New Thoughts (2/18/05-)
God Will Provide (2/19/05)
Behold the Lamb! The Lamb, Who takes away the sins of the world by His atoning sacrifice; the Lamb who redeems us as the firstborn of all creation. Behold the Lamb that God provided. There on a mountaintop, Abraham was called to offer up his son, his only son. He was called to let go of all the promises and hold to God alone. Three years hence, Father God would likewise offer up His Son, His only Son, on a mountaintop, perhaps the very same mountaintop. He would let go of the Promise, though only for a moment. But, in that moment of seeming defeat: Victory!
By letting go of the promise which lay in his son, Abraham showed that his trust was truly in the Lord. When he said, “God will provide,” he was doing more than speaking comfort to his son, or even to himself. He was declaring what he knew to be the truth. He knew it was true because he understood that God’s promises were truly ‘yea and amen.’ If God had declared that Abraham would become the father of many nations, and had declared Isaac the child of promise, then, whatever this present command of His might appear to be doing, God would be faithful. And, because Abraham believed, believed to the point of action, it was reckoned to him as righteousness.
When, he said, “God will provide,” he also stood forth as one of the prophets. He saw far more than the immediate situation he faced with his son. In fact, he may not have seen that scene at all. What he saw was a moment far future. He saw it, and rejoiced (Jn 8:56). This Lamb of God, whom John proclaimed, this was the One Abraham saw in that moment. This was the One in whom Abraham rejoiced. And I believe he knew, as he rejoiced, that this One was the fulfillment of the promise God had proclaimed over him. This was the Seed of Abraham.
It surprises me, with this connection that stares at us from the earliest days of Israel appears to be lost on those who speak of the Lamb of God. They can see Isaiah, recognize a connection with his prophetic words. They can see Moses, and the connection with the birth of the nation of Israel as God’s people. They see, then, the sin offering, the offering of redemption. How can it be that they miss that most clear of connections: the Lamb of God’s own Provision? Oh! May that connection never be lost on me!
It is so wonderful to know that there is a Sacrifice for sin, even my own sin. It is marvelous beyond comprehension to recognize that there is a Redeemer, Who came that I might be freed from my captivity. How much more wonderful is it, though, to know that the price for my sin and my freedom was paid not out of my poor means, but out of God’s rich bounty! Though my sins still to this day appear like a scarlet stain in my eyes, though they spread like the stain of fresh blood, evidence of the murderous nature which is mine, His promise, His Promise, stands: I will be made whiter than snow, pure and undefiled (Isa 1:18).
Lord, it is simply incredible that You have not declared that I will make myself pure. You never said that, for You knew the impossibility of it. No, I can in no way make myself pure and undefiled, but with You, impossibility doesn’t apply! Yes, and You have said it, “I will make you whiter than snow. I will purify you, make you as one undefiled by sin and its shame.” Oh, thank You, Lord! You have indeed provided the Lamb! You have paid the penalty that was due You, redeemed my debt, a debt I could never hope to repay given a thousand lifetimes. And this, though I was an active enemy to Your kingdom! Who is like You, Lord? There is no one! Oh! God! Let this life reveal the mercy You have shown me!
God, I have been reading this morning of the record of my words, of how I would react were I to sit and listen to what has poured out of my mouth for even a day. I know well enough what I should think, were I to hear it, and sadly, I would have no choice but to acknowledge that the soul revealed in those words was mine. And, can I ask ‘why so downcast, oh, my soul?’ As I consider the words I have caused You to listen to from these lips, I must confess my soul has every reason to be downcast! Have I valued Your work so slightly? Have I truly so little regard for what You have done, for who You are?
Oh, my Father! I know I cry out as it seems to me daily, hourly, for Your forgiveness. I know that I still stumble every moment, but I don’t want to stumble any longer. I still need Your forgiveness here, now, and I cry out to You, that You would indeed forgive me. But, more than that, I need Your strength in this weak will of mine, that I might mature into the image You have intended for me from the start. How very far I have to go! Yet, with Abraham, I can stand and declare that You are faithful and true. Though it seems impossible to my eyes that Your promise could yet be worked out in this flesh, yet I know that You who spoke it are faithful, Your word is never void, but ever and always accomplishes that for which You sent Him, and I am one of those for whom You sent the Word, Your Son, the Lamb. Thank You! Oh, may I live to see this flesh walk worthy of the spirit You have birthed within!
The Disciple (2/19/05)
There are many who are students of the Word, and this is a good thing to be. Indeed, I think it is a most necessary thing to be, for we cannot truthfully claim to love One about whom we can’t be bothered to learn. If we are in love with Jesus, surely we will go out of our way to find out what He likes, what we can do to increase His pleasure. Yes, and He has told us what He likes, what pleases Him. “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” Do what I have instructed you to do, live in the way I taught you. If I love my Jesus, I cannot help but be a student of His Word, that which teaches me what it is He instructed, how it is He taught me to live. But, if I love my Jesus, that will never be enough. It is good, but it is not good enough. If I am truly in love with Him then, as He told me, I will do.
That is the mark of the disciple. Not every student will become a disciple. Not every student is in love with the Teacher, or even with the subject. Many go through their school years never once really engaging with the things they are taught, never once discovering a passion for the subject of their lessons. Surely that is due in part to the fact that our school years are largely spent learning what somebody else wants us to know, not pursuing subjects that actually matter to us. And perhaps it must be that way until we emerge from the unprincipled, aimless world of youthfulness. Quite likely, without such measures, we would never emerge! But, there must come a time when we begin studying things that matter to us, things in which we have a real interest. If we cannot reach that place then once again we are trapped in perpetual immaturity. When, and if, we finally engage with a subject, when our interest is awakened, then we will begin to study in earnest. Yet, we will remain no more than a student if all we do is study.
The ‘armchair quarterback,’ and the ‘armchair general’ have something in common: they have looked into the art and the ways of their chosen passion. They have a love for their subject, be it sport or combat, or any other such thing. But, they have never put all that knowledge to work. They have never lived out the things they have studied so passionately. I dare say that many of us in the church have become ‘armchair Christians.’ We study, but we don’t study to show ourselves approved. We can quote chapter and verse, come out with a Scripture for every occasion. Oh, yes! We know exactly what the Word says, and we can help you apply it to your own situation. You have only to ask. Indeed, we’ll be glad to volunteer our great insight even if you’re too shy to ask. But, somehow, we never quite get to that point where we apply it to ourselves.
We know what we ought to do, but we’re happy to lean on Paul’s sad observation. “I am not practicing what I would like to be doing, but I am doing the thing I hate” (Ro 7:15). Oh! How glad we are to have this crutch! Surely, if Paul couldn’t do it, you can’t expect it of me! I tell you, though, if we haven’t also joined him in crying out, “Who will set me free from this death?” then we are in darkness until now.
If we remain students, never applying what we have learned, we are not disciples. If we know the words, but don’t live lives ruled by the conduct those words require, in what way have we been saved? If we insist on pursuing the course that leads to death even after the path to life has been pointed out to us, what claim do we have on life?
