Let the Spirit do His work!

The women in my group at Bible study talked about self-examination so we can see our sin and what we need to deal with. My take? This task belongs to the Holy Spirit. He sees more clearly than I do, knows my heart, and knows the best time to reveal sinfulness to me. If He showed me the depth of my sin in the beginning of my Christian walk, I would likely consider suicide!

However, seeing my sinfulness is necessary, both at the time of salvation and throughout my walk with Christ. Today’s devotional illustrates this with the story of Zacchaeus, the short man who climbed a tree to see Jesus as He passed by:

“And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.’ So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully. And when they saw it, they all grumbled, ‘He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.’” (Luke 19:5–7)

The rest of the story indicates how this encounter with Jesus changed Zacchaeus’ heart and produced fruit in his life that indicated he had new life from God. The devotional writer uses this coming down from his perch to say that, “Anyone who experiences the grace of God in salvation will be brought down in the dust of humiliation before the throne of his sovereign mercy. Before God exalts a man, he abases him. Before God clothes any sinner with the garments of Christ’s righteousness, he strips the sinner of the filthy rags of his own righteousness.”

He goes on to make a plea, which applies to sinners not yet saved, but also Christians whose pride is getting in the way of their maturity. The Bible verifies this application by saying:

“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.” (Colossians 2:6–7)

I was saved by realizing I could not save myself. I grow in my Christian life by realizing the same thing. When I am trusting myself in any way, ignoring the teaching I have learned from the Lord, and am grumbling and not thankful, I need to pay attention and listen to this plea:

“Come down. You must come down from your own good works and come down from your own self-sufficiency. That is another great step downward, but it must be taken . . . Come down from all your hope in yourself and in what you do. Come down until you see that you are utterly without strength, until you are utterly lost, until you see that you are nothing and can do nothing. Come down until . . . you are made to see that you justly deserve to die. Come down until you are made to see your utter wickedness, vileness, corruption and filthiness. You must come down, down to the feet of Christ. The place of mercy is in the dust. Come down!”

The devotional writer uses dramatic language, but sometimes a strong message is needed to shake loose the complacency of taking the grace of God for granted and letting pride run my life instead of the grace of God.

^^^^^^^

Jesus, You know how this happens for You see the human heart and the effects of the self-life. Like Paul, I want to do right, but that old nature has other ideas. Besides the struggle with the flesh, the devil would have me thinking I’ve reached the heights and arrived, that I am no more in need of Your mercy and can coast from now on. How foolish. The good news of the Gospel is not only for those who have not yet believed, but also for those who have received Christ. May I remember this, walk in You, rely on You, never assuming I have reached that goal, but always move toward it. 

Inexcusable sin?

Leviticus 4:1–6:30

John 7:14–44

Song of Solomon 5:13–16

Two excuses I’ve always found difficult to answer: “But I didn’t mean to do it” and “I didn’t know it was wrong.” When a child says them, what do I say? When a child of God says them, how does God respond to those excuses? The first reading today answers that question.

“If anyone sins unintentionally in any of the Lord’s commandments about things not to be done, and does any one of them, if it is the anointed priest who sins, thus bringing guilt on the people, then he shall offer for the sin that he has committed a bull from the herd without blemish to the Lord for a sin offering.” (Leviticus 4:1–3)

“If the whole congregation of Israel sins unintentionally and the thing is hidden from the eyes of the assembly, and they do any one of the things that by the Lord’s commandments ought not to be done, and they realize their guilt, when the sin which they have committed becomes known, the assembly shall offer a bull from the herd for a sin offering . . . .” (Leviticus 4:13–14)

“When a leader sins, doing unintentionally any one of all the things that by the commandments of the Lord his God ought not to be done, and realizes his guilt, or the sin which he has committed is made known to him, he shall bring as his offering a goat, a male without blemish . . . .” (Leviticus 4:22–24)

“If anyone of the common people sins unintentionally in doing any one of the things that by the Lord’s commandments ought not to be done, and realizes his guilt, or the sin which he has committed is made known to him, he shall bring for his offering a goat, a female without blemish, for his sin which he has committed.” (Leviticus 4:27–28)

“If anyone commits a breach of faith and sins unintentionally in any of the holy things of the Lord, he shall bring to the Lord as his compensation, a ram without blemish out of the flock . . . for a guilt offering. He shall also make restitution for what he has done amiss in the holy thing and shall add a fifth to it and give it to the priest. And the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering, and he shall be forgiven. (Leviticus 5:14–16)

No matter who sins, whether it is unintentional or in ignorance, a sacrifice must be made to atone for it. The point is: “If anyone sins, doing any of the things that by the Lord’s commandments ought not to be done, though he did not know it, then realizes his guilt, he shall bear his iniquity.” (Leviticus 5:17)

Then, along comes the Messiah, also called the Lamb of God, the ultimate sacrifice for sin. By the reaction of the religious leaders, you’d think they were getting paid handsomely for doing their job of slaughtering lambs and were worried about being out of work. Instead of rejoicing, they didn’t like Jesus at all.

