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Father and Contest

The Father and the Contest — these words are part of being a believer in Christ. When I become a Christian, I enter into a relationship and regiment. I am part of the family of God and also a soldier in the Army of the Cross.

These days we seem get a lot of information, a lot of communication, on what it means to be a son or a daughter, but precious little is taught about being a warrior. This is what I would call a false balance and the book of Proverbs says that such thing is an abomination. That big word carries a weightiness about it and it should. But at its core the word is defined as something that drags man down. Man was made to be sublime; that is, God designed him to reign. Anything that pulls man beneath his dignity, anything takes below his status as the king of the earth he made to be, is abomination. So it is with any false balance.

Balance in our lives involves being rightly related and also ready to fight. For this reason, we get both pictures of home and fortress in describing the roles of the Church in the world.

The disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray for John the Baptist had taught his disciples to pray. Jesus said when you prayer begin this way: “Our Father.” The sense of the fatherhood of God was a new one. Israel had been addressed this way at several points in the Old Testament, but the message did not get through. God revealed Himself to Moses as I AM THAT I AM or Yahweh. This personal name for the LORD marked a departure from the name Elohim that had been the common moniker used among the people of Abraham. God was speaking as the I AM to HIs people who are.

Christ entered the world to bring the reality of God’s Personhood to full fruition. Jesus is the Word made flesh, the Word that was, is, and always will be, confined Himself to a human body subject to all the ordinances and laws governing creation. God became one of us so that He could perish as one of us. It was the grand design of redemption.

The Father — this is who God is to us. Jesus emphasized this to HIs Apostles and we read this throughout the writings of John. It should not surprise us that John penned these pictures for us to read. He among all the Apostles kept himself close to his Master always. He, his brother James, and Peter were privy to things the other Apostles were not. John was there when Jairus’ daughter was called back from the dead. John was there on the Mount when Jesus was transfigured into Light and counseled by the resurrected forms of Moses and Elijah. John was there leaning upon Jesus at the supper before the day of the Cross, staying near the heart of the Teacher as He expounded the reality of the new relationship that grace, truth, and the Spirit would bring to those called out into Heaven’s flock. John lived longest of the Apostles. He lingered into his 90s while the others were cut down by tyrants and persecutors. This blessing of years that John perhaps saw as something of a curse at times gave him more time to ponder and consider the Way.

It was John who related to us how Jesus prayed to the Father for HIs disciples to experience the fullness of being One with Him and so also being One in the Father. It was John who also spoke of those whom he discipled in the faith of Christ as little children. He admonished them to keep themselves from idols.

Father God, Abba, Daddy, Dad, Papa. These terms of endearment and closeness say something to every heart. Relationship, not religion, is the key to living for God. Jesus put this point before the legalists dominating Jewish life in the Roman era. He healed on the Sabbath and created conflict with traditions that obscured the face of God with ceremony and ritual. The Pharisee treated their animals better than the congregants in their synagogues. Mercy and justice and care and compassion represented the weighty things of God’s Law. In centering the heart on these, one could follow the commandments with clarity and alacrity.

Jesus reduced true religion to three very simple rules: Hear God, love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and love your neighbor as yourself. All of these things involve relationship. Listen, Jesus said. This is the starting point. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. Listen and be equipped to love God and your neighbor. Hear what the Father speaks and let it sink deeply into your heart and become part of your frame of reference.

