David knew before what we know now. . . .

For David says concerning him, “ ‘I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken; therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope. For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’ 
Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, “The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.’ Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” 
Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:25–38)

If anyone doubts the power of God to reveal truth and the future, this is one fine example that He knew then and that He gave David that certainty — hundreds of years before Jesus came, was crucified, and rose again.

Yesterday I read the story of a woman recently widowed. She had three children. Her only inheritance was $20,000 and all she had. However, hearing of God's promises to take care of those who trust Him, particularly with their care when in need, she gave the entire sum to Him. Her pastor, although he told her to trust God, was a bit horrified. Yet within a few months, the woman received a call about a relative she didn’t know she had. He died and left her enough to take care of her and family for the rest of their lives.

I have a similar story about not having any money. An annual rental was due and I could not pay it. God surprised me with an order for a pet portrait from a person I’d never met and she sent the money with her order — just a few dollars more than the rental bill! I painted the portrait of her dog, mailed it to her, and have never worried about money since then. God has taken care of me.

This is the power of God. He meets our needs even before we experience them. And it also builds faith in Him. As the words above say, my sin is the reason He died and yet His love makes me safe from all threats and the recipient of His greatest gift — Himself and the incredible care of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus, You are always with me, assuring me and putting my needs on Your calendar so that they are met when they come up. Forgive me for ever worrying or fretting about anything. You already know what the future holds and You have already provided whatever I will need. You are amazing!

Faith means trusting God to supply all my needs…

“For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed. From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from my statutes and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. But you say, ‘How shall we return?’ Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions. You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your soil, and your vine in the field shall not fail to bear, says the Lord of hosts. Then all nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight, says the Lord of hosts. “Your words have been hard against me, says the Lord. But you say, ‘How have we spoken against you?’ You have said, ‘It is vain to serve God. What is the profit of our keeping his charge or of walking as in mourning before the Lord of hosts? And now we call the arrogant blessed. Evildoers not only prosper but they put God to the test and they escape.’ ” (Malachi 3:6–15)

Our pastor describe how reading the OT minor prophets is like watching a recorded game on television when you already know who wins. The game is exciting with ups and downs yet the winner is certain and we experience the delight of knowing the outcome.

Jesus wins. The people had their doubts even as God continued to reassure them:

Then those who feared the Lord spoke with one another. The Lord paid attention and heard them, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who feared the Lord and esteemed his name. “They shall be mine, says the Lord of hosts, in the day when I make up my treasured possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him. Then once more you shall see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him. “For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the Lord of hosts. “Remember the law of my servant Moses, the statutes and rules that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel. “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.” (Malachi 3:16–4:6)

It took 400 years, to us a long time, but Jesus came and Jesus conquered sin by taking its penalty upon Himself and dying the death we deserved. He gave us His Holy Spirit that we might also conquer sin’s power and eventually its very presence.

Before that, His people had grown cold to His call thinking He would never restore the covenant blessings. The priesthood had become corrupt. Worship had become routine. Divorce was widespread. Social justice was ignored and tithing neglected. His people did not trust Him, not with their money or their lives. Yet God promised to “open the windows of heaven” (3:10) for those who pay their full tithe and a day would be coming with evildoers would be stubble trod under their feet (4:1-3) because He would send them One who would turn their hearts (4:6). 

Even so, come Lord Jesus. And You came and turned the hearts of millions, You who are God in human flesh. From the NT, many of the therefore words will describe Your life, our lives with You, and then the culmination of this victory that we long for with all our hearts!

  

God's remedy for bad news

Behold, the Lord will empty the earth and make it desolate, and he will twist its surface and scatter its inhabitants. And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the slave, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the creditor, so with the debtor. The earth shall be utterly empty and utterly plundered; for the Lord has spoken this word. The earth mourns and withers; the world languishes and withers; the highest people of the earth languish. The earth lies defiled under its inhabitants; for they have transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore a curse devours the earth, and its inhabitants suffer for their guilt; therefore the inhabitants of the earth are scorched, and few men are left. (Isaiah 24:1–6)

This reads too much like this morning’s newspaper. All bad news. Much confusion in every part. No mention of hope or trusting God. Some exhortation for human powers  to fix it, but all efforts fail and most of them get a low approval rating. Are we suffering as did the ancients because we are guilty of transgressing the laws of God and His covenant with us has been broken?

Some see good things, progress. Some see only selfishness and hidden motivations. The media promotes their bias. Podcasts and opposing political opinions add to the confusion. AI makes many wonder if truth can be found, or is all of it imagined or it just adds to the deceptions on the minds of the masses? Scams are robbing funds from those who are in the habit of believing everything they hear. How can anyone trust their bank when they send someone to pick up a ‘faulty credit card’ and rob that person of thousands? We are living in a world gone haywire.

