Week 9: There Are No Orphans of God

I had the wonderful privilege of driving a group of students this week to Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, Georgia to see a one man drama of the book of John. The play was performed entirely by one gentleman with just a few props but with a powerful message. This man had memorized the entire book of John from the Bible. It was an absolutely wonderful performance and I am so thankful that I got the opportunity to see it. After the program, the actor allowed for a question and answer session. One of the questions that was posed to him was something along the line of what was his favorite part of the memorized scriptures. His reply was the part where Jesus told his disciples to love one another as He had loved them. I thought his answer was intriguing. He didn’t choose the miracles Jesus performed, or the crucifixion and resurrection scenes as his favorites. Of all the scriptures he could have picked, he picked the one about humans loving one another.

On Friday night, I had another privilege of driving the youth from our church to see the Atlanta Passion Play. This is a fabulous performance put on by the First Baptist Church of Atlanta. It had been about fifteen years since the last time I saw it. There were many new scenes added to this performance. I especially loved the new scene about the creation of the world and God creating mankind. It was wonderful to see the reenactment of man being created out of the dust of the ground and woman being created out of man. My all time favorite scene is of Jesus walking on the water and then His power over the turbulent seas and winds. However, I was struck most this time by the comments Jesus made to His disciples at the last supper before His death. The book of John 13 - 16 records the last supper message. Throughout those scriptures, Jesus speaks repeated of love. He wanted His disciples to know the importance of loving each other. Specifically in John 15:12-13, Christ says, “This is my commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Seeing the visual of this at the program and hearing the words again that I had heard performed earlier during the week, really impacted my mind and heart as to how much Christ loved and wanted us to love others.

Over the weekend, I squeezed in a little down time to watch the movie, “The Blindside.” If you aren’t familiar with the movie, it is based on a true story about a white family who takes in a young, black, orphaned, teenage boy. They show great amounts of love to this young man by providing him with a home, new clothes, food, a private education, and a personal tutor. They treat him as one of their own children and strive to never make him feel different or of lesser value than their own biological children. This young man goes on to graduate and attend Ole Miss University on a full football scholarship where he eventually is recruited as a professional football player. It is a wonderfully moving film with a message resounding, once again, of love. Here was a prestigious, wealthy family who took the time to bless another individual and show him love so that he could make something of himself.

The message behind the movie got me to thinking once again about this recurring theme of love I had been considering all week. I am so thankful that God loves me. I am so thankful that God took time out of His extraordinary life to notice me, a spiritual orphan. I was a life destined for Hell with no hope of a future. I was a life scared by sin and blind to the fact that I needed help. Yet, one day, He allowed me to hear of His great love for me when He died on the cross for my sins. He convicted my heart of my lost condition and He offered His love to me…all I had to do was accept it. Thanks be to God; I did and it has made all the difference in my life. His love living in me has kept me off many wrong roads and kept me most importantly from a life of eternal death.

There was a scene in the movie I mentioned earlier when the family that is helping the young man asks him if he wants to legally become a part of their family and he accepts the offer. If he hadn’t, he may never have succeeded to the level he did in his life. I believe everyone is given at least one opportunity in this lifetime to choose to become a legal member of God’s family. He poured out His love on the cross by dying in mankind’s place for all the sins of the world. Christ died to become the world’s spiritual legal Father. The question I ask you now is this, have you accepted the offer?

Week 8: He Washed Me White As Snow

The Bible records in Leviticus 16 the guidelines God set forth for the Levitical priest to follow when he went into the Temple on the Day of Atonement to offer the yearly sacrifice for the sins of the people. Two goats were to be chosen for the sacrifice; one would become the sacrifice and the other would become the scapegoat. Once the sacrifice was offered, the priest would lay his hands on the head of the scapegoat and confess the sins of the people and then he would sprinkle the blood of the other goat on this goat’s head. After this, a designated individual would take the scapegoat out into the wilderness and leave it there to die.

