TRUSTING RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS

We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.  John 9:34

    The Pharisees are reaching hard for evidence to discount the blind man’s miracle.  They name-drop the name of Moses, using him as a means to dismiss the miracle standing in front of them.  Even though, weeks earlier, Jesus had reminded the Pharisees that Moses had written about Him.  He had said that if they really knew Moses, they would recognize Him.  Their memories are short.  Their deception is working manifesting itself with desperate claims.  Their need to discredit Jesus takes precedence over any shred of truth.  Continue reading “TRUSTING RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS” →

GUILT THAT LEADS TO FREEDOM

What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin.  Roman 7:7

The law is really my friend.  It’s true.  Without an awareness of God’s moral plumb line, I wouldn’t know what sin is.  Without sin, there wouldn’t be guilt.  Without guilt, there wouldn’t be a need.  Without need, I wouldn’t seek a Savior.

Sometimes putting it another way drives the point home.  With an awareness of God’s righteous judgments, I understand that I have sinned.  Because I have sinned, I feel guilty.  Because I feel guilty, I have a need to be reconciled to God.  Because I seek peace between us, I pursue a Savior who can not only forgive my sins, but wash them away and give me His righteousness.

Guilt is a good thing if this is the result.  Guilt can turn into a bad thing if I believe Satan that my sins are too severe for God’s forgiveness.  Continue reading “Guilt That Leads To Freedom” →

A JOB GONE WRONG

And for this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath.  John 5:16

         The men who made up the Jewish Sanhedrin (the religious ruling council of the Jews) took one of their jobs seriously.  They were to investigate any new teacher who came along lest that man was really a false prophet and would lead other Jews astray.  They investigated John the Baptist and now Jesus was under their scrutiny because He was healing some people on the Sabbath.  Their job, important in theory, had turned into a prison of regulations.  What was meant to protect the faith morphed into the makings of a holy war against the One they were ultimately trying to serve.  Jesus was God, the One for whom they were so zealous.

         A holy calling can easily go awry and work against the kingdom instead of for it.  The God we desire to honor and glorify is the One who is dishonored.  The tragedy in the story about the Jew’s persecution of Jesus is that they served God but didn’t recognize Jesus.  These were the ones who devoted their lives to religious duty, who should have seen the first hints of deity, and then bowed down to worship.  Can the religious people today miss the activity of Jesus among them?  I fear so.  Perhaps you’ve heard the saying, “If Jesus were to walk into any of our churches, how many would recognize Him?”

         How does a calling get perverted?  When I attempt to live it out without daily revelation.  Like Solomon, I must declare that I am but a little child without the wisdom necessary to carry out my monumental God-given assignment.  I know that without prayer, study, and meditation, I won’t have the tools necessary to do it well.  If I become self-impressed by my education and experience, believing myself to be brilliant enough to figure things out without daily prayer, I will turn into the likes of the Sanhedrin.  The One I believe I’m serving will be the One I’m really wounding.

         Adam and Eve sinned in the garden when they abandoned revelation in favor of knowledge.  By eating of the tree, they decided to study the course of ‘the knowledge of good and evil’ and rule the garden through their intellect.  Religion has been twisted ever since.

The places I believe I am the most wise may be the very places I am in most need of Your wisdom.  I can never do it without You.   Amen

HOW GOD SHAPES A LEADER

Then the men set out from there, and they looked down toward Sodom. And Abraham went with them to set them on their way. The Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation?  Genesis 18:16-18

         Abraham had never seen God’s widespread judgment on a group of people.  What is about to unfold in Sodom will be new to his eyes and heart.  To be the father of a great and mighty nation, it is imperative that Abraham is able to represent a God with whom he is completely familiar.

         Personally, he has experienced a tender and gracious God.  But the judgment that is about to come will show that God is angry over sin and rebellion and Abraham has a vested interest in what happens in Sodom.  Lot, his nephew, lives there with his family.  To be a just leader of his people, Abraham will need to represent the full counsel of God.

         I’ve often believed that in order to prepare me for service, God will only equip me in the area where I’m gifted.  If I have a mercy gift, I will only be well rounded in the area of mercy.  I was wrong.  God led me on a path to discover mercy, yes, but also its counterpart.  Justice. If I knew just one side of God, I would misrepresent mercy to others.  I would be soft on sin and make God look like someone who is indifferent to evil.

         God has taken me on many journeys that confused me at the time.  I wondered, “What does this have to do with my life and calling?”  Time has shown that it was a necessary piece of experience to prepare me for my future.

         Are you visiting a place that appears to be a wasteland?  Do you often pray, “What in the world are you trying to teach me?”  God does all things well and what appears to be insignificant now will later become invaluable.  You can trust the Shepherd.

