Grace

Joy asks a thousand questions a day – that’s how she learns and so I try to be patient with the never-ending stream of “Why?” and “What?” and “How?” Yesterday she saw some honeybees in the ligustrum bush and started asking about what they were doing which became how do bees make honey. So after her bath, we surfed YouTube for videos about bees.  She loves to learn new things and I love to help her explore the world around her.

But sometimes she asks questions with a different motivation. We have rules in our house that have been in place all her life. They haven’t changed just because she isn’t here all the time anymore. She knows the rules well, but sometimes she will ask the question hoping to catch me off-guard and give her a different answer. I may be old and slow, but I’m no dummy. The rules are the rules.

God gave the Israelites the law – the commandments and regulations that must be strictly observed to maintain a relationship with Him. He is holy and righteous and His people must live holy and righteous lives. The law was given to instruct them in His ways and ensure their standing before Him. But the people failed to keep the law – “Everyone did as he saw fit” (Jud 21:25). Which meant they did not obey God’s law. Man was and is still sinful. Sin demands death. The Israelites relied on animals to die in their place, but that was not enough.

Then Jesus came on the scene. He said that He came to “fulfill” the law and the Prophets – but not to abolish them (Matt 5:17-20). What did He mean? The purpose and demands of the law had not changed. What changed was how one approached God. Under the law, all the rituals and rules – God’s “house rules” – must be followed to a T. But Jesus came “full of grace” (John 1:14). He lived the perfect life that man could not live. And He died to fulfill “every jot and tittle” of the law. Jesus – God in flesh – shed His divine blood to meet the demands of the law. All who receive Jesus’ work are under grace.

That means if you are a believer, you can breathe a sigh of relief because Jesus did all the hard work for you. And He sent His Holy Spirit to live in you and help you live out your holy standing. The rules haven’t changed, but how we obey them has. Beloved, you cannot; but Jesus did. Now you can live in grace.

And If He Does Not . . .

Three Hebrew youths stood before Nebuchadnezzar. They had refused to bow before the King’s statue even though every other official in Babylon had put their faces to the dirt in homage to ninety feet of gold. They knew that the penalty for their actions was certain death. But what the king was asking would compromise their devotion to the God of Israel. And they would not.
Nebuchadnezzar gave them one more chance to obey his edict and bow down. “But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace.” And he added an ironic punch line: “Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?” (Dan 3:15).
“Shadrach, Meshack, and Abednego replied to the king, ‘O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to rescue us from it, and He will rescue us from your hand.’” (v. 16-17). What confidence! What faith! I want a faith like that.
Yet – they gave room for God to be God. They said, “But even if He does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up” (v. 18). They believed and trusted God, but they did not demand God to act in their favor. And if He chose not to, they would not cease to worship Him, even to their dying breath.
Decisions are going to be made today that will greatly impact my family – especially someone I love with all my heart. I have prayed for God’s favor. and I am trusting Him for the outcome, believing He can “turn the heart of the king” (Prov 21:1). But if He does not . . .
I will still trust Him. I will still believe in His faithfulness. I will still worship and serve Him. I will still teach His Word. I will still give my heart and life to Him. I will still believe that He is good. Oh, it will hurt, but I will still declare that He is God – my God – and that His judgments are right. You see, in all my prayers I have prayed most earnestly for His will – His good, pleasing, and perfect will (Rom 12:2). And if His will is not my will – He is still God. My holy, heavenly Father. And hers.

The Protection and Power of God

One of my favorite Bible accounts is where Elisha and his aide were pinned down by the Arameans who had surrounded the city to capture Elisha.  The prophet’s aide saw the army with its horses and chariots and soldiers and cried to his master “O my lord, what shall we do?” (2 Kings 6:15) 

Ever been there?  Me too, when all I could do was look at my life and cry, “O my God, what am I going to do?”  Elisha told his aide, “Don’t be afraid. Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.  And “the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (v. 16-17).  The Lord’s army had encircled Elisha and stood between him and the enemy.  The man of God – and his aide – were divinely protected.

God has promised to take care of you – but it requires spiritual eyes to see Him surrounding you, standing between you and whatever difficulty is bearing down on you.  He goes before you (Deut. 31:8) and He is your rear-guard (Isaiah 52:12). You are surrounded by His unfailing love and faithfulness (Psalm 32:10; 89:8). 

But wait. There’s more. This is from a post I wrote seven years ago. God (and Facebook memories) brought it to my attention this morning. And then He brought something else. “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 Jn 4:4). Who is “them?” “The spirit of the antichrist” (v. 3). The driving force of evil in the world and the enemy of God and His people.

Who is the “one who is in you?” The Holy Spirit. The indwelling presence of Christ. The very same Spirit that brought Jesus back to life (Rom 8:11). Do you understand what this means? Not only is the Lord God before you and behind you and all around you – He is also in you filling you with Jesus’ power and strength and wisdom and discernment and faith – “. . . everything we need for life and godliness” (2 Pet 1:3). I don’t know about you, but that blesses my heart.

Beloved, whatever surrounds you today, whatever is bearing down on you, remember this, God has surrounded you with His presence and filled you with His Spirit. Now “Go in the strength you have” (Ju 6:14). His strength – and His victory.

In God’s Eyes

Who do you see when you look in the mirror? Someone who has their life pulled together, or someone who’s life is coming apart at the seams? Do you see a person full of potential, or full of regrets? How do you think others see you? More importantly, how do you think God sees you?

Gideon was a man who saw himself and his people as helpless, hopeless, and small before their enemy. I encourage you to grab your Bible and read the account in Judges 6: 11-16 (The whole story of Gideon runs through chapters 6-8). A stranger wandered up to rest in the shade of a tree beside a winepress. (A winepress is a below-ground pool where juice was extracted from the grapes.) Gideon is in the winepress threshing wheat. Wheat was usually threshed on a high spot where the breeze could catch the chaff and blow it away while the heavier grain falls back to the ground. There’s not much breeze down in a winepress, but this tells you how fearful Gideon was. He was down there hiding from the Midianites.

The stranger calls out to him “The Lord is with you mighty warrior” (v. 12). I imagine Gideon spun around looking for the person he was addressing. What Gideon doesn’t realize is the stranger is the Angel of the Lord, and he was calling Gideon by the name the Lord had given him. Mighty Warrior. The angel tells Gideon that God is appointing him to deliver the Israelites from their enemy. Gideon isn’t buying it. “How can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh and I am the least in my family” (v. 15). Gideon sees only his weakness and smallness. He compares himself to the enemy and knows he doesn’t measure up. But Jehovah God sees Gideon as the man He will empower to accomplish great things for Israel. God promises Gideon “I will be with you and you will strike down all the Midianites” (v. 16). And that’s the whole point. God isn’t looking at what Gideon is or what Gideon can do; He is looking at what He will do through Gideon, at what He had destined Gideon to become – a mighty warrior.

Beloved, nothing and no one defines you but God. Whatever your past has been, whatever other voices have said about you, whatever the enemy has tried to tell you about yourself, hear this above anything else: You are who God says you are. And He has said “You are mine.”