Staying in Christ

A classmate of mine posted this on Facebook,

“Question for my Christian friends…Is sharing the Gospel more than you did last year on your list of New Year’s resolutions? If it isn’t, then why not?”

Sharing the Gospel will cause friction. Anyone who has ever tried to share it, whether to friend, family, or stranger, knows that sometimes it isn’t received well. In fact, despite what some prosperity preachers will tell you, living the Christian life isn’t supposed to be Easy Street. This was very evident in a confrontation where Jesus lost many of His followers. He was telling them that He was the Bread of Life. He also pointed out that none could be drawn to Him unless the Father did the calling. This was met with consternation and the comment, “This is a hard saying.” It was a hard saying. It still is.

After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. So Jesus said to the Twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”  – John 6:66-69, ESV

Though many left, we know 12 remained. These Twelve formed Jesus’ inner circle, but lest we think that Jesus was fooled, even as early as this did Jesus name one of them as false (v. 70-71). However, the response given by Peter was simple, “We will stay with You. You are the only way to eternal life.” It’s one thing to say it and quite another to do it. One, Judas Iscariot, might have gone along with Peter, but he did not live up to the words. The other 11 did. For 10 of them, it meant execution and martyrdom. For John, it meant a life ended in exile, closing the chapter on Jesus’ apostles. In other words, staying with Jesus wasn’t easy. They gave their lives to do so.

As you begin this new year, think about what it means to you personally to “stay in Jesus.” Doing so may put you at odds with friends and family. Doing so may cause you to rethink certain beliefs, practices, and behaviors. Doing so may mean stepping out of your comfort zone in order to be obedient to His words. Is your desire to stay in Christ? Then understand the cost now. Prepare yourself for the sacrifices, for the trials, and for the hardships that may come your way. Understand that we each have a purpose in this life, and that purpose is to glorify God. We’re here for the Kingdom. We’re not here for our 401Ks, our bass boats, our timeshare on the beach, or even our big screen HDTV with the latest technology. We are here for Christ.

There is a huge upside to staying in Christ. To quote the words of Charles Spurgeon, remaining in Christ means a “double joy” or a “blessedness upon blessedness.” Pause on those words a moment. It’s a paradox: sacrificing for Christ leading to a “double joy.” However, if you’ve ever “stayed in Christ” on something, you likely know that it is very true. Let us stay in Christ. Let us put Him first in everything this year. And let us experience that “blessedness upon blessedness” that comes from doing so. May the Holy Spirit lead us to this state.

Doing the Ordinary Things Better

Over the weekend I finished up an audiobook of Tony Dungy’s Quiet Strength. One of the secrets to his success (and he admits it learned it from legendary coach, Chuck Noll) is to emphasize doing the ordinary things better than anyone else. In Dungy’s view, that’s how great teams win. That’s how the Steelers of the 70s won and that’s how his teams did so well in both Tampa Bay and Indianapolis. The concept is a biblical one, an idea we see Paul speaking of over and over again in different ways to different people. The book of Colossians has this idea very clearly:

And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.  – Colossians 1:9-10, ESV

And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister. – Colossians 1:21-23, ESV

Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.  – Colossians 2:18-19, ESV

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.  – Colossians 3:17, ESV

Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.  – Colossians 3:23-24, ESV

See the pattern? It’s a simple one: do the things you know how to do, do them well (as unto the Lord), and don’t be led astray by folks saying that there’s some shortcut, some magical, mystical way to do things better. In sports and in life plenty of people are looking for shortcuts. The truth about most shortcuts is that they aren’t. This is the warning Paul was trying to give the church in Colosse. Stay the course, do what you know is right and holy, and do it the best of your ability. In other words, do the ordinary things better, because that’s the real secret to a victorious life in Jesus Christ.

How are you doing with the ordinary things? How is your prayer life? How is your Bible reading? Are you meeting regularly with other Christians for the purpose of fellowship? How is your giving and acts of service? Are you making Sunday school and worship service? These are the “little things,” but they pay big dividends when we do them well. What do I mean by do them well? I mean when we do them with the right hearts, to honor and glorify God and draw closer to Him, as well as when we do them consistently. We’d all love to be used mightily by God but truth be told, most often it’s in the little ways that God is able to do so. After all, how can you reach out to that family at church if you’re never there? How can you lift up your brother with cancer if you don’t consistently pray? We must do the ordinary things better.

Heavenly Endurance

On Facebook recently I’ve seen a lot of references to “first world problems.” These are things that bother us and irk us that only come about because of our over-abundance, not because of the deficiency in a real need. For instance, having to get the brakes replaced on the car or having to call out the air conditioner repairman because the A/C is on the fritz are both examples of first world problems. These aren’t related to getting enough to eat, to having a roof over our heads, or being able to worship freely and pray to our Savior without fear of harm. The key to remember is as these little things pile up and seem overwhelming, they aren’t more than we can endure. Yesterday was that sort of day for me and one of my accountability brothers reminded me that God is in control and that with Him I can handle it.

  Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.

And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”
- Revelation 14:12-13, ESV

See, first world problems are nothing. There’s going to be a day coming when God is going to have to remind us to endure, because we will be facing the persecution of the saints. Saints will die simply for their belief in Jesus Christ. We don’t tend to see this problem in the “first world.” However, if you have any sort of awareness to what’s going on in the whole world you know that there are plenty of places where the body of Christ is having to endure these types of hardships. We see folks being considered second class citizens because they are Christians. We see kidnappings, rape, torture, and even death because folks believe in Jesus Christ. It isn’t unusual in some parts of the world to hear about a young teenage girl who is a Christian being kidnapped by men of another faith and then that girl is forced to marry another male of that other faith. Such an act means she has to convert her faith. And once converted, were she to “convert back” to Christianity, the laws of the region or nation state that she should die by execution. Of course, we know that the girl didn’t want to marry, that she was coerced. Usually she has no say in it and it’s a sham ceremony. Of course, since her marriage is forced, there was no actual conversion to that other religion. However, by virtue of having a recognized marriage, those who would do Christianity harm can claim, based on the accepted laws and practices of the land, that she has converted from Christianity because she is now married. Yes, that’s circular logic, but it is supported. And then she’s stuck. She’s married to someone she abhors and she cannot be truthful about who she follows. She cannot escape. If her family cannot find her, rescue her, and get her out of that area, she faces either a disastrous life or death. To remain faithful to Jesus Christ in such circumstances requires great endurance.

Most of us don’t deal with problems anywhere near that sort of thing. Therefore, the endurance we require is far less. Yet it’s very easy to feel overwhelmed, as if we can’t do enough or as if we can’t handle it all. The key is to rely on God. We don’t have the endurance He does. He bore our sins on His body and He faced the wrath of the Father on our behalf. I’d call that some unbelievable endurance. And the neat thing is He offers to help us bear what faces us. He doesn’t cherry pick things, either. He tells us just to come if we are weary. So whether it’s a mid-term exam that has us stressed out or the unexpected death of a family member in his early twenties, Jesus is there to give us heavenly endurance. The problem is that we often don’t take Him up on the offer.

What is it that you are shouldering today that is wearing you down? What could you ask for help with from God that you haven’t, possibly because of personal pride? Why are you still holding on to it? Why are you not allowing the One who paid for your sins to pick up part of the load, too? Do so and feel the relief that can only come from turning over your burden to the Lord, so that you might not sin but instead glorify God with your word and deed.

He Provides What We Need and More

“I’ve got to take care of myself. No one is going to look out for me.” These are some of the thoughts that have become more and more prevalent as our society has fractured and isolated itself. There are a couple of problems with this type of thinking. First, it places all the reliance on what our future will be like in our hands. This is nonsense. We aren’t in control. If you want an example of that, go outside and attempt to take command of the weather. All our efforts could be undone by a single event, as we have seen over the last few months. So to think that we alone can determine our future is illogical. That’s not to absolve us of the responsibility to do our best. This isn’t an excuse for us to give up and say, “What will be, will be.” God expects us to take responsibility and accountability. But we must do so realizing that there are other things going on and that we aren’t in control – He is.

