Jesus Cares

God created human beings with limitations.  We can only carry or juggle a limited amount of items, and our bodies can only grow so tall.  The dimensions of our bodies are different yet all measurable by height, weight and volume.  There is only so much information we can retain in our minds from a conversation or movie.  Whatever can be stretched can also be broken or ruptured, and even the most fit professional athletes and labourers are no exception.

I have learned when I am easily provoked by a small thing it can be due to carrying a heavy mental load.  Unresolved conflict within me, awareness of troubles others are experiencing, bad news or unexpected obstacles--really any and every little thing--can give rise to overwhelming feelings that stir aggression, frustration and depression.  Peter exhorted believers to be submissive to God and one another, being clothed with humility because "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble."  He said in 1 Peter 5:6-7, "Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, ⁷ casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you."

Followers of Jesus are commanded to be casting all our care upon Jesus because He cares for us.  There are countless things we can care about:  we can be emotionally, financially and physically dependent upon them.  Peter urged believers to keep casting these cares upon Jesus, not like a fisherman casts out a hook or lure with intent to reel it back to himself, but to throw our anxieties and worries upon Jesus for good.  Why?  Because Jesus cares for us.  Jesus is not worried or anxious about us at all, for this "care" is a different word in the Greek that means "to be an object of care, concern."  Worry and anxiety is a symptom of our natural weakness and inability to do anything to help ourselves or others.  Instead of exalting ourselves we are called to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God, knowing the smallest burden is too heavy for us to bear in our own strength.

It seems ironic to cast away our cares, for aren't cares evidence of us caring?  Aren't we supposed to care?  The truth is, carrying burdens we ought to cast upon Jesus is evidence of our carelessness.  It is evidence we have neglected to guard our hearts and chosen for a season not to walk by humble faith in our awesome Saviour who cares for us.  Instead of condemning us for our forgetfulness or rejecting us God remains merciful, gracious and compassionate towards us.  He knows our weakness, limitations and foolishness.  God's hand is mighty to save and deliver us by His grace.  Knowing God cares and does everything gives us great confidence to throw all our anxieties and worries upon Him.  We give Him all the feelings, things and circumstances we cannot do anything about, and thus we by faith invite Him to do His wonders concerning those things in His time and way.

Alienated No More

I was impacted by a passage of scripture yesterday by its profound insight and relevance today.  Because God's word is true it is always relevant, but some assume the Bible must be outdated since it is ancient.  There have been many advances in technology, medicine and industry, and the evidence of scripture declares mankind to be the same:  prone to enslavement by lusts of the eyes, lusts of the flesh and the pride of life.

God utilised an object lesson with the children of Israel of two harlot sisters named Oholah and Oholibah (Samaria and Jerusalem).  The people of Samaria and the northern kingdom committed spiritual adultery through idolatry, and the people of Jerusalem followed suit.  In following her sister's lead, Oholibah was corrupted even further in her lust.  Jerusalem should have been faithful to the LORD God who was "married" to her and dwelt with her, but she was unrestrained in her desires.  This sort of thing plays out every day in our world facilitated by apps and websites--and it is nothing new.  God exposed his people for swiping right and sliding into their DMs--when they imagined they had been faithful to Him.

Read Ezekiel 23:14-16 for yourself:  "But she increased her harlotry; she looked at men portrayed on the wall, images of Chaldeans portrayed in vermilion, ¹⁵ girded with belts around their waists, flowing turbans on their heads, all of them looking like captains, in the manner of the Babylonians of Chaldea, the land of their nativity. ¹⁶ As soon as her eyes saw them, she lusted for them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea."  What happened next I found most intriguing in Ezekiel 23:17-18:  "Then the Babylonians came to her, into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their immorality; so she was defiled by them, and alienated herself from them. ¹⁸ She revealed her harlotry and uncovered her nakedness. Then I alienated Myself from her, as I had alienated Myself from her sister."

Oholibah liked what she saw and sent messengers to invite attractive, foreign men into her bed when she already had a husband.  As a result she was defiled and alienated from them.  She was left unfulfilled, dissatisfied and even disgusted by her encounters.  Because of her spiritual harlotry, God alienated Himself from her even as He alienated Himself from her sister Samaria.  To be "alienated" is to be estranged and isolated from someone.  Oholibah's soul was alienated from what she lusted after, and God was alienated from her due to her adultery.  The consequences of sin were unsatisfactory for both.  The problem was Oholibah in the illustration kept chasing after men she idolised, false gods that resulted in dissatisfaction and disgust over her illicit loves.

David wrote in Psalm 101:3, "I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me."  This is wisdom we ought to walk in.  There is nothing intrinsically wicked about images of captains in Babylonian attire:  the problem rested in the heart of God's people whose hearts were estranged from God.  Oholibah was like a sow returning to the mire, even as Israel had embraced idolatry in Egypt centuries prior.  God's people did not always remain faithful to Him, but He remained faithful to them and would pay the price to redeem all sinners to Himself through the Gospel.  The children of Israel would be taken into captivity in Babylon and Jerusalem would fall, but God would see it rebuilt and His people restored.  There is hope for people who stray from God, for our loving God does not remain estranged forever and draws near by grace with power to save and restore.  By God's grace may we be faithful to Him as He is faithful, now free from bondage to lust and pride.