The only way to know You well, Lord, is to walk with You into unexpected places.  Don’t let me waste what I fear is a detour.  Amen

FEARING TRANSPARENCY

The Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?   But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. He said, “No, but you did laugh.”  Genesis 18:13,15

            God did not punish Sarah for laughing, an act of unbelief, but He did require her to tell the truth.  Her sarcasm would be short-lived.  In nine months, she would laugh again but this time out of joy rather than disbelief.  God turns an emotion on its end after moving through the miraculous.

            It’s difficult to come clean before God.  If I laugh at His promise, I know it’s really saying, “I don’t believe you.”  This kind of response is disrespectful and I certainly don’t like it when someone does that to me even though I may have earned it.  I’ve broken promises but God hasn’t.  He has done nothing to earn a reputation that would warrant slander.  So I am often like Sarah.  I deny what I feel.  I want God to think better of me.  And, I want to think better of myself.  Who wants to dwell on personal flaws!

            My depravity is pretty depressing.  Owning the depth of my sinfulness is not for the fainthearted.  It takes guts.  To admit, “God, I’m angry with you.  I feel like you could care less that I’m going through this!” makes me fear that I will cause such a serious breech in our relationship that He will pull back indefinitely.  What if He withdraws His love because of my accusations?  After all, people do it!  My scared heart is rooted in my long-time experience with others.

            The cure for lack of faith is focusing on God and allowing His Spirit to reassure me through the meditation of His promises.  The cure for a preoccupation with my own sinfulness is also focusing on God and owning the truth that God loves me, not because I am in any way deserving, but because that is the nature and character of His heart.  He is Love.

            John Newton, the writer of Amazing Grace, was feeble minded in his old age.  But when asked about his life by an admirer, he gave this reply.  “My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: That I am a great sinner and that Christ is a great Savior.”  I must live in the joy of undeserved favor while still aware of the sinfulness of my own heart.  One does not diminish the other.  It frees me to be authentic, knowing that whatever I’ve done or said, Christ’s grace is of limitless supply.

You love me.  I can be completely transparent with You and never fear abandonment.  Amen

LOGIC ~ UNBELIEF’S FRIEND

The Lord said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah. So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?”  Genesis 18:10-12

            Sarah’s cycle of womanhood was long over.  Logic.  Science.  These proved that it was humanly impossible to bear a child in old age.  Sarah laughed at the thought of something so out of reach.  She knew the physical impossibility.

            Miracles aren’t miracles without the ‘impossibility’ factor.  Is this not why faith is so difficult?  We are surrounded by circumstantial physical evidence that disproves feasibility.  If I have a history of not having seen God’s power move on my behalf, then I will always lean toward logic and move away from what seems ludicrous to hope for.

            What might I ask God for today if all reserve was moved out of the way?  Where does it seem risky to trust God?  Where would others laugh in my face and state the evidence against faith-filled prayer?  That points precisely, perhaps, to what God would, and can, do.

            “But you can’t ask God for that!” Satan whispers.  His taunts, like arrows, come at me in thoughts but also through the mouths of friends and family.  He is not above using faithless believers to parrot faithless words.  So few walk by faith and I should remember that the next time a brother or sister in Christ comes with their ‘prudent’ warnings.

            God has placed me in hundreds of impossible situations throughout my life.  There were times I had to pray for a miracle or there would be some horrible consequence.  So for survival’s sake, I hung onto faith, stood in the Word, and prayed for a miracle.  I have seen so many that faith is becoming my default response rather than unbelief that points to hard physical data.

            God defies the odds.  He cares nothing about physics, past evidence, and present obstacles.  He who spoke to the earth, a planet that was once dark and lifeless, to transform it into a stunning environment full of limitless possibilities, is the same God who can do anything miraculous in my world.

Lord, show me where I can exercise faith today.  For what can I trust You that would defy all odds?  I’ll go there.  Amen

RECOGNIZING GOD

And the Lord appeared to him [Abraham] by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth and said, “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant.  Genesis 18:1-3

            The point.  God appeared in a human body.  Abraham recognized Him instantly.  His heart overflowed as evidenced by the hospitality he showed to his LORD.

            Recognizing God is the challenge.  You find it to be so?  This is a particularly powerful message for me this morning.  I’m 1000 miles from home.  A conference starts tonight.  Yesterday was, humanly speaking, extremely difficult.  Everything related to travel was challenging.  Delays.  Lost luggage.  Violent weather.  The threat of a long conference weekend without clothes, supplies, medications, etc.

            The life of God’s son and daughter is not meant to be lived alone.  Each step, even when challenging, is an opportunity for prayerful conversation.  When it appears there will be no answers, a child who knows his Father’s power and loving intentions, anticipates answers joyfully.

