Standing in God's way

One of the privileges of my pastoral work is getting to be an ‘advocate’ for others.  Occasionally I am asked to help out with some snarl in government bureaucracy. “Pastor Jerry, could you help me, make a phone call, find a way?” And, I love to try.  More than a few times standing at the side of someone who was unable to make their own case, together we have found a way to keep the heavy hand of the law from crushing them, to get a license restored, to cut through snarls of regulation.

The Bible says that we have an Advocate who stands on our behalf before the Throne of the Almighty. "We have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world." (1 John 2:1-2, NIV) Is that not a wonderful thing to know? Weak, prone to failure, dealing with Self and Evil, we are not alone in the struggle. Our Brother and Savior is now seeking God’s mercy and favor for us, eternally.  And, we are called to become advocates for those who live around us. Only Jesus, our great High Priest, can make us right with God, but all of us are given the privileges of priesthood, to offer God’s mercy to those who will receive it.

Our role is not passive! We are sent into our world with this message – “Be reconciled (at peace) to God!”  At the same time, we speak to God on behalf of others. Our prayers need to be more than ‘Lord, bless Pete. Amen.’  Instead we passionately ask for God’s mercy to be shown. We pray for eyes to be opened. We pray for hearts to be softened. We pray for situations to bring an awareness of God and His goodness to those who are living in ignorance of His grace.  On our prayers of intercession (standing between) bring results.

Exodus 32 tells the story of Moses and Israel. He had gone to the mountain to hear from the Lord.  His stay lasted a long time and the people grew afraid and restless. He was their only connection to God.  They approached Aaron, Moses’ brother, and asked him to make them a representation of God.  So he took their gold and fashioned a calf idol! This was a defiance of God’s rule that His people should revere Him without any idols or images.  Anything they could create would reduce Him, steal His majesty.  But, they asked and Aaron acquiesced.  God spoke to Moses about it while he was still on the mountain.  “Quick! Go down the mountain! Your people whom you brought from the land of Egypt have corrupted themselves. How quickly they have turned away from the way I commanded them to live! They have melted down gold and made a calf, and they have bowed down and sacrificed to it. They are saying, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.’ ” (Exodus 32:7-8, NLT)  God’s anger was stirred by their faithlessness, their lack of gratitude, their rejection of Him.  And He told Moses He was prepared to destroy Israel and make Moses the father of a new nation!

Moses stood up to the Lord! It is an amazing scene in Exodus, one that challenges some of theology, some of what we think we know about God. “I have seen these people,” the Lord said to Moses, “and they are a stiff-necked people. Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.” But Moses sought the favor of the Lord his God. “O Lord,” he said, “why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand?" (Exodus 32:9-11, NIV)   God says to Moses, “Now leave me alone!”  In other words, “get out of My way!”  Yes, Moses so loved the people, that he became their advocate, offering himself to make things right with God!  Scripture tells us that God relented and the nation was saved, though many perished in the judgment that followed.

Do you love God in such an intimate way that you can hear His heart and speak to Him on behalf of people who are erring, who need His grace?

Is there a holy boldness in you that would stand up to Him, an advocate for those who are slaves of sin and failure?

Imagine the Lord saying to you, “Get out of my way,” but there you stand – an advocate, an intercessor, whose love becomes a pipeline for mercy!

Here is a word from the Word. Love it. Live it!

"Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins. God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them. We’re speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he’s already a friend with you." (2 Corinthians 5:17-20, The Message)

Oh, Lord, help us to love others to life.

Help us to love You and to love others,

Connecting the lost with their Father,

The sinner with their Savior.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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Come As You Are

Come out of sadness from wherever you've been.

Come, broken-hearted, let rescue begin.

Come find your mercy, O sinner, come kneel.

Earth has no sorrow that Heaven can't heal.

Earth has no sorrow that Heaven can't heal.

 (So) Lay down your burdens, lay down your shame.

All who are broken, lift up your face.

O wanderer come home,

You're not too far.

So lay down your hurt, lay down your heart,

Come as you are.

There's hope for the hopeless,

And all those who've strayed.

Come sit at the table, come taste the grace.

There's rest for the weary,

Rest that endures,

Earth has no sorrow that Heaven can't cure.

