Posts Tagged ‘Abraham’
[19APRIL2012] Eastertide Devotional Series
April 19, 2012 | 
Author [19APRIL2012] Eastertide Devotional Series
I will be posting this devotional series as part of my Eastertide reflections for the next three weeks (see this link for other installments in the series). Each week of this devotional series focuses on a specific theme (week one: brokenness, week two: repentance, and week three: renewal). I hope you’ll enjoy the series and I invite you to comment here on the blog or email me direct; I would love to hear your thoughts.
Repentance: Week 2 | Day 5
Scripture Reading: Genesis 32:22-32, 47:27-31; Exodus 13:17-22
“Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the man told him. “From now on you will be called Israel, because you have fought with God…”
Something that has occurred to me as I’ve studied and meditated on the idea of repentance is that it isn’t just a “change” or “turn.” Repentance is also “on the move.” If all we do is turn and stay where we are, we’ll end up with our “bones scattered over the desert” and never arrive at the destination of our journey (see again from Wk. 1-Day 2. Hebrews 3:1-19). In fact, if we’re not moving, we’ll never have journeyed at all.
While I might be stretching the metaphor a teeny bit, I think we can see this moving repentance in the lives of some of the patriarchs of our faith. Abraham was one of the first fathers of our faith we encounter and see moved by their repentance; Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph all followed their fathers and grandfathers in this moving experience. With each of these examples, we see men who are moved… their minds are changed and their directions reoriented so they are always on the move. Abraham had been given a promise—a destination which he never fully realized, but he trusted God and he allowed God to continue moving him…literally, living as a nomad in a land that was not fully his own, but also moving closer to the presence and image of God as he matured spiritually. Isaac, son of Abraham, appears to have followed the lifestyle of his father as he and his family also moved under the influence and guiding hand of God. The life of Jacob provides us with a clearer picture of what personal repentance looks like and the ultimate effect it has on a person who remains submitted and surrendered to God. Jacob, born with the name “deceiver” comes face-to-face with God. During the course of this epic wrestling match, Jacob is changed and given a new name, Israel (means God fights). The rest of Jacob’s life is spent in surrender to the will and way of God…with the visible evidence of this surrender seen in a limp he obtained from a busted hip when he wrestled with God. Other evidence of Jacob’s surrender is seen through his humility and obedience to God. When Jacob “turned” he “changed” and was “on the move” for the remainder of his life…on the move from place to place physically and also spiritually as God revealed more of Himself to Israel.
Repentance isn’t static and it doesn’t come with tent stakes. With a change of heart, mind, and direction comes new destination coordinates. While the destination may seem the ultimate goal, it is the journey of transformation that fuels us onward and upward; thus, it too becomes part of and just as important as the ultimate goal. The journey is often as important as the destination. Jacob and Joseph knew this and it is the reason they made their sons promise not to leave their bones in Egypt. Four hundred and seventy years later, their bones were delivered into the Promised Land. Repentance: it changes us, turns us and reorients our direction, and ultimately moves us into God’s promises. Are you moving closer to God? Is your repentance more static or more moving? How would you describe your journey of change?
Our Prayer Lord, I admit that sometimes when we have “wrestled” and I have surrendered to You, I’ve felt that is the extent of my responsibility. I haven’t realized I needed to move, and part of my submission and repentance included moving or ongoing transformation. I prefer the relaxed feeling that comes with “arriving.” I know now that I need to keep moving…with You and closer to You until you bring me to the place You want me to be. Amen.
Lent 2012: Day 12—Reflection
[04MAR2012] Lent 2012: Day 12—Reflection and Meditation
“I am El-Shaddai—God Almighty. Serve me faithfully and live a blameless life” (Gen. 17.1)
♦ Readings – Genesis 17:1-7 ♦ Romans 4:13-25
♦ Gospel - Mark 8:31-38
“Is anything worth more than your soul? (Mark 8:31-38)
O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from thy way, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of thy Word, Jesus Christ they Son; who with thee and the Holy Spirit liveth and reigneth, on God, for ever and ever. Amen
Roman 4:13, 16, 18, 22-23
13 Clearly, God’s promise to Abraham (and us) was based not on his obedience to God’s law, but on a right relationship with God that comes by faith. 16 Abraham is the father of all who believe… 18 Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing… 22 Because of Abraham’s faith God counted him righteous. 23 And when God counted him as righteous, it wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit. It was recorded 24 for our benefit, too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. (items in parenthesis and emphasis is mine)
This is an amazing thing. So many times I have caught myself measuring my spirituality and my “righteousness” on performance based metrics (eg., my Bible knowledge, my “servant’s” heart, the ministries I participate in, my abstinence from various vices, etc.). I will admit that I don’t do this consciously, but I do recognize I do it. I know in my head that it is by grace that I’ve been saved, but I also know that a “tree is known by the fruit that it bears.” And then there is this quote from the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Romans. God’s promise, and I might add favor, was not based on Abraham’s obedience, but on a right relationship with God.
