Sacrificed

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

Sacrificed

A family paid a scholarship that enabled me to attend seminary.  I do not remember their name, but I sure did while in attendance.  We attended an annual dinner the school sponsored to thank the generous group of donors.  I wrote periodic letters giving status and giving thanks.  I thought of that annual gift often.  Remembering those donations instilled both a sense of general gratitude, and an occasional burst in motivation to study and learn.

Christians do not merely remember Jesus Christ.  We remember that He was crucified.

So here is a thing to try.

Every time you become aware of something sinful in your life, rather than merely grieve and mourn, remember His crucifixion and thank Him for His donation.

Sin does not only require a reaction of sorrow and sin-hatred.  We also get to remember and rejoice that the very sin we are noticing was paid for by the crucified Jesus.

Jesus did not pay for a vague bunch of sins.  He paid for every time you are selfish, jealous, impatient, arrogant, ignorant, and lazy in good works.  So they are gone.  So we can rejoice! 

We can not overcome our sorrow over sin.  But because of Christ, we get to rejoice!

There He Is!

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

There He is!

I had a difficult task, involving a long drive, some confrontational conversations, some gospel to offer that I did not expect to be received at all, let alone well.

But along the way, I was met by someone who I really enjoy seeing.  It was just a brief visit, barely time for a meal.  But somehow, knowing that I would see him, at times I could almost talk to him in the empty car seat.  And his gentle wisdom, his dry sense of humor, our affection, and just having him there (as both a point on the map, and in his almost-presence in the car) helped a lot.

Jesus is more than that.

Not only is He present as we think of Him, read of Him, and pray in His name, but there is more.  He is present because He created our world (Ephesians 3:9).  He fills all of creation as He is reconciling it to Himself (II Corinthians 5:19).  He is present in His sovereignty, guiding, causing, moving, and effecting every event around us. (Isaiah 45:15).

It was easy, perhaps, for Paul to know nothing but Jesus, because Jesus is present in everything.

We are only at one place, but Christ is everywhere.

Backwards

…the son of Boaz… (Luke 3:33 ESV)

Backwards

Some of us have ancestors that we are not particularly proud of.  I have a many-greats-grandfather who was a horsethief.  You might have worse branches in your family tree. 

And we can not do anything about it.  They are back there, like rocks of shame.

Jesus had some bad eggs in His ancestor-list, too.  Boaz might seem innocuous enough, but Boaz was married Ruth, who was a Moabitess. 

We read her story back in her book with fondness, but culturally, historically, and religiously we have forgotten the impact of that delineation.  People from Moab were, in the history of God’s people, the worst of the worst.

But Jesus fixed that, and some other dark spots in his ancestry, by His very existence.  The grace of Jesus is that powerful.  The grace of Jesus is that wonderful.

And He fixes our histories, too.  Both our personal histories and the histories of more distant pasts are washed with His redeeming blood.

Because Christians are grafted into HIS family tree.  A tree that goes like this:  God, then Jesus, and Jesus’ siblings.

Rejoice in the amazing cleansing and renewing power of Christ Jesus.

We cannot fix our past.  But in one fell swoop, Jesus can.

Home

And like a hunted gazelle, or like sheep with none to gather them, each will turn to his own people, and each will flee to his own land. (Isaiah 13:14 ESV)

Home

Our school’s debate team had an incredibly successful season.  I realize that does not sound thrilling to most of you, but for me, it was!  We made it to the state championship debates. 

And when we lost, we went home.  The same thing would have happened  if we had won, though.  Or if we had tied.  Or if we had merely gone to the tournament as observers.

When things are finished, we go home.

Isaiah is describing here what happens at the end… the end of a lot of things.  He is informing all people that no matter how secure you might feel, the end is coming.  The end of the universe, the end of society, the end of your dynasty, the end of your nation, the end of your employment, the end of your relationship, the end of your life… the end is coming.

And when that happens, you will go home.

And each of us will go to our own home.  For the world, that will be a dark and tormented place.  Empty of God, empty of love, empty of light.  Empty, in fact, of everything that matters.

But Christians get to go home!  Not because we have built a place, or earned a place, or pioneered a place.  But because Jesus had bought us, and built us a forever place. 

We can not really go home, but with Christ we can.

