LEARNING TO LEAN

 

Trust in the LORD with all your heart,

And lean not on your own understanding;

In all your ways acknowledge Him,

And He shall direct your paths.  (Proverbs 3:5-6)

I recall a chorus that we used to sing in church years ago that said,

I'm learning to lean, learning to lean,
Learning to lean on Jesus.
Finding more power than I'd ever dreamed,
I'm learning to lean on Jesus.  (John Stallings)

That is a lifestyle aligned with the truth of Proverbs 3:5-6 and one that demands to be adopted by all those who claim to follow Christ.

It is a call for DEPENDENCE on God, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart” (v.5a).  Upon whom or what are you leaning right now?  God is the only subject worthy of our dependence.  He is invincible in His power, indescribable in His knowledge, immeasurable in His love, and immutable in His character—and so infinitely trustworthy.  That cannot be said of any other person—even the best of people. 

There is also the call for DENIAL of self-reliance, “And lean not on your own understanding” (v.5b).  How foolish it is to lean on our limited understanding when we can look to a limitless Lord who knows all things and understands the outcome of every course of action that might be taken.  This warning is needed because we are prone to self-reliance.  It is at the rotten core of the forbidden fruit of sin—a drive to be our own god and follow our own guidance.  We have received that default setting from our forefather Adam.  That folly leads only to futility.  Recognize that the Bible gives a prohibition of self-reliance.  This fence God puts up, marking self-reliance as “off-limits,” is for our protection.  The Old Testament character Jacob is the poster child of self-reliance.  He repeatedly leaned on his own understanding, and that brought him difficulty after difficulty, finally requiring God to break Him and bring him to desperation so that he would learn to lean (Gen.32:22-32).

Ultimately, this is a call for DEVOTION to God, “In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”  (v.6)  We are to be devoted in looking to God.  Let reliance on self be supplanted by resting in the Savior.  The demand is not to just look to Him in a moment of crisis, but as a matter of course.  We will be directed in looking to God.  That is the promise.  As the old hymn affirms, “He leadeth me! O blessed thought!”

The Spirit of God speaks by the Word of God.  Open the Book, and entreat Him to show you His way!  God responds to such a humble desire with heavenly direction.  Let us learn to lean on Jesus!

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THE CHRIST?

 

Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.  (John 5:18)

Jesus asked, “What do you think about the Christ?” (Matt.22:42)  Big question isn’t it?  Be careful how you answer—it could mean the difference between heaven and hell.  Some would say Jesus is a great religious leader.  Others might say He was a teacher of moral precepts.  Still another might add that He was a good man.  Those answers aren’t incorrect—they are insufficient.  The Christ was, is, and always shall be God.  Though from His miraculous conception, He was fully man, He never ceased being what He always was—wholly God.  Any other conclusion leaves one with a Christ who is not the real one—a pale shadow of His true self—and incapable of being our Savior.

You will sometimes hear liberals argue that Jesus never claimed to be God.  The religious leaders of His day certainly understood His claim—and wanted to kill Him for it. They didn’t believe Him, but they had no trouble understanding Him.  They were the spawn of Satan—hateful hypocrites—and they recognized Jesus’ claim.  What might we say then about the spiritual condition of the liberals? 

Jesus expounds this claim to be God in the fifth chapter of John.

He says that he sees what the Father is doing and does what the Father does (John 5:19).  To do what another can do is to be on equal footing.  Because He does the works of God, He is God.

He also says that He knows the mind of God (John 5:20).  Christ was in constant communion with the Father.  Their fellowship was absolute for Jesus had no sin to disrupt that fellowship.  Because He has the mind of God, He is God.

Christ further states that He possesses the life of God (John 5:21, 26).  Only God can give life.  He is the source.  Jesus claims to be that source.  Because He has the life of God, He is God.

The next declaration of His Deity is that He has the authority of God (John 5:22, 24-29).  Jesus claims the authority to raise the dead and judge those raised.  That is the exclusive prerogative of God.  Because He has the authority of God, He is God.

Then He boldly demands the worship of God (John5:23).  In the same way men honor the Father, they are to honor the Son.  Only God is to be worshipped, yet Jesus says He is worthy of the same.  Because He merits the worship of God, He is God.

He asserts He speaks the words of God (John 5:24).  To hear Jesus was to hear the voice of God.  Because He speaks the words of God, He is God.

Jesus displays the righteousness of God (John 5:30).  His judgment is completely just.  He does all the Father’s will perfectly.  Righteousness belongs to Him.  Because He displays the righteousness of God, Jesus is God.

This is the real Jesus.  If you want eternal life you must receive Him—not the one you imagine Him to be.  What do you think about the Christ?