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A Small Beginning

Jesus came small. Too small for some. He entered humanity as an infant born to a poor couple from Nazareth. His appearance was marked by a bit of spectacle, but that display was reserved for shepherds; crusty, hard-scrabble men who watched over their flocks even in the dark and cold of night. These working men, small people by society’s standards, were treated to a visitation of angels, a glorious host proclaimed the news of Christ’s coming directly. No riddles, no rhymes, no parables, no puzzles for these guys. Just the facts — “Unto you this day is born the Savior, Christ The Lord.” He’s in the city of David, in Bethlehem, said the angels. How will you know Him? Think small. Think poor. The Savior will be a baby, swaddled in rags, lying in a feeding trough. The little Lord Jesus, asleep on the hay. This is how the Christmas song goes.
God came small. It was this way because small things are seen only by those who focus. Jesus was and is missed by many. If Jesus came big, as someone with weight to throw around, some would attach themselves to His party but never open their hearts to know Him and welcome Him. Many people, maybe most people, seek to be part of the popular. They revel in being “with” it. The famous and fabulous captivate them. The selfie culture perpetuates being pictured with someone rather being someone.
Jesus came small. This points to His humility. The One who made all things subjected Himself to His own order in all Creation. He walked and talked, this was how His message got out. He slept and wept, this is how His humanity and heart were revealed. Those looking for Him saw Him and Knew Him. Simeon, a determined old saint, hung his faith on a promise from the Spirit. The word Simeon got was that his life would be complete when he saw the Lord’s salvation. He came daily to the Temple with this expectation in his heart.
God came small. There He was now in Simeon’s arms, the baby, the Son of Mary and Joseph. Simeon was looking for Him. When He came, Simeon knew Him. There are people such as this everywhere. The Bible story shows us. With Simeon was a widow, Anna. She, too, abiding in the place of worship looking for the One to worship. The wise men of the East studied the sky and were given a star to follow, a simple sign. These astronomers, men of science and seeming intelligence take note and take action. Their discerning hearts told them that this star belonged to a king and not just any king, the King of the Chosen People of Israel.
Jesus came small. Peace on earth, how does happen? The angels told the shepherds that peace was, in fact, on earth. Rulers and ambassadors and diplomats fashion complicated treaties and agreements. These work for a season, but men violate the vows they make so easily. Peace is not in words, it is in Person of the Word, the Person of Christ. Embrace Him and peace is found. Oh, not worldwide, political, cultural harmony — this is not what Jesus came to bring. That’s big. He came small. Peace came small, by human standards. He had no public relations campaign.
God came small. See Him in struggling, but determined families. This is where He is big, really big. They hold fast to Him in prayer. They shout and sing and believe. And God shows up for them. I know this. I saw this. And I’ve never been the same.

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Joseph and His Leap of Faith

Joseph is a man we know very, very little about. This carpenter of Nazareth stood with Mary in a difficult time, a time when she and he would have been greatly misunderstood.

The first chapters of Matthew and Luke provide the details surrounding this young couple. They were betrothed. The contract for their marriage had been agreed upon, but they had not come together yet as man and wife. Into this poor, but seemingly neat and tidy world comes Gabriel, from the Throne of Heaven. This angel’s message to Mary is this: “Fear not, Mary, for you have found with God. And behold  you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.”

And so Mary was found with child, and Joseph, a kind man, thought to terminate the marriage without fanfare. He refused to make a display of her. This revealed the heart of mercy in this man, and also his love for this woman. By the law of Moses, Mary would be counted to have committed adultery and  been subject to stoning. The evidence was there to see.

As Joseph made his considerations, the angel of the Lord spoke to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David, fear not to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.” Notice the way Joseph is addressed as “son of David.” The gospel of Matthew begins with the declaration of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David. This first gospel of our New Testament was given to speak to the Jewish population regarding the Person of Christ.

A Messianic Expectation

The Jewish people now under the government of the Roman Empire carried an Messianic expectation for their King. This King would, of course, be from the line of David, the dynasty settled in the books of Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, and Psalms.

Jesus, Son of David, and Joseph, son of David — it had to be this way for the fulfillment of the prophecies and promises proclaimed centuries before. The Son to come from Mary would save His people from their sins, the carpenter was told.

Did Joseph buy into the divine plan? He did, for he awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded, taking Mary as his wife and did not consummate the relationship till the Son was born. This brings us to what grew into a point of contention throughout church history. Did Joseph ever have sex with Mary? The Bible record here says that he did not know her until after Jesus is born. Later, in Matthew, we read the names of the brothers of Jesus and also that there were sisters who grew up in the Nazareth household.

the legend of mary

Things have been fabricated about Joseph in order to create an unscriptural portrait of Mary. Her status was elevated and she came to be viewed as one who was always a virgin and without sin as Christ was without sin. Yet, in Luke 1, Mary herself proclaims her need for the Savior. The legend of Mary grew to include the idea that she was assumed into Heaven; that is, her body was carried away and did not suffer decay as other human bodies. Nothing into the New Testament record remotely indicates this event.

As for the matter of Joseph, he came to be celebrated for his celebacy regarding Mary. On St. Josephy’s feast day, he is called a hero for never having had sex with Mary.  Legend grew that Joseph was an older man and had children from a previous marriage, which covers the Scriptures relating to Jesus’ brothers and sisters.

“And he called His name Jesus.”

