"Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the LORD is a God of justice; How blessed are all those who long for Him."
Three truths relating to our Lord's longing present themselves here:
I. He is characterized as wanting and waiting to be graciously compassionate toward His own.
II. It is right that He would long for His children so deeply.
III. Blessing is promised to those of His children who have His same yearning.
I. What a wonderfully-needed word for a weary soul! How good of our loving Lord to reveal His heart's yearning for His own. So similar is this to David's statements in Psalm 103: "The LORD is compassionate and gracious, Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness. Just as a father has compassion on his children, So the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him. For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust," (vv. 8, 13, 14).
Lessons which come to mind:
a. I cannot disappoint my Father, for He knows me completely, knows that I am but dust. Nothing I do can ever catch Him by surprise, nor find Him making false assumptions about me. He has no unrealistic expectations which cannot be met.
b. He is never indifferent to me. The world about me often mocks the thought that God (if there IS one) would care one way or the other about this world, much less individual needs of the billions here. Yet the living God is as great in His minuteness as He is in His magnitude, and, as Paul reminded the Roman believers: "He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?" (8:32)
c. My Father's eagerness to shower me with grace and compassion encourages me to pray! "Oh, Father! Heighten my sensitivity to the many ways You show grace and compassion to Your undeserving child. Call me and cause me to praise You, as You are worthy!"
II. The uprightness of the LORD proclaimed by Isaiah echoes Moses's lyrics as recorded in Deuteronomy 32: "For I proclaim the name of the LORD; Ascribe greatness to our God! The Rock! His work is perfect, For all His ways are just; A God of faithfulness and without injustice, Righteous and upright is He," (vv. 3, 4).
One of Satan's most potent and pervasive tactics to deceive mankind is to question God's character. At the very outset of interacting with humanity, he asked Eve, "Has God said...?" From then to now his character of skepticism has not changed, and his spirit of rebellion is at the heart of all doubting God's uprightness, justice, and goodness. We lapse into this same attitude when we complain, contrary to God's command through Paul: "Do all things without grumbling or disputing," (Philippians 2:14). "Disputing" refers to questioning God, negatively... to criticize Him, either verbally or in our hearts. Such a stance steals our joy, grieves and quenches the blessed Holy Spirit, and breaks our fellowship with the Father. The antidote for such a poison? Unconditional thanksgiving (Ephesians 5:20).
III. "How blessed are all those who long for Him." This is both an observation and a promise. The most satisfied, fulfilled, and completed people on earth are those who long for the living God. This longing is at the very heart of why we were created. As the Westminster Shorter Catechism asks, "What is the chief end of man?" Answer: "Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever." Enjoying God, responding in eagerness to His eagerness, is possible only through the Lord Jesus Christ.
Being dead in trespasses and sins, (Ephesians 2:1), the natural man is without saving faith, incapable of pleasing God (Hebrews 11:6), considering the things of the Spirit foolishness (I Corinthians 2:14). Thus, it is understandable that such a one would avoid God's presence as much as possible.
What does NOT make sense is the child of God, bought by the blood of the sinless Son of God, who experiences little eagerness to fellowship with his/her Father. The only explanation is sin. Sin it was, that caused Adam and Eve to try to cover themselves and hide from God's presence... and it has the same effect today. Oh that we would continually refuse and forsake all that would hinder the fellowship our Father desires to enjoy with us!
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Monday, April 14, 2014
Holding to a Wednesday Crucifixion
In his book, "Wednesday Crucifixion", George Miller clearly presents this position and the biblical rationale for it. In summary:
"Mark gives us a clear and uncomplicated series of entrances of the Lord Jesus into the city of Jerusalem.
His first entrance had to be on a SATURDAY, or He would have broken the Sabbath by walking from Jericho to Jerusalem the previous day. "And they brought the colt to Jesus and put their garments on it; and He sat upon it. And many spread their garments in the road, and others spread leafy branches which they had cut from the fields. And those who went before, and those who followed after, were crying out, 'HOSANNA! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD; Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David; HOSANNA in the highest.' And He entered Jerusalem and came into the temple; and after looking all around, He departed for Bethany with the twelve, since it was already late," (Mark 11:7-11).
His 2nd entrance (SUNDAY) was as Priest. "And they came to Jerusalem. And He entered the temple and began to cast out those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who were selling doves; and He would not permit anyone to carry goods through the temple," (Mark 11:15, 16).
