Heeding and Receiving More

Jesus taught His disciples in Mark 4:23-25:  "Then He said to them, "Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given. ²⁵ For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him."  This teaching is affirmed in a parable Jesus told of a master who delivered talents to his servants according to their ability, and while he was away two of his servants doubled the amount given while the lazy, wicked servant buried his talent in the ground.  It was given to the servant who had 10 talents, and it is wise management of resources to take away the talent from the lazy servant and give it to the one who had been faithful.

In this passage, Jesus taught those who hear Him--and the implication is to heed all He says--will be given more from Him.  Those who do not listen, however, what he has will be taken away from him.  In discussing this recently, I was reminded of an experience I had in a trade as an illustration of this principle.  When I ran a small crew on a jobsite, a new apprentice was sent to work who was the son of a current foreman in our shop.  He was young, arrogant and acted like he knew everything despite having no practical experience.  As a pre-apprentice I was taught the most important qualities for an apprentice was to arrive early, have a good attitude, and do what you were told.  I don't believe any of these had sunk in with this lad.

I took the apprentice to a wide open area of duct with the intention of giving him a little demonstration with tips that would help him.  I showed him the rolls of duct wrap, wire and tape.  He was bored with everything I said, assuming he knew what to do because his dad was a duct-wrapping legend.  I decided since this punk already knew everything, there was no use wasting my breath on giving him pointers and tips.  What followed was 30 minutes of tradie hilarity at his expense.  As I slammed on material like a well-oiled machine, from across the room I watched him struggle and fumble with the most basic things.  His wire was a tangled mess, his pieces of duct wrap insulation were hacked crooked with a dull knife, and because he did not consider the thickness of the material all the pieces were cut too short and wasted.

Finally, having been soundly beaten by his failure to successfully install one piece of insulation, he sheepishly came over and asked for help.  That's what I had been waiting for.  He was far more receptive to instruction the second time, and I showed him exactly what to do.  Whenever I had an apprentice who was eager to learn and put into practice my directives, I was much more apt to give more pointers, tricks and opportunities to do better work.  These quality apprentices were groomed to do finish work with an aim to retain them throughout their apprenticeship, continue to develop as journeyman and even run work as a foreman.  But lazy, late and arrogant apprentices would not be working for a local shop very long.  Journeymen were not interested to teach apprentices a valued skill who had no intention to learn.  Before long, even the job they had would be taken away.

My interaction with my apprentice illustrates how God speaks of the true riches of His kingdom in the Bible, He will be more inclined to say more to those who listen and are faithful to obey.  If we will not waste our words on those who are bored by them and will not obey them, should God do differently if we are bored by Him?  Those who value and treasure God and all He has to say will be given more from His word to understand.  God did this concerning Abraham in Genesis 18:17-19:  "And the LORD said, "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing, ¹⁸ since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? ¹⁹ For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the LORD, to do righteousness and justice, that the LORD may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him."  God went on to converse with Abraham who believed God, and it was accounted to him as righteousness.  His faith in God was shown by his works, and the wise will walk humbly in his steps with our Saviour Jesus.

If we heed God much, more wisdom and responsibility will be given us from Him.  However if we refuse to heed what God has said, we ought not to expect to hear much from Him.  Our peace, joy and rest can be taken from us by circumstances of life.  The arrogant apprentice did one thing admirable that day worthy of emulation:  he humbled himself and came to me and asked for help.  If we are struggling and realise we need God's help, let us be those who come to Him humbly with intent to do all He says.

Food that Satisfies

There are many biblical terms Christians can use that are disconnected from practical experience.  This is reasonable for it is difficult to translate the spiritual meaning into practical applications without dumbing it down to a formula to follow.  As little kids we had the idea the very important part of prayer is to bow our heads, fold hands and close our eyes when these in a spiritual sense are not even requirements to have an audience with the Almighty.  These directives were more practical than spiritual:  bowing our heads was a show of respect, closing our eyes prevented us from being distracted by what we could see, and folding our hands meant we would not be touching others or fidgeting with objects.  From a biblical perspective, the posture of our bodies was never as important as the condition and posture of our hearts in the sight of God.

