merittmusings

Thirsty

www.bible.com/1713/jhn.7.38.

Did you come thirsty this morning? Looking for a cool glass of encouragement? I do too. Every morning I come to this well of the Spirit to see what new treasure I might find. This morning I found another.

What streams of living water could Jesus be taking about here? This same word picture is described in Isaiah:

“For I will pour water on the thirsty land and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants and My blessing on your offspring.” (Isa 44:3)

When we put our faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, and we are baptized in the very real act of immersion in water, we receive His gifts, namely, remission of sin (that is, we are justified before God as if we never sinned because we are purified through the blood of Jesus), we receive the gift of eternal life (starting at that moment, a life more abundant and more fulfilling than before), and we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. We cannot earn this gift. It is freely given. He comes and dwells within us, so that we become a life-giving stream of water for others. We aren’t intended to be a dam for the presence of God, but a flowing stream, so that others may cool themselves in our presence. That is an amazing gift of God, in which we may participate in His holy work.

Jesus invites you today to join His work by faith, so that you have have the same effect He did upon others, being gracious and kind, but also firm in your conviction of good and right. Would you be a stream for the presence of God? Would others be thirsty for that holy presence in you?

The Unseen Dimension

www.bible.com/1713/2co.4.18.csb

Are there aliens among us? Is there another dimension in which life exists? The Bible seems to say so. In fact, we are told to actually believe in these extra-dimensional beings. We are told that they are responsible for the creation of our realm. Weird, huh?

The popular conception of aliens is that they too are created or evolved beings. But we would only be partially correct. The unseen dimension was created, but by a greater unseen Being, the creator of all things. Wow.

As Christians, we have this powerful recourse to the King of the Universe. The things we see around us matter and are real as far as it goes, but we also know that the unseen, the original eternal realm of God and His servants the angels lie behind it along with the enemy and his cohort. That is behind the world we see, behind the enemies we fear, and the protection we seek.

I encourage you today to take this verse to heart. Our God is unseen, but more real and powerful than reality. Focus on our eternal obligations and our Eternal King and our present troubles will diminish by comparison.

God bless you today.

Standards

www.bible.com/1713/mat.7.1-2.csb

Our standards have a way of creeping up on us when we least expect them, especially when when our children remind us of them. “But Daddy, you said people like that go to hell. Are they in Hell Daddy?” Ouch.

I’d like to think I’ve mellowed a bit over the years, but I’m not perfect. I used to believe suicide was a certain ticket to the realm of the wicked, simply because a suicide’s last act is murder, but now I know that not everyone is thinking clearly when they decide to kill themselves, nor can we know their state of mind after the fact. Do some not immediately regret their decision? Do some not immediately repent?

These are positions I would not have understood when I was young and idealistic. When I saw the world as more black and white. It’s taken time and experience to understand that people don’t work that way.

So now when I run into folks whose lifestyles and positions I don’t agree with, I don’t jump to conclusions as to the kind of person they are. I can’t know that. I may make snap judgments based on the type of person I come into contact with, but I have learned that my first impressions are subject to change.

So where am I going with this? This particular text has been used and abused by Christians and non-Christians alike. The phrase “Do not judge” I would argue has been applied back to Christians by non-believers citing this verse as a defense for whatever they want to do. Christians, they argue, have to say in one’s behavior, because Christians aren’t to judge.

So what kind of judgment is in view here? The key to understanding this text is the word translated “standard” which point to actions or activity. The Bible also says, “a tree is known by its fruit.” (Matt 12:33) You can tell what kind of person you are dealing with by observing their actions. You can tell if you want to associate with a person based on their fruit and the personal standards you have for fruit-bearing. We do this all the time, and we don’t even think about it because its ingrained in us to use this kind of judgment to base relationships.

But as in all things, we can takes this to extremes. What Jesus warns us here about isn’t about judging per se, but using an overly critical standard by which to judge. Do you see the fruit and immediately that such a person is a bad person, or do you give them the benefit of the doubt? Would you want someone else to give you time to get to know them, to know your story before they decide they don’t like you? The warning is about jumping to false conclusions based on little information. The command isn’t so such to judge (which we all do) but against being judgmental. We all have standards and ought to practice them. The Scripture also warns us against hanging out with “bad company” because “bad company corrupts good morals.” (1 Cor 15:33)

So as you interact with others today, be careful not to jump to quick conclusions about people. Give them time to tell their story, and you then earn the right to tell yours. You earn the right to tell them about Jesus. God is calls us to make connections with people and introduce them to the Savior. As you go today, make disciples. Make friends of God’s children, but watch that you too will not be distracted from your mission.