What this speaks to me is that the most important thing God is concerned with in us is our right relationship with him. I do believe that trust, obedience, willing and submissive surrender to God will follow right relationship, but those things in and of themselves do not trump a heart that believes God on the basis of faith. There are some amazing feats of faith that are exhibited by father Abraham and each one of these feats merited a personal visit or personal word (reaffirming God’s covenant promise) from God to Abraham. It seems that Abraham tickled God’s fancy… mostly, because he stayed in right relationship with God. He believed him. Even when he questioned God, his heart believed.
I think that sometimes I might err on the side of caution and try to obey my way to faith. Sometimes I want to believe, but it is hard…it’s easier to tough my way through obedience and then pat myself on the back because I “obeyed” God even if my heart didn’t believe God. I give myself extra points for degree of difficulty like Olympic athletes. While I’m grinning at myself holding up a “9″ for my act of obedience, I probably merit a disqualify from God as I’ve attempted to “work” myself into his favor… when what he wants is a relationship with me. He wants me to trust. He wants me to believe him first. Obedience will follow. Right relationship is more important than obedience. Now that I think about it, I seem to recall there were quite a few characters in the Bible that God delighted in that fell short of the mark of perfection, but they were in right relationship. I’ll work to remember this and ask Jesus to help my faith.
Posted in A Deeper Walk, Bible Journey-Reading, Daily Meds, Lent, Lent 2012, Liturgical Year, Meditations, Spiritual Formation, The Liturgical Year | 
Tags: Abraham, Discipleship, Faith, Lent, Lent 2012, Romans, The Liturgical Calendar | 
No Comments »
A Ram in the Bush
[25JAN2012] A Ram in the Bush
The other day while taking my son to school, I heard the tail end of an interview with musical recording artist, David Crowder. He was answering questions responding to the recent announcement of the dissolution of his band. The words he spoke that caught my attention were these; “If you’re obedient in your sacrifice, there’s always a ram in the bush.” David was making reference to the Genesis narrative recounting the story of Abraham’s call to sacrifice his son Isaac (Genesis 22:1-24). I haven’t been able to escape the thoughts those words have evoked…and my thoughts have nothing to do with the end of the David Crowder Band.
The account of Abraham and Isaac begins as follows:
Some time later, God tested Abraham’s faith. “Abraham!” God called.
“Yes,” Abraham replied. “Here I am.”
“Take your son, your only son—yes, Isaac, whom you love so much—and go to the land of Moriah. Go and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.”
One of the first things that grab my attention is the opening line; “God tested Abraham’s faith.” Several thoughts come to my mind about this. First, I don’t think this is the first time that God “tested Abraham’s faith.” Abraham leaving his family for “a place I will show you” was a test of faith. And, so it would seem to me, that most of Abraham’s life subsequent to leaving his father and family in Ur was a series of ongoing tests of his faith. Second, what made this test so much more severe than the previous tests? The significance of this test involved Isaac, and it was on Isaac that all the weight of God’s covenant promise to Abraham was laid. Perhaps it is an issue of semantics, but I might question whether the test was more about Abraham’s loyalty (to God or to Isaac) opposed to Abraham’s faith in God. The third thing I wonder is how this test of Abraham relates to my own obedient sacrifice.
Abraham stands out as one of the major heroes of our faith and the Bible teaches us to model the actions and methods of those teachers who have gone before us (Hebrews 13:7). I ask myself; “What can I learn from Abraham in this particular circumstance?”
- Abraham didn’t stall the process of God’s call and his obedient response. The text doesn’t say, but I can’t help but imagine there was some prayerful wrestling in his decision. What that wrestling may or may not have been can’t be known, but we do know that Abraham resolved to trust God and obey Him with sacrifice in very short order. “The next morning Abraham got up early…and set out for the place God had told him about” (Gen. 22:3).
