Holding Tightly This Promise

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Monday, April 8, 2019

And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus.  By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place.  And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s house, let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him.  For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.  Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.  Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.  And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.  Hebrews 10:19-25

As we move towards what I consider the most blessed time of the year, Holy Week, the passion of Christ, His triumphal entry, Good Friday, and culminating in Easter’s resurrection glory, we focus during this season of Lenten preparation on the blood of Christ, his sacrificial offering for the cleansing of our sins.

In Exodus 40 we read the elaborate instructions God gave to Moses for setting-up the tabernacle in the wilderness.  This detailed process was not to be varied, because each movement, and each article placed in the tent of meeting spoke a piece of God’s forgiveness, and His relationship with His special people.  In the ancient “temple mode” a consecrated priest would enter the most holy place and offer the sacrifice for sin once a year…every year!

In writing this letter to the Hebrews the author picks up this imagery and reminds us of the hope to which all disciples of Jesus Christ hold.  Once Jesus finished his work on the cross, it was he, the Lamb sacrificed from the beginning of the world, who would bring the sacrifice into the perfect Holy place, Heaven’s throne.  There, the forgiveness for sin was made complete forever.

The writer, having outlined God’s marvelous plan of redemption, the purging of sin and cleansing of our souls, then proceeds to tell us what to do with it, namely we are to embrace it…tightly!

Corrie ten Boom’s tragic life is chronicled in The Hiding Place.  Her family heroically protected Jewish people during WWII’s Hitler regime, only to wind up in concentration camps themselves.  This family held to their Christian faith seriously, laying everything on the line for the cause of protecting innocent lives.  In an interview I watched in the 1970’s Corrie talked about material things, as opposed to God’s spiritual promises.  I will never forget what she said:

I learned to hold material things loosely in my hands; if you hold them too tightly it hurts when God pries them out of your fingers.

These words are a wonderful reminder that the blood of Christ was not shed so we could possess money, power, or prestige.  Those are but passing wildflowers, bloom today – faded memories tomorrow.  That is also the case with sorrows, poverty, and shame – the world’s cruelty passes as quickly as its pleasures.

Holding tightly to something is reserved for that which is precious, vital for eternity.  There are many things in life to hold loosely, but there are also a few things to which we should refuse to let go, even with our life hanging in the balance…truth and fidelity are among these, and the chief reason is the promise of God, His love and care, displayed in sacrifice and resurrection.  The writer of Hebrews told us to keep meeting together in worship, focusing on this gift of Christ, encouraging one another with its’ meaning, provoking one another to good works in Christ’s name. 

For You Today

To what (or Whom) have you been holding tightly?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day.

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[i] Title Image:   Pixabay.com

[ii] Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from The New Living Translation©

Leaders and Loyalty

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Thursday, July 19, 2018

I have found my servant David.  I have anointed him with my holy oil.  I will steady him with my hand; with my powerful arm I will make him strong.  His enemies will not defeat him, nor will the wicked overpower him.  I will beat down his adversaries before him and destroy those who hate him.  My faithfulness and unfailing love will be with him, and by my authority he will grow in power.  I will extend his rule over the sea, his dominion over the rivers.  And he will call out to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.’  I will make him my firstborn son, the mightiest king on earth.  I will love him and be kind to him forever; my covenant with him will never end.  Psalm 89:20-28^(NLT)

Once when David was at the rock near the cave of Adullam, the Philistine army was camped in the valley of Rephaim.  The Three (who were among the Thirty—an elite group among David’s fighting men) went down to meet him there.  David was staying in the stronghold at the time, and a Philistine detachment had occupied the town of Bethlehem.  David remarked longingly to his men, “Oh, how I would love some of that good water from the well by the gate in Bethlehem.”  So the Three broke through the Philistine lines, drew some water from the well by the gate in Bethlehem, and brought it back to David.  But David refused to drink it.  Instead, he poured it out as an offering to the Lord.  “God forbid that I should drink this!” he exclaimed.  “This water is as precious as the blood of these men who risked their lives to bring it to me.”  So David did not drink it.  These are examples of the exploits of the Three.  1 Chronicles 11:15-19^(NLT)

David was hand-picked by God to be Israel’s leader.  From the slingshot/stone-throwing days of his battle with Goliath, to the daily decisions of battle and governing, David was a man of loyalty; he lived in it, and he depended upon it.  He also earned it.