Joseph was a man of faith and integrity. His heart followed after the mission of God. He stuck with Mary and raised Jesus, despite the gossip that surely circulated through Nazareth and the regions populated by the Jews. Our New Testament’s begin with his family tree.

Great is God’s faithfulness to those who answer His call no matter the consequences and circumstances.

 

 

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Bound to Life Through Fear of the Lord

The fear of the Lord is THE beginning. We first come upon this phrase in Proverbs 1. These words fall at the end of Solomon’s introduction to this collection of instructions. Eugene Peterson, the pastor-teacher who produced The Message translation of the Bible, indicates that the “fear of the Lord” is a “bound” phrase – it is not to be dissected. These words, in the Hebrew text of the Old Testament, are always viewed as a whole. Fear of the Lord points to relationship, to responsive living. That is, we hear from God and answer Him.

This began in Eden with Adam. He heard from the Lord: “Be fruitful and multiply. … Dress and keep the garden. … Name all the animals. … Eat from all the trees, but do not eat from this one, lest you die.” These things Adam did. He listened and responded until the day that he was distracted by another voice. His faith had rested in the Voice, in the words of the One who made him. On the day described in Genesis 3, however, Adam misplaced his trust. He gathered “new” information from the serpent, who had tricked Eve with his word-play and enticed her to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The man and the woman heard and responded to the initiations of another and chose to turn from the words of the One who had made them.

The serpent enticed Adam to enter into suspicion about the motives and character of the Lord, our Maker. At once, Adam died a death – his innocence was gone and his sense of trust expired. The security of life in paradise was overthrown.

Adam felt the effects immediately. Shame overwhelmed him as he analyzed his “perfect” body. He and the woman ran into the trees and fashioned bits of clothing from the leaves.

What did they cover up? They tried to hide away the very parts of their being that were designed for their purpose to “be fruitful and multiply.” And so began man’s over-occupation and distortion of what human bodies are made for. Society – families, communities, cities, states, and nations – groan under the weight of mangled misperceptions related to our skin and bones, and to our sexuality, which God designed as very good.

Fear Fell

What fell first? Adam dropped his fear of the Lord. He let the enemy’s accusations about God cloud his relationship with the Lord and, as a result, the man became unresponsive. What entered into Adam now was a perception of unworthiness. He felt that he could not face God and so he hid. The man and the woman had begun to experience the fear that has torment. Their sense of disorder and lost-ness was immediately a great weight upon them.

In the midst of this disaster, however, we discover the thread of hope.

God did not leave Adam and Eve in the jungle of their wrong decision. He came after them. “Adam, where are you?” He sought after His lost children. The Good Shepherd went to fetch the ones who had strayed away. With this initiation, God began the process of redemption; He started His work to restore “fear of the Lord.”

The bit of good news in all of this begins with this sentence from Adam’s lips: “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”

We can mark this as the first confession in our Bibles. This is the monumental moment in the Redemptive purpose: Adam answered when God called to him; he heard and he answered. Response is the key element in our “fear of the Lord.”

Adam responded; it was the beginning of the restoration of man’s true understanding of God.

Faith and Hearing

Fear of the Lord – it is the key to everything we are about.

Our ears do the heavy work in developing this right fear in us. Jesus was once asked about the greatest of the commandments. In the gospel of Mark, He answered this way:  “The first of all the commandments is:  ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these” (Mark 12:28-31).

Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. We listen; we learn. We discover the love of God. This throws our human fears out the door.

Fear of the Lord begins with our understanding of the Person of Jesus Christ. He is the Christ, the Savior of the World, the Son of the Living God. Once we set our minds upon this Rock of Truth, we become settled. Once we grasp this reality, what enters us is a respect for who the Lord is. We honor His character and nature. Our lives then become lives of integrity – honesty, transparency, and faithfulness define who we are because we know who He is.

 

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Be it Unto Me

Mary was a simple teen-ager. Devout and sweet, betrothed to the town carpenter, she was ready to lead an unspectacular life and a gritty existence in Nazareth. She and Joseph would raise a Jewish family. They would celebrate the feasts together with travels to Jerusalem.

Hope for the Messiah lingered in her heart and in the hearts of many of her relatives who lived among the hills of Judea. Zacharias and Elizabeth, Mary’s uncle and aunt, were particularly faithful to the ways taught by Moses. And, yet, they were childless. It was a mystery and a sorrow to them and to all who knew their righteous lives. They had been such good Jews. Like most barren women of her day, Elizabeth wrestled with the emptiness. Her insecurities often got the better of her as she fought back the feeling that she might somehow be under a curse.