GOD WITH US

And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.  (Exodus 25:8)

There is a place where God meets with us.  In the Old Testament Era, His glory was seen in the cloud that resided over and within the tabernacle (later replaced by the temple); in the New Testament dispensation that glory was seen in the Son of God.  John wrote, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)  In the Greek text, this literally translates, “and ‘tabernacled’ among us.”  The tabernacle is a type of Christ—rich in symbolism.  The writer of Hebrews affirms this in chapters 8-10—that the tabernacle is “the copy and shadow of the heavenly things” (8: 5a).  In that ancient meeting place with God, there is the shadow of which Jesus is the substance.

We should grasp THE PURPOSE OF THE TABERNACLE.  Its purpose was to be a place of worship and witness.  The tabernacle was an elaborate tent, which went with the congregation wherever they traveled and pitched in the heart of the camp when they rested.  This underscores that worship is to be central and consistent for the people of God.  The tabernacle was a testimony to the presence of God among the people.  Since it could not be entered without a sacrifice being offered, it was a witness to the holiness of God and sinfulness of man—as well as to the need for the shedding of blood to make atonement for man to approach the Lord.  That is why Jesus came—God made flesh—to reconcile Holy God to sinful man by His blood shed on the cross.

We can see THE PREVIEWS IN THE TABERNACLE.  The tabernacle was a temporary tent—later replaced by the solid construction of a temple meant to endure.  Thus, Jesus “tabernacled” among us for less than four decades.  The tabernacle speaks of the first advent of Christ and the temple to His second coming.  The tabernacle was a movable structure—never resting in place for long.  We certainly see Jesus on the march in the gospel accounts.  The tabernacle from the outside was a tent—and not even an ornate one—very plain.  One reason Israel had difficulty recognizing their Messiah was His humble appearance.  The tabernacle on the inside was a different matter.  Within the veil dwelt the glory of God.  Likewise, within the simple Carpenter resided the God’s glory—and three disciples got a peak on the Mountain of Transfiguration (see Matt.17:1-7).  The tabernacle, as previously mentioned, was the place of sacrifice, where forgiveness of sins was secured.  Only in Christ and His sacrifice can we be saved—the blood of the New Covenant fulfilling what the blood of the Old Covenant foreshadowed.  The tabernacle contained the Ark of the Covenant and the Ark contained the two stone tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments.  Christ fulfilled that law in His perfect obedience.

Further, we note THE PATTERN OF THE TABERNACLE.  You entered the tabernacle by first offering a sacrifice on the altar of burnt offering, then washed in the bronze laver, entered the Holy Place where the table of showbread, the gold lampstand, and altar of incense were found, and then inside the veil to the Holy of Holies and the ark.  We are taught that God is only approached by sacrifice, cleansing, intercession and invitation—through the blood of the Lamb of God—Jesus Christ (John 1:29).

RESTORED

And the LORD restored Job’s losses when he prayed for his friends. Indeed the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before.  (Job 42:10)

Old battered furniture—a secretary, wardrobe and dresser from my wife’s mother and a dish cabinet from my grandmother—these came into our possession, were sent to a skilled craftsman who restored them, and now they adorn our home!  Job was battered by the Devil with cruel blow after cruel blow.  Looking at him, you would have said, “That’s it—he’s seen his best days.”  Yet, there is a Master Restorer—God Almighty—that would not abandon him in the ash heap where Job sat!  He is in the restoration business, and that is what He does with Job.  God not only restored Job, He doubled his worth!

In this climactic conclusion of Job’s story we see HIS REPENTANCE (Job 42:1-6).  It was not sinful acts against God for which he needed to repent.  That was the false accusation of his friends as time after time they assailed his character.  They believed that Job’s sufferings had come as Divine discipline for his sins, and if he would just repent then he would be restored.  That was not the case!  God Himself testified to the righteousness of His servant—having thrown down the gauntlet to Satan, concerning Job’s integrity—which Job maintained even in the withering fire of trouble he entered.  What did happen, however, is that as time went on, Job felt abandoned by God and sought answers.  That is understandable, and not even wrong.  Somewhere along the way, this moved from confusion to complaint—no longer desiring answers alone, but demanding them!  In the presence of a Holy God, Who turns the tables and demands an answer from Job—and He has the right—Job repents of his bitterness with brokenness.

There follows GOD’S REPROOF (Job 42:7-9)  God does not go so easy on Job’s friends.  They are facing His fury.  When they ought to have comforted Job, they instead condemned him.  Thinking they knew it all, they presumed to speak for God, when they knew very little, and had no business becoming judges.  God can handle that Himself.  The Lord is sick of hearing them, and so asks Job to pray for them!  While I might have not wanted to pray for them after they way they had been, Job again displays his spiritual excellence in his intercession.  God hears and answers the prayer of his servant Job.  God always does—just not always in the time and in the manner in which we expect.

