Colin S. Smith's Blog, page 99

How to Cultivate a Heart of Faith

Sooner or later, the unexpected—even the unthinkable—will rip through our lives like a Category 5 hurricane. Will our faith survive the gale-force winds?

That depends on whether we are sound of heart or slow of heart—whether we have cultivated a robust faith or merely scattered seeds of belief across the surface of our life.

Let’s consider how those who followed Jesus responded to the distressing news of his crucifixion. Learning from their experience can help us avoid a similar crisis of faith.

Slow of Heart

Cleopas and his companion were devastated. As they made the seven-mile journey from Jerusalem to Emmaus, they discussed the tragic events of Passover week and mourned the death of Jesus of Nazareth.

Then a stranger came alongside them and asked the reason for their sorrow. The travelers were shocked. How could this man be unaware of the events that had caused such an uproar in Jerusalem? Even so, since the man seemed eager to hear the story, they explained the treachery of the chief priests and rulers, the horror of the crucifixion, and the preposterous tales of the women who had visited the tomb earlier that morning.

The good news for the slow-of-heart is that Jesus gives and sustains faith.
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But instead of offering condolences, the stranger said, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!” (Luke 24:25, NKJV). Although the Scriptures don’t tell us how Cleopas and his fellow traveler responded to Jesus’ words, they were probably surprised by his rebuke.

Why did Jesus react that way? Why didn’t he ooze sympathy or identify himself immediately? The answer is revealed in Jesus’s first sentence: Cleopas and his companion were “slow of heart.” This phrase implies that the seat of someone’s intellect is inactive or dull. We might say the person isn’t “connecting the dots.”

Connecting the Dots

What “dots” were Cleopas and his companion supposed to connect? Jesus said they had failed to understand all the prophets had spoken. Throughout his three years of ministry, Jesus emphasized that he came to earth to fulfill the prophecies recorded in the Hebrew Scriptures—the Mosaic Law, the Prophets, and the Writings (including Psalms). In the days before his death, he reminded his followers repeatedly that the time had come for him to fulfill those Scriptures:

He told the twelve disciples he would die and rise again three days later (Luke 18:31-33).
In Jerusalem, he reminded all who gathered around him that he’d be lifted up to die (John 12:32-33).
During the Passover meal Jesus and his disciples shared on the eve of his crucifixion, he told them, “After I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee” (Mark 14:28).
As they walked from the house where they’d eaten to the Mount of Olives, he told them several times he was going away, but also promised he’d return (see John 16:1-22).

Yet, not one of the twelve remembered any of those reassurances, so they were unable to pass them on to the dozens of other disciples who’d come to Jerusalem that week to celebrate Passover, who had witnessed or heard about Jesus’ crucifixion.

Even the angels who greeted the women at the tomb asked, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?” Then they added, “Remember how he told you…[that] on the third day [he would] be raised again?” (Luke 24:5-8, NIV).

The angels rebuked the women for the same reason Jesus rebuked the Emmaus Road disciples: They were all mourning when they should’ve been rejoicing. They were doubting when they should’ve been believing.

We also fail to connect the dots of Jesus’ teaching. We latch on to promises such as “if you ask anything in my name, I will do it” and conclude he will respond as we wish in every situation (John 14:14). Then we’re disappointed, sometimes devastated, when he doesn’t. We may dismiss other teachings such as “take up the cross” and “in the world you will have tribulation” (Mark 10:21; John 16:33). Either ignorance or stubbornness causes us to set aside a connect-the-dots passage such as Romans 5:3-4: “We know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”

The Slow-of-Heart Remedy

If Jesus’ followers had listened carefully, they would have cultivated a sound heart rather than a slow heart. They would’ve been prepared, not only for the crucifixion, but also for the resurrection. Their sorrow on the day of Jesus’ death would’ve been alleviated by their confidence in his ultimate triumph over it.

Here’s the good news: When Jesus met with his followers after his resurrection, he gave them the slow-of-heart remedy.

First, he opened the Scriptures to them (Luke 24:45). He revealed himself and his ways to them through the written Word. He longs to do the same for us.
Second, he prayed with them and for them. According to Thayer’s Greek Lexicon, the word translated “bless” in Luke 24:50 means “to consecrate with solemn prayers” and “to ask God’s blessing on a thing” or person. So Jesus prays for us. Hebrews 7:25 says, “He lives forever to intercede with God on [our] behalf” (NLT). This truth assures us that no matter what circumstances challenge our faith, Jesus is praying for us to remain steadfast.
Third, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit who illuminated the Scriptures. He also guides us “into all truth” and enables us to bear the hardships and inexplicable circumstances that are impossible to withstand without his aid (John 16:7-13).