And then the angel came. Gabriel shined before Zacharias as he took his turn to make offering at the incense altar. The prayers he prayed over the decades had been heard. Now, those prayers were answered, according to this bright being, the messenger sent from the throne room of the Lord.

A Prayer Answered

Elizabeth’s womb was about to come alive, Zacharias was told. All that he and his wife had hoped for was about to come true. She would bear a son, an Elijah, a man with a call to make the people ready for the King, the Messiah, the Savior.

Zacharias, however, was doubtful. These words were just too good to be true. “How shall this happen?” he said to Gabriel. “We are old people.” Those would be the last words Zacharias would speak for almost a year. His unbelief prompted the Lord to mute him. He would have to keep his doubts to himself.

Please let’s cut Zacharias some slack. He had lived through a troubled and torturous age with his family and nation. Israel’s glory days of David and Solomon were long, long past. How heavy life must have been for a people so favored and so informed. The oracles of God were theirs to read and to study and to share. The people lost sight of that last part. Rather than allowing their nation to grow into a powerful witness for God, they selfishly guarded their privilege and grew prejudiced against other peoples, whom they came to see as inferior.

Age creeps up on us just as it did on Zacharias. He was faithful to the Lord and His commandments, but his sense of wonder and expectation waned. It is all too common among believers. The flame of faith doesn’t always burn brightly. We live in a brutal world. Aches, pains, heartaches, disappointments, disasters, and death do a number on us as they have done on believers in all generations.

Gabriel’s visit jump-started Zacharias’ faith, I am sure – especially since all that the angel said came to pass. Still, he could only smile, chuckle, and nod when his wife miraculously became pregnant a short while after this Temple visitation.

A Virgin Conceives

Mary, remember, was young and engaged. Excitement likely surrounded her preparations for the day when Joseph would take her as his bride. Wedding plans can get wild and contentious at times, but for the most part, they are joyful anticipations of a great celebration.

In the midst of all this, Gabriel appeared before Mary and announced this:  “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” (See Luke 1:29). Stunned, this young bride-to-be struggled to comprehend the meaning of this sentence.

The next words were even more astounding:  “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end” (Luke 1:30-33).

Mary had been chosen to give birth to the Son of the Most High. God would enter humanity through her.

Like Zacharias, she had her questions: “How will this happen? I am a virgin.” Gabriel explained that her conception would be a work of the Holy Spirit, the same Spirit who made Elizabeth’s womb alive, the same Spirit who hovered over the face of the waters at a time when the earth was without form and void. The Spirit would “overshadow” Mary – the substance of His presence would generate the incarnation, the activity of the Word taking on flesh and bone.

“For with God, nothing is impossible,” said Gabriel.

This was enough for Mary. She questioned no more and offered herself as a living sacrifice: “Be it unto me according to your word.” In so many words, this virgin girl said, “l am yours, Lord – do as You will.”

Soon Mary would sing with Elizabeth. Two women,  great with child, rejoiced at the miracle of God with us.

“My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

For He has looked on the humble estate of His servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is His name.

And His mercy is for those who fear Him
from generation to generation” (Luke 1:46-50).

May these thoughts ring in our hearts as we see the Christmas season approach fast and furiously. Let us think upon the miracle of Mary and her choice to allow God’s purpose to be manifest in her. Hers was a simple and strong faith in the mighty God who does great things.

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The Wealth of Work

The Bible presents a view of the value of labor in the face of a heathen worldview that resents it. From Genesis 1, we understand that man was created in the image of God and that God worked (Genesis 2:2). It was on the seventh day that He rested from all His work that He had made.

Did God work before the Creation we see described in Genesis? Yes, because there God is three and the three are One. — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In Proverbs 8, we read of the relationship God had; it was a relationship of wisdom, of rejoicing, and of purpose.

The Father, the Son, and the Spirit served and cared as One in relating to each other. Mutually, God established purposes and directions as part of His work. This is a dimension of reality we are just tasting and can only speak of from our human frame of reference. In John 9, Jesus said, “I must work the works of Him who sent me while it is day.”

What is work? Think of some of the Middle East nations and the cultures, the enormous amount of money there. Take the money away from that country and what’s left? Who are the people, how do they live, how do they serve? What God do they know? Who is God in their minds? In the 1500s and 1600s, Spain mined huge amounts of silver from its colonies in Peru and Bolivia and became the richest country in Europe. But then the silver was gone.  What was left of the culture, the community, the work ethic? Money cannot determine for us the true quality of our lives.

