IS IT WRONG TO ASK FOR A SIGN?

         And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.  Genesis 9:12-13

         Most anytime a believer talks about God giving a sign, or asking God for a sign, it is inferred that signs are unpleasing to God.  I had a discussion about this yesterday with Jaime.  We were celebrating the times God had given signs to us in the ministry after asking Him to confirm a decision we had made that we felt was right.  We said to each other, yet again, how gracious God is to give signs to those who are wanting to walk in His paths.

         Today’s story is another confirmation that God is a sign-giving God.  Most every Biblical covenant has been confirmed by some visual symbol.  The Abrahamic covenant included circumcision, the Mosaic covenant had the Sabbath, and the new covenant had the Lord’s Supper.  God made a covenant with Noah by setting a rainbow in the clouds.

         “But wait!” you might say.  “What about Jesus words in Matthew where he says that only an evil and adulterous generations seeks for a sign.  Then He called them wicked and perverse.”  That whole account was characterized by rebellion and unbelief.  Jesus was the sign.  Yet, they rejected Him.  In their denial of the truth, they asked for another sign.  This was an affront to God the Father.

         If I love Christ and walk obediently in His ways, I will encounter times when I’ve prayed about a critical decision but am just unsure which way to go.  In that instance, I ask for a sign, or a series of signposts, where God shows me that I’m on the right, or wrong, path.  My experience is that He is very eager to give markers.  He wants me to get it right.  He applauds my obedience and celebrates that I care about making a righteous decision.  Why wouldn’t a good Father show me the way?!

You took the Moses by the hand and gave him, and Your children, signs along their journey.  Thank you for being willing to lead me as you did Moses.  Amen

THE DIFFERENCE ONE SACRIFICE MAKES

And when the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma, the Lord said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done.   Genesis 8:22

            What changed from the time before the flood to the time after the flood?  Not much as far as sin goes.  Judgment hadn’t take away the sin nature of man.  The family who exited the ark was just as sinful, by nature, as the families who had been destroyed in the flood.  Judgment had not changed individual hearts.  So why was God making a beautiful promise to Noah if he and his descendants were going to sin again?

            Because he offered a sacrifice to atone for his sins.  Oh, the difference one sacrifice makes.  Those who perished in the floodwaters were stiff-necked.  They refused to see their sin and make atonement for it.  Noah recognized his sin and recognized his need to offer a sacrifice.  Mercy and the promise of blessing was God’s response.

            When no atonement has been applied to mankind, eternal judgment is the end result.  When there is a Savior, and a man or woman acknowledges their sin and embraces the atonement He offers, judgment is withheld.  Mercy appears.  Sin’s debt is paid.  The promises of God are in full effect.

            Atonement has always had an aroma that affects God.  It causes a visceral reaction inside of Him.  When Christ died as the ultimate and final atonement for my sin, God breathed in the powerful fragrance yet again.  “And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”  Eph. 5:2   When Jesus breathed His last, God tore the veil in the temple and drew near to be intimate to those who would embrace His Son as their Savior.  Then He extended mercy.  Judgment was removed.

            As if anything could supersede the beauty of previous story, there is one more piece that brings me joy.  Does God still smell the aroma of a sacrifice?  Yes.  It’s not from an animal.  It’s not even ‘just’ from Christ.  The aroma is coming from you and me.  “For we are the aroma of Christ to God.”  2 Cor. 2:15   The pleasure experienced by God is enhanced when, daily, I offer my life as a continual sacrifice to Him.  I am the aroma of Christ not only because I made Him my Savior but because I am passionate to think like Him, love like Him, live like Him, and rule with Him.

When you look at me, you don’t see my sin.  I am dead to sin and alive to You.  Because of Your mercy, You breathe deeply when I am in Your presence and feel nothing but pleasure.  Amen

THE FIRST ACT OF NOAH

Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar.  Genesis 8:20

         What was Noah’s reaction to mercy?  The first moment his feet stepped off the ark, he built an altar and offered burnt offerings.  It wasn’t like he had plenty of each kind of animal either.  He had pairs of each, that’s all.  Yet, he didn’t think twice at offering half of his food supply to the Lord in response to God’s salvation of him and his family.  Mercy understood equals generosity expressed. 

         My offerings to God are a barometer of how much I believe God has been merciful to me.  If I really understand that I’ve been snatched from the fire, won’t I give everything?  Expressions like, “I can’t afford to give that much while times are hard!” will be obsolete.  Especially in light of the fact that when we give, God promises us increased blessing!

         The greatest thing I can lay on the altar is not a sacrifice for my sin.  While Noah had to offer atonement for the sins of he and his family, Jesus came and laid on the altar for us.  In response to such love and sacrifice, my offering to God is not the blood of an unblemished animal but my life. 

I lay my life on the altar.  Take it all.  Not just a token act of service on a certain weekday.  All of it, Lord.  Your mercy, and your grace, came kicking down the door to rescue me.  I know it and spend my life to show you my gratitude.  Amen

FORCING THINGS TO WORK

Then God said to Noah, “Go out from the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons’ wives with you.”  Genesis 8:16

         God shut the door to the ark, bringing finality to Noah’s time on land.  When he put his feet on solid ground again, it would be on a new and pristine planet.  After 100+ days in the ark, I can imagine that everyone on board was antsy to get off.

         I’m one who gets motion sickness easily but I will also tell you that I’ve been on violent seas.  In my early twenties, the singing group that I was part of went on a Caribbean cruise during hurricane season.  We encountered very rough seas.  To sing in the ballroom for our Bible Study sessions, each of us in the group had to clutch a pillar in order to stand up while singing.  To say that I was eager to get off the ship is an understatement.

         As anxious as Noah was to exit the ark, he knew to wait for God to release him.  To leave the safety of his wooden haven was to risk living on an earth that wasn’t ready for habitation.  The seeds he would plant there wouldn’t encounter proper growing conditions.

         There is not much of a harvest when it is forced.  Only God can prepare the ground for the seed.  I have known the frustration of trying to make things happen on my own.  I produced one Ishmael after another.  Utter frustration was the result.  Getting older has taught me to wait for God to till the soil and release me from present confinement.

         Someone wants to be a truth teller to a family member today.  The seed will not be received if God has not prepared the soil of their heart.  Another wants to step out of a stressful place and start fresh by forcing circumstances to work.  A heavenly rhythm will not accompany their efforts and striving will bring exhaustion and futility.  Still someone else wants to implement a God-given vision that has been simmering for years.  Tired of waiting, they will bring their vision to a people not ready to understand it nor recognize its source as God.  Mis-judgment will result, bringing pain and rejection.

         We must not leave the ark of safety until there is obvious release.  God is a gracious Father who will speak clearly and give many confirmations that it’s time to move.

Oh how I’ve learned the hard way.  Striving is not your way.  If the axe falls at just the right part in the grain of wood, without effort, the wood will split.  Show me holy rhythm and timing.  Amen

GRADUAL RESTORATION

The fountains of the deep and the windows of the heavens were closed, the rain from the heavens was restrained, and the waters receded from the earth continually. At the end of 150 days the waters had abated.  Genesis 8:2-3

         Waters didn’t cover the earth in a day nor did God cause them to recede in a day.  God sent a wind, the wind of His Spirit, to blow over the earth.  The same breath that had been active in creation was now active in re-creation.

         As anxious as Noah and his family were to place their feet on dry ground, the preparation of a new life took place gradually and at a pace much slower than they would have chosen.

         I once recall meeting the husband of a woman who had been ritually abused throughout her childhood.  Her emotional and psychological damage was profound.  He loved her, ached for her healing, and believed that God would completely rid her (one day at their church altar) of all her painful memories and the scars that accompanied them.  He lived for the day when she would go forward, kneel, and arise strong and free. She would no longer be able to recollect her painful childhood.  I voiced to him my concern over, what I believe, were false hopes.  I urged him to remember that God heals but He does so gradually.

         Times of captivity never happen overnight. A series of choices precede the wilderness.   If God just healed the past in one fell swoop, I would not have the opportunity to learn wisdom.  Dismantling the cage, one bar at a time, has great benefits.  In the disassembly, God gives wisdom about each piece.  He delights to see me discover the truths He knows will bring freedom.

         Are you straining under the hand of God’s sovereignty?  Are you longing for a new morning, one where yesterday’s agony just disappears?  Adjust your expectations.  Know that God heals incrementally.  He sends the wind of His Spirit.  It blows across the soul and brings divine insight.  Over time, re-creation occurs and a solid mental and emotional framework is built to stand the test of time.  The new spiritual landscape will appear as Noah’s new earth; a fruitful place to live on the treasures God gave in the darkness.