The second thing wrong is that this line of thinking is proving more and more correct in our society. I look at my neighborhood, sadly at my own example, and realize that I don’t know my neighbors like I did when I was a kid. If one of them was struggling and in trouble, I can say that only in a handful of cases would I be likely to know about it and be in a position to help. Somehow we’ve forgotten that there is strength in numbers, that we are social creatures who need each other more than we’d like to admit. But because we’ve drifted from that time when being a neighbor meant you had a relationship with the person living next to you or a few doors down, we can’t rely on each other for support when the trials of life hit.

And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground the LORD God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  – Genesis 2:8-9, ESV

The first issue can be remedied by remembering that God will be there for us. Having created everything, He specifically carved out a place for Adam to live safely, where all Adam’s needs would be provided. It’s important to note that it wasn’t just man’s physical needs (food, shelter, safety) that God met:

Then the LORD God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” Now out of the ground the LORD God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him. So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man.  – Genesis 2:18-22, ESV

Man’s emotional needs were covered, too. Man needed companionship. He needed someone to share the burden. And thus Eve was brought to Adam. In the Garden Man was completed physically, emotionally, and spiritually (after all, God walked with Adam). This is the way God wants to work in our lives. It meets with the promises He has given us. The catch is to recognize that only He can provide all that we need. That means to let go of the thinking that we’ve got to take care of ourselves and that no one is looking out for us. It’s flawed thinking. God is looking out for us. God is taking care of us. That is what He has promised. That is what He will deliver. We just need to get off the throne, thinking we’re the one in charge, and allow Him to sit upon that which is rightly His. We need to change our thinking to reflect this, “God is going to take care of me. He is looking out for me and will provide all I need. My obedience is key to this, though, so that I’m at the right place at the right time to receive His sustenance and aid.” See how different that is? But it works. The saints throughout the ages testify to the effectiveness of having an outlook on life like this.

By the way, that obedience thing addresses the second line of thinking, too. When we’re obedient, we become the help for the ones around us. We become the neighbor who cares when no one else does. We become an extension of God, we become His provided help, we are His instruments of love. So it’s not just about being obedient so our needs are met, it’s also about being obedient so we can be part of meeting the needs of others. But all that comes about only when we say, “I can’t, but you can, Lord,” and we yield to His will and His plan. Adam and Eve forgot this. They walked away from His will and His plan as they strove to be like Him. And when they did so, they put themselves out of the path for His aid and support. Even when given a chance to get back on track, they stood apart. We’ll look into that in more detail soon. However, what we can take from it is we don’t have to follow in the footsteps of our predecessors who have chosen to go their own way. Rather, we can choose to love and follow God, to put Him back on the throne of our lives rather than trying to push Him off, and we can choose to dwell in the garden He has prepared for each one of us.

Beyond a Single Generation

It is not unusual to see that when a powerful personality leaves a ministry for that ministry to falter and possibly even die. It’s a sad commentary on the fact that we still often build institutions for the glory of the Kingdom of God but we try to do so largely on our own power without a vision for the future. One could say that we’re so busy that there’s not enough time to get the things done that are demanded today, so how can we possibly carve time and effort off for the future? But in reality that’s just postponing a problem. And usually when a problem gets postponed it grows and grows and grows. For instance, if you have a slow leak in your house and you don’t do anything about it, that slow leak may become a bigger one, mold may begin to grow, and things get damaged that would have been okay if you had fixed that leak up front. Ministry and faithfulness and devotion to God work the same way.

But when the people of Israel cried out to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer for the people of Israel, who saved them, Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother. The Spirit of the LORD was upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and the LORD gave Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand. And his hand prevailed over Cushan-rishathaim. So the land had rest forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died.  – Judges 3:9-11, ESV

The people of Israel had turned to evil and therefore God gave them over to their sin. He brought judgment in the form of a foreign king until Israel realized the depth of its depravity and sought God’s face again. Then He raised up a deliverer, Othniel, who did exactly that – deliver them. For the forty years Othniel was the judge over Israel, the land was okay. But as soon as Othniel died, things started to slip again. Verse 12 tells us that the people did evil in the sight of God again and yet again He raised up a foreign king in judgment. This is actually the cycle we see repeated throughout the book of Judges. Which raises the question, “Why did this keep happening?” Why were things okay for one generation but then they went back to the way they were? In fact, why is this pattern repeated throughout Israel’s history? I have a sense that they did not prepare well for the future. Not like this:

“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.  - Deuteronomy 6:4-9, ESV

Moses’ instruction was that we must intentionally prepare the next generation to know who God is and what He has done for us. We must teach them God’s commands and we must do so with diligence. God’s instructions are to always be a topic of discussion, more so than any other. When I think about this level of standard, I have to admit that a lot of days I’ve not gotten there. Why is Moses saying this is God’s desire? Because God understands that this world rejects His commands. It will do everything in its power, because of the current ruler, to undermine those commands. Satan does not want us to worship God, but rather, to turn from that worship. And so he targets every weakness, every opportunity to turn us from a focus on God onto something else. Moses’ words say, “Stay focused. Keep God and His Word firmly in your minds. Let it be an integral part of your talk, your work, and your activity. Let the Word permeate every part of your life. It should be more important than anything else. You can see that by how much time you spend on it compared to other things.”
The next generation partially learns from our example. When they see we’re about devotional and faithfulness to God, they can see that it’s important to us. If they see positive effects in our lives, they learn to value what we value. However, have you ever been an observer to something and not totally understood what all happened? Did a conversation later make things more clear? For instance, maybe you saw your mom or dad or someone you respected do something but you didn’t understand why. Later, when you asked, they explained and you saw the wisdom of their actions. Just watching isn’t enough. There needs to be intentional and diligent sharing from us to those who will follow after us. We need to seek to impart our wisdom and our experience so that the next generation will be properly prepared. We also need to clearly teach what God’s expectations are, what He promises, and what He has already done for us. This is true whether we’re talking about our children or we’re talking about those who will follow us in our current ministries or those around us in the body of Christ. This is the expectation God places on us. There’s isn’t an “out” here.

So how best do we do this? First, we have to be in the Word and know the Word. We can’t impart and teach that which we do not know. Then, we have to build lives where we intentionally are about the discussion and sharing of God’s Word. I don’t just mean on Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights. It should be the dominant topic in our lives. More so than NASCAR, than SEC or Big Ten football, than our latest hobby, or how large a buck we brought down the previous weekend or the size of the bass we landed the week before. It certainly should be a larger topic than our issues at work or how we feel ripped off by a mechanic or how the government is unfair or full of crooks. I know I’m stepping on some toes here, but believe me when I say that as I consider the command God gave to Moses, I’ve done a lot of stomping on my own feet, too.  Finally, as we’re striving to accomplish these two steps, the last one is to share. We share with those who will follow us. If you’re in ministry, it’s grooming the next generation. If you’re a parent, it’s teaching God and His Word to your children. If you don’t meet either of these, it’s sharing with those believers around you who are younger and/or less mature in the faith. And I bet if we got serious about these things, we would see the revival our land and our world so greatly needs.

Don’t Compartmentalize Your Life

It’s not unusual to hear people say, especially within the Church, that their priorities are God, their family, their friends, and then their jobs. The spirit behind such comments is noble: God is first, but we don’t forget about friends and family. However, I don’t believe this is a good way of looking at things. See, if God is first, there might be something about your job that takes priority over family. For instance, if you’re a firefighter and there’s a major fire going on, which is more important, going to the fire or stopping off and picking up orange juice at the grocery store for the family? I know that’s an extreme case, but it reveals how faulty it is to try and compartmentalize our lives based on these types of broad categories.

Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.  – 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, ESV

You were bought with a price; do not become slaves of men. So, brothers, in whatever condition each was called, there let him remain with God.  – 1 Corinthians 7:23-24, ESV

In context, the first set of verses, from 1 Corinthians 6, refers to keeping our bodies pure, however, the point that is made is that we have been bought with the shed blood of Christ. The second set of verses is in the context of how to live. Again, we see Paul saying we were bought with a price. This is an important fact to remember: we are not our own, for Christ purchased us through His death on the Cross. As a result, He should have dominion over every aspect of our lives. Let me use an analogy.

