More angels

It's been a long day. Our doctor had room for my husband around noon, took his vitals, and as soon as he saw his blood-oxygen, called an ambulance. The one that answered the call was sitting almost outside the building when it came in, so they were there almost before the doctor's secretary hung up the phone. They came up with a gurney, put him on oxygen right away, and off they went. Then our angel of a doctor prayed for him, the other medical people, and for me, before I left for the nearest hospital.

Nearest -- that was a blessing for all the hospitals in our city of one million were backed up and saying 'no' to any more ambulances at the ERs. They were going to send us to another city, but the EMT angels said no way, and took him about 30 blocks instead.

Our doctor sent a letter requesting 4 specialists, so he was not long in the que. After a multitude of tests, x-rays, etc. we were told he has viral pneumonia, maybe bacterial pneumonia also. The oxygen is helping, but he is on an IV and being watched closely by a multitude of angels in scrubs. He is ordinarily very healthy but CLL lowers the immune system making this a large threat.

But God has angels. He kept another one awake last night, then Lord directed her to read this blog this morning. She called first then showed up and brought us something to eat. 

I'm home and will go back in the morning hoping to find him in a ward and not in the ER waiting for a bed.

Thanks for praying, dear friends.

Increased Faith

Obadiah 1:1–21, Acts 11:19–12:25, Job 21:17–34

Today’s readings are ‘faith increasers,’ at least for me. They tell of how God works among His people.

In the first one, Obadiah is given a vision. He saw Edom rising up to help the Babylonians capture fleeing Israelites and take them to exile. The Edomites were descendents of Esau, Jacob’s brother, and as relatives of Israel, they should not do that. Obadiah made clear that God would repay them for this mistreatment:

“Thus says the Lord God concerning Edom: We have heard a report from the Lord, and a messenger has been sent among the nations: ‘Rise up! Let us rise against her for battle!’ Behold, I will make you small among the nations; you shall be utterly despised. The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rock, in your lofty dwelling, who say in your heart, ‘Who will bring me down to the ground?’ Though you soar aloft like the eagle, though your nest is set among the stars, from there I will bring you down, declares the Lord.” (Obadiah 1–4) He would not let Edom get away with their treachery.

Job was also mistreated. His friends kept saying his misery was because God punished the wicked, implying that he was one of them and not a righteous man. Job challenged their reasoning:

“Behold, I know your thoughts and your schemes to wrong me. For you say, ‘Where is the house of the prince? Where is the tent in which the wicked lived?’ Have you not asked those who travel the roads, and do you not accept their testimony that the evil man is spared in the day of calamity, that he is rescued in the day of wrath? Who declares his way to his face, and who repays him for what he has done? When he is carried to the grave, watch is kept over his tomb. The clods of the valley are sweet to him; all mankind follows after him, and those who go before him are innumerable. How then will you comfort me with empty nothings? There is nothing left of your answers but falsehood.” (Job 21:27–34) Job was right and God later affirmed his assessment. Sometimes evil people do prosper in this life. The ‘comfort’ of his ‘friends’ was empty.

In the NT, God actively protected His people as they established the church, and used their witness to draw others to Himself. “Those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews. But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists also, preaching the Lord Jesus. And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.” (Acts 11:19–21)

The Lord also took care of their physical needs: “And one of them named Agabus stood up and foretold by the Spirit that there would be a great famine over all the world . . . . So the disciples determined, every one according to his ability, to send relief to the brothers living in Judea. And they did so, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul.” (Acts 11:28–30)

He protected them as well: “Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church. He killed James the brother of John with the sword, and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also . . . . put him in prison . . . with four squads of soldiers to guard him . . . . but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church . . . . and when Herod was about to bring him out, on that very night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood next to him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, ‘Get up quickly.’ And the chains fell off his hands.” (Acts 12:1–7) The gates opened and Peter walked past the guards to freedom.