Captivity would be worthless if I never learned anything.  Thank you for leading me out of my wilderness one revelation at a time.  Amen

NOT ONE INCH TOO MUCH

The waters prevailed above the mountains, covering them fifteen cubits deep. Genesis 7:20

         If God decides to cover the entire earth with water, thousands and thousands of feet of water, enough to cover the likes of Mt. Everest, what does a few inches matter?  Apparently a lot.  God knew exactly how much water He would allow and no more.

         Once the water reached the mountaintops, twenty-two and a half feet more were allowed, just enough to make sure the ark didn’t collide with something underwater.  Just enough to keep it from grounding.  This is not a meaningless detail.  I serve a God of precision, a God who orders all things well in my life, down to increments of inches.  He controls the floods down to the last water drop.  He controls disease on a cellular level.  He holds the king’s heart in his hands and can bend his will without effort.

         Life is one series of temptations.  I will face periods where it feels like I’m going to drown in the floodwaters.  Temptations to fear, to distrust God, to chuck my faith, to quit waiting on God and just embrace the counterfeit, these will appeal to me.  But God knows how much pressure to allow in order to grow my faith.  No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.  1 Cor. 10:13

         Floodwaters make a man’s heart faint.  But God created me and knows the exact breaking point of my faith.  He knows how far it will bend before it snaps.  The One who covered the mountains with twenty-two inches of water is also micro-managing my life with a power to save, preserve, and cause me to triumph in the love of God.

Don’t let me forget that though I hear the sound of floodwaters, I’m in You, Jesus, my Ark of safety.  You are taking me safely home.  Amen

A WILD AND WONDERFUL GOD

..on that day all the fountains of the great deep burst forth, and the windows of the heavens were opened, and rain fell upon the earth forty days and forty nights.  Genesis 7:11-12

         On whatever day God choses, He can display a power that I can’t fathom.  His power is at work, even today, as I view the heavens and, simultaneously, watch the unfolding of a flower or the birth of a newborn baby.  On this day in the Genesis account, God returned the waters of the earth to their original places.  Water covered the surface of the earth and water was also the canopy of the earth.  (Genesis 1:6)

         The waters, relegated to a subterranean place at creation, were released from their deep place to once again cover the face of the earth.  Whether a volcano did it or God just ripped the earth to release them, I do not know.  But the point is that none of this was impossible with God.  God also caused the water canopy above the earth to descend, causing unending torrential rains.

         Isaiah stresses that God is the one who can easily open the windows of heaven and also make the foundations of the earth tremble.  (Isaiah 24:18)  God is not tame by man’s whim.  It is foolishness to conceive of him as an old man who loves and blesses outside of strict parameters.  His power and might should cause me to fall to my knees and cry for mercy.

         During my lifetime, I have enjoyed the stability God has granted the earth.  This is only ‘for now.’  I breathe the oxygen here and I rely on the rains as if they were a self-sustaining cycle.  I rely on the arrival of spring and the gentle warming of the earth to grow our food supply.  I rely on just the right amount of winter.  Snow and ice won’t cover the earth and the temperatures won’t go much below zero.  Who controls all that?  Is it not the mercy of God that grants it?  Why does our planet sustain life while all others are hostile?  God created them all, after all!

           The same power it took for God to speak the re-arrangement of the earth in place for the flood was displayed again as He chose to atone for His creation through the unjust death of His Son, Jesus.  My reaction to both should be the same.  Awe, humility, and trembling that One so great and holy could also love me tenderly.  One day, we will see God destroy the earth again, then rebuild it.  He is wild and glorious but also so trustworthy that the most fragile life can choose to exist in the palm of His hand.

How come it took me so long to trust You completely? 

         SEVEN DAYS OF GRACE

For in seven days I will send rain on the earth forty days and forty nights, and every living thing that I have made I will blot out from the face of the ground.”  Genesis 7:4

         Why, when death stares mankind in the face, do they still embrace their freedom to deny the truth?  To play it safe, wouldn’t a rational person do something different at the end of his life?  History says no.

         After 120 years of labor, the ark was finished.  Final preparations were being carried out.  Everyone except Noah’s family had ridiculed but now they could see pairs of animals entering the ark; coming from every direction, without being herded. Didn’t this unnatural occurrence and bizarre animal behavior make them wonder?  It should have.

         As over 70,000 species entered the ark, it should have been obvious that something was about to happen.  Yet, not one more person from that civilization approached Noah to inquire about salvation.  Not one.