His 3rd entrance (MONDAY), [from Bethany, again] was as Prophet. "And they came again to Jerusalem. And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests, and scribes, and elders came to Him, and began saying to Him, 'By what authority are You doing these things, or who gave You this authority to do these things?' And Jesus said to them, 'I will ask you one question, and you answer Me, and then I will tell you by what authority I do these things. 'Was the baptism of John from heaven, or from men? Answer Me.' And they began reasoning with one another, saying, 'If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say, 'Then why did you not believe him?' But shall we say, 'From men?' -- they were afraid of the multitude, for all considered John to have been a prophet indeed. And answering Jesus, they said, 'We do not know.' And Jesus said to them, 'Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things,' " (Mark 11: 27-33).
TUESDAY was the Preparation Day, and after the trials He was executed on the following day: WEDNESDAY.
NOTE: In fulfillment of Exodus 12:3, 5, 6, the Lord Jesus (as the sacrificed Passover Lamb [I Corinthians 5:7], was inspected for FOUR DAYS, from the 10th day of the month (a Sabbath day), to the 14th day of the same month.
Three days and three nights (like Jonah [Matthew 12:40]) He was in the tomb. He then arose from the dead on the first day of the week (our Saturday night), the Jewish first day of the week."
"Mark gives us a clear and uncomplicated series of entrances of the Lord Jesus into the city of Jerusalem.
His first entrance had to be on a SATURDAY, or He would have broken the Sabbath by walking from Jericho to Jerusalem the previous day. "And they brought the colt to Jesus and put their garments on it; and He sat upon it. And many spread their garments in the road, and others spread leafy branches which they had cut from the fields. And those who went before, and those who followed after, were crying out, 'HOSANNA! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD; Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David; HOSANNA in the highest.' And He entered Jerusalem and came into the temple; and after looking all around, He departed for Bethany with the twelve, since it was already late," (Mark 11:7-11).
His 2nd entrance (SUNDAY) was as Priest. "And they came to Jerusalem. And He entered the temple and began to cast out those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who were selling doves; and He would not permit anyone to carry goods through the temple," (Mark 11:15, 16).
His 3rd entrance (MONDAY), [from Bethany, again] was as Prophet. "And they came again to Jerusalem. And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests, and scribes, and elders came to Him, and began saying to Him, 'By what authority are You doing these things, or who gave You this authority to do these things?' And Jesus said to them, 'I will ask you one question, and you answer Me, and then I will tell you by what authority I do these things. 'Was the baptism of John from heaven, or from men? Answer Me.' And they began reasoning with one another, saying, 'If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say, 'Then why did you not believe him?' But shall we say, 'From men?' -- they were afraid of the multitude, for all considered John to have been a prophet indeed. And answering Jesus, they said, 'We do not know.' And Jesus said to them, 'Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things,' " (Mark 11: 27-33).
TUESDAY was the Preparation Day, and after the trials He was executed on the following day: WEDNESDAY.
NOTE: In fulfillment of Exodus 12:3, 5, 6, the Lord Jesus (as the sacrificed Passover Lamb [I Corinthians 5:7], was inspected for FOUR DAYS, from the 10th day of the month (a Sabbath day), to the 14th day of the same month.
Three days and three nights (like Jonah [Matthew 12:40]) He was in the tomb. He then arose from the dead on the first day of the week (our Saturday night), the Jewish first day of the week."
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
The Challenge of Waiting
"Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress; so our eyes look to the LORD our God until He shall be gracious to us," (Psalm 123:2).
Sustained attentiveness is tough. The disciples who followed the Master into the garden of Gethsemane found it to be so. The day had been long, the evening intense, and by the time they entered the garden their fatigue was complete. Yet, there was more than the need for physical endurance involved… the spiritual warfare in unseen realms was raging around them, as Satan sought to thwart God’s salvation plan by overwhelming the humanity of the Savior. Their struggle and failure to provide the prayer support the Lord Jesus charged them with is understandable.
Sustained attentiveness is tough. The disciples who followed the Master into the garden of Gethsemane found it to be so. The day had been long, the evening intense, and by the time they entered the garden their fatigue was complete. Yet, there was more than the need for physical endurance involved… the spiritual warfare in unseen realms was raging around them, as Satan sought to thwart God’s salvation plan by overwhelming the humanity of the Savior. Their struggle and failure to provide the prayer support the Lord Jesus charged them with is understandable.
