Behind those accusations and trials . . .

Exodus 5; Job 22; Luke 8; 1 Corinthians 9

Satan does not like it when Christians pray in faith and in the will of God. He is sneaky in his attempts to stop those prayers and is often successful by sending trials to sidetrack those who pray. He also uses accusations:

And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. (Revelation 12:10)

The enemy’s accusations can come through other people. This morning’s reading in Job shows how strong were the words of accusation thrown at this righteous man:

Is not your evil abundant? There is no end to your iniquities. For you have exacted pledges of your brothers for nothing and stripped the naked of their clothing. You have given no water to the weary to drink, and you have withheld bread from the hungry. The man with power possessed the land, and the favored man lived in it. You have sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless were crushed. Therefore snares are all around you, and sudden terror overwhelms you, or darkness, so that you cannot see, and a flood of water covers you. (Job 22:5–11)

None of this was true, but coupled with the trial of losing everything, including his health, Job was devastated. On top of that, God did not reveal to him what was behind his losses or those accusations. At this point, he had no idea that his faith was being tested.

Yet faith overcomes accusations. God can even use them to build our faith as we learn to fight the enemy’s lies with what God reveals to be true.

The enemy’s other tactic is to throw trials at God’s people. As I trust Him, a painful or difficult event can challenge my trust. As with accusations, trials may also come to us through other people. When God’s people tried to escape bondage in Egypt, Pharaoh determined to make their lives miserable and keep them from doing what God had planned for them.

Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Please let us go a three days’ journey into the wilderness that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God, lest he fall upon us with pestilence or with the sword.” But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people away from their work? Get back to your burdens.” And Pharaoh said, “Behold, the people of the land are now many, and you make them rest from their burdens!” The same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people and their foremen, “You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as in the past; let them go and gather straw for themselves. But the number of bricks that they made in the past you shall impose on them, you shall by no means reduce it, for they are idle. Therefore they cry, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God.’ Let heavier work be laid on the men that they may labor at it and pay no regard to lying words.” (Exodus 5:3–9)

God is wise. He uses trials to build our faith as well:

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)

When trials are over, I am a stronger person in my ability to trust God — no matter what is going on. When my sister died and I began praying about the funeral she wanted, a virus left me with a constant cough but I kept praying. Other things happened but the worst was a nosebleed that would not stop. I kept praying, even witnessing to medical people. As soon as the funeral was over (and exceeded above and beyond all my requests) the trials stopped. At least for a little while.

God tells me to not be anxious about trials or accusations, just press on. Let them be part of what forms the life of Christ in me . . .

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified. (1 Corinthians 9:24–27)

Apply: Press on. Today, I press on. I nearly caved yesterday, but in the end kept praying. Whatever is in store, God is faithful and will carry me through.

Perfection and Perspective

It takes a long while to learn what having an “eternal perspective” means, never mind actually having it. Today’s devotional reading is about “Christian perfection” which seems difficult to grasp, but as I read the fragment of the verse in its context, the Lord began uniting those two concepts in my mind. Paul writes . . .

“Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:8–14)

What is the prize of the upward call? If I read just this verse or even the one before it, I would not be too sure what Paul is talking about. I’ve interpreted the ‘prize’ is to be with Jesus and perhaps have had other ideas, but reading this passage, and even the verses not included above, it seems that the prize is being with Jesus in heaven after being resurrected from the dead.

My Bible tells me that “attain” in verse 11 can also mean “arrive” and Paul says he isn’t there yet. Of course he isn’t. When he wrote this, he was still on earth; he had not yet arrived in heaven.

He also says that he isn’t “already perfect” either, but presses on to make this his own because Christ Jesus made him His own. What does it mean to be “perfect” which is the goal or prize for which Paul strived? He says “those who are mature” (verse 15) should think this way, so it isn’t maturity. From this context, it seems the prize is being resurrected and with Jesus; that is perfection, and he isn’t there yet, but that is his goal.

I’m thinking about my goals. I want to finish well, but finish what? A project? Some lifelong ambition? If that is my target, then my mind and energy is wrapped up in that goal. But if my goal is eternal life with Jesus (a sure thing, by the way) then my mind and energies will be focused on something entirely different than any earthly target or ambition. It will be set on and straining forward to what lies ahead, to what is guaranteed to lie ahead. There are no guarantees for anything else, but this one is based on the promises of God.

Chambers considers the meaning of perfection as a goal for this life, a oneness with God which certainly extends into eternity, but says, “Christian perfection is the perfection of a relationship to God which shows itself amid the irrelevancies of human life.” Then he adds that we are called to live in perfect relation to God so that our lives produce a longing after God in others, not make me a specimen in His show-room but “getting me to the place where He can use me.”

This makes me sigh. If being “perfect” is equated with usefulness, how can that be measured? Do I compare my “perfection” against evangelists like Billy Graham, or authors with hundreds of books, or professors who teach in seminaries, and so on. Is this what Chambers intended? I don’t think so.

Being at one with God is not measured in what others can see and count. It is having my mind and heart so in tune with God that His will is my will. I’m willing to be on the front lines or in a prayer closet, whatever He desires. Oneness with Him is about attitude, about camaraderie. It is about being together with Him on what He is doing, but also how He is thinking. It is described as Paul said in another passage:

“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” (Colossians 3:1–4)

These verses are similar to those from Philippians in that I am to put away earthly thoughts and press on, with my mind on eternal matters. Reading both passages is a hint — is Christian perfection about having an eternal perspective? Perhaps. I know for certain that the more I think about things above, the closer that prize seems — the one I will receive when I walk from this life into that one.

Pressing On

This morning, as soon as my eyes opened, I was thinking that I don’t want to do Tuesday. No reason, just one of those moods of feeling tired of routine, tired of daily chores, even tired of being exhorted by God. I had no enthusiasm for anything. I’d had eight hours of sleep, and am finally feeling well physically, but this was what some people call a funk.

However, God has an uncanny way of putting what I need to hear in the devotional material for the day when I need to hear it. This is what He said to me through the Apostle Paul:

“Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:12–14)

The “this” that Paul had not already attained was related to becoming mature Christian who could count all things as loss in order that he might be found in Christ, and that he would experience Him, the power of His resurrection, the sharing in His suffering, and be like Him in His death.

These verses have always puzzled me, but I’m beginning to understand from something Jesus said right before He died: “Not my will but Thine be done.” Jesus yielded all to His Father. That level of submission took Him to Calvary where He died.

Paul wanted that same submission to God. This was his goal. He knew that no one reached the uttermost call of God without that same submission, whether it led to physical death or not. He wanted to be totally willing to do whatever God wanted. This is the meaning of dying to myself.

Now I feel foolish. My daily routine asks the smallest of sacrifices. God likely will not be sending me to a cross or even into stormy weather. Yielding my will today is far from what this is like for a missionary in a country that hates Christians, or even a pastor in this country whose church is demanding his resignation for petty reasons. I’m only looking at chores that are not as much fun as leisure — and I’m grousing?

The other side of my attitude is about personal ambition. Once I had lots of it. Now God calls me to intercessory prayer. It is a largely hidden ministry. I’m mostly alone and often misunderstood in a world more interested in personal comfort than person holiness. People seldom want answers to the kinds of prayers that I pray.

Yet I realize I am no different. Rather than exert myself to serve God even in prayer, this morning I didn’t want to do anything. Surely this reveals that sometimes I need someone interceding for me!

Chambers says I’m not to choose what Christian work I do, only that I listen to God and obey what He says. No excuses. No complaining. If I feel the grip of God, I cannot back off and do what I feel like doing. I also must remember that I’m not special, just a sinner saved by grace. Like Paul, I have been given one thing to do.

For all of this, I’m to be like Jesus in His death, and I’m not there yet.

Passing it on and yet pressing on

2 Samuel 20:1–21:22, 2 Peter 3:14–18, Psalm 146:1–10

Yesterday I was asked to mentor high school students. My first thought was that there is too large a gap between them and me, not just the age difference, but in the way we think. For instance, I would rather talk than text, rarely use social media, and my favorite music would raise their eyebrows. The main thing we would have in common is that as Christians, we both war with the same spiritual enemies.

That request prompted a different perspective to today’s OT reading than I might have had. It reminded me of how God wants us older people to pass the torch. In yet another war between the Philistines and Israel, David went down with his army. They fought together against the Philistines, but David grew weary.

I know the feeling. For the past couple of days, I’ve felt like ‘retiring’ from this business of being a Christian.  Figuring out the will of God so I can serve Him seems like too much work. I’m getting weary.

However, in the reading God didn’t tell David to press on as I may have expected. Instead, He used the men David had trained to do the fighting for him. When one of the descendants of the giants (like Goliath) thought to kill David, “Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid and attacked the Philistine and killed him.” Then David’s men swore to him, “You shall no longer go out with us to battle, lest you quench the lamp of Israel.” It was okay for David to take a break. He did not have to keep on.

But that didn’t stop the enemy. After this there was again war with the Philistines at Gob. A warrior named Sibbecai struck down another descendant of the giants. Then Elhanan from Bethlehem struck down Goliath the Gittite. The war went to Gath where another huge man also descended from the giants began to taunt Israel. Jonathan the son of Shimei, David’s brother, struck him down. These gigantic enemies fell by the hand of David’s men, people he had trained. (2 Samuel 21:15–22)

The Word of God stresses the importance of mentoring the next generation. Not only do they need to be equipped to deal with attacks against their spiritual lives, but also encouraged to obey God. So do I need that kind of encouragement. Peter gives the reason why and exhorts me to always keep growing . . .

“You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.” (2 Peter 3:17–18)

No matter how weary I am, obedience and continuing to grow spiritually are still important.

The reading from the psalms stresses an important perspective when I feel too tired to go on; some of the verses point to the eternal aspect of following Christ. That is, this does not end. There is no retirement for Christians, no permission to disobey or to stop growing in my faith. That is reserved for matters of this world, not eternal matters.

“Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation. When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever.” (Psalm 146:3–6)

The average person makes plans, yet death ends all that. However, those who worship God know that life goes on forever with Him. I am bound to the Living God for eternity. Whatever I do in this life in obedience to Him will last, not go to a grave and stay there. This is motivation . . . even though I am still very weary.