New Thoughts (2/16/04-2/20/04)
As I read these words of Gabriel's, I find that Mary's reaction, or lack of reaction, to be a mystery. After all, an absolute stranger has entered her house unannounced, and unaccompanied, and yet, he speaks to her by name. Today, alarm bells would be ringing over such an incident, yet she apparently simply listens to his message. What was it about Gabriel that caused her to focus on his words and not simply his presence? I really don't think that he was glowing with some heavenly aura that would make plain to her that he was not of this world. It's possible, but I don't think so. Such display would only have distracted her attention from his words, and the agitation that was caused by his words would indeed have been the product of his appearance. No, it had to have been something else, although I think perhaps I have looked in the wrong direction for the answer.
Gabriel was sent by God on a mission of great import to the kingdom. Is it not entirely probable that the Holy Spirit was also hard at work in this mission? We know that the Holy Trinity was of one accord in this whole plan and purpose of salvation, that, just as they had worked in concert at the creation, they worked in concert now, at the critical moment of all history. That the Holy Spirit was not given to the us as a permanent guide and advocate until after the Ascension is no indication that He had never been involved before that point. No, He is God, and He is and always has been intimately involved in the lives of His people. I think, then, that it is in Him that the answer can be found regarding how it is that Mary was not inclined to run from this stranger, that she not only heard, but clearly understood the import of Gabriel's words. How else can it be that this pre-teen child could accept such an impossible message, could manage not to take things wrongly, and could, with all that was said, remain calm and thoughtful?
Consider what she is told: You're going to conceive. You'll have a son. He will be king, and that forever. And, she is commanded in this: Name Him Jesus. That last is not delivered as prediction, but as an absolute command: Do it! None of this could possibly make sense to this young girl, and yet it does. Much of it could be misconstrued, and yet it isn't. Somehow, she is given to understand that the conception that is being spoken of will not involve Joseph. She also appears to understand that it will not involve anything inappropriate on the part of this visitor. Notice that, unlike Zacharias, it does not become necessary for Gabriel to identify himself. In fact, he never does identify himself in this conversation. I wonder, then, how Luke reached the conclusion that this was indeed Gabriel who spoke! Perhaps, it was the mention of Elizabeth that led to this conclusion. Perhaps, it was a more direct observer of the proceedings, one who would know, that informed Luke as to who was sent. Perhaps, that same Holy Spirit which had been explaining to Mary what was being said explained to Luke who was saying it.
Turning from Mary to the message Gabriel is delivering, there is a matter of doctrine which I missed at first in his words. It is a doctrine that is more clearly, indeed unequivocally established elsewhere in Scripture, but it is here as well. In declaring the office that Jesus will bear, and declaring how it will be that He will bear it, God's supreme authority is firmly established. Paul will later write that all earthly authority is established by God, that all who rule do so only as His appointees (Ro 13:1). Even in the final authority of Jesus, it is God's hand that establishes. He will reign forever precisely because God will give Him the throne upon which to reign. "All authority has been given to Me" (Mt 28:18). That is the statement He makes as He ascends to that throne. The Supreme Authority has established Him in the place of authority. If the King of kings and Lord of lords is given all authority by God alone, how much more the lesser kings and lords of the earth?
This matter of whose kingdom it is, in the end, I think is firmly established in the prophecies that surround Jesus' rule. Isaiah, in announcing the vision of that kingdom's founding and growth, says that it will forever be increasing. His government will increase forever, as will His peace (Isa 9:7). This, I think, must speak of either the Church in whole, or particularly of its missionary efforts. His government can only increase as more are made subjects of His kingdom. His peace can only increase as more of His subjects come to a full enjoyment of His governance. Now, this prophecy of Isaiah's is tightly coupled to the word Gabriel is delivering: He will sit on David's throne, and rule David's kingdom, says Isaiah. God will give Him David's throne to rule Israel forever, says Gabriel. The message is the same.
There is a contrast in the next bit, though, which I want to explore more fully later. Isaiah notes that His rule will be established as just and righteous, that those He rules over will, as they subject themselves to His rule, be made just and righteous, too. When Gabriel speaks of the King, however, he notes only that He will reign over the house of Jacob, over a nation of usurpers, if you will. Actually, Gabriel is not really departing from Isaiah's prophecy in this, perhaps actually delivering it in softer tones. Isaiah, after describing the joyful news of this great King, goes on to say But, there is one other thing Isaiah says in his prophecy that this is a message against Jacob. As I said, I want to look at that further, but first, I want to finish looking at the kingdom itself. Notice, at the close of Isaiah 9:7, that it is God's own zeal that will establish this King and His kingdom. It will be nothing to do with man. It's all about God!
Here is another doctrinal principle we do well to understand. Just as the King and the kingdom are God's doing and not the work of man, so also the man of the kingdom. Each and every subject of the King stands in that same condition: God's own zeal has done it! His desire for me as a subject has brought me into subjection, such as my subjection may be at present. His zeal, His great excitement over what I shall be will make me what I shall be. His zeal, His effort, will have it that when I see my King face to face, I will be made like Him! This in no way excuses me from doing my utmost to be a loyal, just, and righteous subject of my beloved King here and now, but what great comfort when I fail, to know that inasmuch as I fall short, He will make up the shortfall. As Pastor Choate said in speaking at our church last Wednesday, He's got our back. In Him we live, because of Him we breathe, by Him we move, the Lord's own zeal will accomplish this thing!
I need to stop here for a moment, and simply thank You! What an incredible promise, Father, that You will do it! You are Faithful and True, and this promise that You made of Your Son, that You would establish Him as King of kings, that same promise enfolds me, as a subject of my King. It is the same faithfulness that You have shown to Him that assures me, Holy One, that the work You have begun in my life will be complete and flawless when Your labor in my life is over.
Oh, Lord and King, have I taken that for granted? Have I fallen into easy habits, neglecting my own way in the knowledge that You are there? Forgive me, Lord, and lead me to change. You are my God and my King, and yet, I know that I am forever falling short of Your desires, and that knowledge hurts. How often, of late, have I heard the words come from my mouth, and immediately been pulled up short, wondering how I could allow myself to say such a thing? How often, Holy Spirit, have I listened to Your voice only after I've blown it? Why? Why does it seem as though I become uglier as I go?
God! I know You are at work in my life. That is beyond doubt to me. I recall too much of who I was, and have seen to much of who I now am to deny Your hand. Yet, those bits of was that remain in my is seem to only get worse. Is that truly the situation, my God, or has the was remained as it was, and the is has simply improved such that the contrast is more stark? Oh, I pray that that is the situation!
Meanwhile, I remain all the more thankful that it is Your zeal that is working within me, that the outcome of this renewed life which is me does not, in the end, depend on my fickle efforts, but only on You, on the completed work You accomplished on the cross. Wow, God! Never thought of that before my completion depends on what is already complete! From Your perspective, it's already done. That "It is finished!" that you declared at Your death, it wasn't just Your mission, as eternally important as that was. It was the change in me, the perfection of every saint that You were declaring finished in that moment! Wow!
Thank You, Holy Spirit, for this understanding! Thank You, You who sees the end from the very beginning, that You have seen to it that my end will be pleasing in Your sight! Thank You for the assurance of this word this morning, that Your zeal not only will accomplish this thing in me, but already has!
There are also echoes of Daniel's prophecies in Gabriel's words. Given the connection of Gabriel and Daniel, this may have also contributed to Luke's understanding of who had visited Mary that day. For that matter, it may have been Mary's understanding, as well. To begin with, there are the words of Daniel 2:44 - God will establish an indestructible, permanent kingdom, putting an end to every other kingdom forever. In the passage from Luke, Gabriel only declares that rule to be over the house of Jacob, but this, and other portions of Scripture make clear that His rule will be over all the nations. In Daniel, the global nature of Messiah's rule is in the forefront of the message. (To Him, God gave all dominion and glory. A kingdom consisting of every people, every nation, and every tongue of man was given Him to serve Him. His rule, established by God, will never pass away, nor will His kingdom be destroyed.) This is a key factor. His rule is eternal! He has been set upon the throne of David, and no attempt made to usurp that seat of power ever has, nor ever will succeed.
Just a little further in Daniel, and we come to a message that is, were it possible, even more exciting for us. For Daniel informs us that this kingdom of which he has written, that same kingdom established in justice and righteousness, established forever by God's Messiah, will be given to His saints as an eternal possession (Dan 7:18)! Now, some folks down through the ages have tried to rush this process, to establish the "kingdom now." However, a little scrutiny will show that what they sought to establish was not the just, righteous kingdom of Messiah, but the later possession promised in that verse. They had little to no interest in seeing God's kingdom established under God. They were perfectly happy to skip that part of the story, and jump straight to the inheritance part. Forget the establishing bit, God, just give it to us now, and we'll take care of it.
This is the thinking of the house of Jacob. This is exactly why, I suspect, Gabriel indicated that Messiah's rule would be established over that house, not the house of Israel, not the nations of the earth, but the house of Jacob - the house of the usurper. Jacob, in so many ways, is a fit representative of fallen man in relation to God. He continues to be a fit representative of the majority of us Christians today, will we but admit to it. Jacob was the supplanter, forever struggling to gain what was not his by right. He struggled to be firstborn, though God had determined that he would not be. He did whatever was necessary, even breaking covenant with God, to have the blessing of the firstborn. "Thou shalt not covet," but Jacob's whole life seems to be about covetousness.
There is also a bit of reaping what you sow to be found in Jacob's life. As he tricked his way into blessing and wealth, so also was he tricked by his own uncle, thereby providing that uncle with long terms of free labor, and relieving him of the expense of maintaining two daughters. Even in this, however, it was in part Jacob's hunger for what was not his by right. That the eldest daughter ought be the first to marry was customary to the times. The younger should not have been in his sights, and if she were, he should have held his peace until the time for that marriage was right. Instead, he insisted on his own way, and paid the price of it, taking on a wife he never intended, and setting himself up for a lifetime of feuding amidst his wives and their children as well.
Yet, in the hands of a merciful God, although the price of his choices must be paid in life, he was given a greater blessing than even he thought to seek out. This blessing came not because of his insistent effort to take what was not his, but was given to him by God in spite of himself. He received the blessing for the simple reason that God determined to give it to him. God signified this change in Jacob, as well as the cause and nature of the change, by changing Jacob's very name. No longer the supplanter, his name became "God prevails." He had spent his life rebelling against the course God had laid out for him, trying to change what God had ordained. This was evident in his treatment of Esau, in his efforts to marry, even in the favoritism he showed Rachel's two sons in later years. But, in the end, God prevailed.
This is the story of every single one of us! We spend long years trying to make our own way, trying to change the course of our lives, trying to get what we want. We are seeking to build our own house, and we want no help from Him who alone can build the house securely. No, we are determined to do it in our own strength, not yet aware that in our own strength, we can do nothing. It took Jacob long, difficult years to learn this simple truth. It took the displacing of his thigh to really convince him that he could not overrule God's decisions. We, too, must learn that, whatever the appearance may be to our earthly senses, it is not our efforts that bring fruitfulness and security, it is the hand of God.
It is not our efforts that keep us alive and well, it is God's constant effort in the midst of His creation that keeps breath in us. Likewise, it was not our efforts that caused God to bring salvation upon us. It was simply His merciful plan to do so. Indeed, we could more accurately say that it was in spite of our efforts, that He brought salvation upon us.
The same truth applies to the Church today. If it is powerful in the world, it is not because it has managed to fashion programs to fit the currents of modern thought, it is not because it has somehow managed to become more holy, to do better works. No! If the Church is powerful in the world, it is for one reason, and one reason only: Because God is moving in undeserved blessing upon the Church. Inasmuch as we try to establish the kingdom, or to pursue the work of the kingdom, in our own limited power and by our own meager wisdom, we show ourselves proud children of the house of Jacob. We seek to supplant the rightful Ruler of all nations, and take authority for ourselves. That authority cannot be taken, though. It must be granted.
Jesus Christ will rule over the house of Jacob forever. That is the message Gabriel delivers. Today, I think we need to hear, in that message, that no matter how we may try to usurp His authority, no matter how often we choose to promote our programs over His purposes, we will be forced to recognize that God prevails. Whatever our earthly machinations, God rules His Church. Insomuch, then, as we are not enthusiastically cognizant of His rule over us, insomuch as we are not gladly seeking out and submitting to His leading in all things, we are not His Church. We may sit within the walls, but we are not part of the true Church of God. I really do think that this is why Gabriel chose to specify the house of Jacob, that one that God was forever having to chastise and correct, rather than declaring the international rule of God upon the earth. John gives us the comfort of knowing that when we see this King of ours, we will be made like Him. There will come a time when His kingdom is fully established, the firm foundation of justice and righteousness laid in each and every one of us, such that we are fit to operate in the authority He entrusts to us. But in this life, I think He will always be laboring to rule over a house of supplanters, imperfect at best in seeking out His orders that we might do them.
It is clear from earlier prophecies that He of whom Gabriel speaks is not coming simply to rule Israel. This may have been the thought current in that day, but it was not the thought current in God's throne-room. Herod, we will see, when he heard about the birth of a king in Israel, thought only of Israel, the kingdom he presently ruled. I expect that many in Israel, upon hearing that Messiah had come, saw no further than the borders of their nation. This is evident in the crowds who sought to make Jesus king over them. God's plan was and is much larger. The King was coming to rule over all nations, not just Israel. That is the whole counsel of Scripture regarding Messiah. He will be the King to end all kings, and His kingdom will be established forever, a permanent world order, if you will.
This leads back into the significance of naming His rule as being over the house of Jacob, the house of the usurper. To feel the full import of that choice of words, perhaps another look into Isaiah 9 is in order. There, Isaiah tells us that God will set One on David's throne, over David's kingdom, to establish that kingdom forever. He tells us that kingdom will be established in justice and righteousness. In other words, the rule of government will be a just and righteous rule, and designed so as to promote, indeed, to enforce justice and righteousness amongst its citizens. Because of this, there will be no end to the peace of that government, and because of this, because this is, in fact, what every human heart longs for on this earth, that kingdom will never cease to grow. The kingdom will be in a state of constant expansion (Isa 9:7).
Now, it may not seem to us that the kingdom has been constantly expanding. We hear news bemoaning the dwindling numbers amongst this denomination and that. We see churches across the nation doing all they can to boost attendance. We see churches being rocked by corruptions that should not even be named amongst us (Eph 5:3). We see these things, and we despair, we declare that the darkness is increasing. But God, in this passage, says otherwise. He says that even with all we see happening around us, His kingdom is still on the increase, and always will be.
Go back again to Isaiah. The message begun in Isaiah 9:7 does not stop there. He continues, and his next words strike a note of confusion, following on the heals of such a glorious declaration. "The Lord sends a message against Jacob" (Isa 9:8a). What? The kingdom is being established in permanence, and this is bad news for Jacob? By the time the king had arrived, this declaration had been wholly lost on the population. Everybody was thrilling to the good news of verse 7, and there they would stop, lest their gladness be tempered by reality. But, God is clear. The establishing of His rule is a declaration against Jacob. What does this mean? Has God decided He hates the Jews? No way! They remain His chosen, just as you and I, if we are among the elect, remain His chosen. He is not man that He should change His mind. No, the declaration is not against a people, but against a mindset, and it is the same mindset that worries so over attendance numbers today.
Continue on to verse 9. The people know it! They recognize that this is a good news, bad news situation. Why? Because they know full well the pride of their own hearts. In their thoughts, it has all been, "Yes, things are bad, but we will rebuild" (v10). That is precisely the problem. It is still the problem. It is the congenital defect of every one of us in the house of Jacob. We are all bound and determined to do the building for ourselves, to achieve for ourselves, to establish our own names as somebody great. We are bound and determined that we will build the church. God is equally clear on the matter. "The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this" (v7).
This is the contrast brought out in Gabriel's message. The LORD will give Jesus the throne of David. David was ever mindful that he sat upon the throne of the nation because God had put him there. All authority on heaven and earth is given (Mt 28:18). Jesus specifies, in that verse, Whom it was given to, but there is the underlying fact that it is all given by somebody. We are, however, perpetually trying to take that authority, and it is not ours to take. We are indeed a house of usurpers. We want to establish our programs, we want to cause an explosion of church growth, we want to be the ones with all the answers, but we don't want to wait for God to authorize us. As often as not, our prayers are for God to bless our decisions, not for Him to inform us of His. As Pastor Najem was pointing out last week, too much of our intercession is bent on instructing God from our 'wisdom' as to what it is He should do in a situation. It's all wrong! And, so long as this continues to be the course of our thinking, the message of Messiah will remain a message against us!
There is a fundamental question we must answer, each one of us for himself: Who is building? Jacob spent a lifetime struggling to build and establish his own house. In that struggle, he lost sons and daughters. In that struggle, he, who was to be ruled by the owner of the cattle on a thousand hillsides, almost starved to death along with his whole family. He was plagued by the little insurrections of that family, the intrigues of wives and sons as intent as he on establishing their own house. David, on the other hand, sought God on these things, and God built his house. In all that David went through, he remained cognizant that it was not David who accomplished these great deeds, it was God. In all that David was blessed to have, he recognized that it was not David's doings that had brought him these things, it was God.
One from the house of Jacob, having received the anointing David received at the start, would have been quick to claim the rights that went with that anointing. They would have been off in a flash to kick Saul off his throne so they could take up their 'rightful place.' This is the mood that insists on having its rights today, even when the majority of those rights are no rights at all. It is the mindset that confuses right and privilege, that insists on having what is another's choice to give. David would have none of that. The kingdom, he recognized, was God's to give, not his to take. Therefore, he could be content to wait until God chose to give it. He already had God's promise, and that was sufficient.
Today, God's promise is that His kingdom, the one and only kingdom, which He has established in His own zeal, is and will always be on the increase. If we have our eyes on the visible church, we will be dissuaded from the truth of His word. We will have been deceived, and dragged back into our fleshly nature as usurpers of His authority. It is not the numbers that matter, it is the hearts consumed by His reality, the lives wholly submitted to His will, that matter. These are far fewer than what the eye may see amongst the pews. Yet, their number is on the increase. So, we must continually ask ourselves: Who is building this house? If we are the answer, that house is destined to fall once more, because, though it lays claim to God's name, it is not His doing, and He will not long tolerate such an affront. If, on the other hand, it is truly God who is building, then we have His word on it. He establishes His kingdom forever.
Wrap up this thought with the promise found in Daniel 7:27: At that time, the rule of every kingdom of man will be given to the saints of God, forming for Him an everlasting kingdom in which all will serve and obey Him. This is how the kingdom is established, as God gives the rule of the kingdom of man to the saints of God. So many times, the 'saints of God' have sought to take it by force, but it was not theirs to take. It will not belong to the saints of God until God gives it to the saints of God. All who have come before are thieves and robbers (Jn 10:8), not God's saints. All who are determined to establish that kingdom right now, whether God is ready or not continue to be thieves and robbers. The kingdom has been established, and it is growing. We can be sure of that. We can be equally sure that it will be given to those of God's choosing, His elect, the saints of God.
This brings us to another question: who, then, are these saints of God? In looking at that, I think it behooves us to consider the more common New Testament terminology of 'sons of God.' Jesus is the Son of God. It has been pointed out that He is never called the Child of God, always Son. We, on the other hand, the elect, the chosen ones, are referred to both as children and sons. What is the difference? Was it just the translators striving for a bit of variety? No. The terms are different. To be a child requires no more than birth. Every born again believer (which is to say, every believer) is a child of God. By this same principle, every baby born to your parents is a child of your parents. To be a son implies more. First, it implies legitimacy. Well, we can say that of every believer who truly believes. That alone will not establish the difference for us. There is more to this idea of being a son, and it is to be found in the example of Jesus. In the Son of God we find One who displayed a matured character, a character that had an affinity to the Father's character, a character fully shaped and conformed to the Father's character. "If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father" (Jn 14:9). Jesus could say that. To some degree, every son of God can say that. Though not with the perfection of Christ, every one of us should be able to say with a straight face and no awareness of duplicity that by our demeanor, by our ethics, by our morals, by our lives, we reflect the Father who has called us His sons.
God has already declared our legitimacy. The great thing about sonship, as opposed to childhood, is that even though we did not spring forth from His loins, yet He can and does make us His sons through the legal proceedings of adoption. By His adoption of us, made possible to us by the work of His true Son, He declares us legitimate sons. We have the legal standing of sons. Every child of God is saved, will see the promise of salvation. Every child of God, born of the Spirit, chosen by the Holy Father, has been adopted, given legal standing as His son. Every one of us! The only question remaining is how we are progressing in the great matter of maturing.
Jesus, it is written here, will be called the Son of God. That's an important nuance. He is called to the office of Son of God, appointed to that position. Such an appointment, of course, comes with duties to be performed as part of that office. What, then, is the official duty of the Son of God? It is to walk out before the eyes of man the essential character of the Creator, of the Father. This is our calling, our official duty, as well, for we are called the sons of God. We are here in this time and place with a purpose: To walk out a life visibly transformed, visibly conformed to His own character. We are called to be different, undeniably different from the many who continue in rebellion against His righteous rule.
How are we to do that? Luke 6:35 gives us a great, though incredibly challenging, starting place. Jesus tells those who would be His followers to love even our enemies, to do good even for those who seek our harm. He tells us to lend with not so much of a thought given to what return our giving might bring us. How this is poisoned in so many minds when it comes to tithes and offerings! How many put their offering in the basket wholly focused on that 10, 20, or hundredfold blessing that will be coming their way any moment now? This is not the plan, and I think we can hold God wholly innocent of any breach of promise when that blessing fails to materialize for such a giver. It's a matter of the heart. Why did you give? To serve the kingdom, or to satisfy your own desires? If, in giving, your eyes are on that return, you have not given at all, and no return is due.
Jesus' words in that passage are the key to how God's children display God. Even the worst of men will do reasonably well by his friends, and the meanest of men will invest in what promises a good return. But Jesus, in pointing out how we are to differ from this mindset, gives us the prime example: God, the Creator, is kind even to evil and ungrateful men. We stand as proof of that! He continued to put breath in our lungs, to see to it that we were sufficiently clothed and sheltered to survive, and in many cases, to survive quite comfortably, even while we were His enemies! While we were busy in our war of usurpation, He was busy saving us. From ourselves! God causes His rains and His provision to pour out on good and evil alike among men. This is to be our example. Unless we are like Him in our treatment of those around us, we can only be like those around us. And, if we are like those around us, we are one with them, not one with the Lord.
If we treat the unbeliever with disdain, refuse our help to him, but gladly put all our resources to work on behalf of our fellow believer, we've missed it. Yes, there is Scriptural basis for placing our fellow citizens of the kingdom in a place of priority when it comes to our support and aid, but it is not to be a place of exclusivity. If the church is only about helping the church, then the church is a house of its own building, not a house of God, and those who occupy the building are declaring themselves not His sons, for they do not do the things they see the Father doing.
The message delivered in these verses offers a number of challenges to me, requires spiritual self-examination of me on several counts. First, there is the reminder of how large a role God's grace truly plays, and how miniscule, non-existent really, is my own goodness. Even today, this is not something I like to hear about myself. It is human nature, to be sure, to think well of oneself, and it may well be a sign of mental illness not to think so. Yet, if I am maturing into a true son of God, I must consider the matter through His eyes as well. I must understand my true situation. This does not have to, nor should it, lead to self-loathing, for the self I come to understand is one in the process of change. The old must be despised, else why would I seek to change it? The new, however, must be cherished. It is my goal and my desire. Why else would I seek to know it?
Whence the change, though? The Truth of God, delivered in the pages of Scripture, insist that I recognize that it is not my doing, in any degree, which will bring the change. The change, the renewing of heart, mind, soul, and, at some later date, body, are all the product of God's favor, God's grace. That grace, as any decent dictionary will indicate, has no root, no motive in man. Grace is wholly God's doing. It cannot be earned, and therefore cannot be deserved. Grace, by its very nature, is not a right, it is a privilege. Thayer's Lexicon brings out the perspective I need on this matter of divine favor: it is the kindness of the Master toward his servant. How much of Jesus' ministry was spent in driving this point home to His disciples! How much of His disciples' ministry was spent in bringing that same point, now they had learned it, home to those they served.
How much has that point truly sunk in for me? It's a question I find myself asking almost constantly in the things I do for God and church, and, truth be told, the answer is not always good. When I serve in worship, it's often a struggle between personal desire and holy desire. I cannot honestly say that the holy always wins out. I doubt any can, yet this is not an excuse. When I offer things I have learned in these times of study, there is always a lingering question as to whether it is offered in the hopes of edifying others, or in the hope of showing folks how smart I am.
Throughout my study of John's letters, and the years I spent looking at Paul's writings, the issue of pride was constantly brought to my attention, and I know that is by no means a finished battle. The issue remains. That is quite clear to me. I can offer any number of excuses and explanations for it, but that is, in the end, a useless exercise. The excuses excuse nothing, and the explanations change the reality not one bit. God has declared that there is not one good, not so much as one man in all the history of mankind, Jesus accepted, of course. When I consider my own record, even now, I am forced to admit the truth of His assessment.
This is not an easy point to come to. It is not a recognition I am comfortable to dwell on, yet it is needful for me to be constantly reminded of this truth. If I allow it to remain out of sight, I endanger myself. If I am not fully aware of the poorness of my best efforts, I will surely fall into the trap of seeking to earn my way into God's favor by my works. Worse yet, I will slip so far as to be unconcerned with God's opinion entirely, and be perfectly satisfied with the opinions of those around me. That, after all, is the appeal pride makes. Pride cannot seek out God's favor, for it is excluded from His favor by its very nature. Pride can only seek man's approval, and, however much energy I may be expending in that direction, that much energy is wasted in vanity and foolishness.
God, You obviously know this struggle in me. How could You not? You are faithful in reminding me of the issue, yet I find that I wonder, have You ever shown me just how bad the problem is? You are merciful, my Master. I think I can be certain that You have not. You have shown me as much, perhaps, as I can take without despairing of hope. Or, have I turned my eyes away? I know it's there, still. I can see it constantly in my actions. I want to be right. I want to be recognized. I know that it's wrong, and yet the desire for it remains. How can You stand it, Father? How can You stand it when I fail to give You full credit, often enough giving You none at all, for what I have been allowed to accomplish in the places You have given me to be employed? How often have I allowed that puffing up, even in the labors of the church? Oh, You and I both know that I am ever so careful to minimize such praises as come my way, but is that anything more than pride trying to hide itself from sight, lest there be disapproval?
It remains a thorn, my God. I cannot but think that You leave it there to keep it from becoming even worse, as paradoxical as that may seem. As much as I hate what I am reminded of when You do so, I am thankful that You do remind me of the problem. I am thankful that You have so worked upon this man that I am offended by myself when I behave so. Now, if You could help me with the behavior?
How often are we faithful to inform those we seek to bring into the kingdom that it is not an easy road we seek to steer them towards? The way is narrow. That is the counsel of Scripture, yet, in our desire to market the Gospel rather than present it, we are all too willing to paint a different picture. We are all too willing to present only that part of the message which will entice and attract, and leave the hard parts out. I wonder how many, not being forewarned of the challenge and trial that is Christianity, fall by the wayside when the challenges come. I wonder how many would have stood firm, had they heard the whole of the Gospel beforehand.
I have returned to that theme of pride which seems to wind through so much of applied Scripture. Here, it surfaces again in the contrast of David and Jacob. One bowed before his Lord. The other sought to take for himself what the Lord would gladly have given, and by seeking to grasp it, though he did not entirely lose it, he certainly brought unnecessary pain and suffering upon himself, and upon all the generations which have followed. No, this is not suggesting that we can lay all the blame for our troubles on Jacob, any more than we can wholly lay the blame on Adam. We reserve plenty of blame for ourselves. The question for me - and it's a question that bears repeated asking - is this: is my life trending towards a habit of bowing to the will of God, or is it trending towards seeking to get God to bow to my will.
This is the issue Pastor has been laying before the church at large in the last week or so. It is an issue each one of us needs to address, and needs to address regularly. It is closely related to pride, perhaps the next step taken towards the edge over which we might fall. Pride was the beginning of Lucifer's fall. Seeking to usurp God's place was the last step, the step that led to his eternal condemnation. In between, I think it certain that he had long since stopped bowing to God's will immediately and without question, and had established a habit, a pattern, of trying to get God to bend to his will. That can be seen in the story of Job. An obedient servant would have heard God's assessment of Job and, knowing God to be perfect in knowledge and truth, simply accepted His assessment. It was the act of one already on the downward spiral from pride that would seek to question the truth, would seek to show the truth to be wrong. This was the act of one determined to show that God was not God.
