(June 27, 1990)
The date is circled on the calendar; ready or not, the movers are coming to take some of our household goods. The problem is that word some.
What stays? What goes? Do I need this casserole dish? Will I need that pair of shoes? And what will it be like for the packers as I stand there saying, “No, not that, pack this, no, just a minute, leave it and pack that...” Twenty-four previous moves didn’t prepare me for the decisions of this one.
It is easier to just pack all of it, but we can’t. We have to travel light. All of our stuff won’t fit in our condo in Saskatchewan. Besides, our son needs some of it: dishes, bedding, and a can opener, at least. This is the only time being a pack rat has paid off; we have at least two of almost everything! However, the decisions make my head ache. The other day I caught myself hoping for the Second Coming before the end of June. That way I wouldn’t have to pack anything, at least I hope I don’t try to.
I realize a crisis situation can bring out unusual characteristics in people. A friend whose house was threatened by a next-door fire was horrified when the only thing she thought to grab on her way out was her sugar bowl off the middle of the kitchen table, containing a few stray coins collected every laundry day. Later, she wondered about her value system!
The Second Coming may also clarify our priorities. When Jesus talked about the signs of His return, He told His audience, “Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house, neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.” He must have looked ahead to the day when time ticks its last and seen some people frantically stuffing their treasures in a United Van Lines carton as they looked at the evening news and realized The End truly had arrived. Though they must have heard “you can’t take it with you,” they were trying.
Along with this curious admonition to forget about possessions at a time when it seems no one should think of them, Jesus also said “whoever seeks to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.” He obviously knew the human quirk I fight every time I move... I do want to take it all with me; every book, every knickknack.
In a crisis, or even in ordinary days, abandoning ourselves, without luggage, into His care is never easy. Possessions can be a comfort. Perhaps learning to rely more on Him and less on things has been the lesson of our nomadic lifestyle. According to Jesus, it is a lesson for all His children.
The Apostle Paul even had to learn to leave his luggage, but not just possessions -- prestige and achievements too. In fact, when Paul allowed God to do his packing -- and he left behind almost all his material possessions PLUS the esteem of his heritage, education, position and reputation. With that gone, he was still able to say: “What things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things [but] loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them [but] dung, that I may win Christ.”
Paul also encouraged others to take “joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance.”
I’m just moving to Moose Jaw. Sorting necessary items from not-so-necessary has to be done. One day, it will be a longer move -- and far easier, without any decisions to make, books to pack, or boxes to sort. Not only that, I can leave behind the baggage of my old, dead, sin nature -- it won’t bother me ever again.
Now that is traveling light!
Friday, January 16, 2015
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
The Gospel Truth ................. Parables 222
(June 20, 1990)
My word processor came with a thesaurus. When I can’t think of the best word to use, I type something close in meaning, press two keys, and a list of synonyms and antonyms of that word comes on the screen. For instance, if I want to describe exactly the way someone walks, I type “walk,” and it gives me these choices: amble, ramble, saunter, stroll, and so on. I can then type back any one of those words and it will list a dozen more. So whether someone trudges or strides, my thesaurus supplies a precise word to describe their gait.
The other day, while editing an article that repeated the word “truth” too many times, I requested some synonyms. One of them was unexpected; along with fact and reality, the word “gospel” appeared. I’m accustomed to using gospel with a different meaning, as a noun. I forgot how often people use it as an adjective, to describe something they consider true or reliable.
When people say, “It’s the gospel truth...,” they use an adjective derived from the Greek noun “evangelion,” meaning “good news or good message.” Our English verb “evangelize” also comes from this noun. How it came into use as an adjective synonymous with truth started with the way it was used in the New Testament. Consider this one example from Ephesians 1:13: “You were also included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation...” Scripture links the two, not because their definition was the same but because the gospel or good news IS truth and because the gospel is about Someone who claimed to BE truth. Scripturally, it is impossible to separate these two words.
Ever wonder why they called it good news? Visualize the religious situation up until Christ came. God’s people were under the law of sin and death; that is, God gave them a high standard including the Ten Commandments, then declared whoever didn’t reach it would perish.
All fell short of that standard (and still do), but God gave hope. He promised a Savior, then established a sacrificial system to provide atonement for sin until the Savior came. Thus, failure to keep His law could be forgiven through faith in His promise, faith expressed by offering an unblemished lamb on an altar. Yet even that offering did not make anyone godly; He asked for perfect obedience -- no one could deliver.