Job didn’t get the answer to all his prayers, expressed throughout the book, as he wanted, but he got something better!  We see HIS RESTORATION (v.10-17).  God not only gave him as much as he lost—He doubled everything!  You might protest—pointing out that is accurate except concerning the children he lost.  God blessed him with the same number.  NO—they were doubled too!  Something is not lost if you know where it is!  Job knew he had ten children in Heaven, and now God gives an additional ten—so that in glory the family circle would be twenty—double what he would have!

God is in the restoration business.  Often we experience restoration in this vale of tears—the ultimate is coming in the city of gold!  For the child of God, no matter how good or bad now—the best is always yet to be!  Job’s story teaches that truth.

SPRING-CLEANING

When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers’ money and overturned the tables.  (John 2:15)

April showers bring May flowers—and the time for spring-cleaning.  A little lady general will march in and draft her husband to join the window-washing brigade.  Dirt has a way of accumulating.  It can spiritually as well.  We see in John 2 how the house of God was cluttered with carnality and covetousness.  Christ comes to cleanse the Temple thoroughly.  Bear in mind that our body is now the temple of the Holy Spirit.  Does it need cleaning?

There was THE NECESSITY OF THE CLEANSING (John 2:13-14).  God is love.  He loves sinners or there would be no hope for us.  But, He hates sin!  His holy nature compels Him to visit judgment upon evil.  God never sweeps sin under the carpet.  The Son of God possessed the same nature as His Father—and we see His righteous anger boiling up and expressed forcefully in this text.

Religious racketeers had set up shop in the house of God.  The area where business was being transacted was the court of the Gentiles—the place where Gentiles had to go to attend worship.  Amid all the noise and smell of animals, the debate about the proper value of the currency exchanged, and the crowd of tables and people, worship for a Gentile was virtually impossible in those surroundings.  For those Jews the Temple was no longer about the message of the prophets, but making some profits.  What good does it do to speak about heaven, when our hearts testify we are living for this world?  That is hypocrisy—and the house of God today often is rife with it.  No wonder pagan people who might want to seek God observe this and turn away.

Then observe THE NATURE OF THE CLEANSING (John 2:15-17).  Christ felt an overwhelming passion to cleanse the Temple.  He forcefully took action.  Do we have the same ruthless desire to drive out sin from our soul?  It is easy to get comfortable with clutter.  There were two drunks.  After a night in the tavern, they staggered out into the sun.  Squinting, one says, “What’s that I see?”  His buddy answers, “That’s light!”  Sniffing, the other says, “What’s that I smell?”  His partner responds, “That’s fresh air!”  We can become so accustomed to the darkness and stench of sin that it seems normal.  May Christ confront us today with cords of conviction, driving us by discipline, upsetting the tables in our temple where we transact with worldliness rather than offer worship! 

The religious leaders challenged Christ’s authority (John 2:18).  Though they were blind to the truth, He responds that His authority would be affirmed by His crucifixion and resurrection (John 2:19-22).  Can we cling to sin when it cost Him so much?  If He conquered death, ought He not rule over our hearts?  Beware lest we assume we are carnal Christians, when it is even worse—we may be counterfeits (John 2:23-25). 

It is time for spring-cleaning—the cleansing of our lives of sin.

CHRIST, THE WORD OF GOD

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  (John 1:1)

What would the world be without words?  You could not read this any more than I could write it.  Communication would only be grunts and gestures.  Imagine no cards or calls, letters or lyrics, e-mails or text messages, no on could write a book or read one.  Words are vital.  They reveal things.  Words express thoughts.  They communicate who we are.  John, thus, has chosen to present Jesus as the Word of God.  The Son reveals the Father.  He expresses God’s nature perfectly.  Christ communicates the mind of God clearly.

Jesus is the Word in THE BEGINNING OF THE CREATION (John 1:1-2).  The first chapter of this Gospel takes us back to the first chapter of Genesis.  We find the Word to be preexistent, “In the beginning was the Word….”  When the beginning began, Christ already was.  Since He was already in the beginning when all creation things began that means He is eternal and uncreated.  There was a time on His mother’s side when He was born the Son of Man, but on His Father’s side He has always been the Son of God!  We find the Word to be personal, “the Word was with God….”  There is only one God, yet Jesus is a distinct person in the Trinity.  The term John uses means, “face to face” with God, conveying an intimacy we cannot fully grasp.  In the face of Jesus we see the face of God.  This means the Word is powerful, “and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.”  He is the great I AM, the Lord, the Almighty—all power resides in Him.  That power is available to us as we are in union with Christ!  (see Col.2:9-10)

Jesus is the Word in THE BIRTHING OF THE CREATION (v.3-4).  John uses simple terms to express sublime thoughts.  The Word has birthed the natural creation (v.3).  This material word was spoken into existence.  Scripture teaches that the Triune God—Father, Son and Spirit were all involved in that creative act.  The Word also births the new creation (v.4).  The natural creation fell under the curse—in the darkness of sin and death.  Jesus came to make a new creation and bring light and life.  In our natural birth we are sinners stumbling toward Hell. By a new birth we are made saints suited for Heaven!

Jesus is the Word in THE BATTLE FOR THE CREATION (v.5).  This verse suggests a conflict as darkness tries to extinguish the Light, and a conquest as the Light overcomes the darkness and dispels it instead.  The Light of the Word discloses Satan.  The Old Serpent would prefer to slither in the shadows and strike the unsuspecting.  John tells us the Serpent’s spawn do likewise.  Jesus, however, exposes evil and error.  The Light of the Word defeats Satan.  Christ became flesh and was subjected to all the temptations we encounter, but overcame them all. Since the Wicked One could not defile Him, he tried to destroy Him.  He moved in the hearts of his henchmen to nail Him to a cross and seal Him in a tomb.  Darkness fell on the earth as He hung on the cross.  Despair gripped the disciples as He lay in the grave.  But, on the third day, He arose—bursting through the darkness in unconquerable light!  We can enter the Light and experience liberation!

God has spoken through His Son.  Will you hear and heed Him?

THE CHURCH’S TASK

Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.”  (Luke 24:46-47)

All kinds of books have been—and still being—written about what the church is to be and do.  You will read titles like, “The Attractional Church,” “The Purpose Driven Church,” “The Multipying Church,” “The Five Star Church,” “Sticky Church,” “The Intentional Church,” and on and on we could go.  Some of these provide solid insights; most of them give some help.  There is value in reading them.  The best book ever written on church life, however, is the Good Book!  The Word of God is our instruction manual.  Jesus said that He would build His church, so let us hear the task that He assigned us.

The church’s task is to WIDEN people’s understanding of the Word of God (Luke 24:44-45).  Jesus wants us to grow in the grace and knowledge imparted from Scripture.  He wants us to widen our comprehension of His ways, deepen our convictions from His Word, and heighten our consecration in our walk.  The teaching and preaching of the truth of Scripture is indispensable—it is how disciples are developed.

Receiving the truth, we are equipped to WITNESS for the Lord (Luke 24:46-49).  The church is not to be a reservoir where the Gospel is stored, but a river where the Gospel is streamed.  Good news is meant for sharing!

• We have a message (v.46-47).  Jesus died and rose so that repentance from sin is experienced and remission of sins extended.
• We have a mission (v.48).  Those who know Christ have the responsibility to introduce Him to others.
• We have the might (v.49).  Our assignment is too big for us, but we don’t have to depend on our ability and ingenuity.  We have the power of the Holy Spirit!

Knowing the truth and sharing the truth is grounded in—and strengthened by—our WORSHIP in the church (v.50-53).  What we do can only be accomplished in community.  Throughout this text plural pronouns are used: “they” (v.45); “them” (twice in v.50 and twice more in v.51).  We assemble to celebrate our Savior and connect with the saints.  After we gather and scatter, then we reassemble to rejoice in what God has done in and through us!  Those we reach are welcomed into the family through baptism, united in communion and grounded in instruction.  An environment of love for God and our fellowman is provided.  The church is a hothouse for growing disciples.

It is simple isn’t it?  That reminds me of another book: “Simple Church”!  Yet, it is true.  We just need to do a few things well—and only those matters commanded by our Master.  Like a three-legged stool, take out just one: our inspiration in worship, our instruction in the Word, our involvement in witness—and that local church cannot stand.  Now, let’s open the Book, open our hearts, and open our mouths!

CONTRASTS ON CALVARY

Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” And they divided His garments and cast lots.  (Luke 23:34)

If you go to a jeweler to buy a diamond, they will often display it under a bright light as it lies upon a black velvet cloth.  The contrast between the light upon the diamond and the darkness of the cloth serve to intensify the sparkle of the precious gem.  So it is when we see Jesus on Calvary—the contrasts of the black backdrop of evil present there cause His love and grace to shine all the brighter.  There are seven contrasts for us to consider.

THE SAVIOR SPEAKING AND THE SOLDIERS SILENT.  Jesus’ words are recorded by the Gospel writer, while the soldiers are not said to utter a syllable.  The precious Lord with intense effort gasps the most wondrous prayer, and His executioners do not respond.  They do not care.  That is the case of many in our world today.  You share the Gospel with them and they are oblivious.  They just shrug and go back to what they were doing.

THE SAVIOR LOOKING UP AND THE SOLDIERS LOOKING DOWN.  Christ’s eyes were lifted to Heaven as He addressed the Father.  The soldiers focused on the garment for which they were gambling.  Is our heart set on Heaven or captivated with the world?  The direction of our focus says much about the destination of our soul—up or down!