The Jewish Talmud is an “extensive collection of teachings of the ancient Jewish Rabbis” and it contains “important eyewitness accounts of things that occurred during the first century A.D. and surrounding centuries.” In this book, it references the afore mentioned sacrifice on the Day of Atonement, also known today as Yom Kipper. It gives further documentation to the events that occurred each year on that important day. One bit of historical information about the sacrifice I find very intriguing was that the priest would tie a scarlet cord around the neck of the scapegoat. As the scapegoat was led out to the wilderness, it is recorded that the cord would miraculously turn white; thus affirming to the people that God had accepted the priest’s sacrifice for their sins. This occurrence is also reminiscent of the scripture in Isaiah 1:18 that states, “…though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.” This historically recorded event is documented to have occurred every year on the Day of Atonement all the way up until 30 A.D. which was the approximate time period when Christ's earthly ministry began, with His baptism, when the Holy Spirit left the temple and descended upon Him and then ultimately culminating in His death on the cross. From that time until 70 A.D. ( a 40 year period), when the second Jewish Temple was destroyed and all sacrificing ceased, the Talmud records that the scarlet cord never again turned miraculously white. Why? The answer is simple. Christ had become the final sacrifice for the sins of the people once and for all. No more would the animal sacrifice be necessary nor accepted. No more would the priest have to intercede on behalf of the people. “[Christ] needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for His own sins, and then for the people's: for this He did once, when He offered up Himself. (Hebrews 7:27 KJV) Christ had given His life so that all who would believe in Him would be forgiven and have their sins turned “white as snow” forever. Thus, in order for the Jews to be forgiven, they had to accept Christ as their Savior and ultimate sacrifice. Unfortunately, many of the Jewish people of that day refused this final payment, continued with the animal sacrifice, but never again witnessed the scarlet cord turning white and signifying that their sacrifice had been accepted.

I am so thankful I don’t have to worry about whether my sins are forgiven or not. I have believed in Christ as God’s Son sent to die for my sins. I have confessed and repented of my sins, and I rest assured in the words of I John 1:9 that, “If [I] confess [my] sins, He is faithful and just to forgive [my] sins, and to cleanse [me] from all unrighteousness.” No, I don’t deserve His grace and mercy, but He has offered it freely to me as a gift. All praise be to Him. My forgiveness is not dependent on any sacrifices or works that I have done but is all dependent on the finished work He did on the cross. He is the Savior; the One and Only Sacrifice for the sins of the world.

As I write this, I am reminded of the words to the old song, “Jesus Paid It All.” It sums up our thoughts today perfectly when it says, “Jesus paid it all. All to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow.”
If you have received Him, take time to thank Him again for your salvation. If you have not accepted His gift of love and forgiveness, won’t you choose Him today? The Bible promises that if you do, you can rest assured all your sins are white as snow.

If you would like to accept this free gift from Jesus, sincerely call on Him today. Proclaim Him as God’s Son and believe that He paid the final debt for your sin by His death on the cross. Accept that He defeated death by rising again and that He is alive today. Confess your sins and ask His forgiveness. That is all there is to it my friend. If you have done this, the Bible declares that you are saved for all eternity.

John 3:16 - “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

John 6:37 - “All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me; and him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.”

Romans 10:9-13 – “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

References:
http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=1872848&D=P, Talmud Gives Unintended Proof of Jesus Being the Messiah by William Nugent, 8-15-2009

Holy Bible, King James Version

Week 7: Have You Been Licked?

My husband is an avid outdoorsman; he loves being outside in nature. He has been on numerous outdoor adventures and has several trophies mounted on our walls of various species to commemorate those times. If the day permits him to watch television, I can guarantee the show will be either about hunting or fishing. I am embarrassed to admit it with these hard economic times, but we even pay an extra two dollars a month just so we can receive the Outdoor Channel on our satellite dish! There have been times when I thought that if he had no other responsibilities he would never leave the woods or his fishing boat. If I or our children need to know something about an animal, we are confident he can come up with an answer. I have even been on a few outdoor adventures with him, but after a few freezing mornings in a deer stand or duck blind, I determined I would leave the great outdoors to him; just give me a good book and a blanket and I’ll be waiting on you when you get back! (It just dawned on me as I was writing this that I have married a Christian killer…talk about an oxymoron.)

Nevertheless, his outdoor knowledge has taught me several interesting facts over the years, one of which I’d like to share with you. You see, my outdoorsman is also my Sunday school teacher. In one of his lessons he gave a description of the power of a lion’s tongue. The illustration so struck me that I have never forgotten it, and I think about it often. He said that a lion’s tongue is so strong and so rough that it can totally consume a portion of its prey in three licks. The first lick removes the skin or hide of the animal. The second lick removes the top layer of flesh and by the time it licks for the third time, it has devoured that section down to the bone.