A Heart of Faith

Something or someone will inevitably wreak havoc in our lives. But we don’t have to dwell in the wreckage. Allow these three facts to restore order: Jesus will reveal his goodness and faithfulness to you if you ask; Jesus is praying for you 24/7 every day; and the Holy Spirit will guide you through whatever doubt-filled darkness you currently face.

The journey from “slow of heart” to “sound of heart” may be long. But just as Jesus came alongside the Emmaus Road duo, he’ll come alongside you and me. Will we watch for his arrival? And when he draws near, will we listen attentively to his illuminating truth?

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How to Live a Life of Faith
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Key Connections (June 15, 2017)

Ecclesiastes And The Postmodern Teenager: 4 Ways To Resist Casual Faith (Mike McGarry, Rooted Ministry)

As Christians, we intellectually know that we do need God to make sense of our world and our daily life, but so often in day-to-day living we lose sight of the miraculous.

Take Up Thy Swords: A Challenge to Memorize Chapters (Greg Morse, Desiring God)

Memorization, like Mark Twain said of the classics, is something everyone wants to have done, but nobody wants to do.

What Does It Really Mean To Be Blessed? (Katie Hughes, The Blazing Center)

I think we imagine “blessing” as something disconnected from how we live our lives. Sort of like a magical fairy godmother… But it’s pretty clear that a blessed man is one who loves God’s law, considers it throughout his days and nights, and obeys it.

The Spiritual Power Of Giving Thanks (Kevin Halloran, Anchored in Christ)

Lacking gratefulness is no peccadillo; it is a dangerous — and potentially deadly — red flag.

Do You Expect More Than God Promises? (Sarah Walton, Unlocking the Bible)

If God is good, faithful, just, loving, kind, merciful, gracious, compassionate, and sovereign, why does he allow confusing circumstances that rattle us?

 

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10 Things Your Children and Grandchildren Need To Know About You

What do your children and grandchildren know about you?

I don’t mean where you were born, and what school you went to, interesting though that might be. What do they know about what God has been doing in your life and what he is doing right now?

Some years ago, a friend and mentor said to me, “Be sure you spend good time with your sons during your teenage years.” I took his advice, and during their high school years I made the habit of spending one evening each week with one of our two boys. We would head to the shops, play tennis, or enjoy a good Chicago hot dog together.

In addition to our family times, my wife Karen and I both found that we were able to engage our children in a different and deeper conversation when we were with them one-on-one. Now that we are grandparents, we will soon have the opportunity of doing something similar with our grandchildren.

10 Things Your Children and Grandchildren Need to Know About You

Paul had a close mentoring relationship with his young apprentice, Timothy, and his description of what Timothy knew about him gives a helpful framework for some great conversations:

You…know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings…Yet the Lord rescued me from them all. (2 Timothy 3:10-11, NIV)

These verses give a checklist of 10 things you want your children and grandchildren to know about you.

1. Your teaching

What do you believe about the Bible, about the effects of sin in the human personality, about who Jesus is, and why he died and rose? What about the presence and power of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer, about the church, baptism and communion, and our glorious hope in the second coming of our Lord?

2. Your way of life

What has weighed most heavily in the choices that have shaped your lifestyle? There’s a great conversation to be enjoyed here about the value of living within your means, and the way you make choices about your use of money.

3. Your purpose

How would you describe the great purpose of your life? How have you pursued (or not pursued) that in the past, and how are you pursuing it now?

4. Your faith.

Where in your life have you most had to trust God?

5. Your patience

Where have you had to be especially patient in your life, and what did you learn when what you sought was long delayed?

6. Your love

Who and what do you love the most? This question opens up a great opportunity to affirm your love for your family, the Lord, and his people.

7. Your endurance

When did you find it especially difficult to persevere in something that God was calling you to do, and how did you find the strength to keep going?

8. Your persecutions

Where have you endured hardship that came into your life because you were serving the Lord? Your children and grandchildren will know that following Christ is always costly. What they need to grasp is that it is always worth it.

9. Your sufferings

How have you suffered in your life, and how has the Lord helped you in your suffering?

10. Your deliverance

Paul speaks about how God rescued him from all the afflictions that he faced. How has the Lord rescued or delivered you?

How to Start These Conversations

One way to get started would be to tell your children or grandchildren about this verse, and suggest that when you are together, you would like to have 10 conversations that mirror those Paul would have had with Timothy.

You could use the questions above to start these conversations, and after you have taken the lead in sharing your experience, you could ask your child or grandchild to respond by sharing theirs. Hearing them open up about what they believe and where they struggle will be a great blessing to you and to them.

You have more to share with your children and grandchildren than you may think, and they may have more interest in hearing than you might expect.

[This article is adapted from Pastor Colin’s June 2017 column in Mature Living Magazine.]