Counting

“Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, by clans, by fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male, head by head.” (Numbers 1:2 ESV)

Counting

I did not count in Middle School. At least not when it came to sports.  I usually was picked last to be on baseball teams, basketball teams, football teams, soccer teams, dodgeball teams, and kickball teams.  I remember one sad recess when we were dividing up to play kickball, I was not even chosen last.  I, and a couple more non-athletic kids, were just thrown on to a team at the end.

“They don’t really count,” someone said.

Standing before the Almighty God, we might feel the same way.  If God were picking who would be on HIS team, He would not look at me twice. 

But then Jesus steps in.  He says, “I choose that one… and I will even die to make sure He makes it on the Christian team, to make sure He is mine, to make sure He counts.”

And along with that, once He has counted me, He never forgets me.

I do not count, but in Christ I do.

Life

So Saul died for his breach of faith. He broke faith with the Lord in that he did not keep the command of the Lord, and also consulted a medium, seeking guidance. (I Chronicles 10:13 ESV)

Life

Saul failed on two accounts, and really three.  First he was disobedient, and God punishes disobedience with death. 

Second Saul sought other counsel.  Not satisfied with God’s Word, Saul took the avenue of the world at that time, seeking help from the occult.  And God punishes wrongly aimed ears with death.

And we, you and I, deserve the same thing.  We are disobedient… a lot.  Perhaps you might think you are not as horrid as Saul, but every disobedience is rebellion against the maker of the universe, the giver of the Law, deserves, in God’s eyes, the same death Saul received.

And while we, you and I, might not be attending seances, or talking to witches, we seek advice and counsel from voices other than God’s Word.  We seek (and praise) what we call common sense, instead of God’s sense.  We seek (and follow) public opinion, instead of God’s opinion.  We seek socially acceptable answers to life’s problems, instead of following and loving the clear guidance of God’s Word.  And in God’s eyes, that purposeful deafness also deserves death.

But we have something Saul also chose to ignore.  We have the Christ.  Saul did not obey or seek the coming Messiah (symbolized perhaps by Saul’s rejection of David), which would have given Saul what Christians today have.

God punished Jesus for our disobedience.  God punished Jesus for our bad ears.

And so, unlike Saul, we do not face eternal death.  And temporal death, for Christians is not the punishment it was for Saul.  Instead, it is the pathway Jesus leads us on to heaven itself.

Saul could not avoid his punishment. And we could not avoid our punishment, either.  But Christ takes the punishment we, like Saul, deserve.

Control

…and he bowed his head and gave up His spirit. (John 19:30 ESV)

Control

We like to think that we are in control of our lives. 

We spend money when we want to spend money.  We enter the college that we choose to attend.  We purchase the groceries we like, the car we like, the home we like, the socks we like, and we have the haircut we want to have.

And all of those choices fool us into thinking we have control.

But we do not have control.

Even though we think we are the masters and mistresses of our destiny, more happens to us than we actually do ourselves.  Consider the two biggest events of our lives. We do not decide when and where we were born.  And we do not decide when and where we die.

But Jesus did.  He chose when and where He was born, and more significantly, He chose where and when He died.

Those words recorded in the fourth gospel are rich with power.

He, unlike any human who ever lived, or will live, gave up His spirit, and died.

This is more than surrendering to illness, or injury, or despair.

This is Jesus saying, “the moment is NOW.”

And He does the same thing for His people, too.  He orchestrates the music of our lives.  He directs our coming and going.  He moves us, stills us, lowers us, and raises us.

And it is a good thing.  Because He knows more than we do, even about ourselves.

We can not control our lives and deaths, but Jesus can.  AND, He is good.

Copies

For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. (Hebrews 9:24 ESV)

Copies

While we sometimes turn up our noses at cheap imitations, some copies are good things.  I cannot distinguish generic Rice Krispies from name brand Rice Krispies, but I notice the difference in price.

Generic pain killer has exactly the same ingredients and formula as name brand pain killer, but is dramatically lower priced.

I have an imitation portrait on my living room wall, that I cannot tell the difference from the original, but I enjoy it a lot more because it cost me a lot less.

And Jesus serves as Redeemer, Savior, and connection to God infinitely better than the symbols that God gave us for those things. 

The Lord’s Supper is wonderful, but it is nothing compared to what we will celebrate at the foot of His throne forever.

Singing praise is grand, but it is nothing compared to how we will worship forever in Jesus’ presence.

Love here on earth is full of wonder, but it is nothing compared to the love of Jesus that we will bask in, forever.

The copies and imitations are good… but we have something better!

