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Tuesday Devotional: John 2

Devotional

Read John 2:1-11bible

All the miracles of Jesus Christ, while differing in context, exhibit similarities.  First, they address an immediate need.  In a culture where wedding celebrations were often a weeklong affair, preparation for entertainment that lasted the duration was paramount for the host families.  Failing to provide for the wedding guests throughout the celebrations would be a humiliation and embarrassment.  Although it appears that Jesus had no intention on displaying his power and glory at this point in time, he was aware of was the present situation and the need for assistance.  In the same way that the heart of Jesus went out to the widow who had just lost her son in Luke 7:11-17, his heart went out to the families facing this humiliation, and he acted.  Jesus never sought self-protection or self-glorification.  With every miracle he brought more attention to himself as the Messiah, which was a claim punishable by death.  After many of his miracles he instructed the healed to not announce his role in the miracle.  His heart sought the healing of others at the expense and sacrifice of his own comfort or safety.

Secondly, the miracles of Jesus always use what is available, what is present, to remind us that he is with us and is all around us.  We were never meant to assume that faith in him meant only to seek him beyond the world we live in.  We must understand that we are in this world but not of it.  His miracles help us understand that his healing power is present in this world and can change it with what he has already provided.  The miracles are in us already, and around us daily.  They are simply sitting idle, awaiting the releasing power of the Holy Spirit, which can change jars of stone and well water into the finest wine.

Lastly, the miracles of Jesus release a quality and experience that exceeds anything we have ever experienced before.  His healing is not a return to normalcy, but an entry into new life.  A life healed by the miracle of Jesus Christ is not simply improved.  A life healed by the miracle of Jesus Christ is made new in the most unexpected ways.

 

Tuesday Devotional: Luke 2

Devotional

bibleRead Luke 2: 8-20

The story of how the Messiah entered human history is not a good one.  This meaning that if one were to create a story of salvation and supernatural global rescue, the story centered on Bethlehem is unacceptable.  From the announcement to shepherds, to the baby in a manger, the Bible’s account defies our worldly literary standards.  On the surface, from a worldly perspective, there is no power in this story.  There is no immediate action.  There is no flash.  But at the heart of it is the true nature of God, representative of all he is and claims to be. The Messiah enters the world following the precise guidelines that God has always followed: humility, sacrifice and patience.  In a world obsessed with class, status and power, God announced his Son’s arrival to lowly shepherds in the field.  These shepherds were not consumed by the material world, men seeking their own glory.  These were men of little means, men who served.  The message of a humble Messiah, born of humble means, was not lost on these men.  As shepherds, they understood the power in service, sacrifice and love.  Unbeknownst to them, they had been trained and prepared long before that fateful day to understand and receive the message from the angel without hesitation or doubt.  They were prepared to listen and understand.

In a world moved so easily by the presence or even implication of power, God sent his Son into the world as an infant.  This was not a man on horseback with armor and might.  This was an infant, more fragile than most.  This was not power in intimidation but in utter humiliation. The Savior of the world did not come with brute force, but ready to be loved for who he was and is, before any words were on his lips to convince us of that.  Rather than love that can be taught, his love can only be perceived and experienced.  In a world with such a longing for immediate solutions, God chose to send the salvation of the world in the form of an infant, unable to do anything for himself, with no indication of when that salvation through him would ultimately be revealed.  There was nothing swift about this gift to the world.  Only the presence of the promised salvation.  He was here.  That is all.

In so many ways, the story of the Messiah is unbelievable, but it complements its purpose perfectly.  God came into this world to change it, but that change is only brought about when we adjust to him.  The story of the Messiah is not how man would imagine it.  That is because man didn’t.  It is a story for us, but not by us; it requires us to listen but then to understand that God is not man.  His will and purpose is not our own.  He is God, and he is with us, but thankfully for us all he is also wonderfully unlike us.