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Parents and Children, Be Motivated by the Gospel
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Be Nourished by the Bread of Life

About four years ago, I experienced my first full-blown panic attack. Those experiences accumulated, and I grew to have increasing difficulty with leaving my home. I remember willfully dumping myself into the passenger seat to be driven to my parents’ nearby home—only to feel an urgent pull two minutes later for the car to be turned around. I remember my husband and I taking our trotting dog for a walk, yards from our home, and I was unable to carry a simple conversation because of the mental pain. By God’s grace, I was directed to a health cause for this anxiety.

Yet, in my months without answers, I experienced the temptation to dwell exclusively upon the question, Will my life now always be like this? Yet, it was because I had peace with God through Christ that I did not despair—and I could see beyond it.

Hunger and Thirst in the Wilderness

David writes of his vision on God in Psalm 63. It is a Psalm from the wilderness—David describes his setting as a waterless, vapid, weary place.

O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;

    my soul thirsts for you;

my flesh faints for you,

    as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. (v. 1)

And Scripture speaks of different categories of wildernesses.

We can see John the Baptist in the wilderness before the beginning of his ministry of proclaiming the coming of Christ (Luke 1:80). He was in a place of knowing that God had issued a calling upon his life, while, for years, he was not at a time of fulfilling that calling—he was waiting.

A wilderness might also be a place of temptation where evil moves—consider Jesus being brought into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1). Christ knows what it is to feel the pressures of being sinned against or to face relentless lies.

The Wilderness of the Soul

Scripture also speaks of another kind of wilderness; John the Baptist proclaimed it (Matthew 3:3), and this is when the Christian faith starts to get especially personal. Scripture says that without Christ, there is a wilderness within us. As our state without Christ is described further by John the Baptist, we see that it is the kind of wilderness we cannot pull ourselves from, and that time alone will not rectify.

Now, David, in his wilderness, said, I thirst, I hunger. And we might similarly say, My soul aches. Yet, David adds two sweet words—for you. In every kind of wilderness, he hungered for the Lord.

The first verse of the Psalm speaks to why he can say these things. First, he says, God; he confesses that God is God, whether or not he and those around him acknowledge it. God.

He goes on to say, You are my God. Now, that is an entirely separate statement—he wanted God to be God of his life and have that exclusive role. And because God was invited to be God of his life, he had formed this habit of praising God in his most barren times.

In fact, he says that doing so was his rich, hearty, meaty, satisfying meal.

The Everyday, Eternal Bread of Life

Jesus says he is the Bread of Life, and that in him, we will never hunger. As Jesus teaches this truth, the theme of wilderness continues. When the Israelites were in the wilderness, they received manna from heaven—yet, Jesus says, They died (John 6:49). Jesus is saying that the kind of food he comes to give us is in a completely different category.

He comes to us in our direst and deadliest of wildernesses—the one of our souls. He says his food fills us entirely with life even there. So, surely, he can fill us in every other kind of wilderness.

Strikingly here, Jesus speaks about eternal, spiritual, significant realities—life, the living Father, the resurrection, being alive forever—but in terms of the everyday, basic human reality of eating a piece of bread.

Jesus expresses what he is to us as the Son of God, telling us, Eat my flesh, drink my blood. This is what he invites us to do! How much more applicable to our everyday lives could this be? 

Three Truths About Christ’s Meal to Nourish You

Here are three truths about Christ’s meal to nourish your soul today:

1. This is not a meal of ourselves.

This is a hopeful reality. If you feel, like I did with anxiety, that you are in a depleted, weary, empty, starving space, don’t despair. This is an honest human place to be. You weren’t made to be or produce your own food. Before God, we are like children—we receive the meal; we take and eat what is provided.

2. This is a resurrection meal.

Perhaps you have difficulty connecting with these truths because you cannot see them; they seem abstract. But Jesus says his food and drink are real because they will allow us to live on the last day. And on the last day, we will not need to wait longingly any more; there will be no more lies, temptations, or evil pressures or pain; and there will be no more sorrow of the sin of our souls. Our hearts will be completely clean and cleared—and we will be freed of the wilderness. The food Christ gives is real, for it is the food we need—and the only food we can possibly eat—to allow us to live on that last day, and live forever. 

3. Christ is the food. 

He did not send someone or something else; he came himself to be flesh—to sacrifice his body and pour out his blood to give us peace with God. This is God getting very personal with us.

With this kind of food in mind, read Psalm 63:3-7:

Because your steadfast love is better than life,

    my lips will praise you.

So I will bless you as long as I live;

    in your name I will lift up my hands.

My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,

    and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,

when I remember you upon my bed,

    and meditate on you in the watches of the night;

for you have been my help,

    and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.

This is a Christian meal for us today: the daily bread of the surpassing truths of Christ—which is just as personal a help to us as Christ intended—and the rich, satisfying meal of harvesting those truths in our souls to praise him in the wilderness.

