Revival in a Tomb

I read a passage of scripture last night which reminds me when it seems all hope is lost, God is able to do the miraculous and unexpected.  The Bible is filled with instances where God's almighty power overruled the natural laws He established in the universe, and sometimes with almost comedic effect.  Elisha was a prophet filled with the Holy Spirit through whom God did many miracles, and there was a notable occasion after his death mentioned in 2 Kings 13:20-21:  "Then Elisha died, and they buried him. And the raiding bands from Moab invaded the land in the spring of the year. ²¹ So it was, as they were burying a man, that suddenly they spied a band of raiders; and they put the man in the tomb of Elisha; and when the man was let down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet."

Burying a man according to the ancient Hebrew tradition did not involve burying the body in dirt but to lay the body in a tomb or crypt typically chiseled out of stone.  Whilst we are not provided the details about this man or the manner of his death, it was quite a hurried, unceremonious affair.  As these men were burying the deceased suddenly they saw a band of Moabite raiders and decided to dump the body in the tomb of Elisha!  If they did not hurry perhaps they too would be dead men!  Suddenly, much to their shock and amazement, when the body the dead man contacted the bones of Elisha he revived and stood up.  Before his death Elisha promised the king of Israel would have victory over the Syrians, and perhaps this incident urged him to renewed faith in God and His power to save.

What this passage does not teach us is there remains mystical, miraculous power in the deceased bodies of God's prophets.  We are not to reverence the tombs or bones of dead saints, attributing any goodness or glory to them.  The power to raise the dead was not in Elisha (whose body died of illness and decomposed) but in the God who he served.  By grace God brought life out of death when men had given up hope and were frightened.  God did what they least expected.  The paralytic brought to Jesus was healed because Jesus saw their faith and it was a sign to reveal His divine nature, but these men (and the revived man too!) were benefactors of God's grace and mercy they didn't count on.

Brothers and sisters, let us count on the goodness of God to do the miraculous when we least expect it!  The situations we have wept over and despaired can be overcome in an instant by the grace of God.  We may not live to see a dead person revived by touching the bones of a prophet, yet we could see something even more amazing:  the return of prodigals, revival in the church, repentance in the hearts of hardened sinners, and renewal of our relationship with the living God.   One person passing from death to life by receiving the Gospel of Jesus Christ is worth a million physical resurrections without a change of heart.

What God Has Done!

From the mouths of babes God has ordained praise, and He also has been glorified by the mouth of crooked, greedy prophets like Balaam.  After he was asked to curse Israel from afar, Balaam said in Numbers 23:22-23, "God brings them out of Egypt; He has strength like a wild ox. ²³ "For there is no sorcery against Jacob, nor any divination against Israel. It now must be said of Jacob and of Israel, 'Oh, what God has done!'"  There is no one more powerful or intimately involved with what is commonly called "spiritual warfare" than God, and there is no sorcery or divination which works against Him.  Victory depends primarily not on what we do but what God has done.

The focus of many genuine believers can be more on what we need to do to be protected and victorious rather than extolling and believing what God has said and done.  God spoke to His people in Isaiah 54:16-17:  "Behold, I have created the blacksmith who blows the coals in the fire, who brings forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the spoiler to destroy.¹⁷ No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is from Me," says the LORD."  Satan, who has been a liar, thief, and murderer from the beginning, remains under the absolute authority of God.  He recognised a hedge of protection God placed around Job, a boundary he could not cross without permission.  Even when he was permitted to afflict Job there were limits sovereignly enforced by God whose intention was revelation, restoration, and double blessing.

Paul wrote that Christians are not to wrestle against flesh and blood but against principalities, powers, and rulers of wickedness in heavenly places.  This is a bit daunting to some, that we would be pitted against invisible, malevolent beings who seek our ruin.  But remember what Jesus accomplished on Calvary when He disarmed principalities and powers!  Colossians 2:13-15 says, "And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, ¹⁴ having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. ¹⁵ Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it."  Knowing our enemy has been disarmed by the almighty God who has redeemed and reconciled us to Himself makes a huge difference in how we engage in spiritual conflict.  We do not fight to obtain victory but from victory Jesus has wrought.

People talk of a need for a "prayer covering" but Jesus is the glorious One in whom is our life and vitality whose shed blood covers us by grace through faith.  Jesus Christ knew the secret thoughts of the hearts of men and the desires of Satan too.  Luke 22:31-32 says, "And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. ³² But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  Even as Satan's murderous desire towards Jesus was overthrown and resulted in new life and salvation for all people through the Gospel, God would redeem Satan's efforts to sift Peter by redeeming the situation and bringing strength to Peter and others too.  Looking at Peter's denial of Christ and the death of Jesus on Calvary appeared hopeless, but God's redemptive purposes were in full force for good.