The Bible indicates that all falls apart when we trust ourselves and not God. Personally, I know that is true. The Bible teaches me, but so does experience and my own lack of obedience. The above passage says this applies to everyone. It isn’t just for ‘religious’ people or those without thought for God. 

Spiritual truth is outside of opinions and human choices. We can make our choices,  but we cannot choose the consequences. This passage goes on to describe some of them. As my farming dad used to say, “I plant the seeds but God makes them grow” — or not. Without His blessing, our needs and joys go by the wayside.

Jesus, I know that every breath I take is in Your power. You can give me peace and joy. My actions and attitude can ruin my life, but if I am loving and serving You, Your  peace and joy remain, even when the headlines spell doom for the rest of the world. I want people to know that. Yet trusting You isn’t primarily about You changing circumstances, or even about You making our work profitable. It is about You granting peace and contentment no matter what is happening. For this, I am blessed.

Thankful for Jesus

A few weeks ago someone said “All the problems of the world would disappear if all people were simply thankful.” When I repeat this, most who listen stop and stare. One person said, “Instead of greedy.”

I see this in my own life. If I am grumpy about something, that quote makes me realize my bad attitude. I didn’t get what I wanted instead of being thankful for what I already have. An even deeper root is that I’m not trusting God as my supply. He knows my needs far better than I do.

Piper writes about integrity and about standing by our word, even if it hurts. This too is related to trusting God to supply all needs. Piper points to an OT story from 2 Chronicles 25:5–9.  It is about a king in Judah threatened by a pagan nation so he formed an army of his own men, then hired fighters from the Northern Kingdom of Israel. God was not happy and used a prophet to tell this leader, “O king, do not let the army of Israel go with you, for the Lord is not with Israel.… God will bring you down before the enemy”

It is not hard to imagine his reaction. He made a large commitment of cash to Israeli troops. Should he stand by it when he tells them they are not needed? Money down the tube. While being greedy is not the same as being financially wise, this king was likely not too thankful that God stopped him from using hired soldiers.

God’s answer was a challenge to this man’s faith: “The LORD has much more to give to you than this.” As Piper writes, God told the king to trust Him and keep his word. Stand by your commitment knowing that God would take care of him. Integrity is always rewarded.

When I promise something, I’m to follow through and like God, keep my promises, even if it costs me dearly. My prayer should never be, “Oh dear, I’ve blown it and now I will suffer if I don’t back out.” Instead, it should be: “Lord, I goofed. However, I will do whatever I promised and trust You to cover my losses.

Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. (Psalm 37:5)

This is about living by faith, particularly when getting in hot water because I made decisions that were not made in faith. It happens. I married an unsaved man. That was 54 years ago and we are still married and he is a strong man of faith. My life is filled with more examples of rashly deciding to do something without seeking God's will, and suffered for it, but God used all of it for good.

On the other hand, without faith it becomes easy to break promises. If a rash decision involves loss of money, or reputation, or anything else, that old sinful nature will strive to protect itself instead of trusting God to repair the damages or use them for good.

Thankfulness is a great antidote for all of it. When I think of all God has done, it is much easier to focus on holiness, faithfulness, fulfilling my own commitments, and trusting Him to be there for me, regardless of my goof-ups. Again, He tells me to commit my way to the Him in faith, and He will act to work things for His glory and my good. “He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; he is a shield to those who walk in integrity” (Proverbs 2:7)

PRAY: Jesus, I speak of You as the solid rock on which I stand. You are that and more for which I am so thankful. You take care of me, even when I forget You. You never let me down, even when I seek my own will instead of Your will. You are amazing and You are not only my Rock, but also my anchor and my eternal Hope. Thank You.


 

What happens when I abandon doing it my way

 

Today’s devotional offers more on the difference between law and grace. Most of them contrast what law asks for and what God gives. For example, the law demands holiness while the gospel gives holiness. The law says do; the gospel says done. The law places the day of rest at the end of the week’s work; the gospel places it at the beginning. Under the law, salvation has wages; under the gospel, salvation is a gift.

Our big problem is waiting. Some of what we hope for is not instant. I pray, sometimes for years, yet see no answer. Will I take matters into my own hands? Not a good idea. Abraham and Sarah did that, producing a son from her handmaid whose descendants are still trying to destroy the descendants of the son that God gave later.

Waiting on God is difficult. Not only that, He produces patience by trials.

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (James 1:2–4)

And those trials are a huge temptation to take matters into our own hands, even asking God to remove them rather than yielding to their purpose. Yet in yielding, we have power with God because our prayers eventually bear fruit, and almost always in surprising ways. If the flesh insists on personal comfort and God relents, I will miss the surprise and the joy of experiencing God’s sufficiency.