Sincere, God-fearing hearts must have yearned for some good news. It finally came -- through Jesus Christ. He talked and lived like no one before or after, arousing hatred in the self-righteous but joy to the poor in spirit. To sinners, what He said and what He did was good news.
Jesus didn’t lower God’s standard however; sin never stopped being a serious issue. Rather, His life was good news because He fulfilled all the requirements of the commandments. He was sinless. He also provided an alternate to the law of sin and death by dying for all the sin of all mankind for all time. He took what sinners deserve so those who believe could be fully pardoned. He is the perfect lamb, a sacrifice who can change lives and make sinners holy. He sets people free from sin, from the joyless frustration of an unreachable goal, and from the bondage of religious rules. Jesus also declared, “I AM the truth.” He didn’t just speak truth or live it, He is living, breathing reality.
My thesaurus also listed antonyms for truth such as lie and fiction. Some words that mean the same as they do include: corruption, distortion, misrepresentation, perversion, deception, fable, fantasy, fabrication and falsehood. No wonder Jesus’ words are good news: “If you know the truth, the truth shall set you free.”
My word processor came with a thesaurus. When I can’t think of the best word to use, I type something close in meaning, press two keys, and a list of synonyms and antonyms of that word comes on the screen. For instance, if I want to describe exactly the way someone walks, I type “walk,” and it gives me these choices: amble, ramble, saunter, stroll, and so on. I can then type back any one of those words and it will list a dozen more. So whether someone trudges or strides, my thesaurus supplies a precise word to describe their gait.
The other day, while editing an article that repeated the word “truth” too many times, I requested some synonyms. One of them was unexpected; along with fact and reality, the word “gospel” appeared. I’m accustomed to using gospel with a different meaning, as a noun. I forgot how often people use it as an adjective, to describe something they consider true or reliable.
When people say, “It’s the gospel truth...,” they use an adjective derived from the Greek noun “evangelion,” meaning “good news or good message.” Our English verb “evangelize” also comes from this noun. How it came into use as an adjective synonymous with truth started with the way it was used in the New Testament. Consider this one example from Ephesians 1:13: “You were also included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation...” Scripture links the two, not because their definition was the same but because the gospel or good news IS truth and because the gospel is about Someone who claimed to BE truth. Scripturally, it is impossible to separate these two words.
Ever wonder why they called it good news? Visualize the religious situation up until Christ came. God’s people were under the law of sin and death; that is, God gave them a high standard including the Ten Commandments, then declared whoever didn’t reach it would perish.
All fell short of that standard (and still do), but God gave hope. He promised a Savior, then established a sacrificial system to provide atonement for sin until the Savior came. Thus, failure to keep His law could be forgiven through faith in His promise, faith expressed by offering an unblemished lamb on an altar. Yet even that offering did not make anyone godly; He asked for perfect obedience -- no one could deliver.
Sincere, God-fearing hearts must have yearned for some good news. It finally came -- through Jesus Christ. He talked and lived like no one before or after, arousing hatred in the self-righteous but joy to the poor in spirit. To sinners, what He said and what He did was good news.
Jesus didn’t lower God’s standard however; sin never stopped being a serious issue. Rather, His life was good news because He fulfilled all the requirements of the commandments. He was sinless. He also provided an alternate to the law of sin and death by dying for all the sin of all mankind for all time. He took what sinners deserve so those who believe could be fully pardoned. He is the perfect lamb, a sacrifice who can change lives and make sinners holy. He sets people free from sin, from the joyless frustration of an unreachable goal, and from the bondage of religious rules. Jesus also declared, “I AM the truth.” He didn’t just speak truth or live it, He is living, breathing reality.
My thesaurus also listed antonyms for truth such as lie and fiction. Some words that mean the same as they do include: corruption, distortion, misrepresentation, perversion, deception, fable, fantasy, fabrication and falsehood. No wonder Jesus’ words are good news: “If you know the truth, the truth shall set you free.”
Sunday, January 11, 2015
God warns of hidden dangers ............... Parables 221
(June 13, 1990)
My husband once yanked one of our children, who was oblivious to the danger, from the path of a truck. Other tots toy with matches -- fire is “pretty.” Some play in sewer systems - that’s “exciting.” A few teenagers spin the chamber of a loaded gun in a game of roulette - what a “thrill.” A youngster inhales his first snort of cocaine - someone told him it’s “harmless fun.” Danger that is obvious to a parent is not always obvious to a child.
