"Meekness"--Authority

Meekness vs. Anger Meditation Commentary

Meekness is yielding my rights to God so He can demonstrate His peace and power through me.

“So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.” —James 1:19-21

            America is a very “rights” driven society.   We talk a lot about our rights: as human beings, as Americans, as citizens, as a man or woman, as a certain ethnicity or race, as Christians, etc., the list goes on and on.   We also have this concept that we are our own authority.  Government is of the people, and nobody can tell us to do anything that we do not want to do.  We are constantly told to stand up for our rights.  Meekness, however, flies in the face of all that and is described here as yielding our rights to God.  Meekness is essential in submitting to any authorities.  We have to be willing to take ourselves down off the pedestal of our own authority, and yield our right to be right, our right to be happy and our right to do what we want, to someone else.  Otherwise, we are not under any authority other than our own.  The result when an “un-meek person” clashes with someone in authority usually has to do with an angry confrontation.  The Bible says, “Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well-advised is wisdom.” (Proverbs 13:10)  The ESV puts it this way: “By insolence comes nothing but strife, but with those who take advice is wisdom.”  Those who take advice could be summarized as those that are meek.  It is wise to be meek.  It is wise to let go of our own selfish pride and ‘rights’ so that we can yield to someone else in humility.  This can be easily seen in so many relationships.   A mom tells her teenage son not to listen to a certain CD, or a father tells a daughter not to dress a certain way, or whatever the case is, and the kid gets angry.  Why?  Because he or she believes he or she has a right to do these things and the parent is infringing on those rights.  A church has certain guidelines for how people on the platform should dress and a singer gets angry when the pastor tells her she cannot sing this service because her dress does not meet the guidelines.  She has the right to dress however she wants!  Nobody can tell her what to do. As students we have the choice to be meek or angry.  We can yield our ‘rights’ to do what we want, or we can get angry that we all of our rights are being challenged by the guidelines the faculty of our school sets in place.  These examples have all been with human authority figures but the biggest test comes to the Word of God, and to living for Him, and determining whether we still think we have the right to do certain things, and that God cannot tell us what to do.  We are told to receive with meekness the engrafted word which is able to save our souls.  If we do not have meekness, and a willingness to yield our rights, it is hard for us to see that God should have absolute control, and it makes sense that we yield.  Meekness requires that we submit to authority and yield to God, and angry confrontation becomes the norm if we do not.

MedCom Series! "Follow Me"--Authority

Another semester ended and has begun again, so I thought I would do another meditation commentary series.  These are short little 300 word posts relating two concepts from Scripture together.  Last time I did this in December the focus was Design, as you can see here: What's a MedComm Anyway? (Repentance and Design).  This semester the theme was 'Authority', and each post reflects how the broad concept relates to either a command of Christ or a character quality.  Love to hear your thoughts on any of the concepts!

   Authority

Honoring the responsibilities of parents, church leaders, government, and other authorities and learning how God works through them to provide direction and protection. Honoring my authorities brings Inward Peace.

Follow Me Meditation Commentary

“And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” —Matthew 4:19

 “For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.”—II Corinthians 4:5-7

            Authority is a concept from which we tend to shy away a lot of times.  The innate pride, rebellion and selfishness that threatens to rule our lives as humans is in complete opposition to the concept of authority.  We may not cringe at the thought of all authority, however—only the authority that is over us.  As humans, we do not like to be told what to do, but as Christians, it is imperative to recognize that God needs to have complete authority over our lives, and that He places others in authority over us as well.  There is something wonderful that pervades God’s authority though.  Sometimes when we think of authority, we think of a power-hungry tyrant, with armies of brutal soldiers at his command, or a ruler snapping principal who is intent on enforcing the ‘no chewing gum in class’ rule, or a police officer who is delighted to give us a ticket for going 3 over the speed limit.  God’s authority is not the authority of an iron fist, however.  In fact, we do not even have to submit to it.  He gives us a choice.  “Follow me,” is the command of Christ.  We can choose to place ourselves under His loving rule or not, but once we put our hands to the plow, and declare Him Lord, He expects us not to look back, or we are not fit for the kingdom of God.  Once we follow this command, any other authority in our lives must fall under that umbrella.  The Apostle Paul wrote, “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.”  (1 Cor. 11:1)  Clearly, the Apostle Paul was seen as an authority in the Corinthian church, but he made it clear that the authority was only valid if he was under the ultimate authority of Christ. Our job is to follow Christ wherever He leads.  If another authority in our lives is following Christ, then we fall right in line behind that person.  On the other hand, if an authority in our lives makes a break from that path of following Christ, our duty is to keep on the straight and narrow path of following Him, and ignore the road the other person takes.  We see this concept over and over again when the Bible talks about authority.  “Children, obey your parents in the Lord,”… “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands as unto the Lord.” (emphasis added.)  We are told to submit to governments, but when the government comes in between us and our Lord, we are to have the same response as the apostles in Acts 4:19: “Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto ye, rather than unto God, judge ye.”  When we think about authority, the command of Jesus needs to be our top priority: “Follow me.”  All other authority falls beneath that command.