There is something I see in Peter, as we meet him in this passage that teaches me about what it will require of me to be a disciple, rather than a student; a follower, rather than a mere curiosity seeker. Indeed, it can be seen in all three of His disciples as we see them here, but for some reason, it is in Peter that I see it most strongly. He is impelled on the path to Jesus. He is not left a choice in the matter, really. Oh, I suppose he could have refused to listen to his brother, could have struggled against him, and insisted on remaining where he was, but really, the situation around him would not permit of such an outcome. Here on the shores of the Jordan, amidst a repentant people, who is going to start a fight, after all? No, he really doesn’t have a choice but to join Andrew, and meet this One, this Messiah.
Listen! No man is going to make himself a disciple. It is not in us to do so, any more than it is in us to obey the Law of God in perfection. It is equally impossible, though, that the one whom God has called to become a disciple shall opt out of that calling. The disciple of Jesus is impelled to Jesus’ side, is called so surely to His instruction that there remains in him no other choice. Has his free will been trod under foot by this? I think not! His will has been freed, finally, from the bonds of sin, that he may choose life, and given such a choice as well as eyes clear enough to see the choice, what other choice could he possibly make? No man not already lost to the deadly deception of despair can look upon the choice between life and death and willingly choose death!
We are, then, if we are disciples, impelled to come to Jesus. The Father calls us to Him, and having seen Him with eyes finally open to the Truth, we cannot really do anything else but come to Him. When we have heard Him with ears finally open to the Truth, we must confess as Peter would, “You have the words of life. Where else could we go?” And the words of life He speaks are so powerful in their simplicity, “If you love Me, do as I teach you, as I show you.” So simple, yet so utterly impossible in our own strength! Here, too, He has shown us the way, taught us how to live out His lessons. It depends on prayer. Jesus was forever finding moments, creating moments, in which to get alone with Father, in which to draw from the wells of Love. It is the draft drawn from the well of God’s Love that gives us the power to walk in His commandments, and that draft cannot be drawn but in the communion with Him which is prayer.
How can we expect to hear words of love if we don’t speak them ourselves? If we cannot stop to tell God of our love for Him, why do we expect to hear Him tell us of His love for us? But, love is so much more than words. We all know that. God’s actions have shown us of His love. He has explained to us in clear terms that love is an action. Love cannot be satisfied to speak. Love must be lived. The life of the disciple is a life of living that love, “if you love Me, obey Me.” Don’t just memorize My speeches, live them!
The disciple can be no greater than his teacher, but in Jesus we have the greatest of teachers! What He taught, He lived. He, too, had love to express, the love of His own Father. He explained to us what that love life was: “I do what I see My Father doing. I always do what pleases Him.” It’s the same lesson that was taught in the lives of Cain and Abel. One brought sacrifices in the fashion he had seen his father do. One insisted on doing things his own way. One showed himself a disciple, and was accepted by God.
Paul lived out a life that could make that same claim. Though he complained of his incapacity, as I already wrote, still he could stand before those whom he taught and say, “live like you see me doing. Imitate me as I imitate Christ.” Would that we could join him in saying that today! Would that my life, my example, was such that I could gladly call upon others to imitate me because I am imitating my Christ! But, honestly will not allow me to do so. I hear the words that came out of me yesterday and I know I would not have you imitate them. I see the attitude that was mine yesterday and I would not have you saddled with it. I see the myriad ways in which I fell short of the goal yesterday and, if I would have you to learn from it at all, it certainly wouldn’t be by imitation. Oh! That I might come to that point where I can say, “learn from my example,” rather than, “learn from my mistakes!”
Peter was impelled on the path to Jesus, but he was by no means the only one. Andrew and that other disciple were just as strongly impelled. After all, what real cause did they have to seek Jesus out? They had one comment from John. Did they have anything else to convince them that this really was the Messiah? Had they seen the events of His baptism yesterday? Perhaps, although there’s no mention of it by which we might be sure. Perhaps they had seen that tear in the heavens, heard the voice of God thundering out His pleasure in this Son He had sent. Perhaps, like John, they knew, but needed some word of confirmation.
Perhaps, though, it was simply that they knew this first teacher of theirs to be trustworthy. They were already disciples, after all. They had not simply come to listen to John’s preaching, nor had they simply come for the sake of appearances. They had done more than listen. They had put John’s message into practice in their own lives. They had come into the life of repentance, had looked at themselves, seen the things that needed the hand of God, and had thrown themselves upon the mercy of God. Here before them stood God’s mercy! And, this teacher whom they had found reason to trust declared Him to them. It was as though he had said, “You’ve learned what you can from me. You’ve graduated my class. There’s your next Teacher. There’s the One who will give you the graduate course!”
As good disciples of a good teacher, they heard his message, and they immediately applied it to their lives. It required both: that they were really disciples, and that they had attached themselves to one who was really a teacher. We are shown somewhat of what it means to be a good teacher in this section of Scripture, which, as a teacher, I will do well to explore. I will begin with this simple observation, though: a good teacher needs no more than his word, if he is teaching truth. As I said, it is possible that Andrew and John had witnessed the events of the prior day, but even if they hadn’t, I believe they would have reacted the same way. Their teacher had pointed them to the next thing, had shown them the next step they must take, and that was enough. Even though the step he pointed out required a parting of the ways, required that the disciples leave their teacher, they did it. They did it because they were disciples, but they did it also because he was a teacher. He was a trustworthy teacher, and what he taught was reason enough in itself.
The Teacher (2/21/05)
I have looked at what differentiates a disciple from a student, and found that the disciple is that special class of student who actually puts his learning into practice. As I think on that, I find there is a similar distinction between the disciple and the teacher. There is good reason for Scripture’s warning about taking up the role of teacher lightly. (Interesting that this verse (Jas 3:1) should come up in Table Talk this morning.) The warning in James, of course, speaks of the difficulty of bridling the tongue to speak truly, which is cause enough for care in considering the task of teaching. I think this differentiation between disciple and teacher is another.
There is an old adage that says that those who cannot do teach. It is not so in Christianity. It cannot be so. One must first have advanced to real discipleship under the real discipline of Christ before he can hope to teach at all. Yet, discipleship alone is hardly sufficient qualification. A teacher in the Church must first and foremost be one who teaches truly. Yes, we can count on the fact that we will all make mistakes, and it is not with that specifically that the concern lies. That said, a sound teacher will confess to his mistakes, and make certain his students are made aware not only of his error, but of the truth of the matter. Oh, but woe to that one who knowingly and willfully propagates his lies under the guise of Christian doctrine! It is an abuse of office, an abuse that will not go unnoticed. Teachers “shall incur a stricter judgment.”
So, there is this qualification for the teacher, that they be careful in the extreme of their words, of their doctrine. There is this qualification that they be men of integrity, willing to accept correction, and able to confess to their errors. There is also this other matter which distinguishes the teacher from among the disciples. The teacher is one who not only knows, not only practices that which he knows, but can also impart that knowledge to others. That is, after all, the purpose of teaching, to impart our knowledge to others. The mere possession of knowledge, however, does not ensure a capacity for impartation. To impart what we know to be true, we must also know those we would teach, and we must know how to address them on their own terms.
One does not teach a collegiate course in the same fashion as an elementary class. The students composing these two groups are radically different in their understanding, in their ways of learning, and in their general maturity. In the same way, as we teach within the Church community, we will face students of differing degrees of achievement. We will be called upon to teach those who are freshly come to faith in Christ, and as yet know little of what that faith entails. We will likewise be called upon to teach those who may well be advanced beyond ourselves.
I have seen this in my own experience. I have my daughter to teach first and foremost. This is, for me, a great challenge. It requires effort to recall what life is like for one so young, especially with the seemingly inevitable changes in lifestyle since I was that age myself. It’s difficult enough being so far removed from that childlike approach to life, but the approach itself has changed radically! It requires great effort to tune my message to that age-group. At the same time, I have had pastors and bishops in my home when I was teaching. Here are men of understanding, men advanced well beyond myself in faith, and I shall teach them? But, in Christ, this is a reasonable and proper expectation, for we all have need to learn from one another. The point I wish to make, though, is that while the same truths need to be taught in both cases, the way in which they are taught must change, else there is no learning; and where there is no learning, there is no teacher.
If we study Paul for any length of time, we will see this tuning of the message in action. When I speak of tuning the message, there is no suggestion of changing the content of the message. We don’t ‘dumb down’ the message to make it palatable. We don’t sweeten the message to attract more students or disciples. We do, however, have to bear our listeners in mind, be aware of their own particular needs, abilities, and understanding so as to impart the truth that has been entrusted to us in a way that will entrust it in them, as well.
I think we must add this qualification for the teacher of the Gospel as well. The teacher in the Church must ever and always be washing his students in prayer, even as he washes his own preparations in prayer. We can prayerfully prepare our lessons with the greatest of care, but if we neglect to also pray for our students with great regularity, we will find all our preparations and all our abilities are for naught. Again, we can look to Paul for the example. “I pray for you always.” Let it be understood, then, that to enter into teaching is a sacred trust. To treat it as anything less is to miss the mark, and makes of that sacred calling an occasion for sin. Let me add, then, one qualification further. The prayers of the teacher must cover not only his lesson, not only his students, but most assuredly must also cover himself, especially as he enters into that role actively. Yes, and the first lesson he ought teach his students is to join their prayers with his!
In the end, I suppose the teacher must be measured by his disciples. How well have they learned his lessons? It will show in how much they have come to resemble him. Now, any parent among us will know that there are certain aspects of the teaching role that are thrust upon them, willing or no. To be a parent is to teach. The question is whether we teach conscientiously or accidentally. If we are forced to tell our children, “do as I say, not as I do,” then we are accidental in our teaching, and the lessons we impart by word will fail utterly to take root. It is not without reason that the world knows actions to speak louder than words. Look at Paul, yet again. He was willing and able to stand before his students and say, “do what you see me doing. Imitate me” (1Co 11:1) The author of Hebrews has that same message with regard to the teachers of Scripture. “Remember those who taught you and led you. Consider their conduct and its fruits, and therefore imitate their faith” (Heb 13:7).
To our sorrow, I don’t think there are many who would make this suggestion today. Worse yet, we as students do not know our teachers well enough to discern whether they are worthy of imitation or not. The early church had this advantage: they were close knit. Their association was not a matter of a few hours each week, it was a daily, continuous exposure to one another. Paul was known to his students not just by his few hours of active teaching, but also by his demeanor while about his employment, and whenever else one might happen across him. They knew him far more extensively than we are likely to know our teachers and they found him consistent. Truly, he was consistent, and it was that consistency of character that showed the fruit of his conduct, that declared the trustworthiness of his call to be imitators of himself.
It is imperative upon me as a teacher, then, to live my life in a fashion that allows for that same call. Though there may not be the same level of intimacy between teacher and student now as there was then, I must live as though there were. After all, if I cannot maintain that degree of integrity, how am I a disciple? How am I a son, if I can only tell others how to be like my Father, but refuse to heed my own lessons? No, and such inconsistency does not go unnoticed. We cannot escape having at least a few intimates who know us better than that. And, even were there none who were so close to us as to recognize any discrepancy between word and deed, there is a God in heaven, in Whose name we serve, and He is not blind to our failures.
God, I feel so much a failure in this regard. I know that were my students in the workplace with me they would see a very different man, and it ought not to be that way. It cannot continue to be that way. Why, Father, is it such a challenge? Why am I yet so quick to slide into the old ways, to turn onto paths of unrighteousness? Why am I yet so quick to anger and frustration in that setting? Holy Spirit, I need a change. I need a change that is beyond me to bring about, but with You, in the Presence of my God, all things are possible. Yes, and I know You are always present, always with me, yet I neglect You, I ignore You, and worse yet, I insult You by doing so. Forgive me, Lord. Change my heart. Change my ways, and help me to truly repent of these things once and for all. God! I want to be such a teacher as Paul was, able to look upon those You send to me and say, “Imitate me.” I know I am far from that yet, but if You will not teach me such that I reach that mark, I would that You would instead remove me from the task of teaching!
Father, I call myself Your son, a disciple of Your Son, and both of these things cry out for an imitation of Him Who is my Teacher. Have I even scratched the surface of that? Or, have I become wise in my own estimation? Lord, let it not be so! I want so much to be like You, to do those things that please You, and I know how often I fail of it. It is an agony to my soul that it should be so. Holy One, impart to me the strength to persevere in well-doing, the will to be holy as You are holy, and the strength to pursue Your will single-mindedly. I love You too much to have it otherwise.
I have said that the teacher’s success will be measured by his mark on his disciples, by the degree to which they resemble him. In Jesus, the Teacher, we see that measure made full. I find it in the account of Peter’s actions during his Teacher’s trial. No, I am not suggesting that Peter’s denial was a successful imitation of Christ. Yet, even as he failed, there was this about him: his accent clearly marked him as one who was with Jesus (Mt 26:73). “The way you talk gives you away.” Now, I will grant you that in the context of the story, the servant girl is noting only the Peter is a Galilean like Jesus, but I think the significance, the application, goes much further than that.
“The way you talk gives you away.” Even as Peter was denying all association with this Teacher, the way he talked made it plain that he was a disciple. Even in his moment of greatest failure, the evidence of Jesus’ lessons remained to be seen and heard by any who cared to notice. Real Christianity, real faith, is like that. It cannot be hidden, even by our failures. While we are called to be vocal in our faith, to testify to the Christ who has saved us, I tell you that even our silence will speak of Him. If we are truly disciples of Christ, however poor our discipleship may be, it will bear this one fruit: the way we talk will give us away.
The way we think will give us away. This was the distinguishing mark between Peter and Judas in those hours of failure. Both had claimed to follow Jesus, but only one showed the statement to be true. The truth was shown in the way he thought and spoke. He had learned what Jesus taught, and therefore knew Redemption. Judas, by contrast, had missed the lesson entirely. It was his failure to really listen and learn that brought him to the point of betrayal. He had not come to learn, but to satisfy his own agenda, and when that satisfaction failed to come, he turned. Having turned without learning a thing, he was wholly unprepared when the time of trial came. The betrayal of his Lord was not, in truth, Judas’ greatest crime. The greatest crime was in rejecting the Redemption Jesus purchased. He, too, could have known forgiveness, but he refused the gift, having learned nothing. Oh, he knew well enough who Jesus was before it was over, but he had learned nothing of Jesus’ character. He was still trapped in a religion of holy wrath, condemned by his own inattention. Peter returned, fulfilled his call, because he had learned not only what his Teacher taught, but also his Teacher’s character. He knew this One he followed, and so, when the time came, he knew forgiveness. The way he talked gave him away.
Thank You, Lord, that Your lessons are so great as to give us away! Thank You that Your teaching is so great that even when we blow it, the lesson shows in us. What a blessed assurance to know that, however weak we may be, it is Your accent that is heard from us. What a blessed assurance to know that even on fallen lips such as mine, the language of heaven is discernable! Oh, Jesus! Let the words of my lips be pleasing to You! Let the accent of heaven come clear and sweet from my life! It is well that You can be heard through my dirt, but Oh! That You would wash away that dirt and be heard more clearly, seen more clearly in me! Even so, Lord, let it be done unto me as You will it.
The Lesson (2/22/05-2/23/05)
I can’t help but wonder what the Teacher spoke of with these first students on that first day. That they had several hours to talk is clear. Yet, all we have of that conversation is Jesus’ words to Simon Peter. This might well give us a glimpse into the nature of what transpired, though. For, in that brief encounter Jesus is already establishing His credentials as a prophet. The knowledge He displays of who Simon is may or may not reflect the prophetic nature of His person. We could argue that He had known these men from previous observation as they fished. Against that, though, I would have to argue that such inquiries and observations would not be likely to go unnoticed in a small town. Strangers stand out, all the more in a close-knit community such as fishing villages tend to be. A community laboring together in such a risk-strewn business as making a living on the sea will tend to be protective of its own. There is a sense of mutual aid that is rather natural to such a setting. So, yes, it is possible that Jesus had natural cause to know these men before they met, but I don’t see it as necessary, nor even particularly likely.
Leave that aside, though, and there remains His proclamation over Simon, the assigning of a new name. That in itself was a declaration of His prophetic office. I know you, and I know what you will become. He could as easily have made that declaration over each one of these three who came to His camp, and perhaps He did so, but I suspect not. Surely there would have been some account of that conversation as well, had it occurred. For all that, the word He had for Peter would suffice to establish Himself in their thinking. One does not need to be the direct recipient of a prophetic message to recognize its nature, nor to assess its validity.
So, what else transpired there around His campfire that evening? What did He speak of to them, for I cannot imagine that they were anything but attentive. Even Peter, one might suspect, was not his usual boisterous self, but rather subdued. If his brother was right, if this were really the Anointed King of Israel, it was a time to be circumspect, and even a fisherman knew that much. What I don’t think was on their minds that afternoon was any question as to whether He was that King. These were, after all, disciples of John’s, and it was on his recommendation that they had come to Jesus. One does not become a disciple without having reason to think the teacher is trustworthy. One does not remain a disciple unless the teacher is consistently shown to be trustworthy. His word, then, will suffice to convince his disciples of the truth of his message. “Behold, the Lamb of God!” For these three, it was ‘message received.’
Given that, I think that their perspective on this encounter was in determining how they might be attached to this One as disciples, and what that might mean. From Jesus’ perspective things were much different. He already knew these men, knew that they would be with Him to the end and then some. He already knew that Peter would stumble for a time, but He also knew even then that Peter would stand firm in the end. Indeed, I think this must have been a bittersweet occasion for Him, this first meeting with His first disciples, for even in that first meeting, He knew what awaited not only Himself, but these three as well. He knew what it would mean for these men that they became His disciples. He knew the death that Peter would suffer. He knew that John would suffer many things, his exile, his tortures, and yet, would survive them all, and continue on as the last of the Apostles.
Can I suggest what I think transpired here? I think much of Jesus’ effort was on confirming to these three that they would indeed be His disciples, assuring them in that regard. But, since He knew that there would be that time of trial preceding His full ministry, I think He forewarned them of this to some degree. He may not have explained the reasoning fully, but I feel certain that He told them the time was not yet. They would indeed follow Him, and that at a word, but not this month. He would come for them, and they must be ready. Truly, it’s the same message He leaves with us. Behold, I come. Be ready.
It is quite possible that He was also laying the groundwork in this moment for some of the major points He would propound in the next few years. In this earliest point of ministry, I think He may well have been establishing things that He would have to drum into the heads of His disciples repeatedly, not least of which is that Peter’s renaming did not elevate him somehow above these others who were with him. Peter could not possibly have preeminence amongst the apostles, because he was not the first. He was the third. John would not have preeminence amongst the apostles, for there had been Andrew with him. He, too, could not lay claim to that first position. Human nature being what it is, and the apostles shown clearly susceptible to all that human nature entails, isn’t it likely that they had already begun thinking along these lines? They knew with Whom they were talking: the King of the Jews, God’s Anointed. Well, if He were king, then surely they could expect privileges as His first supporters! Yes, this misconception would have to be dealt with early on. Then, it would have to be dealt with again, and again, and again, until they finally got it in their heads that the economy of the heavenly kingdom is so utterly foreign to the economy of earthly kingdoms. Indeed, they would not fully understand this particular lesson until long after His departure. Having learned it, they would then have to teach it to the fledgling church, for we each one of us come out of the world into the Church, and it requires training to leave that world behind.
Paul wrote of it in dealing with the church in Corinth. It’s not about me. It’s not about Peter. It’s not about Apollos. It’s not about the one who baptized you, and not one of you can reasonably claim to be a disciple of Jesus in greater degree than another. He is not divided, and His work is not done for any man’s credit (1Co 1:12-16). There is only One – One Teacher, One Christ, One Name in which to be baptized. The minister who attaches his own name to the work is no minister of God. The disciple who places value on the name of his minister rather than Jesus, the Anointed Messiah, is no disciple at all. We must hold that knowledge before us when we think about Jesus’ words to Peter on this occasion, as well as those He spoke on that other occasion that The Catholic church makes so much of.
Peter is here renamed by Jesus. He is declared the rock, and the church in Rome would make of this a foundation stone. But, is it to be understood so? I recall seeing this before about his new name, and I still think it critical to recognize. That particular word that Jesus uses, Cephas, speaks of a particular sort of rock, a hollowed rock. One does not look for a hollowed rock to build a foundation. One looks for solid, squared, tight-fitting rocks for such a work. A hollowed rock is far more useful as an altar, a place for sacrifice. Indeed, what is it that hollows out that rock? Is it not abrasion? Peter would assuredly be abraded, painfully so, yet he would remain a rock, a testimony to the strength and power of God. Once more, Jesus would reiterate the new name Simon was given, when he declared with understanding that Jesus was indeed the Christ, the Son of God. “You are Peter,” Jesus told him again on that occasion. “You are a rock.” Then, He continued. “Upon this rock I will build My church.” What rock was that? Was it really upon Peter? No. Peter was a rock. He was solid in His faith, in spite of what circumstances would seen to indicate not long hence. But, he was not a rock sufficient to foundation. He could not be the cornerstone. There is only One fit to be the Cornerstone of God’s choosing. The rock upon which the Church has been built can not be any man. It is simply not possible for any man to stand up to that task. No, the rock upon which the Church is built is that knowledge which Peter exposed to the light. The Church is built upon the singular revelation that Jesus is indeed the Christ, the Messiah, the Anointed King of kings, the Son of the living God. That one revelation is the whole power of the Church, the power to stand against the gates of Hell, against every effort and attack of the enemy.
This goes hand in hand with the recognition that there would be no preeminence amongst His followers. “You seek greatness,” He asked them, “then serve one another. That is the way of God.” “You seek position in the kingdom? Then do those things you see Me doing. Serve My sheep.” Everything about ministry must point to Jesus, else the ministry is an utter failure. If we redirect the attention of the sheep to any man, however good he may be, we have done the sheep a terrible disservice. However righteous the man of god, however powerfully he may be used, whatever miracles he may display, if that man becomes the focus of our attention, we have ceased in that moment to worship God. If that man does not immediately call upon us to cease from our foolishness in this regard, then he is no man of God, but only another man who would be god. Everything must point to Messiah. He is, and must be, the sole purpose and message of all ministry.
I was reading some discussion on a website yesterday in which several participants were self-declared atheists, while others held forth that they were Christians. Yet, in those discussions, I could not find one voice that presented the Jesus that Is. One particular atheist was busy putting forth his own dark impression of the thing, intent on seeing only wrath in the Father, and in seeing the Son as some new understanding of God, a change in man’s opinion that redefined this God that doesn’t exist. Meanwhile, the Jesus that the ‘Christian’ voices were putting forward had little more to do with reality. He was a Jesus reshaped to support their particular interests and positions. They were, it would seem, intentionally seeking to make Jesus point to their own particular cause, but the reality of ministry must always be the exact opposite of this. God does not call us to present Him as He is not, but as He truly is. Yes, He is wrathful. He is also love. Yes, He is love, and always has been. He is also just. The atheist would have us understand that these things cannot coexist, but he would be wrong. The pseudo-Christian would have love alone, would have compassion without concern for justice, would leave no room for wrath except perhaps where his own wrath burned. He would be equally wrong. God is God in whole. He has not changed, nor shall He. He is steadfast and True. That man’s opinions are forever seeking to reshape Him to their liking does nothing to change who He is. It is the wise man who allows God to reshape his thinking instead.
One last thing about the lesson the Teacher brings. This lesson I find at the very end of John’s Gospel, when Jesus appeared to the Apostles as they were once again fishing on the sea. This is a powerful lesson indeed. See, when they came to shore, they found that Jesus already had fish and bread cooking on the fire He had prepared. He already had a meal for them. In truth, I am quite sure there was enough there to satisfy them all. But, Jesus called for a portion of their catch to be added to it (Jn 21:1-21). He is not willing that we should be satisfied to subsist solely on what He gives so freely, but requires that we add to it from our own effort. This is not to suggest that our works are meritorious towards our salvation, not at all. However, it is one with James’ message that a faith devoid of works is a dead faith, and has never attained to salvation. It is the same lesson. If we simply take those fish which Jesus has cooked for us, and go on back to our normal day-to-day, we have nothing.
Many will come to church like this. They will sit. They will listen. They might even jump and shout a bit. But, they will turn around and walk out at the end of service and nothing at all will have changed in them. They’ve had nothing more than entertainment. They have come for a snack, and having had the snack, they’re satisfied, and off to more interesting fields. No, real faith will lead to works, will overflow in works. Why? Well, in simplest terms, it is because where real faith is, the Spirit is, and it is the Spirit who works in us both to will and to work. It is by His work within us that we find it our desire to add our effort to the incredible richness of Jesus’ gift to us. It is by His work within us that we find it in ourselves to actually do those things that we desire. When it comes to the merit of our works, then, we do well to understand that even our works are not truly our own. They, too, point to Jesus, the Author and the Finisher of our faith. The faith He imparts to us, the righteousness He imparts to us is already sufficient unto salvation. He has finished it. It is perfect, and cannot be improved upon. But, that faith must have its outflow. Just as a seed planted and watered cannot help but sprout, so, too, the faith within us must sprout and bear its fruit of good works. If it is not so, then that seed has rotted in the soil.
There is another class of attendees, students who may achieve the attentiveness of disciples for a time, but who fail to achieve the obedience. They are those who grasp the knowledge, but without wisdom. From Paul’s account, it is found that Peter fell into this class for a time. Praise be to God that it was a temporary issue, and so it is with many of us! Peter knew the truth. He had learned of the acceptance of the Gentiles in a vision from God, had seen the fruits of that acceptance first hand, indeed, had played a strong role in bringing that acceptance to the church. But, there came a time when he was out on the road, away from the support of his brothers. The pressures of the world, here represented as the disapproval of the local Jewish population, sufficed to cause Peter to remain aloof from the Gentiles. He would not be seen eating with them, although he had been so instrumental in that first inclusion. He had allowed the world’s influence to move him into hypocrisy.
All Praise to the Holy One, though! He was not willing that Peter should remain thus, any more than He was willing to leave Peter in the despair that followed his earlier, greater failure. His mercies are indeed new every morning! Yes, and He sent brother Paul to remind Peter who he was, what he knew, what God had said (Gal 2:7-14).
How critical this was, Paul also made clear, for hypocrisy is a most dangerous thing, especially in leadership, for the hypocrisy of a leader spreads rapidly, more rapidly even than steadfastness in a leader. A righteous leader will inspire others to strive for righteousness, but it will be a slow process of overcoming the tendencies of the flesh. But, a hypocrite, well that’s another story altogether! Flesh cries out to flesh, and our own fallen nature is quick to latch on to the excuse to return to the throne. Ah, yes, the road of the hypocrite is much easier on us. How rapidly we find ourselves willing to accede to the lowered standard. How gladly we relax and let down our guard. How desperately we need to voice of a Paul, one unwilling to compromise, to call us back to rights. How swiftly the surgery must be performed, excising the cancer of hypocrisy from the body before whole limbs and organs are lost to its poison.
Know this. We are all capable of playing Peter’s part. Yes, and when our Paul comes at God’s behest, to remind us from whence we have fallen, it is quite likely that no matter how lovingly our Paul speaks, we are not going to receive it in loving fashion. No discipline is pleasant at the time, and make no mistake – that rebuke is discipline. The flesh, having already risen above its station, will rear up in indignation at this attempt to apply the reins. The usurper is not easily thrown down, having tasted once more of control. But, the Spirit that is within us is greater than the corrupting powers of the world! He will bring us around, even as He most certainly brought Peter around. He will cause us to see the danger we pose not only to ourselves but to those around us, those to whom we have been a teacher, and He will breathe new life into our own spirit, that it may be strong to take back its rightful place in the order of things.
The Results (2/23/05)
It is incumbent upon me, now, to be fair to Peter. It seems he is forever being held up for the example (and the comfort) of his failures. We need, in our own fallen imperfection, to see that these men who did such great things for the kingdom are but men like ourselves. We need to see their own failings so that we can identify with them. We need to see their failings so that we don’t make their greatness an excuse for our own insignificance. However, we need also to see their successes. Without the successes, the only model we have in them is a model for defeat. But, God did not make His apostles a model for defeat. He made them a model for victory. He showed how twelve men, twelve mostly insignificant, mostly uneducated men, could, by the power of God, change the very fabric of human existence.
To that end, let me speak of Peter’s success. We see it over and over again through the book of Acts, but it can be summed up in this simple thought: Peter took the opportunity to tell them of Jesus. Whatever opportunity presented itself, Peter took it. A beggar in the temple gate: Peter took it as occasion to show the healing power of God, and a city was astonished to see the kingdom still active. A trial before the Sanhedrin: Peter took it as occasion to remind these religious elites just who God is, to remind them that their power was a delegated power, and was being made obsolete. The outpouring of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost: Peter took it as occasion to declare the power of God, the Truth of the Resurrection, to explain the reality behind the actions that had so recently disturbed Jerusalem, and thousands were added to the kingdom. A Roman soldier calls: Peter took it as occasion to usher the first Gentiles into the kingdom.
Indeed, this was the signature trait of every one of the Apostles as the Church spread like fire through the nations of that age. Whatever occasion presented itself, they took it. Whatever opportunity arose, they took it. They did not fear to speak of this Jesus, though threats be made against them, though they be ridiculed, chased out of town, imprisoned, beaten. Nothing could stop them from speaking the Truth in love. Nothing! It is this power that founded the Church. It is this power that marks the real disciple for, after all, the prime directive that Jesus left with His people was to go and make disciples among the nations. If we love Him, shall we not obey? If we are disciples ourselves, shall we not do as He taught us to do? It is this power that made of Christianity a power that ‘turned the whole world on its head.’ It is the loss of this power that has made the church a weak thing in our day and age. It is not that God has become irrelevant to this age. Not at all! One needn’t look too far to see that the indictment that Paul laid out in the first chapters of Romans have not changed one whit. Man still professes his great wisdom, only to show himself utterly foolish. Man still worships the created thing and willingly and willfully ignores, indeed spites, the Creator. That which is invisible in the nature of God is displayed by the God of nature in the nature He creates. What is needed is for the Church to once more stand up as the Church, to once more lay hold of that power from on high to declare the Truth no matter the consequences.
Do we still understand what opportunity is? It is nothing but the outworking of God’s preparations! Paul saw it. We were created for good works, he wrote to the Ephesians. Those good works are nothing more than the making use of every opportunity to fulfill His command. He, after all, prepared those good works. He sets us up! He creates those opportunities that befall us so that we can have the joy of taking every advantage of those opportunities to walk in the obedience that marks us as disciples and not mere students (Eph 2:10). Every good and perfect gift comes from God (Jas 1:17), and what could be more perfect than to set before our very eyes the opportunity to obey that good and perfect God who so loved us? Indeed, it is that very same God who is working within us as He is working outside of us. He places the opportunity before us, and He places the will within us, that the work might be done for His good pleasure (Php 2:13). Thus, may we prove ourselves children of God in this perverse generation. Thus, may we stand as beacon fires in the darkness, pointing the way to Sanctuary! Thus, may we show ourselves approved, not only understanding the Scriptures, but living them.
The Question (2/24/05)
If we are to show ourselves approved, if we are to become these beacons, then we must each one of us come to grips with the great question of this passage: What do I seek? On the surface, such a simple question, and yet this may be one of the most profound questions we have to ask of ourselves. As we begin to follow after the Christ, what do we seek? When I confess, like Andrew, that I have found Messiah, what do I seek? When I speak to others of my going to church for this or that event, what do I seek?
The simple meaning of that question assuredly remains, especially in this first context. It is a question that might come from any one of us were we to find somebody following us about. “What do you want from me?” Oh, but hear the Savior asking it! “What do you want from Me? What would you have from Me?” Hear His question when you have come to Him hurt and bleeding, when your spirit is dying within you, and all you can sense is your need. Hear Him ask, “What would you have Me do?” Hear in that question the depths of compassion, the heart-felt desire of your Savior to apply the healing balm to your wounds, to tenderly care for you until strength has returned. He waits for nothing more than the asking. Confess your need to Him, that He might heel that need. It is ever the message of the cross that if we confess our sins, He is faithful to forgive and to cleanse (1Jn 1:9). What would I have Him do? Would I have Him forgive my sins? Then surely I must confess them to Him. Would I be cleansed by the water of the Word? Then surely I must speak out my desire for Him! If I want nothing of what He offers, to what end do I pursue Him so?
Rest assured that there have been many who pursued Him with not one ounce of desire for Him. The Pharisees and the Sadducees pursued Him relentlessly, but they had no interest in forgiveness or in sanctification if these things came by Him. Their actions speak most eloquently of their answer to that simple question. What do they want? They want power. They want position. They want the public acclaim, and if it’s all about Jesus, then where is their hunger to be satisfied? No, they have no use for this One they pursue. Their only desire is to discredit Him, to take Him down a notch that their own prestige and pride can be increased.
How is it with me? As I pursue after Him, do I seek to know His ways that I might walk in them, or do I seek for cause to discredit Him? When I find Him there, turning to face me with that question, what is my answer? Do you know how many there are out there who study and study the things of Scripture, but with the sole purpose of discovering a reason not to believe? How much more comfortable we can be if we can but convince ourselves that this is all nonsense. If this life is all there is, then we need not fear the retribution of a just and holy God, we can act as we please. It is not until we have met the Christ and known Him for Who He is that the trouble really begins. When we discover that our attempts to prove Him false have failed, then we discover as well that we have failed, failed utterly. We have met with Holiness, and in that meeting discovered the extent of our own sinfulness. And like Isaiah, this recognition must leave us wholly undone, just as it did these first two men. What do you want? A simple question, and yet it must stump us.
Once more I ask myself what it is I want from Him. It’s a difficult question to deal with. It is so hard in this human flesh to be honest with oneself, quite unnatural really. Yet, the question is there, hanging over me. What do I seek? Do I seek God or do I seek the stuff? Bishop Choate was with us last week, and his word to us was to the effect of, “I knew Him before I had the stuff!” Oh, I know I’m from that same crowd. I, too, knew Him when things were tight. I have also known Him in times of great plenty. But, the question is not what I was like then, it’s what’s in my heart now that matters. Coming through this period of plenty, standing in a place where there remains a sufficiency but the comfort zone has shrunk to a pinpoint, what do I seek? Is my heart still after God as our finances tighten? Or, am I holding on in the simple hope that He’ll return to pouring out the stuff again?
God, I so hope the real answer to that question is the right answer. I know the right answer, and You know that, too. But, I know the deceitfulness of this heart of mine. I also know the stress I have allowed to take hold of me as I try to perceive the way forward. The world has gotten weird, and security has slipped away from my grasp. Had I really allowed it to so deceive me? Oh, Lord! Forgive me if I allowed that period of prosperity to turn my attention from You. Forgive me if I have been allowing this period of uncertainty to sway my trust in You. Yes, I think that has been the greater danger. I used to know how to trust You even when things were hand to mouth, and I find in myself a great unwillingness to return to that state. Yet, You are faithful, even when I falter. This thing I know. Let it be the confession of my lips, whatever the circumstances, that You have never left Your children in want of the things they need. Never. Oh, it may be that You will require that I shed some of the stuff, and if that is the case, I can only ask that You make my heart willing to obey. I pray, Holy One, that You will find in me a heart that seeks You, not Your gifts, not Your power, but You. For, indeed, every good and perfect gift comes from You anyway. Who am I to suggest that what You have provided is not perfect to my need? Far be it from me! No, Your ways remain far and away above my own. If there has been any weakening of my trust by these times of ease, then I pray You strengthen that trust, and allow me to appreciate the exercise You are providing!
Me or the stuff? That is the first question I hear from my God in this, but it is not the only question. If we have settled that first one in our hearts and minds, if we have determined that our answer shall be, “You, Lord, stuff or no stuff;” if we can honestly declare, “Though He slay me, yet will I follow Him,” then perhaps we have answered the second part of the question. What is that second part? I think it is this, “Who do you worship?” Now, I know that any one in any church in any nation, hearing that question, will be swift to answer, “God alone!” Yes, the words come swiftly to our lips. Why, it hardly requires a thought! Indeed, it has hardly occupied a thought! It is for this reason that God speaks of those who worship Him with their lips, but with hearts that want nothing to do with Him.
Listen! We can’t possibly give an honest answer of “God” to that question until we have honestly assessed our hearts and answered the first part of the question. If there is in us any lingering hunger for the stuff, for the power, then we have not come to worship God alone. We’ve come to worship the power and the position that our appearance of righteousness brings. We’ve come to worship the goodies that He has poured out, the money, the toys, and we will surely give Him our thank you for that, but it will be as meaningless as the thank you notes we were forced to write for our gifts when we were kids. It will be no more than a necessary chore, something we know we must do lest the gift pipeline be shut off. Oh! If that is our motivation, we are in such great danger!
When we hear that question from God, “Who do you worship?” we have to understand that our words, in that moment, are worthless things. God is not interested in our words. For all that, He’s not all that interested in our thoughts, either, because our thoughts are by and large no more than deceptive imaginations, fever dreams that we have accustomed ourselves to believe more than reality. No, the answer God is looking for will not come in words, in grand ideas, in vain imaginations. The answer God is looking for will come in action. “If you love Me, obey My commands.” That verse is just a constant drumbeat with me of late! That’s really what it’s all about. All the church attendance, all the studying, all the worship, all the preaching to the choir, it adds up to zero in the face of that question. Again, I think of Isaiah and his encounter with God. Here was a man of God. Here was a man fully acquainted with the requirements of religion, fully attuned to the Scriptures, a regular attendee at every Temple service. No, you would find nothing lacking in his ritual life. Yet, when he comes before the throne of God, with all that he has been faithful to perform, he has but one thing on his mind, “I’m undone! I’m a dead man! Here is holiness, and how can HE possibly allow my continued existence in HIS presence?” I think Isaiah was coming face to face with that question right then and there, “Who do you worship?” Suddenly, he was discovering that the god he had been worshiping was but a poor imitation of the Real God. Suddenly, he knew how much he had made God over in his own image, created a set of achievable goals by which he might feel good about himself. Suddenly, he knew the goals were utterly unachievable, that his only hope was to be found in God’s mercy. Suddenly, he knew God’s Mercy, and the answer to that question was settled once and for all, “You, Lord. You alone.”
With that answer still ringing in his soul’s ear, he was blessed to hear God’s response. It is the response we all must hear if we have answered not only correctly, but also truly. “Go public.” We live in an age where it seems every sinner is rushing to go public with his sin, to proudly proclaim his rotten condition, as though simply declaring the thing will somehow make it right and proper. I suppose the reasoning is that if sin is the thing we hide, then exposing ourselves must make it no longer a sin. And in our vaunted wisdom, we once more show ourselves utter fools! No, but if ever sinner is out there making his sin public, coming out of the closet, where are God’s people? A shocking thing has happened! God’s people have gone into those closets that sin has vacated! I tell you, I see it in myself. I say that to my own shame. It is my own ‘coming out of the closet,’ but it makes the thing no less sinful.
True, we are to have our prayer closets, those places where we can go to be alone with God, but nowhere will you find it written that we are to leave God in the closet when we come back out! No! God is demanding of us that if we really seek Him, if we really worship Him, if the love we profess is more than empty words, then worship must go public. Go, therefore, and make disciples. We’ve settled for trading disciples with one another. It’s so much easier to go fishing in another church than to take it to the streets, so much safer for us emotionally. Meanwhile, the darkness festers, grows darker each day, and we satisfy ourselves that we, after all, are safe. Everybody else be damned, we’re heaven bound.
Why so downcast, oh my soul? I’ll tell you why! It’s for the very simple reason that I have so utterly failed in this simplest test. Go public? Why, I’d rather just about anything than that! It’s scary! I might be subjected to ridicule, or worse! Why, my employers tell me I must not proselytize on their property, on their time. I could lose my job, God! Surely, You wouldn’t want that! What is wrong with me? I tell you, we all of us ought to be ashamed for allowing the corporations of this world to do what the Temple officials failed to accomplish. Oh, when pastors and priests seek to quiet us, we’re quick enough to pull out Peter’s defense. “Feh! But we must obey God rather than you, pastor!” We speak truth well enough in that, but we know, even as we speak it that it is not the truth of what we are thinking. We seek only to excuse ourselves from obedience, to throw off any authority that might seek to bridle us with real righteousness. Yet, when these ungodly men, with no concern for any god beyond the god of profit margin, tell us we must be silent about our faith, we simply nod and say, “yes, sir.” Who do we worship?
To my utter shame, I can say this with all conviction that what I say is true, because I need look no further than myself. Will I let it be known that I am a Christian? Perhaps, if I can do it subtly enough. Will I explain to you why it is so? Will I risk your scorn, your ridicule? Will I require of you as much respect for my God as you require for your sexual perversions? Not likely. Not the man I am in myself at this moment, and I have to say it ought not to be this way.