- Once his decision was made, he was unwavering and resolute in his mission to see it through to completion.
- Abraham didn’t look for alternate paths, plan “B” or “God’s next best plan.” Abraham stayed focused on the mission as God had originally given it to him. Abraham was so single-minded and set in obedience to his sacrifice that it took the intervention of the angel of the LORD to stay his hand from taking the life of his son, Isaac.
- There were multiple opportunities for God to reveal his provision of the ram to Abraham along the way, but it was not until the last second of no return (Abraham’s mind was made up and there was no turning back for him) that God stayed the hand of Abraham and revealed the ram in the bush.
As I reflect on my life I know there have been times that I embarked on a faith mission with God more focused on the alternate routes around the mountain instead of the narrow path up to Moriah. I know many of the tests of my faith have been incrementally leading to bigger tests. I think, if they do not lead me to “passing” the big test, passing the smaller tests was really to no avail. As it pertains to me, and in my present test, I don’t know how long or intricate the test has been orchestrated. In the case of Abraham, he had a knife in his belt for four days with the singular notion in his mind that it would be used to take the life of his son…and still he had little knowledge there would be a ram in the bush. He testified that “God will provide a sheep…” (Gen. 22:8), but he did not know as God had never spoken this provision.
My point with these observations is that Abraham went, he went up the mountain; he was deliberate and intentional with his course and decision to obey God at all cost. I am determined to do so as well. I do not want to settle for God’s plan “B” …I don’t know that one exists. If nothing else, it would probably be my Plan B, and have very little to do with God other than the fact that I had tried to spiritualize and justify my own disobedience. I suppose there is no one else that does that though.
At the end of the day there is this; I think too many folks professing belief in God refuse to answer God’s test to go up to Moriah. He may not be calling us to sacrifice children to test our faith, but we can rest assured that our faith is tested in ways that will be just as serious as the test that Abraham passed. The question that remains is will we be proven faithful. Will we be so obedient in our sacrifice that we too find our ram in the bush?
Posted in Bible Journey-Reading, Bible Speak, Genesis, Shaping Me | Tags: Abraham, David Crowder, Faith of Abraham, Genesis, Isaac | 2 Comments »
More Quick Hits from Genesis
[18JAN2012] More Quick Hits from Genesis
♦ Genesis 11-35 (Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob)
I’m still in Genesis, reading chronologically through the Bible for the 2012 year. I’ve been journaling many or most of the things that have “jumped out” at me during my reading, but haven’t quite had the time to develop them into blog posts. I do plan on fleshing out my thoughts on some of these points, but I won’t be able to capture them all… that is, if I want to stay on track with my reading schedule. So, I’ll make this “Quick Hits” post a recurring feature of the blog for this year during my chronological journey (see my first Genesis Quick Hits here).
Today’s quick hits covers much of the life of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob…
- Gen. 11:31-32 -One day Terah took his son Abram, his daughter-in-law Sarai (his son Abram’s wife), and his grandson Lot (his son Haran’s child) and moved away from Ur of the Chaldeans. He was headed for the land of Canaan, but they stopped at Haran and settled there. Terah lived for 205 years and died while still in Haran.
Can’t help but wonder about Terah. The Bible doesn’t say if he was someone that heard from God. I’ve got to think that he had some relationship with Him though… He must have introduced Abram to God at some point in his upbringing. I can’t help but imagine that Terah may have set out for Canaan on a similar quest as Abram would years later. The difference though, may be that Terah couldn’t find the deep and abiding trust that Abram found in God… the type of belief and trust that God counted as righteousness to Abram-Abraham. Perhaps this didn’t happen at all the way I imagine it. One thing we know for certain though… Terah was headed for Canaan, the land of Promise, the land that God did bequeath to Abraham and all his following generations. Terah stopped in Haran, put down roots and never pressed on in his journey. As a result of Terah’s “stopping the journey” he never saw the land of promise…he died still in Haran. I don’t want to be a Terah. I want to be an Abram/Abraham. O God, break me…and make me a foreigner wherever You will; transform me and change my name so it reflects the description of a man who believes You and Your Word. Amen.
