When you were a child, did you ever tell your mom or dad a lie out of fear of the punishment that would come if you told the truth? It takes a few mistakes like this until the child realizes that the punishment from lying is worse than the punishment would have been for telling the truth. Children are not the only ones guilty of this thinking. Adults operate in this same mode at times because of fear of the repercussions if they were to be truthful. It happens on the job, with our families, with our friends and even in our churches. There will be occasions when "the truth hurts", but should that stop us from telling the truth?
Genesis 20:11-13 Abraham replied, "I thought, 'This is a godless place. They will want my wife and will kill me to get her.' And she really is my sister, for we both have the same father, but different mothers. And I married her. When God called me to leave my father's home and to travel from place to place, I told her, 'Do me a favor. Wherever we go, tell the people that I am your brother.' " Does this ring a familiar bell to anyone else? "Well, it really is not a lie because this much of it is true...." However what is the perception that is on the receiving end? Abraham wanted the Pharaoh and his people to believe he was not married to Sarah so he conveniently omitted that part of the truth. The reason? He was fearful of dying. So to compensate for his fear, he distorted the truth. He essentially lied.
Abraham was fortunate that in this situation God intervened directly with the Pharaoh and told him the truth. Pharaoh then came back to Abraham and questioned him at which point Abraham had no choice but to tell the truth. Perhaps because God has a greater plan for which he needed Abraham and Sarah, He saved Abraham in the midst of this act of disobedience. In any case, Abraham and Sarah came out of this covered with God's mercy and grace. However, there were consequences down the road.
Genesis 26:7-9 When the men who lived there [Gerar] asked Isaac about his wife Rebekah, he said, "She is my sister." He was afraid to say, "She is my wife." He thought, "They will kill me to get her, because she is so beautiful." But some time later, Abimelech, king of the Philistines, looked out his window and saw Isaac caressing Rebekah. Immediately, Abimelech called for Isaac and exclaimed, "She is obviously your wife! Why would you say, 'She is my sister'?" "Because I was afraid someone would kill me to get her from me," Isaac replied. Isaac had no convenient explanation that was a distortion of the truth. He just lied to protect himself. He was afraid. Although I have no documentation to support my theory, I believe that Isaac grew up hearing the stories of his father's many exploits and how God showed up to save him. It is very feasible that this story is one Isaac grew up hearing. When he finds himself in similar circumstances it is very natural that he would repeat what his father had done, even if it was wrong.
The question that immediately pops into my head is where was their faith? God had clearly had His hands on their lives from day one. If they had enough faith wouldn't they have realized that God is big enough to handle any situation? After all, they had intimate experience with God Himself in their lives. After all, Isaac was saved at the last minute from being a sacrifice on the altar. Surely he if anyone would believe in the power of God in all circumstances, but something happens to our flesh when we are confronted with an obstacle. We react. First response kicks in, and we react.
A relative told us the story of his entering his 3 year old's room and she immediately looked up and said, "Daddy you need to leave now." She knew she had been caught and the first response was Daddy needs to not be here! Did she think through that response? No - she did not even think about how to cover what she was doing - just get Daddy out of here! How like us when we are confronted with uncomfortable circumstances. What can I do to get out of this jam? Not what will God do because of the situation in which I find myself? God is an infinitely "BIG" God. He can handle any situation that we encounter, but do we trust Him to do so, or do we feel compelled to take care of it ourselves?
Obeying the Word of God is more complex than just looking at the ten commandments, yet it is as simple as obeying the two greatest commandments. Our lives are multi-faceted jewels with more dimensions and reflective surfaces than we realize. This complex individuality gives us multiple opportunities to choose obeying the heart of the law versus legalistically figuring out how we can twist it to fit our needs. Life can be very straightforward or we can make it so convoluted that we will lose track of its turns. If we choose to honor Him in all that we do, say and think, it simplifies the choices in our lives. In any given situation, ask yourself, is what I am about to think, say or do going to honor God or is it about protecting myself and hence honoring self over God. We must trust Him in all things and believe without question that no matter how the circumstances look, if we choose to honor Him then He will work it out to the good - our good and ultimately and far more importantly His good and that of His kingdom.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Monday, January 4, 2010
Our Engagement to the Bridegroom
The big question is asked and the potential bride answers with an enthusiastic yes. No date is set yet for the big day because the bride and groom have much to learn about each other before they can move into this next phase. Expectations are in place though for what will and will not happen during this engagement. This scenario is not unfamiliar to us. Nor was it unfamiliar for Joseph and Mary before their lives were turned upside down. Even that story is very familiar to us as we have just celebrated Jesus' birth. Have you ever considered that their story was actually the precursor to ours with Our Lord and Bridegroom?