[Photo Credit: Lightstock]

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Your Mundane Matters to Jesus
Forsake Sin by Following the Good Shepherd
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The Truth Will Set You Free

The question what is truth? is more relevant today than ever. You would think that with all our easy access to information and expert opinions, we would know the truth—

Yet the opposite is true. We have trouble recognizing real news from fake, trusted sources from clickbait. No one has time to investigate the truth within a multitude of issues.

Sharpening My Truth-Detector

One Saturday morning I read the The Wall Street Journal, an article or two from the Chicago Tribune, several blog posts, and scanned my Facebook feed and emails. Somewhere, in the midst of all of that input, I read my Bible. How much of what I allowed into my brain that morning do I even remember? How much of it was true?

My truth-detector was dulled, so I decided to limit my reading for two weeks in an effort to sharpen it. I put aside my novel, which I gazed at longingly; I merely glanced at newspaper headlines; and when I scrolled Facebook I did not click on anything.

I started reading only the Bible, because God’s Word is the source of truth. Then I picked up a couple books by highly regarded Christian authors, and saw no untruth in them.

After two weeks of this information-fast, my truth-detector felt sharper.

What Is Truth?

So, back to the question: What is truth?

There is factual truth, as in two-plus-two-equals-four, and truth that conforms to reality, in that summer will follow spring. We speak of a “true friend” or “true love,” meaning faithful, lasting, and genuine. A novel can communicate deep truth through story. Truth is also defined as honesty, speaking the truth and living consistently by it.

But Jesus once referred to fundamental truth when he said, “…you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32, emphasis mine).

Truth is fundamentally about who God is. (Oz Guinness)
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On the day Jesus was crucified, while being questioned by Pilate, Jesus said, “In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me” (John 18:37). Pilate responded, What is truth? Whether Pilate was asking a genuine question or was waving his hand at the issue is not clear—

But either way, he did not know the answer. And he missed an opportunity to find out from the author of truth.

The Truth Is Reality

In the beautiful first verses of John, we see that Jesus came to us full of grace and truth (John 1:14). Jesus described himself by saying, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (14:6). In John’s letters he frequently refers to belonging to or walking in the truth (3:18-20), tells us the Spirit is the truth (16:13), and writes that the truth will be with us forever. Paul wrote to the Ephesians that the message of truth is nothing less than the gospel of our salvation (Ephesians 1:13).

That all sounds great, but it’s rather abstract. Will this deep truth help us to discern the facts, the reality, in the day-to-day stuff? Yes, in fact it is the only way to know.

Ravi Zacharias, philosopher, apologist, and writer, defines truth as “that which affirms, propositionally, the nature of reality as it is.” The reality that Zacharias is referring to includes, but goes beyond, physical reality to spiritual and moral reality as created and upheld by God.

God’s reality is all reality. If we know his foundational truth, we’ll grow in separating the truth from the lies around us. Often, this begins with separating the truth from the lies in our minds.

The Truth Is God’s Word

This morning I felt like the world was passing me by, that I had missed the boat on which I would have lived a more important and influential life. Is that reality? I wondered. As I was reading the Bible and praying, I realized that those thoughts were lies. The truth of God’s Word tells me that I am his child (John 1:12); by his grace he has saved me (Ephesians 2:8-9); he has a good plan for my life (2:10); I have his Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:12); and he will act on behalf of those who wait for him (Isaiah 64:4).

My attitude went from discouragement to hope by identifying the lies and believing God’s truth. The truth set me free. Only from a correct mindset about who God is, who I am in his sight, and what he has for me in this life can I have a chance at discerning the truth. And I am very grateful that God has given us truth in his Word.

Oz Guinness said, “The notion of truth is not philosophical or abstract or theoretical. Truth is fundamentally about who God is.” My two-week focus on the truth brought me back to who God is, and he has once again set me free. 

[Photo Credit: Lightstock]

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Do You Expect More Than God Promises?

We sat in amazement, shocked by the unexpected blessing the Lord provided for our family right before Christmas. After going into this season with the hard reality of no income and the heavy weight of trials, we had accepted the fact that this Christmas would contain few gifts and activities, and greater simplicity.

In the Lord’s undeserved goodness, however, he chose to take our empty hands and fill them with unexpected gifts. One of those gifts was a last-minute, free trip to Florida. After a chaotic few days of planning, we surprised the kids and were on our way. We were filled with thankfulness and amazement – until problem after problem arose.

Snow storm. Flight delay. Airplane entrapment. Sick child. Screaming children. And finally, a mix-up that kept us from entering our vacation home until 2:30am. I thought, Okay, this wasn’t what I expected, but we can make the best of this. That thought was short-lived, however, as the next several days brought feverish and vomiting children, sleepless nights, tantrums, and an urgent care visit, while we stared longingly at the beautiful weather from inside our vacation home.