Come as you are.

Fall in His arms.

Come as you are.

There's joy for the morning, O sinner be still.

Earth has no sorrow that Heaven can't heal.

Earth has no sorrow that Heaven can't heal.

Ben Glover | David Crowder | Matt Maher

© 2014 9t One Songs (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

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Slow me down, Lord

In March, 2014, when the oncologist told Bev and I about the severity of her cancer and it settled into my mind that without a miracle, she would be going home in the not too distant future, I felt something like a closed fist punch.  The next 20 months (she died 12/29/15) brought us a love so deep as to be indescribable. Nothing in our 40 years of marriage had come close to the kind of intimacy we found together in the pain and uncertainty that come with chemo treatments, hospital stays, and the unspoken realization that death was coming closer each day.  Am I just romanticizing an awful experience? Not at all. It was the worst of times, too. We prayed desperate prayers and cried until our heads ached. My faith was battered and deepened such that no words can tell.

Gordon MacDonald calls these kind of experiences - ‘disruptive moments.’  They allow the Lord to reclaim our attention by creating new ways for us to experience His purposes fully.  MacDonald uses our road system as a parable! We can travel from Point A to B most efficiently on the Interstate highways. Driving at 70 miles per hour, we do not encounter stop lights. The curves are long and sweeping, the grades flattened.  All that ‘fast’ bypasses the towns of America. If you really want to see these United States, you must travel on secondary roads.  He writes “They wind through small towns and villages … you see things on them, even though it takes more time and caution to travel them.  Secondary roads do not promise unhindered passage. Sometimes they are poorly maintained.  … Each town has one police officer with a radar unit designed to raise revenue. … Be prepared for the inevitable slow-moving vehicle that keeps you crawling along for miles in no-passing zones. … There are many potential disruptions along the way.”  (The Life God Blesses)  But, you can eat in local establishments, hear the accents of the residents, strike up conversations with farmers as you get to know the people who live in those towns.

My love of efficiency in reaching goals kept me from knowing people and places to their fullest. Who can know what opportunities that might have emerged in a slow conversation over a cup of coffee?  I found out, the hard way that slow is not bad. God, in His infinite wisdom, detoured me onto a secondary road where I discovered love like I had never know.  After Bev died, my inclination was to get back onto the Interstate, so to speak.

“Oh God, help me to live a richer, fuller life, 
more accessible to others and loving better 
than I have in the past, I pray. Slow me down, Lord.”

The Psalm observes this, to which I say, Amen- "Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do." (Psalm 1:1-3, NLT)

• Are you open to the Lord’s ‘disruptive moments?’ 
• Can you allow for the fact that your recent job loss may be His call to a new way of life along lesser traveled paths of deeper intimacy with Him? 
• Could it be that what you have resisted so ferociously is actually His persistent urging to a life more centered on His Way? 
  
• That painful situation you have resented so bitterly could be an invitation to knowing and loving Him in ways beyond your imagination.

 Here’s the word from the Word.  It was written by Paul who experienced disruption and pain. When he cried for release, the Spirit showed him that God had something better planned.

"To keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.

Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” 
So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me." (2 Corinthians 12:7-9, NLT)

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Blessings

We pray for blessings,We pray for peace, comfort for family,Protection while we sleep.We pray for healing, for prosperity,We pray for Your mighty handTo ease our suffering.And all the while You hear each spoken need,Yet love is way too much to give us lesser things.

 'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops?What if Your healing comes through tears?And what if a thousand sleepless nights,Are what it takes to know You're near?And what if trials of this lifeAre Your mercies in disguise?

 We pray for wisdom,Your voice to hear.We cry in anger when we cannot feel You near.We doubt Your goodness,We doubt Your love,As if ev'ry promise from Your Word is not enough.And all the while You hear each desp'rate plea,And long that we'd have faith to believe.

 When friends betray us,When darkness seems to win.We know that pain reminds this heartThat this is not this is not our home.It's not our home. 

'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops?What if Your healing comes through tears?And what if a thousand sleepless nights,Are what it takes to know You're near?What if my greatest disappointments,Or the aching of this life,Is a revealing of a greater thirst,This world can't satisfy?And what if trials of this life,The rain, the storms, the hardest nights,Are Your mercies in disguise?