In Jewish culture, the arranged marriage was considered a signed contract waiting only for the actual consummation to make it official. The bride is considered aligned with the groom from the moment of the agreement of parties. However there was preparation that had to occur before the consummation of the marriage could take place for both individuals. Joseph was preparing for Mary to become his wife, preparing their home, preparing for the future. Mary was preparing herself to become Joseph's bride, praying, fasting, purifying herself. Suddenly the unexpected and shocking happens - she turns up pregnant. Joseph considers "putting her away" until God intervenes and instructs him otherwise.
Compare this scenario to your Christian walk. The Lord wooed you until you finally saw the light - literally :-) - and accepted His marriage proposal. You became the future bride of Christ awaiting the grand marriage feast in heaven. The Lord is doing His part - creating for each of us our mansion in heaven. In fact He even sent us our engagement guarantee - Holy Spirit Himself. 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set His seal of ownership on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts as a deposit,guaranteeing what is to come. Talk about an engagement ring that is visible to everyone around us... Holy Spirit living within us. Just as an engagement ring declares to everyone that this person is taken, committed to another, our life as a Christian should emphatically state the same thing to everyone. We are taken and committed to our Bridegroom, Jesus Christ.
The engagement is firm and now we are preparing ourselves as the future Bride. How frequently in our engagement period though have we turned up "pregnant" with something that did not come from our groom? Joseph had the right as the potential groom to end the engagement based on what was seen. When we present ourselves as unfaithful to the Lord, He also has the right to "end the engagement" but He chooses to give us a second chance, a third chance, as many as it takes for us to remain with Him. However that is only the case if we are repentant after our unfaithfulness.
Recognizing the issues in our lives that would cause such a "pregnancy" is critical to our ability to participate in the wedding feast and thus avoid the second death. If we want to remain in the loving embrace of our Lord and our potential bridegroom, then we must be on guard constantly to dismiss the adulterous lovers from our lives. Anything that takes our attention away from the Lord is potentially the illicit lover of our lives. Whether that is our job, our relationships, our money, our success, our image with "the neighbors", or the more obvious lovers of addictions and immorality, each of these has the potential to create an unwanted "pregnancy" that stemmed from these affairs of the Soul and Flesh.
We are human and as humans we have three parts: Spirit, Soul and Body (Flesh). The Soul and Flesh will battle with the renewed Spirit of a committed follower of Jesus Christ. When we are born again, our Spirit is transformed, never to be the same again. The Flesh and the Soul however did not get transformed. It is our responsibility to work daily on that transformation process through the power and anointing of Holy Spirit operating within us. Until the day of the Lord's return, we must daily endeavor to remain faithful and true to our Bridegroom. Some days we will be bombarded with distractions designed to turn us from Him. These distractions are to be expected. Our choice is what we do with these distractions. Will we remain faithful to our waiting Bridegroom or will we wander off with a possessive lover? Choose faithfulness. Choose remaining pure for the wedding feast. Choose Christ.
In Jewish culture, the arranged marriage was considered a signed contract waiting only for the actual consummation to make it official. The bride is considered aligned with the groom from the moment of the agreement of parties. However there was preparation that had to occur before the consummation of the marriage could take place for both individuals. Joseph was preparing for Mary to become his wife, preparing their home, preparing for the future. Mary was preparing herself to become Joseph's bride, praying, fasting, purifying herself. Suddenly the unexpected and shocking happens - she turns up pregnant. Joseph considers "putting her away" until God intervenes and instructs him otherwise.
Compare this scenario to your Christian walk. The Lord wooed you until you finally saw the light - literally :-) - and accepted His marriage proposal. You became the future bride of Christ awaiting the grand marriage feast in heaven. The Lord is doing His part - creating for each of us our mansion in heaven. In fact He even sent us our engagement guarantee - Holy Spirit Himself. 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set His seal of ownership on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts as a deposit,guaranteeing what is to come. Talk about an engagement ring that is visible to everyone around us... Holy Spirit living within us. Just as an engagement ring declares to everyone that this person is taken, committed to another, our life as a Christian should emphatically state the same thing to everyone. We are taken and committed to our Bridegroom, Jesus Christ.
The engagement is firm and now we are preparing ourselves as the future Bride. How frequently in our engagement period though have we turned up "pregnant" with something that did not come from our groom? Joseph had the right as the potential groom to end the engagement based on what was seen. When we present ourselves as unfaithful to the Lord, He also has the right to "end the engagement" but He chooses to give us a second chance, a third chance, as many as it takes for us to remain with Him. However that is only the case if we are repentant after our unfaithfulness.
Recognizing the issues in our lives that would cause such a "pregnancy" is critical to our ability to participate in the wedding feast and thus avoid the second death. If we want to remain in the loving embrace of our Lord and our potential bridegroom, then we must be on guard constantly to dismiss the adulterous lovers from our lives. Anything that takes our attention away from the Lord is potentially the illicit lover of our lives. Whether that is our job, our relationships, our money, our success, our image with "the neighbors", or the more obvious lovers of addictions and immorality, each of these has the potential to create an unwanted "pregnancy" that stemmed from these affairs of the Soul and Flesh.
We are human and as humans we have three parts: Spirit, Soul and Body (Flesh). The Soul and Flesh will battle with the renewed Spirit of a committed follower of Jesus Christ. When we are born again, our Spirit is transformed, never to be the same again. The Flesh and the Soul however did not get transformed. It is our responsibility to work daily on that transformation process through the power and anointing of Holy Spirit operating within us. Until the day of the Lord's return, we must daily endeavor to remain faithful and true to our Bridegroom. Some days we will be bombarded with distractions designed to turn us from Him. These distractions are to be expected. Our choice is what we do with these distractions. Will we remain faithful to our waiting Bridegroom or will we wander off with a possessive lover? Choose faithfulness. Choose remaining pure for the wedding feast. Choose Christ.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Fruit and The Vine
Jesus spoke mostly in parables using analogies that the people of His day could easily grasp. However He also knew that the people of times to follow would also be able to understand these simple concepts. Much like a professor of university courses would have to simplify the conversation if it were conducted with elementary school children, our Lord simplified His teachings so that we who are not divine would still embrace the critical points. Fruit, vines, trees, branches, farming in general were common themes for our Lord. The pictures that are provoked in our minds from these simple analogies are clear and often very vivid. Remember the fig tree that withered? Matthew 21:19 Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing except leaves on it, "May you never bear fruit again!" Immediately the tree withered. There is no mistaking the meaning of that moment in Jesus' and the disciples' lives. No fruit - no future!
In the Word, "fruit" is used over 150 times depending upon your translation. in the beginning in the Old Testament we read fruit as meaning exactly that - the product of plants and trees. A few times there is reference to the fruit of the womb - clearly indicative of future generations. However when we get to the Psalms, we see a transition to a figurative meaning of fruit that begins to lay the groundwork for Jesus' teachings while He was with us. This is continued through Proverbs. In Isaiah 4:2 we have a true foretaste of what we will be learning. In that day the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel. Isaiah 11:1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse, from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. And so the references continue to multiple.
Fast forward to Jesus' time and place yourself in the midst of His followers. We would have grown up listening to the rabbis reading from the Holy Word. These readings would be resounding in our minds as Jesus began to speak to us. John 15:4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. Life comes through the rooted vine/tree/plant. Everybody understands the dynamics of nature. Nourishment comes through the roots of the plant. If the branch is cut off, it will immediately cease to grow. It cannot and will not produce the fruit that may have resulted had it stayed connected to its source.
