Putting on Jesus Christ

We have a tendency as human beings to ascribe honour to what is undeserving and not give honour to whom it is due.  We credit a person with being a good teacher when it is Jesus Christ Who teaches them.  I have been to "holy sites" in Israel that are crawling with people (literally crawling!) to venerate slabs of stone believed that were  supposedly touched by the body of Jesus.  In the church I attended in my youth, effort was to prevent kids running or wearing hats in the sanctuary because it was "God's house," a place set apart for worship and ministry of the word.  It was easy to think being in that room meant you were closer to God than somewhere else--like in a movie theatre, bowling alley or video game arcade.

There were occasions in the scripture where the LORD told people to remove the shoes off their feet because they stood on "holy ground."  With childlike understanding I imagined Moses and Joshua happened by chance to wander onto a patch of ground that was somehow holy.  It was like the restaurant sign that said, "No shoes, no service."  It seemed as a prerequisite to walking on holy ground, shoes were not to be worn.  What I didn't understand was the ground was holy because the presence the holy God was there!  In the high priest's attire sandals or shoes were not mentioned, and thus many believe those who ministered in the tabernacle and temple did not wear them.  In every case when a person was instructed to remove their shoes, they did so without hesitation.

When Jesus was transfigured and His glory was revealed on the mount with Moses and Elijah, three disciples were with Jesus.  They awoke from sleep to behold Jesus shining like the sun, speaking about His decease and all He would accomplish in Jerusalem.  Not knowing what he was saying, Peter piped up it would be good to build 3 tabernacles, one for Jesus, Moses and Elijah.  He would have memorialised the spot when the presence of God the Father surrounded them.  Luke 9:35 said, "And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!"  The voice of Jesus, God-made-flesh, was to trump the voice of the Law and Prophets who spoke of Him.  Rather than setting up tabernacles that would likely become shrines of a moment or place in history, God directed His people to look to Jesus as their stand-alone Saviour.

It is intriguing after Jesus Christ the Son of God assumed human form and put sandals on his feet, there is no mention of holy ground.  Peter, James and John did not need to remove their sandals from their feet or even wipe the sleep from their eyes before beholding the glory of Jesus Christ.  Jesus has revealed the glory of God to us lost sinners, and by grace through faith we stand with feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace.  We are not to put off the Holy Spirit, the spiritual armour He provides, His fruitfulness or gifts, for it is only through Him we are empowered to deny ourselves, take up our cross daily and follow Jesus.  It is ourselves we are called to put off having been made holy by spiritual regeneration:  by faith in Jesus it is by denying ourselves we discover the true, abundant life God provides by grace.  It is not places, things or people we are to venerate but Christ Whom we love, trust, follow and hear.

Rather than taking shoes off our feet to stand in God's presence Romans 13:12-14 tells us:  "The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. ¹³ Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. ¹⁴ But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts."  The shoes we wear or the life we lived before Christ did not lead us or result in us finding life, but putting on the LORD Jesus Christ by faith Who is our life is to walk in holiness.  Whether we are on a mountain or wearing shoes on our feet is of little consequence to our good standing before God by grace through faith.  Praise the LORD for all Jesus accomplished!

On Keeping the Law

"Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law."

Romans 3:31

The Law of Moses is good when used lawfully under the New Covenant established by Jesus Christ, for by Law is the knowledge of sin.  Unless there is a righteous standard in force that holds man accountable before God, there would be no righteous judgment of grace possible.  The Law's power to condemn a Christian has been nailed to the cross, even as our sin has been destroyed forever by atonement in Christ's blood.  We have been justified by faith and held to a higher standard than that of Law.  The fact Jesus did not come to destroy the Law but to fulfill does not mean "Law-plus" for the Christian.  No one but Jesus ever kept the Law or even came close, nor does God call Gentiles to to live as Jews.  This was clearly established in the early church when Jewish believers were pushing circumcision and keeping the Law of Moses as necessary for salvation after people believed on Christ.

They were not saved by the works of the Law, but there was a legalistic draw for them to place upon others a yoke they nor their fathers were able to bear.  Did they forget what Jesus said about the Law on the Sermon on the Mount:  "It has been said...but I say unto you?"  Since Jesus is the substance, Christians are no longer obligated to keep the Law that was a shadow of the Righteousness Who has now been revealed.  We are justified by faith in Jesus Christ alone by God's grace.  Now if we do what is written in the law by faith in God we do not sin nor are condemned, but to lay this yoke or requirements upon others for salvation or good standing with God is clearly in error.  The Galatians returned to what Paul called the "beggarly elements" in their zeal without knowledge or consideration of all Jesus accomplished, and we can too.

To fail to keep the Law in one point means a person is guilty of breaking the whole Law.  Legalism is the demand placed upon others to keep the Law (usually picking and choosing because much of it is impossible to keep today regarding feasts, sacrifices, etc.) as the standard God has called us to live up to when Jesus leads us to go further.  Instead of merely honouring our father and mother God would have us also love them--including all our enemies.  The legalist pushes against lawlessness; antinomianism pushes against the idea God holds Christians accountable to any moral standard.  Antinomianism means "against Law," and this view discards the Law as completely irrelevant and unnecessary when it still is profitable to bring knowledge of sin, establishes a righteous standard for living, and magnifies God's grace.  God did not save us to keep the Law of Moses, nor are we to be lawless, immoral or use grace as a cloak for our sin.

