Believing that God is a God of judgment and wrath towards evil means that we do not have to take revenge on those who wrong us, but can leave them in the capable hands of our God. Consider Paul’s words in Romans 12:19-21:  “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord. On the contrary: ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Our job, Paul says, is to love even our enemies, overcoming them not by violent force but by unexpected kindness and love. The judgment and vengeance is to be left completely in the hands of our holy God.

I have found no better expression of this than the words of Miroslav Volf, a Yale theologian and Croatian who lived through the violence in the Balkans. In his book Exclusion and Embrace, Volf wrote: “If God were not angry at injustice and deception and did not make a final end to violence – that God would not be worthy of worship… The only means of prohibiting all recourse to violence by ourselves is to insist that violence is legitimate only when it comes from God… My thesis is that the practice of non-violence requires a belief in divine vengeance will be unpopular with many in the West… But it takes the quiet of a suburban home for the birth of the thesis that human non-violence (results from the belief in) God’s refusal to judge.  In a sun-scorched land, soaked in the blood of the innocent, it will invariably die… [with] other pleasant captivities of the liberal mind.” Volf’s insightful words remind us that unless we know that God is a God who will judge, we will take up the gun ourselves and go after those who have hurt us, exacting whatever “justice” we consider appropriate. And eventually an eye for an eye will make the whole world blind.

As we remember the horrific tragedy of 9/11, let us again remind ourselves that we serve a God who is the Judge of all the earth, who will make a final end of all evil. Let us remember as well that His refusal to exercise that judgment at this moment is not because he is incapable or impotent, but because in His grace and mercy He is giving all men and women more time to repent of their sin and turn to Him for forgiveness (read 2 Peter 3:1-14, especially v. 9: “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” And let us commit ourselves again, as God’s people, to live lives of unexpected kindness and love towards all, especially those who do not deserve it, for that is the grace that our holy God has shown towards us.

A story is told about Fiorello LaGuardia, who when he was mayor of New York City during the worst days of the Great Depression and all of World War II, was called by adoring New Yorkers ‘the Little Flower’ because he was only five foot four and always wore a carnation on his lapel. He was a colorful character who used to ride the NYC fire trucks, raid speakeasies with the police department, take entire orphanages to baseball games, and whenever the New York newspapers were on strike, he would go on the radio and read the Sunday funnies to the kids.

One bitterly cold night in January of 1935, the mayor turned up at a night court that served the poorest ward of the city. LaGuardia dismissed the judge for the evening and took over the bench himself. Within a few minutes, a tattered old woman was brought before him, charged with stealing a loaf of bread. She told LaGuardia that her daughter’s husband had deserted her, her daughter was sick, and her two grandchildren were starving. But the shopkeeper, from whom the bread was stolen, refused to drop the charges. “It’s a bad neighborhood, your Honor,” the man told the mayor. “She’s got to be punished to teach other people around here a lesson.”

La Guardia sighed. He turned to the woman and said, “I’ve got to punish you. The law makes no exceptions – ten dollars or ten days in jail.” But even as he pronounced his sentence, the mayor was already reaching into his pocket. He extracted a bill and tossed it into his famous sombrero, saying, “Here is the ten dollar fine which I now remit; and furthermore, I am going to fine everyone in this courtroom fifty cents for living in a town where a person has to steal bread so that her grandchildren can eat. Mr. Bailiff, collect the fines and give them to the defendant.”

So the following day the NYC newspapers reported that $47.50 was turned over to a bewildered old lady who had stolen a loaf of bread to feed her starving grandchildren, fifty cents of that amount being contributed by the red-faced grocery store owner, while some seventy petty criminals, people with traffic violations, and NYC policemen, each of whom had just paid fifty cents for the privilege of doing so, gave the mayor a standing ovation.

 The good news of the Christian faith is that although we have offended a holy God and deserve the penalty of eternal separation, Jesus paid the penalty for us so that all who accept His free gift might be declared not guilty. But not only are we declared not guilty by His mercy, we receive grace upon grace upon grace from the throne: we are adopted as children of God, given the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit of God, empowered and gifted to be a force for good in this world, brought into a worldwide family of believers, and promised an eternal home forever with God. Like the woman in Manning’s story, we find ourselves the recipients of an act of incredible mercy and grace, made rich even when we deserved punishment. That is the great and glorious gospel of Jesus Christ.

This one is for the little guy. This is for the disqualified ones, the barely hanging on, the ones who don’t belong, the struggling but still faithful.

This is for my church.

Every day, I read the blogs of about ten other pastors and church leaders in my desire to learn from others and improve my ability to do this thing we call ministry. These ten pastors are mostly higher profile guys, leading influential churches to dizzying heights of effectiveness in the kingdom of God. It’s hard not to be blown away by all that God is doing in their churches. Here’s a sampling of just four of yesterday’s posts:

“Biggest attendance yet at Elevation today…over 2400 people worshipping at one of our two campuses… 28 people gave their lives to Jesus… Also, 268 people showed up for our Newcomers Lunch…We had more people at our Newcomers Lunch today than we had in our Easter services last year. Praise God for continuing to do more in our midst than we could ever take credit for.” (Steven Furtick, Pastor of Elevation Church, Charlotte, NC)

“I told you last night about more than 200 that had publicly made a first-time decision to follow Christ. Today there were 400 more who joined them. That’s right… more than 600 adults decided to follow Christ this weekend in Granger, Indiana! What an amazing weekend!” (Tim Stevens, Executive Pastor, Granger Community Church, Granger, IN)

“Today is going to be a huge day for us here at The Orchard as we baptize over 100 people at our annual BBQ & Baptism!” (Scott Hodge, Lead Pastor, The Orchard Community, Aurora, IL)

“What were the results of today? We saw over 110 people receive Christ!!! THIS NEVER GETS OLD!!! YEAH GOD!!!” (Perry Noble, Senior Pastor, New Spring Church, Anderson, SC)

Now I’ve never written a reflection on the blog about our Sunday services like these pastors have, but if I had this past Monday, I might have written something like this:

“We had people who actually came back to church today!!! It’s amazing – they came once, and I’m not sure if they got lost on the way to check out another church, but somehow they wound up back at our front door! Yeah God!!!” (Eric Stillman, Pastor, NewLife Christian Fellowship)

It can be hard for me sometimes not to be wowed by the numbers from other churches… and even more by the fact that each number represents a person who is making a significant spiritual decision because of God’s ministry through one church. Their impact is part of what motivates me, knowing the potential to transform a community and world that exists in a church that is sold out to doing whatever God calls them to do.

But truth be told, there are far more churches out there like ours then there are like the aforementioned megachurches. Churches who may not remember the last time someone made a decision to follow Jesus, and are presently using their baptismal for storage. Churches that feel invisible in their community, and aren’t sure they are making any impact for the kingdom. Churches that have come close to shutting their doors and giving up, and have no guarantee that things will change by this time next year.

This is for those churches.

And the truth is that there are many other pastors out there like me. Pastors who can’t quite figure out how to balance family and work. Pastors who can see a fuzzy vision of the future in their head but can’t quite see past next Sunday’s sermon in order to pull that vision off. Pastors who have been told that they would never make it in ministry, and have plenty of days where they wonder if that might be true.

This is for those pastors.

One of my favorite Christian speakers and missionaries is a man named David Pierce , who travels around the world with his band, No Longer Music , bringing the message of Jesus to Satanist clubs, anarchy festivals, and anywhere you wouldn’t normally expect to find Christians. Pierce wrote an incredible book called Dancing with Skinheads and other Bible Study Topics, and one thing he wrote in there that I’ve never forgotten is this: “Do something small for God.” He said that so many people want to do something big for God, to do something that really changes the world. But often it’s the small, overlooked, seemingly insignificant things that are the biggest steps of obedience to God.

Sometimes as a small church, we can feel like we’re not making a difference because we aren’t doing anything particularly world-changing. But I’ve found that one of the best things about being a small church is that it’s easier to see the many ways in which people are doing awesome “small” things for God.

Like Jason, who began coming to church even though he was cynical about Christianity because it was important to his wife and it would help him know her better.

Like Gary, who greets every newcomer to our church like they are his long lost best friend.

Like Gloria, who rejoices at the opportunity to spend one-on-one time with a four year-old when that girl is the only one who shows up to Sunday School that Sunday

Like Matt, volunteering behind the scenes to maintain and improve an awesome website that has brought more people into our church than the rest of our church members combined.

Like Eve, Irene, and all the other prayer warriors who refuse to believe that God is finished with us.

This is for them.

The most fascinating name I’ve ever come across for a church is Scum of the Earth Church of Denver, Colorado, a stark contrast to your typical uplifting church name (like Blessed Victory & Hope Cathedral… or even NewLife for that matter). Their name comes from Paul’s words about his band of Christians in 1 Corinthians 4:11-13 – “To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly. Up to this moment we have become the scum of the earth, the refuse of the world.” SOTE Church purposely chose their name in order to emphasize the fact they are no better than anyone else, and to proclaim that they would be a church for the outcasts, the rejects, the ones who might not fit in a traditional church.

There’s a lot of wisdom in that name, isn’t there?

So this one is for the downtrodden, the burnt out, the ones who are close to throwing in the towel. This is for the forgotten, the dismissed, and the perennially struggling. This is for the oddballs, the skeptics and cynics, and all who take one step forward and five steps back, but still recover to take another step forward. This is for the churches that refuse to give up on God and the pastors who won’t stop believing in the potential of their church. Because if I’ve learned one thing in life, it’s this: a pastor who has been beaten down and a church that has been left for dead may not add up to much in the eyes of the world, but in the eyes of God I believe it’s a recipe for one thing:

Revival.

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this:  While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)

Over the last several weeks, the topic of God’s love has been an overarching theme, not only in the sermons preached but also in my personal time of devotion.  While this may not be very shocking, it has served as a great reminder of just how awesome God’s love is for us.  Although volumes can be written on God’s love and still not do it justice, I will try to limit what I feel were the four key reminders to me of what God’s love is for His people. 

1) God’s love completes our joy.  Jesus tells His disciples in John 15:9-12, “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love.  If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love.  I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.  My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.”  This concept of remaining in God’s love for us instead of the love the world or man can offer is what brings true joy to our soul.  And indeed, knowing that our Lord and Savior and Creator knows and loves us intimately should cause our hearts to leap with joy.  No man or woman or material possession can bring complete joy to our being.  Only by remaining in the love of God is our joy made complete. 

2) God’s love is sacrificial.  God loves us so much that He (*spoiler alert*) gave up His one and only Son so that our relationship with Him can be reconciled once and for all.  As Paul says it in Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this:  While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  Jesus showed that sacrificial love with every strike He took while being flogged, with every step He took carrying that cross, with every insult hurled at Him, with every agonizing second He suffered hanging on the cross.  Jesus showed that sacrificial love by drinking the cup of God’s wrath down to the very last drop so that we would never have to partake of it.  Instead we who submit to Him as Savior and Redeemer drink from the cup of eternal life.  God sacrificed His best for us, His unblemished, pure Lamb, to show us how much He loves us. 

3) God’s love is unchanging.  As the author of Hebrews writes, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8).  And since Jesus in unchanging, so is His love for us.  In a world that is fast paced and constantly changing, it is comforting to know that God’s love for us never changes, never lessens.  What I do think changes is our ability to receive His love.  As we grow deeper in our relationship with God, we “learn” how to embrace His love for us more than we did before.  There is great comfort and joy in knowing that God’s unchanging, unwavering love was, is, and will always be there for us.

4) God’s love is unconditional.  God’s love for us is not based on our performance.  There is nothing that you can do to make God love you more.  And there is also nothing you can do to make God love you any less.  He loves you because He wants to love you, not because of anything you have or have not done.  He loves you when you succeed and when you fail.  When you leap for joy and when you cry in sorrow.  When you are healthy and when you are sick.  He loves you when you are close to Him and when (you think) you are far away from Him.  When you are content in Him and when you are frustrated with Him.  When you are at peace with Him and when you are angry at Him.  He loves you when you love Him and when you hate him.  When you live in freedom and when you live in fear.  He loves you through all your emotional outbreaks.  He loves you when you are hurting.  When you doubt Him.  When you fall short of His standards.  He loves you when you give into sin and your addictions.  When you don’t trust in Him.  He loves you when your life is a mess.  He loves you even if you don’t have it together.  He loves you PERIOD.  As Paul puts it in Romans 8:38-39, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

I was reminded recently that we embrace God’s love in stages.  At certain times in our life and at different stages of Christian development, we experience God’s love in a certain way.  Then we go through trials and tribulations, and we learn that we need to rely and depend on God in a way that we were not doing previously.  And it is by trusting in His strength to get us through and ultimately out of the trial that we experience God’s love for us in a deeper way than before.  Yes, God’s love is constant and unchanging, but at that time, we could only handle a certain amount of His love.  It is as if we were a sponge and we could only soak up so much of God’s love.  As we continue to grow in Christ, our “spiritual sponge” gets larger and we are able to soak in some more of God’s love.  And what is exciting is that, though His love is unchanging, it is without bound.  And so we can always grow deeper and deeper into His love for us.  “And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:17-19). 

I pray that we can be a people that makes our joy complete by remaining in God’s sacrificial, unchanging, and unconditional love for us.

This past week I was at a funeral, and after the service I went downstairs for a reception in the fellowship hall of the church. The church had decorated their walls with a collection of sayings on faith, and the Oswald Chambers post which I quoted above spoke to me deeper than all of the rest. Oswald Chambers was an earliest twentieth century minister and teacher who is best known today for his daily devotional book, My Utmost for His Highest, a book that has encouraged me often over the years.

“Faith is deliberate confidence in the character of God whose ways you may not understand at the time.” What a beautiful way of explaining what it means to walk by faith. Faith is not positive thinking, or wishful thinking, or believing in things that make no sense. No – faith is choosing not to allow our actions and attitudes to be swayed by the day-to-day circumstances in which we find ourselves. Instead, it is basing our whole life on the character of God, trusting in who He is even when everything in our life seems to contradict those truths. And this confidence in the character of God comes primarily because of the cross and the resurrection. For example:

How do you know God is good, when everything in your life just seems evil, or the product of an uncaring God? Because at the cross, when things seemed the most evil, as the innocent son of God was unjustly murdered, God was actually working the greatest possible good for humanity, delivering us from bondage to sin and giving us eternal life.

How do I know God is loving, when He doesn’t seem to give me what I ask of Him? Because at the cross, when it seemed that He was the most unloving, allowing His son to die, turning his back on him and heaping our sin on his shoulders, God was actually more loving than ever, loving the world so much that He gave His very best so that we might be rescued from sin and restored to a relationship with our God. And we know that if He gave us His Son, He will also give us everything we need (Romans 8:32)

How do I know God is sovereign, when life just seems to be a random, meaningless (and often cruel) accident? Because at the cross, when things seemed so random, chaotic, and meaningless, God was working the greatest evil out for the greatest good, orchestrating it all towards the redemption of all things.

How do I know God is just, when it seems like injustice keeps happening to me? Because at the cross, God pronounced judgment on the evil forces of this world, giving us assurance that one day they will finally be judged once and for all, and everything will be made right in the end.

How do I know God is forgiving and full of grace, when I continue to sin and fall short again and again? Because while we were still sinners, when we were at our worst, when we were enemies of God, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). And now God has made Jesus, who was without sin, to be sin for us, so that in Him we might be righteous and perfect in the sight of God (2 Corinthians 5:21).

“Faith is deliberate confidence in the character of God whose ways you may not understand at the time.” I can guarantee you that for much of your Christian walk, you will not understand what God is doing, and many times you will feel that He is absent, cruel, unloving, and unjust. When you feel that, return again to the cross of Christ, and there remember that God took the greatest evil, the most heinous injustice, the most unloving moment, and brought the greatest good, the perfect justice, and most extravagant love into this world. He is not absent, He is not cruel, He is not unloving, and He is not unjust. Our God is holy, loving, good, just, sovereign, and full of grace and mercy. Be confident in that, and put your faith in the rock that is our God, and He will give you the strength and grace to get through your most difficult trials.

I wanted to elaborate on something I shared at the end of the worship service on Sunday.  The greatest commandment, according to Jesus, is to LOVE God.  Not to believe in Him.  Not to follow Him (although both of those are important).  To LOVE Him.  There are many who believe in God, many who do their best to follow Him, but would you use the word “love” to describe your relationship with God?  Are you moved, both in your emotion and your will, by who God is, or by what He has done for you?  Or is your faith just an intellectual act of belief?

Make no mistake – God’s desire is that your relationship with Him would be characterized by love, a love that grips your heart and transforms your desires and moves you to love and service, towards God and towards others.  And so I ask it again – do you love God?  Do you understand the depth of His love for you?

This past Sunday, I referenced the movie Titanic.  There is a reason that teenage girls everywhere watched that movie five times in the movie theater.  It’s because of the depth of love displayed by Jack towards Rose, especially at the end of the movie.  At the end, Jack gives his life for Rose, knowing that the only way she will live is if he lets her stay above the freezing water, while he risks certain death by hanging on to the wreckage of the ship.  In the end, Jack loves Rose enough to die for her, sending millions of swooning teenage girls back to the theater again and again (and to the mall to buy Leo DiCaprio posters).

Earlier in the movie, of course, is the first meeting between Rose and Jack, at the front of the boat.  During that scene is the part where Jack stands on the railings at the bow of the boat and shouts out, “I’m the king of the world!”  Imagine if Jack, at that moment, wanting to prove to Rose how much he loved her, threw himself off the ship to his death below.  Would anyone see that as a beautiful act of love?  No – it would certainly be seen as a foolish display of stupidity.  The only reason that Jack’s death at the end of the movie is not foolish, but instead is beautiful and moving, is that his death was the only way that Rose would live.