So what else is in it for me if I yield to God? Faith is about knowing what cannot be seen. In yielding, I will not have a clue — but I will have the promises of God. Is that not a great something? This verse seems to refer to physical battles, it also points to the abundant life that Jesus gives:

And do you seek great things for yourself? Seek them not, for behold, I am bringing disaster upon all flesh, declares the Lord. But I will give you your life as a prize of war in all places to which you may go. (Jeremiah 45:5)

Oswald Chambers says, “This is the unshakable secret of the Lord to those who trust Him” for what more does anyone want than their life? He adds, “’Thy life for a prey’ means that wherever you may go, even if it is into hell, you will come out with your life, nothing can harm it. So many of us are caught up in the show of things, not in the way of property and possessions, but of blessings. All these have to go; but there is something grander that never can go—the life that is ‘hid with Christ in God.’ ”

Chambers says the test is in how we question God with suppositions, asking ‘what about this’ which reveals that I’m not trusting Him with all things. The opposite is thinking no more about what God is going to do after I ask Him to do something.
This week, two large issues involving people with mental health issues had me praying until I reached a place of trusting the Lord to take care of them. When that happened, I was surprised to be no longer thinking about them and their problems. Not that I ceased to care, but that I ceased to worry. I can hear Him saying, “I got this” and am now waiting to see what happens.

So abandoning anything to God means no more questions or ‘what if’ thoughts. Chambers says that people get tired because their life is not seen as given to them by Jesus. He adds, “When you do get through to abandonment to God, you will be the most surprised and delighted creature on earth; God has got you absolutely and has given you your life. If you are not there, it is either because of disobedience or a refusal to be simple enough.”

PRAY: Jesus, forgive me for actually being worried that I have no concerns and thinking that means I don’t care — instead of recognizing the peace that comes with giving all my worries to You. Certainly Your yoke is easy and Your burdens are light. You are taking care of the things that I abandon to You so I don’t need to be anxious. The gospel says Your peace will guard my heart and mind, and this peace is greater than my understanding! How incredibly easy to worship You!

Poverty is a good thing . . .

 

Everyone wants to be happy, well off, well spoken of, enjoying life and favorable circumstances. The lie is that we can do this by our own efforts. However, like a shadow, this state of being moves every time with try to step into it. For many, the only cure is lowering the standard and doing our best to be content with what we have. However, that empty place is still there.

Jesus’ words are well-known but not universally accepted. He describes that a full and blissful life of joy and being blessed is not what the average person thinks it is.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:3–10)

The first half of each of these statements is contrary to what we think it should be. Poverty of spirit? That seems a sorry lot in life. No one wants to feel as if they have nothing and are nothing, but read the next half of the sentence — “theirs is the kingdom of heaven” sounds much better. Isn’t that what the empty place in the human heart craves? Don’t we want to live forever in that place where there is no sin and sorrow? We just don’t want what Jesus says is the way to get there.

Happy people are characterized as ‘those who enjoy other people but aren’t self-sacrificing, who refuse to participate in negative feelings or emotions, and who have a sense of accomplishment based on their own self-sufficiency.’ It is a ‘you can do it’ philosophy, yet Jesus tells us we cannot do it. That blessedness we seek comes only by giving up self-effort and trusting Jesus to do it for us.

In these verses, the process of becoming a blessed person begins with giving up, by realizing and accepting that our capacity is zero. We are spiritual beggars without resources in ourselves and meekly accept that as the only route to fill that empty place — giving up, not by ‘work harder’ or trying more diligently. I know that sounds more like misery than happiness, but Jesus, the Word of God who spoke all things into existence (John 1:1ff) knows. He bids us “come, taste and see” that He is good and that He knows what He is saying is true.

There is a logic to it. MacArthur puts it like this: True happiness begins with being “poor in spirit” — which is a right attitude toward sin and self -effort, which leads to mourning over it and a meekness that leads to hungering and thirsting for righteousness. That results in mercy, purity of heart, and a peaceable spirit. In those attitudes is a true blessedness that cannot be lost.

Others will try. Those determined to prove Jesus wrong will insult, persecute and unjustly accuse those who believe that Jesus is telling the truth. We will be an ‘an irritating rebuke’ to them yet even in that we can “rejoice, and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great.”

Jesus, I know that some are drawn to Your truth while others are repelled by it. I cannot ‘fix’ that. All that I can do is let my sense of poverty keep drawing me to You and finding each time how faithful You are. You bless us with all that we need. I’ve also learned that the word “bless” can be translated as “well-spoken of” and You do that too. The weaker I feel, the more Your strength can be seen in me. That also is a blessing. What a wonder You are, full of grace and truth — and willing to impart to me that grace so I can believe Your truth and live with these attitudes that bring so much joy to my heart. May I be Your light in the lives of others, not afraid of being poor in spirit, but embracing it and living in immense joy.

MORE: 1 Peter 2:19–23. How did Jesus respond to those who reacted negatively to Him? What was the result of His example of not sinning but instead entrusting Himself to the righteous Judge? How can I be more like Jesus?