Isaiah 51:7-8
7 “Listen to me, you who know righteousness,
the people in whose heart is my law;
fear not the reproach of man,
nor be dismayed at their revilings.
8 For the moth will eat them up like a garment,
and the worm will eat them like wool;
but my righteousness will be forever,
and my salvation to all generations.”
Have you ever noticed that it is often easy to hide morality? We live in an “anything goes” culture in which those who look at certain activities as wrong are the only ones out-of-step with the times. At the same time, it seems that those who truly worship God, believing his word and following his commands are often thought to be at the least strange and in many cases dangerous. So, it is sometimes easier not to display your reliance on the word of God as your standard for life.
God knew that this would be a temptation for us. He knew that we would be strangers in a world not our own. And this is why God gives us words like the ones above in Isaiah.
Don’t be afraid of the reviling of the world. If you know righteousness, if you seek God, don’t fear. While the world may laugh at and scorn the word of God, God will not be defeated. The derision of the world has no impact on the stability of the commands of God. God’s word will stand, though all of the rest of the world fall.
By the way, don’t take that last paragraph as a noble defeatism. God’s word will be victorious. Those who are dead in sins and transgressions will be saved by a God who makes them alive. The kingdom of Christ will grow throughout all the nations. God will gather his people to himself. God’s promises will be proved true. Jesus will reign as the King of kings and Lord of lords.
The thing that we want to take from this truth is that we need not be ashamed of the truth we know. We need not shrink back simply because many around us do not share our trust in God. We have the authority of Jesus to go and make disciples of the nations. We certainly have the right to declare truth to be truth, good to be good, and evil to be evil. Yes, we do all this with gentleness and love. No, we do not pick fights with others just to argue. But we take the truth of the word of God to the ends of the earth just as God has commanded.
The Gospel at the Cross (Luke 23:38-43)
Luke 23:38-43 (ESV)
38 There was also an inscription over him, “This is the King of the Jews.”
39 One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” 40 But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” 42 And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” 43 And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
Matthew 27:44 (ESV)
And the robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in the same way.
To watch the salvation of the thief on the cross next to Jesus is to see, in a very brief moment, the plan of salvation at work. We see the thief believe what he must believe in order to be saved. In watching, we can see what all must believe in order to be saved.
Look first at the thief who will be saved in his response to the other thief. He acknowledges both Christ’s innocence and the thief’s own sinfulness. Jesus does not deserve the cross upon which he is hanged. No, but the thief, he has committed crimes that are clearly punishable by death.
The first parts of the gospel are here. God is holy, and we are sinful. God is perfect. Christ, God in flesh, is perfect. We have sinned against God and we deserve his wrath. This is where the gospel begins.
When the thief turns to Jesus, he references Jesus’ coming kingdom. While the thief knows that Jesus is about to die on the cross, he somehow has the faith to foresee that Jesus will reign as King. God has opened the thief’s eyes to see that Jesus is more than a man on the cross next to him. IN fact, Jesus is the Messiah, the promised King of kings. Jesus will rise from the dead. Somehow, we cannot say how fully, the thief understands that the cross will not defeat Jesus.
All who will be saved must recognize that Jesus died on the cross to do things only God can do. All who will be saved must also recognize that Jesus did not remain in the grave. Jesus died to pay for the sins of all of God’s children. Jesus rose from the grave to complete the work of redemption. Jesus will return, and he will reign forever as King. All who will be saved must have faith in the death, burial, resurrection, and return of Christ.
The thief asks Jesus to remember him. This is a clear cry for grace. The thief knows that he can do nothing to earn his way into God’s kingdom. The thief is a condemned criminal. He simply cries out to Jesus and asks for mercy.
All who will be saved must cry to Jesus for mercy. We are sinners. We are condemned. We are under God’s wrath. However, if we will trust Jesus and ask him for grace, he will grant that grace. God will save our souls by grace through faith in Christ.
The only thing we do not get to see in the thief in this passage is a long-term changed life. That is because he will die soon after his conversion. Yet, we know he has been changed. There is repentance. Matthew’s account of the crucifixion declares that the robbers (plural) near Jesus hurled insults at him. Apparently this man who has faith in Christ, saving faith, was previously one of those who was insulting Jesus. Thus, we also see in this man a turning from sin in order to place his faith in Jesus.
We see in the thief everything we need for saving faith in Christ. Believe in Jesus. Believe in Christ’s perfect work that is the only payment for your sins. Believe in the resurrection of Jesus and his coming kingdom. Turn from your sins and cry out to Jesus for mercy. All who have genuine faith in Jesus will be saved. This is the gospel, and it is marvelous.
Surprising Single Sacrifice (Hebrews 10:12-14)
12 But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. 14 For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.
For years, the ground in the tabernacle or in the temple ran with the blood of sacrifices. Daily offerings, regular sin offerings, even the special Day of Atonement, always new offerings were required. This of course makes sense; we sin so regularly, so easily. It is hard to be remotely good. It is impossible to be as good as God. Yet God’s standard is perfection. So, from day to day to day, victim after victim bled for the sins of the people of God.
When one remembers that this system was put in place in the time of Moses, and that a millennium-and-a-half had passed in which that system was perfected, one might think that, truly, the sacrifice of animals, day after day, was the only way for people to be made right with God. What could ever put an end to this cycle of sin, confess, sacrifice, sin, confess, sacrifice?
We have to see the establishment of the sacrificial system with clarity in order to see the amazing, joyous, unbelievable words of Hebrews 10:12-14. Jesus Christ, with one sacrifice, he made an end of this system. With one offering, the offering of himself, Jesus perfects all who will be perfected. Jesus cleanses all who will be cleansed before God. Jesus, with one perfect and infinitely-glorious sacrifice, cries out to the world that all who will come to him and trust in his sacrifice will be saved. You need not be Jewish. You need not be a man. You need not be wealthy. All who will come to Jesus and trust in him will be saved. No other sacrifices are required. In fact, no other sacrifices will avail you at all. Only one sacrifice now exists for the sins of humanity, the perfect sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Christians, perhaps we do not stand in awe enough of this once-for-all sacrifice. Perhaps we have become too accustomed to the message of the gospel. Perhaps we have failed to remember the glory. We have committed a lifetime’s worth of sin. We have infinitely offended an infinitely holy God. We have earned his judgment. We have earned hell. Yet God, for the sake of his glory and out of his love, has made a way for us to be reconciled to him. This reconciliation is not something we buy with a life of religious obedience. No, God bought our reconciliation with him through the precious blood of his own Son. Jesus came and willingly laid down his life to save us, once and for all.
Let this thought lead you to praise Jesus. Let it lead you to remember that your good deeds do not add to your salvation. Let it cause you to thank Christ and to live for him out of gratitude and out of joy. Let it cause you to vigorously share your faith, because there is only one sacrifice for the sins of the world. Let the gospel lead you to love Jesus more as you consider the grandeur of the single sacrifice for sins.
I Was Only Kidding (Proverbs 26:18-19)
Proverbs 26:18-19
18 Like a madman who throws firebrands, arrows, and death
19 is the man who deceives his neighbor
and says, “I am only joking!”
You know this man. He will say something that is insulting to you or hurtful to you. He will say something that is harsh or that causes you harm. He will trick you, leading you astray and into difficulty. Yet, when you confront him, he will tell you that he was only joking.
I know a man like this. I have one particular person in mind. He often says cruel things to people. He often stirs up trouble in his church. But, he is at least clever enough not to put himself in a position to be confronted for his actions. You see, he always treats his hurtful speech and meddling ways in the light of his sense of humor. He insults people, stirs up strife, causes division, but he does so with just enough of a sneer to be able to deny his actions and say, “It was just a joke. If I offended you, I apologize.”
Look at the words of the Scripture. Such a person, a person who hides his insults behind his supposed humor, that man is like a person who hurls flaming arrows. This person is dangerous, destructive, and deadly. Watch out for him. Do not listen to him. Do not tolerate his falsehood.
And, be warned, you might be one of these people. Are you hurtfully sarcastic? Do you like to say what you think with humor as if that somehow makes your words more tolerable? There is no place for this in the church. We are to be united and loving. We are not to use supposed humor to allow us to insult and hurt others. Those are the tricks of the world. We are to model the love of Christ.
