opportunities to let His light shine.

One observation made is even as God has given us physical bodies and minds as He has seen fit, God has also made us stewards of our personality.  This is a point I have not often heard spoken about.  If we will receive the truth God has created us according to His design, our personalities are also custom made to suit His purposes in this world and the Body of Christ, the church.  Now it is true we will spend our lifetime working to discern exactly what about our personality is of the flesh and what is of the Holy Spirit who leads and guides us into all truth.  There are aspects of our outlook and manner with others that are intrinsically selfish, lazy, greedy and judgmental that will come to light as we walk with Jesus and heed His word.  We are called to confess these as sin and repent when they are exposed, for God will continue to refine us as we humble ourselves to obey Him and love one another.

Even as God has seen fit to make differences between men and women with unique aspects about each one like fingerprints, eyes, right down to our DNA.  In addition to physical differences, God has given us distinct personalities and perspectives as well.  God did not call Peter to be Andrew or John but for them all to follow and obey Him.  God is gracious and mighty to use people to do His will and to share His word, and He is able to use the quiet personality as well as the demonstrative or vocal ones.  We are called to embrace the LORD and to be stewards of the personality He has given us to proclaim His goodness, grace and glory as He leads us.  A cactus blooms at night in the corner of a garden, kelp can grow 60 cm a day in the ocean, and a pine trees drop cones on needle-strewn hillsides.  These are all living things that God has created to thrive, grow and reproduce, and having been born again we can also be fruitful and productive to bring the light of Christ to a dark world by the beauty He has graciously given us.

We can be sure God will bring all secret things into the light.  The good seed of His word planted in a prepared heart will be fruitful now and receive eternal rewards.  Those who set the lamp on the lampstand will enable others to see the truth of Christ and walk in His light.  God also knows those among us who have scorched bushel baskets and beds because we allowed business and laziness--or excuses about our personality--to overshadow the clear display of His Gospel of grace.  Whether you are an early or late riser, self-employed, single or corporate executive, Jesus is the One we serve and obey as we embrace each new day He has made with rejoicing in Him.

Give to the LORD

While in the synagogue in Nazareth, Jesus read the place where it was written in Isaiah 61:1-3:  "The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; ² to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn, ³ to console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified."  In coming to earth as a man, God chose to add humanity to His deity to save sinners.  If God was coming only as a Judge and to take vengeance upon sinners, He did not have to become man at all.

Wouldn't it be a strange thing for prisoners to prefer the comfort of their cells than wanting to be free?  To remain a captive to a cruel tyrant when there is opportunity to be free to serve the King Jesus?  It would be sad to continue mourning when God has real comfort for us, and how ridiculous it would be to cling to ashes in memory of what was when God has beauty to give in exchange.  The LORD provides them who trust Him the oil of joy for mourning and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness--all for the glory of God and our good.  Even as we must put off old shoes before we can be fitted with new ones, we must be willing to hand all we mourn over to the LORD to receive the joy and praise suited for trees of righteousness established by God's grace.

We who are willing to confess and repent of our sin to receive the atonement, forgiveness and righteousness of God ought to part with the regrets of our past as we enter the new life by faith in Jesus.  To think we can have beauty for ashes is a glorious truth of the reality of God's grace and mercy at work within us.  Ashes are a reminder of what was and will never again be, but far better is the beauty of holiness found in God alone.  having received hope and salvation from God, it is fitting for us to respond by giving to God as it is written in 1 Chronicles 16:28-29, "Give to the LORD, O families of the peoples, give to the LORD glory and strength. ²⁹ Give to the LORD the glory due His name; bring an offering, and come before Him. Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness!"  Even our ashes are a gift from the LORD's hand that we might bring an acceptable offering of praise for His goodness and the joyful new life He has provided.

Let us by faith make our requests to God, and at the same time not forget to give Him all the praise, worship (and even our mourning and ashes!) so we might grow into the fruitful trees of righteousness for His glory.

What Defiles a Man

The Pharisees made great efforts to avoid what would defile them under the Law of Moses.  They avoided eating unclean foods, touching unclean items or a dead body, sitting on an unclean seat or eating without first washing their hands according to the tradition of the elders.  Potential defilement was everywhere, and thus God-fearing people among the Jews spared no pains to carefully abstain from touching, eating or doing what would defile them.

What Jesus said offended the Pharisees in Matthew 15:10-11:  "When He had called the multitude to Himself, He said to them, "Hear and understand: ¹¹ not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man."  While the Pharisees continually laboured to keep traditions of men to avoid physical defilement, Jesus taught it is sin within a man that defiles him before God.  They kept commands not to touch, taste or handle with their perishing bodies and neglected the inner man, their eternal souls which would endure beyond the lifespan of human flesh.  You see, we are more than flesh, blood and bone having been created in the image of the eternal God with living souls.  A person can have dirty hands from working in the yard and at the same time can be clean and upright in God's sight by grace through faith in Jesus.

This teaching that offended the Pharisees also proved difficult for the disciples to receive.  In response to their question Matthew 15:16-20 reads, "So Jesus said, "Are you also still without  understanding? ¹⁷ Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated? ¹⁸ But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man.¹⁹ For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. ²⁰ These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man."  Eating without washing hands may contaminate our physical bodies, but even tainted food cannot corrupt our souls.  It is the sin within the heart and mind of a person which moves our hands to do evil, our mouths to speak lies and our bodies to burn with lust.  We might blame the influences around us for the sin it simply stirs up in our hearts.  The stick that stirs up silt in the pool did not create or introduce the dirt that clouds the water:  the stick was merely the means of bringing to light how dirty the pool already was.

It is what proceeds from the heart that defiles a man, and praise the LORD He is able to wash us clean by the forgiveness offered by Jesus to those who are in Him.  Our sinful condition is terminal without hope, and Jesus has become our living hope by the atonement provided on Calvary.  It is wisdom to avoid what causes us or others to be weak in faith or to stumble in sin, but it is our hearts which require cleansing and transforming by God's grace through the Gospel.  We cannot eliminate our sin that defiles us when it percolates within us and eventually proceeds out of us.  Only Jesus can do this for us when we confess our sins and repent, and He helps us to walk by faith in obedience to Him moving forward.  Jesus has done for us as promised in Isaiah 1:18:  "Come now, and let us reason together," says the LORD, "though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool."