Impossible

And that night the angel of the Lord went out and struck down 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians.[1] (II Kings 19:35 ESV)

Impossible

The Assyrians were attacking Jerusalem, and the Assyrians were tough. The Assyrian Army was huge, and well armed… Judah’s Army was small, and with old-fashioned arms.  The Assyrian Army was experienced, and Judah’s Army were almost amateurs.  The Assyrian Army seemed unbeatable, and Judah’s Army was a joke.

When King Hezekiah prayed to God for help, we do not see in Scripture that anyone else thought it would do any good… only the Prophet, Isaiah.

But Hezekiah and Isaiah knew that while the Judean Army can not do impossible things, God can. 

Even more than the defeat of the Assyrian Army, God did an amazingly impossible thing.  God saves dirty rotten sinners like me.  God saves dirty rotten sinners like you.  God did this impossible thing by the incarnation of Jesus, the death of Jesus, the Resurrection of Jesus, and the Ascension of Jesus.  All of which were also impossible things.

We have troubles that seem impossible to solve.  We have empty hearts that seem impossible to fill.  We are so broken that it seems impossible that we can be fixed.

But Jesus solves them, fills them, and fixes them.

We can not do impossible things, but Jesus can.

[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), 2 Ki 19:35.

Delusions

Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness (I Thessalonians 2:11, 12)

Delusions

I did not teach my daughter to walk, but she watched the rest of us ambulate and she wanted to learn, so she learned.  I did not teach my son to read, but he saw early that books were important and he wanted what was in them, so he learned.  I did not teach my dog to ‘come.’  And he does not yet see the value, so he does not come when called.

Learning happens, particularly regarding the gospel, because the Holy Spirit applies God’s Word to His people’s hearts, and we learn. 

Our submission to God, our love that responds to His love, our openness to His sovereignty, our willingness to know what He knows are what causes God to teach us.

If we are not submitting, loving, open, or willing, instead He allows us to delude ourselves.

That is an unpleasant sentence to read.  But it is how God works.  While He is Master, Lord, and Sovereign, He tends to lead us as we want to be led.

Our remaining delusions are not His fault.  We bring them on ourselves.  Our remaining ignorance is not His fault.  We bring it on ourselves.  Our remaining childishness is not His fault.  We bring it on ourselves.

And the answer is found in Jesus.  Listening to Him wipes out delusions.  Listening to Him defeats ignorance.  Listening to Him brings maturity.

We can not teach ourselves, but Jesus can.  

Leaders

Then King Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth: “Peace be multiplied to you.  I make a decree, that in all my royal dominion people are to tremble and fear before the God of Daniel, for He is the living God, enduring forever; His kingdom shall never be destroyed, and His dominion shall be to the end.” (Daniel 6:25,26 ESV)

Leaders

King Darius is the kind of leader I want.  I do not know if he would be a Democrat or a Republican today.  I do not know if he would favor a graduated income tax, or abolish income tax.  I do not know if he would protect immigration, or close the border. I do not know if he would be pro-life, or pro-choice. 

Those issues are all important issues.

But they fade before one question.  When considering a leader, we should see if they acknowledge and favor the One True Living God.  In other words, are they pro-Jesus?

King Darius had learned the hard way that God is King, eternally.  King Darius learned the hard way that Darius serves God, or Darius serves nothing.  King Darius learned the hard way that the loving fear of the Lord is what matters.

Because really, Darius leads nothing.  Neither does any other earthly King.  Neither does any elected official.  Neither do we.

Only Jesus leads. 

We can not really lead, but Jesus can and does.

Leaders

When he had torn Israel from the house of David, they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. And Jeroboam drove Israel from following the Lord and made them commit great sin. (II Kings 17:21 ESV)

Leaders

There is a close connection between a people’s leaders, and their faithfulness to the Lord who puts leaders in place.  Sometimes the warning seems clear, that God gives His people the leaders we deserve.  Sometimes the opposite seems more prevalent, that God uses leaders to drive His people.