The Impossible Religion: Devotion

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This reflection series,  “The Impossible Religion,” reveals five specific problems that people have with the gospel of Jesus. These impossibilities arise when Christianity is a religion to achieve, rather than simply the “good news” of grace and redemption that will naturally transform us. Christianity outside of Christ’s redemption is in fact impossible, but with God nothing is impossible. For the next five weeks, we’ll go through Scriptures from five different areas of the Bible in order to confront these impossibilities:

  • Impossible Devotion
  • Impossible Standards
  • Impossible Trust
  • Impossible Power
  • Impossible Purpose

Impossible Devotion (Numbers 6)

This particular chapter in the book of Numbers, found in the first five books of the Bible, also known as “the Torah,” discusses a particular vow taken by some, but not all, Israelites.  This vow was “the vow of the Nazirite.”

For the purpose of time we will not discuss the details of the vow in depth. The main idea is that it was a vow of extreme devotion to God.

To many people, Christianity is where you “try your best.” But, deep down, we do this with a prepared surrender to the idea that we cannot achieve the devotion to God that is not merely suggested, but expected.  This rebellion and resignation arises out of a distinct misunderstanding of Christianity and the relationship to God depicted in the scriptures.  This rebellious resignation implies that the purpose of Christianity is to try your best, out of your own power, to please an impossible-to-please deity.

The problem with this perception is that, throughout the entire Bible, God speaks directly to his people, telling them that if they don’t want to serve him, if they don’t want to worship him, if they don’t want to love him, then there is no place for half-hearted attempts.

The Nazirite vow was chosen, not compulsory.  God did not demand this life from all of his people.  However, the heart of the Nazirite vow is a life that God’s people should ultimately desire.  The life of the Nazirite was one of complete and utter devotion to a God that deserved such worship and commitment. The Nazirite understood that living this way was the only way to justify the balance of what God had already done and what we could never do.  The Nazirite vow revealed a commitment to God that seems unrealistic: a level of self-denial that is offensive to some and impossible to the rest.

The only way in which to desire such a vow, such a life, and the only way by which to maintain this level of devotion is to understand the reason behind the choice to take it.

Taking a Nazirite vow does not mean that you try harder than the rest and therefore will receive greater praise from the creator.  Rather, the individual perceived this option as the choice that would best honor the relationship between a “Creator” and his “Creation.”  Taking a vow like that only arises out of the knowledge and understanding that anything less would be unworthy worship and service given God’s sacrifice for us already.

Being a Christian with the commitment like a Nazirite is impossible, if one approaches Christianity from the perspective that following God is simply something to add to your repertoire of good deeds and characteristics.  The vow is impossible from the “point-earning” perspective.

The only way that this level of devotion is possible and, more importantly, acceptable to God, is if it is born out of a new identity that surrenders the heart totally to God, the only one worthy of such praise.  Only a person remade in the image of Christ can willingly and wholeheartedly undertake such a vow.

Tuesday Devotional: Mark 1

Devotional

bibleRead Mark 1:21-28

The world is a mystery that has inspired and driven humanity, from the scholar to the young child, to question and ponder the difficult questions it poses.  In seeking answers, we all develop our own understandings or reach our own answers to satisfy our curiosity, no matter how unreasonable they may be.  Our many questions lead to comparatively much shorter list of answers. In a landscape so barren of sure foundations, to adopt a position of authority and confidence on any topic is received with suspicion and criticism.  Unless, that is, the answers to our questions are accompanied by both power and undeniable truth.

As Jesus began to speak in the Capernaum synagogue, both of these elements were present.  His teaching came with an authority that confidently knew, not a presumptuous attempt spurred by curiosity.  He spoke with an understanding of a time before any of our problems existed.  More convincingly, his teaching came with the power to reverse the problems of this world that demand our attention and inquiry.  In his being was simultaneously the answer before the problems and the answer to the problems.  The teachings of man cannot access the before and after, and thus are left in infancy.  The teachings of philosophers and religion can begin to understand, but are left far short of the ability to confidently explain and resolve.  The synagogue of Capernaum was filled with certainty.  The God of the ages was present. There was no doubt for those watching and listening that this was new, this was different.  This was not of man.  When the Holy Spirit is unleashed in the minds of men there is nowhere else to look.  The work of the Holy Spirit demands attention, and receives it, because the power and truth of almighty God always comes with healing.  The fear of the Lord does not terrorize, and the people in that synagogue were not feeling terrorized.  Their fear of the Lord was that of awe and amazement.  In the presence of something so supernatural there is no other reasonable human response.

Tuesday Devotional: Matthew 1

Devotional

Read Matthew 1bible

Over the course of life one develops certain expectations.  We develop standards and scales by which we measure everything we encounter, about people, about ourselves, about life in general.  Often these expectations are not misguided or unreasonable.  They are based on our personal experience of patterns that we in turn come to expect.  We rely on these expectations, although at times they confine rather than liberate us.  For many, the expectation when approaching the word of God is that two things will be inevitable.  First, the words will be uninteresting and irrelevant.  Second, the presence of God will be present only to the imagination.

At first glance of the New Testament, in Matthew 1, those expectations seem to be verified with the famous “begats.”  A list of difficult names to pronounce that, without background knowledge, feels distant and unnecessary.  However, upon closer examination of this list one discovers a rather different message.  Found within this list of begats is a range of people who, when grouped together, make up the complete and complex spectrum of human character, background, status and record.  This list is best represented with one word: “imperfection.”  This list of begats, that introduces the world to the life of Jesus Christ and the Gospel, not only defies the expectations that the word of God will be uninteresting and irrelevant, but exceeds even the best of expectations implied by a gospel of blessing and salvation.  This list is the open-door policy of a God who has been gathering his people long before we personally emerged into this world, a God who does not seek a people cut out of a perfect cloth.  Rather, He has been seeking to gather a people honest with their imperfections and totally overcome by his perfection.  This list actually defies the idea that God’s presence and influence are only of the mind by presenting a God pursuing his people personally and directly throughout the ages.  The quotation from Isaiah confirms this: the son of the virgin will not only be the savior of the world but will be “Immanuel,” “God with us.”  This chapter, from the list of begats to the declaration of Immanuel, shows that the God of the Heavens has always been with us. His desire is to always be a God “with us.”

Tuesday Devotional: Malachi 1

Devotional

Read Malachi 1:6-14bible

Most of the “religion” found today is purely an illusion, something man has created in order to serve himself.  Religion, for some, is a means to get what you want in life.  For others, it is a guideline of how to do the “right” things in this world.  Some use it as a standard of judgment and legislation that can control the good and bad of this world beyond the powers of our political and judicial systems.  Religion to many people has nothing to do with God and has everything to do with themselves.  It is a means to retaining control of their own lives, and being served and rewarded in the process.  Only when looking at the words of the Lord will one begin to notice the horrifying hypocrisies and delusions that religion in our world has often demonstrated and promoted.  To many believers in religion, God is no more real than Santa Claus or the legends of Genies in Lamps.  He is an image of hope or an encouraging figure of goodness and power that we all wish were true but, due to his radical claims, can’t possibly be.

Although religious people spend hours worshiping this God, they remain unchanged as a result of a complete lack of faith.  If God is God, he has to be understood and approached as God.  If God is God, we are nothing compared to him.  If God is God, we cannot escape him.  He is everywhere and knows everything.  If God is God, without him we have nothing and deserve nothing.  If God is God, he knows what is best for us better than we ever could ourselves.  If God is God, his words are stone and will last beyond our final breaths in this world.  If God is God, he deserves all that we have without any compromise or bargaining.  The truth is, many people have never genuinely approached God in these ways.  For many, God has less value to them than their boss, their family, their president, their celebrities of pop-culture, and ultimately themselves.  In many ways, God comes last.  God is the scramble for a few loose coins in the pockets of those caught off guard by the incoming offering basket on Sunday at church.  He is an afterthought. An inconvenience.  A burden.  In ignorance of the Word, one can maintain this position of complacency and disrespect.  But in the presence of his Word, this position is unacceptable and inexcusable.  God cannot be God while allowing us to reduce him to an insignificant figure standing in our over-powering shadows.  If he is God, we are always and ever in his shadow, and cannot see the realities of this world in any other way.

 

 

Born Again: Success (John 3)

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Welcome to Week 4 of our reflection series “Born Again.” The born again life is focused on Christ’s power and nothing else. Through this reflection series, we’re looking at the things that try to take center stage in our lives. This week, we’re studying what John 3 has to say about “Success.”

Read John 3.

At the heart of every sin, since the original fall, is our inclination to look God in the face and say, “I know better. I can do it without you.” In the third chapter of John’s Gospel we have two individuals, and two differing approaches to Christ. The stories of both provide us direction and warning in becoming too aware of our knowledge and success, and how that relates to the process of spiritual rebirth.

Nicodemus

It is no secret that Nicodemus had a sincere interest in Jesus and continued to take an interest in Jesus even following the Crucifixion.  For a man to step onto the unpopular side of the line in the face of mounting criticism is commendable, and Nicodemus is honored by being included in the Gospel of John as the Pharisee quite unlike the rest. However, as one looks at this discourse between the Pharisee and Jesus, we see two things that we must become aware of when we look at being born again, in both his physical and spiritual approach to Jesus.

The first thing we see is that Nicodemus came to Jesus at night. This is not a trivial piece of information. In fact, it says volumes about what is going through Nicodemus’ mind. The word is “secrecy.” Nicodemus does not want to be seen conversing with Jesus. His interest in Jesus, although sincere and genuine, is still enslaved by the potential judgment of his fellow colleagues, were they to hear that he met, “the teacher.”  Likewise, as we approach the Gospel, it is easy to be concerned about how your new interest in life with Jesus will meet the ears of those close to you who, unlike you, have no interest in the Gospel.

Our place among friends, co-workers and family is important to all of us, and to do something that we know will jeopardize those delicate relationships is difficult, to say the least. In many ways, our identities are inextricably linked to these relationships, so to choose to do something that might threaten this bond or connection is like choosing to commit identity suicide.  To do something so risky as to threaten these bonds is like losing your life. This is serious business in which not many are willing to engage. This is where we see Nicodemus. Although his interest is enough to get him in front of Jesus, the fear of committing identity suicide is far too great, and so he seeks Jesus in the dark.

One of the many things that happens upon being “reborn” is an inner augmentation of perspective. The more one starts to see Jesus as “the way, the truth, the life” the more we start to see all other things in this world as “a way, a truth, a life.”  The larger Jesus gets in our hearts and minds, the smaller everything else gets. Or, to use his example, Jesus always refers to himself and his disciples by using the contrast of light and dark.  So, in the area of spiritual rebirth, the more one steps into the light with Jesus, the more one wants to remain in the light with him.

The second thing we see with Nicodemus is a mental and spiritual barrier preventing him from understanding Jesus’ explanation about being “born again.” Nicodemus has been trained so effectively in one train of thought that it seems nearly impossible for the logic of Jesus to find any room in his reasoning.  His mind was fixated on literal possibilities, while Jesus is speaking from a standpoint of Godly potential. But this aspect of rebirth is the most exciting part.

For most people, scripture is bland and two dimensional, and at times, life itself feels rather two-dimensional.  However, when we are born again, we encounter “the Counselor,” the Holy Spirit, who testifies to the truth Jesus spoke to Nicodemus. Upon his arrival in our lives, we move from two-dimensional perspectives into multidimensional realities with endless possibilities. To be born again is to become privy to the endless possibilities of God’s plans, wisdom and presence that, in a world where impossible is impossible, suddenly all things are possible through Christ.

John the Baptist

The second character we read about in this selection of scripture is John the Baptist. In many ways, John is an excellent representation of the born again spirit. During his preaching years he gathered a large and adoring crowd of followers. We learn many things from the life of John the Baptist, but no trait is better exemplified by his life than humility.

John had every right, according to the world, to think that he was something special. He had every right to think that he had unparalleled authority and power to do whatever he desired. But his behavior shows us the opposite. The portrait we see of John the Baptist is a humble servant who looks at Jesus “the Christ” and says, “He must become greater, and I must become less.” Being reborn means arriving at a critical point of restructuring. The born again life gets restructured internally and externally. Internally, we realize that in the presence of God we are nothing. We realize that without God we are nothing. We realize that because he is everything, with him we can finally be something.

Upon being reborn we lose our right to the throne, because it is forever occupied by Christ. This not only gives us profound respect and admiration for God, but it provides increasing confidence in his voice and character, and reveals our temporal and shake-able selves.  Externally, we no longer expect our well-deserved and long overdue adulation from the world. We realize that, without the servant who suffered for us, we would be left with nothing real. Finally, we  realize, in our awareness of our forgiven and sinful state, that our place among men is simply a sinner among sinners.  With this yoke of pride and superiority removed from our necks, we are then free to give of ourselves in a way that puts us on an increasingly solid footing with our Friend and Savior Jesus Christ. The opportunity to experience him becomes our life’s desire and, rather than clinging to our old identities, we come into a shared existence with Jesus that overpowers our lust for worldly praise.

 

Tuesday Devotional: Zechariah 14

Devotional

Read Zechariah 14bible

Our lives are constantly filled with the pressure to make decisions.  Sometimes these are relatively easy to make.  On the other hand, they may be nearly impossible to make, and we often put them off in hopes that one day we will not have to take a firm stand one way or another.  In those moments that we find it difficult to decide a direction, we are often paralyzed by the fear of making a bad choice.  We fear that a bad decision will result in our losing something precious.  We fear that a bad decision will result in suffering that possibly could have been avoided.  At the heart of hard decisions is fear.  The irony of that matter is that the fear of making the “wrong” decision pales in comparison to the fear that we ought to have of our prolonged indecisiveness.  We develop a notion that making no decision is making a safe decision.  On the contrary, making no decision is the most dangerous and self-destructive position to take.  We think that committing to a “non-position” in the middle of two difficult ones will keep us safe from the consequences of either.  This is a man-made delusion. Merely a coping mechanism and nothing more.  A non-position is in fact a position.  It is simply a position that refuses to label itself as such.

In the case of the gospel of Christ, the message of salvation carries with its hopeful and promising news a warning to those who refuse to respond to the message of the Lord.  The easiest thing to do is to casually dismiss the gospel and occupy a position of indifference.  Without actually reading the gospel, this choice can be defended.  Upon reading the gospel, this choice self-destructs.  The gospel is not casual.  It is deadly serious.  A “non-position” in the face of the gospel has the same qualities as complete defiance to the message of Jesus Christ.  A “non-position” indulges in ignorance, the weakest of all positions on any given issue.  In facing consequences for any important issue, the “non-position” will be given the least sympathy and understanding.  In fact, the “non-position” is the position to be pitied the most.  The message of Jesus Christ in regards to salvation and his future return is both a serious promise and a serious warning.  By maintaining a casual stance in the presence of a serious message, one adopts a position of irresponsible defiance, just for the sake of holding onto a “non-position” that has absolutely nothing to offer, and will lead to losing everything.

Tuesday Devotional: Haggai 1

Devotional

Read Haggai 1:1-15bible

The driving force behind most of our lives is the desire to find satisfaction.  Most of us will spend our entire lives seeking it out.  There are thousands of different ways we all try to grasp this elusive satisfaction, but regardless of what “it” is we chase, the fact remains that we all do a lot of chasing.  While we dedicate our lives toward striving to possess this satisfaction, the reality is that we repeatedly find ourselves closing ground on satisfaction, only to realize that we have not gained any real ground at all.  Regardless of the effort we put forth in trying to satisfy ourselves, we all are confronted by a harsh reality that we are never truly satisfied with whatever it was we chased for so long.  No matter how hard we try, we all want to have and be more than we are.  We all bear an expectation of satisfaction that nothing in this world can truly satisfy. Whereas our expectations of satisfaction are working off of a system of perfection and purity, the things with which we seek to satisfy this deep expectation are superficial at best, and do not possess the ability to satisfy us the way we expect to.

God’s desire that we put him first is not so that we can follow in melancholy servitude.  God desires our satisfaction.  If God is truly God, he knows far more than we do, and this must also apply to our needs.  While we convince ourselves that we have a firm grasp on what will satisfy us, the truth is that we don’t.  Just as a child would argue with a parent that candy is a far better choice for dinner than vegetables and fruit, the child is speaking as a child, with underdeveloped wisdom. To another child this reasoning works, but to an adult is ridiculous.  In choosing candy over nutritious food, the child is seeking to satisfy a superficial need for taste and pleasure.  While this candy is satisfying on the superficial level, it offers nothing for the child’s body and health and will make life much harder on the child if the years of candy-consumption proceed.  Similarly, God does not desire that we not be satisfied with our meals, but that he be fully content.  He desires that we eat what will truly be good for us and will provide for a healthier, more fulfilling life over time.  God is a “God with us,” and not a “God against us.”  His desire that we put him first does not mean him standing front of us, frustrating our progress.  Rather, he commands it so that he can lead us into a more satisfying life, and that he share in that satisfaction with us every step of the way.

Tuesday Devotional: Zephaniah 1

Devotional

Read Zephaniah 1:14-18bible

Our lives are filled with contrast.  We love the sunshine because we dislike cloudy days.  We enjoy the warmth of summer because we are tired of the winter chill.  We enjoy our time with friends and family because we lack that kind of fellowship in our weekly work obligations.  For every wonderful thing in our life there exists a counterpoint that provides for the utter enjoyment and satisfaction of the “good thing.”  However, while we enjoy the good things because they are good, we also find joy in them because of the absence of joy in the counterpoint.

This concept is represented in the gospel of Jesus Christ.  The gospel of Christ is truly good news.  It is peace, joy, love and liberation.  To be moved and transformed by God requires that a person truly understand and experience the sweetness of the gospel of Christ.  However, while the sweetness of the gospel is overwhelming upon one’s first taste, without a contrasting consistency, texture or taste, a person might find the sweetness beginning to lose its appeal.  The glory of God brought to our world in the gospel of Christ is sweet.  Yet, the gospel of Christ repeatedly reminds us of all the bitterness of rejecting God and the consequence of choosing self over God.  In serving and following Christ one finds a balance of motivation.  On one hand, one cannot genuinely serve and follow Christ without ever experiencing the goodness of his news.  On the other hand, one cannot genuinely maintain appreciation, satisfaction and joy in serving and following God without the awareness of the counterpoint.  The counterpoint to the goodness of the gospel must never be downplayed or overshadowed.  The result of downplaying this counterpoint results in complacency of worship, and ultimately a lack of focus that can produce casual disobedience.  The counterpoint is bitter; it must be defined, described and experienced always as bitter.  The taste of salt is distinct.  It can never be confused with sugar.  We are aware of the difference because they are so different.  The goodness of the gospel of Christ must never leave our hearts as we proceed to follow and worship.  However, there must be an ongoing parallel awareness of the dangers of sin, and fear of separation from God.