But what if the danger is not obvious, even to an adult? How can we know what is too hot to touch? If we touch it to find out, we may be burned. In such cases, a wise child consults his even wiser heavenly Father. He gives instruction about “poisons” and “fatal toys” of which we may not be aware. For instance, consider this list: “There shall not be found among you any one that... uses divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a counselor with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer...” (Deuteronomy 18:10).
In case anyone thinks witchcraft is a fairy tale and this warning is out of date and related to superstition, take a look at the occult section in a book store. These days, with the New Age movement advocating activities like channeling and consulting spirit guides to discover the “god within,” this Old Testament passage needs to be reconsidered. What does it say for our time?
First of all, God hates this kind of thing. Verse 12 says: “For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD...” Whatever the human reasons for seeking guidance from spirits, conducting seances, even reading a horoscope, God detests it. No doubt His hatred is based on His knowledge that He alone knows what is best for the creatures He created. Certainly a medium or a witch does not. Some may declare that God is either dead, useless, uncaring, or something other than He has revealed Himself to be, but those who reject Him and follow tarot cards and the like are guilty of a form of idolatry, in this case a particularly dangerous form.
Secondly, it was nations in the land of Canaan that practiced these activities and God said “because of these abominations the LORD thy God drives them (those nations) out from before thee.” These people lost their homes and their land because they were dabbling in fortune-telling and other so-called “harmless” activities. It may or may not have been serious stuff in their minds but it was worthy of judgment in God’s mind.
God went on to tell His people (verse 15) that He would give them One to listen to, a prophet that would tell them all they needed to know. He would be from God and like God. This is a definite reference to the One who later came and proclaimed Himself to be God in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ.
When Jesus came, He opened the way to the true God; not the god within but the One who would come in, if invited. He also gave those who believe in Him a promise for their future and a faith for right now. God’s people don’t need the vague generalities from a horoscope nor the deception of “spirit guides.” What we do need is the truth of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, with the discernment that only a loving heavenly Father can provide.
“Baby” Christians don’t automatically know which “harmless” fun is really harmless, so we need to watch out for each other, warning and admonishing in love, just as the New Testament says. We also need to pay careful attention to our Parent... who knows the danger and wants to protect us from what might appear to us as “harmless fun.”
My husband once yanked one of our children, who was oblivious to the danger, from the path of a truck. Other tots toy with matches -- fire is “pretty.” Some play in sewer systems - that’s “exciting.” A few teenagers spin the chamber of a loaded gun in a game of roulette - what a “thrill.” A youngster inhales his first snort of cocaine - someone told him it’s “harmless fun.” Danger that is obvious to a parent is not always obvious to a child.
But what if the danger is not obvious, even to an adult? How can we know what is too hot to touch? If we touch it to find out, we may be burned. In such cases, a wise child consults his even wiser heavenly Father. He gives instruction about “poisons” and “fatal toys” of which we may not be aware. For instance, consider this list: “There shall not be found among you any one that... uses divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a counselor with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer...” (Deuteronomy 18:10).
In case anyone thinks witchcraft is a fairy tale and this warning is out of date and related to superstition, take a look at the occult section in a book store. These days, with the New Age movement advocating activities like channeling and consulting spirit guides to discover the “god within,” this Old Testament passage needs to be reconsidered. What does it say for our time?
First of all, God hates this kind of thing. Verse 12 says: “For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD...” Whatever the human reasons for seeking guidance from spirits, conducting seances, even reading a horoscope, God detests it. No doubt His hatred is based on His knowledge that He alone knows what is best for the creatures He created. Certainly a medium or a witch does not. Some may declare that God is either dead, useless, uncaring, or something other than He has revealed Himself to be, but those who reject Him and follow tarot cards and the like are guilty of a form of idolatry, in this case a particularly dangerous form.
Secondly, it was nations in the land of Canaan that practiced these activities and God said “because of these abominations the LORD thy God drives them (those nations) out from before thee.” These people lost their homes and their land because they were dabbling in fortune-telling and other so-called “harmless” activities. It may or may not have been serious stuff in their minds but it was worthy of judgment in God’s mind.
God went on to tell His people (verse 15) that He would give them One to listen to, a prophet that would tell them all they needed to know. He would be from God and like God. This is a definite reference to the One who later came and proclaimed Himself to be God in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ.
When Jesus came, He opened the way to the true God; not the god within but the One who would come in, if invited. He also gave those who believe in Him a promise for their future and a faith for right now. God’s people don’t need the vague generalities from a horoscope nor the deception of “spirit guides.” What we do need is the truth of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, with the discernment that only a loving heavenly Father can provide.
“Baby” Christians don’t automatically know which “harmless” fun is really harmless, so we need to watch out for each other, warning and admonishing in love, just as the New Testament says. We also need to pay careful attention to our Parent... who knows the danger and wants to protect us from what might appear to us as “harmless fun.”
Friday, January 9, 2015
Pressing through the tough stuff ................. Parables 220
(June 6, 1990)
Exams are over for university and college students, just coming up for school children. Young people anxiously wonder, “Will I pass?” And then there are those tests where passing is secondary; the poor student just wants to get through the exam!
We don’t need to be in school to experience tough tests: a child is sick for weeks and weeks, unemployment hits and keeps on hitting, the car doesn’t nickle and dime any more, now it’s into fifties and hundreds. At those times, we just want to get through the trial and go on to more enjoyable things.
Most of us do not look forward to those kind of exams. In fact, we do whatever we can to avoid “writing” them. However, God offers His children a certain character trait that makes it possible to not only get through the test, but do so with a passing grade! What we need, aside from good study habits, is PERSEVERANCE.
The word means “to remain under”; that is, “don’t bail out, do what can be done, and even if the nothing seems to work out, hang in there. Continue to obey God and trust Him, no matter what happens.”
“Remaining under” is not a normal response. Most of us, if we don’t run from a problem, quickly take it to God, begging Him to “fix” it. In fact, in the beginning of my Christian life, I thought if my faith was right, God would bring every trial swiftly to a happy ending and I would not have to endure difficult situations. I thought comfort would surely come, or peace, or a person would be saved or a life would change. I was so sure of God. He would never do me harm, nothing would ever hurt.
Then life dealt some blows. My assurance of being comfortable fell apart. I thought I was losing my “faith”... and I was... and it was a good thing! That kind of “faith” is not faith at all but a kind of mental manipulation putting God in the middle of my desires and trusting He would do what I wanted. I had to learn that while God can “kiss it and make it all better,” He doesn’t always.
Job said, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.” Job didn’t demand happy endings. Neither his faith nor his patient PERSEVERANCE pulled God’s strings. God knew all about his trials and more, and would do the right thing, but not necessarily the most comfortable thing. It takes a long time to learn this.
When tests come, James says to rejoice... each trial will actually produce PERSEVERANCE, the very thing needed to endure that test and whatever other trials may follow. Trials produce PERSEVERANCE by first exposing our genuine desires along with any attitudes and attempts to manipulate God to do what we want. They also show us where our wants conflict with His will. Excessive tests enable us to stop demanding and begin realizing we do not control God by our “faith.” Instead, we learn that God is God. He always does what is right, and He is merely adjusting our concept of right. As that happens, we discover that instead of wanting to run away, we find ourselves ready to hang in there, if for no other reason but to see what He is up to.
Faith that trusts God (no matter what) and endures a situation (no matter what) is a mature faith based on knowing that the pressures of life are important to our spiritual growth. Actually, our pressure-free situation comes later, in heaven. Right now, PERSEVERANCE is far more valuable (and realistic) than our demands for a life without trials.
So as those tests come, we can look beyond the pain to passing the test by a mature, persevering confidence in God. That kind of focus may not always work as a pain killer but it will give us an A+ on the exam.
Exams are over for university and college students, just coming up for school children. Young people anxiously wonder, “Will I pass?” And then there are those tests where passing is secondary; the poor student just wants to get through the exam!
We don’t need to be in school to experience tough tests: a child is sick for weeks and weeks, unemployment hits and keeps on hitting, the car doesn’t nickle and dime any more, now it’s into fifties and hundreds. At those times, we just want to get through the trial and go on to more enjoyable things.
Most of us do not look forward to those kind of exams. In fact, we do whatever we can to avoid “writing” them. However, God offers His children a certain character trait that makes it possible to not only get through the test, but do so with a passing grade! What we need, aside from good study habits, is PERSEVERANCE.
The word means “to remain under”; that is, “don’t bail out, do what can be done, and even if the nothing seems to work out, hang in there. Continue to obey God and trust Him, no matter what happens.”
“Remaining under” is not a normal response. Most of us, if we don’t run from a problem, quickly take it to God, begging Him to “fix” it. In fact, in the beginning of my Christian life, I thought if my faith was right, God would bring every trial swiftly to a happy ending and I would not have to endure difficult situations. I thought comfort would surely come, or peace, or a person would be saved or a life would change. I was so sure of God. He would never do me harm, nothing would ever hurt.