But whichever the case, it is unsettling.

Because whatever your political opinion, it is clear that we rarely have satisfactory leaders these days.

And perhaps that is exactly what God is doing.

Perhaps we look too lovingly, or too hatefully, at our leaders.  Perhaps we expect too much, or too little from them.  Perhaps in our focus on political leaders, we lose focus on our true leader.

We have a King, you see, that we do not deserve, but through His life and death and life, He causes us to deserve Him, in God’s eyes.

We have a King, you see, that does not lead us astray, but if we follow Him and Him alone, wow, what Joy and peace are found.

The fact is, none of us are reliably good leaders, unless we are following the One True King, Jesus.

We can not lead nor follow well, but Jesus can lead us.

-=-- ---

Safe

And the Lord said to Moses, “Go down and warn the people, lest they break through to the Lord to look and many of them perish. (Exodus 19:21 ESV)

Safe

The One True Living God is not sweet, kindly, nicey-nice, or pleasant.

We moderns have come to think of Him like that.  But His presence, described in Scripture, is always terrifying, intimidating, and awful. 

Because of what people are like.  God’s wrath against sin is absolute, documented, and the right reaction for Him to have.

The Israelites, gathered at the foot of Mt. Sinai, had begun to be complacent about His presence.  They had watched the thunder and lightning at the distant peak, and they had survived.  They had not seen any signs of God’s wrath in quite awhile.  And Moses had spoken about God as if he knew Him. 

But God knew how dangerous He was to them.  God knew their sin separated, angered, and damned.  And so God instructed Moses to warn them to stay back.

In C.S. Lewis’s terms, God is not a tame lion.

But yet…

Because of Jesus, we can approach that God.  Because of our Jesus, God’s wrath is placed elsewhere.  Because of our Jesus, we have been made safe.

God sees us through the lens of Christ’s perfection.

And we see God through the lens of Christ’s love.

We are safe because of Jesus, when we pray.  We are safe, because of Jesus, when we read His Word.  We are safe, because of Jesus, when we approach Him in worship.  We are safe, because of Jesus, even when we deserve wrath.

We would not be safe, but in Jesus, we are.  So come to Him!

Sin

All the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. (Exodus 17:1 ESV)

Sin

One of the things I look forward to asking God when I get to heaven, is about the coincidences in our English Bibles.  Here are the Israelites, on the way to the Promised Land, and what is the name of the region they must travel through?  It is the wilderness of Sin!

According to maps, Sin was unavoidable on the way from Egypt to Canaan. 

Just like in our lives.

As we wander, between our conversion and our ascension into heaven, be sure that we will struggle with sin.

But for us, it is no longer a wilderness, although it might seem like it.

But our guide has become more than a mere pillar of fire at night, and smoke during the day.  Our Jesus has traveled this path, and paved the roads!  Our Jesus has brought fertilization (sanctification), crops (the fruit of the Spirit), and the very city of God!

While our sin is horrid, ugly, and damning, Jesus has given us beauteous robes to wear, bound our wounds, and taught us to laugh again.

The Israelites, and we, would perish in the wilderness of Sin, but Jesus can AND DID navigate.

Calendars

For a thousand years in Your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night. (Psalm 90:4 ESV)

Calendars

We just celebrated National New Calendar Day.  It seems that new years, new months, new days, new calendars are of the utmost importance. 

But not to God.  Our observation of the passage of days, and our elevation of the importance of such events is a focus on the finite, mortal, and selfish.

And it makes sense.  We live in calendars.  We live in days.  We live in months.  We live in years.

And such life can be daunting.  Knowing our days and counting them leads to an awareness of the limitation of such things.

But we have Jesus.

And while He did dwell here among the calendars, He also dwells eternally where such measurements have no meaning.