I was in one of those large home improvement stores recently. There are plenty of supplies and you can buy what you need to fix your bathroom, add a deck to your house, or stand up that swing set by buying the bits and pieces. You don’t even have to buy them all at one time. If you can only afford part of it now and part of it a little later, and if your project can stand the delay or you have a place to safely store the supplies until you have all you need, you can do this piecemeal purchase. That store also has kits for several types of projects where everything you need (except the tools) are put together in one big package with one fixed price. Now, some of those kits require employees to go and get all the bits and put them together for you to take home when you go to purchase the kit, but you’re still getting everything all at once. You make one purchase and you own every material and component you need to accomplish the project.

This is the way God purchased us. He purchased all of us at one time. He didn’t purchase us in bits and pieces. He didn’t purchase our devotion to Him and then put a down payment on our family with an option to buy on our jobs. He bought everything with that action of ultimate sacrifice upon the Cross. Therefore, every aspect of our lives is to be for God, and that means He is the only priority. Others may compartmentalize their lives or see our lives as segmented, but each of us should see his or her life as a whole: one complete body for one Almighty God. If God is our only priority, then everything gets covered in its right place and order. What I say is not inconsistent with what I do. So when I choose to go to that fire over picking up the orange juice, I’m not contradicting what I said my priorities are. Rather, if my focus is on God and He says the fire is more important, then that’s what I’m to do.

Now He could throw us a real jaw dropper and tell us that the orange juice is more important. And the “rational” person would say, “But there are lives on the line at the fire!” What we and those “rational” people might not be able to see is that getting the orange juice puts us at home the very minute we’re needed for a medical emergency concerning someone in our family. That’s the the other problem with trying to determine priorities in boxes. We don’t see it all. What may seem like a minor priority isn’t. But only God would know that. If we try to determine our priorities based on what we think and based on the compartments and rules we’ve set up, we will eventually blow it. Only by allowing God to be the sole focus, to recognize that He bought us in whole and therefore deserves us wholly, is the way to get it right.

See Bigger

In the previous devotional, I laid down the challenge to think bigger. There’s so much going on around us where we can be involved, where God wants us to be involved, where God expects us to be involved. Yet, for whatever reason, many needs in our communities are going unmet. I talked a bit about the things that distract us. Everyday life can really get our focus off. The mundane things loom large in our sight. As a result, we miss the need. Or we may see the need, but we miss the opportunity to meet it. There’s a solution to all of this. That solution is simple: see bigger.

Thus Hezekiah did throughout all Judah, and he did what was good and right and faithful before the LORD his God. And every work that he undertook in the service of the house of God and in accordance with the law and the commandments, seeking his God, he did with all his heart, and prospered. – 2 Chronicles 31:20-21, ESV

The world has taught us that prosperity is defined by our standards of living. If we’re comfortable, we may be prosperous. If we reach a point where we can buy what we want and not have to think about it, we are definitely prosperous. Athletes with world-class ability in the right sport are made prosperous (by this definition) with but a single year of college experience. But this isn’t God’s definition of prosperous. God’s definition of prosperous is seeking after Him, undertaking His work in His service, and doing it with our whole hearts. That’s what Hezekiah did. He was prosperous in the eyes of the Lord. Sure, he was king of Judah. But notice that the Scriptures make no mention of his wealth when talking about him being prosperous. Doing what is good, right, and faithful? Check. Undertaking service of the house of God? Check. Serving in accordance with God’s laws and commandments? Check. Doing all of this with his whole heart? Check. Seeking God? Check. Those were the criteria by which God judged Hezekiah to be prosperous. That’s a far cry from the definition of the world.