God, I can come to you in deepest remorse. I must do so, for I know that what I am writing here is true of me. I have been in my closet, hiding my faith lest somebody laugh. I have allowed Truth to be trampled by my concern for making a livelihood. Is it any wonder, then, that You find it necessary to put me in the place of testing? Oh, God! Exercise these muscles of faith! Rip away the closet door, and let the Light that You have planted in me shine out in the darkness! Fill me, Holy Spirit, with that same holy boldness that filled Peter! Let me step above my failures, Father, and become a voice from heaven, a spokesman for the kingdom that must surely come, that is surely come even now! Lord, I know, even as I pray of this, I know the weakness that is my nature. Were it up to me, I would despair of ever stepping out, but it’s not up to me. God! I want to join with Isaiah in this moment, to shout to heaven, “send me!” Indeed, Father, send me by all means, by any means. But, send me only with Your company! If You will not go with me, then I will surely remain. Right now, Lord, my biggest fear is that I will not find a change in myself, that I will continue on as I have been, thinking trust in You, but acting fear of man. Let it not be like that. Lord, You have shown Yourself to me in the past, have made it so very clear that You are who You say You are. Come once more, and show Yourself to me, in me, through me, that Your will may be done in this earth that is my flesh.
What’s in a Name (2/25/05)
When I have looked at this question of what it is I seek, what it is I worship, I know it is connected most intimately with the questions I found myself asking in the previous study, questions that came up again last night in home group. How can I be silent? How can I restrain myself from telling one and all about this Messiah I’ve met? Who do I worship? Go public, Jeff! Be bold enough to stand in your beliefs not just in the occasional moment of crisis, but at all times. The truth is, every moment of life is a moment of crisis, a moment in which to choose either God or man. I see these things, and I see myself, and I tell you, the contrast is enough to crush me. The extent of my failure in this area is so near to complete. But, in these moments, there are things that my God has done to sustain me.
Foremost amongst His sustaining words is that which I see as He talks to Peter this first time: He knows me. There’s that song we sing at church, “He knows my name.” Yes, and He knows more than that. He knows my family, He knows my past. As that song continues, “He knows my every thought.” Well, how is that a comfort? My thoughts betray me constantly! I tell you, it’s a great comfort because, in addition to all that He knows about who I am and who I have been, He knows still more: He knows my future, who I am becoming as He continues working patiently on me. He knows my future, and He looks at me as that finished word of His creation and says, “You are My delight.”
Do you doubt it? But, the promise of that outcome has been ours since long before Jesus met Peter there by the Jordan. I have glanced at this passage (Isaiah 62:1-5) before in the course of this study, but I want to see it in full just now.
For Zion's sake I will not keep silent,
And for Jerusalem's sake I will not keep quiet,
Until her righteousness goes forth like brightness,
And her salvation like a torch that is burning.
And the nations will see your righteousness,
And all kings your glory;
And you will be called by a new name,
Which the mouth of the LORD will designate.
You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD,
And a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
It will no longer be said to you, "Forsaken,"
Nor to your land will it any longer be said, "Desolate";
But you will be called, "My delight is in her,"
And your land, "Married";
For the LORD delights in you,
And to Him your land will be married.
For as a young man marries a virgin,
So your sons will marry you;
And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,
So your God will rejoice over you.
Do you see the power of that? Do you see it happening in this moment when Jesus meets Peter? Do you see it in Andrew, in John before him? I will not keep quiet righteousness and salvation burn bright in this city, such that every eye can see! Wow! Can I just say this? Isaiah is still holding by this. He is still not silent after all these centuries because the city of man still needs to hear him. It speaks to the city in me today. And look at the promise borne by his words! You will be called by a new name. I will be called by a new name. “You were born Simon, the hearer, but I name you Peter, the rock.” You were born Jacob, the trickster, but I name you Israel, God prevails. You were born forsaken, but I name you My delight. You have made your land desolate by your incessant sins, but I rename it the land of My delight.
You have walked as one steeped in sin, dedicated to sin, but I tell you that nations will see your righteousness, and the rulers of the nations will know of your glory, which is My glory. What a wonderful thing to know that God has declared “I will give you a new name!” I recall that, in looking at the births of John and of Jesus, God took a preemptive step, and named them from the start. He took for Himself the right of authority over these two from the moment of conception, indeed, even before conception. We are children of God by rebirth, and in that moment of our rebirth, God has once again taken to Himself the right of authority over us. He has, in that very moment, declared a new name over us, just as He did with Peter. He has fulfilled that prophecy of Isaiah’s over each one of us, and now speaks of us as He speaks of His Son, “My delight!”
The result promised in this passage seems so utterly impossible from this vantage point. God will rejoice over us like a bridegroom rejoices in his bride? How can that be? Look at me! What is there in me to rejoice over? There is nothing! Yet, it is the very promise of God that there shall be in me that which delights Him. There shall be in me a completed work, a perfecting, a glorious righteousness so full and complete and bright that the blindest of eyes, the eyes of the powerful, will see and know that here is one in whom God delights. Here is the bride of Christ. Yes, and so powerful is His renaming that not only will I be changed by it, not only will you be changed by His new name for you, but the city itself, the very nation, will be changed!
Can you imagine it? Think back on the real revivals that have occurred in the past. The Great Awakening here in America changed the nation. Our modern historians will downplay that, to be sure, but the fact remains. The Great Awakening was the fuel of the American Revolution, and wound its way through the foundations of the country. What of the Welsh revival? A nation was changed, and the world has heard of it! What of the church born in the days after Jesus’ Ascension? An Empire, the whole of the western world at the time, was changed, the gods of Rome and Greece fell by the wayside. The promotion of man as god fell by the wayside. There was only God in heaven, and we His children.
There is one more question that comes with all the questions I have been asking myself of late. What am I known as? That’s a two-fold question. There is, of course, the aspect that relates to what I have been looking at most directly here. If I am indeed God’s child, if He is truly at work in me, then the things Isaiah speaks must be mine. Before my change can change the city, it must change me. Before righteousness can shine from the towns around me, it must shine from me personally. To those around me, then, what am I known as? Am I just one of the boys? Am I just another like themselves? I am sure that for many who know me outside the walls of the church, the answer is probably yes. But, thanks be to God, there’s a second piece of that question, one that trumps the world’s viewpoint. When God looks at me, in His eyes what am I known as? There the answer is so sweet! For, the I AM has changed my name! He has renewed my mind, resurrected my life of death from sin unto a new life of life by righteousness. He has given me a new name, declared His joy in me, and given me in that name the greatest honor I can ask for among men, for He has looked upon me and said, “you are My delight!” That is what He knows me as, and that is really all that matters. He looks upon me, the bride of His beloved Son, and as the Bride of His Delight, I, too, and His delight.
There is, in this revelation, a power. It is the power to become manifestly delightful in Him. He has changed my name, and because He has changed it, I am assured that my life will change to align with that name. It took time, but Jacob grew into his new name. It took time, but Simon grew into Peter. It will take time, but cautious me will grow into manifest witness. It will take time, and it will take the power of the Holy Spirit working within me. It will take the promise of God, but because it truly is the promise of God, I rest in the assurance that it will be done. He who works in me to will and to work will see to it, and gladly do I join my will to His. Oh! That the work might be done swiftly in me! Oh! That I might be joined together with others like me, that we may spur each other on in that growth!