We can not experience reality, but with Jesus we do!

Certainty

…that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught. (Luke 1:4 ESV)

Certainty

We can not know very much with certainty.  The publishing industry has motives that are not in line with mine.  Information from the internet is without checks or balances to ensure veracity.  Books that have price tag might be being sold to make money more than to reveal truth.  Books that are free might be being given away because they are without value. 

Knowledge expands, and information becomes obsolete.  Knowledge contracts and information becomes too general.  Knowledge is deemed unreliable both because of too much bias, and not enough bias. 

People lie, people exaggerate, people cast blame, people defend themselves, all of which gives us insecurity when we try to discover, investigate, or read.

But we can trust with certainty (as if trust really existed without certainty) what the God has given us in His Word.  We might misunderstand it.  We might misapply it.  We might not comprehend it, but those are not problems with the Bible, they are problems with our brains.

Jesus is God’s Word, brings God’s Word, fulfills God’s Word, and is in God’s Word.  Jesus teaches God’s Word, applies God’s Word to us, knows God’s Word, and loves God’s Word.

And we, transformed by Jesus-wrought salvation, can know with certainty whatever the Bible teaches.

We can not be certain of truth, but in Christ we can.

Strange Gifts

For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all. (Romans 11:32 ESV)

Strange Gifts

I have a neighbor who keeps goats.  Those goats like to wander around the neighborhood consuming things.  Such consumption causes neighbors to be frustrated, or even angry.  So, my neighbor has built a fence.  It might appear that my neighbor likes fences.  But he neither likes nor dislikes fences, his real purpose is having friendly neighbors. 

Presently, my driveway is disrupted by three large potholes.  Those potholes are irritating, dangerous, and ugly.  But to get home, I must drive over them.  They are, at present, a part of my pathway to happiness.

God’s highest intent for His people is that we cling to Jesus, and Him alone.  God’s highest intent for His people is not, since Adam’s fall, simply that we would be obedient.  God’s desire is for us to love His Son.  Our disobedience, while odious to Him, provides the avenue for us to be in that glorious and necessary relationship with Him.

Sin and unrighteousness exist in my life, so that I need Jesus. 

There is no value in our sin, other than that sin leads us through Christ, to God.

Rebuking

And the Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, O Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you![1] (Zechariah 3:2 ESV)

Rebuking

Jesus is not just a mild-mannered smiley-faced speaker of profound thoughts.  He is God’s soldier.  He is God’s right hand.  He is God’s firstborn Son.

God has three enemies: the flesh, the world, and Satan.  And here we see how God deals with Satan.  God rebukes Satan.  And rebuke is a powerful word.

It means more than yell at… it means Satan is put in his place.

It means more than lecture… it means Satan is bound, limited, and powerless.

It means more than make Satan feel bad… It means Satan is defeated, laughed at, and now nearly ignored.

And God did not rebuke Satan quietly… God rebuked Satan with God’s Word, and still does today.  The best defense when you are afraid of what Satan might do is to read God’s Word.

But not just because it is a book.  God’s Word is Jesus Himself.

While keeping in mind that Satan is not the comical cartoon figure of a horned tempter.  Satan represents, in a way, all who oppose God.  He is also a symbol of the part of the spiritual world that we cannot grasp, and therefore are tempted to fear. 

Even the unknown is rebuked by God through Jesus.  Even the mysterious is rebuked by God through Jesus.  EVERY enemy of God is rebuked by God through Jesus.

And we are on His side.

We can not fight what we do not understand.  But Jesus can.

[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Zec 3:2.

Forget

For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more. (Hebrews 8:12 ESV)

Forget

I have had bad times that I have not forgotten.  I have been hurt in ways that I have not forgotten.  I have hurt others in ways that I have not forgotten.  I have not forgotten a lot of things that I should have.

And sometimes I expect God to be the same way.

For how can the omniscient God not remember my sins?

How can the God not bound by time forget the times in my life when I have rebelled?

Even worse, the things that God would be expected to remember make me unfaithful, a promise breaker, and a rebel.  I would expect God to remember, and to punish.

But if God just flippantly forgets, what about His omniscience?  If God chooses to block His memory, He would be a deceiver and unjust.

But the way that God does not remember my sins is that He does remember that He assigns them to Jesus.  The Almighty Judge’s forgetfulness is actually a redirection of my rebellion onto the cross of Christ.

God does not remember me in that way, because He remembers Jesus instead.