Overcoming the World

Since moving to Australia years ago I have kept an eye on local baseball and football teams I supported from a young age.  The San Diego Padres have advanced in the playoffs through formidable opposition, some comparing their improbable victories to David over Goliath.  It is a common analogy employed when a big underdog beats a heavily-favoured opponent in sports, but it isn't a biblically accurate one.  

David was not an underdog:  he had no business being on the same battlefield.  The Padres and the teams they faced are all professional teams with players who honed their skills over a lifetime--and are paid handsomely for it.  Goliath was the giant champion of Gath and David was a teenage shepherd.  From a human vantage point, a true David and Goliath would be the Superbowl champion football team in a game of gridiron facing a team comprised of cheerleaders without any opportunity to prepare.  One combatant had state-of-the-art weaponry and protective equipment (with an assistant) while the other had 5 smooth stones and a sling.

The primary difference between David and Goliath was not their skill for battle, equipment or physical size.  What swung the odds of Goliath's victory to nil was his gods were powerless to help him and David fought by faith in the living God Who is mighty to save.  God had previously delivered David from the paw of the lion and bear, and David was convinced God would deliver him from the cursing Philistine before whom all Israel cowered from in fear.  David was not like a "Cinderella" team who had no business being at the Ball but was enabled to attend through the magical power of a Fairy Godmother who appeared in her time of need:  God had been with David all along.  God guided, protected and strengthened David for battle when he obeyed his dad to carry supplies to the front lines.

After David's brother insulted him in a rage 1 Samuel 17:29 reads, "And David said, "What have I done now? Is there not a cause?"  David was indignant Goliath had been permitted to curse God and his people and no one had done anything to stand up for Him.  David was not moved by national pride, the defense of his king, family or land, but saw a cause and opportunity to honour and glorify God by taking a step of faith to face the giant himself.  He would not be alone, for God was with him to deliver and save him.  David defeating Goliath is not the unexpected triumph of the underdog but a demonstration of how faith in God makes His children overcomers by faith, and this is the victory that overcomes the world.

Iniquity Shall End

In a famous scene in the movie Apocolypse Now before slowly walking out of shot Colonel Kilgore remarked, "Someday this war's gonna end."  For people engaged in that horrific conflict it seemed like it would never end:  the shells kept falling, bullets were flying and the napalm burning.  There is a time of war and a time of peace.  A war or battle may be fierce and long, but all will be brought to an end.  It is a grave tragedy that when one war ends other conflicts can arise.  Even in the midst of the battle and peril we can know someday the war will end, and even if this occurs because we have met our end we have a sure hope in heaven of peace in the presence of the glorious God.

Today I read this encouraging passage in Ezekiel 21:25-27:  "Now to you, O profane, wicked prince of Israel, whose day has come, whose iniquity shall end, ²⁶ thus says the Lord GOD: "Remove the turban, and take off the crown; nothing shall remain the same. Exalt the humble, and humble the exalted. ²⁷ Overthrown, overthrown, I will make it overthrown! It shall be no longer, until He comes whose right it is, and I will give it to Him."  Through the prophet God revealed to king Zedekiah the day of judgment had come and his iniquity had an end.  Many people grieved over the sorry spiritual state of Jerusalem which was brought to ruin by idolatry and rebellion against God.  To those who endured the wicked regimes of many kings of Israel there was comfort in knowing God would bring the iniquity of their rulers to an end.  God would strip them of their rule and remove their symbols of authority.  God emphatically said they would be overthrown, and in doing so God would turn everything right side up.

The proud king of Israel would be humbled, and this passage gives us a glimpse of the coming Messiah God would send:  the Son of David who is also the Son of God, Jesus Christ who will rule in righteousness over all.  All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus the righteous, and He resists the proud and gives grace to the humble.  Like king Zedekiah, we deserved to suffer the full force of God's judgment for our sin.  God showed us amazing grace in sending Jesus to atone for our sin on Calvary and clothe us in righteousness.  Jesus has come and we look forward to the day when He will bring an end to wars, murders, lying, greed, hatred and covetousness.  Sin, iniquity and death all will have an end, and Jesus will see to it.  As it is written in Revelation 20:14-15:  "Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. ¹⁵ And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire."

Child of the living God by faith in Jesus, we need not despair and grieve over troubles and conflicts as those without hope.  In the midst of suffering God has abundant consolation for us and all who fear Him.  There is small comfort in knowing a war will someday end when it continues to rage on and untold lives are being lost.  But there is great comfort in knowing God and what He has said, that every tyrant's day will come and every worldly regime will fall before the glorious, conquering KING OF KINGS Jesus who is mighty to deliver, save, heal and comfort.  Nothing will remain the same for Jesus makes all things new.  He has already forgiven our iniquity and brought the condemnation of our sin to an end and given us a living hope.  We are able to experience perfect peace in our Saviour Who loves us though He tarries long, knowing He will make good on His promises.