Bride of Christ Perspectives

This is a paper I wrote a few months ago, but thought I would make it available to everyone in cyberspace.

            In light of the fact that Jesus Christ our Lord views us as His cherished Bride, how does this affect your perspective on the following:

            Worship:

            Understanding the definition of worship as intense focus and devotion, in light of the fact mentioned above, brings an incredible perspective to worship.  Worship suddenly becomes a natural outpouring of our heart, when we begin to see Christ the way He really is, and fall in love with Him for that reason.  Worship ceases to be a drudgery that we have to perform, as if we were grudgingly bowing down in front of a king whose policies and ideals we don’t really agree with, but that we still have to honor—instead, worship is a response in devotion and love to the great love and faithfulness He has shown us!

            Sin:

            Sin can be thought of as breaking a law, or doing something wrong, and it is.  But looking at it from the angle that Christ is our “groom”, and we are His “cherished bride”, makes it less about a formalized code that we are breaking, and more about hurting Someone we love.  The realization of who Christ is and the way He sees us should change our motivation behind not sinning.  The reason I do not want to sin is not because I am trying to avoid hell or get to heaven; it is because I love Jesus and do not want to do anything that displeases Him, particularly in the light of all the grace He has shown us, and how much He loves us and is looking out for our best interests.  Psalm 10:4 has an interesting statement about the wicked.  It says, “God is not in all his thoughts.”  I noticed it does not say, “God is not in his thoughts at all”, but rather that the wicked person is not thinking about God all the time.  What that tells me is that if we have the mentality that we are in love with Him and He is in love with us, just like a groom and his bride, all our thoughts will be centered on Him and what He desires, and what we desire will pale in comparison.  That is the thing that will keep us from wickedness.

            Obedience:

            The verse that comes to my mind in relation to being obedient to Christ is 1 John 5:3: “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.”  Because we understand the relationship that exists between ourselves and Jesus, we should not think of obedience to Him as a grievous thing, like following the rules of a strict taskmaster.  We are so overwhelmed with gratitude and love because we do not deserve anything that He has given us and we want to do whatever we possibly can to show Him our love, that obedience should be the natural response of the heart to express our love for Him.  In a healthy marriage relationship, a wife obeys her husband, not because she is scared of him or insecure, but because she wants to demonstrate that she respects, trusts, and honors him.  Our relationship with Christ should have the same impetus.

            Life Purpose:

            The whole reason Jesus uses this metaphor is because there is an unbreakable covenant that is enacted when two people are married.  The husband does not have his own life separate from his wife.  The two become one.  It is the same when we make a covenant with Christ.  Colossians 3:4 is one of my favorite verses describing this, and it says, “When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.”  Christ doesn’t just give us a new life for us to go live on our own…He becomes our life!  Our old life is dead.  As was mentioned in the sermon we listened to in class, love involves leaving your old life to begin a new life, completely entwined with your spouse, and the purpose of your life becomes to please him/her.  When we become a Christian, the purpose of our life becomes to please our husband, Christ, and we cease to look at our own interests and expectations, and focus on Him and what He wants and who He is. 

Are We Running Toward Jesus or Away From Sin?

Are we running toward Jesus or away from sin?
This question has been a theme in conversations and Bible studies for me the last couple weeks. It's not something I think I'm mastering.  It's just a different way of looking at things, that I thought I would share with all of you.
One might think these two things are the same, but there's a slight but important, very significant difference in the nuance of the question.  The difference is in focus and in motivation.
The goal in our Christian lives is supposed to be Jesus.  God is our focal point, because we are supposed to be in relationship with Him.  It seems obvious, but He is the One who makes the Christian life anything.  He is our exceeding great reward.  But sometimes, we, as Christians, can become focused and consumed with fighting sin.  Our eyes are on the battle, not the goal.  We see a problem in our lives, and understand that we should not be sinning as Christians, so we become determined to beat the sin, and to overcome the besetting sins that we are faced with.  We set up tons of boundaries and strategies, and completely focus on fighting the battle.  It is important to understand the point of the fight though and not lose sight of that.  Obviously, we have to fight sin...but why?  What is our motivation?  Is holiness the goal?  Is humility the goal?  Actually, the reason we work towards all these things is because sin gets in the way of our relationship with Jesus.  We love Him; we are focused on Him, and therefore, we want to love the things He loves and hate the things He hates.  Even if we were able to completely eradicate sin in our lives, it would not solve the root issue of our cold heart, which is in need of a relationship with God.  We eradicate sin to get it out of the way of our relationship with God.
David's Men Fighting to the Well at Bethlehem
I love the stories of David's mighty men, and one of my favorites is when David longs for a drink from the water in the well of Bethlehem.  Three of his great men overhear, and they fight through the enemy lines just to get him a cup of water.  However, they were focused on a goal.  Can you imagine if they got distracted from their goal and were focused on the battle?  If in fighting the battle and trying to get through, they suddenly became completely focused on killing the enemy, they never would have accomplished the goal for their master.  They killed enough people, fought through just enough to get the water and get back to their king because they loved him.  They weren't thinking about the fight as much as the prize, but the fight was necessary to get the prize.
The following verses really encapsulate this concept for me:

Philippians 3:9-14  And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:  (10)  That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;  (11)  If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.  (12)  Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.  (13)  Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,  (14)  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

A friend sent me this quote, which goes right along with this concept:

"The great error that I am trying to explode in these messages is the error that says, faith in God is one thing and the fight for holiness is another thing. Faith gets you to heaven and holiness gets you rewards. You get your justification by faith, and you get your sanctification by works. You start the Christian life in the power of the Spirit, you press on in the efforts of the flesh. This is the great evangelical error of our day. The battle for obedience is optional, they say, because only faith is necessary for salvation.

Our response: the battle for obedience is absolutely necessary for salvation because it IS the fight of faith. The battle against lust is absolutely necessary for salvation because it is the battle against unbelief. Faith alone delivers from hell and the faith that delivers from hell delivers from lust." ~John Piper

I love this because faith is not a one-time thing like so many people seem to believe.  Faith is a lifestyle.  It is actively and continually choosing to trust and hope in God and throw ourselves at His mercy.  We MUST fight sin BECAUSE we believe what He says is true and we obey Him.
I see praying and reading my Bible as an end sometimes.  I know I NEED to do it, but it can be difficult.  The other day when I finally prayed, and hadn't for two consecutive days, I asked myself why.  I was telling God that I want Him to work in the ways I've been learning and the things I have been teaching about walking in the Spirit and not in the flesh, but I realized I'm scared.  I'm scared that it won't work.  I'm scared that He won't come through in the way that I understand the Scriptures to be communicating.  I don't really trust Him.  When I realized this, I sort of broke down, and said, "God, I know I need to trust you, but I don't know how."  And it seemed like He said, "Obey me."  Do the things that you know I've commanded, and demonstrate in that way that you believe that His promises are true, and that He will do the things He's said.  It freed me up a little bit.  I could do the basic things I knew to do like pray and read my Bible to become closer to Him, and He could handle the rest.  The focus is Him.
Safety Net
This is one thing the Pharisees didn't understand.  A mentor gave me an analogy that I know I have mentioned before, but it made so much sense to me, so I am going to bring it up again.  The law was intended as a safety net for the Jews.  Their focus was supposed to be on God, and the laws were intended as boundaries to show them when they were falling too far back or straying too far from His character.  Instead of looking to Yahweh and letting the law keep them from sin, they elevated the safety net, which was the law, and began looking to that.  The law became the standard instead of their God being the standard.  The law was a means to keep them in right relationship with God, not an end in itself.
Romans 8
Now, however, we do the same thing.  As Piper mentioned, and the apostle Paul asked the Galatians, "Having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?"  Romans 6 shows that we cannot continue in sin, but Romans 7 shows that we cannot overcome it solely by relying on our flesh or willpower, because we have a sin nature.  Romans 8 describes walking in the Spirit. We are walking in His footsteps, following after Him.  What the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son did, by doing all the work for us, and inviting us into His family.  Romans 8 describes a deep, intimate, personal relationship as adopted sons, rather than slaves in bondage, communicating with the Spirit of the One who groans on our behalf, and helps us in our weaknesses.
Superstitious Bible Memory
Sometimes people look to strategies for conquering sin, and approach the Christian life almost superstitiously.  If I do certain things I will be fine.  Even things like memorizing the Bible...they think there is some intrinsic power in memorizing the words that will keep them from sin.  But when Psalm 119:11 speaks of hiding His word in our hearts so that we might not sin against Him, it isn't saying that the letters making up the words themselves have some kind of hidden power...rather, the concepts contained in the pages of Scripture, when transferred to our heart, and when it becomes part of our motivation, it shows us how to live and what God wants and how to keep from sinning.  Our focus needs to be on God though.  His character.  His Word.  His Name.  When we focus on Him, we understand what He loves and what He hates, and are able to fall in love with Him, and do the things He wants, which includes the battle against sin.