For, watching and waiting upon the
Lord elicit fierce opposition from the hater of our soul. Better than we,
he knows the spiritual power unleashed when the children of the Almighty give
Him their full & undivided attention. He better than we knows what's eternally at stake in the unseen regions around us, and spares no energy to thwart our persevering prayer.
Such opposition should spur us on to "pray without ceasing," surmising the eternal impact we can make for the sake of our blessed Lord's kingdom. Rather than becoming dismayed and leaving off praying, may the Lord use the very opposition, obstacles, and opportunities to quit instigated by the enemy to fortify our determination to "pray through."
Such opposition should spur us on to "pray without ceasing," surmising the eternal impact we can make for the sake of our blessed Lord's kingdom. Rather than becoming dismayed and leaving off praying, may the Lord use the very opposition, obstacles, and opportunities to quit instigated by the enemy to fortify our determination to "pray through."
Thursday, March 27, 2014
Psalm 46:10
"Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."
First, God commands us to be still, let go, relax. If we are to know the living God, our spirit must be free from the worries, anxieties and strife inherent within the world system. The prince of the power of the air incessantly seeks to sow seeds of discord, discontent, distraction, and destruction. He would have us stare at circumstances, dwell on situations, and be consumed with the cares of this world. And the degree to which we do so, is the extent to which we forfeit knowing God intimately and His peace personally.
Resting in the Lord is a byproduct of submission to His sovereignty. The greater our willingness to consider all of life as permitted by God's providence, the more consistently we will experience His peace. To the extent we chafe against His established throne in the heavens (Psalm 103:19), is the degree to which we lose His peace. Submission is an act of the will which may not be joyful, but sorrowful (Hebrews 12:11), yet the inner tranquility is peaceful fruit of righteousness.
Secondly, we are directly commanded by the living God to know Him. Contrary to the world's worship of the adage "know thyself" as the highest knowledge, the Creator of man asserts "know Me." Is this distinction crucial? Immeasurably!
Man in his ignorant arrogance is convinced that he knows his own heart, that it is a trustworthy source of truth, and therefore he needs no god (nor does he desire one). This perspective dovetails nicely with the prevailing notion of evolution, whereby it is denied that man is a creature (which implies accountability), and is seen as simply a highly-evolved animal. With the pervasive teaching of this God-excluding hypothesis to the point it is "generally assumed", the enemy of man's soul has enhanced the spiritual blindness of millions.
By contrast, the God who created mankind in the first place is the only One who really knows the heart of man: "I the LORD search the heart, I test the mind," (Jeremiah 17:10). Thus, being "intimately acquainted with all our ways" (Psalm 139:3), He knows that our greatest need in the quest to know ourselves is to know Him. In truth, the only way man gains correct perspective of his true nature is by knowing intimately the One who created him.
How is this possible? By looking to the Lord Jesus Christ in saving faith, who said, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father," (John 14:9). The Lord Jesus, God personified, is "the exact representation of His nature," (Hebrews 1:3); only through Him can one begin to know the living and true God.
First, God commands us to be still, let go, relax. If we are to know the living God, our spirit must be free from the worries, anxieties and strife inherent within the world system. The prince of the power of the air incessantly seeks to sow seeds of discord, discontent, distraction, and destruction. He would have us stare at circumstances, dwell on situations, and be consumed with the cares of this world. And the degree to which we do so, is the extent to which we forfeit knowing God intimately and His peace personally.
Resting in the Lord is a byproduct of submission to His sovereignty. The greater our willingness to consider all of life as permitted by God's providence, the more consistently we will experience His peace. To the extent we chafe against His established throne in the heavens (Psalm 103:19), is the degree to which we lose His peace. Submission is an act of the will which may not be joyful, but sorrowful (Hebrews 12:11), yet the inner tranquility is peaceful fruit of righteousness.
Secondly, we are directly commanded by the living God to know Him. Contrary to the world's worship of the adage "know thyself" as the highest knowledge, the Creator of man asserts "know Me." Is this distinction crucial? Immeasurably!