When our calendars cause despair, talk to the One who laughs at calendars and calls them minute.

We are presently stuck in time, but Jesus is not.

Always

The Thirteenth Day of Christmas

… but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.  (I Peter 3:15 ESV)

Always

A danger in celebrating the amazing incarnation so enthusiastically is that we might fall into the trap of not constantly rejoicing in Immanuel.

Immanuel does not cease on December 26, January 6, or ever.

God is with us.  And we need God with us.  And we get to celebrate it constantly.

Our problems are always in our minds.  Our struggles are always in our hands.  Our pains are always in our eyes.  Our sinfulness is always in our hearts. 

And so, we need that God/man present in our lives all of the time.

Let us be more like Ebenezer Scrooge.  After his transformation, he always celebrated the love, joy, and peace of Christmas.  So much so, that his friends and neighbors were annoyed by him.

But maybe (and I admit I MIGHT be reading more into Dickens’ words than Dickens intended!) Scrooge knew that he needed the gospel every day.  And so did all of London.

So, he never stopped acting like it was Christmas.

When Peter writes that we should honor Christ, as Lord, in our hearts, he is talking about the incarnation and the incarnation’s effect and power.

Every day, circumstances, our thoughts, and the words of others might attack the power of the gospel.  But Christ’s gospel always wins.  We do not always notice it… but the gospel wins!

We can not survive in this world, but Christ enables us, because of the incarnation, because of Immanuel, because of His love, joy, and peace.

Soldiers

Day Twelve: Twelve Drummers Drumming

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. (Psalm 46:1 ESV)

Soldiers

A Virginian merchant in 1861 desired to join a regiment being recruited in his hometown.  He believed in the cause, loved his community, and hoped to serve.  But he had no soldierly skills.  Seeing his desperation, the Captain accepted him as a soldier, and assigned him the role of drummer.  This task was usually given to youngsters, too young to fight.  But this man accepted the position gladly.  He is said to have announced, “I can not fight, but I can drum for those who do.”

With all respect to modern drummers, a drum is not usually a solo instrument.  Drumming provides stability, accent, and continuity.  Drumming adds necessary facets to music.  Drumming might not always be noticed, but its absence is felt.

We are soldiers of our Lord.

But He actually does the fighting.  Sometimes we convince ourselves that he needs us in the battle.  But He does not.  We do not have soldierly skills.  But He accords us the role of drumming.

We drum when we follow Him wherever He goes, publicly noting His presence.  We drum when we help raise the spirits of the discouraged and hurting.  We drum when we urge those around us to follow, too.  We drum when we proclaim our soldier, announce our soldier, praise our soldier, obey our soldier, and humbly follow our soldier.

We really can not fight, but Jesus can

Always

 Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season… (II Timothy 4:2 ESV)

Always

Pipers pipe.

Not every occupation articulates their action so obviously.  Doctors do not doc.  Plumbers do not plumb.  Carpenters do not carpent.  Professors rarely profess.  And we hope to see Road Workers work more than we actually do…  but Pipers Pipe.

Because of the trouble with Judas Iscariot, many see these eleven pipers as representing the eleven faithful disciples.  And here they are tooting their tooters.  But really, they are doing more than that.  They are doing their job.

The job of the pipers is to preach the word, in season and out of season.  In other words, all the time.

The gospel, the power of Jesus, is not something that only comes out on Sundays.  It happens, and pipers pipe about it, all the time.

Occasionally, we remember to mention how much we adore Jesus.  When circumstances really demand it, we mention the necessity of the cross in our lives.  When pressed, we admit we know Him.  We are not good pipers.

But the power of the gospel of Christ is at work all the time.  There is ONE piper who always pipes. 

And that is Jesus Himself.

He pipes the gospel in good times and bad.  He pipes the gospel when life makes sense, and when it does not.  He pipes the gospel no matter the weather.  He pipes the gospel whether we are paying attention or not.  He knows the gospel, He loves the gospel, He is the gospel.