God bless you today

The God Who Protects

www.bible.com/1713/psa.91.2.csb

If you were to read this Psalm in total, you will find a God who protects from physical danger, from damage in warfare, from plague and pestilence. This is a God who will protect you from all harm at all times because you are His child.

That sounds awesome!

This is also he Psalm the devil quotes to Jesus in an effort to tempt Him to jump off the Temple’s pinnacle. He quotes this Psalm saying that God will protect Him from dashing his foot against a stone. Jesus’ response is simple. Dt 6:16 “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”

Don’t try it.

This is the same Son of God who was crucified, after being scourged mercilessly, on a Roman cross and then died. Surely, if anyone deserved the protection promised by this Psalm, wasn’t it Jesus?

Yet even reminded of this Psalm, Jesus refuses to play into the Devil’s hand. If I speculate, I’m sure Jesus would have been just fine had He cast Himself from that height, but that wasn’t His purpose, showing His raw power like that to get followers. That’s not how you build God’s church.

He also may have died, an overly common death, with no meaning. It would not have accomplished the later purpose of salvation through His blood. He couldn’t have risen with the same aimlessness, because this was giving in to temptation. That wouldn’t work either.

All of that to say that Jesu’s response ought to be our response. If you are tempted to tempt fate as it were and cast yourself upon the promises of this Psalm and demand that God protect as He promised, Jesus’ words come back to us. “Don’t test Him.”

Why not?

I would be interested in your thoughts below.

Looking Forward to It

www.bible.com/1713/rev.21.4.csb

What keeps you motivated through the slog that is daily life? Through the daily temptations, and sometimes the cycles of sin, guilt, and forgiveness to try holiness again, what keeps you going and gives you hope?

For me, it is this promise of heaven. Not all the time, not everyday, but when I have a chance to think and remember, it is this. We were born for more than this world can offer. We were born for eternity. So while the daily grind grinds me down, I have only to remember why I am here, how I am being purified and refined for a greater destination.

Yeah, it’s high-minded and “pie-in-the-sky”, but a day is coming when it won’t be hope, but real. That will be a good day.

That was Today?

www.bible.com/1713/1pe.5.6.csb

One of my favorite comic panels featured two dinosaurs standing on a small island with Noah’s Ark floating in the distance. Obviously the Flood has already started and one dinosaur says to the other (apparently in regard to their invitation to board said Ark), “That was today?” It embodies the anxiety of missing an appointment, in this case one very important.

The verse above reminds me that we never have enough time to prepare for our Big Appointment with Jesus if we aren’t already working on it. I run into many people who didn’t plan on going to the hospital, let alone getting into a situation where their life is at stake. No one I’ve spoken to in the ER, families of people who have died, ever planned for it. They are seldom dressed for the occasion. It is not unusual to have the same reaction as the dinosaurs.

Instead of being surprised, God tells us to plan ahead. Humble yourself. Don’t think you are all that and immune to God’s judgment. Rather be ready at all times, be that one that says, “God, I am at your service. I will do as you will.” For God looks at the heart, not the outward man. God seeks the meek and the humble to do His will, not the proud.

At the right time, at the perfect time, God will exalt you. So let God do the boasting. Let God do the clapping for a job well done. And you may be surprised when the day comes, but you will rejoice to hear, “Well done my good and faithful servant. Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.”

Prayer of Thanks

www.bible.com/1713/1ch.29.11.csb

As we approach this Monday morning, let us remember whose we are and who we serve. It would easy to slip back into the routine of work and school. But we are not of this world. We live in it, but our citizenship is in Heaven. David reminds us this morning in this prayer of gratitude and praise for the offering of goods for the Temple that we bring nothing to the table that is not already God’s. What we bring to this Monday is already God’s possession. As His stewards we understand that as we work, we work for the Lord, and not for men.

So let this short missive be a reminder that our work has a holy purpose. No matter what you do today, may it be pleasing to the Lord.

God bless!

Rest Assured

www.bible.com/1713/psa.23.1-2.csb

What do you do to relax? Do you take in a movie? Read a book? Watch your favorite TV program? Maybe you go out with friends, or spend time alone. Regardless of how you recuperate, one thing is certain: you need rest.

Rest is more than sleep. Rest is peace. Rest is comfort. Rest is essential to our function. If we operate continually without rest, we will suffer, both mentally and physically. Are you in a place where you cannot rest?

This Psalm composed by David under the direction of the Holy Spirit tells us about rest. The Lord leads us to rest. If we are to find peace and comfort in this life, it can only be at the direction of the Shepherd. Sheep are willful, fearful things. They wander off, they do what they want, often to their own detriment. It takes a shepherd to lead them to their food and their contentment.