Man in his ignorant arrogance is convinced that he knows his own heart, that it is a trustworthy source of truth, and therefore he needs no god (nor does he desire one). This perspective dovetails nicely with the prevailing notion of evolution, whereby it is denied that man is a creature (which implies accountability), and is seen as simply a highly-evolved animal. With the pervasive teaching of this God-excluding hypothesis to the point it is "generally assumed", the enemy of man's soul has enhanced the spiritual blindness of millions.
By contrast, the God who created mankind in the first place is the only One who really knows the heart of man: "I the LORD search the heart, I test the mind," (Jeremiah 17:10). Thus, being "intimately acquainted with all our ways" (Psalm 139:3), He knows that our greatest need in the quest to know ourselves is to know Him. In truth, the only way man gains correct perspective of his true nature is by knowing intimately the One who created him.
How is this possible? By looking to the Lord Jesus Christ in saving faith, who said, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father," (John 14:9). The Lord Jesus, God personified, is "the exact representation of His nature," (Hebrews 1:3); only through Him can one begin to know the living and true God.
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
The Heart of Hypocrisy: Saying & Doing
"But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites," (Matthew 23:13).
The three offices held by the Lord Jesus Christ were: Prophet, Priest, and King. In this encounter with the scribes and Pharisees, He is speaking as Prophet, delivering seven oracles of judgment ("Woe to you") in this 23rd chapter of Matthew's gospel account. As Prophet He also spoke oracles of blessing (Matthew 5:3-11), but here declarations of condemnation.
Having begun by addressing the crowds and His disciples (v. 1), the Lord then turns His attention to the conservative religious leaders in verses 13 and following. Six times He includes the term "hypocrite" in His stern reference to them. He explains the basis for such a label in verses 2--12. Verse 3 summarizes His appraisal: "all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them."
Believer, the crying need for every conscientious Christian is for discernment... to be taught of the Lord the true state of his own heart. Rightly does Scripture declare that "the heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?" (Jeremiah 17:9). The answer implied: no one. Only as He reveals our heart to us through His Word of truth will we rightly mourn for the hypocrisy there. The more intimately we know Him, (through prayer and meditation on His Word), the more deeply we love Him, the more intense our desire to please Him, then greater will be the consistency between what we say and what we do.
"Father,
You who are intimately acquainted with all our ways know perfectly the areas of hypocrisy in each and every one of Your children's hearts. We can deceive ourselves, and one another, but never You. Thank You for Your faithful Holy Spirit, who uses Your Word to reveal to us the depth of our depravity...increase our willingness to accept, confess and repent, as You show us our heart.
In the Lord Jesus' Name,
Amen."
The three offices held by the Lord Jesus Christ were: Prophet, Priest, and King. In this encounter with the scribes and Pharisees, He is speaking as Prophet, delivering seven oracles of judgment ("Woe to you") in this 23rd chapter of Matthew's gospel account. As Prophet He also spoke oracles of blessing (Matthew 5:3-11), but here declarations of condemnation.
Having begun by addressing the crowds and His disciples (v. 1), the Lord then turns His attention to the conservative religious leaders in verses 13 and following. Six times He includes the term "hypocrite" in His stern reference to them. He explains the basis for such a label in verses 2--12. Verse 3 summarizes His appraisal: "all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them."
Believer, the crying need for every conscientious Christian is for discernment... to be taught of the Lord the true state of his own heart. Rightly does Scripture declare that "the heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?" (Jeremiah 17:9). The answer implied: no one. Only as He reveals our heart to us through His Word of truth will we rightly mourn for the hypocrisy there. The more intimately we know Him, (through prayer and meditation on His Word), the more deeply we love Him, the more intense our desire to please Him, then greater will be the consistency between what we say and what we do.
"Father,
You who are intimately acquainted with all our ways know perfectly the areas of hypocrisy in each and every one of Your children's hearts. We can deceive ourselves, and one another, but never You. Thank You for Your faithful Holy Spirit, who uses Your Word to reveal to us the depth of our depravity...increase our willingness to accept, confess and repent, as You show us our heart.
In the Lord Jesus' Name,
Amen."
Wednesday, February 5, 2014
Who gets the glory?
A popular perspective (which makes it suspect immediately) is to attribute man's salvation to something he does, whether believe, receive, accept, or embrace. Testimonies run along the lines of, "I prayed to receive Christ", or "I believed in Jesus," or "I went down the aisle and the pastor prayed with me..." Notice where the emphasis is: what I did. Back when God's sovereignty in salvation was widely preached and received, testimonies had a different focus: "Jesus saved me." It was a reflection of a more God-centered perspective, giving Him the credit and glory. Needed is the acknowledgement that, if God had not taken the initiative in electing some to be saved, had not then sent His Son to take their place on the cross, had not sent His Holy Spirit to infallibly call and regenerate them, then NO ONE would ever be saved.
