Do you Trust God in the Graveyard?

    We love it when God visits the graveyard.  In Ezekiel 37, the prophet has a vision in which he is standing in a valley littered with human remains.  Bones, to be exact.  The bodies have long ago decayed and fed the buzzards, and now the bones have been scattered by the wind and baked dry by the sun.  The Lord asks the question “can these bones live again?”  As Ezekiel preaches, the Holy Spirit moves through the valley and the bones reconnect, muscle and tissue form, skin covers the corpses, and a strong wind fills their lungs.  God tells Ezekiel “I will open the graves of My people.”

    In John 11, Jesus visits a graveyard in Bethany.  He finds his friend Lazarus has died and was buried four days prior.  He visits the cemetary and asks the stone be removed from the tomb’s opening.  Over the protests of the family, the grave is opened.  Now the stage is set.  With tears streaming down his face, the burdened heart of our Lord sighs, then prays.  A loud voice then pierces the eerie silence “Lazarus. Come Forth!”  The formerly dead man walked out of his grave.

    We love it when God visits the graveyard.  It means we’ll live again.  It means hope isn’t gone.  It means the love we lost can be found again.  We love it when He visits the graveyard.

    But do you trust Him to stay in the graveyard?  In Exodus 32 Moses comes off the mountain with the Law in his hand.  His heart is broken and his spirit enraged as he see the people have turned themselves over to idolatry.  They’ve built an idol – a golden calf – and named it Jehovah.  They now worship and sacrifice to it.  Moses destroys the idol, and then God brings judgment.  By the days end, Moses has to dig 3,000 graves.

    The very next morning Moses goes to the Lord and begins to pray.  God tells him to lead the people to another place and Moses replied “I will not go if Your presence doesn’t go with us.”  Wait. What?

    Did Moses just say he would stay in the graveyard, surrounded by 3,000 monuments of failure, sin and shame, if it meant staying in the presence of God?  Did he just say that he’d forsake the natural tendency to flee from trouble, if it meant he also had to leave the comforting presence of God?  Yes, I believe he did.  God’s presence was there, and that mattered more to Moses than anything else.  If God were going to hang around the graveyard and never do anything special, Moses was still going to stay by Him.

    Sometimes we want to live life and bring God along.  We want things to be ‘just right’, and we want God to visit us.  But what if we find God’s presence amidst a trial, or in a hurtful time?  Should we rush away from that place because it’s painful, or should we linger where we find His presence, gleaning all of His comfort, peace and assurance?  Don’t be in a hurry to rush away from God because you don’t like the place you found Him.  God can be trusted even in the graveyard.

Our Blessed Hope

(Note: sorry it’s been so long since my last update.  In addition to being a husband, father and pastor, I’m also a full-time college student and this semester has been rather strenuous.  Only 4 more weeks until a much-needed summer break.)

We wait for the blessed hope – the glorious appearing of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ… Titus 2:13 (NIV)

One of the leading scientific theories concerning the origins of man is that we originated among the heavens.  The theory goes that all the heavy elements (anything heavier than helium) could have only been produced in the core of burning hot stars.  The stars which cooked up the elements then went supernova, spewing the ingredients of life across the galaxy.  Famed astronomer Carl Sagan once said “we are star stuff”.  More arrogantly, Lawrence Krauss proclaimed “forget Jesus, the stars died so you can be here today”.

This isn’t a science blog and I’m not a scientist.  If I tried to argue physics and astronomy and biology I’d quickly get in waters over my head.  However, I can’t help but notice how science has come to the complete opposite conclusion as the Word of God.  Evolution teaches that our past was in the heavens, our present is on earth, and our future is in the dirt.  The Bible teaches our past was in the dust, our present is on earth, and our future in heaven.

In Genesis, God took a handful of dust, formed a body and breathed the breath of life, and then placed that man into the Garden of Eden.  It’s been suggested that creation mirrors salvation, and if that’s true then we can see a pattern set in the creation of man: God calls us out of the world, puts His life in us, and brings us to fellowship with Him (isn’t this what happens when we’re filled with the Holy Spirit?).  Now, what could inspire more hope, encouragement and contentment than knowing that one day He will again repeat this process?

“For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.  After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.  and so shall we be with the Lord forever.  Therefore encourage each other with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 (NIV)

My hope is not in this world, but it’s founded upon the certain return of my Savior.  He came and ransomed my soul and left us.  He now indwells those who’ve placed their faith in Him by repenting of their sins, been baptized in His name and willfully accepting Him (Acts 2:38).  And He will come again to catch away His church.   His return isn’t a source of fear and dread for me, but rather a welcomed blessing.  All my hope is resting upon the certainty of this advent.  Where is yours?

Be blessed.

Where’s your Determination lie?

It’s a simple fact that the most successful people are the ones who show the greatest level of drive and determination.  Lazy, half-hearted and careless people don’t usually go far in life.  Determination is a must have quality, even in our walk with God.

The people used most mightly of God in the Bible had determination, and it’s easy to see that.  Moses displayed extraordinary determination.  He stood before the most powerful king on earth and demanded that he free his slaves.  He led the people of God when they didn’t want to leave Egypt.  He led them when they want ed to go back.  He led them when they didn’t believe they had anywhere to go.  He led them when they sinned.  He led them when they murmured and complained.  Moses was a determined leader.

David displayed determination.  1Samuel tells us he fought a lion and a bear.  He killed a giant.  He raised an army and countless times defeated the Philisines.  He recaptured the land stolen during Saul’s reign. He fought all Israel’s enemies.  David was often victorious.  David was a determined soldier.

Paul showed remarkable determination in preaching the Gospel.  In 2 Corinthians 11 Paul gives us an overview of the struggles he faced while preaching.  Shipwrecked three times, marooned on an island, beaten, stoned, jailed, falsely accused, ran out of towns, robbed, and mistreated.  He went without food, without water, without adequate shelter and clothing all so he could carry the Gospel.

But was Moses simply determined to be a leader? David a warrior? Paul a preacher?  Or did their determination run deeper?  I suspect it did.

Henrews 11:26 tells us Moses “was looking ahead to his great reward.”  The root of David”s determination is given in Psalms 27:4 (NLT): “The one thing I ask of the LORD–the thing I seek most–is to live in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, delighting in the LORD’s perfections and meditating in his Temple”.  Paul famously told the church in Corinth “For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.”

If Moses was simply determined to lead Israel, he might have quit after the turned on him.  If David was only determined to win battles, he might have given up when he lost a few.  If Paul was only determined to preach he surely would have stopped after his many misfortunes.  However, they desired to discover God’s rewards, live in His presence, and know Him.  If we can change our determination from “I must not fail” to “I must know Him” we to can overcome great obstacles and be used greatly by God.

Be Blessed

“These Aren’t My Plans”

Have you ever looked at your life and wondered “how’d this happen? I didn’t think this kind of thing happened to Christians. How did my life fall apart? How did I lose my job? my house? my spouse? If God loves me, why does my life no longer make sense?”

I think we all have. A few years ago a change in my work and income situation culminated with my house being foreclosed. We were stunned, as we expected and hoped God would change our situation. But He didn’t, and we had to make a decision “do we move forward trusting Him, or give up?” We moved forward, but all the while we said “this wasn’t in my plans”.

Reading Hebrews chapter 11 – the Heroes of Faith – I can’t help but think that many of them also thought “these aren’t my plans”. Abraham was promised to be the father of a great nation which would bless the world, so he left wealth and comfort. But instead of prosperity, he had a dysfunctional, blended family. Joseph had a dream that people bowed before him, but instead of authority he found himself a slave and falsely accused prisoner. Moses knew he would be instrumental in freeing God’s people, yet when he tried he made a mess of it. He ended up a fugitive for forty years. Gideon heard God’s promise of victory, but he watched his mighty army shrink to just 300 men. David slew a giant and was anointed king, then spent the next decade running for his life.

Time and again the people of God went from something good to something bad, but it was so God could lead them to something great! Next time you find yourself saying “these aren’t my plans”, take comfort in the fact that God is planning your tomorrow, and it will be great.

Be blessed,

The Advantage of a Disadvantage

Fear thou not, for I am with thee: be not dismayed, for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee, yea I will uphold thee…they that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought.  For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee “Fear not, for I will help thee” Isaiah 41:10; 12-13

Here God is assuring the prophet that when the enemy arises against us, God would calm our fears, increase our strength, provide us victory, and hold our hand.  Pretty reassuring and encouraging stuff, to say the least.  But as I read this I had a question: if I’m fighting a war, why would God hold my right hand?