Then life dealt some blows. My assurance of being comfortable fell apart. I thought I was losing my “faith”... and I was... and it was a good thing! That kind of “faith” is not faith at all but a kind of mental manipulation putting God in the middle of my desires and trusting He would do what I wanted. I had to learn that while God can “kiss it and make it all better,” He doesn’t always.
Job said, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.” Job didn’t demand happy endings. Neither his faith nor his patient PERSEVERANCE pulled God’s strings. God knew all about his trials and more, and would do the right thing, but not necessarily the most comfortable thing. It takes a long time to learn this.
When tests come, James says to rejoice... each trial will actually produce PERSEVERANCE, the very thing needed to endure that test and whatever other trials may follow. Trials produce PERSEVERANCE by first exposing our genuine desires along with any attitudes and attempts to manipulate God to do what we want. They also show us where our wants conflict with His will. Excessive tests enable us to stop demanding and begin realizing we do not control God by our “faith.” Instead, we learn that God is God. He always does what is right, and He is merely adjusting our concept of right. As that happens, we discover that instead of wanting to run away, we find ourselves ready to hang in there, if for no other reason but to see what He is up to.
Faith that trusts God (no matter what) and endures a situation (no matter what) is a mature faith based on knowing that the pressures of life are important to our spiritual growth. Actually, our pressure-free situation comes later, in heaven. Right now, PERSEVERANCE is far more valuable (and realistic) than our demands for a life without trials.
So as those tests come, we can look beyond the pain to passing the test by a mature, persevering confidence in God. That kind of focus may not always work as a pain killer but it will give us an A+ on the exam.
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Coincidences? ................. Parables 219
(May 30, 1990)
For a couple of weeks a friend of mind kept silent about some mistreatment she was receiving from another person whose name happened to be Ms. Fox. My friend told me how God encouraged her through a sermon about “little foxes spoiling the vine...”
Just as I sat down to write this article, I thought, “I should get her permission (to say what I just said) before I begin.” At just that moment, the telephone rang and it was the same friend, calling to chat.
A few months ago, my brother and his wife took a vacation to the U.S. They stopped for a coffee at a service station in the Arizona desert. As they sat down, my sister-in-law’s father (also from Alberta) happened to walk in. Neither of them even knew the other was on vacation, never mind where.
An older lady, whose farm yard had the usual icy build-up all winter, fell and broke her hip -- but on a well-waxed community hall floor where there were literally hundreds of people immediately available to help her. Her husband said if she had slipped in their own driveway, he’d never have been able to get her inside out of the freezing temperatures by himself .
What do you think: coincidence... or providence? People use the term “coincidence” for events that seem to have some connection but appear to happen at the same time without any preliminary planning. Sometimes people call it “luck.” Providence is quite another term. It is less the idea of an accident and more the idea of “someone being in control.” The dictionary says “divine guidance or care,” with “God being the power behind human destiny.”
The sovereign providence of God is not an easy concept. If He can provide a hall full of caring people for a lady who broke her hip, could not He have provided that the fall didn’t happen in the first place? However, if mere chance determines who shows up in a coffee shop, or what preachers say in their sermons, why bother asking God to do anything? Prayer (and life) is meaningless if chance rules the world.
My mind is too small to grasp God’s supreme control, however this illustration helps me: Imagine all people in one giant playground. There is a fence around it and while the fence doesn’t control each and every movement of the children inside, it does contain them within its boundaries.
God does the same. He holds us within His boundaries. Like the children at play, we are free to make choices but not go outside the fence. Yet God is not passive like a fence. He also can involve Himself with our choices. Imagine two children trying to ride the same swing at the same time. He can intervene if it suits His purposes, or leave them to work it out.
In other words, He didn’t toss us into a bingo number cage and start turning the crank to see what falls out. Nor are we like chess pieces that cannot move unless He moves us. He lovingly keeps His eyes on every event and, by faith, “we know He works all things work together for our good . . .” (Romans 8:28), yet we are free within His boundaries.
With that concept, we can enjoy providence -- the marvelous, watchful care and intervention of God in our the lives. Let’s face it, if Someone wasn’t intervening, we’d have blown ourselves off the planet before now.
But what about coincidence? Do we have to fear (or hope) that things just happen? Is luck part of life?
Well, if it is, the Lord God is not surprised by chance. We may not understand everything that happens, but HE does. Because of His providence, when people say, “things have a way of working out...” we can be certain that a loving God is the One doing the working!