Hasn't God done amazing things?  He brought the children of Israel out of Egypt with a mighty hand, led them through the wilderness, and caused them to enter the inheritance He prepared for them as promised.  We were once dead in trespasses and sins but through the death of Jesus we have been raised to new life.  Balaam wanted to curse Israel for profit, but he could only bless.  Weapons in the hands of enemies make us feel vulnerable, but God causes no weapon fashioned against us to prosper.  Principalities and powers have been disarmed through the overcoming victory of Jesus Christ, and He prays for those who face satanic assault.  1 Peter 5:8-11 urges us from inspiration of God and experience, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. ⁹ Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. ¹⁰ But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. ¹¹ To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen."

Worthy Commitment

"Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did. ²⁴ But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, ²⁵ and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man."

John 2:23-25

No one naturally resembles Jesus in character because He is God made flesh.  What strikes me about this passage is how Jesus did not commit Himself to men--even professing believers--because He knew what was in them, and in their flesh there was nothing good.  To "commit" in this sense is to "put faith in or entrust."  Jesus was able to love people completely without reservation, giving Himself for the good of others.  At the same time there was not a shred of self-interest in His motivation in loving people generously.  We often go wrong at this point because we often have motives and expectations which are hidden from our eyes.  We judge on appearances because we do not know the hearts of others or even our own.

The prophet Samuel was a faithful man of God, yet he too made this error.  Samuel had been directed by God to go to Bethlehem and anoint one of Jesse's sons as the next king of Israel.  1 Samuel 16:6-7 says, "So it was, when they came, that he looked at Eliab and said, "Surely the LORD'S anointed is before Him." ⁷ But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."  Based upon looks alone Samuel was ready to anoint Eliab, but David was the man after God's own heart.  It was faith in God which led Samuel to anoint the youngest son of Jesse who wasn't even in the room at the time!  Many times I have made the mistake of putting hope or trust in people which should have been reserved for God alone.

Placing our faith in people is a snare Jesus was wise to avoid, and He was able to do this because all His confidence and guidance was in God the Father.  People talk about having "faith restored in humanity" because of a selfless or kind deed done, but it is better for us to trust and obey God rather than men.  I have a hunch our tendency is to trust God only after everything else has failed us, and if it takes disappointment and dashed expectations to learn only God is worthy of faith the upside is enormous.

Mercy and Forgiveness

"The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. ⁹ He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever. ¹⁰ He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. ¹¹ For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; ¹² as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us."

Psalm 103:8-12

How blessed we are God has not dealt with us according to our iniquities!  Some people have a mistaken concept when they are going through a trial or difficulty they are "paying for their sins," but then why did Jesus have to die to atone for the sins of the world?  The purging of sin requires the shedding of blood of a sacrifice without blemish or spot so our sin disqualifies us:  even if we were to physically die as a consequence for our sin our justice demands eternal satisfaction by the condemnation of our souls to hellfire.

Now it is true we reap what we sow, but by the grace of God we can reap where we have not sown.  God is merciful, gracious, slow to anger, and abundant in mercy.  He chastens and corrects us so we might repent, return to Him, and be restored.  Jesus Christ took the punishment we deserve for our sin and made a way for us to be forgiven and rendered righteous by faith in Him.  We were completely cut off from God without hope being born of Adam's fallen nature, yet God invites all sinners to repent.  Through what Jesus accomplished by His death and resurrection our sins have been removed from us along with guilt and condemnation.  The penalty and power of sin over those who trust in Jesus was slaughtered on Calvary through His shed blood.

Consider the longsuffering, patient, and gracious nature of God who gives us opportunities to turn from sin and choose to trust Him for forgiveness and salvation!  We are fed up with stubborn people in a conversation yet He waits for decades, even a century for a hard heart to soften.  He desires to redeem souls we consider complete write-offs, people who have spent their whole life in total opposition to Him.  He loves the self-righteous Pharisee as well as the prostitute and tax collector.  He is not racist, sexist, or an ageist; there is no hint of "ism" in Him because in every way God transcends this world entirely with His love, grace, goodness, and righteousness.  We who have tasted and seen His goodness (and only in part due to our limited perspective) ought to live in awe and wonder of Him every day, forgiving others as we have been freely forgiven.

We say the punishment should fit the crime, and under law this is a reasonable conclusion.  At the same time Jesus says we ought to love our enemies, do good to those who hate us, and pray for those who spitefully use us.  We forgive others not on the basis of their worthiness or their having earned our trust but according to how we have been forgiven by God.  He has been merciful to us, having removed our transgressions as far as the east is from the west--a distance beyond measure.  Travel east on our globe as long as you want and you will never reach the west.  Should you travel north at some point you would reach the pole and head south.  May we according to Christ's example be so merciful, gracious, patient and abundant in mercy.  Repentance doesn't make us worthy:  Jesus is the One worthy of all honour, thanksgiving, and praise.