THE SAVIOR’S SACRIFICE AND THE SOLDIER’S SELFISHNESS.  Jesus was giving all He had to give while the soldiers were getting all they could gain.  His love longed to help others, while their lust was about what they desired for themselves.  In the middle of “sin” is the letter “I.”  Self-centeredness is the essence of evil.  Love for others is the essence of God, for “God is love.”  (1 John  4:8)

THE SAVIOR’S COMPASSION AND THE SOLDIER’S CRUELTY.  In death we see Jesus’ compassion, but the soldiers were brutal butchers—black-hearted executioners, absent an ounce of pity.  News reports today shock us with the savagery of terrorism and heinous murders.  It writes in crimson headlines the depravity of man.

THE SAVIOR’S SPIRITUAL DRIVE AND THE SOLDIER’S SECULAR DESIRE.  Christ was captivated by the eternal, while the soldiers were caught up in the material.  Where is your heart?  Are we living for this world or the world to come?

THE SAVIOR’S WISDOM AND THE SOLDIER’S FOLLY.  The Omniscient One spoke of the soldier’s ignorance.  True wisdom comes from above.  Those without Christ are in spiritual blindness, walking toward the abyss, oblivious to the doom awaiting them.

THE SAVIOR DIRECTED BY PURPOSE AND THE SOLDIERS DRIVEN BY CHANCE.  Jesus was on mission for God.  He was fulfilling His purpose; He always did.  For the soldiers, it was about the roll of the dice—the luck of the draw.  We can be like Jesus, however, and realize, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord.”  (Ps.37:23) 

In these contrasts, are we aligned with the Savior or akin to the soldiers?  Apart from a new birth our hearts are as foul as the fiends who nailed Jesus to the tree.  We may as well have held the hammer and driven the spikes into Him, for our sins were the reason He suffered so.  That, however, is why He came!  So He prays, “Father, forgive them!”  Have you received the gracious gift of eternal life?  If you have not, do so now!  If you have, express gratitude today!

THE ANGEL AND THE AGONY

Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.  And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. (Luke 22:43-44a)

The Gospels reveal a close connection between the mission of Jesus and the ministry of angels.  Before His birth, the angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would miraculously conceive the Son of God.  Joseph—betrothed to her—only believed it when  the angel explained it.  At His birth, a host of angels flooded Bethlehem’s skies proclaiming the event to shepherds.  Later, wicked King Herod got wind of it and moved to kill the Child and an angel warned Joseph and Mary to escape to Egypt.  Likewise, when Herod died, and the threat removed, the angel told the holy family it was time to return.  Jesus went into the wilderness at the outset of His ministry to do battle with the Devil, and we read how angels attended Him after the conflict.  At His resurrection, an angel rolled away the stone, sat on it, and declared to the good news to the disciples.  One other occasion of angelic ministry to the Son of God is that found in Luke 22, as Jesus prays in agony in Gethsemane.

An angel came to offer Christ HELP.  Jesus fell on His face under the old olive trees, pressed to the point of being crushed by the load of humanity’s sins that He is taking upon Himself.  Human help fails, as the disciples snore rather than support Him.  One of them is coming with a bloodthirsty mob to betray Him.  Heavenly help arrives even as human help abandons Him.  Soon, Jesus will be forsaken by all—even by His Father—as He hangs on the cross, but that time has not yet come and until then He has this celestial being to aid Him.  On Golgotha, He will experience Hell for us and be without comfort; preceding that, in Gethsemane, He receives a last comfort from Heaven, brought by the angel.  Doubtless, as He prayed, Christ offered praise for angels that had attended to Him throughout His earthly sojourn.  His heart must have raced with joy in the midst of this cosmic sorrow, that when His mission was accomplished, He would be welcomed into glory by angels.  He looked beyond the cross to the crown—returning to reign in power and glory, leading angel armies as reward for His obedience unto death (Phil.2:5-11).

Yet, this was also a reminder of Christ’s HUMILIATION.  We marvel that the Creator was helped by a creature, until we recall that the Son of God has become the Son of Man.  He was fully God and merited the service of angels, but also totally man and needed the support of them.  When He was born, there was a host of angels, but now only one.  They lit up the skies at His arrival in Bethlehem, but this one is present while the darkness only deepens.  The skies were filled with angels singing in joy at His birth, and if there were a song in the olive grove it would have been a dirge for His death.  The angel was not there to take His suffering from Him, but to strengthen Him to suffer even more.  The agony in Gethsemane was so great that He might have died then had not the angel attended Him.  Never forget that this great suffering would be for you and me—paying our sin debt—so angels can care for us as saints, rather than condemn us as sinners!  Hallelujah!  What a Savior!

OUTLAWS OR IN-LAWS?

and Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came with his sons and his wife to Moses in the wilderness, where he was encamped at the mountain of God.  (Exodus 18:5)

What is the difference between outlaws and in-laws?  Outlaws are wanted!  We laugh because it is too often true.  The real difficulties dealing with blood relatives may be even more immense in having a good relationships with those connected through marriage.  Exodus 18 shows the way to productive rather than painful relationships in family life.

ENJOY your family (v.1-6).  Jethro desires to see Moses.  We should find it a blessing to be around our kin, instead of a burden.  Love is a choice.  Jethro and Moses chose to love one another.  You’ve heard the old definition of mixed emotions?  Seeing your mother-in-law drive over a cliff in your new car!  That wasn’t true with my late mother-in-law, Louise Crayton.  She loved me like a son.  We enjoyed each other and now that she and husband Bob are in heaven, I still miss them so much!

Don’t ENVY other family (v.1).  Are we excited or envious when other family members succeed?  Jethro was thrilled over what God had done through his son-in-law.  Recall how Joseph’s brothers envied him (Gen.37) and wanted to kill him, setting off a chain reaction of heartache?  Thankfully, there was reconciliation in their relationship.  Can we celebrate the achievement of other relatives?

ESTABLISH your family (v.2-5).  Jethro brought his beloved daughter and precious grandsons to Moses.  He knew the Biblical command, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife…” (Gen.2:24).  We have to love enough to let go.  We cannot form secure bonds of love in marriage, until we loosen those with our parents.  It isn’t that we ever stop loving and honoring them, but that our priority becomes the establishment of our new home.  Parents can help or hinder that process. 

EDUCATE your family (v.3-4).  The names given to Moses’ sons were full of meaning.  They conveyed the Scriptural truth and testified to Moses experience that we are pilgrims in this world, and that to make it through we need God’s help.  As God had guided and guarded Moses, so He would be faithful to his sons.  Don’t leave the instruction of your children with the church.  We can support parents in teaching, but cannot supplant them!

EMBRACE your family (v.7). Their was a genuine affection expressed.  Make it a point to tell your family that you love them and hold them close.  There will come a time when distance—and ultimately death—will separate you.  Love them while you can.

EDIFY your family (v.8-27).  You can build each other up, or tear one another down.  Moses’ family was bound together in worship (v.8-12).  The family that prays together stays together.  They were bound together through wisdom (v.13-27).  Jethro is concerned for his son-in-law, but doesn’t come across as a know-it-all. The result would be that Moses would not be a “workaholic,” and damage his family relationships, as so often happens.  Be a loving in-law and not an outlaw!

WATER FROM THE ROCK

“Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.”  (Exodus 17:6a)

When some folks get to heaven, they will probably want their mansion a different color.  They always seem to find something about which to gripe.  That was a persistent flaw among the Israelis in the Exodus.  God’s provision in the past ought to have instilled confidence, but instead they respond to their problem with complaining.  How much like them we can be!

In Exodus 17, there is an example of one such DIFFICULTY (v.1).  They had no water.  This did not surprise God for He had led them to that very place by the pillar of cloud and fire.  The child of God must know that God brings us to barren places.  We arrive in seasons of dryness sent to test us and meant to teach us.  They come to drive us in desperation to God, not to make us despair of God.  Difficulties will make us better or bitter.  It depends on whether we respond with faith or fretfulness.

In their case, the Hebrews responded with DISCONTENT (v.2-3).  The root problem was their unbelief.  They failed to recall God’s unlimited power or rest in His unfailing promises.  Their stubborn heart of unbelief was an affront to God.  They set limits on Him by failing to recognize the boundless ability and absolute integrity of Almighty God.  “How often they provoked Him in the wilderness, And grieved Him in the desert!  Yes, again and again they tempted God, And limited the Holy One of Israel.”  (Ps.78:40-41)  God is warning us lest we have the same sinful spirit (see 1 Cor.10:1-13).

That is what brings DELIVERANCE (v.4-7).  Moses responded properly.  Rather than complain about the lack, he cried out to the Lord.  That is what difficulties are meant to cause.  If you are a leader in the church, you will find members who attack you because they are angry with God.  They can’t get to Him, so they gripe to you as His representative.  Moses, like all God’s men, become targets for the arrows of murmuring meant for God.  They fall short of heaven and hit our heart.  The example of Moses helps us.  He didn’t yell back at them in frustration, but called out to God in faith.  Like Jesus, Moses was meek (Num.12:3)—an essential quality for spiritual leaders.  Instead of clubbing the complainers, he strikes the rock.  That rock symbolized the Rock of Ages—Jesus Christ.  Paul said, “For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.”  (1 Cor.10:4b)  As Moses struck that rock, so Christ was smitten on Calvary, and from His side flowed the water and the blood.  In that stream alone can we find eternal satisfaction.  Jesus told the Samaritan woman that drinking of this world’s wells would only lead to thirst again—she had tried that!  He offered her Living Water—that which will fill the thirst of our soul.  That is Jesus and Him alone.

Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged—
Take it to the Lord in prayer.  (Joseph Scriven)

THE SUFFERING OF THE SAINTS

Therefore we do not lose heart.  Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.  ‎For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory….  (2 Corinthians 4:16-17)

Is healing in the atonement?  Doubtless—every blessing flows to us from that crimson stream of Calvary.  One dimension of our redemption is a new body.  That awaits the resurrection, however.  Romans 8:23 promises, “Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.”  I would not deny that miracles take place today and extraordinary healings are experienced.  God is still God, and does what He wishes.  That is different than turning Him into a cosmic errand boy to serve my desires.  To dictate to the Sovereign Lord and demand healing is a blasphemous role reversal.

Many godly people suffer enough without some self-appointed theologian coming on TV and declaring their problem is they don’t have enough faith to receive their healing.  Now, the physical affliction of the saint compounds by the mental anguish of guilt.

Paul was an instrument God used to bring miraculous healings to some—but not all.  “Trophimus I have left in Miletus sick.”  (2 Tim.4:20).  Why didn’t you send him an anointed prayer cloth for a donation Paul?  Neither did the Apostle receive his healing though he asked three times (2 Cor.12:7-10).  We do not know specifically what the condition was, and it is possible that this was not a disease, but some other trial.  That pain was caused is clear and despite the prayers of faith, God chose not to remove it.

History is filled with spiritual giants who suffered greatly.  Moses had a speech impediment; Job suffered agonizingly; Timothy had stomach problems—and the list could go on with Amy Carmichael, blind Fanny Crosby, John Newton, Spurgeon, Joni Eareckson Tada, and many more.  Examine the lives of all God has used mightily and you will see a dark thread of suffering—tears and tragedies—woven into the fabric of each.  The health, wealth, and prosperity preachers of today are not worthy to untie the shoes of these anointed afflicted.

Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 4:16-17 that pain produces a greater glory.  If we want glory, we must endure suffering—the cross precedes the crown (2 Tim.2:12; Rom.5:3-5; 8:18).  Should we then rate our faith as substandard because we don’t get our miracle?  Examine Hebrews 11:33-40.  Following a roll call of those who saw the miraculous were those who suffered the grievous—and ALL are extolled as heroes of faith!

So, are you sick?  Try to get well!  Ask God to heal you.  Go to the doctor.  Take some medicine.  You will be well someday—even if it awaits that Eternal Day.  If God chooses to permit the pain, then know there is a purpose in it, and that the suffering of the saints will only enhance the future glory.  “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake.  For when I am weak, then I am strong.”  (2 Cor.12:10)  Don’t lose heart!  Press on to glory!

DESPERATE FOR GOD

“Now, therefore,” says the LORD, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”  So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm.  Who knows if He will turn and relent, And leave a blessing behind Him— A grain offering and a drink offering For the LORD your God?  Blow the trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, Call a sacred assembly;  Gather the people, Sanctify the congregation, Assemble the elders, Gather the children and nursing babes; Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber, And the bride from her dressing room.  Let the priests, who minister to the LORD, Weep between the porch and the altar; Let them say, “Spare Your people, O LORD, And do not give Your heritage to reproach, That the nations should rule over them. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’ ”  (Joel 2:12-17)

 

• When our pursuit of God exceeds our passion for all else, we will have revival. 
• When our desire for Him surpasses our delight in food, we will have revival.
• When we would mourn over our loss of the sense of God’s presence more than the loss of any material thing, we will have revival.
• When there is an inward disposition of repentance and not just an outward display of religion, we will have revival.
• When we are more concerned for confessing our sin than covering it up, we will have revival.
• When we are more interested in meeting to pray in church than gathering to play at church, we will have revival.
• When the preachers are desperate for God’s name than for their own fame, we will have revival.

In anticipation of the sacred assembly coming April 19-22, I am pleading with all of us to become desperate for God.  For a forty day period, March 1-April 9, would you consider a time of fasting and prayer?  You might fast for one meal a day, or for all but one meal a day, you might fast all day and drink only liquids, or you might deny yourself of a favorite food or all sweets, you might abstain from media or a hobby—but the main thing is that you will use the time to be in prayer, seeking revival!  Ask God to lead you, and He will.

Let’s be desperate for God!

HOW CAN I KEEP FROM SINGING HIS PRAISE?

Then Moses and the children of Israel sang this song to the LORD, and spoke, saying:

“I will sing to the LORD,

For He has triumphed gloriously!

The horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea!”  (Exodus 15:1)

Singing plays an important role in Christian worship.  We are commanded in Ephesians 5:19 to be, “speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord….”  As we reflect on God’s glorious nature and recall His great works, then a song of praise and thanksgiving forms in our heart, and bursts from our lips.  That is what happened to Moses and the children of Israel.