For a couple of weeks a friend of mind kept silent about some mistreatment she was receiving from another person whose name happened to be Ms. Fox. My friend told me how God encouraged her through a sermon about “little foxes spoiling the vine...”
Just as I sat down to write this article, I thought, “I should get her permission (to say what I just said) before I begin.” At just that moment, the telephone rang and it was the same friend, calling to chat.
A few months ago, my brother and his wife took a vacation to the U.S. They stopped for a coffee at a service station in the Arizona desert. As they sat down, my sister-in-law’s father (also from Alberta) happened to walk in. Neither of them even knew the other was on vacation, never mind where.
An older lady, whose farm yard had the usual icy build-up all winter, fell and broke her hip -- but on a well-waxed community hall floor where there were literally hundreds of people immediately available to help her. Her husband said if she had slipped in their own driveway, he’d never have been able to get her inside out of the freezing temperatures by himself .
What do you think: coincidence... or providence? People use the term “coincidence” for events that seem to have some connection but appear to happen at the same time without any preliminary planning. Sometimes people call it “luck.” Providence is quite another term. It is less the idea of an accident and more the idea of “someone being in control.” The dictionary says “divine guidance or care,” with “God being the power behind human destiny.”
The sovereign providence of God is not an easy concept. If He can provide a hall full of caring people for a lady who broke her hip, could not He have provided that the fall didn’t happen in the first place? However, if mere chance determines who shows up in a coffee shop, or what preachers say in their sermons, why bother asking God to do anything? Prayer (and life) is meaningless if chance rules the world.
My mind is too small to grasp God’s supreme control, however this illustration helps me: Imagine all people in one giant playground. There is a fence around it and while the fence doesn’t control each and every movement of the children inside, it does contain them within its boundaries.
God does the same. He holds us within His boundaries. Like the children at play, we are free to make choices but not go outside the fence. Yet God is not passive like a fence. He also can involve Himself with our choices. Imagine two children trying to ride the same swing at the same time. He can intervene if it suits His purposes, or leave them to work it out.
In other words, He didn’t toss us into a bingo number cage and start turning the crank to see what falls out. Nor are we like chess pieces that cannot move unless He moves us. He lovingly keeps His eyes on every event and, by faith, “we know He works all things work together for our good . . .” (Romans 8:28), yet we are free within His boundaries.
With that concept, we can enjoy providence -- the marvelous, watchful care and intervention of God in our the lives. Let’s face it, if Someone wasn’t intervening, we’d have blown ourselves off the planet before now.
But what about coincidence? Do we have to fear (or hope) that things just happen? Is luck part of life?
Well, if it is, the Lord God is not surprised by chance. We may not understand everything that happens, but HE does. Because of His providence, when people say, “things have a way of working out...” we can be certain that a loving God is the One doing the working!
Monday, January 5, 2015
Getting ready for the wedding ................. Parables 218
(May 23, 1990)
Could this be possible: a bride who didn’t show up at the altar because she simply forgot she was supposed to be getting married?
We had a wedding in our home a while ago. For weeks before, I’m sure the bride’s mind seldom strayed from that special day. She reviewed the arrangements constantly. She carefully selected her dress. She looked after all the details, going over and over them to make sure nothing was forgotten.
The brides in Bible days were expectant and ready too, but the weddings were much different than our ceremonies. First the couple was betrothed to one another, similar to an engagement period, yet this betrothal was considered the same as marriage. A divorce was necessary to back out of it. After the betrothal period began, the groom went home with his father to prepare a place suitable for his bride. During that time, the bride waited for his return. He could come for her at any time, day or night. There would be a trumpet call but only minutes before; otherwise he arrived without warning at her door, took her to the home he’d prepared, and the marriage was consummated.
If I were a bride in those days, I doubt I would listen for any noise but the sound that trumpet. Surely I would think of nothing else but the arrival of my beloved. Everything would be ready at all times; clothing, linens, whatever else needed to be prepared, but more than that, I would be ready. I cannot imagine a bride forgetting such an event would happen.
In parallel to those wedding customs, Jesus Christ referred to Himself as the Bridegroom and those who believe in Him as His Bride. Obviously the betrothal period has begun but since the Bride is not with the Groom, the marriage ceremony is not finished. First He has to return for His beloved.
Before this Heavenly Groom went to be with His Father, He said to His disciples, “I go away to prepare a place for you, and if I go away, I shall return and receive you to myself, that where I am, you may be also.” He gave instructions that His Bride be ready for His coming and promised a future wedding feast to celebrate the forever-union of Himself with Her.