When Expectations Are Dashed

This wasn’t what I had expected. Why had God given us this gift only to tear it to pieces? In between helping sick children and falling asleep standing up, I began to wrestle with what I had expected and what God had allowed. Was God being unkind, or was I having wrongful expectations of something that I didn’t deserve in the first place?

That week was hard, but it challenged me to look at how I expect the Lord to act in certain ways – ways in which he never promised to act.

Do you find yourself disappointed or devastated at times, struggling to understand how God’s goodness, faithfulness, and provision align with your circumstances?

Have you prayed desperately for a job promotion, but time after time you get passed up by a less experienced employee?
Have you begged the Lord to heal your loved one (or yourself), but each doctor’s report is more disheartening?
Have you prayed for wisdom in making a life-changing decision, but now it seems the Lord has led you down a path full of unexpected challenges?

If God is good, faithful, just, loving, kind, merciful, gracious, compassionate, and sovereign, why does he allow these confusing circumstances that rattle us?

I certainly don’t know all of God’s purposes and am still baffled by circumstances he has allowed, but I’ve seen how I have created distorted expectations of his promises, which complicate these unexpected twists and turns. One of the main ways we’ve distorted God’s promises is in regards to his faithfulness (and goodness).

God is faithful. That is a promise (1 Corinthians 1:9). But we need to know what he does and doesn’t promise he will be faithful to do.

14 Ways God Promises to Be Faithful to You

Here are several promises the Bible gives us about how God will be faithful:

1. He promises to be faithful to save you.

He doesn’t promise to save us if we are holy enough, strong enough, or involved enough in ministry, but he does promise to be faithful to save us if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our heart that God raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9-10).

2. He promises to be faithful to sanctify you.

He doesn’t promise that he will always act according to what seems good and faithful in our eyes, but he does promise to be faithful by sanctifying us completely and preparing us for our eternal home (1 Thessalonians 5:23–24).

3. He promises to be faithful to teach you.

He doesn’t promise to save us from all trials, but he does promise to be faithful by teaching us in affliction to love and obey him (Psalm 119:75).

4. He promises to be faithful to guard you.

He doesn’t promise us protection from all of Satan’s attacks, but he does promise to be faithful by strengthening and guarding us against the enemy (2 Thessalonians 3:3).

5. He promises to be faithful to hear you.

He doesn’t promise to answer all our prayers in the way we desire, but he does promise to hear and answer all that’s in accordance with his will (1 John 5:14-15).

6. He promises to be faithful to strengthen you.

He doesn’t promise that we will be confident and capable in everything we do, but he does promise to be faithful to give us his strength, wisdom, and power to accomplish all that he calls us to do (Philippians 4:13).

7. He promises to be faithful to you when you aren’t faithful to him.

He doesn’t promise that we will never fail to trust him, but he does promise to be faithful, even when we are faithless (2 Timothy 2:13).

8. He promises to be faithful to walk with you.

He doesn’t promise that he will protect us from scary circumstances, disorienting paths, dark seasons, or times of loss, but he does promise to lead us in paths of righteousness, restore us, be near us, comfort us, and fill us with himself (Psalm 23:1-6).

9. He promises to be faithful to help you withstand temptation.

He doesn’t promise that we won’t be tempted, but he does promise to be faithful by not letting us be tempted beyond our ability (1 Corinthians 10:13).

10. He promises to be faithful to forgive and cleanse you.

He doesn’t promise that we won’t struggle with sin, but he does promise to be faithful to forgive us and cleanse us from unrighteousness if we confess our sins (1 John 1:9).

11. He promises to be faithful to transform you through suffering.

He doesn’t promise to save us from suffering at the hands of evil or painful circumstances, but he does promise to be faithful to use our suffering as we trust in him to produce endurance, character, and hope through the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:1-5).

12. He promises to be faithful to your ultimate good.

He doesn’t promise to protect us from all harm and disappointment, but he does promise to be faithful to work all things together for our eternal good – even when we can’t see or understand it (Romans 8:28).

13. He promises to be faithful to renew your soul.

He doesn’t promise to keep our bodies, minds, or earthly hopes from wasting away, but he does promise to be faithful to renew our inner selves day by day, even as our outer selves waste away (2 Corinthians 4:16).

14. He promises to be faithful to prepare you for glory.

He doesn’t promise to end our suffering on this earth, but he does promise to be faithful to use this momentary affliction to prepare for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but the things that are unseen (2 Corinthians 4:17-18).

How God Is Faithful

As I reflect on these incredible promises of God’s faithfulness, I am freshly aware of how often I expect him to act in ways he never promised to act.

