Truly Blessed - Part 3, Hungry?

 

Do you ever get a craving for ‘that’ kind of food? A plate of lasagna, a grilled burger, an ice cream sundae? A few days ago I just wanted a hotdog, not any hotdog, but one from that place on Route 46 just outside of Belvidere, NJ called “Hotdog Johnny’s.” I don’t what they do to a hotdog, but every now and then, I just what a couple, served with mustard and pickle.

Let’s talk about soul hunger. It is as real as your body’s hunger. We hunger to know peace, security, meaning, and purpose. People chase after all manner of things to satisfy that inner hunger;  achievement, recognition, admiration, sex, fun, religious devotion … to name a few.  Nothing and no one will satisfy our soul hunger like Jesus Christ! The Word says, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." (Matthew 5:6, NIV)  Peterson’s contemporary paraphrase of the Bible puts it this way - “You’re blessed when you’ve worked up a good appetite for God. He’s food and drink in the best meal you’ll ever eat." (Matthew 5:6, The Message)

We know that we were made for more than working that job, building a home, falling in love, having kids. Do you realize that? Have you done ‘life’ and still find yourself restless, feeling unfulfilled? Only God, through Jesus Christ, can satisfy that craving. When we receive Christ, by faith, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in us, making us alive to God, responsive to His will, able to more fully appreciate the world in which we live for what it is. Spirit-filled believers should love better, hear the music of life with greater appreciation, and live in joyful hope.

The life describes is found in Jesus and sustained as we ‘feed’ on His Presence. "Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty." (John 6:35, NIV)  Jesus met a woman who had chased her cravings and made a mess of life. She was at a well in Samaria, midday, drawing water when she met Him. He saw her need, engaged her in conversation (a scandalous choice in that time), and told her this - "Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:13-14, NIV) 

As we learn to commune with Him, the refreshing, satisfying ‘water of life’ becomes like an artesian well inside of us. We don’t have to run here or there, chasing some new experience, to find satisfaction. We know peace with God and He satisfies our soul thirst.

Are you spiritually hungry today?  You don’t have to go somewhere, find somebody, or do some great thing. He is here now!  "Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me." (Revelation 3:20, NIV)  We can come into His Presence, meditate in His truth, experience His love – anywhere, anytime.  Don’t make the mistake of thinking that you can only find dinner spiritually in church or at a Bible study. We can; indeed, we must, learn to sit down with Him each day – to pray, to wait, to know, to be satisfied.

Only Jesus makes us truly ‘righteous,’ which means being right with God, something we want to be. When we are reconciled to Him, forgiven, and restored – we know life to the full.  When we share the things that weigh us down with Him in prayer, it eases the burden, and changes us so we can meet the challenges. When we offer up worshipful adoration, it renews our hope and helps us to remember why we exist. When we meditate on the Scripture, we are made wise and filled up with soul food that keeps us strong for the journey.

This life, full of responsibilities and temptation, will keep us from His Table.  Jesus warns of allowing "your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life. " (Luke 21:34, KJV) In other words, "Don’t let the sharp edge of your expectation get dulled by parties and drinking and shopping." (The Message) Instead

Soul hunger is universal! Just as our bodies require constant nourishment and develop an appetite daily, our spirits hunger, too. In the same way that we can temporarily satisfy our hunger with empty calories, and some do to such an extent that they lose their taste for meat and vegetables, we can fill up our spirits with endless pursuit of pleasure, games, and even more sensual satisfaction until our spiritual appetite for the true Food of Heaven is gone.

Here is the word from the Word. As you read it, may you turn to the only One who can really satisfy your soul.
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters;
and you who have no money, come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.

Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and your soul will delight in the richest of fare.
Give ear and come to me; hear me,
that your soul may live."
(Isaiah 55:1-3, NIV)

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Satisfied

 

All my life long I had panted

For a drink from some cool spring

That I hoped would quench the burning

Of the thirst I felt within

 

Hallelujah He has found me

The One my soul so long has craved

Jesus satisfies all my longings

Through His blood I now am saved

 

Feeding on the husks around me

Till my strength was almost gone

Longed my soul for something better

Only still to hunger on

 

Well of water ever springing

Bread of Life so rich and free

Untold wealth that never faileth

My Redeemer is to me

 

Through His blood I now am saved

Through His blood I now am saved

 

Clara Tear Williams – Public Domain

Truly Blessed, Part 2

 

I ordered a salad for lunch and when I picked it up, it was a small bowl, a few pieces of chicken, on a bed of not so fresh spinach leaves. “$8 for this?” I growled. Almost the moment I said it, I felt some regret. My words, while not unkind, were sharp. An inquiry about the value and quality of the salad was just fine, but not my tone or attitude. I failed, in that moment, to live as a man surrendered to Christ, in the spirit of meekness.

