Spiritual Hindsight

“This is a test.” Radio stations are required by the FCC to periodically test their emergency alert system to ensure it is in proper working order before a crisis occurs. They will play the alert sound – that loud, screeching, beeping sound – and then tell their listeners: “This is a test.” I wish they would tell us that upfront. It would save me from a moment of panic.
I thought about that when I read Deuteronomy 13:1-4. Go read it and come back – I’ll wait for you right here.
Deuteronomy is the retelling of the Israelites’ escape from Egypt. The Lord God brought them up out of slavery to bring them into a “good land, flowing with milk and honey” (Ex 3:8). It is also Moses’ final message to the nation he led for forty years. He knows is about to die and he wants to leave them with encouragement and hope and wise instruction. Two thoughts come to my mind about verse .
First, Moses said the Lord was testing the Israelites “to find out whether you love Him with all your heart and with all your soul” (v. 3). I do not think that God was trying to gain previously unknown information. He already knows every man’s heart. John 2:24-25 says, “Jesus knew all men and what was in a man.” I believe that the testing was more for the Israelites’ benefit than God’s.
Second, these testing phases rarely come with a warning. We don’t understand what is happening or why. Job never knew that his hard season was a test to prove something to the devil. He just knew that his life had shattered and he was in misery. The Bible never says that God told Job the whole story. Maybe He did, but it would have been after the fact.
Jesus told His disciples, “You do not understand what I am doing, but later you will understand” (John 13:7). I do not understand why things have turned out as they have but I am hanging my life His promise. Because I know that He is faithful. Beloved, in all the things that don’t make sense, you and I can trust God. As the great Charles Spurgeon said, “God is too good to be unkind and He is too wise to be mistaken. And when we cannot trace His hand, we must trust His heart.”

Dire Straits (no, not the rock band)

So it seems we are not done with 2 Corinthians 4:8-9. The Spirit “pressed” me to dig even deeper and He revealed some things to share with you. As I researched these verses one definition kept popping up: straits. Paul’s original audience would have caught it immediately.
We think of “straits” as extreme difficulty or hardship – as in “dire straits.” It is a very unpleasant place, a painful place, a hard place. I’ve been there and I suspect you have too. Sometimes it comes from someone else’s actions that crash into your life. Sometimes – at least for me – it often has my own fingerprints all over it. But it is often the consequences of living in this broken world.
Paul used the word when he said he was “hard-pressed (v. 8).” He was describing a “narrow, constricted place of great pressure.” You may recall from Geography that straits are those places between two land masses through which a channel of water runs – like the Strait of Gibraltar. It is a narrow strip that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea and separates Europe from Africa by 7 nautical miles of ocean at the Strait’s narrowest point. It is an important shipping passage from one body of water to another. But it is difficult to navigate and easy to get into trouble.
Sounds like life, doesn’t it? Paul also used this word in Romans 5 when He said “We rejoice in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character hope” (v. 3-4). The straits are places of suffering. But they are also places of growth. Joy sometimes has “growing pains” because her muscles and ligaments are stretching and her bones are lengthening and it hurts. But she would remain in a little body forever without them.
Paul said that there is a purpose for the straits. They produce perseverance, character, and hope. How? Because God shows us His great faithfulness in the straits. He carries us through those narrow, hard-pressed places. Hear this this good promise: “Hope does not disappoint us because God has poured out his love into our hearts . . .” (v. 5). The progression from pain to hope is a sign of spiritual growth. It’s what the straits are all about. If you’re being pressed today, Beloved, trust God to bring perseverance, character, and hope from it. Then sail on in the big sea of His love.

Church History: Suffering Saint Paul

“The Apostle Paul. 1600 – 1699” Unknown

Will you bear with me for one more day of Paul in the study of church history? No one else since the death of Jesus has influenced the church more than he. And he suffered tremendously for his efforts. He endured attack after attack – on his ministry, his message, and his physical body. His most vehement enemies were his former friends, the Jewish elite. They refuted his testimony of the power of the gospel and the identity of Jesus as God. They hated him because he had turned to the Way and was its most vocal proponent. For his faith and his submission to the call of Christ, he was judged in the streets and in the synagogue.
He was shackled, imprisoned, whipped, beaten, stoned, and more than once left for dead. But he would not give in nor give up. Each time the Jews thought they had him, he came back from the brink, more impassioned than ever to share the good news of Jesus Christ. Despite all he endured, his life’s motto was: “For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Phil 1:21). Paul kept getting up because God was not finished with him and he regarded himself as a “drink offering” unto the Lord (2:17).
As we journey through the history of the Christian church, we will encounter many more martyrs. We will give them the attention and respect they are due for their sacrifice. They are so important to the growth of the Christian church that it is said that “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.1” Martyrdom did not end with the early Christians. It has continued in every generation and happens today. Many have lost their heart to Jesus Christ and their head to persecution.
Ancient tradition holds that Paul was beheaded by sword on June 29, 67 A.D. under the rule of the blood-thirsty Nero. Paul wrote to the church in Rome, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?” (Rom 8:35). No – for the sword only brought him face-to-face with that love.
Persecution is coming for the church – hard and deadly persecution. Will you die for your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ? Perhaps the better question is, Beloved, will you live for Him until that day?

1. This quote is loosely attributed to both Tertullian and Augustine of Hippo

No Other God

Camping on the theme from yesterday’s devotional about God’s rescue. We learn more about who God is and what can do when we are in the hard places than at any other time. At least that is true for me. Yes, I read the Bible every day and I study theology books and dig deeply in the Scriptures, but it is in the dark times that His glory and brilliance shine the brightest. But not only for you and me. When God comes to our rescue our family and friends and neighbors and coworkers and church family see Him too.
When Daniel, and his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were taken to Babylon, they left the temple behind, but God went with them. In Daniel 3 the three friends, now called Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were faced with a challenge: bow down to Nebuchadnezzar’s golden image or face certain death. They chose to stand with God and the king was not happy. He said he would throw them into the fiery furnace and said, “Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?” (vs 15). If there ever was a set-up for God to show up and show off, this was it. Neb and all the officials of Babylon were about to see the power of the God of Israel.
You know the story – the boys did not bow and the furnace burned with the king’s fury. They were tossed in and greeted by a “fourth man.” None other but the Son of God. They emerged from that fire unscathed. The only thing that was burned away were the ropes that bound them and “there was no smell of fire on them” (v. 27).
The king and all his officials crowded around them and Nebuchadnezzar declared, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego . . . They trusted in Him and defiled the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.” He decreed that honor be given to their God, “for no other god can save in this way” (vv. 28-29). The Babylonians recognized the power and authority of God in the middle of the trio’s fiery trial.
Whatever your hard season Beloved, I know that God will come to your rescue and it will be amazing and the people around you will take notice. Let’s be people of faith so the world can say, “Only the Lord God can save in this way!”

A Church in Danger

Have you noticed that there is a lot of hero worship in Christendom? There are “rock-star” pastors with thousands of followers and Bible teachers who sell out auditoriums around the country. I’m not saying popularity in the church is wrong. Jesus had quite a crowd that followed Him and hung on His every word. Take the fellow in Luke 9: “As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, ‘I will follow you where you go.’” (v. 57). He wanted to be part of Jesus’ entourage. But Jesus didn’t encourage this would-be fan. “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head” (v. 58). I believe Jesus was saying, “This is not going to be the high-life you’re expecting. I don’t have a multi-million-dollar mansion to put you up in. I walk hot, dusty roads and sleep where I can.”
What did you expect from Jesus when you chose to follow Him? A solution to all your problems? A good reputation in the community? A full life with heaven thrown in after it’s all over? Just a few verses before He said, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (v. 23) Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem and the cross. He might have also told the man, “Don’t hook your wagon to me unless you’re prepared to die.”
In case you haven’t noticed, there is a war going on between good and evil, between light and darkness. God’s people are the enemy of the present ruling authorities who are bent on the church’s destruction. If you choose Jesus, you need to know that you are also choosing self-denial, persecution, rejection, and suffering. That is what the Lord endured. Why should we expect any less?
I look at the modern church – particularly in the West – so comfortable in our air-conditioned sanctuaries. Where is the suffering? Where is the persecution? Where are self-denial and the cross? I’m pointing my finger at myself. I believe the enemy’s strategy against the church in the U.S. is not a full-on battle, but to make us relaxed and contented while he waters down our theology and sugarcoats our worship. Just before he hits us with an all-out assault.
I realize, Beloved, that this is not a warm and happy message. Take it as a warning. If our Christianity is comfortable, maybe we’re in more danger than we know.

