Right and Wrong

Right and wrong are not decided by a Gallop poll. "A majority of Americans now believe" . . . is irrelevant.
Right and wrong are not decided by Congress or a majority of Supreme Court Justices or even political documents such as the Constitution of the United States.
Right and wrong are not determined by my personal convictions, by my statement "I believe that "such and such" is right--or wrong.
Right and wrong are not even determined by someone's willingness to die for what they believe in.
Right and wrong is not a by-product of man's reasoning abilities or his emotional response to any issue no matter how sincere. Man is a fallen creature--marred by sin in his entire being.

The infinitely good, righteous, holy, loving, immutable God has revealed to us through His Word what is right and what is wrong. Any discussion of right and wrong must begin with those four words that we too often hate to hear and so instantaneously and easily begin to chafe under in our puny but arrogant self-righteous pride: "Thus, says the Lord."

Now the reason we should be clear in communicating what God says is right and what God says is wrong is because the man or woman who dies in his or her sins will spend eternity separated from God and all that is good and lovely and beautiful and glorious and worthy of praise. How can I possibly say to someone that "I love them" and then, refuse to speak of the sin that will keep them forever separated from Eternal Love? To agree with a man or woman that their sin is really not sin, or really not a big deal, is to hate them, to despise their eternal souls. And how horrible would it be to do that masquerading under the guise of "love"?

Jesus said, more than a few times, "Unless you repent, you will die in your sins." And He came into the world, lived a sinless life, and died for our sins, so that anyone who recognizes his or her sinful condition and need of a Savior and who believes in Him--trusts fully and solely--on His finished atoning work on the cross will not perish but have everlasting life lavished by Eternal Love--surrounded by all that is good and lovely and beautiful and glorious and worthy of praise.

Christ Jesus came into the world to call sinners to repentance--not the "righteous." How can we do less--sinners who have been led by His Spirit to put our faith in His marvelous grace?

"The wages of sin is eternal death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

Abraham and Lot

The choices of Lot and Abraham in Genesis 13 are especially instructive for this age in which we live. The issue was really fairly simple: who or what will you trust in to supply your needs. Abraham, the eldest and by all rights the one who should have done the choosing, let his nephew Lot choose. He asserted no rights, no conditions, just put Lot first. Abraham realized that no choice made by a man could undermine the promises of God. He would walk by faith. Lot, on the other hand, used man's criteria to make his choice--he walked by sight.
We all know the results of the choices. Abraham is protected and blessed by God. All his needs are met abundantly. With his eyes fixed on the heavenly city, he grows closer and closer to God, deepening his relationship with Him. Oh, it's not a trouble free walk. He at times slips in his faith and looks at the circumstances through eyes of fear and worry, but he is headed in the right direction. Having chosen the right treasure--the right security--his heart leads him to a deeper love and growing confidence in his Master. His security was his faith in the promises of God.
On the other hand, Lot, walking by sight, loses everything. And the walk is a heart rending one. Peter tells us that, being a righteous man, his soul was vexed day after day by the lifestyle and values of those whom he had chosen to live among. Lot never had a day of peace in his relationship with God no matter how much earthly security he found in the fertile fields of Sodom and Gomorrah. And, of course, the security of men can be lost in an instant. God moves and it becomes dust and ashes.
In what do you place your trust? The criteria of men? The seeking of material security in the attractive fields of human wealth and prosperity? Success there will torture your soul, destroy your family, and leave you empty handed without a moment's notice. Like Abraham, walk by faith, and the God of infinite resources will meet your needs according to His riches in glory. That's really the choice, isn't it? Self-reliance or God-reliance. Will you rely on your resources or His? Think about how simple the choice should be.

"And Abraham died . . . satisfied with life."

Celebrate with Praises

Did you celebrate your gifts today?

Chosen before the foundation of the world so that one day you can stand in God's presence holy and blameless--a citizen of Heaven.
Lovingly adopted into His family through the willing atonement made by His Son, the focus of the Father's eternal loving care.
Redeemed through His blood, even our transgressions--our deliberate sins forgiven; His grace lavished upon us.
Given the insight and wisdom to know His will--that in the consummation of human history Christ, our Savior, will be the center of it all, "that everything that exists in Heaven or earth will find its perfection and fulfillment in Him."
Obtained an inheritance, a guaranteed hope--a confidence--that we will be to the praise of His glory.
Sealed as His eternal possession by the omnipotent power of the Holy Spirit.