To sum up what I am trying to say, if we love Jesus, we are going to shun sin, but the point isn't to shun sin, the point is to get to Jesus.  That has to be understood.

A Temple Run Right

See what I did there with the title?  Little reference to get you interested, and hopefully you'll find some jewels in this little post.  (Okay, okay--sorry, that was bad.)
This is a simple concept in Scripture, but so profound!  It's something that impacts me deeply when I think of it, but I have found myself neglecting to retain it in my mind.  Here's the thing.  A lot of times when I pray, I think of it as if I'm praying "up" to God.  As in He's on His throne in heaven, way above the clouds, and might condescend to hear me.  But check this out.  This is something we all know, but I want to draw it out a little for us to think about more deeply.
2Corinthians 6:16  And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 
People talk about "Jesus living inside of us" in the realm of Christianity as if it's no big deal.  But do we really think about what that even means??  We were doing Romans 5 in a Bible study a few days ago, and I noticed that this seems to be Pauls, "And not only so, but," and "Much more" chapter.  He describes the benefits of being justified by the blood of Jesus, and it's so much more than we even realize!  Take a few minutes and read the chapter, noting all the places he says, "not only" and "much more", to see what I mean.  One verse says,
Rom 5:5  And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. 
This is just accepted by many Christians.  But there seems to be a great downplayal (yes, I realize I probably just made that word up...bear with me) about what the Holy Ghost is.  Or perhaps I should say about WHO the Holy Ghost is.  Think about that description for a second...the Holy Ghost or Holy Spirit.  Those are descriptive words, and it is describing the One Spirit that is completely holy and pure!  We learn that God is a spirit (John 4:24), and is holy (Isaiah 6:3), and we can "casually" say that the Holy Spirit is given to us?!  That He dwells in us?!  To fully understand the significance of that, take a quick jog with me to the Old Testament to see what that really means!
God is so holy and powerful that the people are scared and want Moses to speak to Him on their behalf.  (Exodus 20)  God had Moses make a tabernacle or tent or house for Him to dwell in to be among His people, with the ark of the covenant being His central dwelling place, but it was still so holy that the high priest was the only one who could go in, and then only once a year, after cleansing himself and going through all these rituals and sacrifices.  (Hebrews 9:7-10)
The ark of the covenant is crazy too.  When the priests carried it the people had to separate themselves and walk like half a mile behind it, because the power of God was invested there.  (Joshua 3:3-4)  When the ark was taken by the Philistines it's power knocked over the false gods in their temple (1 Samuel 5), and when they sent it back and people looked inside of it, they were instantly killed!  (1 Samuel 6:19-20)
Then David wants to build a dwelling place for God...a permanent place in Jerusalem as a temple for God's glory.  Read through the dedication of the temple when Solomon dedicated it sometime soon...ridiculous stuff happened. The priests couldn't even minister because the glory of God was so thick! (1 Kings 8:11; 2 Chronicles 5:14) There are also a lot of requirements and details about exactly how the temple was supposed to be...which makes sense as this was God's dwelling place!  (1 Kings 5-8) But something really stood out to me about the list of what the temple was supposed to be according to Solomon's prayer when someone read through it the other day.  It was to be a place where God could hear, but He makes it clear that if they turn away from Him He will not hear, but if they humble themselves and pray and seek His face, He will.  (2 Chronicles 6-7)
God communicates His desire all throughout Scripture to dwell among His people.  Particularly in the book of Ezekiel, the phrase "I will be their God and they shall be my people" is used a lot, and the book ends with a long, somewhat boring, yet vital description of the exact measurements of this temple in Ezekiel's vision.  When you read through this book, or Exodus and Leviticus we see how holy and amazing God is, but also His desire to connect with His people...which is hindered because of sin.
I realize this is a lot of Bible references and "back story," if you will, but I really want to emphasize how incredible this gift is, and let the reader draw some of the implications because I think it's unfathomably important and overlooked.  We're talking about the dwelling place of the Almighty God!!!
God wants to dwell among His people but how can He do that?  This is what we see in the book of John...
John 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:14  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. 
The Greek word for 'dwelt' in verse 14 carries the idea of a tent or a tabernacle,  just like in the Old Testament.  We beheld the glory of God, as the Word was made flesh and tabernacled among us! G4637 σκηνόω skēnoō skay-no'-o
From G4636; to tent or encamp, that is, (figuratively) to occupy (as a mansion) or (specifically) to reside (as God did in the Tabernacle of old, a symbol fo protection and communion): - dwell.
Is anybody getting a picture of this yet?  Do we see what this means?  God, Himself, in His full glory dwelt among men!  He came unto His own and His own received Him not!  What was the temple?  A dwelling place for God!  What was the body of the Son of God?  A dwelling place for God!  The man Christ Jesus is the temple of God here on earth.  John expounds on this even more later on.
Joh 2:19  Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Joh 2:20  Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? Joh 2:21  But he spake of the temple of his body. Joh 2:22  When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said. 
This is such a beautiful concept, but it doesn't even stop there!
We learn that when Jesus died on the cross, He became the propitiation for our sins and the perfect sacrifice that reconciles us to God.  (Romans 3:20-5:21; Hebrews)  When He dies, the vail of the temple that separates the Most Holy place where the presence of God dwelt from the people is ripped in two, which the gospel writers saw fit to record.  (Matthew 27:51)  This indicates to me that the separation between God and man is over, because we now have a mediator.  (1 Timothy 2:5; 1 John 2:2)  Jesus gave a little preview of what this would mean before He died.  I want so badly to copy the whole chapter in John 14 down for you, but go read it yourself and I'll try to pick out some highlights:

Joh 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me...Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me?...the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Joh 14:11  Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake...He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. Joh 14:13  And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. John 14:14  If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it."  (Sorry--real quick break from chapter...notice the connection between this and 2 Chronicles 7!  Compare the language used about God answering prayer!) Joh 14:15  "If ye love me, keep my commandments." (Notice again the holiness that parallels the temple!) Joh 14:16  "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Joh 14:17  Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. Joh 14:18  I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. Joh 14:19  Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also. Joh 14:20  At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.  Joh 14:21  He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. Joh 14:22  Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? Joh 14:23  Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. Joh 14:24  He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me. Joh 14:25  These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. Joh 14:26  But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you."
Okay, I kinda did copy the whole chapter...but that's because there was so little I could leave out!
This thing that Jesus describes what was going to happen...this promise from the Father...was exactly what happened on the day of Pentecost! (Acts 2) Peter told the people that this was what Joel had prophesied that God would pour out His Spirit on ALL flesh!  (Jeremiah 31; Joel 2:28-32; Ezekiel 36; Acts 2:16-21)
I want to make it clear, because this is the whole reason I posted...this is a BIG deal!  This is THE Spirit of the Almighty God coming to dwell in our fragile, finite human bodies!  Let that sink in for a moment.



No seriously...this about it for a moment.



Quit reading and think...just for a second!





Did you think about it?  That's amazing!  It's why Paul wrote that we are the temples of the Holy Ghost!
1Corinthians 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 

The temple of God is wherever His Spirit dwells!

Revelation 21:22  And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.

God is building His church to be the new temple, made without hands, for His Spirit to dwell in in this world!

Ephesians 2:18  For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. Eph 2:19  Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; Eph 2:20  And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; Eph 2:21  In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: Eph 2:22  In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit. 

Revelation 3:12  Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name. 

This is a very weighty thing!  It should be sobering to us in thinking of its application, as we see clearly in the contexts of which Paul writes!

1Corinthians 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are. 
In Titus 2:3, the Greek word for 'behavior that becometh holiness', has to do with behaving in a way that is fitting for the temple!
The question is: are we behaving in a way that is fitting for a dwelling place of God?  Do we understand the magnitude of what that means to have God Himself living inside of us as Romans 8 describes?  Have we even had that experience the way it's outlined in the book of Acts?

There is so much more to this.  This is such a beauitful concept that I am inadequate to even express in any kind of words in any language.  I could write a lot of descriptive and hyperbolic fluff to try to capture the magnitude of this concept, but I don't think I will.  Mainly, I wanted to lay down some facts and connections in Scripture, and let you, as the reader, draw your own conclusions and interpretations and implications and applications.  Having this knowledge, however, I believe, should certainly change the way we view our lives! I'll leave you with this final Scripture:

1Corinthians 6:19-20 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's. 

Approximate Wait Time is 24.....Years?!

I hate waiting.  Thought I'd get that out there right off as a beginning.  To clarify, though, I don't mind waiting as long as I have something to do in the meantime.  I have this drive to always be doing something productive or I feel like I'm wasting time.  For example, I don't mind waiting rooms as long as I have the foresight to bring something along to do.  The last time I was at the dentist in a waiting room, I brought along a suitcase (literally...you may think I'm kidding, but it was  a legitimate duffel bag) filled with books so I could study for a Bible study.  I've brought along schoolwork, Bible quizzing cards, etc., just so I have something to do.  I'm a busy man, and my time is valuable!  I can't waste time waiting!
Even if I'm not doing something strictly productive, a lot of times I feel like I just need to be doing something with my hands or my mind.  If I can double up on things and multi-task I jump on it.  If I have to unload the dishwasher, I'll put on a CD or prop up a book to glance at.  When I put a TV dinner in the microwave, you think I'm going to stand there idly for three and a half minutes to wait for the timer to ding?  Ain't nobody got time for that!  I'll run over to my computer and type something up.  When I'm driving, I feel restless unless I'm listening to a sermon or story or talking to someone on the phone.  A drive of 30 minutes is an opportunity to have a conversation with someone I've been meaning to talk to or to instruct myself further on something.  I can't let that slip by.  It doesn't even matter if it's strictly productive, as long as I'm doing something.  For some reason though, I don't think God always shares my point of view.
Recently, there have been situations that I want God to move in and do something about.  When He doesn't automatically step in though, it scares me.  I want to trust Him, but when it doesn't seem like He's going to do anything, particularly not in the time frame I want Him to do it, I'm tempted to immediately jump to figure out my own plans, and find some way I can fix the situation, without waiting to see what He wants me to do, because He isn't answering me at the time.
At times, it seems the Bible studies I'm teaching conspire to emphasize the same point...usually one that I need to work on in my daily walk with God.  The Bible studies I taught over my winter break at school were no exception.  Two sections of Scripture we happened to be studying in two separate studies really stood out to me and were emphasizing similar things.
One of the sections of Scripture was Isaiah chapters 7-12...which are amazing, and all of you should go do an indepth study on them as soon as you finish reading this blog post.
The Scriptures start out with a situation between King Ahaz and Isaiah. Ahaz was facing an intimidating situation.  The kings of Syria and northern Israel had formed a treaty to come against him and replace him with a puppet king that would do what they wanted.  The Bible says that the hearts of Ahaz and all his people were shaken like when trees are shaken with the wind.  God told Isaiah to meet Ahaz by the water source of the city, which comes into play later.  Listen to Isaiah's advice from God to the worried king.
Isa 7:3-9  Then said the LORD unto Isaiah, Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou, and Shearjashub thy son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller's field;  (4)  And say unto him, Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither be fainthearted for the two tails of these smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the son of Remaliah.  (5)  Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have taken evil counsel against thee, saying,  (6)  Let us go up against Judah, and vex it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and set a king in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeal:  (7)  Thus saith the Lord GOD, It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass.  (8)  For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin; and within threescore and five years shall Ephraim be broken, that it be not a people.  (9)  And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah's son. If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established.
Basically, God's advice to the king is not to focus on his own plans, but to trust in God.  Just believe that God is going to do what He says.  God even offers to give Ahaz a sign, but Ahaz refuses because he is so wrapped up in his own plans and ideas and has placed his investments in something other than God, and doesn't want to consider the possibility that all he needs to do is wait and trust God.  It's a scary thing to wait, because I think we oftentimes don't really believe God will really come through.  We don't think He really interacts with us.  I love that God tells him to be quiet.  Just be quiet, Ahaz!  But Ahaz didn't.  We learn what he did in 2 Kings.

2Kings 16:5-18  Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war: and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him.  (6)  At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drave the Jews from Elath: and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there unto this day.  (7)  So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, saying, I am thy servant and thy son: come up, and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out of the hand of the king of Israel, which rise up against me.  (8)  And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king's house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria.  (9)  And the king of Assyria hearkened unto him: for the king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Rezin.  (10)  And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and saw an altar that was at Damascus: and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof.  (11)  And Urijah the priest built an altar according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus: so Urijah the priest made it against king Ahaz came from Damascus.  (12)  And when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar: and the king approached to the altar, and offered thereon.  (13)  And he burnt his burnt offering and his meat offering, and poured his drink offering, and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings, upon the altar.  (14)  And he brought also the brasen altar, which was before the LORD, from the forefront of the house, from between the altar and the house of the LORD, and put it on the north side of the altar.  (15)  And king Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, Upon the great altar burn the morning burnt offering, and the evening meat offering, and the king's burnt sacrifice, and his meat offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, and their meat offering, and their drink offerings; and sprinkle upon it all the blood of the burnt offering, and all the blood of the sacrifice: and the brasen altar shall be for me to enquire by.  (16)  Thus did Urijah the priest, according to all that king Ahaz commanded.  (17)  And king Ahaz cut off the borders of the bases, and removed the laver from off them; and took down the sea from off the brasen oxen that were under it, and put it upon a pavement of stones.  (18)  And the covert for the sabbath that they had built in the house, and the king's entry without, turned he from the house of the LORD for the king of Assyria.