God in heaven as God is the One who works and who gave man the desire and the design to work. Work is not a curse. Work is part of our design related to God who also works. God is a worker. God is a servant. Some are unemployed and struggle with things related to work, but there is something deeper. There is ministry. We are designed to be workers.

The Lie of Leasure

To the Greek mind, during the days of the Roman Empire, a god was considered privileged with leisure. The gods were gods of rest, comfort, leisure, privilege. In an atheist view, like Communism, where the belief in God or gods is shunned, people labor and work because it’s their duty, but the benefits would go to a select group of people. As a result, people began to think of work as a curse.

When you understand God and His plan for us, you recognize that He is the God who serves. He has responsibility. He is the most responsible person because He has the greatest authority. He is able to be there for us. He is able to answer our prayers, to carry our burdens, to care about our future, to forgive us of our sins, to speak to us at night, to show up in our crises. He can do so because He is God and He is a working God, a serving God, a responsible God with an amazing amount of authority to do it.

Our authority isn’t for our privilege, but for the benefit of others. This is a new definition for work. Work is not a paycheck. Work is the understanding of who is God. We work with God giving me the ability. There is the talent, the purpose, the privilege. We may not like our jobs, but we do not serve only in terms of our jobs. “Whatever we do, we do it as unto the Lord,” (Colossians 3:23-24).

Real Value

Think of people who serve without money in mind. One is found in Proverbs 31. Here, we read of a woman, a mother; we have a description of a virtuous woman. Her price is far above a paycheck, way above a contract, way above the earthly way of measuring value. What Spain needed with all its silver was a mentality that would cultivate the culture so a large number of people would be workers, teachers, missionaries, church men. So that when the silver is gone, the values that are far above the silver will linger.

Where do we find real value? It’s in a mother’s heart. It’s in the missionary who goes by faith and is a worker not because of money. Money is a poor motivator. Knowing God is a great motivator. God is at work.

Discover the joy of being a human being that enjoys the labor. Ecclesiastes 5:18-19 tells us that there is something to be said about showing up, being responsible, doing our best, and trusting God even when we don’t like it. When the project is done, there is something good about it to say; it was a pure, true, genuine blessing from God.

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The Last Are First

The last shall be first. Jesus wanted His disciples to get this principle into their hearts. It wasn’t an easy task.

The top dogs, the big wigs, the bosses, and the rulers, and the chiefs – these were and are the people of status and prestige. And those following Jesus, at times, thought that being with Him would lift them to greatness. They were right about this, but the greatness that God would bring them to was something out of this world.

As we read through the middle of the gospel of Mark, we are given some glimpses of just how ambitious and opportunistic and exclusive these men could be. Toward the close of Mark 9, Jesus confronted His men about a discussion they had been having on the road to Capernaum. His question silenced them “for on the road they had disputed among themselves who would be the greatest” (Mark 9:34).

First place, Jesus went on tell them, would belong to the one who served all and who served best. For emphasis, He brought a child before them and embraced him. Love children and be children at heart, He would go on to say. Care for the little ones and be small in your own eyes, He told them.

John, perhaps attempting to change the subject a bit, interjected with a report:  “Teacher, we saw someone who does not follow us casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow us” (Mark 4:38).

Jesus was not impressed. “Don’t stop him. He who is not against us is one of us,” the Lord said. “For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward” (see Mark 9:38-41). Small things done from the heart in the purpose of God are big deals to Him.

Were the disciples getting Jesus’ point? Uh, not really.

In Mark 10, mothers brought their children to Jesus only to have the disciples push them back. “But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased and said to them, Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God” (Mark 10:14).

Children, the least and the last in Roman society, Jesus put first. We must be like them, the Savior said. Our hearts have to be open to wonder and aware of our need for wisdom.

My 1-year-old granddaughter visited my wife’s office; a marvelous building that sits by Baltimore’s Inner Harbor and is windowed all the way round. When little Kate got down to walk, she went straight to one of the windows to look at the river with its boats, buildings, and birds. She just kept whispering, “Wow, wow, wow.”

The last shall be first. The little one rejoiced at a scene seemingly so ordinary to most of the adults in the room.

The words, “Our Father,” should ever be on our lips. Hungry children know who to call for food. Frightened children seek out the face of a parent for assurance and protection.