In His words about finding a life in God’s blessings, a life that enjoys the richest of Spirit-filled abundance, Jesus says this: "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth." (Matthew 5:5, NIV)  Ah, that is challenge for us, isn’t it?  As we think of the word, ‘meek’ almost at the same time, we think weak.  The meek do not inherit the earth, they get run over, used, and discarded – or do they?  

Jesus’ words about meekness have nothing to do with weakness or servility, as we might believe. Jesus invites us to know Him, to be secure in His love, so that we can lower our defenses, open our hearts, and become gentle, tender, and vulnerable. The meek are willing to empathize and identify with the least, to weep with those who are ground down by the powers of this world. 

The model of meekness is Jesus. He did not have to subject Himself to suffering at the hands of cruel people, but He did!  He chose to leave Heaven’s love and perfection for us. He surrendered himself to the Cross, taking our sins on Himself, so that we could be restored to our Creator Father.  Of Jesus the Word says, “he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him!” (Philip 2:8) 

He was called the “Lamb of God” a primary reference to the sacrificial lamb of Exodus that gave protection to the faithful from death in the Passover.  Life came at the cost of death! “Lamb of God” also describes His meek nature.   A lamb is virtually defenseless.  It cannot run fast. It has no armor. It does not live in a shell. The only safety for a lamb is with the flock and the care of a shepherd. 

The Word teaches us that "our attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form." (Philippians 2:5-7, NLT)  "Become one with him. … no longer count on (your) own goodness or ability to obey God’s law, but trust Christ to save …  For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith. (then you will) really know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead.  …. learn what it means to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that, somehow,  (you) can experience the resurrection from the dead!" (Philippians 3:9-11, NLT) Those of us who live ‘in Christ’ must, like Him, drop our defenses, love those who hate us, submit ourselves to others, as we trust in our Shepherd alone.  And, God empowers us, but not with worldly strength. 

Meekness is a work of the Spirit, a choice He enables us to make.  Jesus was “God, in flesh.” He could have crushed His enemies, but He chose to be ‘sheep-ish.’  Will I, will you?  "God blesses those who are gentle and lowly, for the whole earth will belong to them." (Matthew 5:5, NLT)  Will you give as good as you get, demand ‘respect’ you feel you deserve; or will you choose meekness, and in that choice become a person from whom love is spilled?  

Yes, I repent for growling about a salad, and all those times when I fail to have a life and heart fully submitted to the Lamb of God. I want to be gentle enough to be approachable, tender enough to care about those the world throws away, strong in the strength of the Lord, who is my security. In this, I will find life richer. Will you join me in seeking meekness? 

Here’s a word from the Word. It is both beautiful and challenging. May the Spirit call us to greater meekness. "Who has believed our message? To whom will the Lord reveal his saving power? My servant grew up in the Lord’s presence like a tender green shoot, sprouting from a root in dry and sterile ground. There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him. He was despised and rejected—a man of sorrows, acquainted with bitterest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way when he went by. He was despised, and we did not care. Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God for his own sins!" (Isaiah 53:1-4, NLT)  

"He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word. He was led as a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth." (Isaiah 53:7, NLT)  "When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied. And because of what he has experienced, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins." (Isaiah 53:11, NLT)

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Gentle Shepherd
(let this song, a prayer, touch you this day)

Gentle Shepherd come and lead us

For we need You to help us find our way

Gentle Shepherd come and feed us

For we need Your strength from day to day

There's no other we can turn to

Who can help us face another day

Gentle Shepherd come and lead us

For we need You to help us find our way

 

Gloria Gaither | William J. Gaither

© 1974 William J. Gaither, Inc.

Offended!

It is a time of ‘offendedness.’  Grievances are constantly rehearsed. A ‘cancel culture’ is erasing names of people, even those long dead, whose offenses are considered too big a stain to recognize their place in history. The sins of many, real and imagined, are headline material. I am not naïve. There are real issues in our society with which we are wrestling, and I agree that it is both right and good to refuse to overlook the sins that wound others, that oppress some, that bring pain.