Not so with Herod. One day he put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered a speech. The people shouted, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” and “immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.” (Acts 12:21–23)

From all this, I know that God will deal with those who mistreat me, even those of my own family. He will reassure me when others advise me with false accusations. He will protect me in persecution and even use my testimony to reach others. He promises to take care of my physical needs, and to protect me, using my situation to glorify Himself.

“And the word of God increased and multiplied” (Acts 12:24) and so did the faith of the people. As I ponder this and praise God, so also does my faith increase.

Old Covenant cf. New Covenant

Joshua 18:1–19:9, 2 Corinthians 12:1–10, Psalm 56:1–13

The OT regulations for land allotment did not include the priests. “To the tribe of Levi alone Moses gave no inheritance. The offerings by fire to the Lord God of Israel are their inheritance, as he said to him . . .  The Levites have no portion among you, for the priesthood of the Lord is their heritage . . .” (Joshua 13:14 and 18:7)

In the book of Numbers, the Lord explained that He would be “your portion and your inheritance among the people of Israel” and that “the tithe of the people of Israel, which they present as a contribution to the Lord, I have given to the Levites for an inheritance. Therefore I have said of them that they shall have no inheritance among the people of Israel.” (Numbers 18:20–24)

In the NT, God tells Christians that we are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” (1 Peter 2:9) There is nothing about inheriting land or land allotment, only that all of God’s people now inherit eternal life.

I don’t know for sure, but it seems like the old covenant is a fuzzy picture that becomes clearer in the new covenant. The priests were people wholly dedicated to God, serving on behalf of others. They got no land from God, but neither do God’s NT priests. For us, this is not our permanent dwelling place. The earth is not our home. We look forward to our eternal home, and for now are like Jesus who owned nothing yet owns everything. I’m learning about the types and shadows in the OT and if this is not one of them, it is an interesting comparison.

The NT verses for today remind me not to get too excited about the discoveries that I make for God isn’t going to let me have a swelled head about anything. He said these amazing verses to Paul, a much wiser and more knowledgeable Christian than I’ll ever be . . .

So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:7–10)

I don’t mind the weakness part nearly as much as I once did. Along with the psalmist, I am able to say . . .

When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me?  . . . You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book? Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?  . . . I must perform my vows to you, O God; I will render thank offerings to you. For you have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life. (Psalm 56:3-4, 8-11, 12–13)

Thank you, Jesus, for the most amazing day of blessing, weakness, and contentment.

Education and rules do not protect me

In September and October, my devotional guide looks at the need to be alert to spiritual danger. The human idea of how to protect ourselves is through adequate knowledge (education) and having laws and rules to guide us. However, the most educated countries in the world and those with the most sophisticated legal systems are no better off regard crime and human misery than uneducated pagans with the primitive laws.

While many people make an idol out of education, British politician Lloyd George observed, “Education without God makes clever devils.” While many insist that better laws will fix the problems of crime and rebellion in society, but Bill Gothard, founder of Basic Life Principles, says that, “Our courts are now in confusion, with two opposing legal systems. One is based on biblical principles; the other on humanistic principles. This explains why court decisions are more and more unpredictable, inconsistent and even contradictory.”

I have observed that protecting my own life from spiritual danger means recognizing my problems are not about ignorance. I almost always know the difference between right and wrong. Neither will my protection come from more rules, for rules do not changed the rebellion that pops up from my own sinful heart. I can know something is not good for me (it might be as simple as another slice of chocolate cake), but the rules of healthy eating do not prevail against that sinful and dangerous attitude of, “I want what I want when I want it.”

The Bible offers hundreds of examples of the folly of humanity and its source. We are sinners. We resist God to our peril. Education and wisdom do not help us for, “The wisest of women builds her house, but folly with her own hands tears it down.” (Proverbs 14:1)

These days, common sense is not all that common, nor was it in the days of King Solomon. He observed, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death. Even in laughter the heart may ache, and the end of joy may be grief.” (Proverbs 14:12–13) We humans tend to go for what looks good up front, what will make us happy, but so often those choices lead to sorrow and even death.