"Celebrate with praises the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ!"

"And this is my prayer: That God, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ and the all glorious Father, will give you spiritual wisdom and insight to know more of Him: that you may receive that inner illumination of the Spirit which will make you realize how great is the hope to which He is calling you--the magnificence and splendor of the inheritance promised to Christians--and how tremendous the power available to us who believe in God." (Phillips)

These gifts resting totally in the good, pleasing will of God the Father can never be lost or stolen or tarnished or rusted through or moth eaten or in anyway diminished.

Is there any day, then, under any circumstances that our hearts should not be filled to overflowing with joy and gratitude and trust and loving obedience?

Nonsense

"The preaching of the cross is, I know, nonsense to those who are involved in this dying world, but to us who are being saved from that death it is nothing less than the power of God.

It is written:

I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
And the prudence of the prudent I will reject.

For consider, what have the philosopher, the writer and the critic of this world to show for all their wisdom? Has not God made the wisdom of this world look foolish? For it was after the world in its wisdom had failed to know God, that He is His wisdom chose to save all who would believe by the "simplemindedness" of the gospel message. For the Jews ask for miraculous proofs and the Greeks an intellectual panacea, but all we preach is Christ crucified--a stumbling block to the Jews and sheer nonsense to the gentiles, but for those who are called, whether Jews or Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. And this is only natural, for God's "foolishness" is wiser than men, and his "weakness" stronger than men." (Phillips)

Trust

Trust is always a scary proposition. Why? Humans. All of us at times unintentionally and intentionally prove ourselves to be untrustworthy. Everyone that you trust will at times disappoint. Your trust will at times, by some, be taken advantage of. Some of the greatest sorrows in life come when those who above all others should have been true and trustworthy chose instead to deliberately, callously, dare I say, maliciously, betray our trust. What to do? How should one respond?
The answer is simple: trust. Think of it this way. What if the Lord quit using us as His light and salt, quit using us to take His place as His witness to the world, quit trusting us when we had proved ourselves untrustworthy? We'd all be "on the shelf," would we not? Way back in that shelf in the back of the garage. Forgotten. Labeled "useless." "This 'product' cannot be trusted to do God's work."
We need to understand that loving someone and trusting someone are inseparable. Can a love not resting on trust even exist? Sure, there will be moments of disappointment. Some times we will be the "disappointer." But as we continue to trust--and forgiveness is essential to a life of trust--love matures and grows. Deepens. In fact, we can never grasp the full depth of love until we are trusted again after we have failed to be trustworthy. Neither can those in our lives whom we are called to love unconditionally begin to understand the full measure of love until we trust them to be trustworthy after they have failed. If God continues to trust us, humans that we are (humans who have even been given the Holy Spirit to enable us!), even after we fail to be worthy of trust, how can we not continue to trust?

You see, the real reason we don't trust is because we are more in love with ourselves than we are with the other person. You call that selfishness--the worst kind of selfishness, selfish love.

Is trusting easy? Not a chance. Will you be hurt and taken advantage of at times? Undoubtedly. But you and the people in your life will never understand what it means to be loved if we don't trust. And tell me, who in your life has God called you to love as unconditionally as He loves you? Exactly.


I cannot trust and obey Him if I do not trust others.

Christmas

Christmas:

"Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am the worst. And if He can save me, He can save anyone."

"Hope makes us not ashamed because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts."

"Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to all men."

"I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God to everyone who believes."

"Sanctify them in the truth; Thy Word is the Truth."

"Take My yoke on you and learn of Me for I am meek and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls."

"My word which goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty without accomplishing what I desire."

"All we like a sheep had gone astray each in our own way but the Lord laid on Him the iniquity of us all."

"Search me O God and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there be any way of pain in me and lead me in the everlasting way."