I’m not saying that you should have no sense of humor. Of course we can laugh with each other. But we need not be so quick to laugh at each other, to take cheap shots at each other, or to put down one another. We can find other ways to laugh, ways that do not mask the evil in our hearts. Let us learn to laugh with joy and not with malice. Let us learn to love each other with our words and with our deeds. Let us learn to be a true picture of the love of God on earth.
Resting in Christ (Isaiah 30:15)
Isaiah 30:15
For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel,
“In returning and rest you shall be saved;
in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”
But you were unwilling.
Isaiah’s prophecies often focus on the unwillingness of Israel to follow the commands of God and how the nation suffers for that unwillingness. We see this in the verse above. God called the people to trust in him, but the people instead ran to Egypt for support. Though God had proved himself to the people, they still failed to believe that he would be enough to keep them safe from their enemies.
The human unwillingness to let go of our own efforts and trust the power of God extends well beyond the borders of Israel. Take a look at every single world religion outside of Christianity to see examples. All world religions except Christianity demand that people do right things in order to find blessing or favor from the deity. Christianity is the opposite. In Christianity, God commands us to stop trying to make ourselves good before him. Instead of self-effort, all we can do is fall on the mercy of God that was purchased for us through the sacrifice of Jesus.
Even within Christianity, we see people sometimes forgetting God’s call to rest in Christ. Many of us think that we were saved by grace, but then still strive to earn favor from God through our lifestyle or our spiritual efforts. Indeed, spiritual discipline is good. However, when our work toward the disciplines becomes a sort of self-effort to improve our standing before God, we are woefully inadequate. We cannot be saved by grace and then perfected through self-effort. No, both our salvation and sanctification is of God, fully to the glory of Christ.
What then do we do? Do we work or not? Yes and no. We give our all to honor God, but not for the purpose of self-perfection. Instead, we work to honor God for the joy of his glory. We work to honor God because this is what makes us happy. We work to honor God, but all the while we recognize that our best efforts, apart from the grace of Jesus, are filthy in the sight of God. But we never work thinking that our work will buy us higher standing before the God who saved us by a grace that is completely his doing.
This is almost paradoxical, I realize. But realize, Christians, that this is the very tension that Paul ran into as he preached his gospel. Some people accused Paul of antinomianism (lawlessness) because of the grace-focus of his preaching. Yet Paul did not tolerate sin in his own life. Paul worked with all his might, yet he knew that God was working in him to perfect him (Philippians 2:12-13).
So, again, what do we do? We rest in the gospel of Jesus Christ. We acknowledge that our salvation is fully by grace alone through faith alone (Ephesians 2:8-9). Then we follow God for the joy that is before us, and we honor him as we acknowledge that all good in us is from him to begin with.
A Lion in the Road (Proverbs 22:13)
Proverbs 22:13
The sluggard says, “There is a lion outside!
I shall be killed in the streets!”
How many people do you know find themselves paralyzed by fear? They have an opportunity come their way, but, because they do not have a guarantee of everything being easy, they let good things pass them by. Do you know that fear is not always the problem here?
The proverb above tells us that the one who claims that danger is keeping him or her from moving may not be frightened at all. The proverb tells us that a sluggard, a brutally lazy person, will often use danger as an excuse for failing to take positive action. This does not honor God.
I can remember a guy from my hometown who always was out-of-work. For some reason, this guy just never held down a job. Also, when jobs came his way, he often turned up his nose at them, finding reason after reason why this particular job was not right for him. The problem was not that this guy had no skill or could not get a job; the problem was that he was lazy. He did not like to work. He did not want a job to cramp his plans for the day—plans which mainly involved eating other people’s food and sleeping a lot.
If we are not careful, however, we all can fall into the danger of allowing laziness allow us to see danger around the corner. Perhaps it is in sharing your faith. You have an opportunity cross your path, but you do not want to take the risk or have the potentially awkward conversation. It is very easy to allow your own lack of desire to do the spiritual work to prevent you from speaking. Sure, you might come up with a hundred reasons why this is not a very good time to talk about spiritual things, but often the bottom line, at least in my own life, is that we are simply unwilling to do the hard work of evangelism.