Now when I heard that illustration, my mind went immediately to I Peter 5:8 and a new revelation of the meaning of that scripture dawned in my life. The scripture says, “Be sober, be vigilant: because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” I had read and heard that scripture hundreds of times in my life but it never had full meaning until I heard the description of the capability of a lion’s tongue.

Listen Friend, you have heard me say in other devotions that God allowed certain words or scenarios to be written in the Bible for a reason…nothing was just haphazardly described or depicted. In my former recollections of the meaning of this verse, I nonchalantly thought, “Okay, the devil is like a roaring lion…a strong and fearsome beast”…end of thought. It wasn’t until I knew what devouring power a lion had that I realized what God was conveying in that verse.

The devil’s whole ambition is to destroy mankind. So, with his first lick, he “removes our hide;” for example, he tempts us with what appears to be a harmless thought. Then he licks again with a stronger temptation, and perhaps we allow ourselves to perform actions related to the previous thought temptation. Finally, he licks a third time. This time his lick goes to the bone and all of our moral character is devoured as we find ourselves compromised in a devastating situation with potentially excruciating consequences. Oh, what a grusome picture this paints. We must be ever mindful to keep the faith and to keep our eyes always on Christ.

Friend, take time to do a personal check-up. Are you protecting yourself with the armor of God and holding to your faith; or, do you sense that you have been licked by the roaring lion? Regardless of what “level of licking” you may currently find yourself in, Christ is always willing to forgive you if you will repent and turn to Him. He wants to give life back to your dry bones just as He did in Ezekiel’s day.

“Again he said unto me,…O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live:…and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I [am] the LORD. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above:… and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet…” Ezekiel 37:4-10

Week 6: Faithful or Fallen?

When you look back over your life, do you still have any contact with people who were close to the Lord when you were younger? When I was a child I remember looking up to so many different adults who were in service for the Lord. Some of these were Sunday school teachers, others were preachers, and others were just faithful servants who I saw on a weekly basis who I didn’t have direct personal contact with but yet knew their testimony through their actions. Now that I am older, it is such a blessing to go to church or out in the community and see these people from my childhood still serving the Lord. Yet, at the same time, my heart breaks for those that I have seen fall by the wayside because they have been caught up in the cares of this world.

In I Thessalonians, we read the letter Paul wrote to the church in Thessalonica to commend and further encourage them in their faith as he was unable to personally come to visit with them. He was diligent to tell them that their faith was not in vain. He reported to them of his present journey with the Lord and of some of the trials he and his companions (Timothy and Silvanus) had faced because of their service for the Lord. However, in 3:7-8, I am personally touched by Paul’s comments to this church. He states that he and his companions were “comforted over you in all our affliction and distress by your faith: for now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord.”

Now Paul was no doubt the more mature Christian in this situation. However, he and his fellow servants had been through much persecution because of their service for the Lord. I’m certain they faced degrees of persecution that I will never have to worry about facing simply because of the time period and country where I live. Yet, despite his spiritual maturity, I’m sure there were times when he was tempted to be discouraged because of the great persecutions he faced. However, as we read here, Paul tells the people of the church that he and his friends have been comforted by the church’s faith. Don’t you know that when he and his companions heard great stories of service about the people they had taught about the Lord that it so blessed their hearts they were rejuvenated in their own service. That is just what he is expressing in this passage. Paul tells us that he and his companions had faced many persecutions but knowing these people of Thessalonica were strong and continuing in their faith helped give them the needed encouragement and strength to continue persevering in their Christian walk.

There have been times when I have wanted to quit or give up in my own Christian life, times when everything seemed in vain. Then I’d see or remember some dear saint I’d known all my life still running the race and my heart would be blessed to continue on, too.

As I was studying and read this scripture, I penned in my Bible this question, “Can the younger generation say this of me?” Do the children and youth that I encounter see me still running the race of faith? Friend, we never know who is watching us. I mentioned the younger generation, but it may be just a “young” Christian or even a mature one like Paul. Does the life that they see in you or me reflect dedication and commitment to the Lord? Would this life encourage them to keep going for the Lord at times when for all rights and reasons it seems they should throw in the towel? Oh, may we always strive to be like Christ. May all those around us be encouraged by our faith. May we never become like those I mentioned that have disappeared from the scene.

When we look back over our life, may we be able to say like Paul in II Timothy 4:7, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith;” and may that be the testimony others see when they look at us.