We note THE THEME of the song (Ex.15:1-2a).  Moses directs us to consider who God is: our strength, our song and our salvation.  The Hebrews were hopeless to escape Egyptian slavery—it would require a miracle—and that is what God provided!  No wonder they broke forth into singing about the supernatural strength they had witnessed.  We serve this same mighty God!  He became their song—the source, substance and sum of their singing.  It is sad when so much “Christian” music today is about us—the style and substance focused on how it makes us feel, when God’s glory is what true worship is all about.  God saved the children of Israel from their wretched state, and Gospel songs declare the salvation we have experienced and offer it to those yet in sin’s shackles.

This leads us to hear THE TESTIMONY in the song (Ex.15:2b-12).  Their song was a passionate expression of witness to the Lord’s wonderful work.  How could they suppress this song?  It was as volcanic fire building up inside them that erupted with flowing words of praise.  If we have meditated on God’s attributes and contemplated God’s activity, then we also will bear testimony in song. We want the whole world to hear!  This is our God, worthy of praise!  He breaks the power of the enemy—“O victory in Jesus!”  How great and how good He is!  “Who is like You, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, Fearful in praises, doing wonders?”  (Ex.15:11).

Fundamentally, we are to grasp THE TRUTH from the song (Ex.15:13-21).  I’m glad we don’t know the tempo—some would say it’s too fast or too slow.  Nor do we know the tune, and I’m glad, for some would say it’s pitched too high or too low.  All these arguments concerning classic or contemporary, hymns or choruses, using hymn books or video screens, playing organs or guitars have little significance compared to the main purpose of worship music—and that is to clearly communicate the truth of Scripture as to who God is, what He has done, and how we may relate to Him.  Doctrine is indelibly engraved on our heart when it is expressed lyrically.  I have heard old songs that ought to be put on the shelf and never sung again.  I have heard new songs that ought not be sung the first time.  There is not a thimble full of doctrine in them!  Truth has the power to stir us emotionally—Miriam and the women beat tambourines as they danced for joy!  Let us be swept away by the glory, greatness and goodness of God.  If we aren’t excited about Him, then how can we claim to know Him?  Heaven is filled with music.  Are you going?

TRIUMPH IN CHRIST

Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ…  (2 Corinthians 2:14a)

I love a parade!  Don’t you?  We have not, however, witnessed a parade like that which Paul alludes to in this text.  The imagery is of a procession when Rome’s legions returned victorious.  The city would take a holiday.  Cheering throngs lined the streets.  It was a spectacular mix of sights, sounds, and smells, that might last for days.  The conquering soldiers would march up toward the hill of Jupiter’s temple where sacrifices of gratitude would be offered.  A victorious general, armor gleaming in the sun, rode in his chariot, drawn by stalwart steeds.  The vanquished were chained to his chariot.  They were now his slaves.  Wagons loaded with wealth—the spoils of battle—were pulled along.  Clouds of incense from burning censers waved by the priests permeated the air.  It was sweet aroma for the conquerors, but the stench of death to the condemned.  This is the symbolism Paul used in describing the triumph of Christ.

He writes of THE ASSURANCE OF TRIUMPH, “Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ” (2 Cor.2:14a).  Paul exults in constant confidence of conquest.  Since Christ has conquered, and we are His, then we share His victory.  We may argue that our experience contradicts this—that there are more setbacks than successes.  This text is a call to lift our experience to the level of God’s Word, rather than lower God’s Word to the level of our experience!  If we see ourselves as sinners struggling along, we will tend to accept defeat as inevitable.  Scripture tells us otherwise.  Paul uses the word, “always” because of Christ’s total triumph and, “we are more than conquerors [Lit. “super-conquerors”] through Him who loved us.”  (Rom.8:37).  It is when we walk by faith in the victory of Christ that we see ourselves as victorious in Him.  Satan has been beaten and has no claim over you!  “Therefore, submit to God.  Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”  (James 4:7)

Then, we note THE ESSENCE OF TRIUMPH, “and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.  For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.  To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life.  ”  (2 Cor.2:14b-16a)  I use the word, “essence,” in a double sense; it means a fragrance, but also that which is primary.  Both truths are conveyed.  We are to be fragrant saints.  Our life and testimony is like the perfume of heaven to those who receive the Gospel, but it is the smell of sulfur and smoke to those who reject it.  Everywhere we go, the essence of our task is to share the Gospel.

Next we observe THE PRESENCE OF TRIUMPH, “And who is sufficient for these things?  For we are not, as so many, peddling the word of God; but as of sincerity, but as from God, we speak in the sight of God in Christ.”  (2 Cor.2:16b-17)  We may feel overwhelmed by such responsibility.  The fact is we are insufficient in ourselves, but fully sufficient in Christ (2 Cor.3:5).  Our lives are to be marked by sincerity and not hypocrisy.  We are to be aware that all we do is in the sight of God.  Our commander expects His orders to be obeyed promptly and fully.  He is present to lead us to victory!