We can not always pipe.  But Jesus can.

Day Twelve: Twelve Drummers Drumming

How High?

Day Ten: Ten Lords a-leaping

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. (John 14:15 ESV)

How High?

Ten Lords… ten commandments.

I liked to obey my grandfather.  I am not sure why, but whether it was respect, affection, or love, but when my grandfather asked me to jump, I would not complain, query, or balk.  I would ask, “how high?”

These leaping lords are like that.  Notice that they are not hirelings, servants, or underlings.  They are lords!  Yet there they are, leaping.  Leaping is not jumping half-heartedly.  Leaping is not jumping sullenly.  Leaping is not jumping cautiously.

These guys, lords though they be, are leaping!

For Christians, obedience can work like that, too.  When we realize God’s forgiveness, we begin to want to obey Him.  When we know the Father’s love, we want to obey Him.  When we are aware of the Son’s sacrifice, we want to obey Him.  When we understand the Spirit’s touch, we want to obey Him.

We have been adopted into the King’s family, yet we leap to obey.  Because Christ, in us, compels us to joyfully obey.  Because Christ, for us, has obeyed on our behalf.  Because Christ, before us, has leaped to obey HIS Father, too.

We do not obey.  But Christ can!

Day Eleven: Pipers Piping

Expression

Day Nine: Nine Ladies Dancing

Expression

Sing aloud to God our strength; shout for joy to the God of Jacob! (Psalm 81:1 ESV)

Some music causes our toes to tap.  Better music causes our toes to tap and our bodies to move.  Even better music causes our toes to tap, our bodies to move, and our arms to wave.  The best music causes us to dance.  Even stodgy Midwesterners like me know this.  Sometimes it takes every ounce of repression I own to stop myself from dancing.

These dancing ladies represent the fruits of the spirit.  As a reminder, they are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

Sometimes we have viewed those fruits as commands.  But instead, these are nine things that we get to do when we know Jesus, and He knows us.  Like our response to some music, our response to being with Jesus is to be those things.

I imagine those nine ladies dancing because they can not help themselves!  In the same way, be loving, joyful, peace-promoting, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled.  Because we just can not help ourselves!

We do not do those things by act of will, practice, or perfection.  We do them because in Christ, we get to!

We can not show fruit on our own.  But in Christ we DO.

Beauty

Day Eight: Maids a-milking

Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed. (Psalm 34:5 ESV)

Beauty

They are not just maidens, wholesome, attractive, and admirable; they are also hard at work. 

The number of maids a-milking matches up with the number of the beatitudes: eight.  Adhering to the principles found in the beatitudes leads to beauty… not as the world sees it, but as God intends it.

Perhaps here, these ladies are shown as complete in both being and in action.  The idea of ‘maids’ implies beauty… and their work, rather than merely being consumers, points to being beautiFUL.

As Christians, male and female, striving to live as Christ’s ambassadors, we can think of these milking maids.  Christ’s ambassadors get to be beautiful.  Not in the shallow, ever fading, visual sense that many attempt… but instead, beauty of being, and beauty of doing.  Being focused on Christ, and Him alone.  Doing the work to which He calls us, and nothing else.

That can make us whole, complete, and beautiful.

Focusing on ourselves, we can not be beautiful.  But focusing on Christ, we can.

Comfort

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, (John 14:16 ESV)

Comfort

I wonder if the original composers of The Twelve Days of Christmas snickered a little bit when they wrote of this gift.  The swans, while not quite doves, are with some poetic license, referring to the Holy Spirit, and the seven swans refer to the seven gifts of the Spirit.  So this gift is a bunch of gifts.