He said to them and to the crowds, “Has not Moses given you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. Why do you seek to kill me?” The crowd answered, “You have a demon! Who is seeking to kill you?”

Jesus answered them, “I did one work, and you all marvel at it. Moses gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. If on the Sabbath a man receives circumcision, so that the law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me because on the Sabbath I made a man’s whole body well? Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.” (John 7:19–24)

The point is, the Son of God knew the Law and knew that no one kept it. What is the point of continually offering sacrifice for sin and then continuing to sin? Isn’t that mocking the Law of God, even God Himself? But they didn’t see it that way and if they did, their best defense was offense — instead, they mocked Jesus.

When they heard these words, some of the people said, “This really is the Prophet.” Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Is the Christ to come from Galilee? Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the offspring of David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?” So there was a division among the people over him. Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him. (John 7:40–44)

The point is, the Lamb of God could prove Himself only by fulfilling the role for which God sent Him. He would die, not for His own sin, but the sin of the people: for those who hate Him, for those who love Him, for those who sin deliberately, for those who sin unintentionally or in ignorance, for those who never hear of Him, and for those who mock His name. So He died, that we might live forgiven lives.

People are still divided over who Jesus is, not so much because of a lack of evidence, but because of what Jesus said — they do not want their sin exposed. I know that feeling. Having my sin exposed is like finding out I am terminally ill. But having it forgiving is like the surgery that robs that disease of its power.

I’m with Solomon in saying of Jesus, “His mouth is most sweet, and he is altogether desirable. This is my beloved and this is my friend . . . .” (Song of Solomon 5:16) my friend who laid down His life for me.

Escaping sin? Not forever . . .

When someone dear to me lives contrary to the faith they once professed, I am sad and burdened for them. Sometimes it seems as if they have completely forgotten God and are oblivious to their sinful state. Instead of being themselves burdened, they have made life’s pleasures their gods and show no interest in the Lord they once loved and followed.

This morning, Jesus reminds me that this is not uncommon. He tells the story of the prodigal son . . .

And (Jesus) said, “There was a man who had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.’ And he divided his property between them. Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. (Luke 15:11–13)

The story begins this way and names of my family and friends come to mind. They seem well off, far from God, and squandering their lives in reckless living. Some of these have made and profession of faith and been baptized but no one would see that in them now.

Yet the Holy Spirit reminds me of a truth that I need to hear concerning God’s people. He said this to them when they were also wandering in the wilderness of sin even though they once had pledged obedience to Him . . .

But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out. (Numbers 32:23)

If God truly has claimed people for Himself, sin and reckless living is not the end of the story. It eventually “finds them out.” Consider what happened to the prodigal . . .

And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything. “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.” ’ (Luke 15:14–19)

This young man finally realized that he was messed up and returned to his father. He wasn’t the only one. David had sinned greatly and even though he may not have shown guilt on the outside, inside his heart he knew that he was guilty.

For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment. (Psalm 51:3–4)

Conviction eventually led David to ask forgiveness. Those who put their faith in Him know that God hears and answers such prayers . . .

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice. Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. (Psalm 51:7–11)

For me, these passages are a comfort. They tell me that even though people might not show it on the outside, God can still be at work on the inside, convicting them of sin and not letting them forget the faith that they once had. It is my prayer that one day soon, these whom I love will speak the following prayer to God, or something like it, and their spirits and joy in Him will be renewed . . .

For our transgressions are multiplied before you, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us, and we know our iniquities: transgressing, and denying the Lord, and turning back from following our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words. (Isaiah 59:12–13)

Oh Lord, you know the hearts of those on my heart. May a prayer like this soon be the prayer of everyone of them. Amen.

To Live is Christ — picky about sin

The women in my Bible study class think that I am picky. I believe that for everything I do there is God’s will or my will (or way) to do it. If it isn’t so much about the way it is done, then it is the attitude with which I do it, or even the motivation behind it. In other words, I am a black and white person. Something is either right or it is sin. There is no gray middle.

The verse that I’m reading these past few days says pretty much the same thing about what I don’t do. This too is in black and white terms.

In fact, if you know the right thing to do and don’t do it, that, for you, is evil. (James 4:17, The Message)

Unsure that I liked the translator’s substitution for the last word, I looked it up in a Greek dictionary. The results are a surprise. It shows what I suspected — that God’s definition of sin is even picker than mine.

Strong’s Greek Dictionary says that this word means: 1a to be without a share in. 1b to miss the mark. 1c to err, be mistaken. 1d to miss or wander from the path of uprightness and honor, to do or go wrong. 1e to wander from the law of God, violate God’s law, sin. 2 that which is done wrong, sin, an offence, a violation of the divine law in thought or in act. 3 collectively, the complex or aggregate of sins committed either by a single person or by many.