Christian, we cannot afford to live an ‘offended’ life, nor is that the will of the Lord for those who walk with Him.
Among the ‘works of the sinful nature’ listed in Galatians 5, we find these- “jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions.” 
Wisdom words of Proverbs 19:11 teach us that “Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.”  
Jesus says (Matthew 6:15) “if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
Instructions to the church include this - “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.”  (Ephesians 4:31)   Go back and re-read those lines.

It is wrong for individuals to feel pressured to sweep sins and mistakes of others, of society, of the government, of church leaders under the rug, covered up and forgotten.  The Scripture holds real confession, heartfelt repentance, as the pathway to healing and reconciliation. We can, we must, speak honestly to abuses of the past, to failure of others and to the sins committed against us.

But, if we are like our Savior, our desire is to find redemption, to seek restoration, to meet repentance with forgiveness.  Is this a costly choice? It surely is. Will some abuse the words of God to justify themselves or to refuse genuine change? Yes they will.

We cannot, as the people of God, hold onto offense or pretend that somehow we can perfect ourselves by making pariahs of those who have been flawed. We do better if we consider the sin, recognize the result, learn how to do better, offer forgiveness, and seek a new future together.  Just about everyone of us can remember a time when someone failed us, disappointed us, sinned against us. If we make that moment the defining one for the relationship, it will dissolve and, most likely, bitterness will set in.

For each of us personally, Jesus taught a better way. “If another believer sins against you, go privately and point out the fault. If the other person listens and confesses it, you have won that person back. But if you are unsuccessful, take one or two others with you and go back again, so that everything you say may be confirmed by two or three witnesses. If that person still refuses to listen, take your case to the church. If the church decides you are right, but the other person won’t accept it, treat that person as a pagan or a corrupt tax collector." (Matthew 18:15-17, NLT)

Before you go to Facebook, go to the person. Before you decide to tell 4 friends, speak to the individual. The exception to this is when the one who has offended has power over you, such as an abuser. Then, you should bring in an advocate who can protect you. But, the principle remains – face to face, one to one, first!  Woven into Jesus’ words is the desire for reconciliation, not retribution.  We go to the one who has hurt us, or misused us, or spoken untruthfully about us with a desire to make things right and win back relationship.  Why? Because as Christians, love is the highest value, a love like God’s love for us.

In our personal offenses, the majority of issues can be dealt with, one to one, if we courageous, prayerful, and honest. Often we are none of those things. We are just mad, offended, and want to exact some kind of revenge. We may not actually say it, but simmering in our anger, we just want to ‘make him pay!’  Our idea of justice triumphs over reconciliation, restoration, or relationship.

If the offender is unrepentant, we find trusted, wise friends who will go with us. No, we don’t line up the BIG GUNS on our side. Jesus’ wisdom was that we should find people who are also interested in healing. As much as possible, they are impartial, able to ‘speak the truth in love’ as we are taught. That may mean that we, the offended, are challenged about our understanding of the situation.

Ultimately, if we hang onto hurt, we lock ourselves into a cycle of anger. That is why Jesus tells us to forgive, which does not mean we say, “Oh, forget it. It’s not a big deal.” Sometimes that might be the right response when we get over ourselves. True forgiveness is modeled on God’s forgiveness of us. The Scripture tells us that "God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8, NIV) It seeks the offender! Moreover, true forgiveness bears the cost.

Yes, it is costly to let go of our pain, especially when we have been terribly misused by another.  The heart of Christian forgiveness is understanding that justice is found in God and He is perfectly just. When we place the offense and offender in His hands, giving the debt owed us to Him, we are set free to live.

The word from the Word is lengthy, a story Jesus told about forgiving. May it shape us, heart and mind, to be like Him.

"Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” “No!” Jesus replied, “seventy times seven!

“For this reason, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. He couldn’t pay, so the king ordered that he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt. But the man fell down before the king and begged him, ‘Oh, sir, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ Then the king was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.

“But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment. His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and jailed until the debt could be paid in full. “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him what had happened. Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ Then the angry king sent the man to prison until he had paid every penny. 

“That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters in your heart.” (Matthew 18:21-35, NLT)

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Our Great Savior

Jesus what a friend for sinners
Jesus lover of my soul
Friends may fail me foes assail me
He my Savior makes me whole

 

Hallelujah what a Savior
Hallelujah what a friend
Saving helping keeping loving
He is with me to the end

 

Jesus what a strength in weakness
Let me hide myself in Him
Tempted tried and sometimes failing
He my strength my vict'ry wins

 

Jesus I do now receive Him
More than all in Him I find
He hath granted me forgiveness
I am His and He is mine

 

John Wilbur Chapman

Public Domain