I want to be this kind of prosperous. I want to have God say about me, “Brian did what was good and right and faithful before the LORD his God.” I can’t imagine a better way to be prosperous. I know money isn’t the answer. I’ve seen smart folks blow through money. I’ve seen folks with lots of money who are miserable. Hezekiah had money, but that wasn’t part of God’s definition of prosperity. I know chasing after pleasure isn’t the answer. The way we talk about how celebrities are disconnected from real life and the amount of news about how many of them have turned to substances to try and forget the lack of satisfaction in their lives shows that the pursuit of pleasure above all else is a bottomless pit of despair. As king over Judah, Hezekiah could have chased after pleasure. Solomon did. That’s the basis for Ecclesiastes – pleasure is a dead-end. Hezekiah had the ability to chase after pleasure, but that also wasn’t part of God’s definition of prosperity. Fame? See the celebrities again. As the king, Hezekiah had fame. But that, too, was excluded from God’s definition of prosperity. Power? Look what’s going on in the world right now. So many problems. So many headaches. Having power means being the point person to deal with these issues. Hezekiah had power in spades. But that’s not what made him prosperous in God’s eyes.

He sought after God. What was Hezekiah’s secret? When he realized that the nation had forsaken God’s laws and commandments, he immediately sought God. When Sennacherib came knocking, Hezekiah went to God and God’s prophet, Isaiah. When he was sick, he sought God. When he was prideful and both he and the nation were suffering, he sought God and humbled himself. That’s an interesting point. In 2 Chronicles 32:24-31 we’re told that Hezekiah’s pride became an issue. That pride resulted in the wrath of God. Hezekiah let go of that pride. Being right before God was more important. And we’re told that God provided Hezekiah with great riches. He gave Hezekiah prosperity according to the world’s standard. Why? To test Hezekiah’s heart. To force Hezekiah to make a choice between the money and God. Hezekiah chose rightly. He chose God. He put his eyes back upon his Lord.

That’s what we’ve got to do, too. We’ve got to look past whatever it is that holds us back in this life. We look at those things and we get fearful or we get complacent or we get doubtful or we get comfortable. Either of those directions is because what’s in front of our eyes is big: big enough for us to feel the way we feel. But if we instead choose to see God as He really is, bigger than everything else, and we know He is so much bigger, if He is what consumes our vision, then the natural consequence is we will do what is right and good and faithful. We will see and meet the needs because we’ll see Him pointing the way. If He is our vision, then our hearts will be His. We will serve Him with our whole hearts. We will be prosperous in His sight according to His definition of what is prosperous. So we don’t just need to think bigger, but see bigger, too.

The Miracles of Jesus (22/35)

It’s a common theme throughout Scripture that God looks at our hearts and therefore our actions should be about being pleasing and obedient to Him and not to put on a show for others to see. If what we do happens to be seen by others, or by His direction must be seen by others, then so be it. Most of Jesus’ miracles were public. He was pressed in and there were so many to minister to that He could not have it any other way. Others were private. The first miracle at the wedding in Cana was such an example. Most folks had no idea where the wine came from. And so we see with today’s miracle that Jesus wasn’t about public show, but about real needs:

Then he returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged him to lay his hand on him. And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue. And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. And Jesus charged them to tell no one. But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.” – Mark 7:31-37, ESV

There was a crowd and there was a man brought before Him who needed healing. This man was both deaf and had a speech impediment (likely due to the deafness, but we’re not told why). Jesus doesn’t heal this man in front of the crowd. Rather, He takes him aside and heals him in private. It wasn’t about the show. It was about meeting this man’s needs. Now you think about the elaborate actions Jesus takes in this miracle, too. He puts His fingers into the man’s ears, then wets His own finger and touches the man’s tongue. Only then does He, after looking up to the Father, ask that they be opened. Think about what those touches meant to the man. They revealed that Jesus took his condition seriously and was actively at work to correct it. And then, as expected, the man was healed. His ears were immediately opened and he could speak quite clearly. Jesus met the man’s need at every level.

What He does next is something we’ve seen Jesus do before. He asks that they not spread the news of what He has done. This is in keeping with what Paul revealed about Christ in Philippians 2:

And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. – Philippians 2:8, ESV

Jesus hadn’t come to glorify Himself, but the Father. And in this instance, He remained true to that purpose, and that’s why He again asked that no mention be made of the miracle. But as we might expect, the folks who saw it couldn’t restrain themselves. They shared what had been done all the more. And as they did so, they talked about Jesus’ nature: how He did all things well. Think about that for a minute. None of us can make the same claim. There are certainly things we’re great at. But there are other things we’re terrible at. But not Jesus. Everything He attempted He did well. He even did things that were beyond natural ability. That’s what the people were saying.