Taking Grace Seriously
"I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.
But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!" Galatians 1:6-9 NASB
One of the most potent and pervasive messages Satan has used to confuse mankind, and keep billions content in their lostness is "there are many ways to God." It is a classic example of the truth of Proverbs 14:12: "There is a way which seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death." It is the natural assumption with which we are born: "with billions of people on the planet who do not believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, surely God accepts the sincere worship of those who are trying their best to please Him. Thus, there are as many paths to God as there are people...right?"
Yet the Lord Jesus declared, "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no ones comes to the Father but through Me," (John 14:6). John the Baptist echoed the Lord Jesus' claim by saying, "He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him," (John 3:36).
And then Paul, confronted by the risen Christ on the road to Damascus, proclaimed the same grace of Christ to the Galatians, resulting in the salvation of many. Paul then stayed in the area several years, discipling the new converts, teaching them the implications of their salvation. Yet, through the intimidation and lies of the Judaizers, the Galatian believers were victimized by the lure of legalism. They were enamored with the trappings of Judaism's regulations, restrictions, and rituals, rather than the simplicity of growing in grace by faith.
The tangibles (strict diet, rites such as circumcision, prayer schedule, special clothing), were pleasing to the flesh, bolstering the thought that surely externals can complete what internals began. Besides, such heresy isn't all that serious, is it?
With apostolic authority unique to those whom the Lord Jesus called as such, Paul pronounced anathema upon all distortion of the gospel of grace. As John MacArthur notes, "(the term) refers to devoting someone to destruction in eternal hell," (cf. Romans 9:3; I Corinthians 12:3; 16:22). Twice Paul declares this judgment upon "any man preaching to you a gospel contrary [other than, more than] to what you received" (v. 9).
Taking God seriously requires taking the message of salvation by grace, through faith, without works, forever, seriously. Although this truth cuts across the "anything you believe is ok, as long as you're sincere" philosophy of the world, and counters the mixing works with grace (works righteousness) of many "churches," the Bible's clarion call to doctrinal purity remains fixed.
But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!" Galatians 1:6-9 NASB
One of the most potent and pervasive messages Satan has used to confuse mankind, and keep billions content in their lostness is "there are many ways to God." It is a classic example of the truth of Proverbs 14:12: "There is a way which seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death." It is the natural assumption with which we are born: "with billions of people on the planet who do not believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, surely God accepts the sincere worship of those who are trying their best to please Him. Thus, there are as many paths to God as there are people...right?"
Yet the Lord Jesus declared, "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no ones comes to the Father but through Me," (John 14:6). John the Baptist echoed the Lord Jesus' claim by saying, "He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him," (John 3:36).
And then Paul, confronted by the risen Christ on the road to Damascus, proclaimed the same grace of Christ to the Galatians, resulting in the salvation of many. Paul then stayed in the area several years, discipling the new converts, teaching them the implications of their salvation. Yet, through the intimidation and lies of the Judaizers, the Galatian believers were victimized by the lure of legalism. They were enamored with the trappings of Judaism's regulations, restrictions, and rituals, rather than the simplicity of growing in grace by faith.
The tangibles (strict diet, rites such as circumcision, prayer schedule, special clothing), were pleasing to the flesh, bolstering the thought that surely externals can complete what internals began. Besides, such heresy isn't all that serious, is it?
With apostolic authority unique to those whom the Lord Jesus called as such, Paul pronounced anathema upon all distortion of the gospel of grace. As John MacArthur notes, "(the term) refers to devoting someone to destruction in eternal hell," (cf. Romans 9:3; I Corinthians 12:3; 16:22). Twice Paul declares this judgment upon "any man preaching to you a gospel contrary [other than, more than] to what you received" (v. 9).
Taking God seriously requires taking the message of salvation by grace, through faith, without works, forever, seriously. Although this truth cuts across the "anything you believe is ok, as long as you're sincere" philosophy of the world, and counters the mixing works with grace (works righteousness) of many "churches," the Bible's clarion call to doctrinal purity remains fixed.
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