What opportunities are before you today? What might you be able to do for the glory of God and the advancement of the gospel? What excuses is your heart making on your behalf to get you out of doing the work of the kingdom? Battle spiritual laziness. Battle all forms of hiding from the hard work. Pray hard, trust God, and take action for his glory.
Squeaky Wheels (Proverbs 22:10)
Proverbs 22:10
Drive out a scoffer, and strife will go out,
and quarreling and abuse will cease.
One of the dangers of our modern sensibilities is that we will place far too much power in the hands of the disgruntled, the attention-seeker, the complainer, or the scoffer. We have heard it said that the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Sadly, this often means that we grant power and attention to individuals who ought not have such power in our lives.
Think for example of a family meal. Imagine that you have one person you know will make the event difficult. So, you bend over backwards to design everything to that person’s liking. Have you not noticed that this never works? The result generally tends to be that you deprive other, more positive, family members of what they like while still never managing to satisfy the complainer.
Of course, this is also true in churches. While congregations might be 85% positive and happy, pastors feel the emotional beating that they take from the small percentage of individuals who are never satisfied. If we are not careful, we pastors will find ourselves doing away with elements of church life that are making almost everyone in the church happy for the sake of the complaints of a tiny yet vocal group.
Even in the most recent news, we have seen the world focus its attention on one crackpot pastor who wants to burn copies of the Quran for the sake of a publicity stunt. This is one guy leading one congregation; he ought not have garnered the attention of national news. Yet, we love to give more attention to people like this than they deserve, and we mess up the world in the process.
We must be loving. We must care about others. We must try our very best to help others to live together in peace. However, we also need the wisdom to hear the proverb above. Sometimes we need to send the scoffer away instead of giving him or her the power to change everything for the rest of the group. We need to avoid giving power to scoffers, and in doing so, we will see quarrels die down.
Wouldn’t it be nice if this were easy? Of course it is not. We must pray more fervently. We must love more deeply. But we must do what we can to do things for the glory of God and the good of others without being driven by the few negative folks who would like to center the world on themselves.
Sympathetic High Priest (Hebrews 4:15-16)
Hebrews 4:15-16
15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
The fact that Jesus, the Son of God, became a human being is a stunning reality. For eternity past, the holy trinity of Father, Son, and Spirit have existed. God has always been, and has always been in spirit form. Yet, in accord with God’s eternal plan, for God’s eternal glory, and for the sake of the salvation of mankind, Jesus, God the Son, took upon himself human form. God became flesh.
There are so many things about this truth which are amazing. Jesus stepped down from heaven, lowering himself, pouring himself out (Phil 2:5-8), in order to redeem for himself a people, to reveal himself to a people, and to do so much more than we can imagine. One of the purposes of the humanity of Christ, a purpose that makes Christianity vastly different than any other world religion, is what we see in Hebrews 4:15-16. Jesus became human, in part, to identify with his creation, to truly understand by experience our struggles, joys, pains, pleasures, and hardships.
Christians, ponder these thoughts. Your God knows what it feels like to be hungry. Your God knows what it feels like to stand at a mother’s side at the funeral of an adopted father. Your God knows what it feels like to rejoice with a bride and bridegroom at a wedding feast. Your God knows what it feels like to witness government corruption. Your God knows what it is like to live a real, honest, happy, and sad human life.
We do not have a high priest who does not understand what we go through. Our God is not confused by our struggles. Our God is not mystified by our joys. God knows us, because the Son of God knows what it is like to take upon himself true humanity.
How do we respond to this truth? We draw near to God with confidence. When you sin, when you fail, when you hurt, you run to the throne. If Jesus knows what it is like for you, you need not fear that he will cast you out. No, he will not excuse your failure. Instead, he will do something far better. If you will trust in him, Jesus will forgive your failure because he already died and rose again to redeem you from that failure. When you have joy, you run to the throne, because Jesus knows what it is like to celebrate with humanity. When you hurt, you run to the throne, because Jesus knows what it is like to feel real human pain.