But do you know that God isn’t interested in our particular ability in something so much as He is our hearts? That’s really the crux of this miracle. Jesus did the miracle in private. He didn’t do it for show. He did it because He was reaching out and taking care of a need, and in doing so glorifying the Father. We’re called to the same. What we lack, the Father will complete. He just wants our obedience (in the fullest sense of the word) and He’ll take care of the rest. It’s not about us, but it’s about Him. We do it not for us, but for Him. And that’s how we can be used to be miracles in the lives of those around us. Sounds like a pretty good deal to me.

The Miracles of Jesus (3/35)

Have you ever felt like you were face-to-face with the Savior? How would you know? I think we get a good picture of what that is like in this miracle.

Now it happened that while the crowd was pressing around Him and listening to the word of God, He was standing by the lake of Gennesaret; and He saw two boats lying at the edge of the lake; but the fishermen had gotten out of them and were washing their nets. And He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little way from the land. And He sat down and began teaching the people from the boat. When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”

Simon answered and said, “Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing, but I will do as You say and let down the nets.”

When they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish, and their nets began to break; so they signaled to their partners in the other boat for them to come and help them. And they came and filled both of the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw that, he fell down at Jesus’ feet, saying, “Go away from me Lord, for I am a sinful man!” For amazement had seized him and all his companions because of the catch of fish which they had taken; and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not fear, from now on you will be catching men.”

When they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed Him.
- Luke 5:1-11, NASB

Our Lord had a purpose in everything He did that day. He always does. He was by those boats intentionally. He stepped into Simon’s boat for a reason. And then when He was done with His message, He spoke to Simon directly, for it was Simon He needed to reach. The Lord is the same way with us. He has chosen us. He has prepared a place for us. And we aren’t His by accident or chance. We are His by His sovereign will. If you’ve ever felt alone, if you’ve ever felt like no one cared about you, if you feel this way now, realize that God does care. God does love you. God hasn’t given up on you. In fact, He chose to make you one of His children. It was done on purpose.

Something else we can learn from this miracle is that He can give us success, even when everything we’ve done has met with failure. When we lean on our own power, when we trust in ourselves when we should be trusting in Him, we can find ourselves unable to accomplish the very things we believe He wants us to do. The key there is who we trusted. We trusted us. And despite our best efforts, we are imperfect. We don’t know everything. We don’t see everything. And we certainly can’t be everywhere. But He can and He is. And if we’d trust Him a bit more, we’d see that we’d have a lot more successes than failures. After all, God gave us Himself. And so long as we are acting in accordance with His will, He has promised to provide everything we need, if we only ask.

Now stop and think about both of those things for a moment. Think about what they say about our Savior. Then compare where He is versus where we are. For us it is so easy to be too busy for the people around us. And we certainly can’t always turn other people’s failures into successes. Not when we can’t be successful under our own strength. But God does both and He does so completely. We are so far away from Him it is beyond measure. And that’s where Simon Peter was. That’s why he asked Jesus to go away and that’s why he pointed to his own sinfulness. We’re no different than Peter. A perfect and righteous God has willing sacrificed Himself for a bunch of imperfect vagabonds corrupted by sin. And yet He says He wants to be our Savior and our friend. How can we stand before that? How can we or do anything but kneel before Him as our Sovereign and Liege? That’s where Peter was as at.

Then Jesus extended His call. This was His point all along. There were four men here who needed to hear it: Peter, Andrew, James, and John. Notice what their reaction was. They hit dry land and then walked away from what they knew. They left behind their jobs. They left behind their families. They set everything aside to follow Christ. In our busy lives how close do we come to repeating their example? If we get to where Peter found himself, when Jesus extends His call, that’s how we’ll respond. Or perhaps Jesus extended His call to Peter because He knew Peter would see his own sinfulness and then follow without regret or reservation. Something to think about.