What about us? Are we staying connected to our source? Are we remaining in Jesus so that He can and will remain in us? Producing the fruit that has been predestined for us is only possible if we continue to receive our nourishment from the Source. We can start out strong and even "bud out", but if we decide to go it alone, thinking that we can make it on our own resources and our own strength, we are doomed to failure. None of us has what it takes to sustain our own lives. We are dependent upon His nurture, His care for us, and most importantly His power to give us life. Without Him we are headed in a single direction - death, no fruit from our little branch of the vine. We will quickly wither and become lifeless.
How we choose to stay connected so that we will remain in Jesus may look different for each of us. The key is to understand that remaining in Him means more than just reading the Bible. Remaining in Him so that He can remain in us means living a life that reflects His light and truth. Jesus remaining in us is only possible if we are pursuing a life that depends on Him and surrenders every aspect of our lives to Him. If we are truly connected to the source vine, then we acknowledge we cannot survive without Him. We give Him all the glory for our lives, for anything we achieve and anything that we have. All comes from the Vine to which we are attached. We are nothing without Him. We are dead without Him. We will indeed wither and die without His life giving force.
In this new year that is poised ahead of us, it is my fervent desire to see the connection between the Vine and my branch thicken and strengthen. I want to bear more fruit for Him than I have ever before. I acknowledge that it will only occur if I widen the veins between Him and me so that more of His life giving power can flow through and produce the greatest harvest ever for Him and for His kingdom. I am availing myself to Him, to my vine, to my Source. Prune me, feed me, harvest my fruit, O Lord!
In the Word, "fruit" is used over 150 times depending upon your translation. in the beginning in the Old Testament we read fruit as meaning exactly that - the product of plants and trees. A few times there is reference to the fruit of the womb - clearly indicative of future generations. However when we get to the Psalms, we see a transition to a figurative meaning of fruit that begins to lay the groundwork for Jesus' teachings while He was with us. This is continued through Proverbs. In Isaiah 4:2 we have a true foretaste of what we will be learning. In that day the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel. Isaiah 11:1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse, from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. And so the references continue to multiple.
Fast forward to Jesus' time and place yourself in the midst of His followers. We would have grown up listening to the rabbis reading from the Holy Word. These readings would be resounding in our minds as Jesus began to speak to us. John 15:4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. Life comes through the rooted vine/tree/plant. Everybody understands the dynamics of nature. Nourishment comes through the roots of the plant. If the branch is cut off, it will immediately cease to grow. It cannot and will not produce the fruit that may have resulted had it stayed connected to its source.
What about us? Are we staying connected to our source? Are we remaining in Jesus so that He can and will remain in us? Producing the fruit that has been predestined for us is only possible if we continue to receive our nourishment from the Source. We can start out strong and even "bud out", but if we decide to go it alone, thinking that we can make it on our own resources and our own strength, we are doomed to failure. None of us has what it takes to sustain our own lives. We are dependent upon His nurture, His care for us, and most importantly His power to give us life. Without Him we are headed in a single direction - death, no fruit from our little branch of the vine. We will quickly wither and become lifeless.
How we choose to stay connected so that we will remain in Jesus may look different for each of us. The key is to understand that remaining in Him means more than just reading the Bible. Remaining in Him so that He can remain in us means living a life that reflects His light and truth. Jesus remaining in us is only possible if we are pursuing a life that depends on Him and surrenders every aspect of our lives to Him. If we are truly connected to the source vine, then we acknowledge we cannot survive without Him. We give Him all the glory for our lives, for anything we achieve and anything that we have. All comes from the Vine to which we are attached. We are nothing without Him. We are dead without Him. We will indeed wither and die without His life giving force.
In this new year that is poised ahead of us, it is my fervent desire to see the connection between the Vine and my branch thicken and strengthen. I want to bear more fruit for Him than I have ever before. I acknowledge that it will only occur if I widen the veins between Him and me so that more of His life giving power can flow through and produce the greatest harvest ever for Him and for His kingdom. I am availing myself to Him, to my vine, to my Source. Prune me, feed me, harvest my fruit, O Lord!
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