Month: October 2023

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Jesus’ little brother pulls no punches.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone?” ‭‭James‬ ‭2‬:‭14‬ ‭NLT‬‬

You don’t want to belief-spar with James, Jesus’ brother. He watched the gospel become the fulfillment of God’s plan from the inside out. What was it like being the little brother to Jesus? Did Jesus prank James? Hide dead bugs in his bed? Tell Mary what James was really up to at a “friend’s house”? James didn’t believe his brother was the Messiah until after the resurrection! Did James seriously think Jesus was holding out for the long con?

I’ve often thought about James’ book and it’s hard-hitting, guilt-triggering truth! James grew up watching Jesus say a lot of stuff about God and about himself. But I can tell, James also watched Jesus physically follow through with every one of his beliefs, sermons and promises. Jesus said what he was going to do and he did it! There’s an old axiom that actions speak louder than words, I can guarantee, Jesus lived a very loud life.

James’ crystal-clear clarity message: faith absolutely translates into behavior. And if it doesn’t… it’s a dead, worthless faith to hold on to. “So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.” James‬ ‭2‬:‭17‬. Ouch! James also speaks the truth, calling out the nonsense between conservative and liberal practics. Conservatives say, it’s what you think, believe and talk about. Liberals say, it’s what you do, live, rally and physically take part in. One gives money, the other gives time. I know that’s exaggerated, but either way – James declares, it’s both and! He writes, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” Nonsense – James says.

This connection, this necessity, is so vital that James compares the air in our lungs to the requirement of life itself, writing, “Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.” Good works, applying the truths and principles of God’s Word through service, love and behavioral application is the very air of our faith.

This challenges me to constantly translate what I read, hear and learn from the Bible directly into obedience and action. If I spend my life only hearing, only reading, only listening to Bible preachers and podcasts and never DO WHAT IT SAYS, Jesus himself said, I’ve just built a really nice life completely on the sand! First storm and it all comes crashing down. Faith without works becomes the curse of a shabby build, maybe it looks pretty but it’s not sustainably secure.

Prayer

Dad,
So the real struggle here is not how much of your Word I can quote and cram into my brain, it’s how much of your Word can I apply, can I obey, can I put to work to change my behavior, get my hands dirty in serving – right? Am I missing something? I love Your Word! It didn’t just save me it SAVES me. I love learning more about you, your character, your will, your ways. But if I am not careful to work out obedience and service seeing physical changes in my behavior, then what happens to your Living Word in my heart and life? If I don’t yield, doesn’t my heart harden? If I don’t obey, doesn’t it turn bitter in my soul? There seems to be a stern warning about how I handle the Word of truth, letting it work in me and through me rather than just storing up quotable knowledge like a spiritual wikipedia. Help me yield, obey, change and put your Word to work! Amen.

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Rule Followers?

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“These are the commands, decrees, and regulations that the Lord your God commanded me to teach you. You must obey them in the land you are about to enter and occupy, and you and your children and grandchildren must fear the Lord your God as long as you live. If you obey all his decrees and commands, you will enjoy a long life.”‭‭ Deuteronomy‬ ‭6‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Alright, I can admit this right up front. I’m not a great rule follower. I try to justify it by my own origin story being a chaotic mess, our blended-family lacking the basics of safety, consistency and definitely boundaries. At some point I had to face reality – rules, laws and boundaries are good and I missed out and messed up by not understanding that. It didn’t help much that before Jesus, I had no guilt triggers either.

There are so many lessons to be learned from these books of the law. One big one, God, being the creator, gets to set the rules. We, as the created, do not. That’s a hard one for us. In our humanness there is a massive, “I get to be my own god” syndrome. The other huge lesson is so practical, so pragmatic – if we obey, we will enjoy a long life. I guess it’s parenthetic that we don’t agree with God on what the “good life” looks like.

I look at the ten commandments from my past non-churchgoer perspective. They are not that hard to understand or obey. It seems the biggest issue is a perceived loss of autonomy. For example, God says, “take a day off and give it a rest,” to which we say, “I don’t want to.” Just below these demands to obedience comes an even stricter law – “Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.” Notice both the absolute, declarative truth – The Lord IS our God, the Lord ALONE,” and the following mandate… “you MUST.” God was not gentle parenting here! There was no, “I would suggest,” or “It’s in your best interest to.” And, we find no echo from God’s children (Israel) asking… “WHY God?” Isn’t it obvious? Because God said so!

I think God puts up with plenty of “why’s” from us, and He is so long suffering and patient towards us. “Why did I get cancer?,” “Why did he leave me?,” “Why did my child die?,” “Why don’t you give me a house, car, job, money, or success?” Ask away, no problem. But on the matter of who God is and will He be shared with other fake deities? Absolutely not.

There are far more than just boundaries and truth in these rules that come from the character of who God is. There is safety, security, hope, love, assurance and complete confidence in our obedience to God. Would you really want God to be more like us? For God to be duplicitous, fickle, selfish and ultimately undependable? That’s just silly. We need God to be God over all, over everything – over us. And, we need to quit pretending that our versions of God would be much better. God knows what He’s doing, so let Him do it – ultimately it’s in our favor!

Prayer

Dad,
Even knowing your ways are above my own. Even knowing your will is right and good, beyond my own understanding and expectation. Even knowing that, I still see rebellion rising within me. I still feel the tug of sin which is determined to find a different way, a better way, a faster way to get what I want, when want it. I want to obey, but I struggle in submitting to your way of doing life! Help me, Oh Lord. Forgive me, Oh God. Your way, your will, be done in me and through me.

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Perfect plans

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“No human wisdom or understanding or plan can stand against the Lord.” Proverbs‬ ‭21‬:‭30‬ ‭NLT‬‬

There is both comfort and mystery in this Proverb. It is a mind-boggling proposition to think of the entirety of human existence and total creation of all that exists being examined, challenged or micro-managed from our limited vantage point. Actually, it’s hubris to imagine that we could even begin to understand it. These concepts come under huge words like omniscience, omnipresent, and omnipotent – all knowing, all present and all powerful. The sovereignty of God!

These are big words to understand by us as eternal beings, who are very limited to our physical experience here on earth as created beings. God’s full foreknowledge of everything from OUR physical beginning to our physical end is nearly impossible for us to grasp. Super smart folks can think about someone or something outside of time itself, because time is also a created construct, but honestly, I can’t.

God being above or outside of all creation, means that everything is NOW. All our past is now, our present is now and our future is now. And, I’m not talking about my past, present and future, I’m talking about all of creation! Right there, just thinking about God being outside of time gives a glimpse of the mystery of this proverb. No human “anything” can stand against the Lord. And, neither can any other created thing or being stand against the Lord – even created angels for example. Angels, Satan being one of those, are created beings! They are not omni anything. This word, sovereignty, has been argued about and misapplied for eons! Does God’s foresight and foreknowledge mean that He made it happen – that God determined that it happen? That’s the big question of God’s sovereignty versus humans free will. The theological understanding of eternal security verses human choice or the ability to not believe nor submit to God’s will is a difficult conundrum. This paradox appears to look like God predetermined His acceptance of some and rejection of others.

You should see how this verse touches on this very old argument about God’s sovereignty! If God’s will is that you be saved, can you reject Him? If God’s will is that you be rejected, can you be saved? Hard huh? There are whole groups of people, whole denominations, that are oppositional on this very thing. And they’ve been arguing, disagreeing and divisive about it for hundreds of years.

Where am I on this? What do I believe? I believe in God’s total sovereignty! There’s no way I see the Bible declaring anything contrary. However, I believe in foreknowledge, God’s total knowledge of all things, all decisions. This does not mean that God forced, or made humans to decide one way or another. This comes up most often with two characters in the Bible, Pharaoh and Judas! Moses told us that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart and the gospels pretty much tell us that Judas was born to betray. Ah, but who knows the human heart and the decisions that those men made at the time. Only God knows that. Who’s to say that they made decisions against God’s will while God continued to convince them otherwise, right up the end of their life. Sooner or later, everyone who believes in God must reconcile this question of how God’s sovereignty works in our our lives beyond just salvation. It should also be settled in our everyday occurrences of pain and suffering. Is there determination behind our tragedies? Is there purpose in our loss and grief when unfathomable evil snatches our loved ones from this planet? I have settled such questions, have you?

Prayer

Dad,
I am thankful that I have only had to settle two big thoughts about your sovereignty. One, I believe you are always right, true and just. And two, I believe I can trust you no matter what circumstances or culture says about who you are. You have always been good and faithful in my life and I have no reason to doubt you in my future.

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Dabblers in darkness

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“At the foot of the mountain, a large crowd was waiting for them. A man came and knelt before Jesus and said, “Lord, have mercy on my son. He has seizures and suffers terribly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. So I brought him to your disciples, but they couldn’t heal him.” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭17‬:‭14‬-‭16‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Oh, you can bet the enemy, the liar, seducer, the diabolos, is coming for our children! Mark’s gospel does a better job giving the context of this explosive story. There’s a high moment on the mountain and there’s the devil waiting when you come down the hill! It happens almost every time God is working in us at high moments, when we are winning.

A crowd had already gathered and there was a lot of commotion because a father had brought his child to the disciples for help and the demon inside this boy was manifesting – that’s what they call it today. The demon was acting out what its intentions are for every human who would fall prey to its seduction – pain, suffering and a complete lack of control over our minds and bodies. But how did it get into an innocent child, this young boy? I believe that someone allowed it or even invited in!

The father seems most likely because, in Mark, he’s willing to admit his boy was his responsibility and he didn’t protect him. In fact, it maybe possible that the community let this young man down by intentionally inviting evil to be a part of their town. Jesus, perceiving there was much more going on said, “How long has this been happening?” Jesus asked the boy’s father. He replied, “Since he was a little boy.” (Mark‬ ‭9‬:‭21‬). I believe there were adults that failed to protect the child and likely explored dark and evil practices that opened a door to a very nasty spiritual realm. No matter how it happened or who was responsible, there was a young boy now suffering.

Jesus was irritated by evil perpetrating the innocent and the lack of adult faith to deal with it. Jesus was looking for the tiniest bit of faith, and couldn’t find it. Had evil consumed all hope? Had fear vanquished all belief? The town was stunned and the disciples were stumped. Jesus’ righteous indignation rose in anger as his time on earth was coming to an end, He said, “You faithless and corrupt people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? The word Matthew uses for corrupt is interesting. The word is diastrephó: thoroughly turned. Jesus called out their distorted, twisted, perverted practices. There was definitely something else going on behind this seemingly “random” act of possession! The town may have been filled with dabblers in darkness.

Also, when Jesus says he “puts up with,” the word is anechó: to hold up, bear with. Jesus tells them I won’t be here long to “suffer with you” in these kind of attacks on humanity. The community was in pain, the boy’s dad was in pain and the child was definitely in pain – but Jesus was also in pain! If you’ve ever had a friend continue to invite evil into their life, if you’ve ever seen parents invite or allow evil into their home, you begin to understand how Jesus felt. It is crushingly painful. You feel helpless to fix or change the situation.

I believe the father had a change of heart when he asked Jesus to help him in his own unbelief. It wasn’t just a lack of faith to exorcise a demon, he needed a new faith to reconstruct his entire life! Jesus, please help those in unbelief! Help us to quit inviting evil into our homes, our schools and our cities.

Prayer

Dad,
Help us Oh Lord in our unbelief, our impatience, our impertinence, our corrupt, perverted attempts of reaching for evil to solve our sinfulness. We cry mercy! We repent and ask for forgiveness. For the sake of our children and the young among us – save us, rescue us from ourselves. Amen.

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Satisfying the cravings.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water. I have seen you in your sanctuary and gazed upon your power and glory. Your unfailing love is better than life itself; how I praise you! I will praise you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer. You satisfy me more than the richest feast. I will praise you with songs of joy.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭63‬:‭1‬-‭5‬ ‭NLT‬‬

David writes this psalm while running and hiding from the Mad King Saul, in the wilderness of Engedi. The scene in Samuel 24 is right out of Junior High textbook on funny things that happen in life. David and his men are using the caves as a hiding place, and they are deep into the protection of the mountain when Saul just happens to have his troops right outside. But then it turns into a dark comedy because Saul has to relieve himself and it’s not #1, it’s 💩 time. Where better to do your business than in a nice dark and quiet cave, right? And it’s perceived as SAFE.

Unbeknownst to Saul, his son-in-law/successor to the throne is already inside, probably whispering and giggling with the irony of the situation. David has the complete advantage to kill Saul, but refuses to do so. Instead he sneaks up and cuts off a piece of the king’s robe. I don’t know if the cave scene influenced this psalm, but it had to have boosted David’s faith in the middle of a dark season for him.

Instead of David writing about his hopes and dreams for a future as king and all the advantages that come with ruling a nation, he writes about a different longing. He writes about craving God’s presence. And he beautifully writes, “you satisfy me – MORE…” More than a feast. More than finding water in the desert. More than life itself! Can God satisfy the deepest desires of our human heart? We crave a lot of things! Our heart directs us to want things that are not good. Our heart is willing to accept fake knockoffs of experiences and substances to temporarily satisfy or to fill the holes of loneliness, love and loss. And, in those cheap exchanges, which never last, we find only guilt and shame. Shame because we know we reached for a substitute instead of searching for what’s real.

David in his deepest moments of trouble and an overwhelming sense of his lack of control reached for God! His soul reached out and found that God fills the holes, the gaps, the angst with His own presence. It is interesting that David discovered this overwhelming joy in the midst of uncertainty. Contrast that to his future decision when he had need of nothing – but sadly reached for something else, someone else. He saw Bathsheba and he took her. Strong in weakness and weak in strength, what a conundrum. God can satisfy our search in desperation, but can He can also satisfy when our search, our craving, is out of our sin?

Prayer

​Dad,
Searching for you when everything is dark and uncertain is one thing. And I know you are there to satisfy those fears, those agonizing moments of the unknown future. Those desperate times when our brains fill in the blanks with the worst possible outcomes. I know you satisfy, you calm, you center when I am filled with overwhelming emotions and fighting against the waves of a storm that continue to crash upon the shore of my soul.

However, just as critical, are the moments where my heart and mind drift and start seeking elsewhere, looking for something to fill my sin-cravings. Can I depend on you to fill and satisfy me then? I need you just as much when I turn from my disordered desires, and look to you for my deliverance, my rescue. In those moments I want to thirst for you and find joy in you. Thank you for your presence in both moments when I am lacking or distracted by lacking nothing.

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Ghosts of an ancient city.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a huge millstone. He threw it into the ocean and shouted, “Just like this, the great city Babylon will be thrown down with violence and will never be found again.” ‭‭Revelation‬ ‭18‬:‭21‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This very old, ancient city, shows up early in the Old Testament in Genesis 11 as Babel, and has echoes of its infamy all the way to the end of all things, in Revelation. Its original name means confusion, because God disrupted human language. Moses wrote, “Look!” he [God] said. “The people are united, and they all speak the same language. After this, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them!” (Vs.6). The power of common language and unity meant they could accomplish anything they wanted. What did they want? They wanted to live, build and create everything without God! The physical rebellion, fueled by sin and Satan would be enormous. Yet, God let the city and the geopolitical object lesson stand throughout time.

Babylon had many of the most wicked, tyrannical leaders of all time. Even up to 1986 in modern Iraq, Saddam Hussein tried to rebuild Babylon by building the main palace and surrounding courtyard, he did so in honor of the ancient leaders 3000 years before him. He clearly wanted to resurrect the power and purpose of the city.

All of this has been fully known that John saw and wrote about Babylon’s final destruction at the end of all days. Revelation spends a WHOLE CHAPTER warning us of why God despised the city, the epitome of evil. John wrote about the city’s reputation and exactly what it represented: “She has become a home for demons. She is a hideout for every foul spirit, a hideout for every foul vulture and every foul and dreadful animal. For all the nations have fallen because of the wine of her passionate immorality. The kings of the world have committed adultery with her. Because of her desires for extravagant luxury, the merchants of the world have grown rich.” Revelation‬ ‭18‬:‭2‬b-‭3‬ ‭NLT‬‬. This unbridled, unbounded lust for everything humanity sets up as success. This ultimate sin city of achieving and receiving everything the heart desires. All of which is fed, fueled and fulfilled by Satan and our own human appetite for SELF.

No wonder Babylon is seen as the Satan’s playground! It’s not so much the physical location as it is the spiritual identity this city represents. God tells John, it’s all going down to the depths of the ocean. All the parties, the dancing and music. All the spoils of rich rewards – “She bought great quantities of gold, silver, jewels, and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk, and scarlet cloth; things made of fragrant thyine wood, ivory goods, and objects made of expensive wood; and bronze, iron, and marble. She also bought cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, olive oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle, sheep, horses, wagons, and bodies—that is, human slaves.” It will all be tossed. Why? Are these items evil? Is it the singing, dancing, celebration with music and laughter that is evil? Yes, the enslavement of humans is clearly evil, but what about all that’s listed as the stuff humans like? What is so wrong about a city that fulfills all your wants and desires?

The city represents all that is promised OUTSIDE of God himself. It represents the gluttonous, selfish consumption of “good” in deference to God’s provision, life and blessings. The city represents the same old promise of all that we crave, completely lacking the fulfillment of true love, real life and especially God himself. Babylon is the lie of all lies, promising to bring fulfillment to life itself – without God. No matter how good it sounds, looks, smells or feels – its end is putrid emptiness.

Our modern life, our cool high-tech, fast paced, every desire celebrated culture is a giant city of Babylon. And it’s a massive cache of bitcoin that will vanish because it’s all fake. Read Revelation 11, see what John saw. It’s a lie that will be flushed and forgotten! Is God a buzzkill, a party crusher, a downer on happiness? Absolutely not! God just knows us, loves us and wants us to have the real thing – real joy, real peace, real love. It’s only found IN Him, not without Him.

Prayer

Dad,
Oh, that we would know You. Oh, that we could see the difference between fake and real, the difference between the city of Jerusalem and Babylon! One, the city of God, the other the home of demons. I am so thankful that you have given me life and all that is good. I am thrilled that you have forgiven, even forgotten my sin, my shame. I want my life to be 100% hidden in Christ and Him alone! Thank you.

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Extreme civil disobedience.

Reading Time: 4 minutes

“Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.” ‭‭Daniel‬ ‭3‬:‭16‬-‭18‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This is another famous story that children learned in Sunday School or summer VBS (vacation Bible School). These children’s learning opportunities were a hit in the era when school was cool.

What a scene right? 90 foot tall by 9 foot wide statue layered in GOLD! Wow. And, in all places to erect it – Babylon. The great city of Babylon – what a history, what an eerie future. A city, symbolic of human’s greatest accomplishments WITHOUT God.

A glorious moment for the globe’s most power leader at the time. Ruling for 43 years, Nebuchadnezzar was the longest-reigning king of the Chaldean dynasty. Being a world renowned dictator, it would not be unusual to have a massive statue built, nor would it be strange to have that statue worshipped in reverence for the king’s great power, wealth and influence. Israel’s disobedience led them into exactly what they seemed to desire so badly. They wanted to disobey God, wishing to be like other nations, wanting to worship images of wood, stone or even gold. Well, here’s the opportunity. Live it up for a 70 year timeout and think about the true God you abandoned! And

This was a big moment. The big statue was built and EVERYONE was commanded to bow! The band plays, the music is heard, all throughout the land, and the time comes for everyone to bow…. and worship the massive statue. But not everyone obeyed. Not everyone went along with the order. Three out of thousands decided they would not do it.

Three Jewish young men, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah (re-named Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego) knew the king’s command, heard the music, but would not bow. And they must have made it obvious because some snarky snitches, the local Chaldeans, ratted the men out to the king, saying “They pay no attention to you, Your Majesty. They refuse to serve your gods and do not worship the gold statue you have set up.” Daniel‬ ‭3‬:‭12‬. Nebuchadnezzar was furious, to the point that Daniel records, “he flew into a rage.”

The young men were brought in and the king asks them if it was true. He even gave them another chance – bow or be burned! I think it was something that the king said that may have strengthened the guys resolve. Nebuchadnezzar said, “I will give you one more chance to bow down and worship the statue I have made when you hear the sound of the musical instruments. But if you refuse, you will be thrown immediately into the blazing furnace. And then what god will be able to rescue you from my power?” It may have been that last question. The most powerful human on the planet at that time declared himself more powerful than the one true God, who created everything that exists! Neb believed that life and death was in his hands and that he could spare or destroy whom he pleases. These young men had enough wisdom to know that it was not true.

God had used this king to do His will and no power on heaven or earth can stop the will of God. The boys had decided they were going to take this all the way to their death if necessary. Neb thought they were calling his bluff. “Nebuchadnezzar was so furious with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that his face became distorted with rage. He commanded that the furnace be heated seven times hotter than usual.” It was so hot that the soldiers ordered to put the men in the furnace were killed instantly from the intense heat. Once INSIDE the massive kiln, they walked around until they were met by Jesus himself.

This is a powerful story reminding us of God’s power to sustain and protect, even in the most dire circumstances. However, the young men’s declaration still holds absolute truth today. It’s a difficult truth in our physical, finite understanding of life, but it is quite astounding when we think about eternity. Even if he doesn’t save us… we will never serve another! If I live, great! More time to do what God has called me to do. If I die, even better (The Apostle Paul reminds us)! For to live is Christ, to die is gain! Philippians 1:21.

Prayer

Dad,
Whew. What a story of faith and resolve at such a young age! Even being raised in captivity, with their names changed, new lives, new jobs, new friends, they still recognized you as their One True God. And what a story they had to tell. Their simple act of civil disobedience eventually led to Neb’s declaration of who you are and even his mental collapse trying to reconcile your power with his real purpose as king. Even Neb discovered who was really in control! Wild thoughts for today’s culture and the ridiculous arrogance among our political, educational, health and science leaders – thinking they have the power to control life and death.

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Who moved the truth?

Reading Time: 2 minutes

“Justice is a joy to the godly, but it terrifies evildoers.” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭21‬:‭15‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Justice, like truth, seems to be a matter of opinion, a perspective. The wisdom writers didn’t have an “open source,” public opinion, social media slant on justice. Wrong was wrong, right was right. Cheating the poor – wrong. Lying for gain – wrong. Bullying and beating the oppressed – wrong. Murder, theft, rape – wrong, wrong, wrong.

The only reason that justice and truth have been blurred or distorted are because some in our culture refuse to acknowledge the God behind such realities. No God – anything goes. No God – no one is right and no one is wrong. There’s only noise, violence and protests. Loud and proud do not equate to justice or truth.

Justice is joy to the godly because there is a judge, an arbitrator who is perfect – always, right, true and yes, JUST. It is terrifying to evil because it strips away the thin veneer of selfishness and ill-gotten gain. Of course, every human wants what we want and do not want anyone or anything to tell us NO, or cross us with the reality that we are wrong!

There is that one creepy story in 1 Kings 3, where Solomon has to judge a difficult decision. Two women, one living child and one dead child. Two stories, both claiming the living child is theirs. No other witnesses, no DNA test – just two plausible stories of what happened on the night in question. Truth seemed to favor BOTH stories, both women. How can that be? Both women are yelling – the living child is mine! Are both telling the truth? The woman whose child died in the night certainly is in pain and now her truth becomes a boldfaced lie. If the living child is going to be raised by one or the other, should it be the real mother or the liar? You know the story. Solomon asks for a sword and tells both women, he will equally give them half a dead child! Done, settled. Both lose a life, but it’s fair, right? Of course the real mother wants her child to live over the other mother’s perceived truth. The real mother speaks first, “please don’t kill my son, give him to her!” The other mother then speaks, “go ahead cut the child in half, that way we both lose.” Solomon gives the child to the real mother and justice is served. Along with it, the godly, those who do right, want to live right rejoice at the decision. Evil would probably rather have seen the child divided to satisfy the “fairness” of the situation. Life is cheap and worthless to evil! If I want to see who believes in justice all I have to do is see who is loud about ideals not caring about the loss of life. True justice should terrify evildoers, because it exposes their lies.

Prayer

Dad,
It is difficult to discuss right and wrong and justice in a world where people have decided that truth is an opinion, a perspective. I ache for your final judgment only for the sake of seeing absolute justice and for all our lies to be exposed. There will be joy and terror in those days. Help us O’ Lord, pour out your Spirit of Truth and give us the chance to make things right with you before that day comes.

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The experience of a lifetime

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“But even as he spoke, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy. Listen to him.” The disciples were terrified and fell face down on the ground. Then Jesus came over and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” And when they looked up, Moses and Elijah were gone, and they saw only Jesus.” Matthew‬ ‭17‬:‭5‬-‭8‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This powerful episode, this transfiguration, takes place high up on the mountain. A transfiguration is, “a complete change of form or appearance into something more beautiful or spiritual.” We would use a similar word, “transformed.”

Matthew tells us that this is what happened on the mountain when Jesus took three of his closest friends (the minimum for number of witnesses in legal matters) with him to pray. How did Matthew know what happened? He interviewed Peter as an eyewitness.

As Jesus’ physical appearance rapidly changed, his face and clothing bursting with blinding white, two other figures also appear in that moment. Two super, well known characters from the Old Testament – Moses and Elijah. The whole scene is reminiscent of the high mountain moments that took place on Sinai. The presence of God had clearly descended on that place. Jesus, Moses and Elijah are having a conversation, like it was normal, you know, old friends catching up after not seeing each other for 1600 years! The three disciples, Peter, James and John are just standing there, taking it all in. Peter, of course, has to say something, offering to build some temporary tents for the three to have an extended time of fellowship if they so desired. Mark’s gospel adds, “he didn’t know what to say.” Jesus doesn’t respond. But then the cloud comes down.

This descending cloud is directly connected to when God came down on the first tabernacle (Exodus 33:9) and filled the house of the Lord on the dedication of the Temple” (1Kings 8:10). It was, in later Jewish language, described as the “Shechinah” glory of God’s presence. It was a holy moment. It was also a difficult moment to process for the disciples. This friend of theirs, Jesus, was indeed the messiah. But they could not wrap their brains around the concept of what the messiah would be and do according to everything they had been taught about him. Their understanding did not match these experiences. Jesus had proven that He is God through miracles. He had proven that He had all power and authority over ALL things! And now this supernatural moment just put it over the top. And yet, Jesus had already told them he was to die, resurrect, then leave?

In this moment on the mount, these three average guys are experiencing something no one else could even dream of – a meeting with Jesus, two famous Prophets and God-the-Father’s voice coming out of an ominous CLOUD! What’s the protocol for such situations? What does one do when in the middle of a supernatural, other-world event, taking place right in front of you? You fall! You bow! You make yourself as low as possible and stay that way until someone tells you different. You don’t peek! You don’t look at your friends to see what they’re doing. You flatten down, shut up and be very, very still – like you’re dead! Being terrified doesn’t even begin to capture the emotions of that moment. Think about this, when the Apostle Paul says, “every knee will bow and tongue confess,” this moment describes why. Humans won’t bow and confess, being forced to do so. It will be the natural response to complete and utter realization of who Jesus is! Jesus touches them so they can get back up.

This whole experience must have been so overwhelming for the three apostles, Peter, James and John. It did not however, prevent them from having future doubts, questions and even failures! It would be a mistake to think that spiritual high-points are somehow the answer or “fix” to our problems. It didn’t happen then, it’s not going to happen today! The deep patterns of a spiritual life are still the same, denying ourselves, being obedient to pick up the cross of Christ and follow Jesus daily. When we fail, we confess, repent and get back at it.

Prayer

Dad,
It is so hard for me to imagine experiencing something so powerful, so profound, so supernatural. It would take me forever to even process an event like this. Even so, I would completely expect my life to not just be changed, but that I would never again wrestle with doubt, faith or even sin! Ah, but they did, and I realize… so would I. I need your grace and mercy all the way to the end! I need your forgiveness and patience my whole life through. I am grateful for your long-suffering love.

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Livin’ La Vida Loca

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears. Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow of shame will darken their faces. In my desperation I prayed, and the Lord listened; he saved me from all my troubles. For the angel of the Lord is a guard; he surrounds and defends all who fear him.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭34‬:‭4‬-‭7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin recorded that song in 1999. According to Bible Scholars, Psalm 34 is a psalm of David, regarding the time he pretended to be insane in front of King Achish, who sent him away.

If there is one thing we have to admit about David, shepherd to hero to criminal to King, he led a very interesting life for the 70 years he lived. David lived the crazy life in ancient days! The rollercoaster ride from obscurity to oligarchy, then crashing back down to some serious dysfunctional family problems – what a journey. He had seen all facets of humanity.

David was a scrapper – self-willed, determined, persistent and completely authentic in his missteps and mistakes. In this psalm, David centers himself by looking up, praying to God when he was trapped, cornered, and this time he runs to an enemy king, King Achish, to escape King Saul. But first he goes to Ahimelech the priest and lies to him, saying he’s on a secret mission for Saul.

David and his men are desperately hungry and defenseless. David begs the priest for a weapon, anything will do. Interestingly enough the only weapon was the famous Giant’s sword that David used to decapitate Goliath! Read it for yourself in 1 Samuel 21. David takes off and heads to Gath (the land of the giant warriors) and tries to seek protection with an enemy king, King Achish of Gath, but as David is making his pitch to Achish, he feels that something is off and decides to pretend that he’s mental, crazy, out of his mind! So he starts scratching on doors and drooling down his beard. Achish buys the ruse, saying, “Must you bring me a madman? We already have enough of them around here! Why should I let someone like this be my guest?” What a crack-up! David and his men escape with their lives.

It is in this wild, absurdity of life on the run that David writes about – God freeing him, rescuing him, saving him from all the calamities that life can bring. It is yet another HONEST Psalm David brings. As we read it, it sounds so determined, so encouraging, so hopeful. Remember, it was written after experiencing pure CHAOS.

This always comforts me. Knowing that these words were not written by a monk, in peaceful bliss of seclusion, surrounded by silence and mountaintop beauty. No, it was written in the most insane moments of how crazy life can get! Is your life crazy right now? Do you feel like you need to feign insanity to escape a really bad situation, a relationship, a job, a debt, an illness? David gets it. God gets YOU and me. Cry out in desperation like David did. Pray, and God will listen and come to your rescue! Let Jesus, THE Angel of the Lord, guard you with peace that passes our comprehension. Shalom Shalom.

Prayer

Dad,
I’m the middle of crazy and chaos, you are here. When all that surrounds me seems to close in, suffocating my perceptions and ability to feel safe and be at peace, you bring your presence. Let my face be radiant with Joy as David wrote. And, let there be no shadows of shame on my face because of your brilliant grace that shines on me.