I realize these are a lot of verses and blog posts are supposed to be short, but I wanted to put this all out there to make a point, and maybe it will be beneficial to someone.  Notice what Ahaz did.  Rather than doing what Isaiah told him to do (trust the Lord), he made his own plans and put his trust in something else.  The very reason he was by the conduit of the upper pool in the first place was likely because he was checking out the water supply for the city...solidifying his own plans in case of a siege rather than trusting in God.  What he did probably made sense to the political minds of his day.  His secular advisers probably approved.  He was being attacked on all sides; he needed to DO something!  So he did.  He sent to Assyria, and it seemed to work, right?  He got rid of Syria and Israel's threats, which is what he was aiming to do.  Do you see what else Ahaz did though?  The last verse says he turned from the house of the LORD for the king of Assyria.  If we look at what Ahaz was doing in terms of investments, it is very clear to see where his trust was.  In a sense, the investment was already in the house of the LORD, but he took it out of the house of the LORD and put it into Assyria.  He used the gold and silver of the only One who could really help him, and put it right into his own plans, which he figured would save him.  This hits me hard, because I think it is exactly what we do.  It doesn't seem as blatant to us, because in the middle of our circumstances we often do what is practical and makes sense to us.  But we often invest in our own plans rather than in God.

What are you investing in?  We can invest many things...our time, our talents, our money, etc.  Whatever we put into something is usually how much we value it.  Are we putting more of these things into the kingdom of God, taking time to pray, to read our Bibles, to tithe, to encourage people in the Lord, to come to church, to teach or sing or whatever for Him?  Or are we putting all our effort and energy into college, our job, our career, our friends, or even our family?  We think, "I need to prepare.  I know God promises abundant life, but I have to do some things to make sure I'm taken care of."  Obviously I'm not saying we should just throw out our job, college, friends, family and the rest...I'm just asking what we're putting our trust in.  Our own plans or God?  We see a different perspective of what Ahaz did in 2 Chronicles, and it spells out pretty clearly what the result was for him.

2Ch 28:16-24  At that time did king Ahaz send unto the kings of Assyria to help him.  (17)  For again the Edomites had come and smitten Judah, and carried away captives.  (18)  The Philistines also had invaded the cities of the low country, and of the south of Judah, and had taken Bethshemesh, and Ajalon, and Gederoth, and Shocho with the villages thereof, and Timnah with the villages thereof, Gimzo also and the villages thereof: and they dwelt there.  (19)  For the LORD brought Judah low because of Ahaz king of Israel; for he made Judah naked, and transgressed sore against the LORD.  (20)  And Tilgathpilneser king of Assyria came unto him, and distressed him, but strengthened him not.  (21)  For Ahaz took away a portion out of the house of the LORD, and out of the house of the king, and of the princes, and gave it unto the king of Assyria: but he helped him not.  (22)  And in the time of his distress did he trespass yet more against the LORD: this is that king Ahaz.  (23)  For he sacrificed unto the gods of Damascus, which smote him: and he said, Because the gods of the kings of Syria help them, therefore will I sacrifice to them, that they may help me. But they were the ruin of him, and of all Israel.  (24)  And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the house of God, and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, and shut up the doors of the house of the LORD, and he made him altars in every corner of Jerusalem.
The result of Ahaz's plans seemed to work out in the short run, because Assyria fixed the short term problem, but it caused so many more problems.  God protected Judah and Ahaz as king, as He said He would do for His greater plan (bringing forth Immanuel), but Ahaz's plans to fix the short term brought about all kinds of problems for his country and people and for him and his family.  The LORD brought Judah low because of Ahaz.  And the very thing Ahaz was trusting in backfired on him.  Tiglathpileser, king of Assyria, came and distressed Ahaz...but strengtehened him not...he helped him not.  He sacrified to the gods of Damascus which smote him, thinking it made sense, but they were the ruin of him and of all Israel!  Why?  Why would Ahaz do this?  Because it can be hard to wait for God to do what He says He will do.  We want to immediately jump in with our own plans and 'help' God out, when it seems like we're being attacked on all sides and He isn't coming through....which brings up the next illustration I saw in Bible study.  Abram and Sarai.
I noticed something the last time I was studying the story of Abraham.  We read about God's promise and all the things that happened to him in a couple chapters, and sort of focus on the part where God says, "By this time next year, you will have a son."  But do you know when God first promised that to Abraham?

Gen 12:4  So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. 

Genesis 12:1-3 is the first time God makes mention of making of Abram "a great nation."  This is slightly ridiculous already at the outset, because Abram is already 75 years old, and is wife is barren and childless.  Abram brings this up in chapter 15, when the promise still hasn't come to pass years later.  

Gen 15:2-5  And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?  (3)  And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir.  (4)  And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir.  (5)  And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.

God specifies that it will be one from Abram's own bowels, and Abram believes God.  The trouble is, almost ten years later, Sarah starts to get practical, and thinks maybe they should help God out.  He made this promise but it still hasn't been fulfilled, and it's been ten years.  Maybe God wants them to put a little action behind their faith and make their own plans.  So she does.

Gen 16:1-3  Now Sarai Abram's wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar.  (2)  And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the LORD hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.  (3)  And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife.

