What a bloody awful mess

Are you impressed by God? Silly question, perhaps, but worth asking, I believe. We have tamed Him, explained away His majesty, and made ourselves so familiar with Him that we often lack the proper reverence that brings us to our knees and silences our complaints.

I am reading in Leviticus at present, a challenging book in the Bible for a modern mind, to be sure. It is full of ritual commands about what sacrifice to offer for what occasion. The details are, to our sensibilities, gross, involving slaughter, blood, and guts. Beyond the sacrificial details, there are specific commands about human behavior, what is right, what should be punished. It is often harsh, downright brutal, to our understanding.

What’s the point of it all? The book is about being HOLY. In every line, the message is that God is not a familiar Big Guy, that He is not like the fickle gods worshipped by other nations. God reminded His people, in rich symbolism, that He was present among them. However, He was not to be trivialized, marginalized, or approached with a casual or flippant attitude. The bloody, awful sacrifices were an object lesson in the cost of sin, demanding ‘life for life.’

In our sophistication we may wish to avert our eyes from the Cross, but the truth remains that we, too, are reconciled to our Holy God by sacrifice; the atoning sacrifice of His Son.  The writer of Hebrews is clear about how we become acceptable to God, our Creator - "When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!" (Hebrews 9:11-14, NIV)

This theme of holiness extends to our era, to us as His people, too. In the New Testament, Peter refers to Leviticus 19:2 where we read: "Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy." (Leviticus 19:2, NIV) He amplifies the call - "As obedient children, let yourselves be pulled into a way of life shaped by God’s life, a life energetic and blazing with holiness. God said, “I am holy; you be holy.” (1 Peter 1:15-16, The Message)

We belong to Him, are called to offer ourselves as ‘living sacrifices.’  Our words, our choices, should reflect an awareness that He is present, powerful, and seeking our devotion. Does that mean we are people without humor, that we must never find pleasure in the simpler things of life? Not at all. That caricature of ‘holiness’ creeps into the Church and becomes a new “Law,” robbing us of the joy of the Lord. Genuine holiness grows out of our intimate knowledge of the Holy One. We love Him and choose to do nothing that we know would be displeasing in His sight.

Yes, He is a Holy God, but we do not cower before Him, nor do we run from His Presence. We come before Him boldly, yet in reverence, because Jesus has removed our guilt and given us the gift of being the children of God.  Read the opening chapters of Leviticus! Let the ‘otherness’ of God be impressed on you. Then, give thanks for the Perfect Sacrifice that makes you God’s own possession. Take up that high calling to serve a holy God.

The word from the Word says "You are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light. “Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy.” Dear friends, I warn you as “temporary residents and foreigners” to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls." (1 Peter 2:9-11, NLT)

Abba, I am so grateful for Your declaration of my identity in Christ.

Today, may I be that kind of person who reverences You in Your holiness,

yet loves You intimately because of Your love.

As a priest, may I connect Heaven’s grace with the needs of earth.

As part of Your holy nation may ever choice reveal the beauty of Your reign.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen

Let’s talk about it

Yesterday, I posted a comment on social media which I knew was controversial and I expected the responses that were quick to follow. What I wrote didn’t attack anyone personally. It was an observation about a current public policy. Four hours later, there were 60 comments, some on point, many not. A friend sent me a note – “Bro, you know how to blow up FB!”  Yes, it was amazing to watch while people dug in, defending positions. Mostly, the comments stayed in bounds without name-calling or personal attacks. But, the responses I found most helpful were those in which a couple of my friends chose to be vulnerable, sharing their own experiences that were so much different from mine. I gained a better understanding of why some see more value in a program than I do.

What’s my point?

We need to be able to say things with which others disagree and engage in civil dialogue that brings clearer understanding, but that is increasing rare these days. So often when someone says or posts something that we find objectionable, we choose extreme alternatives – disengage or attack!  “How could be friends with someone who thinks like that?”  Or, “You’re such an idiot, an offense to the human race, a disgraceful excuse for a human being.”  Hang on! Back up for a moment. Dialogue is what makes all of us better informed, what helps us to bring our perspective to the table where we can become part of a solution.