Our problem is that we get too big – too full of ourselves.   John and James wanted special seats in the Kingdom that Jesus is destined to establish. To make sure Jesus got the message, they sent their mom to make the request for chairs at His right and His left. This scene came not long after a rich young ruler approached the Master, perhaps thinking he’d be a good addition to the team.  Jesus loved the young man, but saw that his things and his money had a hold on his heart. “Go sell all that you have and give to the poor, then come follow Me,” Jesus told him (see Mark 10:17-22).

We must decrease in our eyes; He must increase. The last shall be first.  God does amazing things with small stuff, with pebbles even.

Goliath stood ready to fight, taunting the army of Israel. David showed up with his shepherd’s staff, a bag, and a sling. He snatched five smooth stones from a river and ran toward his enemy.

One of those pebbles became a deadly weapon and an instrument of triumph. David slung it hard and fast. Goliath took a shot between the eyes, fell on his face, and lost his head.

I know, this is such a gruesome story following all the talk about children and childlikeness. But it’s a true report, and it drives home my point.

Those pebbles rested in the water for who knows how long. They were probably jagged rocks at first, but the flow of the river made them ready for the war.

Be small. Be children in the arms of God. Be a pebble that rests in the water that flows from the fountain of life. Be refreshed by the Word of God as you hear it and read it in the power of the Holy Spirit.

One day, you may find yourself flying through the air on a mission from God. You will be a stone of victory in an impossible situation. You will be used for the glory of Christ. You will be celebrated as one great in His Kingdom.

For the last shall be first.

 

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Quietness and Confidence

I can remember the hush that characterized the traditional church in which I was raised. Weekly, our family attended the services and participated in what was a serious, solemn, and predicable program. The name of Christ was mentioned often and together the attendees recited the ancient Creed that dated to the Apostles and sang ancient songs.

There were incidents of rambunctiousness among the children at hand. These were met with stern shushes and steely, death ray kinds of gazes. Quietness was the order of the room, and it was to be maintained. I learned this and came to respect and even cherish it.

During my early teens, I started paying more attention. Walking home from a friend’s one afternoon, I saw people driving in for the service and felt moved. It seemed I was being drawn to the place. So I decided to go right to church. I wasn’t really dressed for the event, but I didn’t even think about that at all. I just wanted to be there, right then. There was no hesitation. It seems I was prepared for this moment.

I went in, sat down, and listened. The hush enveloped me and, perhaps, for the first time I sensed the presence of God. I left the service feeling as if I had been with Someone, with Him.

It was a beginning. I believe the Spirit awakened something in me that day. I want to be careful how I describe this. Was this a divine spark? That sounds too new age and cosmic. Besides that, sparks fly upward and die out quickly — provided they don’t land on something flammable and bring disaster. This was more than that. It was start of God shaping me for His building.

Rest and Strength

There was a mystical quality about it, and all these years later I can still recall the place, the time, the experience with clarity. And as I remember, I am grateful for the quietness, the solemnity of it all. I think the people there really wanted something from God and wanted to do something for God, so they came and prayed, came and sang, came and said the words. Only the Lord knows how many of them really meant the words they said and sang, and how many really called upon Him to be saved.

That is a matter too high for me, too high for any of us really. The point of this is the quietness, the hush in the Lord’s processes. The prophet Isaiah wrote this to the people of Israel: “…in returning and rest you shall be saved, in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength … ” (Isaiah 30:15). Elijah heard God as a “still small voice” (1 Kings 19:12).

It’s a cacophonous time we live in. So many voices saying so many things drive some to crank up the volume or utter something gross and outrageous just to get a hearing. Go large, go big, or don’t go at all is the spirit of the age. Quiet, small, consistent ways are being crowded out.

We can read in 1 Kings the detailed account of how Solomon guided the building of the great temple at Jerusalem. There, in 1 Kings 6, the atmosphere of the construction site is described. There was no hammer, chisel, or saw heard at the site. All of the stones for the building were quarried elsewhere. Once, prepared and shaped, each stone was brought and fitted into place in the temple structure.

Peace in Construction

Even in construction, the house of the Lord was not a place of noise. The Church of Jesus is defined through a number of New Testament pictures. One of these pictures is that of a building, as we read in Ephesians 2:18-22:

“For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.

Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:

In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.”

The Spirit moves among us and draws together strangers and foreigners into a citizenship of communion in Christ, our Cornerstone. In Him, we are framed together as a habitation of God. People who would by nature remain distant and detached find themselves at home with God and with each other in His assemblies.