- Gen. 12:1, 4, 7, 10 -The LORD had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you.” So Abram departed as the LORD had instructed… Then the LORD appeared to Abram… a severe famine struck the land of Canaan, forcing Abram to go down to Egypt, where he lived as a foreigner.
This represents an interesting sequence of events to me: The LORD spoke to Abram, Abram believed and obeyed the LORD, The LORD appeared to Abram (establishing a covenant of relationship), and Abram’s trust in God is put to test as he is “forced down to Egypt where he lived as a foreigner.”
Abram’s life and God’s apprenticeship over Abram/Abraham seems to repeat itself with eerily similar fashion over and over and over again with other men and women in the Biblical narrative. I have read and heard stories of this repeated style of mentoring disciples and friends of God throughout history as well. I have experienced similarities in the sequence of Abram’s mentorship in my own life too. Perhaps my storyline is not as dramatic as the storylines of Abraham, Moses, King David, or the apostle Paul (to name a few), but the voice, hand, and guidance of God’s leadership is no less significant and no less real. Additionally, just as with Abraham, the testing of my faith and gentle pressure from God come to me so I might fully mature in the likeness and image of Christ.
- Gen. 12:10 -…a severe famine struck the land of Canaan, forcing Abram to go down to Egypt, where he lived as a foreigner.
Egypt: In the Bible, Egypt has historically been a metaphor for sin… representing bondage, oppression, and persecution. The Bible also teaches us that we were not originally created as people ruled by sin. When I read the words from Gen. 12:10 I thought we will always live as foreigners and sojourners while in and under the circumstances of bondage—this is a place that people of God, the friends of God, do not belong. While on this earth on this side of eternity, we will all find ourselves in “Egypt” living as foreigners. The promise of Christ and the work of His atoning grace is that we are also people of the deliverance. We won’t always live as foreigners—we are sojourners for a season, but even in our nomadic wandering feeling as though we are without a home… God is Present and with us bringing with Him comforting guidance as we are prepared for our final rest.
…”living as a foreigner” will continue to show up as we continue our journey through Genesis, especially through the lives of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
- Gen. 15:1-10 -in this passage of Scripture we are told “Abraham believed and the LORD counted him righteous because of his faith.” God promises Abraham that He will be with him, protection, land, and many descendents. And, Abraham asks God “How can I be sure of these things…”
- Gen. 17:15-18; 18:12 -in these passages God tells Abraham he’ll have a son through Sarah—Abraham “laughs” to himself in disbelief (Gen. 17:17). Later, Sarah hears the Word of God saying again and affirming she will have a child; Sarah “laughs” silently to herself…
Just recently I was reading the Christmas Story in the Gospel of Luke and was intrigued by the parallel of events between the lives of Zechariah and Mary (Luke 1:5-80). What captured my attention were the questions posed by Zechariah and Mary to the angel Gabriel. Both wondered how the prophetic blessings Gabriel announced would happen to them, but the response of Gabriel to Zechariah was very different than the response to Mary. Similarly, as in the case with Abraham and Sarah, both of them “laugh” and question with disbelief the word of God concerning their own prophetic blessing of a child between them. The response of God to Abraham was very different than the response Sarah received. I want to consider this further in prayer and meditation and hopefully answer some of the questions I have; “What are the differences between Abraham and Sarah’s questions?” “What are the differences between Zechariah and Mary’s questions?” “We often have questions, doubts, and disagreements with God; how do these interactions relate or mirror the accounts of Abraham, Sarah, Zechariah, and Mary?”
- Ishmael and Father Abraham…
Gen. 21:17-18, 20 - “God called to Hagar from heaven, ‘Hagar, do not be afraid! God has heard the boy crying… Go to him and comfort him, for I will make a great nation from his descendants.’” “…and God was with the boy as he grew up in the wilderness.”
Gen. 25:5-6 - (Abraham’s “other” descendants) “Abraham gave everything he owned to his son Isaac. But before he died, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them off to a land in the east away from Isaac.”
Gen. 25:9 - In this passage Ishmael and Isaac come together so they might bury their father Abraham. The text doesn’t allude to any conflict or tension between the two men.