This was a custom of the day and seemed logical...even seemed to fit what God told Abram.  After all, the promise was referring to Abram's bowels, not Sarai's.  The problem is that it wasn't God's plan.  He wanted them to wait and be faithful.  We know the story.  As is often said, Abram and Sarai took matters into their own hands, and now, as a result, we have the whole Middle Eastern Crisis.  Guess how long they had already waited though?

Gen 16:16  And Abram was fourscore and six years old, when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram. 

Abram was already 86!  He was promised this when he was 75!  That's a long time to wait!  I don't like the sound of that.  10 or 11 years down the road, when time seems to be getting short, making my own plans and helping God out seems to make a lot of sense to me.  But it wasn't God's plan, and God makes this clear.

Gen 17:1  And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. 

Gen 17:15-21  And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be.  (16)  And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.  (17)  Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?  (18)  And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!  (19)  And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.  (20)  And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.  (21)  But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.

By this time, Abraham was already 99 years old.  That means he had been waiting for this promise to be fulfilled for 24 years!  That's a long time to wait, but it is always worth waiting when it is God's plan you are waiting on.

I'll admit freely that I'm speaking to myself in this post.  This is an area I'm struggling with, so I'm not pompously posting with some pretentiously pious perspective.  (And that's actually an amazingly awesome alliteration, amen? ;) )
The reason this is so important to me, and why I spent so much time on it is because it is something that has been hitting me between the eyes recently, and I keep coming to it.  I hate the concept in my flesh.  I want to get answers, I want to figure things out intellectually, I want relationships to be restored, I want friends of mine to come to know God, I want debates to be settled, I want to feel God's presence and hear His voice right now, and know exactly what His map for my future is.  But it seems like He keeps telling me to wait.  And wait.  And wait.  I want to jump in and beginning making my own plans to protect and solidify myself, but that's not the way He wants me to do things.   While I want to make sparks and walk in the light of my own fire because I'm in the dark, He says to just trust and wait on Him.  (Isa. 50:10-11)  It sometimes seems like I've been waiting for a long time, but He is trustworthy and faithful, and I certainly haven't been waiting as long as Abraham.  So I'm going to keep plugging away and I encourage you to do the same!   

As a clarification, I am certainly not advocating sitting back and doing nothing, and demanding God to do what you want Him to do.  You are His servant, not the other way around.  Keep your eyes on His hands (Psalm 123), and seeking Him and doing what you already know to do.  (Abraham and Hezekiah are good examples.)  All I'm saying is that sometimes serving involves waiting and watching what the Master is going to do, rather than jumping in with your own plans.

God bless you as you wait!

Isa 8:12-17  Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.  (13)  Sanctify the LORD of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.  (14)  And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.  (15)  And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.  (16)  Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.  (17)  And I will wait upon the LORD, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him.

Isa 10:3-4  And what will ye do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which shall come from far? to whom will ye flee for help? and where will ye leave your glory?  (4)  Without me they shall bow down under the prisoners, and they shall fall under the slain. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.

Isa 10:20  And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay upon him that smote them; but shall stay upon the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.

Isa 40:26-31  Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.  (27)  Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the LORD, and my judgment is passed over from my God?  (28)  Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.  (29)  He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.  (30)  Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:  (31)  But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Honoring God's Law and Design

This is the last day of my MedComm series.  Hope you enjoyed it!

Honor God’s Law Meditation Commentary

“Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” —Matthew 5:17-18

“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”—II Timothy 3:16-17

            We hear a lot about living under grace and not under the law, because of a lot of Paul’s discussions about this topic in New Testament letters he wrote.  The truth is that we are to live by the spirit of the law, and not the letter of the law, because God’s design is not bound by the law—it supersedes it, and the laws He gives show us the parameters that He has set in place for us to live according to His design.  Paul explains this in Galatians.  “Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.” (Galatians 3:19)  God gave His law to show His people exactly how He wanted them to live, but the focus was supposed to be on His ultimate design, which was encapsulated in the law.  

A mentor of mine explained it this way once: the law was intended as a safety net to catch those who were sliding farther back away from God, as a warning that they were stepping out of the boundaries of His design, but their focus was still supposed to be focused on Him, reaching and striving to know Him deeper.  The Pharisees messed up by turning their focus away from the God they were supposed to be developing a relationship with, and began focusing on the safety net as the standard which they were striving to attain to, not realizing that Jesus was the goal, and the law was there to keep them from straying too far from Him.  Honoring God’s law means more than following the law to the letter—it means respecting it in its original purpose and design.  To honor God’s law means to recognize the spirit behind what was commanded, and to respect and follow it because we understand that God’s design is best and we want to glorify Him by living the way He wants us to live.