As we continue to read the Bible and grow in understanding, we begin to separate style from substance. identify traditions and sound theology, and our outward appearance from the condition of the inner man.  Still, we need the Bible with help of the Holy Spirit to guide us continue to "flesh out" spiritual disciplines in practice.  Tucked into countless passages of Scripture in the Old and New Testament, God supplies wisdom and guidance concerning how we ought to live.  Recently I read Isaiah 55:2-3 and found it good food for thought:  "Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in abundance. ³ Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you--the sure mercies of David."

Through the prophet Isaiah, God called all who were thirsty to come to the waters and drink.  It seems a strange thing thirsty and hungry people would spend their money to obtain what they could not eat or drink, but this is our natural tendency when it comes to spiritual things.  Our deepest need is a spiritual one to know God, yet we can imagine this need can be satisfied by worldly things other than God.  The God of Israel asked His people why they spent their money for what was not bread and never could satisfy their hunger and needs.  Notice in the second half of verse 2, how listening carefully to God is equated with "eating what is good."  God's word is indeed food for our souls, for Jesus is the Word of God sent as the Living Bread who provides eternal life for all whom by faith receive Him.  This shows us spiritual eating and nourishment takes place when we listen to God's word carefully with intent to obey.

Verse 3 begins with saying, "Incline your ear, and come to Me."  This teaches us we do not need to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, go to a church building or even move a muscle to truly come to God.  The Bible is a revelation of God in flesh (Jesus Christ) who preached repentance and the Gospel for all sinners to hear, repent of sin and receive Him by faith.  The New Covenant alluded to in Isaiah 55:3 is the covenant in Christ's shed blood by which He atoned for the sins of the world.  How satisfying it is for our souls to be born again, made children of God by grace through faith!  In hearing God's word and by faith receiving it as true, based on these verses we spiritually come to God and eat what is good.  As a result of receiving Christ our souls delight in the abundant life of Christ, His everlasting covenant and sure mercies.

Friends, let us eat what is good and come to Jesus whenever we are spiritually hungry, thirsty and without satisfaction.  Why should we spend our money for what is not bread when we are starving?  Why should go elsewhere when Jesus alone has the words of the life and the Living Water of the Holy Spirit?

Giving Without Delay

I was struck by the first part of God's command to His people in Exodus 22:29 (LSB):  "You shall not delay the offering from the fullness of your harvest and the juice of your wine vat.  The firstborn of your sons you shall give to Me."  According to the blessing of the LORD upon His people, they were guided to give.  The command was for the Hebrews under the Law of Moses to bring tithes and offerings to God is well known, but this command not to delay bringing it may be less known.  To delay doing what is right can lead us to forget or put off doing it altogether.

Another reason God's people were not to delay in bringing the fulness of their harvest and juice of their vats was the priests and Levites were dependent on offerings to provide for the service of the house of God, for drink offerings that were required by Law.  A portion of what was brought to the temple was also provision of food and drink for those serving in the tabernacle or temple.  Serving in the LORD's house meant time away from their own properties and thus were unable to tend their own sheep or vineyards.

The teachings of Jesus provide additional guidance with a principle from God's Law in Matthew 7:11-12:  "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! ¹² Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets."  Speaking for myself, I appreciate prompt service.  When money is owed me, I prefer to have it paid immediately and not need to wait months.  The command in Exodus 22:29 and the Golden Rule taught by Jesus harmonise beautifully, that when God leads us to give and do good we always ought to do so without delay.

