The capacity of a human soul

Nearly every day, Tozer says something in his devotional writing that startles me. His words may or may not be God’s ‘rhema’ for my day, but this quote has me shaking my head in amazement:

“Out of all God’s creatures, only the soul has a capacity large enough for [God] to empty . . .  the whole ground of his being into it. This He does in the act of giving birth to Himself spiritually in the soul.”

I’d already been thinking about the human heart as I began today by reading part of Exodus, the section where Pharaoh hardened his heart rather than letting the Israelites leave Egypt. Moses told this man what God wanted but he refused. After a few miraculous signs, Pharaoh still refused because God hardened his heart.

This made me think of the hard-hearted people I know. They hear the good news but push it away. The reasons vary, but the result is the same — a decreasing interest in Him and an increasing interest in the powers of darkness.

The good news is not difficult to understand, yet in its simplicity it becomes a puzzle and even bad news to those whose minds are closed to it. Jesus said it this way:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” (John 3:16–18)

This is a black and white statement. If I believe in Jesus, I am not condemned. If I do not believe in Jesus, I am condemned already. Two choices, and as with choices before they are made, we are usually in one of them. For example, today I can go out or stay home, yet before I decide, I am already at home. In this case, without making any decision at all, the unbelieving person is in a dangerous place.

The amazing statement by Tozer puts awe in my heart. God created us so we have a soul that some say is God-shaped and only God can fill. The wonder is that a soul can be filled with all the fullness of God! Of course, the whole world cannot hold Him, but there is a sense that all of who God is becomes His gift to us when we believe in Jesus Christ.

Why is it so hard? Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.” (Exodus 5:2)

Was it difficult because Pharaoh did not know God? Did he fear great loss if he lost his slaves? Would he look bad in the sight of his people? He may have had these reasons, but the bottom line is that he did not know God or trust Him.

According to God’s Word, all unbelieving people are held in bondage by another ruler, the ‘prince of darkness’ who has the power to bind people in sin. This is the condemnation that Jesus spoke of for those who deny God and refuse to know and obey Him. This makes me sad, sad for those in darkness, sad that continual refusal could mean God will turn His back on them, even harden their already hard hearts so that they cannot believe. The Bible says that His mercy endures forever, but it also says unbelief condemns those who reject it.

^^^^^^^^

Jesus, faith in You brings all of who You are into my life. I cannot fully grasp the wonder of that right now because the sorrow I feel for those with hardened hearts is overwhelming. I know that You can do anything — nothing is too hard for You. May the power of Your everlasting mercy and grace change the determination of those who have set their jaws and their hearts against You.

Miracles and receptivity

My current seminary course raises the question of the power of miracles. Some Christians believe that if their loved ones could see a miracle, then they would believe in Jesus. Others say that even a miracle will not convince a skeptic.

As I read the verses from Exodus this morning, I noticed the sections about the miraculous. God told Moses to deliver his people from slavery in Egypt, but he worried that no one would listen to him or believe that God sent him. God gave him two signs to show them, then He said, “If they will not believe you, or listen to the first sign, they may believe the latter sign. If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.” (Exodus 4:8–9)

Later, Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the people of Israel. Aaron spoke all the words that the Lord had spoken to Moses and did the signs in the sight of the people. And the people believed; and when they heard that the Lord had visited the people of Israel and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshiped. (Exodus 4:29–31)

These people already knew God and had called out to Him. They were His children and they saw and believed the miracles. This is generally true of Christians today. We are sometimes skeptical because the enemy can also perform “lying wonders” and Hollywood can do just about anything, so we do not want to be tricked. However, if we see a mighty work of God, we do not first think of Steven Spielberg or the devil and his cohorts.

Nor did the miracles performed through Moses and Aaron convince everyone. Before God sent them to Egypt to deliver His people, the Lord said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the miracles that I have put in your power. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go.” (Exodus 4:21)

This seems oddly unfair. Why would God harden anyone’s heart? Yet a careful reading of Exodus shows that Pharaoh did not respect God at all. He said to Moses, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.” (Exodus 5:2) His heart was already hard toward God, so when the miracles happened, he dismissed them by having his magicians duplicate some of them. This suggests that miracles are not to convince the ungodly, but God uses them to build up and assure those who already believe.

Second reading: Song of Solomon is a love poem. On the surface, it describes the passion of two lovers, but to those looking for Jesus (who said all the Scriptures speak of Him), it describes His life. In 1:6, the bride says her brothers were angry with her. It might be a stretch to compare this with the anger of the Jews toward Jesus, or the anger of His brothers (James and Jude) before they became believers. It also might be a stretch to compare this with the anger of family members who hate Christians. However, that reading suggests again that following Jesus is incredibly lovely, even if it is not all roses and sweetness.

The third reading is about John the Baptist who came after a four-hundred year absence of a prophet in Israel. He was welcomed by many and some even wondered if he was the Messiah . . .

And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” So they said to him, “Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” He said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.” (John 1:19–23)

John came to prepare people for a great deliverance from sin. In a way, he was like the miracles that Moses did to prepare God’s people for their deliverance from physical slavery. Unless they accepted what he said, they would not experience the wonder of what God was going to do for them. In Moses’ case, they needed to trust God to use Moses to lead them out. In John’s case, they need to confess their sin and repent (turn from it) so they could experience a greater deliverance.

The next day (John) saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ (John 1:29–30)

Like miracles point God’s people to God, John pointed those who would listen to Jesus Christ, God the Son. He was not the star of the show, just as miracles are not supposed to be the star of the show. Both are sign posts, pointers to the Savior.

Maybe that is why many people reject miracles. They will insist such things do not happen or are impossible, but the greater issue might be a deep unwillingness to face the reality that there is a holy God for whom nothing is impossible.