The incarnation, the birth of Christ, happened because mankind was in dire straights.  We needed saving.  Isaiah foretells the coming messiah in terms of  the intense human need for comfort.  In Isaiah 40:1 he set the stage: “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.”  Isaiah goes on to describe how the gospel is entrenched in comfort, not mild comfort after a bad day, but internal, eternal, and un-devastating comfort. (Isaiah 51:19; 57:18; 61:2; 66:13; et. al.)

But because the full effects of our salvation are not manifested until we reach heaven, Christ lovingly and thoughtfully offers the Holy Spirit as a continued comfort.  The way that comfort is found is the point of this part of the song.

Do you need comfort?  The full continuum of comfort, from the physical pain of a stubbed toe, all the way to the mind-numbing sorrow that follows awareness of sin, loss of a loved one, or societal collapse, are all offered through the seven gifts of the Spirit.

The seven comforting gifts are:   Wisdom, Understanding, Right Judgment, Courage, Knowledge, Reverence, and the Fear of the Lord.

We can not reliably comfort.  But Jesus can.

Creation

Day Six: Six Geese a-laying

For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. (Isaiah 55:12 ESV)

Creation

This verse is not about the gift.  It is not about the geese. This verse is about what those geese are doing.  They are laying eggs.

At times we become so used to the amazingness of the mundane that our eyes only look way, way up to find things for which to praise God.  But this verse reminds us that the daily, seemingly automatic, commonplace events also are under Christ’s rule, and are worthy of our attention and praise.

Even the ongoing natural events in creation.

These days our society seems to have forgotten where everything came from.  Ideas range from a theory of a Big Bang, to an eternal progression of matter and energy.  Or we just do not think about it, but let the effects of creation go on around us unnoticed.  But our Triune God made everything, upholds everything, and has redeemed everything.

That gift of egg-laying geese reminds us that the one true living God, the God of Christians, has His fingers in everything that happens around us.  Geese do not just lay eggs, Christ made it so, makes it so, and will make it so.

We can not control creation, even though we try.  But Jesus can.

Foundation

Day Five: Five Golden Rings

 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.  (I Corinthians 3:11 ESV)

Foundation

Economically, different materials have been seen as the foundation of society.  Ancient Africans often used valuable shells.  Settlers in Kentucky sometimes used whiskey.  For many years, the American economy was built on gold.  Lately, we hear about bitcoin, information, and technology as our economic foundations.

When this song was written, economies were just starting to be based on a standard of gold.  And so the song, in a powerful dramatic moment, announces the gift of gold… gold to fill one’s five fingers!

The golden rings represent the first five books of the Bible, the Pentateuch.  The foundation of a Biblical Worldview in the same way that gold was the foundation of medieval Europe.

But the Pentateuch is only foundational when we realize that it directs us to Christ.  In the New Testament, the Pentateuch was referred to as The Law, and Christ says that He came to fulfill The Law… to give it meaning… to make it true…

We might think that the foundation of society is monetary policy, or military strength, or political power.  But it is not.  The foundation of society is the Law of God.  He is sovereign, even when we do not acknowledge it.  His Law is strong, even when we can not see it.  His creation of this universe is the foundation of all existence.

And while we can not stand on that foundation on our own, in Christ, we can.

Beauty in Truth

Day Four: Four Calling Birds

  Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth. (Psalm 50:2 ESV)

Beauty in Truth

A calling bird is not a particular avian breed.  Rather it is a type of bird, any bird, that makes beautiful sounds.   Crows are not calling birds, but robins are.  Parrots are not calling birds, but meadowlarks are.  Emus are not calling birds, but canaries are.

But beauty is not really in the ear of the beholder.  Beauty is found in things that adhere to God’s character, truth, and Person.  The beautiful dulcet tones of calling birds are beautiful because God made them that way.

These four calling birds represent the Biblical gospels:  Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.  They are beautiful because God spoke them.  They are beautiful because they speak God’s truth.  They are beautiful because they were carefully crafted, just like all of Scripture, to bring God’s truth to God’s people.