The preparation of God’s saints happens here and there, in different ways and timeframes. The building comes together perfectly and properly according to sovereign order of the Lord. He knows who belongs where and what time to put them in place.

The Lord’s Work

I have to confess that I have at times tried to help the Lord with His preparations. Ignoring God’s counsel to prefer the other one, to forbear with long suffering and patience, I can try to make others into something they were not meant to be. When it really comes down to it, I want to make them like me. Psalm 115 defines this as the essence of idolatry: “They that make [idols] are like unto them; so is every one that trusts them” (Psalm 115:8).

The Lord’s work in people is precise and right. His anointing flows from the Head, Christ Jesus, all the way to the edges. The oil of the Spirit touches His people from top to bottom. His still, quiet work is the one we should view with confidence and hope.

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The Mystery of Righteousness and Peace

Melchisedek appeared suddenly.  This man of mystery showed himself to Abraham and with him he had bread and wine and a blessing.

We first read the story of this King/Priest in Genesis 14. Abraham had just accomplished something remarkable. His small band of 318 men defeated the army that had raided Sodom and Gomorrah, carrying away all of the cities’ possessions and people. Lot, nephew to Abraham, and his family were among those taken captive.

Abraham got word of Lot’s fate and took action. It was a step of courage and faith. He divided his small band of trained men and staged a nighttime attack. The result? Total victory and honor from the king of Sodom, a man no doubt delighted that his city’s wealth and its citizens had been delivered.

Melchisedek arrived after the battle had been won and made this proclamation: “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand” (Genesis 14:19-20).

These words moved Abraham. He gave Melchisedek a tenth of everything; it was an offering that revealed something about Abraham’s heart. He saw his triumph as God-given and so he gave.

Such things happen when we meet someone like Melchisedek, whose name means “King of righteousness.” He’s also described as the “king of Salem” and a “priest of God Most High.”

Who is this man with power to bless? Where did he come from?

We read no record of him among the early genealogies contained in Genesis. The book of Hebrews tells us Melchisedek represented a holy order of forever priests, whose father and mother remain unknown and whose birthdays and deaths are hidden from view. Some Bible scholars view Melchisedek as Christ Himself, classifying his appearance among Jesus’ pre-incarnate appearances, similar to the revelation of “the Captain of the Host of the Lord” in Joshua 5.

It is the presence of righteousness, I think, that most affects Abraham. This righteousness does not drive him to run and hide, but to be still and know that God is with him. He welcomes the blessing, partakes of the table, and lifts his hand to the Lord.

Jesus brought out these same things in the people who came to Him. Like Melchisedek, He suddenly came to “His Temple,” as prophesied in Malachi 3:1. The true sense of righteousness was what Christ presented as the Word Made Flesh. He was zealous to reveal what was right and real and to expose the false and the fading. The desperately wicked who recognized the true state of their hearts came to Him, seeing His Way, His Truth, and His Life; they rightly saw Him as their only hope. And, they lifted their hands to Him, God Most High.

Another interesting element to the story in Genesis 14 is the king of Sodom. He, too, came to Abraham, but his approach is all business. He saw Abraham’s actions as mercenary; he treated him as a solider for hire and wanted to pay him off. “Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself,” the kind said.

Abraham refused the offer entirely: “I would not take a thread or sandal strap or anything that is yours.” At Melchisedek’s table, Abraham had lifted his hand to God, and now he would not let himself be cheaply tied to a worldly kingdom. Sodom comes to its doom later in Genesis; in this chapter, however, it seems the city’s king got a witness from a man who followed God. Given what we know about Sodom’s fate, this witness of righteousness went unheeded.

I could so easily allow myself to be roped into something carnal; my soul, in the natural, is given to making attachments that draw me away from the Lord.  Abraham and the story of Genesis 14 show the way for me. Christ’s Spirit dwells in me. He showed up suddenly one day in my life and, eventually, I chose His way. I called upon His Name and was saved. He met me and spread a table in the midst of my enemies – my lusts, my pride, and my world.

I could never have made myself better, but I did what I could: “I believed on Him whom God sent” (see John 6:28-29). I chose to become blessed of the Better, blessed by the Best really. The King of All Righteousness made me new with a heart now follows after Him.

May we learn to live deeply by His Spirit and Truth.