Christians, our God is beyond compare. No other religion in the world has a deity who is both holy, above and beyond us, as well as being able to totally identify himself with his creation. God is beyond creation and, because of the humanity of Christ, connected to his creation. Jesus draws us to the throne of God because of his shared experience with humanity and his perfectly holy love.
Jesus, the Creator (Colossians 1:16)
Colossians 1:16
For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.
All things were created by Jesus, through Jesus, and for Jesus. Which things? All things. Things in heaven, things on earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities, all things were created by Jesus.
The first thing this tells us is that Jesus is not created. If Jesus were created, then not all things were created by Jesus. Jesus created all physical things. Jesus created all spiritual things. Jesus is not created, he is the Creator.
The fact that all things exist by Jesus, through Jesus, and for Jesus tells us that Jesus is not only the Creator, but he is also the ultimate power behind creation and the ultimate purpose for creation. You exist by Jesus, through Jesus’ power, and for Jesus’ glory. If there is no living Jesus, there is no you. If you rebel against Jesus, you rebel against the very one who created you and against the very reason for your existence.
Ask yourself this one simple question: Could you possibly be happy fighting against the purpose for your existence? Of course not. We will be most happy when we do what we exist to do. We exist for Jesus; thus the thing that will make you most happy is when you realize that you exist for Jesus and then you submit to Jesus and live for his glory. Jesus is our Creator and our purpose.
Jonah and Not Liking God (Jonah 4:1-3)
Jonah 4:1-3 (ESV)
1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. 2 And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. 3 Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.”
“I just can’t accept that God would…” As a pastor, I hear that line begin more sentences than one might think. As people study the Scripture and see the true revelation of the God who created us, people often find God’s picture of himself difficult to swallow. “I just can’t understand why God…” is often the precursor for an explanation of how we think God should do things instead of the way that God has done them.
For an example of this, take a look at Jonah. God sent him to Nineveh. Jonah rebelled and ran away. God took action and sent Jonah to Nineveh with his message. Jonah reluctantly preached. The people of the city repented. God relented and rescued the people. And Jonah, for his part, was angry.
Look at the words above. God’s salvation of a huge population of people, people who were not nice people, infuriated Jonah. Jonah, in accusing God, says that he knew God would do something like that. Jonah knew that God had revealed himself as merciful and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. In this case, Jonah simply did not like who God was and what God chose.
If you can’t figure Jonah, remember that the city of Nineveh represented a brutal empire. The Assyrians were known for overrunning their enemies, conquering other nations, burning, torturing, and destroying. The Ninevites were a godless people, a people whom Jonah thought ought to be destroyed. So, when God has compassion on them, Jonah simply does not like it.
Where do you decide that you do not like how God has revealed himself? Where do you act like Jonah, actually turning up your nose from God’s description of his plans and his ways? Do you hate the concept of hell? Does God’s chasing after a people from all nations bother you? Is it election and predestination that draws your ire? Is it the fact that God’s commitment is to his glory and not to our wealth? Is it God’s standard of holiness? Do you love the New Testament but not the Old? Which part of God do you, Christian, not like?
Don’t think, by the way, that you can escape this being true of you somewhere. We all have things we wish that God had done differently. We all have things that we read in Scripture that we simply cannot grasp. We all have commands of God that we battle against or simply ignore. But in doing so, we prove that our hearts are not yet fully devoted to the person of God as he has revealed himself in Scripture. A major part of our sanctification is our learning to embrace who God is as he has revealed himself and to embrace what God commands. After all, God’s commands and his actions are the very reflections of his heart. God commands us to love him, and that requires that we treasure all that he is and all that he does, even when his ways are higher than ours.
Today, it would be good to think about who God has revealed himself to be. As you think about God, ask God to help your heart to truly love him as he is. Ask God to help you to submit to the Scriptures and to embrace all that God has done. Command your own heart to love God, even when you cannot yet grasp why he does what he does. If God does something you cannot understand, assume that God is right and that your heart needs to learn to see things from a more God-honoring perspective. Instead of being a Jonah, being angry enough to die because of who God is, ask God to soften your heart and make you embrace all that our perfect, righteous, merciful, holy God has revealed.