Jesus has fulfilled the Law, added to it, and finished it.  It does not need to be kept (as far as legalistically followed as a means of earning good standing before God) but it should be kept (as in retained and considered) because it is God's word and His righteous standard that reveals man's sinfulness and need for a Saviour, leading us by the hand to Jesus as LORD.  Our confidence ought to shift from our efforts to keep the Law to our LORD Jesus Who fulfilled it, provided atonement for our sins, and gives us commands to obey.  Rather than keeping the letter of the Law, Jesus has given new commands founded upon His love.  1 John 5:1-3 says, "Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. ² By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. ³ For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome."  Having been justified by faith, we are called to love God, one another and obey Jesus Christ.

My Times in God's Hand

"But as for me, I trust in You, O LORD; I say, "You are my God." ¹⁵ My times are in Your hand; deliver me from the hand of my enemies, and from those who persecute me."

Psalm 31:14-15

With our busy schedules, meetings and deadlines it can feel like we are being governed by time.  The word "inconvenient" can suggest an unwanted obligation to waste effort and time.  It is inconvenient to be in a rush to be on time and then be stuck in traffic or have a flat tyre.  It is disappointing to need to cancel and reschedule an appointment or party because someone is ill--and who knows when people will be able to set aside time to gather in the future.

Today I was lamenting the timing of a unexpected illness in our household that impacted my plans for the day.  But then I remembered this scripture when David said of God, "My times are in Your hand."  Since God is sovereign over all and my times are in His hand, despite the inconvenience of rescheduling a service call or the extra effort required to cancel plans, there remains rest for my soul by faith in God.  When things seem to be perfectly timed to maximise inconvenience, the believer in God can rejoice and be thankful He knows all and will supply all my needs in due time.

When Jesus walked this planet, He often remarked how His hour had not yet come.  God not only marks our times but our hours.  It is fitting this psalm also contains the verse quoted by Jesus as He breathed His last on the cross in Psalm 31:5:  "Into Your hand I commit my spirit; You have redeemed me, O LORD God of truth."  Jesus' hour finally did come when He would lay down His life on Calvary to provide atonement for lost sinners so they could be saved.  Jesus committed His life, times and even His hour to the care of His Father in Heaven Who would accept the price paid and redeem sinners from death for eternal life.

In our lives there will be delays, cancellations, disappointments and bad timing that seems so inexplicably precise it is funny, but we have assurance from God's word our times are in His hands.  These situations that test our patience are also opportunities to place our faith in God, His purposes and plans that are higher than ours.  Let's keep trusting in Him when we feel we have waited long and done enough, for God is still working His wonders in situations we would rather avoid if it was all up to us.  We wouldn't have considered crucifixion of one Man as the means to redeeming His adopted children, but praise the LORD He did. :)

Receive Encouragement

"And from there, when the brethren heard about us, they came to meet us as far as Appii Forum and Three Inns. When Paul saw them, he thanked God and took courage."

Acts 28:15

As Paul's voyage continued towards Rome, brethren who heard of them came quite a distance from Rome to meet with them.  Instead of being content to wait until Paul and those who travelled with him arrived, they took the initiative to introduce themselves and extend a gracious welcome.  Paul responded by thanking God and he took courage.  Their difficult voyage over many months was finally coming to an end and God had been faithful to bring them all safely to Rome as He promised.

A popular worship song begins, "Everyone needs compassion..." and I think it is also true that everyone needs encouragement--even a bold and hardy fellow like Paul.  Webster defined "courage" as "Bravery; intrepidity; that quality of mind which enables men to encounter danger and difficulties with firmness, or without fear or depression of spirits; valor; boldness; resolution."  Paul took courage from the interaction with the brethren who came to meet him, and it is possible he did not realise how much he needed encouragement on the cusp of finally arriving at Rome.  A difficult, protracted voyage was coming to an end but many new challenges awaited him that would require refreshed bravery to navigate resolutely.

We don't often realise we need encouragement until we receive encouragement.  Only then do we say, "Thanks, I really needed encouragement!"  It is after eating a hearty meal that we sit back satisfied afterwards and say, "I was really hungry!"  The satisfaction of hunger pangs reveals we had been feeling them more than we realised before we sat down to eat.  I believe the same is true concerning in-person Christian fellowship.  It is only after people have been away for a week or a month from genuine, loving fellowship in the body of Christ they realise what they have been missing.  Fellowship resulted in Paul giving thanks to God and taking courage, and engaging personally with other believers at church services can have a similar result for us.

The thing about taking courage is we must be willing to receive it.  Undoubtedly God has brought much encouragement our way that led to increased discouragement because we were unwilling to trust God and thank Him in our current circumstances.  There is much that happens (like a shipwreck) or bad feelings (like rejection) that can lead to fear, weariness or despair.  The one who chooses to place their faith in God despite what has happened, is happening or might happen can take courage in Him.  The little things like meeting up with people for a couple hours suddenly become a big encouragement to keep going.  When we see fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, let us thank God and take courage.  Our faithful God is with us and has good purposes and plans in what we have experienced and where He is leading us.  Thank the LORD!