A Christmas Story

A Christmas Story:

The old shepherd had been up all night tending the fire, alert for dangers. As always, his thoughts this time of year were on that miraculous night of--what was it now--over thirty years ago? A clear, starry night just like last night. That angel nearly gave us all a heart attack . . . he could laugh now. And what a sense of calm and serenity and peace had overwhelmed them all at those two words, "Fear not." And then the message--"The Messiah has been born in Bethlehem!" And then the whole choir showed up! Over thirty years ago . . . seems like just last night. But only three of us are left now who remember--the rush to town, the young couple, and that beautiful boy in that manger. The King . . . born in a manger. Never will forget that. Been telling people that story for . . . well, thirty years now. Not many believers. They think I'm crazy. "Spent too many days and nights hanging out with those sheep." Humph.
Went into town a few times after that to try to get another glance at the child. Didn't want to disturb the parents again though. Just kind of moseyed down the streets keeping my eyes open. Asked the townspeople about him. The folks said that he was such a gentle toddler. Everybody loved Him. Even the animals loved him.
And, of course, everybody went to town when those magi guys showed up. Impressive. Said they had come to worship the King of the Jews! Caused a few people who had questioned our story to think twice. And then that evil fox Herod sent those soldiers. To kill little babies! He answered for that when he stood before the King of the Universe I'm sure. The heart of man . . . wicked. Oh, we need a savior!
Up here in the fields we were stunned and heart-broken when we heard about it. And then we heard that the husband--Joseph, I think his name was--had taken his wife and child and left just a couple days before the soldiers came. Warned by God I'll bet. Don't know where they went. And I haven't heard a word about that baby boy--he'd be a young man by now. Puzzling. By this time shouldn't the Messiah have made Himself known to the people?
And then those rumors started coming in--even to us poor shepherds out here in the wilderness. A young rabbi, preaching about a kingdom, performing miracles. Same name too--Jesus, Jehovah saves. Sounds as if he's about the right age. From Galilee though. But maybe that's where the family ended up when they fled Herod. They weren't from Bethlehem originally. Had just arrived that night the child was born. Came from somewhere. Came to register for that tax thing. Ahhh, well.
"Josiah! Time to get up boy!" He shook his young grandson awake. "Sun's coming up. You need to get going. It's a little bit of a trip. Wish I could go with you but my old arthritic legs won't allow it. You pay particular attention to everything he says so you can tell me when you get back. I know that I would recognize him if I could just see him, look into his eyes. Sounds crazy, I know, Josiah, since I only saw him as a baby and a toddler. But I'm sure your old crazy grandpa would know Him. And I have to know Josiah! I have to know if it's Him--"little Jesus" all grown up! You won't mind missing a couple of days up here in the fields will you? Remember tell me everything He says--and does. I just have to know! And be careful. Oh, I packed you a small lunch--just some loaves and a few fish. Remember--I want to know everything he says--and does!
Is this rabbi, miracle-worker my Jesus? I must know."

Simeon and Hannah

We focus often on the shepherds and the magi. I wonder why we pay so little attention to the second "group" that encountered our Savior--Simeon and Hannah. A month or so after His birth, they embraced Him in the temple. What a place to meet the Savior!! Perhaps the two greatest scholars in Israel. Both knew He was coming--and why. "A light to the Gentiles and the glory of His people Israel." We assume Simeon was an older gentleman--don't know for sure; Hannah was in her eighties. A long time prayer warrior!! Two saints who spent their days in fellowship with the Father--and knew it. Rejoiced in His presence in their daily walk! I can just see Simeon holding that baby in his arms, blessing the promise keeping God and then blessing Mary and Joseph. (I wonder how many times he had come to the temple in expectation: "This is the day I will see Him!") Joy and sorrow in his eyes as he gently, I'm sure, told Mary of the deep and piercing sorrow she would experience by loving her Son. And Hannah coming over in the beauty of her old age (Is there anything more beautiful than the countenance of Christ radiating from one of His elderly faithful saints?) to embrace the little child as well. And then off to tell her "Bible study group" that the Redeemer had come! "I've seen Him. I've held Him!" The rewarding of the saints in the land of the living! May we who love Him having not seen Him--yet believing in Him, bless our Father and tell all who will listen, "The Redeemer has come! The Light and Glory of the world! Embrace His salvation freely offered to all who will believe."

"For unto us a child is born; unto us a son is given . . . and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace!"

"Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His Holy Name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget none of His benefits;
Who pardons all your iniquities;
Who heals all your diseases;
Who redeems your life from the pit;
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;
Who satisfies your years with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagles."

Hannah was a young 87 that day!!

The Lord God

In Exodus 34 God describes Himself: "The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and faithfulness; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity and transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations."

You don't get to pick and choose the attributes you want and discard the others. And no, you don't get to define iniquity, transgression, and sin. And yes, should the Lord tarry, the choices our nation makes will impact--at least--the next four generations. And yes, the choices you make do not just impact you. We need to brand the word "consequences" on our minds--and hearts. "Choose you this day whom you will serve."