          Those who have been reckless with their lives are usually reckless with their deaths.  While the end of life should be sobering, spiritually, it is not.  What causes such blindness?  Deception.  A lifetime of sin takes its toll on a person.  With sin comes spiritual blindness and a hardened heart.  Without the Spirit of God’s intervention, it is impossible for an unregenerate heart to become humble enough to see truth.

         What should I do if someone I love is approaching the latter years of their life and there is no sign that they will turn to Christ, their ark of safety?  I should concede that I cannot argue them into the kingdom.  Though some love the sport of debate, no one embraces Christ through apologetic wrangling.  The only tool I in my hands that will break the heart of stone is the Word of God.  “Is not my word like fire, declares the LORD, and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?”  Jeremiah 23:29

         The Spirit of God, in scripture, is what breaks through the wall of unbelief.  I hold it in my hands, look at it for what it is, tremble, and ask God to direct me to the right scriptures to pray over the unbeliever.  I stand my ground for the long haul.  I put their name in the scriptures I’m led to.  I pray them, recite them, and share them with the person directly.  Each time I do, if that person is destined to believe, the Word will have its effect.  Like strategically placed dynamite, it will slowly implode the crusty exterior of a sin-affected, deceived, hardened heart.

When am I going to really understand the power of Your Word?  When I finally get it, I will turn to it first as my only resource.  Amen

INVESTED IN YOU AND YOUR HOUSEHOLD

But I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you.  Genesis 6:18

         Is God just interested in calling out women, not men, unto Himself?  How about men, not women?  How about parents but not children?  Is He interested in blessing the entire family?  Is His heart engaged with the ones you love, the ones you serve everyday under your own roof?

         In our discouragement over marriages and the spiritual state of children, we can despair and wonder if God cares as much as we do.  The good news is, he does!  His very first covenant is with Noah and it encompasses his entire family.  Most every covenant with His people involves saving someone ‘and their household.’  While that doesn’t mean that every family member will choose God, you can know that God’s heart is invested.  He is wooing them even as I write this.  Our part is to speak wisely and with holy restraint, live our faith with humility, use our authority against the forces of darkness who are obscuring the beauty of Jesus, and ask the Spirit of God to open the eyes of their heart.

         In every way I am discouraged about the spiritual condition of a parent, a child, a spouse, a sister or brother, I can rest in the knowledge that God is even more engaged emotionally.  After all, it is Him they are rejecting.

         How many strangers have told me in passing, “Pray for my dad, he’s not a believer.”  I hear their story, feel something, but several days later the conversation can be a distant memory.  Not so with God.  When someone I love is constantly on my mind, causing my heart to ache, I can know that God is with me.  His heart aches, too.

         God instituted the family structure.  It’s no surprise to me, as I sit here thinking about all this, that He would desire to bless entire families.  We, and our descendants, are alive in the heart of a God whose heart beats with passion for their salvation.

You are a God who remembers, whose love never wavers.  My tears are safe with You because I know Your heart aches like mine.  Amen

IT REALLY IS FOR ME

But I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you.  Genesis 6:18

         Once God makes a promise, a covenant, it is irrevocable.  The one upon whom God places His favor cannot ‘un-earn’ it.

         “But God, didn’t you know that on the other side of the flood, Noah and his family would sin greatly? Didn’t you know that his descendants would bow down to other gods?  Didn’t you know that they would throw their own children in the fire for sacrifices?  Didn’t you know they would hear You calling and choose to turn their backs on you after all You’d done for them?”

         Yes, He knew.  And He chose to save His people anyway though Noah and all his descendants would mess up badly.  Their faults would not be glossed over in scripture.  Their mistakes would be made public ~ giving all of us hope that if God can restore and redeem their sins, He can do the same with ours.

         While praying for you this morning, God showed me that some of you are reading devotionals like this with the eyes of your heart closed. The impact is lost because you don’t dare believe this kind of love is for you.  No promise this glorious could possibly apply to you.  You believe you’ve erred too badly, offending God beyond what a relationship can withstand.

         Not true!  Our sin is not the point.  The power of Jesus’ death over sin is everything.  Our faithlessness is not the point.  The power of God’s faithfulness in keeping His covenant is unshakeable.  Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ.

        He is a covenant keeping God.  Always has been.  Always will be.

People punish me by withdrawing their love.  Yours stands no matter what.  Amen