Laura Story © 2011 Laura Stories (Admin. by Brentwood-Benson Music Publishing, Inc.)New Spring (Admin. by Brentwood-Benson Music Publishing, Inc.)

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“A” to “Z”- always new, never novel

A by-product of our 250 channel cable connections, our smartphones that beep and chirp from early morning to late into the evening, and a consumer society formed around style rather than function, is an 11^th Commandment - ‘Thou shalt find a new experience today.’  Are you one of those people captivated by novelty? Before you judge this as an appeal for a return to the ‘good old days,’ let me finish.  

Fresh and living is quite different from novel and ‘exciting.’  Continuing to learn, adopting new technology and methods that make life better, being a person who is growing intellectually and emotionally is very good. However, there are basics of life – loving relationships, integrity, faithfulness, responsibility – to name a few – that are never outdated or worn.

Some have translated the desire for new things to their faith, on a constant search for novelty.  They are convinced that some new experience, teacher, song, or program will be the key to a knowing God better, to being spiritual fulfilled. Churches across our nation are trying to stay alive with highly programmed ‘worship’ services that are produced like a rock concert.  It’s all topped off with a hip preacher who offers ‘relevant’ teaching formed around a dab of doctrine, mixed with a bit of Bible, accompanied by a full plate of ‘human interest’ stories. Discipleship is frequently confused with a 6 week course to acquaint a person with the church’s programs.  That kind of ‘worship’ may stir our emotions, even raise our enthusiasm, but when the amps are turned off and the lights go down, without the hype and stimulation, will we even think of “God” or good until the next show begins?

Paul pointed in an entirely different direction to discover life in Christ. He counseled Pastor Timothy to reject the windbags with “novel” teaching, to look beyond finding a “new” message to bring in bigger crowds. Instead, he told him to “Pursue a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. Fight the good fight for what we believe. Hold tightly to the eternal life that God has given you, which you have confessed so well before many witnesses.”  (2 Timothy) Of his own ministry, he says, “we don’t take God’s Word, water it down, and then take it to the streets to sell it cheap. We stand in Christ’s presence when we speak; God looks us in the face. We get what we say straight from God and say it as honestly as we can.” (2 Corinthians 2:17)

Becoming a follower of Jesus, a person who is genuinely lovely and who serves well, who knows how to deal with temptation successfully, who is wise and discerning, and who lives with deep joy is a life-long engagement with Christ – through good and bad, ups and downs, excitement and boredom, plenty and need, trial and victory. The message of the Cross is timeless. The pathway of discipleship, formed around confession, service, worship, prayer, and the truth of Scripture, is an ancient way. "This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls." (Jeremiah 6:16, NIV)

God, the Holy Spirit, does bring new life, times of refreshing, and a living hope to us. His work, however, is not based in novelty or excited emotions. He works in us by the energy of the Spirit, growing like a seed – steadily- and through the eternal Word made available to us- in our time, where we live- transforming us from death to life.  So, we pursue the Living God, seeking His ancient path to new life, and that Way leads us ‘home.’ 

Here is a word from the Word.  "I heard a voice thunder from the Throne: “Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men and women! They’re his people, he’s their God. He’ll wipe every tear from their eyes. Death is gone for good—tears gone, crying gone, pain gone—all the first order of things gone.” The Enthroned continued, “Look! I’m making everything new. Write it all down—each word dependable and accurate.”

Then he said, “It’s happened. I’m A to Z. I’m the Beginning, I’m the Conclusion. From Water-of-Life Well I give freely to the thirsty. Conquerors inherit all this. I’ll be God to them, they’ll be sons and daughters to me." (Revelation 21:3-7, The Message)

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Christ alone, Cornerstone,

Weak made strong, in the Savior's love.

Through the storm, He is Lord,

Lord of all.

When darkness seems to hide His face,

I rest on His unchanging grace.

In every high and stormy gale,

My anchor holds within the veil.

Edward Mote | Eric Liljero | Jonas Myrin | Reuben Morgan | William Batchelder Bradbury

© 2011 Hillsong Music Publishing (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

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