Why Do You Fear Man?

In our family Bible reading this morning, we looked through Isaiah chapters 51-53. There is so much truth in these chapters that it's often difficult to focus on any one thing; yet in particular this morning a few verses caught my eye:

"I, I am he who comforts you;

who are you that you are afraid of man who dies,

of the son of man who is made like grass,

and have forgotten the LORD, your Maker,

who stretched out the heavens

and laid the foundations of the earth,

and you fear continually all the day

because of the wrath of the oppressor,

when he sets himself to destroy?

And where is the wrath of the oppressor?"

(Isaiah 51:12-13)

Isn't it funny how stupid we are? Here God is pointing out to His people the absurdity of fearing men when God is on our side. It reminds me of Romans 8 where it says "if God is for us, who can be against us?". Who indeed?

And yet we forget so often that God is with us. We easily fall into the trap of fearing men. Fear takes many forms, and each and every form clouds our vision of just exactly Who God is. Is He not the one with the mighty arm, strong and able to preserve and protect?

Where is the wrath of the oppressor? Who are you that you are afraid of man who dies? Who are you that you have forgotten the Lord? I forget that the Ever Living One is with me! How absurd am I.

Yet there is a flip side to this coin. Even though I sometimes forget to fix my mind on God, He never forgets me.

"Can a woman forget her nursing child,

that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?

Even these may forget,

yet I will not forget you."

(Isaiah 49:15)

Grace. God's remembrance of us, and His steadfast love and faithfulness, are not contingent upon our own remembrance and faithfulness. He is faithful even when we slide. He is with us even when we fall. He picks us up and holds us close. He remembers. Oh, that I could remember that always!

Be Thou my vision,

O Lord of my heart;

Naught be all else to me,

Save that Thou art;

Thou my best thought,

By day or by night...

Let it be so!

Terrifying Holiness and Immeasurable Tenderness Bound in One

"He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him." When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, "Rise, and have no fear." (Matthew 17:5-7)

The thing that has always hit me about the Transfiguration in Matthew 17 is Peter's response to seeing Moses and Elijah discoursing with Jesus. I've often found it hilarious that he blurts out this inane comment about setting up tents for the three, as though they were equal - it was like he just had to say something, anything.

But what hit me this morning was not the usual good-ol'-Peter thing. It was the above verses that stood out this time.

Do you ever consider that both perfect, terrifying holiness and steadfast, immeasurable tenderness are bound up in Jesus? Think about it. He was transfigured before the disciples, showing a measure of His glory in spotlessness; His face shining like the sun, His clothes "white as light". On top of that, the voice of the Father booms out of a bright cloud! Imagine that. It was only natural for them to fall on their faces in terror. When sinners are confronted with the glory of God, that seems to be the general response.

But then there is a change. The emphasis switches from the holiness of God to His tenderness.

"But Jesus came and touched them, saying, "Rise, and have no fear.""

In Christ we need not be afraid. We can approach God's glorious throne unashamed. We need not be terrified of His holiness.

God's holiness and tenderness are bound together. Though He is holy, though He is Perfection, He reaches out. He touches; He is not separate from us. God is no longer unapproachable, because He has approached us.

Have you ever been hurting (whether emotionally, physically, spiritually, etc.) and felt a sympathetic hand on your shoulder? You must know that the simple touch gives as much comfort as the spoken word, if not more. Even animals are comforted in feeling a tender hand. It's something about that physical connection that adds to the words, "have no fear".

"For I, the LORD your God,

hold your right hand;

it is I who say to you,

"Fear not, I am the one who helps you.""

(Isaiah 41:13)

"When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, "Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades." (Revelation 1:17-18)

Some day all of God's people will feel His touch, as He wipes every tear from their eyes. Faith and hope will find their glorious end in His loving presence. I don't know about you, but I hope for a bear-hug. :)

Why Do We Obey God's Commands If We Live Under Grace?

I've been reading a book recently (shocker!). I had initially intended it as a Christmas gift, but I made the mistake of opening it up before wrapping it. So it never made it beneath the Christmas tree. It is a fascinating book. I'm not going to tell you the title, because then you might want to read it and I'll be forced to read faster and I JUST CAN'T TAKE THE PRESSURE.

If you are about to argue that one can want to read a book without knowing the title, save your breath. You might make me weep.

Anyhow, it is a fascinating book because it's talking about living the faith we defend. The last two chapters I read were dealing with challenges from Islam and Eastern religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, etc. The thing that caught my interest was this: in most religions, salvation (or "reaching the goal" of whatever you believe) is works-based. Doing this, saying that, etc. The closer you are to doing things right, the better the outcome of your life.

As I was reading it, I was thinking about Christianity, and the difference between Christianity and other religions.

The difference is Christ. The difference is Christ.

The foundation of Christianity is that God provided a way where we could not. Christianity is grace-based, not works-based. Yes, there are "factions" and "denominations" under the great header of Christianity that are works-based, but they deviate from the truth in that instance.

Christ paid the price of our sin, and transferred His righteousness over to His people. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Salvation is found in Christ alone; not through our works.

So then, the question: why do we emphasize obedience? Why do we strive to live according to the commands of God? Because living under grace does not give us a license to sin.