We can not bear God’s remembering of our sin, but Jesus can.

Darkness and Light

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone. (Isaiah 9:2 ESV)

Darkness and Light

Supposedly, the worst beginning to any novel was the phrase, “It was a dark and stormy night…”  I do not really know why those words make a poor literary beginning.  I suppose that is why I am not a best-selling novelist.

I think it is a pretty good beginning.

The people that Isaiah describes are not merely in darkness.  They are in darkness because they do not know where to look to find light.  In the verses around this famous text, those people look for escape from the storms of life in all the wrong places.   They try religions, they try mysticism, they try what we would call the occult.

But Isaiah says, “Should not a people inquire of their God???”

Whether because of too much guilt, too much insecurity, too much self-focus, or too little knowledge, they did not look for understanding, answers, and hope from the One True Living God.

And so that darkness remained.

But there is a great light.  A way to get through the darkness and storms.  It is not merely looking to God, it is looking to God through Jesus Christ.

He provides understanding of the storm.  He provides shelter from the storm.  He provides the path out of the storm.  He provides raincoats, umbrellas, footgear, and flashlights.

But insert the word “alone” in those sentences.  It is Jesus alone who is the answer to the storms of life.

The light that Isaiah holds up is not simply a better knowledge, understanding, or clarity.  It is Jesus Himself.

Every person who has ever lived, lives now, and will live is in darkness. 

We can not escape the darkness.  But Jesus IS the escape.

Jealous

Cry out, Thus says the Lord of hosts: I am exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion. (Zechariah 1:14 ESV)

Jealous

When I worked for a janitorial supply company, I had one particular customer that I was impressed with.  They had a clearly Biblical business model.  They were careful of their reputation, and the reputation of all the local industries they served.  They took care of their suppliers, their employees, and their customers. 

At one point, they switched to another janitorial supply company.  Almost without thinking, I called their new supplier and directed them to treat  those folk as absolutely well as they could.

Later, I realized that in a good way, I was jealous for them.

Jealousy is not usually an attractive trait.  But in certain contexts, it is great.  In my janitorial world, I respected that company enough to go out of my way to make sure they were well-treated.

And in Zechariah, we read that the Lord is jealous for us!  Not jealous of us, or jealous because of us.  But somehow, we, the new Jerusalem and Zion, are jealously looked after by the Lord.

And it is because of Jesus.  Jesus makes Christians His people… and He is exceedingly jealous for us.

He therefore protects us, guides us, sacrifices for us, never leaves us, and loves us.

We can not look after ourselves.  But Jesus can.

Map

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6 ESV)

Maps

On the way from a northern suburb of Chicago to our old hometown in western Michigan, we got lost. It was a strange situation.  We were trusting our GPS, which for some reason had decided to take us on a scenic route through downtown Chicago. 

Another time, our GPS asked us to exit the interstate in St. Louis, Missouri, and wander through some of the shadier parts of town.  We listened, nothing bad happened, but it was unnerving.

One summer, while at a church camp behind Mt. Rushmore, I got separated from the crowd.  It started to rain, sleet, and hail, and I became very disorientated.  In fact, I was outright lost. 

We get lost, even in familiar territory.  And not merely in geographical terms.  We lose our way moving from Sunday to Sunday.  We lose our motivation, and become influenced by selfishness, popularity, or greed.  We lose our way striving for sanctification and find ourselves in unnoticed sin.

But Jesus is a trustworthy map, a reliable GPS, an experienced traveler by our side.

He is the way.

We can get lost, but Jesus never is.

Do

Work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts, (Haggai 2:4 ESV)

Do

The final game of one of the high school chess championships was intensely intimidating.  My opponent was a foreign exchange student who had not taken part in the chess club all year, but now was in the championship chessmatch against me.

I did not know her.  I did not have any past games to evaluate.  I did not know her style, her preference, or her experience.

All I know is that it was my turn.

And I did not know what to do.

For some reason, I thought of one of those cartoons  in which advisors, one ‘good’ and one ‘bad’ might stand on my shoulders and tell me what to do.  THEN I could choose.  THEN I would regain my confidence.

But no one was giving advice, invisible, visible, or cartoon.

And I let too much time go by.

I sat there doing nothing, because the decision seemed too much.

As the game progressed, I made up my lost time.  But I learned a lesson.

Doing nothing is dangerous.