Patience Amid Trials and Tribulations

Ever get blasted for doing the right thing when few others (maybe no others) were? How about being looked down upon because you made a serious mistake about something, especially something you knew better than to do? Or what about feeling the heat when others are succeeding in the world’s eyes and you’re not because you’re not willing to play their “game?” God understands. He has been there. The Gospel accounts show time and again where Jesus could have decided to do it the way the religious leaders of His day wanted Him to, but He refused. Had He done it their way, He likely would have been given great honor and recognized as one of the movers and shakers of Jewish society by these guys. But Jesus couldn’t do it their way. Their way wasn’t right. They were actually leading the people astray with their beliefs and with their work-centered philosophies about how to be holy before a Holy God. And He felt the heat for it. They tried to kill Him. And when it was time, when the Passover Lamb needed to be sacrificed for the remission of our sins, he let them do so. They probably thought they had won. But they were wrong. We won. We won because with that sacrifice we were forgiven. We were given what we couldn’t obtain. And Christ imparted on us His righteousness and His holiness.

It’s one thing for Jesus to do it and quite another for us to handle those situations well. After all, He wasn’t just the Son of Man, He was the Son of God, the I AM, right? That may be true, but when we were saved from our sins, God sent the Holy Spirit to dwell within us, to lead us, to counsel us, and to pray for us even when we have no idea what to pray. God has placed Himself within us to help us see things from His perspective and to trust in faith on His power. When we do so we will see reward. Maybe not right away, but over time, maybe even as late as eternity. But God keeps His promises. That should help us to persevere even when things are looking pretty miserable. In fact, that’s exactly what God tells us to do:

But as for me, I will watch expectantly for the LORD;
I will wait for the God of my salvation
My God will hear me.
Do not rejoice over me, O my enemy
Though I fall I will rise;
Though I dwell in darkness, the LORD is a light for me.
I will bear the indignation of the LORD
Because I have sinned against Him,
Until He pleads my case and executes justice for me
He will bring me out to the light,
And I will see His righteousness.
Then my enemy will see,
And shame will cover her who said to me,
“Where is the LORD your God?”
My eyes will look on her;
At that time she will be trampled down
Like mire of the streets.
- Micah 7:7-10, NASB

We have to remember that what we’re going through is noticed and acknowledged by God. Sometimes we go through trials and tribulations through no fault of our own. Sometimes it’s circumstances, a fault of this fallen world tainted by sin. That’s why the prophet Micah refers to falling but still rising, dwelling in darkness and God still being a light without any qualification. Sometimes it is our fault. We’ve sinned against God. However, we are reminded that when He executes justice for us, it will be with mercy. He will bring us into the light. We will see His righteousness. We will be made better because He has decided to improve us in spite of our iniquity. That’s not an excuse to go and sin more, because if we truly love God we seek to avoid sin in our lives, but it is a reminder of how He overcomes our weaknesses in the areas that really count.

And what about those who scoff and mock at us? What about those who kick us when we’re down? When we rise back up how should we respond? We shouldn’t. We have to remember we are no better than any other. If someone has torn into our flesh with word and/or deed, if they’ve heaped abuse and hurt on us, we need to let it go. Notice that Micah speaks here as an observer to what happens to his enemy. Micah is not the agent causing retribution on the enemy. He merely sees what happens. The enemy will suffer shame. The enemy will be trampled down. We aren’t to do it. God will take care of all the details. He will deliver judgment and justice. We’re to wait on God expectantly for our salvation. We’re to be focused on Him.

Think about this for a second… if we are consumed with revenge, for wanting to give back what we’ve gotten, that means our focus is on us. That means our focus is not on our Lord and our God. And that’s why Micah starts the whole thing with where our focus should be. If we’re focused on God in the midst of our trials, we are able to bear them better. We are able to have patience as we suffer through them. Things will get better. Remember, whatever we suffer through in this lifetime does not compare with the glory of the next. So even if it doesn’t get better here and now, it will be better in eternity. Many a Christian has met their end standing firm for their faith. This is how they are able. They have the long term view, the one that reminds them that suffering for Christ means they have been counted worthy! And if we’ve gone through suffering and come out the other side, our focus needs to remain on Christ. Let Him deal with those who harmed us. We’ve got better things to do than try and pay them back. Things like worshipping the one who first loved us and saved us from our sins.