 

 

 

 

 

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The Beauty of Holiness

Righteousness and holiness are words out of fashion. To some, they are terms that imply exclusion and division. They are words employed to convey the sense of things sacred, and sacred things are things that seem out of reach.

Jesus changed this. He came from Heaven to earth, the only begotten Son of God. He followed a course of life guided by the Holy Spirit in obedience to His Father. In Him, all of the Law of Moses was fulfilled. He left not a point of it undone.

Did Jesus do this sequestered away from people and their problems? Did He take up residence atop a lofty mountain and wait for the strong, the rugged, and the dedicated to climb to Him?

He did not. Rather, Jesus came to us, to where we are. Two disciples asked the Lord, “Where do you live?” His answer: “Come and see” (John 1:39-41).

Christ’s life on earth was one of ministry and availability. His righteousness, His holiness, was there for all to watch, to approach, and to touch. He proved attractive to the worst of the society He walked through. Those made ill by demons, diseases, and sin flocked to Him. To them, He revealed Himself as the Healer and the Deliverer.

[bctt tweet=”The Holy One came close, but He never compromised His character or His Person.” username=”ggwo”]

The very unclean spirits He encountered were among the first to declare the reality of His deity, as they cried out, “Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are–the Holy One of God!” (Mark 1:24).

The Holy One came close, but He never compromised His character or His Person. His way was gentle, yet firm and clear and supremely consistent.

Worship and Awe

Consider how Jesus sat with the woman at the well, a story related in John 4. She came at midday to fill her water pot — a most unusual time to come to the well. She was probably there then because she wanted to avoid the scorn of the townsfolk. The details of her life likely filled the gossipy chatter that went on there.

Jesus sat with her – a development that stunned her. He addressed her and her sin; she had been married five times and had taken up with a sixth man who was not her husband. She made no excuse, neither did she run away. She even tried to steer the conversation toward religion. “I perceive You are a prophet,” she told Him.

The conversation went on and, eventually, Jesus told her directly that He was the promised Messiah. Her heart touched, she hurried to town and invited everyone to hear from Him, “the One who told of all she had ever done.” She had come to worship Him, the Righteous One who had come to her. Others came to Him because of how He had come to her.

The Attraction of Righteousness

Psalm 96 includes an invitation: “Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: fear before Him, all the earth” (Psalm 96:8). Holiness, rightly perceived, stirs appreciation and awe. Worship! Give honor! Fear the Lord!

Real righteousness attracts the most unattractive, those who have come to the end of themselves. They recognize a righteousness so right that it has liberty to forgive and set free, a righteousness that offers mercy and makes clean. Sin is never excused. It is, however, labeled and exposed. It is shown in all of its weight and bondage. Those burdened, crushed, and confined by sin, cast themselves on the Holy One, whom they see as their only hope.

False righteousness, the kind fueled by self-effort, is repellent. People sense pretense – especially teenagers; ask any youth pastor or leader about how fast phonies are found out and tuned out. Better yet, ask the teens themselves.

Luke 7 provides an account of a collision between the false and the true, as Jesus is invited to dinner at the home of a Pharisee, Simon. As they sat together at the dinner table, a prostitute pushed her way to Jesus and began to kiss His feet and wash them with her tears. She dried those feet with her hair. She bathed them in ointment.

What moved her to such a response? The righteousness of Christ drew her to Him.

Jesus perceived the thoughts of the self-righteous in the room and told them just how wrong such thoughts were. In essence, they saw righteousness as something to be attained, as something that is earned through a pattern of effort. Christ showed them that true righteousness must be received from above. It is robed upon those who run to it and it covers all those who cry, “Lord, have mercy.”

The woman in Luke 7 loved Jesus very much and apparently felt at home at His feet. The greatness of her sin overwhelmed her, but in Him she saw hope — the hope in the mercy that rejoices against judgment.

How to Make a Difference

What does this mean for us now? Righteousness matters and makes a difference. This cannot be a righteousness that we fashion on our own, but it must be the righteousness that we receive by faith in the One who saved us. Such righteousness changes things.

“When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices” (Proverbs 11:10). It all comes down to the beauty of holiness. The highness and rightness of Jesus when seen in His people can affect eternal results.

Let’s not take the edge off of His righteous way. Let’s avoid the temptation to dim the glory due the Savior. Let’s worship and adore Him and manifest this adoration with inspired lives, with hearts full of appreciation for His mercy and grace.

In this way, we shall be beautiful for all of our situations. Christ shall be lifted up, and He shall draw men unto Him.