Haggai learns that he has no reason to do nothing.  Even when his options seem limited, or all bad… as one of God’s children, he gets to DO… knowing that if Haggai is righteous, obedient, and properly principled, Haggai is not alone.  And even if he errs, makes poor choices, and fails… God is with him.

And God is with us, too.  Not because we are amazing, but because Jesus is.  We can choose to DO, because we are not alone.

We can not confidently DO, but in Christ we can.

Forest

I’ve tried everything and nothing helps. I’m at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn’t that the real question? The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different. (Romans 7:24,25 The Message)

Forests

We have examined a lot of things that we can not do, but Jesus can.

And I like them all.

But let us not lose sight of the most important thing that Jesus does, that we cannot.

We fail to obey God.  Repeatedly.  Even after we are Christians.

But Jesus still fixes that.

He has obeyed God on our behalf, He obeys God on our behalf, and He will obey God on our behalf.

His obedience is what enables us to serve God, despite the contradiction of our desire, and our action.

The little trees that represent the things that only Christ can do, are actually all the forest of our salvation.

We can not save, even ourselves, but Jesus can.

Revival

But no accounting shall be asked from them for the money that is delivered into their hand, for they deal honestly.”  And Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord.” And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it. (II Kings 22:7,8 ESV)

The Way to Revival

We hear a lot these days about the need for Revival.  We observe our decaying society and yearn for the good old days when things seemed better.

Often, such calls for Revival are described as requiring big efforts, strategic campaigns, financial sacrifice, and condemnation of modern evils.

But observe how young King Josiah led God’s people to Revival.

Josiah simply acted obediently in the small things that were in front of him.  He saw the decayed temple, and spent money to fix it up.  Because it was obvious.  And because it was something HE could do, instead of something he demanded others do.

Because of that practical, simple, obvious obedience, Revival was born.  The Word of God, hidden for years, was rediscovered and read.  And the Spirit of God lit a flame of Revival that shook God’s people awake.

Josiah did not say, “Hmmm… I bet if I have the temple remodeled, we’ll find God’s Word again!  And WOW we will have an amazing Revival!”

No… Josiah just did the right thing that was right in front of him.

And Revival was born.

The best news about this process is that our obedience, in big and little things, is not up to us.  Our obedience takes form and has power ONLY

Argue

Though He slay me, I will hope in Him; yet I will argue my ways to His face. This will be my salvation, that the godless shall not come before Him. (Job 13:15, 16 ESV)

Argue

When I was dubiously elected to the position of Student Body President of my seminary, I got to meet regularly with the seminary’s president.  He was a famous, brilliant man.  Most students were intimidated by him.  Indeed, so was I at first.  But after meeting with him for two years, our relationship grew to the point where I could (respectfully) argue with him.

Our God, as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is also famous, brilliant, and intimidating.  He holds the galaxies in place, and He holds electrons, protons, and gluons in place.  He defines truth and holds us liars accountable.  He defines sin and holds us sinners accountable.  He defines rebellion and holds us rebels accountable.

And the world should tremble.

But we, because of Christ’s place in reality, can approach God without terrible fear.  The world can not approach God to beg for grace, mercy, aid, counsel, or peace.  But because of Christ, we can.  We can respectfully, hopefully, humbly argue our ways before God.

Only because of Christ.

Only because He gives us the right robes, the right words, the right family position before God.

No one can approach God, but with Christ we can.

Nice

Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. (Titus 3:1,2 ESV)

Nice

I have often heard it said, “being nice is not one of the fruits of the Spirit.”  And I understand the sentiment.  Often, if we define niceness as being a doormat, unreactive, and sickly sweet, niceness is not admirable.  But Paul’s words to Titus perhaps are a better definition of being nice.

Because Titus’s words are not only a good set of criteria for “Citizen of the Year” awards, but they actually pretty clearly describe our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Even though the governments of His day had no authority over Him, He obeyed them, even paying taxes.  He obeyed God’s law, even though He was above it.  Jesus was ready for every good work, His entire life (and thus provided for our salvation). He spoke evil of no one, although He often spoke of people’s unrighteousness, boldly.  He was gentle, oh so gentle.  And He was courteous, to all people He encountered.

People who try to do those things through act of will, fail.  We run out of steam.  We get discouraged.  We get righteously (or unrighteously) indignant.  But when we instead try to humbly copy Jesus, praying for His strength, submitting to His will… it gets easier and easier.

We can not be nice on our own.  But in Christ, we can.