There are those who never get it about leadership.  A leader is seen at the head table, standing in front of a group, issuing orders or at the head of whatever the group is doing.  And sometimes the thought is that a leader has all this fun, and everybody else has to do what he/she says.  I must admit it’s easy to see things that way; I’ve been guilty of those thoughts also. 

However, over the last 40 years or so, as I have attempted to fulfill leadership roles in a variety of settings, the whole issue of being a leader has proved much different than what leadership looked-like from the outside.

Just a couple of things I’ve learned:

First – loyalty goes both ways.  If you are a leader, you must be loyal to those you lead.  If you follow, you cannot do so honorably without loyalty.  God had promised David the might of heaven’s favor on his kingdom throughout the generations.  David’s men; those special soldiers called the Three, understood their king’s loyalty to God was something they could count on.  Those who follow with honor will die for a leader like that.

Second – you cannot buy loyalty.  As much as the Three were loyal, it was not a matter of money, golden parachute retirement plans, or perks fit for royalty; the privilege of serving a fiercely-loyal king who was committed to truth and fidelity was everything a person of honor needs to know he/she is making a difference in the world.

For You Today

The Three risked life and limb to bring a drink of well water to their king; can we do less in loyalty for Jesus, the eternal King of Heaven?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day. 

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[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com

A Rebellious Servant - Part 2

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Wednesday, June 20, 2018

Then Saul admitted to Samuel, “Yes, I have sinned.  I have disobeyed your instructions and the Lord’s command, for I was afraid of the people and did what they demanded.  But now, please forgive my sin and come back with me so that I may worship the Lord.”  But Samuel replied, “I will not go back with you!  Since you have rejected the Lord’s command, he has rejected you as king of Israel.”  As Samuel turned to go, Saul tried to hold him back and tore the hem of his robe.  And Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to someone else—one who is better than you.  And he who is the Glory of Israel will not lie, nor will he change his mind, for he is not human that he should change his mind!”  Then Saul pleaded again, “I know I have sinned.  But please, at least honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel by coming back with me so that I may worship the Lord your God.”  So Samuel finally agreed and went back with him, and Saul worshiped the Lord.  1 Samuel 15:24-31^(NLT)

King Saul had disobeyed the instructions of God, given through the prophet Samuel, to completely destroy the enemy, soldiers, camp, and everything in it.  Saul kept the King (Agag) alive, probably to humiliate him and make Saul look like a regal, conquering king.  It was an ego thing.  In a display of religious pride he didn’t destroy the animals, but appeared as a magnanimous and holy ruler to give the animals to the people to sacrifice as thanksgiving. 

Saul knew how to get the most credit for what God accomplished.  In typically-manipulative fashion Saul had tried to rationalize his behavior as spiritual, only trying to please God’s sinful children; he had only given them what they wanted.  But Samuel saw through Saul’s feeble excuses and lowered the hammer – the kingdom was going to have a new king.  Yesterday we saw the arrogance of King Saul; today we see his humiliation.

Even after admitting that he had sinned, Saul is still bargaining for face-saving.  He asks Samuel to stay with him and go to church so the people can see them together, thinking, perhaps hoping against hope, that somehow it will all be smoothed over, and he will get to keep his crown.

We know that didn’t happen; the crown was eventually taken from Saul and given to the shepherd boy, David, the one who understood what having a Godly heart was all about.  David was not above sinning (we remember Bathsheba), but when it came to being truly repentant, David and Saul were as far apart as East and West.