One of the devil's biggest lies is that "there are no consequences."

Mary

Just musing . . .

The more I think about it--dangerous I know--the more I'm convinced that when Jesus called His mother Mary, "Woman," it was a name of endearment and reminder. Reminder of what you say? A reminder of who He was and who she was. He was "the seed of the woman" come to be bruised by the Serpent, but to, in the process, crush the Serpent. (He has been crushed, you know!) She was the "Woman" God had graciously selected to be the mother of His Son. That assignment brought mystery, joy, and sorrow into her life. I'm thinking she needed encouraging reminders. Don't you love Gabriel's greeting to Mary, "Hail, oh woman greatly blessed." And, "Mary, you have found favor with God." Think she ever forgot that moment and those words? "Oh woman greatly blessed." I think our God of encouragement was eager to keep reminding Mary of her blessing and of the mission of her Son. Aren't you delighted when God's Spirit brings to your heart and mind words of encouragement?

(And while I'm musing, I wish the Lord had shared with us the moment when He found Himself in His mother's arms after His resurrection. I bet I know what He called her.)

Why Is It?

Why is it that I, who could convince anyone in about ten seconds how little I actually know, seem to always think that I know more than the omniscient God about what should or shouldn't have happened?
Why is it that I, who love so selfishly and imperfectly, am always questioning how loving my Savior is being--the One who willingly, joyously, gave His life for His enemies--for me--by the cruelest of tortures?
Why is it that I, whom am constantly spending the excess that God has given me on me, get so upset about the needs in the world that aren't being met?
Why is it that I, who sin every day without even thinking about it and too often after thinking about it, believe that the immutable, righteous, holy, sinless God is in error when He tells me what is sinful and immoral?
Why isn't that I, who don't even know for sure what will happen in the next sixty seconds, believe that the infinite, eternal God has no idea what is best for the future?

Why? Idolatry. I think that I should be god. That I could do a better job. Oh, I would never say it. But my thoughts and actions betray my self-worship. The enemy says, "You shall be like gods." And I embrace his lies.

"God me merciful to me a sinner!"

And graciously He always is. Amazing love.

"Oh, love that will not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee."

"O Cross that liftest up my head, I dare not ask to hide from Thee."

Conquerors

Let's see now. We are aliens in a hostile world. We have a powerful enemy who is constantly trying to attack God by attacking us. We have a sin nature that is in conflict with the Holy Spirit's desire to transform us. We have a world that constantly bombards us with ideas meant to conform us to their image and thought processes. We are surrounded by needs, and our resources and abilities can never completely solve the problem. The things we want to do we don't do, and the things we don't want to do, we end up doing. We live in bodies of flesh that time and age and ache and get sick and have unquenchable appetites. We live a life of faith with no guarantee of the outcome; and often, no idea what the outcome was.

And yet, we are more than conquerors. Why? "Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world." When we are weak, then we are strong. Where sin abounds, grace does much more abound. "My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory." "Faithful is He who called you, who will also perform it." Yes, "thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!" As the song writer says, "Not to the strong is the battle, not to the swift is the race, but to the true and the faithful, victory is promised through grace." "Marvelous grace of our loving Lord!" "Great is Thy faithfulness!"

Later

"Later" has a way of becoming "never." The men of Israel who believed the ten spies who had returned from the Promised Land and had, consequently, rebelled against God's promises found that out. They "presumed to go up into the hill top" and take the Promised Land after God said they would be wandering in the wilderness for forty years. They decided that God's "it's too late" was not really true just as they had decided a few days before that God's "now is the time" was not really true. They were guilty of those presumptuous sins the psalmist prays that God will deliver him from. The enemy routed them.
Never presume upon the goodness or severity of God. When He says something, do it immediately. Many have hesitated and found it too late. Esau sought repentance with tears but it was too late to get the blessing. For Ananias and Sapphira it was too late to serve God completely and honestly. For Noah's generation it was too late to return to their Creator and worship Him. For Judas, it was too late. Lot's wife--too late. Sodom and Gomorrah--too late. Gehazi--too late. The rich man and his barns--too late. A generation of Israelis--too late. Obey God now when the call comes for obedience. Obeying God later may be later than you think. Beware. Satan always has some reasonable alternative to ready obedience, the result of which is heartache and failure. When the Spirit of God reveals to you a step of obedience, do not presume upon the patience of God. Act now.
"Keep back Thy servant from presumptuous sins and let them not have dominion over me; then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression."

