Monday, August
21, 2017
Jeremiah’s
message is a great comfort to those who are earnestly seeking to know God. And especially comforting to those who still
have many questions about who God is, and how you can be certain you’re finding
him among all the clamoring voices in the world proclaiming they have the
truth.
Have you
ever felt like the Roman centurion who came to Jesus about healing his
critically-ill child? Jesus asked him if
he believed, because that was important.
The father
instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!”
Mark 9:24(NLT)
C.S. Lewis
took on many of humanity’s questions about God, because he was a brilliant
thinker who wouldn’t settle for someone else’s faith; he had to struggle (as do
we all) with doubt and fear that he might miss God. Much of this comes out in his writings.
This is
what we see in his children’s Narnia
fantasy series. In The Last Battle one of the
characters who has been serving Tash (the enemy of the lion, Aslan,
representing Jesus) comes face to face with the true king:
…in a narrow place between two
rocks there came to meet me a great Lion. . . . He was more
terrible than the Flaming Mountain of Lagour, and in beauty he surpassed all
that is in the world even as the rose in bloom surpasses the dust of the
desert. Then I fell at his feet and
thought, Surely this is the hour of death, for the Lion (who is worthy of all
honor) will know that I have served Tash all my days and not him. Nevertheless, it is better to see the Lion and
die than to be Tisroc of the world and live and not to have seen him. But the Glorious One bent down his golden head
and touched my forehead with his tongue and said, ‘Son, thou art welcome.’ But I said, ‘Alas, Lord, I am no son of thine
but the servant of Tash.’ He answered,
‘Child, all the service thou hast done to Tash, I account as service done to
me.’ Then by reasons of my great desire
for wisdom and understanding, I overcame my fear and questioned the Glorious
One and said, Lord, is it then true, as the Ape said, that thou and Tash are
one? The Lion growled so that the earth
shook (but his wrath was not against me) and said, It is false. Not because he and I are one, but because we
are opposites, I take to me the services which thou hast done to him. For I and he are of such different kinds that
no service which is vile can be done to me, and none which is not vile can be
done to him. Therefore if any man swear
by Tash and keep his oath for the oath’s sake, it is by me that he has truly
sworn, though he know it not, and it is I who reward him. And if any man do a cruelty in my name, then,
though he says the name Aslan, it is Tash whom he serves and by Tash his deed
is accepted. Dost thou understand,
Child? I said, Lord, thou knowest how
much I understand. But I said also (for
the truth constrained me), Yet I have been seeking Tash all my days. Beloved, said the Glorious One, unless thy
desire had been for me thou wouldst not have sought so long and so truly. For all find what they truly seek.”[2]
In Genesis
Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers; years later when they met Joseph
had the upper hand and his brothers stood trembling before him. Joseph had Pharaoh’s authority to have them all
put to death immediately. But he said:
You intended
to harm me, but God intended it all for good.
Genesis 50:20(NLT)
They didn’t
deserve that…but neither do I deserve God’s kindness.
For You Today
And what a
surprise and joy that will be!
You chew on
that as you hit the Rocky Road…have a blessed day!
[2]
The Last Battle. Copyright © 1956 by C. S. Lewis Pte., Ltd.
Copyright renewed © 1984 by C. S. Lewis Pte. Ltd. Used with permission of
HarperCollins Publishers. A Year With Aslan: Daily Reflections from The
Chronicles of Narnia. Copyright © 2010 by C. S. Lewis Pte. Ltd. Extracts
taken from The Chronicles of Narnia. Copyright © C. S. Lewis Pte. Ltd.
1950-1956. Used with permission of
HarperCollins Publishers.
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