Yes shepherds do this to make a profit. This is how they make their living. Sheep are good for a couple things, making wool and providing meat. Sheep who are well-cared for can provide a shepherd with a good living. He knows what environment makes for sheep that are content. And he does his best to provide it. When David and Jesus apply this model to people, they aren’t taking about the profit, but the care and relationship between sheep and Shepherd. God doesn’t need anything. And there is nothing we have to offer Him that will give Him profit. God cares for us because He made us. We are His children. He loves us because He made us with His own hands. But rather than act like men, we often act like sheep.

Do you wander off and try to find your own way? You will find no rest that way. Do you seek to make yourself the center of your life? There’s no rest there either. God offers the rest of the comfort of the Father’s arms wrapped around you.

My wife showed me a video yesterday of a returning serviceman greeting his young son after a long absence. The young boy’s reaction was predictable, but precious. As soon as he recognized him, the young boy fiercely hugged his father. In front of all of his peers, as this was filmed at a school, the boy forgot everyone else. His father was all that mattered in that moment. His father’s embrace was no less. Do you long for that love? That’s the rest that our Father calls us to. That’s the embrace of heaven on the first day.

Are you longing for rest today? Spare a moment with your father. Enjoy the embrace of His love for you, even as the Father for the Prodigal. “Prepare the fatted calf! This son of mine was dead, and is now alive!” Experience the joy and rest of the Father, no longer a Judge of your sins, but Redeemer of your soul.

Enter thou the joy and rest of thy Lord.

It’s a Slog

www.bible.com/1713/heb.12.1.csb

I am not s runner. But I have done 5K’s (walking) enough to appreciate it. At first, you feel great, plenty of energy. Halfway through you start questioning your life choices. By the end you just want it to be done, and fight your own mind trying to convince yourself you don’t have anything to prove.

Well, that’s not too different from our run with Christ. Sure you get some bumps along the way, but then your Faith gets truly tested. God does some pruning in your life, and start to question whether God is really on your side or not. Before it’s over, you have to work to overcome your doubt if God is really there.

That’s why it’s so important to divest yourself of anything that hinders, including pet sins, that easily slow you down and divert you from He path. In the end, you will find the reward worth all the trouble of the journey.

Ask God today to help you see the entanglements that easily trip you up. God bless you today!

Hypocrisy

www.bible.com/1713/hos.6.6.csb

“The Church is full of hypocrites! I don’t want to go to church until I can look God in the eye.” Cry me a river. This is the most pathetic statement I hear as an excuse for not going to church. Why? Doesn’t it sound sincere and condemnatory at the same time. Oh, it’s brilliant as a cop-out. It worthless in the long run. I am always tempted to respond, “There’s always room for one more.”

I know it sounds noble to say that I want to clean up my life and be a good person before I go to God’s house. Imagine if the Prodigal Son said that? There in the pigpen, with a sincere desire to go back home, but forcing himself to stick it out as an act of holiness so that he can life himself up and prove he can be a good person on his own. This is works-based heathen religion thoroughly. It is the faith of Cain, jealous of his brother Abel. Do you ever wonder if Cain thought his “holier-than-thou” brother was a hypocrite? All that dude does is bring a sheep to the altar. I brought all the hard work of my labor in the field. What a loser! I know what’s he’s like on Monday morning. There’s no way God would accept his pathetic sacrifice of a lamb over bounty that I’m bringing. It’s like he’s not even trying.

But like Cain, many are continually flabbergasted at God’s acceptance of humble sheep against their hard work of self-improvement. All they have to say is “Hypocrite!”

Christians today struggle with holiness. And I believe that the lost have a higher regard for what holiness looks like than most Christians. The lost are looking for saints. The lost are comparing their half-heard Bible storied from Sunday School with the “Christians” they see everyday and find them wanting. Yes. The lost are comparing us to their best memories of the saints of Scripture. And they are using that as the reason they can’t come to church. We are not as faithful nor as holy nor as consistent as their dear sweet grandmother who took them to church as s child. We are not as holy as the heroes of the Bible they learned about as a child. Is it an unfair comparison? Absolutely. But it takes place everyday.

Every misstep you make in the name of Jesus can and will be used as a reason someone doesn’t come to church. Every lost temper, every betrayal, every weak moment, every time you are not on your game is an excuse to cry “hypocrite!” And another soul offers this as proof that Christians aren’t any better than anyone else. Why bother?

No pressure.

Hosea reminds us today that the internal motivations like love and mercy and the knowledge of God are more important than physical acts of piety. If our love and knowledge is lacking, then our piety looks and feels fake. And we are hypocrites.

Keep that in mind this week.