Gen. 28:6-9 - Apparently there is some degree of interaction and relationship between the House of Isaac and the House of Ishmael. In this passage we see Esau visiting “Uncle Ishmael” to get a wife… a wife that would be scorned by his parents Isaac and Rebekah
I don’t know what all of this means or if it means anything at all; I’m certainly not finished thinking on it. I do believe that my awareness of the tension between the Islamic world, Jewish world, and Christian world has made me a bit more sensitive to what the Bible might say about these relationships. I do know the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is also the God of Ishmael…and subsequently the God of Islam regardless of how the character and nature…and identity of God may have been subverted or redefined by them or their ancestors. I’m not sure how this transcends to the world we live today, but my guess is that it is relevant and should not be dismissed. Ultimately, I know that Jesus is God and He died to reconcile all of humanity to himself.
- Gen. 26:2-5 - The LORD appeared to Isaac: “Do as I tell you. Live as a foreigner in this land, and I will be with you. I will do this because Abraham listened to me and obeyed all my requirements, commands, decrees, and instructions.”
“Live as a foreigner in this land”
- Sarah, Rebekah, and Rachel— Gen.25:21; 29:31; 30:2 - A distinguished, if not imperfect, group of women who all experienced lengthy spans of “barrenness.” Each of these women took very long times to conceive and give birth to children. These were also the matriarchs of the covenant promise children of Abraham. For so many years of their lives their wombs “seemed” as though they were “closed” – closed until the fullness of God’s timing was realized. When the fullness of time arrived, God’s fruit is delivered.
I think this is true today as much as it was in the above mentioned accounts. I should never become impatient with what seems like unfulfilled promises…faded hopes…old dreams. God’s promises are true and will bring fruit in due time; my responsibility is to continue to pray and remind myself that God’s timing is everything…and always perfect; no matter how tiring or trying the wait may be for me. Trust, believe, and obey… this is my role. What seems on the outside, barren and without hope can bring forth life in the “fullness of time.” Thus says the LORD; “it is I who brings forth rivers in the desert where there were none before…”
-Something like 20 years elapse from the time Jacob first encounters God at Bethel and when God speaks to him telling him to return to the land of Canaan. We don’t know for sure if God spoke to Jacob during those twenty years or not (the text does not say), but we do know God was active and with Jacob preparing him for the return to Canaan and the fulfillment of the His (God’s) covenant promise to Abraham.
Points:
- God is present always.
- God is working always.
- God’ “speaks,” “affirms,” and “reaffirms” with his presence and with his working in our lives
In the midst of Jacob’s oppression and mistreatment by Laban, God was blessing Jacob to overflowing while purposefully fulfilling his covenant will.
God’s mercy “overflowed” on to the house of Laban in not just blessings of protection and wealth, but God even appeared to Laban in a dream warning him to do no harm to Jacob…ultimately sparing his (Laban’s) life.
- Gen. 32:1, 9-12, 22-32
-Angels of God come to meet Jacob on his way back to the land of Canaan. It seems Jacob is on a path to learning humility. He is reminded of his covenant promise to God he had originally made on his first stop through Bethel. He reaffirms his covenant… Inspired by fear and obedience??? Jacob learns humility. Jacob willingly surrenders himself to God and his brother Esau; he refers to himself as “servant” of Esau. Jacob wrestles with God and emerges “forever humbled” with a crippling limp that remains with him the remainder of his life.
- Gen. 33:10 - “…what a relief to see your friendly smile. It is seeing the face of God.” -Jacob to his brother Esau
I wonder about this statement of Jacob and I am curious how often we might observe “the face of God” in others when we approach them with humility while walking in obedience before our God.
- Gen. 35:1-3, 9-15, 27 - “So Jacob told everyone in his household, ‘Get rid of all your pagan idols, purify yourself, and put on clean clothing… I will build an altar to God. He has been with me wherever I have gone.’”
…God appears to Jacob and renews with him the covenant promise He had established between Himself with Abraham and Isaac. God renames Jacob as Israel…no longer the deceiver, he is the one who has been with the “God who fights” and lived. Jacob’s encounter with God is so life-changing it reverses his identity entirely. Here we see what true repentance is about, a complete turnaround from the life we have previously known.
“So Jacob returned to his father, Isaac, in Mamre, which is near Kiriath-arba (now called Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had both lived as foreigners.” -Gen. 35:27
There must be something about that “living as foreigners” business…
More on my Quick Hits from Genesis later and I hope to “flesh out” and develop some of these highlights. If you have thoughts or ideas regarding any of them, I’d love to hear from you. Feel free to share on the blog or contact me using the contact link above.
Posted in Bible Journey-Reading, Genesis, Jeff's Journal, Old Testament, Quick Hits from Scripture, Shaping Me | Tags: Abraham, Disciples, Friends of God, Genesis, Isaac, Jacob, Jeff's Journal, Old Testament, Quick Hits, Scripture | 2 Comments »
The Plan…
During the time I am away, I will reposting older entries from the icrucified blog. The following post was an entry from Jan. 19, 2009
Last week’s Bible reading took me through the story of Joseph (Genesis 42-50).
It’s amazing to me the way God works His plan. I think, in general, we take for granted that God’s plan (Perfect Plan) for us will be good, and with “smooth sailing” so to speak. That is, if we obediently follow Him with submissive and loving heart, all will go well. We read from the Genesis account God’s Perfect Plan for Abraham was that his seed would multiply, increase in wealth and prosperity, and ultimately be a blessing to the entire world. I cannot help but take notice of how God orchestrates and effects His Master Plan through the life of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. I’m not sure that I would use the words “smooth sailing” to describe the lives of those men…certainly not Joseph in particular. Taking a high-level view of these four generations of men I see God using hatred, slavery, injustice, favoritism, imprisonment, deception, famine, oppression, and a few other unsavory tools to effect His Grand Plan.
Why do we naturally assume if we are in God’s Perfect Will that life might not be fraught with difficulty? God uses the difficult and the painful to polish and refine us. The difficult and painful are part of the perfecting processes of our lives and His Plan. We are reminded in the later writings of the apostles that we should welcome and embrace these moments; we should allow them to accomplish God’s work, His will, and His plan in our lives…and ultimately, become part of the fulfillment of The Grand Plan for mankind.
Posted in A Deeper Walk, iCrucified | Tags: Abraham, God's Plan, Isaac, joseph, Soveriegnty | No Comments »
LENT—Day 11: Divine Relationship = #Winning [2011MAR20]
LENT—Day 11: Divine Relationship = #Winning [2011MAR20]
Scripture Meditation: Genesis 12:1-4; Romans 4:1-5, 13-17; John 3:1-17
“At the center of the universe is a relationship. That is the most fundamental truth I know. At the center of the universe is a community. It is out of that relationship that you and I were created and redeemed. And it is for that relationship that you and I were created and redeemed!” –– Darrell Johnson, Experiencing the Trinity
The LORD said to Abram; “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land I will show you…” …so Abram departed as the LORD had instructed. (Genesis 4:1, 4a)
I’ve been thinking about these passages today… I think something that I’ve “known” and even experienced in my own heart became even more solidified through this meditation today. Our God is about relationship, pure relationship. God has always been in eternal relationship with himself… perfect, joyful, loving relationship, always the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. God made man and woman to be in relationship with himself, joining in the perfect Triune relationship to experience perfect harmony, joy, and love. This, I believe, is what God invited Abram to join in. In the imperative to “go” was the beginning of the healing restoration of the relationship that was broken with Adam’s rebellion so many years before in Eden. The beauty of relationship is in God’s instruction to Abram, He says; “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land I will show you.” I don’t think I’m reading anything into the narrative when I interpret God’s command to Abram that he is not being sent, but rather he is invited into a journey, hand-in-hand with the God of Universe… I hear God saying, “Join ME, Abram, in a life-changing, history rewriting relationship.” Through Abram/Abraham and ultimately through Jesus Christ, this is the same invitation every human being is invited to participate in. While Abraham is highly lauded in Scripture as a man of faith who believed God, we also are extended a similar invitation, only…I believe our invitation to participate in the divine Triune relationship is even more exciting. We have the full revelation; the fulfillment of the promise give to Abraham is complete in our invitation.
“God draws near to us in such a way as to draw us near to himself within the circle of his knowing of himself.” –– T.F. Torrance
Oddly enough, it seems that we often confuse the nature of the relationship that God desires us to enjoy. Our confusion has existed even before the time of the Law given through Moses… Even though Christians will verbally confess our salvation and relationship is based upon faith, we will still rely on obedience to the Law as the basis of our righteousness. We like to define how good we are by the rules we keep. We might not confess this openly, but too often it is the way we live… if nothing else, we do it subconsciously.