What lesson do we take away from Saul’s rebelliousness?  Three, I think:

1.      Nobody is above God’s law – we all sin, and there is zero wiggle room.

2.      God will not ignore our sin – we are all accountable, and there is a penalty to be paid for transgression.  That is undeniable, otherwise the cross is God’s mistake.

3.      The right response to conviction is repentance – Saul didn’t repent, he tried to excuse himself off the hot seat, much like many in our culture today refuse to accept responsibility for sinful behavior.  David repented, was forgiven, and lived his life out in fellowship with God.

For You Today

It’s never easy to admit you’ve done wrong, accept responsibility, and to repent by obeying God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength.  Never easy…and never wrong.  Saul found that out…the hard way.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day. 

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[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com

A Rebellious Servant

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Tuesday, June 19, 2018

Then the Lord said to Samuel,  “I am sorry that I ever made Saul king, for he has not been loyal to me and has refused to obey my command.”  Samuel was so deeply moved when he heard this that he cried out to the Lord all night.  Early the next morning Samuel went to find Saul.  Someone told him, “Saul went to the town of Carmel to set up a monument to himself; then he went on to Gilgal.”  When Samuel finally found him, Saul greeted him cheerfully.  “May the Lord bless you,” he said. “I have carried out the Lord’s command!”  “Then what is all the bleating of sheep and goats and the lowing of cattle I hear?” Samuel demanded.  “It’s true that the army spared the best of the sheep, goats, and cattle,” Saul admitted.  “But they are going to sacrifice them to the Lord your God.  We have destroyed everything else.”  Then Samuel said to Saul, “Stop!  Listen to what the Lord told me last night!”  “What did he tell you?” Saul asked.  And Samuel told him, “Although you may think little of yourself, are you not the leader of the tribes of Israel?  The Lord has anointed you king of Israel.  And the Lord sent you on a mission and told you, ‘Go and completely destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, until they are all dead.’  Why haven’t you obeyed the Lord?  Why did you rush for the plunder and do what was evil in the Lord’s sight?”  “But I did obey the Lord,” Saul insisted.  “I carried out the mission he gave me.  I brought back King Agag, but I destroyed everyone else.  Then my troops brought in the best of the sheep, goats, cattle, and plunder to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.”  But Samuel replied, “What is more pleasing to the Lord:  your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice?  Listen!  Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.  Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft, and stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols.  So because you have rejected the command of the Lord, he has rejected you as king.” 

1 Samuel 15:10-23^(NLT)

I’m not sure which is a more laughable (albeit pitiful) thought, a five-year-old raising his mighty arms as a defiant display of his awesome strength towards the ocean, or a king imagining his way of doing things is better than Jehovah, the One who made him king.  Yet that is what we have in Scripture, shy Saul turned into arrogant King Saul.

No matter how much Saul attempted to rationalize his actions to Samuel, they echo rather hollow against the Lord’s words:  “I am sorry that I ever made Saul king, for he has not been loyal to me and has refused to obey my command.”  

For anyone who has ever served in a position of leadership, loyalty from (and to) those who serve with you is such a key issue it is impossible to undervalue its importance.  Anything less than action with complete integrity and fidelity is a betrayal of trust given to one in authority; there is no wiggle room on that.

In reading this passage I could not keep the thought at bay concerning what has been said so often about our current U.S. President, and how he values the loyalty of those who are supposed to serve under his authority.  Indeed, the stories are legion of the President’s wrath when the loyalty of his subordinates falters or is suspect.  And, since the Oval Office is the closest thing we Americans have to a throne room, the comparison isn’t strained here; if you’re going to serve a king, you’d better make certain you can be loyal…or you won’t last a day in that administration. 

But there is a companion thought that jumps into this mélange – the Oval Office is not the highest authority in this land.  Neither is the Congress, nor the people, or any grass-roots movement of the people.  In fact, nowhere in this world, or universe is there any authority higher than the One who sets up rulers…and also takes them down. 