It's easy to look at Satan's activities and find him foolish. He knows who God is, he knows that, in the end, it is not really possible that he should win, yet he perseveres in trying. It seems inexplicable that he should do so. It's madness! Yet, it is the same thing we do as often as not. We are forever falling into that habit of making our own decision and then, perhaps, praying that God might deign to accept our decision. These are not the ways of a servant. The servant's role is to hear and obey. That is the path the angels take. Gabriel was not about to formulate his plans, lay them out before God, and ask permission to pursue them. There is only one amongst the angelic host that I see taking this route. Insomuch as I pursue such a path, I show myself a son of the devil, and no son of God.
Lord, forgive me, where I have allowed my will to guide, rather than seeking out Your orders first. How I'd love to make that 'if I have,' but it is undeniably 'when.' Bring me to that place, Holy Spirit, where I hear and obey, rather than beg and plead. How it offends me to have my daughter trying to manipulate and wheedle in her attempts to get her way in spite of our will as parents. How much more must I offend You when I do the same? Bring the change in me, Jesus, and help me also to show the same mercy to my child that You show to me.
The final challenge I find for myself in this study is this: Will I seek to shift with the winds of change, or will I stand on God's promise? Jacob, in his way, was inclined to shift with the wind. The religious leadership of Jerusalem had long since shifted with the wind. They were willing to modify their views to fit the political realities they saw around themselves. I heard it said recently that the Pharisees survive to this day precisely because of their willingness to adapt. I see the currents run through the Church at large as well, as whole denominations seek to remain 'culturally relevant.' It is a plague upon true faith, true religion! It is the culture of advertising and marketing that has convinced us that the truth needs to be played with, dressed up, and prettified before it is presented to the masses. It doesn't. The Truth of God is powerful. It is forever relevant, and does not need any doctoring to remain so.
The promises of God do not change, because God does not change. This is the very foundation of rational faith: He can be trusted. This is the very factor that Satan attacks in us, the understanding that He can be trusted. Inasmuch as we tinker with His Truth in attempts to make it presentable, we declare that He cannot be trusted. God has revealed Himself, and His best people to us 'warts and all.' It is a foolish Christian indeed who seeks to cover up the warts God is perfectly willing to expose!
God, as He presents Himself to us, often times seems unacceptable. The portrait we have of Him in His own Word is oftentimes challenging. How could He do such things as He claims to have done? What kind of God is it we have to do with? He Himself declares that it is by His hand that both blessing and cursing come, from Him come the good things and from Him come the bad things. Oh! How we labor to make excuses for Him on this. No, no. That's an Old Testament understanding. That was what people thought before God's revelation was complete. Wrong! If that statement is right, then Scripture is nothing but the opinions of fallible men writing down their best understanding of things. But Scripture is not human opinion, it is Divine revelation. These are the things God has declared of Himself, and amongst those things, He makes sure we understand that unlike us, He does not change. He is that He is. He is never "I was," and He is never "I will be." He is "I AM."
Here, then, is the third check I need to make on myself, and again, it is a check that needs constant reapplication. Am I standing on His promise, on His declaration of His Truth, or am I being shifted by the currents of thought around me? In this day and age, the onslaught of popular culture, of futile modern thought and opinion is non-stop. News is no longer a simple matter of reporting facts, it's a matter of inculcating opinions. Nothing, it seems, is presented without an agenda. Am I being critical in my listening? Am I checking my own thoughts to be certain that they are aligned with God's declaration rather than man's opinion? Even in the ranks of Christianity, with the teachers of the Gospel, it is imperative that I listen with the filter of God's word, for too much of the Church has fallen prey to the modern mindset. Too many churches are willing to say that pretty much anything goes. Too many churches are now places where public opinion is of more import than God's opinion.
Am I standing firm? Are my words the words of one standing firm, or of one swaying in the breeze? I pray for the strength to stand, and stand some more. I pray for the wisdom to wholly arm myself as God has provided, that I might stand. I know, however, that too often I do not so arm myself. I have felt the swaying of the breeze, caught myself, no, been caught by my Advocate, wandering into mindsets wholly incompatible with the Word. Thank You, Holy One, that You have indeed caught me and turned me back to the right path. Open my ears, though, to hear Your warning before I need catching!