Abraham believed GOD… GOD counted him righteous because of his faith (Romans 4:3).GOD’s promises are based on right relationship with him through faith…not obedience to his law (Romans 4:13 NLT).
God’s promises are based on right relationship. That. Is. A. Mouthful. How many of us base the idea of relationship with God on our performance and obedience to rules? The thing God desires (as should we) above all things is relationship, good, perfect, holy, joyful, loving relationship… perfect relationship as in the Trinity; God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, as it is now, as it will be for ever. This is where God wants us. This is what God invites us to experience, now and for eternity. How many of us measure our performance as the baseline for our relationship with GOD? I think, if we can simply believe as purely as the faith of a child in the goodness of GOD, we can say “Yes, LORD, I will walk with you.” In this, relationship will bloom, grow, and bear fruit… the fruit will be obedience and glory to God.
Be strong and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the LORD. For GOD alone my soul in silence waits; truly, my hope is in him. Protect me, O GOD, for I take refuge in you; I have said to the LORD; “You are my LORD, my good above all other.” Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, who leads us in our faith and brings it to perfection…O GOD, you are my God; eagerly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my flesh faints for you, as in a barren and dry land where there is no water. (Psalm 31:24, Psalm 62:6, Psalm 16:1, Hebrews 12:2, Psalm 63:1)
O GOD, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from thy ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of thy Word, Jesus Christ thy Son; who with thee and the Holy Spirit liveth and reigneth, on GOD, for ever and ever. Amen.
Posted in Bible Journey-Reading, Daily Meds, Lent, Liturgical Year, Meditations, Prayer, Psalms, Shaping Me, Spiritual Formation, Spirituality, The Liturgical Year | Tags: Abraham, Abram, Disicple, Jesus, Lent, The Liturgical Year, Trinity | 1 Comment »
The Perfect Plan = smooth sailing?
Last week’s Bible reading took me through the story of Joseph (Genesis 42-50).
It’s amazing to me the way God works His plan. I think, in general, we take for granted that God’s plan (Perfect Plan) for us will be good, and with “smooth sailing” so to speak. That is, if we obediently follow Him with submissive and loving heart, all will go well. We read from the Genesis account God’s Perfect Plan for Abraham was that his seed would multiply, increase in wealth and prosperity, and ultimately be a blessing to the entire world. I cannot help but take notice of how God orchestrates and effects His Master Plan through the life of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. I’m not sure that I would use the words “smooth sailing” to describe the lives of those men…certainly not Joseph in particular. Taking a high-level view of these four generations of men I see God using hatred, slavery, injustice, favoritism, imprisonment, deception, famine, oppression, and a few other unsavory tools to effect His Grand Plan.
Why do we naturally assume if we are in God’s Perfect Will that life might not be fraught with difficulty? God uses the difficult and the painful to polish and refine us. The difficult and painful are part of the perfecting processes of our lives and His Plan. We are reminded in the later writings of the apostles that we should welcome and embrace these moments; we should allow them to accomplish God’s work, His will, and His plan in our lives…and ultimately, become part of the fulfillment of The Grand Plan for mankind.
Posted in A Deeper Walk, Bible Journey-Reading, Shaping Me | Tags: Abraham, Christian Walk, Discipleship, Genesis 42, Genesis 50, God, Isaac, Jacob, Jeff Borden, Jesus, joseph, Perfect Plan, Religion | 2 Comments »
Blind Trust
The new year has begun and with it, my reading-through-the-Bible chronological journey has begun anew as well. Over the past five years, I have discovered that I enjoy the chronological method of reading through the Bible more than any other reading plan. It creates a logical flow for me and ensures that I touch every part of the Grand Narrative. Anyway, that’s not exactly what I wanted to say in this post; I want to share about how I find God’s plan, will, strategy, or whatever else anyone wishes to call it incredible.
As I said, my Bible reading has carried me through the stories of Abraham, Isaac, and into Jacob’s life this week (Genesis 15-32). Repeatedly, God makes these men promises (sometimes vague and other times very specific) and then He calls them to trust Him. Then…He delivers; time after time after time. He (God) Delivers. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in A Deeper Walk, Bible Journey-Reading, Bible Speak, Daily Meds, Meditations, Shaping Me | Tags: Abraham, Blind Trust, Clement, God, iCrucified, Isaac, Isaiah, Jacob, Jeff Borden, Jesus, Trust | No Comments »