The only way for you to come to a place where you truly love God the way Jesus desires us to, the way you were created to, is to come to realize that Jesus’ death was the only way that you would live.  Ironically, this means that to be truly gripped and transformed by the love of God, you must first come to believe in the holiness of God: that He is perfect, can not stand in the presence of sin, and that apart from the death of Jesus, you are headed for an eternal separation from God.  Most people object to the concept of Hell and God’s judgment because they can not understand how a loving God would send people to Hell.  The irony is that when you get rid of Hell, you actually have a less loving God!  You are left with a God who loves you like Barney the Purple Dinosaur loves you, a God who thinks you’re special and wants you to be happy and would never do anything mean to you.  That’s nice and all, but there is nothing moving about that kind of God, nothing transformative about that kind of love.  After all, nobody grows up to worship Barney.  Without Hell and God’s judgment, you are left with a God who loves you in general, but whose love for you cost Him nothing.

But if it is true that we have all sinned and fallen short of God’s standards (Romans 3:23), and if it is true that the result of sin is separation from God (Romans 6:23), then we find ourselves like Rose, floating in the cold water, headed for certain death unless someone will rescue us.  If the only way to stand before a holy God is to live a perfect life without sin, then we are doomed, unless someone can live that life for us.  And if our destiny as a sinful man or woman is death and separation from God, then there is no hope unless someone will die that death in our place.  We are destined to drown unless someone will die in our place so that we might live.

There is only one possible way that you could live, and that is for someone to live the perfect life you could not live, and die the death that you deserved to die.  That person was Jesus, the eternal Son of God, who left the comfort of heaven, leaving behind the perfect fellowship he enjoyed with the Father and Holy Spirit, to become one of us, to perfectly love God and love people, to suffer and die an unjust, violent death in our place, and finally, to be raised from the dead, conquering sin and death.  As Jesus put it:

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” (John 3:16-18) 

When your heart and mind finally grasp this, when you truly come to understand that you were drowning until Jesus died for you and gave you new life, then your heart will be flooded by the greatest love this world has ever known.  Only then will you be able to LOVE God; only then will your heart be transformed so that you desire Him, want nothing more than to know Him, and can no longer be content with anything else.  When the love of God breaks into your heart, faith is no longer about empty ritual, meaningless religion, guilt, and shame; it becomes a living, vibrant relationship of LOVE between you and your Creator, lover, and Savior.  And THAT is what you were created to enjoy.  Do not settle for mere belief or intellectual agreement when God has promised you LIFE to the full.

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).

Oh, how I pray that you might know this reality, not just in your head but in the depth of your heart.  May God’s love break through your heart and transform you completely from the inside out, so that you might realize that it is THIS kind of LOVE that you were created to enjoy forever.  Amen.

I remember attending Kensington Baptist Church (now Wellspring Church) that weekend, and hearing Pastor Rick share a story of a New England farmer who had put up a weathervane with the words “God’s love” written on it.  One day, the farmer’s cynical neighbor said to him, “Does it say ‘God’s Love’ because God’s love changes with the winds and the seasons?”  “No,” the farmer replied. “It’s because no matter where the winds blow, God’s Love is there.”  I remember learning that weekend, as a young Christian, that God was a faithful God, a God who was always there for you, who would never leave you or forsake you, no matter what happened in your life.

And I remember staying at the apartment of Mike & Linda Smith with Glen, a friend from UConn.  I remember going with Glen to CVS to get a thank you card for our hosts.  While we were paying for our card, an old woman came up next to us and made some comment to the clerk about the two of us being such “handsome young men.”  “Oh, thank you,” I remember Glen saying.  The woman began talking to us about how she would walk around New Britain talking to people, just having conversations with whoever was willing to talk.  What a strange lady, I remember thinking, as I inched away from her towards the door.  I remember her reaching into her pocketbook to give us something, and pulling out two little tracts.  On the outside it read, “The Lord says, ‘I am with you.’”  I opened up the tract and read the inside, which was simply the words of Isaiah 43:1-5:

“But now, this is what the LORD says– he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life. Do not be afraid, for I am with you”

I was floored.  I remembered Jon’s words about going out on the streets of New Britain and declaring that Jesus is Lord, and here was this little old grandmother doing exactly that, and she was protected by the Lord.  I remembered Pastor Rick’s story about the constancy of God’s love, and I knew God was trying to communicate something to the depths of my heart.  I quickly asked the Lord’s forgiveness for my attitude towards this woman, and listened with a joyful heart as she proceeded to tell us story after story of the times she spent walking around, telling people about Jesus.  She even told us about someone who tried to rob her at a gas station, and how she had responded, “Why do you want my money?  You should work for your own money.”  And how God had protected this feisty old woman in her boldness!  She told us how she was just trying to follow the Holy Spirit, and even though He always seemed to lead her to uncomfortable places, it always turned out to be a place where the Spirit was working.  She told us that although she was poor, and although people did not help her out much, and even though many people thought she was weird, she knew God’s love was always with her, and that this was all that mattered. 

Before we left her, she shared two other things that stuck with me.  First, she told us a story about how earlier that week, she had been walking down the street when she saw all these books that people were throwing out.  She couldn’t understand why people would just throw them away, when they could be used in so many places:  libraries, prisons, or just given to needy people.  So, she said, she would take the books, bring them home, fix them up, and give them to places where they could be used.  When this old woman, dismissed by people but redeemed and used by God, finished that seemingly random story, I swear I heard Jesus whisper “he who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

And then, lastly, she asked us our names, and we asked her what her name was.  “Connie,” she replied.  “Oh,” Glen replied, “my mother’s name is Connie too.”  “What is her full name?” the old woman asked.  “Concepcion,” replied Glen.  “Oh,” said the woman.  “My name is Constance.”

And that was when God’s love pierced through, right to the depth of my heart.

As Webster’s Dictionary so eloquently puts it, Constancy is:

(1) The quality of being unchanging or unwavering, as in purpose, love, loyalty, etc.
(2) Stability
(3) Steadfastness, fidelity, dependability

Constancy.  What a perfect word to describe the love of God. 

The writer of Hebrews tells us in Hebrews 13:2: “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.”  I will never know for sure whether Constance was dropped out of heaven precisely for me that evening in New Britain, but I know that God used her to convince my young and confused heart that His love for me is unchanging, unwavering, and always Constant.

“The Bible does not say you are God’s appliance; it says you are his masterpiece (Eph 2:10, NLT).  Appliances get mass-produced.  Masterpieces get hand-crafted.  God did not make you exactly like anyone else.  Therefore, his plan for shaping you will not look like his plan for shaping anyone else.  If you try to find a generic plan for spiritual growth, it will only frustrate you.”

(Can anyone say journaling?)

Ortberg then goes on to give an excellent summary of some of the ways God worked in the Bible:

“He had Abraham take a walk, Elijah take a nap, Joshua take a lap, and Adam take the rap.  He gave Moses a forty-year time out, he gave David a harp and a dance, and he gave Paul a pen and a scroll.  He wrestled with Jacob, argued with Job, whispered to Elijah, warned Cain, and comforted Hagar.  He gave Aaron an altar, Miriam a song, Gideon a fleece, Peter a name, and Elisha a mantle.  Jesus was stern with the rich young ruler, tender with the woman caught in adultery, patient with the disciples, blistering with the scribes, gentle with the children, and gracious with the thief on the cross.  God never grows two people the same way.  God is a hand-crafter, not a mass-producer.”

Boom.  Just like that, your categories and presuppositions, your expectations and formulas, are all blown out of the water.  All of a sudden, discipleship returns to what it was meant to be all along:  following the Spirit of God, living in relationship with Him, and going wherever He leads.  “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (2 Corinthians 3:17).

Go back and read that last Ortberg quote again, and just let it sink in.  Take for instance the part where he says “[God] whispered to Elijah.”  There is only one instance in the whole Bible where God speaks in a still, small voice (“gentle whisper” in the NIV) to someone– Elijah in 1 Kings 18:12, where the writer says that God was not in the great wind, the earthquake, or the fire, but in the gentle whisper.  Yet even though Elijah’s is the only experience like this in Scripture, how many of us have been taught that this is how God will speak to us, that if we can just learn to quiet ourselves, we will hear His still, small voice?  Who decided that the way God dealt with Elijah is the way he will deal with all of His people?  God is a hand-crafter, not a mass-producer.

I have read my share of books on church growth, and many of them advocate simplifying church by having every member focus on a couple of things, like joining a small group and serving where you are gifted.  But what if God doesn’t transform your heart in small groups?  What if you grow best in one-on-one relationships with other Christians?  What if you mature in your faith by spending time with people who don’t believe what you believe, as you are challenged to wrestle with what it really means to know and follow God?  I know some Christians who benefit tremendously from being in deep relationship with the same three people for twenty years.  And then there are others who would go out of their skin if they were forced to limit themselves to such a small number of people for even six months.  God grows them the most when they are in relationship with lots of different people.

Some of you love to journal.  Others of you can’t stand to write.  Some of you experience God best in nature.  Others of you experience Him most when you are serving others.  Some people are transformed by a solid Biblical sermon and stirring worship.  For others, Sunday morning church services have no impact on their spiritual growth.  And so on.

Might I suggest that we resist the urge to create a Christian mold into which everyone must fit?  That we recognize that God’s Spirit works differently in different people?  Can we all agree that the worship song that always inspires us towards greater holiness might be just annoying noise to someone else?  Don’t we realize that even though memorizing Scripture might cause us to trust God more fully, there are other people who may not remember where any verses are but know how to live each of them out, and that their poor memory for Scripture does not make them less of a Christian than we are?  Or, isn’t it possible that the person whose view of God is enriched by spending time in four different churches over the course of a year is not necessarily less committed to God than you are simply because you have remained faithful to one church body for twenty years?

We have been set free from slavery to the law, and now we live in the freedom of the Spirit of God.  As we follow the Spirit, we must keep in mind Paul’s warning in Galatians 5:13: “do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature.”  Do not allow your freedom to become an excuse for your disobedience towards God.  Not every desire of your heart represents a leading of the Spirit; sometimes it is just a cover for your own selfish cravings or an avoidance of what God wants to do in your life.  Your God-given freedom does not give you a license to just follow your own wants and desires, but instead to follow the Spirit wherever He leads you (and remember, He will never lead you to contradict God’s written Word).  However, my point is this:  do not let your heart condemn you if the exercise of your walk with God looks different than that of your Christian brother or sister.  God is a hand-crafter, not a mass-producer.

Thank you, Lord, for saving my life.  Thank you for coming after me and revealing yourself to me when I was not even looking for you.  Thank you that in spite of my self-centeredness, you chose me, filled me with your Holy Spirit, gifted me, and have used me to bring you glory.  Paul tells us to rejoice in the Lord always, and so today I just want to spend time rejoicing in who you are.  I praise you for creating me, that I am your workmanship (Eph 2:10), not a cosmic accident but someone who has been crafted by you in order to do the good works which you prepared in advance for me to do.  Thank you that though you are holy and just, your mercies are new every morning (Lam 3:22-23), and you are always full of patience towards me (2 Pet 3:9).  Thank you for the hope I have in you, that you are able to work all things together for good for those who love you (Rom 8:28), that even when men intend evil, you work it out for good (Gen 50:20). 

Thank you for the peace that comes from knowing that you are sovereign, that you see the beginning from the end.  Thank you for Jesus, my example and my Savior, who shows me what it means to live life to the fullest and how to trust in you through even the most difficult of circumstances.  Thank you that because of his life, death, and resurrection, I do not have to measure up to some impossible standard, but can live freely for you.  Thank you that he is preparing a place for me even now, so that I might spend eternity worshiping the one who loved me enough to die for me.

Thank you for your Holy Spirit, God with me, for guiding me, comforting me, and reminding me of your Word and your truth.  Thank you that you have not left me alone, but are here with me always (John 14:16-18).  Thank you for the power and peace you can give. 

God, I praise you for the trials which I face.  I know that in your great love for me, that you want to bring me life and not death, and for this reason you allow things to happen in order that my sinful self might be crucified, and that your eternal life might be formed in me.  Thank you for how you are transforming me, pruning me into someone who will bear even more fruit and bring you even more glory (John 15:2).  Thank you that I am indeed becoming less, and you are becoming greater (John 3:30).  Thank you that I have been counted worthy to suffer with you (Acts 5:41).  I trust you as the master storyteller, crafting a story that will bring you the most glory.

Rejoice in the Lord always; I will say it again, Rejoice!  Hallelujah, Lord – you are worthy of every second of my life, every ounce of my energy, for you brought me meaning and purpose and gave me eternal life.  Remind me again that my old self has died, and that I am a new creation in you (2 Cor 5:17).  All that I have is yours, to do with what you will.  Continue to have your way in me, until all I desire is you, and the only one whose opinion matters is yours (1 Cor 4:3-4).  Amen.

“Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.”  (Psalm 73:25-28)

 Okay – now it’s your turn…

As many of you know, I am the father of three young children – Ryan (5), Will (3), and Nate (1).  When each of them was a baby, I used to put them down for bed at night by standing near the crib, holding them in my arms, and singing quietly to them before laying them down.  If you have children of your own, you know that it can be a challenge getting little ones to go to bed without crying for a parent to come and pick them up again.  One question that often went through my head during the nighttime routine was which approach would help them go to sleep more peacefully:  keeping my eyes closed while I sang to them, or keeping my eyes open.  For a time, I went with the eyes closed approach.  By closing my eyes, I reasoned that I was showing them by example that it was time for sleep. 

Ultimately, however, I settled on the latter approach – putting them down with my eyes open, looking them in the eyes as I sang to them.  And every time I did that, I was reminded of Psalm 121, especially verses 3-4:  “He will not let your foot slip– he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.”  I see Psalm 121 as a reminder that our God never sleeps, that He is always watching over us, and it is for that reason that we can sleep, even when we are faced with the most anxious and fearful trials, for our security is ultimately in His good hands.  We can sleep and cease our working and planning every night, knowing that He never sleeps and never stops working and planning on our behalf.  And we have His promise in v. 7-8 that He will keep us from all harm, watching over our every step.  Not that we won’t have troubles, of course, and painful situations in life, but that ultimately God our Father can protect our soul from the only thing that can truly harm us, the loss of His love and protection.

When I keep my eyes open as I sing my child to sleep, I try to communicate to him that he can sleep peacefully because his father is keeping his eyes open, protecting him, and that ultimately His Heavenly Father continues to protect him, even when his earthly father goes to sleep. 

It is 5:30 in the morning as I am writing this.  God brought Psalm 121 to my mind again this morning, convicting me that this quality of God is meant to be one of the characteristics of my life as a husband and father.  Because He does not sleep, the family of God can rest secure, knowing that He never stops working and planning on their behalf.  On a smaller scale, this is the call on my life as a husband and father – to emulate my Father by giving up sleep or anything else that is necessary in order to allow my family to rest secure.  To work and plan so that they can sleep in peace, knowing that their father cares for them and will not let harm befall them, and ultimately knowing that this is even more true of their Father in heaven.  Thank you, Lord, for your tireless work and care for your family; Lord, please help me to be a father like you are.

 As simple as prayer can be – at its heart, it is a conversation with God – it can also be hard to make sense of the different passages about making requests of God.  Certainly prayer is not just about making requests – we also spend time thanking God, listening to Him, praising Him, etc. – but often when we come to God there are legitimate concerns on our heart that we want to bring before His throne of grace.  But even a quick survey of some of the relevant passages on making requests of God reveals how confusing it can be to know just how we should pray and what we should expect:

• John 15:7 – “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.” 

Taken at face value, this verse almost makes God sound like a heavenly ATM machine.  As long as we stay connected to Him and His words are in us, this will be the pin number that unlocks the vaults of heaven.  But we know that it can’t be that simple, that God would just give us whatever we wish, even if we are asking for things that are bad for us.

• Matthew 7:7-11 - “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”

Like the John passage, these words of Jesus begin with another promise that “our wish is his command.”  He then continues by clarifying his previous statement, assuring us that God knows how to give good gifts and will not give us things that are bad for us.  But while this helps us trust God’s goodness, there is nothing in here about “if you ask for a snake, God won’t give it to you,” which would have helped us understand that sometimes God does not give us what we have asked for because we have asked for something that would harm us.

• Mark 11:22-24 - “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered.  “I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”

Once again, Jesus seems to be speaking very clearly – if you believe that you will receive what you have asked for, it will be yours.  Really?  Is that all there is to it?  As long as I have enough faith, I can do and get anything?  James 1:5-6 seems to echo this sentiment in a passage about asking for wisdom, where James writes “But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt… [the man who doubts] should not think he will receive anything from the Lord.”  Clearly Jesus is encouraging us to pray with great faith, and to be bold in what we ask of Him.  But most Christians remain troubled by these passages, for they seem again to depict God as a heavenly ATM machine, ready to spit out whatever we ask for if we only have the right pin number, which in this case seems to be a strong faith.

• Matthew 6:7-8 – “And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”

On the flip side, however, would be a passage such as this one, where Jesus tells us that “your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”  Which begs the question, of course, “why pray if God already knows what we need?”  But then, of course, there is this passage:

• James 4:2-3 – You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

According to James, there are some things God knows we need, and that He wants to give to us, but we will not receive them because we never asked.  If nothing else, that should be a powerful reminder to bring our requests to God.  However, he continues by saying that there are some things we ask for that we will not receive, because we have asked for selfish reasons.  Ah – so God is not just a heavenly ATM machine after all!  Receiving what we have asked for is not just about working up enough faith, but it also has to do with our motives.

• Luke 22:42 – “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”

This passage is of course from Jesus’ prayers to the Father in the Garden of Gethsemane, before he is arrested and taken to the cross.  There are some who would say that praying “not my will but yours be done” is a sign of doubting in prayer, and something that we should never pray.  Jesus, however, shows us that it is perfectly appropriate to present our heartfelt requests to God boldly, but in the end to recognize that we do not know what is best for ourselves, and that in the end we will gratefully accept whatever the Father decides, trusting that He gives us good gifts.

 So, how do you make sense of making requests of God in prayer?  Do you tend to be on the “word of faith” side, believing that if you ask for something boldly and with enough faith, that God will give you what you have asked for?  Or do you tend towards the prayerless side, believing that God knows what you need and will give it to you regardless of whether or not you ask for it?  If you have comments or insights to share, please leave them below.  I will continue dealing with this question in next week’s post.

“Early in the morning Samuel got up and went to meet Saul, but he was told, ‘Saul has gone to Carmel. There he has set up a monument in his own honor and has turned and gone on down to Gilgal.’” (1 Samuel 15:12)

I’ve been preaching through the life of David on Sunday mornings, and as I was talking about King Saul this past Sunday, this verse in particular stood out to me.  Saul has just finished leading the armies of Israel against the Amalekites, and as the prophet Samuel goes out to find him, Samuel is told that Saul is busy setting up a monument in his own honor.  All throughout the Old Testament are examples of the people of God erecting monuments and markers to God that commemorate places where God does something meaningful, so that future generations would be reminded of what God had done (e.g. Genesis 28:18-19, Joshua 4:2-9).  But this is the first time I ever came across a man of God – the King, no less – erecting a monument to himself!  Saul’s goal, obviously, was that future generations would be reminded not of what God had done, but what HE had done, and of the great leader HE was.

I find this story to not only be an indictment against Saul for just how unfit he was to be the king over God’s people, but also a great metaphor for what can happen when we are as insecure as Saul was about who God is and who we are in Him.  According to the Bible, those who know God and have been saved from their sin are adopted into God’s family, heirs of all of his riches, completely known and loved and forgiven to the core of who we are, chosen by God, His workmanship, created to do good works that he has prepared in advance for us, given the Holy Spirit to guide us, given eternal life, and so much more.  During our discipleship, there is a radical security that God begins to instill in the core of our being, so that our identity and self-worth becomes less and less about our performance, our success, the opinion of others, or even our opinion of ourselves, but more about who God says we are.  As Paul put it in 1 Corinthians 4:3-4:  “I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself.  My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent.  It is the Lord who judges me.”

However, when we are not secure in who we are in Christ, we will find ways to “set up monuments in our own honor.”  Saul erected the monument to himself so that others would consider him a great man and praise him.  In the same way, we find ways to puff ourselves up, to boast, to seek the glory and applause of others, so that the world might see us as a great man or a great woman, and so we might in turn convince ourselves that we really are that great man or great woman.  The size of our house, the car we drive, the job we take, the man or woman we date or marry, the clothes we wear, the things we spend our money on, and many other things can be driven by our desire to show the world what a great person we are.  Even smaller scale things like our Facebook page can become monuments set up in our own honor, where we choose to display only those things which will cause others to think well of us.

The opposite of Saul, in my opinion, would be John the Baptist.  He was a great man, devoted to God and unafraid of popular opinion; even Jesus said in Matthew 11:11, “I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist.”  But when John’s disciples came to him, complaining that his followers were not beginning to follow Jesus, John replied, “You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ but am sent ahead of him.’ The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. He must become greater; I must become less.” (John 3:28-30)

I love that last line – “He must become greater; I must become less.”  To know and love God is to desire to set up monuments in HIS honor with our lives.  It is to live our lives in such a way that people see how great He is, even if they completely look past us in the process.  He is the only one who is worthy of monuments, for even our best qualities and victories are gifts from God.  As Paul said in 1 Corinthians 4:7, “For who makes you different from anyone else?  What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?”

 Dismantle the monuments that you have set up in your own honor.  He must become greater, and you must become less.

         

 “If the point of life is the same as the point of a story, the point of life is character transformation.” 

“People love to have lived a great story, but few people like the work it takes to make it happen.”

“A general rule in creating stories is that characters don’t want to change.  They must be forced to change.”

 “Humans naturally seek comfort and stability.  Without an inciting incident that disrupts their comfort, they won’t enter into a story. They have to get fired from their job or be forced to sign up for a marathon.  A ring has to be purchased.  A home has to be sold.  The character has to jump into the story, into the discomfort and fear, otherwise the story will never happen.”

“Somehow we realize that great stories are told in conflict, but we are unwilling to embrace the potential greatness of the story we are actually in.  We think God is unjust, rather than a master storyteller.”

One of the greatest lessons from this book was that the great stories, the movies and books that we love, are never stories about comfort and easy lives.  They are stories that involve struggle, pain, conflict, and the beauty of the stories come from seeing a character or characters overcome the conflict to reach their goal or to experience meaningful transformation.  The football team overcomes obstacles to win the championship.  The boy experiences a transformation of character and wins the heart of the girl.  The hobbit and his companions overcome incredible odds and conflicts in order to reach their destiny.  During every great story, there are a moment or two where it looks like the ending will be a sad one, that there is no possible way it can end well.  But then the battle is won, the conflict is overcome, and there is joyous victory.

The problem with our lives, of course, is that most of us naturally seek comfort and stability.  We want an easy life, free of conflict and struggle and pain.  But those are precisely the things that transform us into people of depth and character, and pushing through the conflict to the other side is what brings real joy.  But while we’re going through the struggle, it can be so hard to understand what God is doing or why He is allowing the pain in our lives.

“If a story doesn’t have negative turns, it’s not an interesting story.  A protagonist who understands this idea lives a better story.  He doesn’t give up when he encounters a setback, because he knows that every story has both positive and negative turns.”

“The pain [of the hike] made the city [Machu Picchu] more beautiful.  The story made us different characters than we would have been if we had skipped the story and showed up at the ending an easier way.”

“You have to go there.  You have to take your character to the place where he just can’t take it anymore… you’ve been there, haven’t you?  You’ve been out on the ledge.  The marriage is over now; the dream is over now; nothing good can come from this… Writing a story isn’t about making your peaceful fantasies come true.  The whole point of the story is the character arc.  You didn’t think joy could change a person, did you?  Joy is what you feel when the conflict is over.  But it’s conflict that changes a person… You put your characters through hell.  You put them through hell.  That’s the only way we change.”

There are many things in our lives that we can not control.  But there are also many ways in which God is inviting us to follow Him into an adventure, a life of risk and danger and struggle, because He knows that He is a faithful God who can see us through to the other side.  And He knows that we will be the better person for having experienced the struggle, if we would only hang on to Him and not give up hope.

“A good storyteller doesn’t just tell a better story, though.  He invites other people into the story with him, giving them a better story too.”

At its heart, the Christian faith is a story.  It is a love story of a God whose beloved children rebelled against Him, and the lengths to which He goes to win them back.  It is an adventure story about a Hero who comes from a far off country to rescue His people from slavery.  And when a person comes to faith in Jesus, the Story becomes their story, the story of a lost man rescued, a broken woman loved back to wholeness.  And just like with any good story, the more people you share it with, the more people you invite to enjoy the story with you, the more wonderful the experience.  Pray that we might have the courage and faith to allow God to make our lives a great adventure.

“To all who received [Jesus], to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” (John 1:12)

“A Mighty God, A Mighty Savior”

“The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.” (Zephaniah 3:17, NIV)

Imagining or believing that God is all-powerful and mighty isn’t necessarily a hard thing to do. If He was even deserving of being called God with a capital “G”, one would expect that He would be. Otherwise, would He really be God?

Indeed, it’s not a foreign concept that God or a god would be endowed with extraordinary power, might, and authority. Greek and Roman mythology espoused many gods with certain power and authority over various elements of nature and the universe. Zeus was the most powerful and leader of all of gods and goddesses on Mount Olympus. Mythology attributes them with respective authority over mankind, the sun, the sea, over war, love and beauty, over Hades and death, etc. To each, they had their jurisdiction, but Zeus was all-powerful above them all.

In a similar fashion, the Hindu concept of the Supreme Being is a balanced composition of Brahma (creator), Vishnu (preserver), and Shiva (destroyer). Together they form the triune entity that is all-powerful among a great multitude of other deities. In Mahayana Buddhism as practiced in many parts of Asia and Southeast Asia, there is a pantheon of gods and goddesses and buddhas and bodhisattvas who represent power and authority over life and good fortune. They may not necessarily be omnipotent (all-powerful), but they are certainly powerful enough to have many faithful followers offering prayers and petitions for health, healing, and good fortune amongst other things.

So then, what is the significance of when the God of the Bible makes this claim of omnipotence? Beyond affirming that God is indeed all-powerful and in Him, all things are possible (Matt. 19:26), I believe the real significance is clearly revealed in the Gospel message. Simply put: God is God, we are not, but out of His great love for us, He became the Way (John 14:6) to redeem the broken relationship with us and the brokenness in us. His salvation plan- the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ for the sins of the world, not only is the greatest expression of His love for us, but it is also the greatest exhibition of His power and might. In His power, He conquered sin and death. In His might, He saved all those who would believe in Him and call upon His name (Rom. 10:9-13). How awesome is that! We have a God who is not only limitless and boundless in His power, but in His delight He demonstrated it by saving us from sin and death (Zeph. 3:17). He is a Mighty God, a Mighty Savior.

Lately, I have been humming and singing the chorus of a song by Ben Fielding and Reuben Morgan from Hillsong Church in Australia named “Mighty to Save” as I’m preparing to introduce it to our congregation on Sunday. The chorus says:

“Savior, He can move the mountains

My God is mighty to save, he is mighty to save

Forever, Author of Salvation

He rose and conquered the grave Jesus conquered the grave”

I’m constantly reminded again and again of how great and awesome God is, especially in the light of His salvation plan. Certainly, God would still be great and awesome even if He had not saved us because that is inherent in His character and in who He is, but because He did, it is all the sweeter and makes me love Him all the dearer. Amen.

You can check out this video of “Mighty to Save” by clicking here.

One of the classic passages that speaks to God’s view of time is found in 2 Peter 3:8:  “But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.”  The context of this verse is Peter’s rebuke of those who see God’s reluctance to judge people in time and His allowance of evil and interpret that to mean that He does not exist or will not judge us, and that therefore we can live and do as we please.  No, Peter says – do not mistake His reluctance to judge as an inability to judge.  Instead, he says in verse 9, “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”  His allowance of evil and sin is not because he is not able to judge, but because in His mercy and patience He is not destroying people but giving them opportunity after opportunity to repent of their sins and turn to faith in Him. 

Verse 8, however, speaks as well to the sometimes agonizing difference in perception of time between ourselves and God.  For Him, a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.  For us, the first part often seems true – a day can often seem like a thousand years:  unending, intolerable, with seemingly no hope of ever ending.  When we feel trapped in a terrible job, a difficult family situation, a situation of declining health, each day can feel like a thousand years.  And because we are not eternal, we can not see the end from the beginning but are forever trapped in the present.  We do not know how things will turn out, if situations will ever improve, or if we will escape our troubles.  Each day can truly feel like a thousand years.

This past Sunday, Taylor Hood shared with us how he has been hired to work at Walgreens Distribution Center.  If you know Taylor and the Hood family, you know that this moment has been the fruit of many, many years of hard work, of setback, of tears and frustration.  I can only imagine how often the days seemed like a thousand years, how many times the hope of finding a job seemed to be like a flickering flame about to go out.  But our eternal God is faithful, and we praise God that Taylor has been given this opportunity to have a job.

I know that the Hoods are not alone in this.  Many of you also look at your situation in life and feel that each day is like a thousand years.  Your longing to be married, or to have a marriage that is healthy and strong.  Your search for a job, or your daily attempts to continue at a job that stresses you out.  Your unending health issues.  For many of you, each day feels like a thousand years, requiring patience and strength that seems beyond your capabilities.

Take heart in knowing that our God is eternal.  He knows the end from the beginning, and His character and His promises and His Word and His plans are sure.  “God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?” (Numbers 23:19).  When God says that He is good, that He is trustworthy, that He works all things together for good for those who love Him, He is true to His word, for He is the eternal, unchanging one.  Be encouraged, brothers and sisters, and hope in the Lord, for He is our Rock in the midst of an ever-changing, unstable world.  Remember the words of James:  “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything” (James 1:2-4).  Not easy words, to be sure, but nevertheless, the truth of God.  The eternal God, the Rock, who knows the end from the beginning, is present in the midst of your struggle, and is at work to make you mature and complete, not lacking anything. 

Remind yourself today, brothers and sisters, that God is our Rock, and put your hope in Him.