They are not the Most Important Part of the Bible… but they are a clear description of the life and death and life of our Jesus, and are therefore the kind of beauty of which we need more

Our creations are not beautiful because we declare them so.  They are beautiful when they are God-directed and God-inspired.  And we can not always do that.  But Jesus can.

Nutrition

Day Three: Three French Hens

So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love. (I Corinthians 13:13 ESV)

Nutrition

Nutritionists present new arguments every few years about what a truly balanced meal looks (and I suppose tastes) like.  Sometimes eggs are in, sometimes eggs are out.  Sometimes meat is in, sometimes meat is out.  Sometimes fruit is in, sometimes fruit is out.  Sometimes kale is in… well, kale usually is considered in.

I am glad that when it comes to what God gives us to be Spiritually balanced, He is pretty clear about the three things we need to have, and to give.  Those three are faith, hope, and love.  There are a lot of other useful and good things, but those three are always in.

French hens, throughout much of late medieval Europe, when this song was probably written, were the most common source of protein.  French hens were plentiful, inexpensive, easy to care for, and sort of tasty.

In modern America, maybe macaroni and cheese are like French hens.  Inexpensive, common, easily found and prepared, and sort of tasty.

The beloved in the song receives lots of French hens.  The gift giver probably is making sure that the beloved gets what they need. 

And so we Christians find what we need in faith, hope, and love.  And we receive them only through Christ.  He is where our faith is focused.  He is the aim of our hope.  And He IS love.

We can not provide these for ourselves.  But Jesus can.

Forgiveness

Day Two: Two Turtle Doves

But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year.  For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins (Hebrews 10: 3,4 ESV)

Forgiveness

At one point, I realized that a turtle dove was not a winged tortoise.  I was sort of disappointed.  Even so, turtle doves are significant because after lambs, turtle doves are the most commonly sacrificed animal in the Old Testament times.

The two turtle doves most likely refer to the Old and New Testaments.  And they direct our attention to He who is smack dab in the middle of the those two parts, Christ Jesus.

The sacrificial system of the Old Testament did not offer forgiveness of sins, but rather pointed the way to Christ.  The Messiah would do what those sacrifices only tried to do.

And the New Testament looks back to that Savior, and says, “Only in Christ is forgiveness and restoration to God!”

When we get to the point in our lives that we realize we have broken our relationship with God, we might try to fix it by being better tomorrow… but that does not work.  We might try to fix it by trying really hard to obey… but that does not work.  We might try to fix it by promising, hoping, ignoring, denying, or some other activity… but those do not work.

The only way to be forgiven is through the sacrifice not of two turtle doves, but of the one Messiah.

We can not give ourselves forgiveness, but Jesus can.

The Cross

DAY ONE: A Partridge in a Pear Tree

 For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. (I Corinthians 2:2 ESV)

The Cross

Christianity has become associated with a lot of things, lately.  When the world thinks of Christianity, they often think of legalism, hypocrisy, more rules than sense, and insensitivity.  The world is probably not accurate, we hope.  But yet, one wonders if the problem is more in us, than in our viewers.

Paul says the core of Christianity is Christ, and Him crucified.  But we seem to have many cores.

The first day in the song refers to a partridge in a pear tree.  Partridges are fascinating birds.  When a mother partridge is threatened, she will step in front of the predator and fall down, faking her own death so her family can escape.

Other than the faking part, that sounds a lot like Jesus dying to save His family.

And when the Old Testament foretells the Messiah’s cross, that cross is usually referred to as a tree.

It is interesting that this illustration is repeated more than any other metaphor in the song.  Twelve times, each verse, each rendition, we repeat that the beloved received a partridge in a pear tree.

That can remind us, like Paul, that the cross is the center of our salvation, our lives, and our hope.

A lot of things claim our attention as centers.  Money, popularity, career, heritage, our plans.  But only Christ is really necessary, really central, really all.

We try to cling to many centers, but only Jesus is that center.