This attitude is common to humanity. Scripture repeated describes those in the days of the Judges in Israel when there was no king and “everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” (Judges 17:6, etc.) This “I will do my own thing” produced chaos then just as it does now.

Our daughter often says, “You can’t fix stupid” and that also is a problem. I shake my head at stories in the news, or Facebook videos of people who acted without thinking and hurt themselves or someone else, but have to admit that I can be foolish too.

So what is the solution? How can I be protected from spiritual danger, even physical danger if education, laws and rules will not do it?

The quote from Lloyd George deserves a second look. He did not say education was a bad thing, but that education without God is a bigger problem than most people realize. The Bible says we can trust all sorts of things, but can any of our idols make promises like these . . . ?

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. (Proverbs 3:5–7)

Be angry, and do not sin; ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent . . . put your trust in the Lord . . . In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety. (Psalm 4:4–8)

Trusting God means that I will do what He says, not what “seems right in my own eyes.” If I really trust God, then I will be obedient, and He will be part of my decisions or actions. This never happens because of education or rules, but because God is changing my life. In grace, He has determined to love and care for me just as He promises in Psalm 91:14-16 . . .   

Because (she) holds fast to me in love, I will deliver (her); I will protect (her), because (she) knows my name. When (she) calls to me, I will answer (her); I will be with (her) in trouble; I will rescue (her) and honor (her). With long life I will satisfy (her) and show (her) my salvation.

When Jesus prays, pleading is not necessary

Unity is when I say to my husband, “We should go visit…” and he says, “I was just thinking the same thing. This is what prayer in the name of Jesus should be. I say the words, and those words are a reflection of what He is already thinking.

For these days, I’m reading a prayer that Jesus prayed. When He talks with His Father, He is not trying to persuade Him to do something new or different. He is at one with the Father, therefore His prayer reflects the plan of God. With that in mind, these words reveal how God thinks about my relationship with Him.

All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. (John 17:10–11)

First, I belong to Jesus and to the Father, even to the Holy Spirit. Each has functions that are needful, yet some days what the Father does fits my situation. I cry out “Abba, Father” as a child looking for His help and leadership. Other days, I struggle with temptation and sin and need the Savior, or I battle discouragement and need the comfort of the Holy Spirit. They are the same God who cannot be divided into parts, and I belong to all of who and what God is, and am cared for by Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Second, it is the intention of God that Jesus is glorified in me. Most of the time I am oblivious to this, but now and then someone says something to that effect, or I’m aware that God is pleased with me. I’d rejoice if this happened all the time, but am content to leave that to Him. Glorifying God is something like being a mirror. When He stands close to me, He is reflected to others. The best I can do is stay available with all the dirt cleaned off so that His reflection is as clear as possible.

Third, the visible presence of Jesus is not here on earth right now, but when Jesus prayed, He asked that the Father would keep me and other Christians in His name, guarding and protecting us as individuals, but more so as His Body. He and the Father agree that there be no fragmentation between His children. We are not to fight over anything or compete with one another. He isn’t looking for clones, but for unity in our diversity and harmony even when we don’t see eye to eye.

Imagine a room filled with children all drawing a picture of a house. No two houses look the same, yet there is agreement on the subject. We don’t argue who makes the best expression or who has picked the best colors, size of house, or the type of roof put on it. Instead, we admire each other’s work and cheerfully encourage the diversity of workmanship in rendering the same subject and reaching the same objective.  

The heart of God is as a parent caring for His children. The children are like Him, and because His visible presence is no longer here, He wants us to be united. When we are, we reflect to the world what He is like; a God who agrees with Himself and who jointly delights in His family. Jesus intercedes for us asking that this happens, but He does not have to plead — because God is One God.