Security

Security has nothing to do with how much money you have in the bank. It has nothing to do with how marvelous your health is. It has nothing to do with the stability of the economic system. It has nothing to do with job security. It has nothing to do with how fantastic of a retirement plan you have. It has everything to do with Who holds you in His hands and promises to be with you and stand by you in the midst of the flood, in the midst of the fire, in the midst of the storm, even in those times when you're trying to live as if you don't need Him or want Him or trust Him. In poverty His presence makes you richer than a king. In loneliness His presence lavishes you with His love. In defeat and failure His presence makes you an overwhelming conqueror. In the shadow of death His presence makes you confidently fearless. In disappointment His presence sets you on the Rock of hope. In times of prosperity His presence gives you His heart of compassion for the needy. In times of confusion His presence gives you the clarity of faith. In each and every moment of your life, His presence makes you secure.

Security: "But while God and I shall be, I am His and He is mine."

A Lineage of Grace

This time of year I always meditate on the grace found in the lineage of our Savior. My favorite is the double grace given to Rahab. First, her faith saved her from Jericho's fate. And then she got a Jewish husband! (I tend to lean toward it being one of the spies she saved--but who knows.) And she became one of our Savior's grandmothers. The double blessing of grace? She had a godly, compassionate son who is also one of Scripture's heroes. His name was Boaz--Ruth's kinsman redeemer. Grace, grace, marvelous grace!

Another grace story in our Savior's lineage: A wife by the duplicitous wrangling of her father; a victim of a husband's apathy because of his selfish disease called "playing favorites." (He was really "good" at it.) Yet, chosen by God to be another one of our Savior's grandmothers. Her name? Leah.

A third grace story: David and Bathsheba. Their first son died. Please don't believe that grace eliminates consequences. But the grace of God was undeniably evident in the birth of their second son. You've heard of Solomon, right? Grace, grace, marvelous grace.

When I read Jesus "family tree" in Matthew, I am struck by how many of those people we know absolutely nothing about. They are nearly anonymous blips on the screen of history. Yet, our God knew each of them and by His grace preserved them so that in the fullness of time we might have our Savior. From one blip on the screen of history to another, isn't it astounding that the God of the universe knows you and that your "family tree" has been preserved through all the years of history from Noah to today? What did all my European ancestors live through--wars, plagues, famines, migrations, who knows what?--that I would be here today in this century, in this country, chosen and adopted into His family by His infinite grace? Grace, grace, God's grace--marvelous grace. Isn't it great being one of his blips on the screen of history? 

Hilltops

The prophet Jeremiah--the weeping prophet--sat on the hill overlooking Jerusalem after the city and its people had been plundered and pillaged by the ruthless Babylonian army; and, he had these thoughts:

"How lonely sits the city that was full of people! She has become like a widow who was once great among the nations."
"For the Lord has caused her grief because of the multitude of her transgressions."
"My eyes fail because of tears, my spirit is greatly troubled; my heart is poured out upon the earth."
"The Lord has done what He purposed; He has accomplished His word which He commanded from the days of old."

God's people had become no different from the pagan societies surrounding them: idolatrous, immoral, apathetic to the poor and needy, pompous in their "security" that since they still worshiped Jehovah (along with the other gods) that He would protect them--not judge them. They were wrong. The immutable, infinitely holy and righteous God, always judges His people for their spiritual adultery. Jeremiah knew the judgment was righteous, but it broke his heart.

And then at possibly the worst moments of his life, the prophet remembered--remembered those words that we so often sing without reflecting on their context:

"The Lord's lovingkindnesses indeed never cease; for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Thy faithfulness. 'The Lord is my portion,' says my soul, 'therefore I have hope in Him.' The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the person who seeks Him. It is good that He waits silently for the salvation of the Lord."

At those worst moments in our lives, can we sing those words? Can we with tears streaming down our faces rejoice in the great faithfulness of God? Can we seek Him by waiting, silently, without complaint, knowing that He is our Deliverer from any and all disappointments, any and all failures, any and all discipline? He is all that He has revealed Himself to be. Sitting on our hilltops, may we remember and believe.

"Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father, there is no shadow of turning with Thee; Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not; as Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be. Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness! Morning by morning new mercies I see; all I have needed Thy hand hath provided--Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me!"