            Yesterday ended with long lines at baggage service.  One hundred people were like us.  No luggage.  The venom being spewed out behind us by a group of people polluted the environment spiritually.  We could feel the spiritual effects of it.  Elizabeth (my helper and traveling companion) and I were praying, humming songs of worship independently, to keep our eyes focused on a kind Father who delights in caring for His children.

            This morning, we can make two lists.  The obstacles of yesterday were many and would fill the left side of a sheet of paper.  The provisions (and yes, luggage by 3:00 a.m.) would fill the right side.  Looking for, and then recognizing God’s presence, was the challenge before us.  God is everywhere but He walks by the masses unnoticed.

            The same three heavenly beings, two angels and God Himself, left Abraham and went to Sodom.  There, the reception was completely different.  A mob showed a desire to use the three for sexually deviant behavior.  How man defiles what is holy.

            Things going wrong today?  Will we only see the bad?  God is among us if we are His children.  Asking Him to enable us to recognize Him will give gifts that far outweigh the hardships.

Trouble is always my companion.  So are You, though.  And that makes me see way beyond the half-empty cup.  My cup runneth over because You are with me.  Amen 

DO IT BEFORE IT GETS MORE DIFFICULT

When he had finished talking with him, God went up from Abraham.      Then Abraham took Ishmael his son and all those born in his house or bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very day, as God had said to him.  Genesis 17:22-23

         As soon as Abraham watched God ascend from his presence, he went to circumcise himself and every other male in his family.  What a difficult act of obedience yet he didn’t put it off and spend the next days and weeks in dread.  Sometimes, the more difficult the command, the longer it takes to get up the nerve to do it. I have found that to be a grave mistake.

         Anytime God has asked something of me, there were risks.  Others being angry with me.  Risking a loss of respect.  Putting my life on the line.  Introducing conflict into a relationship I valued.   Going somewhere that held bad memories for me.  Taking on a job I didn’t feel qualified for.

         The last thing difficult thing God asked of me was on a November day.  I wrestled badly with Him and didn’t obey until the end of February.  The outcome was a miraculous one and if only I had spared myself the three months of misery.

         I forgot that when God gives a command, there is empowerment to do it.  God’s Spirit goes with me when I engage in that difficult thing.  When I envision the pain of it, I misjudge how it will be because I don’t put God’s grace and blessing in the midst of it.

         So, Abraham circumcised adult men and boys far beyond infant stage.  How excited were they about God’s command!  Yet we do not know how God’s gracious hand was manifested during those painful moments.  Perhaps he gave spiritual anesthesia.  He is the divine Physician, after all.  The text doesn’t reveal that there was bedlam, or sickness, or even weakness.  There may have been but I do know something about the nature of God.  He blesses obedience and we need to factor that in ahead of time.

         Whatever it is you’re putting off, take this devotional as the gentle wind that will propel you into action.

You are with me; Your influence changes everything I do.  Amen

WHEN ONE CHILD IS LEFT OUT

And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before you!”        God said, “No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him. As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and multiply him greatly.   Genesis 17:18-20

         Ishmael may have been the child born outside of God’s plan, but that wasn’t his fault.  He was now a full-fledged person, a son that Abraham had grown to love.  When God promises a new son to be recipient of the covenant, Abraham struggles as he realizes that Ishmael will be left out.

         Is that not painful for any parent who loves their children equally?  To see one flourish in most everything he does and the other?  Well, everything seems to come hard.  It happens in most every home.  If we are not careful, we will conclude that God has blessed one and cursed the other.  Our theology must bear down hard and carry us through misconceptions.

         Those who teach have been hard on Abraham for wanting God to just give the blessing to Ishmael instead but he is just being a father.  God knew that, too.  He said, “As for Ishmael, I have heard you.”   God understands the heart of fathers.

         So what of the child for whom everything comes hard?  What should be his perspective?  And what is to be my perspective as a parent?   The story is not yet finished.  It might be that the one who finds life easy will later encounter challenges that will build endurance into his character.  Humility and dependence on God will be the wonderful fruits of struggle.  As for the one who seems forgotten in their youth?  God may be using suffering to prepare them for greatness.  As with many of his choicest servants, the first 40 years were the wilderness preparation for a glorious deliverance into anointed ministry and unfathomable blessing.

         As a parent, I must trust God as I remember that I am only in the middle of the story.  God is God.  He writes the ending. My part is to trust, to pray, to encourage both children to walk humbly with their God despite the seeming inequity.  In the end, we will see evidence that God does do all things well.

Help my faith to grow up!  I must trust You even when You look guilty.  Amen

The kindest thing my Father did was to give me the choice to cooperate with Him in the dismantling of my impressive looking, but diseased internal world. It was painful to examine it all in the dis-assembly.  It took three years.  I discovered what was missing.  Continue reading “Admitting Who I Was” →