He desires us to let go of this world and grow in our love for him. However, he often does that by removing from us and denying us the very things we desire on this earth, revealing that he is truly all we need. That is his faithfulness.
He desires us to rely on him, and not our own strength and wisdom. However, he often does that by allowing weakness into our lives or by placing us in situations that push us beyond abilities and comfort. That is his faithfulness.
He desires us to trust him completely and be anchored in the hope of salvation. However, he often does that by allowing circumstances we can’t make sense of, stripping away earthly hopes that distract us from the secure and eternal hope that he desires us to know. That is his faithfulness.

Friends, if you experiencing circumstances that seem to contradict the goodness and faithfulness of God, would you join me in examining your heart to see how we may be expecting God to act in ways he has never promised? As we do that, may we confess our expectations to him and be comforted by all the ways he has promised to be faithful to us as his children. Thankfully, he is patient and gracious toward us as we grow to trust him for who he truly is, rather than who we expect him to be.

Praise the Lord that even when we are faithless, he will remain faithful.

RELATED POSTS:

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Four Keys to Living Faithfully in Exile
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Key Connections (June 8, 2017)

Morning Bible Reading and Manna for Today (Lore Ferguson Wilbert, Sayable)

My daily routine (right now) looks like this…Take what helps you, leave what doesn’t.

Why Do We Lie? (Ryan Reeves, The Gospel Coalition)

We are all familiar with lying. Each of us has told a lie. But what is the motivation behind lying?

When You Don’t Want to Attend Her Baby Shower (Meredith Hodge, It’s Positive!)

Baby showers. Most people see these as joyous occasions…However, for many women suffering through infertility, miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant/child loss, baby showers can be a source of deep pain, anxiety, and heartache.

You’re Doing the Christian Life Wrong If… (Kevin Halloran, Anchored in Christ)

The following two Spurgeon quotes will keep us from neglecting crucial elements of the Christian life.

Four Steps to Get Your Work Done Well (Nivine Richie, Unlocking the Bible)

Thousands of books offer advice on how to prioritize, simplify, and get work done. And yet, long before the experts hit the scene with their Rolodex, DayTimers, and Gantt Charts was our God.

The Weight of the Church (Nicholas T. Batzig, Feeding on Christ)

Finding a solid local church is more important than finding a dream job or attending a dream college.

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The Prophetic Tapestry of Scripture

The Hebrew Scriptures contain prophecies about Jesus beyond counting. If you do a Google search, you will get a number of at least 300, a figure I deem conservative. But many of these individual prophecies also intertwine, creating a still richer tapestry, that I would consider the Hebrew Scriptures in their entirety as a single unit of prophecy. If we pick up a single thread, we can’t help but find several more to follow, all connecting to Jesus and each other.

My hope is that this small vision of God’s self-revelation through Scripture will whet your appetite, filling you with wonder and curiosity, and that you will desire to know him more through deeper study of his Word. Ultimately, the goal is not information, but transformation.

Get ready to flip back and forth in your Bible…

Melchizedek

Melchizedek is a mysterious figure. He appears in Genesis 14 with little introduction, then we do not see him again except in reference. His name means “king of righteousness,” and he is the king of Salem, later called Jerusalem. Salem means “peace,” and so Melchizedek is rightly called both king of righteousness and king of peace. He is also called a priest of God Most High. What chiefly stands out about him is that he combines the offices of king and priest.

The next time we hear about Melchizedek is in Psalm 110. Writing in the Spirit, David says,

The Lord says to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”…The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, “You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.” (Psalm 110:1,4, NASB)

David would not have understood who was being referred to in this prophetic writing. It was actually the Pharisees who developed the concept of Messiah during the intertestamental period (between Malachi and Matthew). But Jesus used this passage to challenge some of their ideas about the identity of the Messiah and give them something to think about (Matthew 22:41-46).

Shiloh

“The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes, and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.” (Genesis 49:10, NASB)

This verse falls in the middle of a passage wherein the patriarch Jacob is blessing his sons before he dies. These 12 sons will become the fathers of the 12 tribes of Israel, and the blessings in this passage foreshadow what will happen later with the nation. For various reasons, Jacob’s first three sons (Reuben, Simeon, and Levi) are not given places of preeminence over the others. Favor passes to Judah, the fourth son.

This word “Shiloh” has been translated in various ways for different versions of the Bible, and it can have multiple meanings, depending on context. For this passage, the Rabbis and the Septuagint agree on the phrase “until he comes whose right it is.” A scepter always indicates royalty, and indeed the tribe of Judah was the tribe of King David and all his descendants, including Jesus himself.

The study of Scripture is a never-ending journey. The goal is not information, but transformation.
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Later scriptures add further dimension to this prophecy. During the time of Ezekiel the prophet, Jerusalem was under siege by the Babylonians. The puppet king, Zedekiah, was a wicked king, and the priests went the way of the nations and followed their idolatrous practices, defiling the temple (2 Chronicles 35:14). Therefore God pronounced judgement on both king and priest:

“Thus says the Lord God, Remove the turban and take off the crown; this will be no more the same. Exalt that which is low and abase that which is high. A ruin, a ruin, a ruin I will make it. This also will be no more until he comes whose right it is, and I shall give it to him.” (Ezekiel 21:26-27, NASB)

The turban here refers to the ceremonial headdress of the high priest (Exodus 28:37).