In the second part of Exodus 22:29, God said His people were to give the firstborn of their sons to Him, a statue He mentioned previously in Exodus 13:1-16.  The cost to redeem the firstborn of man (and unclean beasts) was 5 shekels and the firstborn of clean beasts were to be sacrificed to the LORD and be food for the priests and Levites (Numbers 1:15-19), and a firstborn of a donkey was to be redeemed with a lamb or be killed (Exodus 13:13).  The keeping of the Passover and the redemption of the firstborn were tokens of God's miraculous deliverance from Egypt and how He slew the firstborn of man and beast so all generations would know God's strength to deliver His people and destroy His enemies.

God does not require of mankind what He did not do Himself.  Though God is under no obligation to anyone, God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son Jesus Christ, that whosoever believes in Him will have everlasting life.  God's generosity in giving all we have is a facet of His divine character that inspires us to give like kings.  We do not need to have the wealth of kings to give, for Jesus commended a widow for throwing two smallest coins into the temple treasury.  In His estimation, that woman gave more than those who gave great sums, for she gave all she had.  In a sense, the way the woman offered all is how we as Christians ought to present ourselves as living sacrifices unto God.  God will see to it those who give according to His wise guidance without delay will no lack no good thing, for in Him all our needs are met.

Scripture Fulfilled Today

It is important when reading, interpreting and applying Scripture we realise no verses or books of the Bible are intended to stand alone, to be understood apart from the immediate context or other verses that complement it.  The Bible contains the word of God spoken to a specific audience which can reveal the unchanging character and promises of God that can be applied to the reader.  I have heard it estimated about 30% of the Bible is comprised of prophecies that can have multiple fulfilments.  Those who fear and trust God ought to take Him at His word, and exposure to the whole Bible with a sound hermeneutic is a valuable resource that prevents confusion and error.  Having the Holy Spirit within us is absolutely indispensable for Bible comprehension.

Sunday at church we read Psalm 34:18-19:  "The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit. ¹⁹ Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all."  This passage teaches us of the character of God, that He is near to the brokenhearted and saves the contrite person.  Like many promises of God, there are conditions our lives must align with to receive the benefits freely offered.  In this case, a broken and contrite heart leads to God saving from trouble.  Everyone faces affliction--even those who trust in God and walk in His ways--but the LORD will deliver the righteous out of every affliction.  This speaks of God's knowledge, power and desire to deliver and save all who trust in Him.  This is fleshed out more in the New Testament with the revelation of Jesus Christ and the Gospel of grace.

The verse immediately following reads in Psalm 34:20:  "He guards all his bones; not one of them is broken."  God not only delivers those who trust in Him from all afflictions, but He protects every one of their bones.  Is this saying no believer in God will have a broken bone?  Certainly not, for in contrition for sin David said of God's discipline in Psalm 51:8, "Make me hear joy and gladness, that the bones You have broken may rejoice."  David likely spoke figuratively, but even with broken bones the child of God can rejoice and rest in our Father's embrace.  One connection people under the Covenant of Law may have made was the requirement for sacrifices offered to God and the Passover lamb needed to be completely intact, without a single broken bone.  This verse was literally fulfilled in the case of Jesus when He was crucified on the cross, for instead of breaking His legs His side was pierced with a spear.  John 19:36 says, "For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, "Not one of His bones shall be broken."

It would be a mistake to limit the fulfillment of Psalm 34:20 only as relating to Jesus on the cross but is intended to encourage the humble who are afflicted to trust in the LORD.  God's goodness is immutable and can always be counted on, and thus His divine protection of our bodies and souls remains in full force today.  God allow afflictions that include broken bones and chronic pains for His good purposes, yet we are called to look to Him in faith even as our bodies fail.  History tells of many Christians made to suffer awful tortures that tore them physically apart, yet by faith in Christ gained a glorious entrance into heaven forever.  It may be you have not broken a bone until now, but should the LORD break multiple bones we can rejoice today as David because of our God who protects, delivers and saves us forever.  As it is written in in Jude 1:24-25:  "Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, ²⁵ to God our Savior, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen."