Category: A Life Worthy

Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen?  It is God who justifies.  Who is he that condemns? (Romans 8:33-34a).

Usually it’s me.

For the most part, I am the one who brings charges against me; I am the one who condemns.  You see, I have lots of inside information that I can use—I am an expert witness against myself.

You probably can’t identify with that.  It’s most likely just my little quirk.

I guess I still have trouble believing that God would choose me for his own.  And yet he promises that he has.  Knowing all my expert testimony, and with all that he could add if he chose to, he has justified me, at great cost to himself.  He has paid the penalty for my many crimes.  And so, the charges won’t stick.  The condemnation won’t hold.

Not even my charges.  My condemnation.

That makes for a happy Wednesday, Beloved.

He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:32).

I have a son.  I love him more than my own heart. I can’t imagine giving him up for my closest friend, much less for this sinful, broken world.

If God was willing to give his Son for you, he’s not going to deny you anything you need.  If you feel like you are missing something, that God is holding out on you, remember this:

He knows you better than you know yourself.

He loves you better than you love yourself.

He is far more capable of taking care of you than you are.

If he’s not giving you what you ask for, I’m sorry.  I really am.  If I had the power, I would give it to you.  But then, that would probably mess up some important lesson God is trying to teach you, or some important quality he is working to develop in you.  I guess that’s reason #34 to be glad I’m not God.

Trust him, Beloved.  Let him work in you today.

Back to Romans we go…

What, then, shall we say in response to this?  If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31)

For the record, the “this” above refers to the fact that God has predestined, called, justified, and glorified us.  We talked about it a couple of weeks ago.  This is why it’s a good idea to read your One-a-Days every day…keeps you in the loop.

God is for you.  He is on your side.  I don’t wanna get all Greeky on you, but that “If” at the beginning of the sentence does not imply “maybe so, maybe no,” but rather “since.”  We could read it, “Since God is for us…”

So let’s.

Since God is for us, who can be against us?  I want you to do something this morning.  I want you to make a mental list of all the things and people and circumstances that seem to be against you.  Pile them all on one side of your mental scale.

On the other side, put the Creator, Sustainer, and Lord of the Universe.

What happens to your scale?

Exactly.

So, hold on to that picture today.  Whatever Monday tries to throw at you, remember that it pales in strength next to the One who is on your side.

The One who created you.

The One who died for you.

The One who calls you his own.

Walk in confidence today, Beloved.

Resurrection Sunday

He is Risen!

…because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay (Psalm 16:10).

But God will redeem my life from the grave; he will surely take me to himself (Psalm 49:15).

For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths of the grave (Psalm 86:13).

 “I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death.  Where, O death, are your plagues?  Where, O grave, is your destruction?” (Hosea 13:14)

Lost

Alone

Confused

Empty

These words describe what I imagine the disciples felt on that Sunday morning.  They must have figured that, after all, Jesus had failed.

Has anyone ever been more gloriously wrong?

On Sunday morning, Mary Magdalene went with some of the other women to make sure that the body of Jesus was properly cared for.  Oh, the surprise they got!  The tomb was empty, the body was gone, and an angel announced, “He is not here; He has risen!”

Can you imagine?

Seriously, can you imagine it?  Imagine going with Mary and seeing the stone rolled away, hearing the angel’s words.  Imagine being with the disciples when she brings them the news.  Imagine running with Peter and John to see for yourself, and finding the tomb empty, the grave clothes neatly folded.  Imagine standing with Thomas, the doubter, as he touched the wounds on his living Lord.

Imagine.

His death satisfied the requirements of the old covenant—a perfect sacrifice to cover all sin always.

His resurrection broke the power of Death forever, and ushered in the New Covenant—a promise of grace and hope and peace.

His return will bring the fulfillment of history, as he gathers those who put their trust in him and takes them home forever.

He is risen, indeed!

Walk in joy today, Beloved.

Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn my hand against the little ones (Zechariah 13:7b).

We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all (Isaiah 53:6).

Everybody loves you when you’re winning.

What happened to the crowds?  Was it just last Sunday that the people were lining the streets, cheering for Jesus?  Now where are they?

Gone.

When the soldiers came for Jesus, the disciples scattered.  John followed, but at a distance.  He needed to know what was happening, but he couldn’t bring himself to intervene.

Peter, like John, followed at a distance.  He mingled with the crowd, where he could blend in and, hopefully, go unnoticed.  While he was standing with a group, a servant girl recognized him.  Here was Peter’s chance to stand tall for Christ.  Here was his golden opportunity to proclaim his loyalty to Jesus and stand with him—die with him, if need be.  After all, that is what he had promised Jesus.

What did he do?  You know what he did.  He denied his Lord.  Big, strong Peter couldn’t stand up to the questions of the lowliest servant girl.

What of the rest?  All we know is that they ran for it.

Don’t be too hard on the disciples.  I’m convinced they genuinely believed that they were up to the challenge.  When Peter said he would never betray Jesus, I think he meant it down to the marrow of his bones.  He didn’t have the courage, because he was only human.  Like us.  We know that John, and Mary, and a few others came to the cross before Jesus died; Jesus even spoke to John from the cross. But in the end, Jesus had to fulfill his purpose himself.

In the end, Jesus went to the cross alone.

He went to the grave alone.

He rose from the dead alone.

Because he had to.  That was the point—if anyone else could have done it, if anyone else could have helped, we wouldn’t have needed the perfect Son of God.

Jesus stood alone so that you will never have to.

Because he loves you.

You.

Walk in thankfulness today, Beloved.

Good Friday

Betrayal and Sacrifice

Even my close friend, whom I trusted, he who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me (Psalm 41:9).

Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.  But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed (Isaiah 53:4-5).

Matthew 26:14-27:65

Mark 14:17-15:47

Luke 22:47-23:56

John 13:18-30; 19:1-42

Betrayal

It’s a bitter, ugly word for a bitter, ugly deed.

Perhaps the worst thing about betrayal is that, by its very nature, betrayal involves someone you trust.  In a sense, you have to give the betrayer the power to hurt you by making yourself vulnerable.  Those who never make themselves vulnerable to others can never be betrayed.

But then, they can never really love, either.

Jesus, as we know, was betrayed by Judas Iscariot.  Jesus knew it was coming—he even announced it to the disciples at the Last Supper.  He was handed over to the Chief Priests, and then to the Romans, and then crucified.  Rather than synopsize this day, I suggest that you go read it for yourselves.  Pick one or more of the Gospel accounts I’ve listed above and go through it as a family.  It isn’t pretty.

It is essential.

As you read, remember that he knew what was coming.  He went to the cross on purpose because he loves you.

You.

The Thursday Before Easter

Jesus, Our Passover Lamb

The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you.  No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt (Exodus 12:13).  

He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth (Isaiah 53:7).

After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities (Isaiah 53:11).

You sin.

If that’s news to you, well, there you go.  At least you’re in good company—pretty much everyone.

That sin gets between you and God and messes up your relationship, just like lying, cheating, or whatnot hurts any relationship.  The Old Covenant had a means for dealing with sin and restoring your relationship with God.

Death.

Don’t like that part?  Well, I don’t blame you, but there it is.  As Paul says, “The wages of sin is death.” (Romans 3:23)  When Adam and Eve first sinned, death was the result.  God took an animal, killed it, and used the skin to cover their nakedness…their sin.  From that point on, animals were sacrificed to atone, or make up for, man’s sin.

Why would God want us to kill animals, and how does that make up for doing bad things?  By itself, the idea doesn’t seem to make much sense.  But think of it in context.  God used the sacrifice—the physical death—of innocent animals to remind us that sin causes spiritual death in us.  And it couldn’t be just any animal—it had to be your best.  Woe unto you if you brought leftovers to the Lord of the Universe.

The Passover Lamb was a particularly special sacrifice.  It reminded the people of their rescue from slavery.  When God broke Pharaoh’s will and forced him to release the Hebrews, he did it by sending an angel to put to death the firstborn of all Egypt.  To spare his people from this nightmare, God had them kill a lamb—a perfect lamb, without any defect—and sprinkle its blood on the doorposts of their house.  The Lord promised to “pass over” those houses sprinkled with blood.  The Jews continue to celebrate the Passover as a most holy day.

As we saw yesterday, Jesus brought a new covenant.  As he celebrated Passover with his closest friends, he said he was instituting, “A new covenant, in my blood.”  You see, the old covenant was limited in its power.  The blood of an animal could temporarily cover a man’s sin, but it could never remove it.  A man’s blood was useless, because the sacrifice had to be perfect, and no man was perfect.

Until Jesus.

Jesus lived a sinless life, and thus was the one man in all of history who did not need to offer a sacrifice.

So he offered himself as the sacrifice.

For us.

There is no way to adequately explain Christ’s sacrifice; certainly not in these few words.  My Bible covers it in about 2000 pages, and I still don’t fully get it.  So let’s rest in these words from Paul:

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.  (2 Corinthians 5:21)

In Christ, you are righteous; in him, you are righteousness.  I can’t get my brain around that, but I know I want it.

Do you want it, Beloved?

Then take it.

“The time is coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.  It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD.” (Jeremiah 31:31-34)

Most Christian churches take communion on a regular basis.  If you have been part of a church for many years, you can probably recite Paul’s words from memory

“The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread…”

How many times have you eaten the bread…or cracker, and sipped the wine…or juice?  What does it all mean?

The first communion took place during the Passover, a reminder of the Old Covenant.  The Passover celebrated the night that God supernaturally broke the power of the Egyptians over the Hebrews.  He established a covenant with them, promising that he would be Israel’s God, and they would be his people.

Always.

For the most part, people in today’s world deal with each other through contracts.  A contract is a business relationship between partners.  Each side has obligations to and expectations of the other.  If these obligations and expectations are not met, the contract is broken, and the terms become invalid.  The people who were wronged by the violation of the contract can seek justice through an impartial third party, the court.

A covenant is more like family.  I give my children rules to follow, but those rules are for their benefit as much as, or more than, for mine.  If they violate those rules I will discipline them, but they will not cease to be my children.  My covenant with my children to love and support them as their father remains, even if, from time to time, they don’t live up to their end of the bargain.

Which they don’t.

Because they’re children.

Jesus brought his disciples, and all of us, a new covenant.  This covenant was not based in rules, but in relationship—in the person of Jesus himself.

Think about the relationships in your life.  Do they feel more like covenants, or contracts?  What about your relationship with God?  Do you feel like you are under the grace of his covenant, or like you are bound to a contract which you cannot possibly fulfill?

You are a child of the covenant, Beloved.  He makes the promise.  He paid the price.  All you need do is accept the grace that he offers.

Walk in that grace today.

I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting (Isaiah 50:6).                          

They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing (Psalm 22:18).

Dogs have surrounded me; a band of evil men has encircled me, they have pierced my hands and my feet (Psalm 22:16).

And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication.  They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for a firstborn son (Zechariah 12:10).

I’m jumping ahead a little in the narration today.  You see, as Jesus went through this final week of his earthly life, he knew what was coming.  He knew he would die to pay the price for our sins.  He also knew that more than death would be involved.   There would be pain, and humiliation, and loneliness.  The soldiers slapped him around.  They laughed at him.  They dressed him up to look like a petty king, complete with crown of thorns.  They took his clothes. They spat on him.

And he took it.  For you.  For me.

The key to today is to remember that Jesus was not surprised by any of this.  He didn’t accidentally let his guard down.  He didn’t get caught up in circumstances beyond his control.  There are no circumstances beyond his control.  As he spent this day teaching in the temple, he was moving purposefully and steadily toward the pain that waited for him.   At any point along the way, Jesus could have ended this.  He chose to wait until he could say, “It is finished.”

The spiritual accomplishments of the Cross are so monumental that sometimes we forget about the physical agony Christ endured both after his arrest and on the Cross.  Remember it today, Beloved.  Remember what he suffered, and why.  And don’t ever, in all the days ahead, wonder if you are worthy of any good thing.

You, Beloved, are worth dying for.

The Monday before Easter

The Cleansing of the Temple

…for zeal for your house consumes me, and the insults of those who insult you fall on me (Psalm 69:9).

Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar;

For my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations (Isaiah 56:7b).

“Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal and follow other gods you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house, which still bears my Name, and say, “We are safe”—safe to do all these detestable things?  Has this house, which bears my Name, become a den of robbers to you?  But I have been watching!” declares the Lord (Jeremiah 7:9-11).

Jesus entered the city and went up to the temple.  It was Passover, the biggest holiday of the Jewish year, so the joint was really jumping.  Many people had come from a long way away to be part of the celebration.  Rather than transport all the animals you would need for the various sacrifices, it was normal and acceptable to buy what you needed when you got to Jerusalem.  The customary practice was for vendors to set up shop at a convenient place near the temple.

What Jesus saw when he arrived was dramatically different. The vendors had their booths and tables set up in the temple itself.  They were operating in an area called the Outer Court, the only place in the temple where non-Jews could come to worship God.  There they were, selling animals and changing foreign currency into local currency, and just generally carrying on noisy business, all while people were trying to worship.

Jesus was furious.  He knocked over the tables and chased the vendors out of there.  John even says that Jesus made a whip and used it to drive the blasphemers away.  He yelled at them, saying, “It is written, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it a ‘den of robbers!’”

This is not the meek and mild Jesus we think of from Sunday School flannel boards.

He is not holding a lamb on his shoulders.

He does not have little kids crawling all over him.

He is not happy.

This is the Messiah, the Lion of Judah.  This is a man of righteous integrity, protecting the purity of his father’s house.

Do the insults of those who insult God fall on you?  There are a lot of people out there who mock Jesus, and this is a prime season for them to do it in.  Does that bother you, Beloved?  What are you doing about it?  Do you stand for Christ in your daily world?  Look, I’m not calling you to grab a whip and chase the heathen out of town—but if you do, please send me pictures and I’ll post them.

There is no sitting for Christ.  You stand, or you fall.

Stand for him today, Beloved.