In this passage, the prophecy seems to indicate that the priesthood and kingship will both be given to he “whose right it is.” Historically, the tribe of Judah was the tribe of kings, and the tribe of Levi was the priestly tribe. So a priest could not be a king, nor a king a priest, in ancient Israel. But if Shiloh, “he whose right it is,” were a priest of the order of Melchizedek, the offices could be combined.

The Branch

After the Babylonian captivity, the prophet Zechariah was given a word from the Lord concerning the high priest at the time, whose name was Joshua. Zechariah was told to make a crown and set it on Joshua’s head, and then to say these words:

“Thus says the Lord of hosts, Behold, a man whose name is Branch, for he will branch out from where he is; and he will build the temple of the Lord. Yes, it is he who will build the temple of the Lord, and he who will bear the honor and sit and rule on his throne. Thus, he will be a priest on his throne, and the counsel of peace will be between the two offices.” (Zechariah 6:12-13)

There are two significant names here. The name of the high priest is Joshua, an English version of the Hebrew name Y’Shua, which in Greek translates to Jesus. And “Branch” is the name of the man about whom the prophecy is made. The Hebrew word for branch here is Netzer, and it shares the same word root with Nazarene—Nazareth was Jesus’ hometown.

The Fulfillment

Hebrews 7 is a treatise on the priesthood of Jesus Christ, according to the order of Melchizedek. A priest officiates at the intersection of life and death. But he must make sacrifices for himself, because he himself is subject to death (Leviticus 16:6). Jesus Christ, instead of making a sacrifice for himself, is able to make himself a sacrifice, because he alone is not subject to death, but its master (Revelations 1:18). He is our great High Priest. He is our King of Righteousness. He is Shiloh, the one whose right it is.

A Never-Ending Journey

We are only scratching the surface of the prophetic character of the Hebrew Scriptures (we aren’t even exploring what the offices of king or priest look like). Each of the trails I am taking leads to several others. This is why the study of Scripture is a never-ending journey, but simply accumulating data is not the point—

May you be amazed by the richness and density of prophecy in the Scriptures as you discover the way God’s plan unfolds.

[Photo Credit: Lightstock]

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Three Untruths You’ve Probably Said to Hurting People

Christians like to encourage people. This is a great thing. When someone we care about is hurting or enduring trials, we are quick to give words of encouragement and comfort. When we are suffering, others are generous to do the same for us.

But an important question regarding this is, What kind of counsel are we giving or receiving?

Unfortunately, the comforts often given in these situations are not helpful or biblical. They may be popularly used, but they are rarely biblically-grounded. In fact, some people have heard the following statements and words of comfort so often that they assume they’re in the Bible.   

Here are three of the most common unbiblical phrases people use to comfort those who are hurting. Brace yourself, as you have most likely used or heard these! 

1. “If you have enough faith, everything will be okay.”

This is not true. Things may not always “turn out okay.” The cancer does not always go away. The relationship does not always get repaired. The job promotion does not always come. The wayward child does not always return. Things do not always turn out okay, even when we exhibit extraordinary faith and pray fervently.

Nevertheless, we should absolutely pray and put our faith in God! Yes, we avoid treating God like a genie who guarantees our requests, but we certainly do not lose faith or believe our prayers are meaningless.

God’s will for our lives is good, even when it hurts. We put our faith in God, trusting his wisdom and love. We pray for humility to submit to everything he brings to us. But it is not our faith or our prayers that guarantee our outcomes. We choose to trust God and ask him to strengthen our faith during trials, regardless of our circumstances.

2. “God won’t give you more than you can handle.”

Some of you are gasping right now. You would swear this is in the Bible. But it’s not. The verse being misinterpreted here is 1 Corinthians 10:13. There, Paul writes, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” 

The verse is commonly quoted to imply that God will never put more on us than we can handle, but is actually about temptations to sin. It has nothing to do with our trials, pain, or suffering. And it is certainly not a promise that our loads will be manageable.

The truth is this: God will absolutely put more on you than you can handle. Why would he do that? So that you will quit trying to “handle” everything on your own and die to your self-reliance. God loves us too much not to break us of our independence from him. Our trials and tribulations, which are often more than we can handle, are used by him to teach us humble dependence.

3. “This, too, shall pass.” 

I’ve been guilty of using this phrase before. But it’s not in the Bible; it’s believed to be from a poet in ancient Persia. The idea is that suffering is cyclical and seasonal, so “just endure it” and it will go away. Yet, it may not.  Some people will endure a lifetime of difficulty and pain. We have brothers and sisters in Christ who live in parts of the world where difficulty is as inherent as life itself. So there is no guarantee it will pass.