Regarding the first definition, I tried to find out what it means “to be without a share in” as it relates to sin. The only clue I found is that this word implies being a social outcast because the sinner wandered from God. This makes sense, but most Christians who fall into sin usually stop going to church before the church stops welcoming them, so I cannot easily relate to that idea.

This idea of being without a share connotes to me as being without a share in the Holy Spirit. Righteous behavior happens because of the Spirit’s work. I cannot do anything to please God apart from Him and sin happens whenever He is not in control of my life. In that sense, I have no share in Him and when that happens, what I do is sinful and evil.

Missing the mark is easier to understand. In the old days during archery competitions, when an arrow fell short of the target, the crowds hollered, “Sinner, sinner.” This is a great word picture for the Bible verse that says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)

Of course this is true when I sin. What I’ve done isn’t like God at all. It misses the target. If I know to do good, just as God knows to do good, but I do not do it, then I fall short of being like Him. I am a sinner.

The next definition is about making mistakes. If I err or am mistaken, this can be through ignorance, but this verse from James is not about ignorant mistakes. It says, “If you know. . . .” Therefore, the error is a choice based on knowing right from wrong. To not follow through with what I know — is sin.

The rest of the definition of sin gives me no out. If I know the will of God and do not do it, it is sin. If I know the attitude of Jesus Christ and do not have that attitude, it is sin. Deeper still, if I know what motivates God and am not motivated and driven by that same thinking, that too is sin.

The bottom line is that sin is much worse and much more prevalent than most of us think it is. After reading this verse for several days, I’ll be glad to move on to another Bible passage — and that attitude is likely sin too.

To Live is Christ — means never being in denial

Our church adult Sunday School classes have joined to view and discuss a series of videos on how to be peacemakers. Yesterday’s topic was forgiveness.

I’ve always thought of myself as a forgiving person. For one thing, being angry takes too much energy! Aside from that, I know how much I have been forgiven so cannot get too heated about the things others do, yet I was convicted yesterday.

The speaker said that there are four components of forgiveness. All of them are decisions, not a feeling or emotions. First is deciding to not dwell on the offense. That means no mulling it over in my mind. The second is determining not to bring it up to the offender ever again. The third is not talking to others about it, and the fourth is deciding that this offense will not stand between me and the other person, that whatever relationship we had before will not be affected.

In the process of peacemaking, the offender needs to be aware that they have done wrong and the person who was offended is supposed to go to them and talk to them first, not anyone else. What got me yesterday was realizing that I had been offended, was angry, and was talking about it, totally oblivious that I needed to do any of these things because I missed seeing this as an offense/forgiveness issue. Duh!

God opened my eyes as I thought about that third component of forgiveness. I wasn’t dwelling on what had been done (that takes too much energy), nor had I brought it up to those who annoyed me, but I’d been telling my husband about what they had done, not once but several times. Suddenly I realized that I was offended and needed to quit my griping and take a different kind of action.

The video series talks about up-front decisions too. Before I take action, I need to ask myself if I have done the same thing? Am I guilty in some way that first needs to be brought to the Lord? Then I need to ask if this is something that is worth being upset over, or can I simply let it go?

The speaker illustrates with big issues, but also small ones. The person who cuts me off in traffic could leave me annoyed or angry for the rest of the day. Of course I cannot chase him down for a confrontation, even though some do. (It’s called road-rage.)

Yet these small things that should be let go can build up in the human heart. I’ve known people that are angry all the time. Everything bothers them because they have not let go of anything. In noticing these irritated folks, I am aware that I can easily be like they are, boiling all the time over the small stuff.

Today’s devotional reading asks the question, “When the day is done, do you ever take inventory of the ways God has blessed you?” The verse is . . . 

The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night His song shall be with me — a prayer to the God of my life. (Psalm 42:8)

About a year ago, I decided to begin what I call a gratitude journal. Before I go to sleep at night, I write in the things of the day for which I am thankful. This helps keep me in a good frame of mind, yet I realized yesterday that being thankful for ABC does not eradicate the annoyance I feel with XYZ. I cannot cover up my irritation with gratitude.

In other words, if I have been irritated and bellyaching about something someone has done, I cannot be thankful for my daily bread or anything else and expect my heart to be right. My anger needs to be acknowledged and dealt with, not tossed in a bag and hid under the bed for the night. That baggage simply pops out the next morning and ties its noisy self around my neck.

To live is Christ means being honest with myself about the things that bug me. While Jesus had no sin to confess, He also did not let His anger against sin be bottled up. In some cases, He took it to the offenders and confronted them, but for the most part, He bore it on His own shoulders. Eventually, the weight of sin crucified Him, but in doing what He did about sin, He made peace with God possible for us.

Jesus is the ultimate peacemaker. From the lesson yesterday, the verse today, and from His lovingkindness, I have much to consider about how way I respond to the annoying things of life.