He controls the course of world events; he removes kings and sets up other kings.  Daniel 2:21^(NLT)

And so, it would behoove any leader to understand the temporary nature of whatever “power” he or she now holds; it won’t be long – one way or another – before time, circumstances, or death puts that power in someone else’s hands. 

For You Today

So, let’s answer the prophet’s probing, stinging question – what is better, ritually sacrificing all sorts of stuff to appease an angry god…or obedience to a loving God?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day. 

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[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com

Two Rings

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Thursday, May 11, 2017

For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church.  He gave up his life for her to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God’s word.  Ephesians 5:25-26^(NLT)

I am not exactly a jewelry kind of guy.  I have never bought a piece of the stuff for myself.  But I have had some given to me.  My wife gave me a ring when we were 19 and standing before Reverend Bardsley.  I thanked her by saying:  I do!  She gave me another ring this year to celebrate our 50^th anniversary.  The first ring is a wedding band, symbolic of our commitment to each other; the second ring has a cross, symbol of my faith and pastoral calling.  So my jewelry is significant as a husband and a Christian pastor.  I take both callings very seriously. 

I don’t take the rings off my fingers much, only to clean them, or to dry them when I’ve washed my hands.  When I do take them off I lay them in exactly the same way as the picture on this devotion; the anniversary cross ring is on the bottom, and the wedding ring is resting on top of it.  Is it Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, or is there another reason? 

Well yes, there is a reason I do it that way; to be more accurate, there are two reasons.  Reason #1.  The cross is the basis for the Christian faith, and is therefore foundational to who I am as a follower of Jesus Christ, the priority above all else. 

Reason #2.  My wedding ring represents my marriage and commitment to Elizabeth to the exclusion of all others, and it rests upon the cross ring as a symbol that my marriage is built on, and dependent upon my faithfulness to God.

Paul’s specific advice to husbands was to love their wives in the same manner that Jesus loves the church, to give up whatever is necessary to lift up the one God gave to him. 

That’s a lot different than some of the selfishness we see as examples these days.

For You Today

Married or single, every Christian must hear the call of Christ to affirm the sanctity of marriage, to support (and sometimes that also means hold accountable) those who marry, and those who are preparing for marriage.

Considering the loose and almost cavalier attitude with which the bonds of marriage are held today, we must do a better job of teaching Biblical marriage and creating expectation and accountability that believers (particularly) will lead the way with strong marriages.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road…have a blessed day!

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NOTES

 ^I Title image:  By Russell Brownworth

pars pro toto

Wednesday, November 26, 2014

“You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery.’  But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.  So if your eye—even your good eye—causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away.  It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.  And if your hand—even your stronger hand—causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away.  It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.     

Matthew 5:27-30 (NLT)

The Latin saying "pars pro toto" (the part stands for the whole) applies here.  It simply means that even the smallest part of a larger entity represents the whole entity. 

We elect representatives to Congress.  They are supposed to represent (as a part of us) the whole district. 

The mind is one part of the total body....but it represents the whole body, connected by nerves, blood, flesh and bone. 

In just the same way, Jesus says that the lust of the mind (pars) is as real as the acts of the entire body (toto).  You cannot separate the two. 

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was executed by the Nazis because of his testimony.  He said, "When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die."  To die to self means we should view sin so seriously, as to prefer to lose an eye or hand, rather than disappoint the Master. 

When it comes to adultery (in Greek, literally "marriage-breaking"), we are to be one in mind and body - rejecting the way of the world, and being obedient in self-denial.  We are called to responsible living in the area of our sexuality and fidelity, whether married or single.

For You, Today…

Even the smallest thought that differs from the mind of Christ can tear the pars from the toto in the body of Christ.

Be careful to walk in toto today…strengthen the body; be a strong part!