Instead of counseling with this antidote, we should encourage people to trust in the all-sufficient grace of Christ available to us (2 Corinthians 12:9). He promises to be our hope, help, and strength in our weakness. Rather than clinging to the hope of our trial passing with time, we should instead cling to Christ and know he is with us in the middle of our trials.

Yes, one day all suffering will cease when Christ returns and the New Jerusalem is established. For now, pain is a part of life on this fallen earth. So, as sufferers and comforters, may we comfort biblically. May we point people to the Christ who is more than enough for us—even in our bitter providences.

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Four Steps to Get Your Work Done Well

Thousands of books offer advice on how to prioritize, simplify, and get work done. And yet, long before the experts hit the scene with their Rolodex, DayTimers, and Gantt Charts was our God. He modeled how to complete the work, and once the work is completed, how to rest.

If we follow Exodus 20:9-10, we see God’s process for work: “Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God.” God’s instruction is to do “your” work, so first we identify the right work to do. Then we labor for six days, which requires dividing the project into tasks sufficient for each day. Next, we must complete the work, undistracted by the weights and sin around us. Which leads to the final step: rest.

Step 1: Identify Your Work

Part of the commandment to keep the Sabbath is God’s instruction to complete “your” work. That means we need to know what work is ours. He knows us better than we know ourselves. By relying on his direction through prayer and Bible study, we can take the first step to being productive: Identify the right work.

More than once, I’ve jumped into a project before I knew if it lined up with God’s purpose; the right goal is to build God’s kingdom. God tells us, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). I can waste a lifetime chasing my dreams and seeking my kingdom rather than his, but what a loss that would be.

Recognizing God’s calling requires spending time with him, away from distractions.
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Before jumping into a project—at home, on the job, or in ministry—we need to know what God is calling us to do for his kingdom. Distinguishing God’s will from my agenda is not easy. I may be praying, “Lord, show me your will,” but what I’m secretly asking is, “Lord, show me what will make me happy.” Instead of trying to figure out what will make me most comfortable, I need to ask the Lord what will move his kingdom forward. Recognizing God’s calling requires spending time with him, away from distractions, praying like Jesus prayed: “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10).

Step 2: Divide Your Work

Sometimes a project is so overwhelming, we don’t know where to start. Other times, we underestimate its complexity. Faced with the daunting responsibility of feeding a crowd, Jesus had a plan and knew what steps he would take to complete the task:

Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. (John 6:5-6)

In the Bible, we see a pattern of dividing the work to accomplish one day’s work at a time. Jesus took three years to complete his earthly ministry. God took six days to complete the work of creation. Beginning with the creation of day and night on day one, and ending with the creation of man on day six, God did one day’s work each day, and in the right order. He worked consistently until the work was completed.

Jesus could have miraculously fed the 5,000 instantaneously with manna like God had done in the past, but he didn’t. He had a plan to feed the crowd by distributing a young boy’s loaves and fish and then gathering up all that was left.

Managing our workflow means recognizing the tasks needed to complete a complex project and then doing one day’s work at a time. Worrying about tomorrow’s work will paralyze us, but God’s Word tells us that one day at a time is sufficient (Matthew 6:34).

Step 3: Complete Your Work

As a society, we’ve gotten used to skipping from one activity to the next. Some people insist they can multitask, but I’ve learned I don’t do that very well. I need to remove distractions so I can focus on the work in front of me.

In Hebrews, we’re told to lay aside the distractions and sins that would slow us down from accomplishing the task God has set before us:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith. (Hebrews 12:1-2)

Jesus worked consistently, and he worked hard. He was able to complete more work than we could record in a book (see John 21:25). God completed his work of creation, and each day he “saw that it was good” (Genesis 3:10).

Likewise, we need to finish our work.

Step 4: Rest

Rest is not simply sleeping, nor is it relaxing on a vacation. Rest is something we can only enjoy when we complete the task set before us by God.

In his sermon series Give Yourself a Break, Pastor Colin defines rest as completion. Many of us have a problem resting because we haven’t finished our work. If we fail to use our time wisely during the workweek, resting when we should be working, we’ll find we have work to do when we should be resting.

Rest comes when we complete our work.

As believers, not only can we enjoy physical and mental rest, but we have the privilege of enjoying another rest, and that is the “Sabbath rest” for our souls.

God the Father entered into a Sabbath rest when he completed the work of creation in six days. Jesus also finished his work when he died on the cross and resurrected three days later.  Because of Christ’s finished work, we are invited to enter into a spiritual Sabbath rest ourselves:

So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. (Hebrews 4:9-10)

This “Sabbath rest” is a gift to believers who trust Christ’s finished work on their behalf, and we anticipate it as we complete our work and rest well right now.

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