When the feast occurs, there will be great joy because the Bible foretells she will indeed be ready: “Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to Him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife has made herself ready” (Revelation 19:7). The next verse, tells how: “she will be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.” All who trust in Christ (the Bible also calls them “saints”) are given His righteousness, making them appropriately clothed for their eternal home.
And the Groom will come. He said He would and He has never broken a promise to His Bride. He only tarries because even though she may be ready for Him in one sense, she is not complete. Not everyone has heard the good news about being united with the Lord “through faith for salvation.” And not all who have heard, believe it. He tarries because He is “not willing any should perish but all should come to repentance.” (1 Peter 3:9) All who will be part of His Bride, the Church, have not yet become that.
What shocks me is that I know I am part of those people who make up His Bride and I look forward to sitting down at that great feast with Him, but too often, instead of being a normal bride intent on the arrival of the love of her life, I forget from time to time to listen for His call . . . and I’m not the only one that isn’t entirely ready.
Could this be possible: a bride who didn’t show up at the altar because she simply forgot she was supposed to be getting married?
We had a wedding in our home a while ago. For weeks before, I’m sure the bride’s mind seldom strayed from that special day. She reviewed the arrangements constantly. She carefully selected her dress. She looked after all the details, going over and over them to make sure nothing was forgotten.
The brides in Bible days were expectant and ready too, but the weddings were much different than our ceremonies. First the couple was betrothed to one another, similar to an engagement period, yet this betrothal was considered the same as marriage. A divorce was necessary to back out of it. After the betrothal period began, the groom went home with his father to prepare a place suitable for his bride. During that time, the bride waited for his return. He could come for her at any time, day or night. There would be a trumpet call but only minutes before; otherwise he arrived without warning at her door, took her to the home he’d prepared, and the marriage was consummated.
If I were a bride in those days, I doubt I would listen for any noise but the sound that trumpet. Surely I would think of nothing else but the arrival of my beloved. Everything would be ready at all times; clothing, linens, whatever else needed to be prepared, but more than that, I would be ready. I cannot imagine a bride forgetting such an event would happen.
In parallel to those wedding customs, Jesus Christ referred to Himself as the Bridegroom and those who believe in Him as His Bride. Obviously the betrothal period has begun but since the Bride is not with the Groom, the marriage ceremony is not finished. First He has to return for His beloved.
Before this Heavenly Groom went to be with His Father, He said to His disciples, “I go away to prepare a place for you, and if I go away, I shall return and receive you to myself, that where I am, you may be also.” He gave instructions that His Bride be ready for His coming and promised a future wedding feast to celebrate the forever-union of Himself with Her.
When the feast occurs, there will be great joy because the Bible foretells she will indeed be ready: “Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to Him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife has made herself ready” (Revelation 19:7). The next verse, tells how: “she will be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.” All who trust in Christ (the Bible also calls them “saints”) are given His righteousness, making them appropriately clothed for their eternal home.
And the Groom will come. He said He would and He has never broken a promise to His Bride. He only tarries because even though she may be ready for Him in one sense, she is not complete. Not everyone has heard the good news about being united with the Lord “through faith for salvation.” And not all who have heard, believe it. He tarries because He is “not willing any should perish but all should come to repentance.” (1 Peter 3:9) All who will be part of His Bride, the Church, have not yet become that.
What shocks me is that I know I am part of those people who make up His Bride and I look forward to sitting down at that great feast with Him, but too often, instead of being a normal bride intent on the arrival of the love of her life, I forget from time to time to listen for His call . . . and I’m not the only one that isn’t entirely ready.
Friday, January 2, 2015
Faith simply says ‘yes’ and then obeys ................. Parables 217
(May 16, 1990)
The Old Testament father of faith, Abraham, rolled up his tent, called to his family to pack their belongings and went “he knew not where.” Can you imagine doing that? Maybe a single person, without a family and able to afford an adventure might easily do it. Or someone who was so fed up with their situation that they could launch out into the unknown, expecting anything to be better. But Abraham wasn’t like that. He had possessions and roots. He lived in a thriving city. Not only that, he was 75 years old.
This elderly, prosperous man moved from his home because, are you ready for this, God told him to go. That’s all. He just did it, no record of any questions asked or explanations given. God said it -- he trusted God so simply obeyed Him. Little wonder Abraham became known as the father of faith.