Ninety percent of all people are right handed (Klass, 2011).  So if I’m engaging my enemy in a fight I should want my right hand free, to swing a sword and chunk a spear, right?  I mean,. it would put me at a terrible disadvantage to bind my right hand as I fight, wouldn’t it?  It would nearly assure my defeat, because I’d give the enemy such a large advantage.

Not at all! “For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds” (2Cor 10:4, ASV).  When God holds my fighting hand I have a supreme advantage: God must then fight for me!

The apparent disadvantage of having my fighting hand bound is that I can’t fight the enemy.  The advantage is God’s hand isn’t bound, and the One whose never known defeat will come to my defense.  Don’t think “God’s holding me back”, but instead “God’s got my back”.

Blessings,

Battlefield Priest

Reference:

Klass, P. (2011), On the left hand there are no easy answers. New York Times, March 6, 2011

Redefining ‘Treasure’

“The Kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys the field” Matthew 13:44, NKJV

  The verse above contains what’s often called the Parable of the Treasure in the Field.  I don’t know how many times I’ve read it and heard preachers reference it, but every time it’s explained to me it’s been like this: The treasure is salvation and once we find it we forsake all and embrace God.  But is that really it?  Did I forsake all before I embraced Him?  Surely I repented, but I didn’t empty myself of possessions and divorce myself of everything I found meanigful, did I?  I’m looking at it and I’m seeing something else…

  A few verses before this parable Jesus is explaining another parable and He says “The field is the world” (v38).  If that holds true for this parable then I think it goes something like this: The kingdom of Heaven is like this – there was a treasure in the world, and God saw that treasure and wanted it.  So God rid Himself of everything He had; He humbled Himself (Phil 2:7), robed Himself in flesh (1Tim 3:16), entered this world and joyfully purchased the treasure with His own blood (1Peter 1:19).  But what’s the treasure?

  You!  God made humanity and pronounced it was “very good” (Gen 1:31), but we soon fell into sin.  But it didn’t change the value He assigned us.  God looks at you and still sees a treasure.  Every life is important.  Every life has value.  Though sin has robbed many lives of their beauty, it has not diminished their worth.  God purchases broken lives because they are treasures still.  He buys hearts filled with shame and regret because they are valuable to Him.  He wants to restore them to His image.  Your life is a treasure.

  I encourage you today to face your problems with this truth: I’m a treasure purchased by God, and He will not allow His investment to be stolen, squandered or spent!

Who’s Afraid of the Boogyman?

“For God hath not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” 2Tim 1:7, KJV

There is an enemy who desires you great injury.  He wants to harm you, enslave you, kill you.  His purpose is to steal, kill and destroy.  He hates your soul.  He lies to you.  He entices you to sin, and when you do he doesn’t reward you but condemns you.  If given the oppurtunity, he would destroy your family, your life and your body.  He wants your soul to burn eternally in hell, along with him.  Of course I’m talking about Satan.

He isn’t a red cartoon character with goat horns and a pitch fork.  He is likened to a lion, a thief and a murderer.  Jesus called him a slave master.  He was created as an angel, and as such he was made higher than men.  Paul said he was the prince of the air.  He has power over his kingdom and over his minions. He’s bad and he knows it.

However, he isn’t all-powerful; not by a long shot.  He is subject to the Name of Jesus (Mark 16:17; Phil 2:10).  He’s subject to the truth (James 2:19).  And there’s something else he’s subject to…

The Bible records that on the sixth day of creation “God created man in His Own image; in the image of God He created him… Then God blessed them, and God said unto them ‘Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it, have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves upon the earth” (NKJV).

God gave Adam and Eve – and by proxy all their descendants - dominion over the earth.  But not just the earth, He gave us authority over the things that move upon the earth.  What moves upon the earth?  Satan does.  In Job 1:7 God asks the devil where he’s been.  He replies “from going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it” (NKJV).

As the image bearers of God we were given power over the devil.  When we receive His Spirit we are restored to His image, and therefore, we’re restored to our position of power over Satan.  Every time he comes against you, he’s walking in a place you have dominion over.  Every time he tempts you, he’s in a position of weakness; he’s in a place he has no power in.  Remember the next time he comes against you, you don’t have to be afraid of him.  You have the upper hand in every encounter!

God hasn’t given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and understanding.  Be blessed and encouraged,

Battlefield Priest