In the polarized, angry, toxic atmosphere of public policy in which we live, many of us just choose not to say what we think for fear of the certain backlash. We are all poorer for it. When Theresa and Dave wrote about the value of the program that I questioned to them personally, it made me think, made me reflect more fully on the humanity that was involved. Compromise is not always a dirty word, is it?

So how about we re-learn dialogue, having the courage to say what we think, and to listen well to what others say? Instead of going on the attack, let’s invite conversations that reveal our very different experiences, perspectives, and assumptions about life. Is that hard? Sure it is, especially when the thing in question is near and dear to us, or when it involves deep convictions about what we believe to be ‘right and wrong.’  I’m glad I made some waves, not because I love confrontation, but because I learned something about two of my friends that makes my understanding of them richer, my view of the world just a bit more inclusive.

Here is my reflection from the Word … two very different sources but pressing us to the same place.

First from Solomon who writes, "The quiet words of the wise are more effective than the ranting of a king of fools. " (Ecclesiastes 9:17, The Message)  Ouch, that one stings!

And then, this from James, "My dear brothers and sisters, be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. Your anger can never make things right in God’s sight." (James 1:19-20, NLT) Teach me, Lord.

Blessings on your day, friend. Thanks for reading along here on CoffeeBreak With The Word.

The “wow” factor

 A few days ago, driving along a country road, I saw a doe walking through a plowed field, realizing in a second that a fawn perhaps just hours old was following her. I stopped my car and watched them, surrounded by the beauty of the world my God has made. Simple? Yes, but a sight of wonder. I love when something catches my attention, riveting my eyes, filling me with wonder. Then, there are those holy moments when the Spirit’s Presence brings that kind of wonder. Sometimes that makes me weep, sometimes I tremble, sometimes I am just silent.  The Bible calls this wonder the “Glory of the LORD.”

In my Exodus readings, I came to the end of the book, after the completion of the Tabernacle, the center of the Israelites’ worship. The holy text says that " the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Moses could not enter the Tent of Meeting because the cloud had settled upon it." (Exodus 40:34-35, NIV) Previous chapters detail the construction of this mobile place of worship, with attention to detail and beauty. God blessed their efforts by settling His Glory there!

Centuries later, when Solomon dedicated the beautiful Temple in Jerusalem, something similar happened. God’s Presence was so strong, the priests could not go into the courtyard of that place! "The priests could not enter the Temple of the Lord because the glorious presence of the Lord filled it. When all the people of Israel saw the fire coming down and the glorious presence of the Lord filling the Temple, they fell face down on the ground and worshiped and praised the Lord, saying, “He is good! His faithful love endures forever!” (2 Chronicles 7:2-3, NLT) 

Are you full of the ‘glory of God?’ 

 It’s not a silly question! We who are in Christ Jesus are God’s temples. In our time, God does not live in temples or cathedrals though we may build them to honor Him. The Holy Spirit lives in us. His holy Presence can create glory, a special quality of being. Am I exaggerating? Not at all. 

When Moses spent 40 days on the mountaintop with the Lord, he came down with his face aglow! The Holy Spirit can and will give us glory!  It isn’t likely that our faces will have a strange glow, but our lives will be filled up with the beauty of the Lord – with love, with joy, with peace. The Word says that "the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:17-18, NIV)

Let me leave you with a word from the Word - spoken by Samuel to Saul at his anointing as the king of Israel. Christian, let’s make it our prayer that our lives will reflect the ‘glory of the Lord’ in a way that makes others take note; not of us, but of the One who is living in us!  "The Spirit of the Lord will come upon you in power, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person." (1 Samuel 10:5-6, NIV) 

_________

To God Be The Glory

To God be the glory great things He has done

So loved He the world that He gave us His Son

Who yielded His life an atonement for sin

And opened the life gate that all may go in

Praise the Lord praise the Lord

Let the earth hear His voice

Praise the Lord praise the Lord

Let the people rejoice

O come to the Father through Jesus the Son

And give Him the glory great things He has done

O perfect redemption the purchase of blood

To every believer the promise of God

The vilest offender who truly believes

That moment from Jesus a pardon receives

Great things He has taught us

Great things He has done

And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son

But purer and higher and greater will be

Our wonder our transport when Jesus we see

Fanny Jane Crosby | William Howard Doane

© Words: Public Domain