The Master Craftsman

There is a simple principle my mother taught me – you’re probably familiar with it: “Bought lessons stay with you longer than taught lessons.” It is the southern version of a verse in Psalms that I have underlined in my Bible. The Psalmist said, “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word”: (Ps 119:67). He followed it up with: “It was good for me to afflicted so that I might learn your decrees” (v. 71).
I learned to be more discerning about who I hang out with when we were questioned by the police on prom night because one of us had drugs. I learned to be a better money manager by going through foreclosure and bankruptcy. I learned to stay focused on the road when I ran a red light and T-boned another car. I learned the hard way not to get prideful. I still have the sore behind to remind me that I don’t want God to take me to the woodshed ever again. I still have a lot to learn and I’m still making a lot of mistakes and causing myself a lot of afflictions, but I’m also learning that even my mistakes become tools for God to mold and shape me.
That takes us to a familiar verse – you probably know right where I’m going. “We know that all things work together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose” (Rom 8:28). All things mean all things. The good, the bad, and the ugly. The things someone does to you. The things I do to myself. The things that we regret. The scars and the consequences. They all become tools in the Master Craftsman’s hand, guided by His love and his purpose.
And what is that purpose? Look at verse 29: The we might “. . .be conformed to the likeness of His Son . . .” I believe that to be true to the marrow of my bones and the depths of my soul. Otherwise, I don’t think I could survive some of the trials I’ve been through and am still in. I have to know and believe that a good God is working behind the scenes with all this hard stuff.
Have you made some big mistakes along the way, Beloved? You can trust them into God’s hands. You’ll be amazed by what He will make of it – and you.

The Dark Night of the Soul

The 6th-century Spanish mystic and poet St. John of the Cross called it “The Dark Night of the Soul.  Mother Teresa and many other Christian servants and giants experienced it. Even gray-haired ladies from the deep south go through it. The Dark Night of the Soul describes a crisis of faith or a difficult, painful period in one’s life. It can be “triggered” by a trial or come on out of the blue. It is most often marked by depression and a seeming absence of the presence of God – as if the Spirit has abandoned the believer. If you’ve ever been through it, you will never forget it. And that is by design because the dark night is a turning point in the believer’s life. It is a place of decision, a time of faith that serves as a hinge that moves one into a deeper relationship with God.

Job was experiencing a dark night of the soul in his season of testing. When every possible crisis hit his life, he had no idea that he was suffering for the sake of the Lord. He never heard heaven’s conversation; he didn’t know that the Sovereign One was holding him up as a model of faith – “Have you considered my servant Job?” (Job 1:8). He only felt the pain of grief and loss and physical misery. He only heard the accusations and condemnations of his “friends.” Even his own wife wanted him to “curse God and die” (2:9)

He also didn’t know that while he was being harassed and abused by the devil, he was still being held in the hands of the Almighty. He didn’t know that the Lord had satan on a leash, only allowing him to go so far in his plot. He didn’t know when – or if – it would end. But one thing he did know – his God was faithful and would not fail him. In the midst of his suffering Job said, “But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold” (23:10).

I’m not saying Job never complained; he did – a lot. But he always came back to what he knew: God is too good to allow him to suffer unjustly.

Someone reading this is going through their own dark night. You are in physical or emotional misery. You don’t understand and you can’t find God anywhere. Beloved, hold tight to what you know: God is good. He is faithful. He has not and will never abandon you. One day you will come through this fire with a faith of pure, proven gold. I know this one with my heart.

It All Matters to Jesus

I love to see the tender side of Jesus in the Scriptures. I’m reading in Mark’s gospel, where the Lord ministered to a sick woman and a dead little girl. Take a few minutes to read Mark 5:21-43.

Jesus is approached by a desperate father who pleads, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live” (v. 23). On the way they are interrupted by an equally desperate woman with “an issue of blood.” She hoped to discretely touch the hem of Jesus’ garment and be healed but when Jesus felt healing power leave his body, He stopped and demanded to know who had touched Him.

Why? Why would Jesus call out someone publicly who obviously didn’t want to be identified? Two reasons that I see. First, He wanted to commend her faith. “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering” (v. 34). Her faith stands out sharply when we see that Jesus returned to His hometown where “He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. And He was amazed at their lack of faith” (6:5-6).