I know my faith has some growing to do if it will ever match that of the patriarch Abraham. I’m not 75 yet. We are not moving lock, stock and barrel. We at least have the name of a city. But these days, as I read his story in Genesis 12, I find God has blessed me with something of the same trust... at least some of the time!
My husband has already started his out-of-province assignment. The past few weeks I have alternated between a full-of-confidence “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” -- to a moaning “I CAN’T DO THIS.” It is not easy planning a move without knowing even our next address. Every now and then, my ability to trust God with the details takes a nose dive into the dirt. Then He pulls me out and assures me “His eye is on the sparrow...” and on all His children too.
One exciting fact about Abraham’s faith helps keep this radical relocation in perspective for me. Hebrews 11 says this old man was able to “live like a stranger in a foreign country... for he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”
Abraham’s destination was not particularly Bethel or any other location in Canaan. He was headed toward the spectacular metropolis described in the last book of the Bible, the place where the streets are paved with gold and no sun or moon are necessary for the Lord provides its light. Because he knew (by faith) that he was going THERE, where he lived HERE was irrelevant.
What an important thing to know. Before this job confirmation, we were kept up in the air for days; we didn’t know if we would stay here or go. But I don’t have to be up in the air about my eternal destination. God assures me that all who believe in His Son can KNOW what will happen after their physical body quits. His Word was written for that purpose: “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God” (1 John 5:13).
Whether we go or stay, no matter what happens to this body, Christians can say, along with the writer of Hebrews: “Here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come.”
I will admit the uncertainty regarding our physical residence has been uncomfortable. I feel for anyone without a secure dwelling place... however, there is a worse uncertainty -- that of spending a lifetime not knowing for sure what will happen after it is over. To never be quite sure of a place in heaven, to only have a “hope so” faith, would be the ultimate anxiety.
Through faith in Christ though, anxiety can become confidence that “if our earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal home in heaven...” With that assurance, so what if we have to break camp every now and then while we live here?
The Old Testament father of faith, Abraham, rolled up his tent, called to his family to pack their belongings and went “he knew not where.” Can you imagine doing that? Maybe a single person, without a family and able to afford an adventure might easily do it. Or someone who was so fed up with their situation that they could launch out into the unknown, expecting anything to be better. But Abraham wasn’t like that. He had possessions and roots. He lived in a thriving city. Not only that, he was 75 years old.
This elderly, prosperous man moved from his home because, are you ready for this, God told him to go. That’s all. He just did it, no record of any questions asked or explanations given. God said it -- he trusted God so simply obeyed Him. Little wonder Abraham became known as the father of faith.
I know my faith has some growing to do if it will ever match that of the patriarch Abraham. I’m not 75 yet. We are not moving lock, stock and barrel. We at least have the name of a city. But these days, as I read his story in Genesis 12, I find God has blessed me with something of the same trust... at least some of the time!
My husband has already started his out-of-province assignment. The past few weeks I have alternated between a full-of-confidence “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” -- to a moaning “I CAN’T DO THIS.” It is not easy planning a move without knowing even our next address. Every now and then, my ability to trust God with the details takes a nose dive into the dirt. Then He pulls me out and assures me “His eye is on the sparrow...” and on all His children too.
One exciting fact about Abraham’s faith helps keep this radical relocation in perspective for me. Hebrews 11 says this old man was able to “live like a stranger in a foreign country... for he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”
Abraham’s destination was not particularly Bethel or any other location in Canaan. He was headed toward the spectacular metropolis described in the last book of the Bible, the place where the streets are paved with gold and no sun or moon are necessary for the Lord provides its light. Because he knew (by faith) that he was going THERE, where he lived HERE was irrelevant.
What an important thing to know. Before this job confirmation, we were kept up in the air for days; we didn’t know if we would stay here or go. But I don’t have to be up in the air about my eternal destination. God assures me that all who believe in His Son can KNOW what will happen after their physical body quits. His Word was written for that purpose: “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God” (1 John 5:13).
Whether we go or stay, no matter what happens to this body, Christians can say, along with the writer of Hebrews: “Here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come.”
I will admit the uncertainty regarding our physical residence has been uncomfortable. I feel for anyone without a secure dwelling place... however, there is a worse uncertainty -- that of spending a lifetime not knowing for sure what will happen after it is over. To never be quite sure of a place in heaven, to only have a “hope so” faith, would be the ultimate anxiety.
Through faith in Christ though, anxiety can become confidence that “if our earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal home in heaven...” With that assurance, so what if we have to break camp every now and then while we live here?
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