If we are truly saved, and under the banner of grace, then we are a new creation. We are born again to a new life: one that ought to seek more and more to be like Christ. Why? Why do we obey the commands of Christ? Well, He answers that Himself:

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

Love for Christ means a desire to please and glorify Him. We don't live righteously to earn anything - everything has been earned for us by Christ - we live righteously to please God. Obeying the commands of God does not add anything to our justification - our obedience is at best mediocre and tainted, since we are still battling with sinfulness; but Christ's obedience was perfect and without taint, and He has given that to us freely.

Sin is lawlessness (1 John 3:4); so what does that mean for us? It means if we keep on sinning and claim "salvation by grace", we neither know what grace nor salvation is.

No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. (1 John 3:6)

1 John 3 in its entirety gives the answer to the question: because we have been born of God, we ought not to go on sinning. If we are His children (and if we are in Christ, then we are adopted as sons of God), we will do as He does. God does not sin.

You see, for the Christian, obeying God's commands does not come from some idea of merit or justification, and we ought to stress this. We are justified. Our merit is in Christ.

But living righteously comes from carrying on the family name into which we have been adopted. It comes from glorifying our Lord and Saviour, and pleasing the Father. It comes from living your life in light of the gospel. It comes from living for the one who died and was raised for our sake.

For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

(2 Corinthians 5:14-15 ESV)

Are you living in the light of the gospel?

Their Source

I screamed for peace to fill my wants;

Got only silence in response.

I wept for love to lift me up;

Disappointment filled my cup.

I wanted joy and nothing less;

Receiving only bitterness,

I wept, and wept, and wept; and then

Met up with the Son of Man

Finding Him, I've found it all,

Peace and Love and Joy in full.

Found by Him, and called His own,

I rest in the grace He's shown.

Happy New Year!

So, by eight blog posts I missed meeting the 2009 quota. Apparently I was more write-y in 2009 than in 2010. What do you know.

But hey - off my blog I probably wrote more in 2010 than in any other year - unless you count that year where I wrote a bunch of history for my baby (aka the novel I've been developing for 8 years), but I don't know if that was just one year or not. And some of it was kinda lame. But I digress; which is probably what this blog post is going to be. One big digression.

How was your 2010? Mine was pretty good. I have a number of great memories from last year - and some heartbreaking ones. There were times of joy and times of stubborn joy, if you know what I mean; that resolute feeling; that frame of mind where everything seems to be crumbling around you and yet you stand up tall in the face of it and say "shut your face, life! My God is bigger than you and every terrible circumstance you can possibly throw at me. Oh, and Satan, you stink. Just sayin'." Yea, that frame of mind.

So, 2011. I have no idea what's coming up this year. I have this feeling of standing on the brink, not knowing when I'm going over or what I'm going over into. All I know is that God has been beautiful this past year, and I know that He will continue to show Himself steadfast and wonderful in this new year - even if it is an odd year.

A couple of years ago I wrote down some resolutions for the new year. But they're not so much of a one-year thing as a lifetime study, so I'll repost them as a reminder to myself.

Happy New Year.

~

· Continue Memorizing Scripture. Having the Word of God at hand is good – having it on your heart is better. Let these be my words: “Thy word have I hid in my heart…”

· Read through ESV-SB.

· Develop a character of helping others. Grow in grace and compassion. Let me never consider myself better than others, but consider myself the chief of sinners – seek God’s help in developing humility. Let me consider all others better than myself.

· Develop patience. No-one is so sinful or bad that they deserve sinful wrath from another sinner. God is infinitely patient with me. How can I be any different?

· Develop Christ-likeness. Study the gospels of Christ in order to learn better how to imitate Him.

1. Spend time with Him. Relationships are made and fostered by the time we spend functioning within them. Spend time with your Lord in prayer and study of His Word Reconnect through talking with the Lord of Lords.

2. Take obedience to the Lord seriously. The Lord's commands are made out of love for us. He laid them out in His Word so that we might best find His blessings, and to help us avoid the pitfalls of living in this world.

3. Recognize your sinfulness, and recommit your life to the Lord. Make a spiritual contract with the Lord.

4. Dive into worship. Worshiping the Lord does not have to be just singing along with the choir on Sunday. While that is good and it honors God, you can also worship Him while going for a walk in His beautiful creation, while marveling at the works He is doing around the world, or recognizing and appreciating the provision that He makes in your life.

5. Start to tithe. The Lord promises to provide for you and bless you when you are faithful in giving back to Him.

6. Start serving others. Become the hands of Christ as you serve others and allow the Lord to work through you.

7. Give thanks to the Lord for all the blessings that He has placed in your life.

- From Dr. David Jeremiah

· Prayer time - Designate prayer time and stick to it.

· Seek God’s help in controlling temper.

· Redeem the time – do not waste away idle hours doing nothing.

· Let me never waste an opportunity to spread the gospel – I pray that I may have courage to step forward when the way is frightening, when all are against me. May fear of death or pain never keep me from proclaiming God’s name.

· Let every word of my mouth, every thought from my mind, every emotion I feel, be held captive by God for His glory. In every circumstance, may I remember that I am God’s letter to this world, that I am His ambassador to this Earth. May I live like it every moment.

· Read biographies and histories – Take the examples of faith from Christians past.

· Let this be the description of my life from this day forth : Romans 12:9-21

"Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

· If ever I come to terrible persecution, let me not curse those who torment me, but instead follow the example of Stephen, and die praying for them.

· Be a godly example to family and friends. May I be ever ready for God to work through me.

· May I never be afraid to stand up for others weaker than myself.