Secondly, He wanted to publicly announce her healing. For twelve years she had been “unclean” due to her bleeding. She would have been considered “untouchable” by her neighbors and even her family. Imagine no loving physical contact for twelve long years. Jesus wanted to put an end to her physical and emotional suffering. Such tender compassion.

The delay must have worried the father and his worst fears were realized when someone came to tell him that his daughter was dead. But the tender-hearted Jesus reassured him saying, “Don’t be afraid, just believe” (v. 36). And He went to the home and raised the girl from death to life. When the little girl got up Jesus told them to keep it quiet and “to give her something to eat” (v. 43).

That tells me that Jesus – the Creator of the Universe and the perfect Son of God cares about the big stuff in our lives as well as the little stuff. Jesus pays attention to every aspect of your life – even the smallest, most insignificant things. You can take it all to Him. Whether you need healing, rent money, restoration, wisdom, or just a snack. Nothing is too big or too little for Him; if it matters to you, Beloved, it matters to Jesus.

When the Son Shines

Some time ago I was looking for a picture of a sundial to go with a devotional I had written. I’ve always loved sundials. I love the nostalgia of them, but I confess I prefer looking around at the clocks in my house or checking the time on my phone rather than walking outside throughout the day to see what time it is.  I saw several nice ones that were sitting in shady locations. That may create a nice ambiance, but what good is a sundial in the shadows? You have to have the sun to create the shadow to know the time of day.

The apostle Paul knew a lot about enduring the heat. In the opening words of his second letter (actually the third, but one letter has been lost) to the church in Corinth, he talked about the sufferings he and his companions had endured for the sake of the Gospel and the Name of Jesus Christ. “We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death” (2 Cor 1:9). Sound even a little familiar?

Granted you and I probably haven’t dealt with the threat of death, but sometimes our struggles and heartaches and troubles are “far beyond our ability to endure.” (Thus endeth the supposition that “God will not give you more than you can handle.”) Life isn’t easy. It’s not meant to be. God does permit situations that put us under great pressure. Why? Paul continued, “But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God” (v. 9). It’s an opportunity for God to reveal Himself to us – and to others.

Paul said, “Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many” (v. 11). I know this one personally.  Our family has been in a very difficult situation, and many of you have joined us in prayer over the matter.  When God moves on our behalf, all our praying friends become praising friends.

Beloved, if you are in a hard place right now take comfort. God has placed you out in the heat and the sun so that He can show those around you who He is. When the Son shines on you, the world will know that it’s time to turn to the Lord.

God Shows Up

God sent Moses to bring His people out of Egypt. Moses delivered the Lord’s demand: “Let my people go” (Ex 5:1). Pharoah retaliated by increasing the workload for the Israelites. When they could not keep up, they were beaten for failing to make quota. The situation was as bad as it could be for the Hebrews. The Israelites turned on Moses. Moses blamed God for the mess they were all in.

What was the Lord’s response? “Now you will see what I will do” (6:1)

Over and over and over in the Bible, we see situations turn dark and hopeless for God’s people – and then we see God show up and do what only He can do.

He shows up at the Red Sea.

He shows up at Jericho.

He shows up at the battle of Gibeon.

He shows up in the stories of Deborah and Jael, Gideon, Samson, and Ruth.

He shows up in Hannah’s prayer.

He shows up when David squares off against Goliath.

He shows up in every battle Israel faces.

He shows up in the widow’s jar of oil.

He shows up when Elisha and his servant are surrounded by Israel’s enemy.

He shows up in the fiery furnace and the lion’s den.

He shows up for Esther in Persia.

He shows up all throughout the Psalms.

He shows up in the belly of a whale.

He shows up in the eyes of the woman with the issue of blood and the parents of a dead little girl.

He shows up in a storm at sea, among crowds of hungry people, and in the faces of everyone who was healed, released, or raised by Jesus.

He shows up on an old wooden cross and an empty tomb.

He shows up in saints scattered by persecution.

He shows up in the face of Stephen as stones fly.

He shows up in Paul’s prison cell.

He shows up in Jesus’ final words: “I am coming soon.”

Some of us are sitting in hard places right now. We are grieving. We are hurting. We are tired. We are anxious. We are overwhelmed. We need God to show up and declare: “Now you will see what I will do.” I’m counting on Him with all my heart. You can too, Beloved, because God always shows up.