What do you see?

I posted this on Instagram on June 25. In one of the comments I was chastised:

Did you have to take a picture of Mary’s pots that are mostly dead? Go out a get her some plants and soil and plant them and then take your picture.

I was surprised. But I have to admit, there are pots in the photo, they are Mary’s, and they are empty. So my critic was not wrong. However, I do have a defense or explanation.

While I see the pots and they are in the photo, they are not what I was focusing on. I was attempting to capture the backyard as a whole. I was hoping the eyes of viewer would be drawn to the chair and thus the backyard. Everything else was sort of intended to be a frame for this: the pots, the tree, the lamp. I was trying to capture the ambiance of the evening. This is reinforced by the fact that the original Instagram post was a video with the sound of crickets and birds. And my own description of the video was, “Sunday night in the South. Breeze blowing. Might rain. Nice.” Ambiance of the moment.

I obviously failed with at least this one person. And as I said earlier, they are not wrong, there are empty pots in the photo. There are several things wrong in the photo – the lamp is broken, the tree has a limb that is hanging too low, there is a stick lying askew. It obviously was not staged!

As I thought about all this I decided a good question is, What do you see? I don’t mean merely this photo. I mean any photo. Any vista. Life. What do you focus on? I think about the twelve spies Moses sent to check out the land. They came back with two reports. Both saw a land flowing with milk and honey, but ten saw the giants, two saw God. There were clearly giants in the land. Ten spies focused on them. Two saw them but focused on God.

What do you see?

What are you looking at?

Oh yeah, about the chair in the middle of the backyard. I often sit in that chair during the day and read. Even on a hot day, it is really comfortable. And here is the view from the chair on June 27

I really like my backyard!

Except a man be born again

Salvation Pictures in John: Ye must be born again

Chapters 2 & 3

Chapter 2

1-11 Jesus goes to a wedding and turns water into wine.
This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.

12-24 Jesus in Jerusalem for Passoveer
13-17 Jesus cleanses the temple and the Jews question him:
18  Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things?
19  Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.
20  Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days?
21  But he spake of the temple of his body.

Destroy this temple and I will rebuild in three days. What a visual for the resurrection! No one understood this until he was raised from the dead. This shows that when Jesus used pictures to say something, it wasn’t because it wasn’t real. Every visual we encounter in these two chapters speaks of something very real, in this case, his resurrection from the dead.

The only part where Jesus deals with people concerning salvation is 23-24:
many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did. But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men.
What’s so interesting about this is believed and commit are translations of the same word: many believed in him...but Jesus did not believe in them. Wow.


Chapter 3

1-15 Jesus and Nicodemus
This is of course the very passage that started this whole thing.

3 Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Jesus explains what he means by adding in v 5, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” Then he repeats this thought in v 6, That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

1 There was a man of the Pharisees . . .a ruler of the Jews. How shocking this must have sounded to Nicodemus! Born again is what the Jews said happened to Gentile converts to Judaism when they were baptized, and Jesus says he must be born again? He was already a Jew, the most religious Jew, a ruler of the Jews - and he must be born again??

This is the second time this visual is used. Remember 1:12-13:
But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

Born again, born of the Spirit, born of God. What a powerful image of what we need God to do for us. We receive him, we believe on his name, but only he can give us new birth.

19-21 light is come into the world
This is the second time light is used for Jesus. It also occurs in chapter 1.

14-15 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

This is actually a type, an event in the Old Testament that was a picture of Christ. What a great picture of the cross and believing on Jesus!

The chapter concludes with, He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.


Temple, light, new birth, serpent in the wilderness. Jesus' teaching was rich in imagery!

Salvation Pictures in John Chapter 1

Salvation Pictures in John

Chapter 1

For the introduction to this go here.

Chapter 1 is a little different than other chapters in John because the first 34 verses are about Jesus, but not him speaking to people. It is not until v 35 that we find Jesus interacting with people.

1-18 This gospel begins with John setting forth some amazing things about Jesus: 

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

9 He was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

He also speaks of the different responses to him, 10-13:
He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

19-34 the witness of John
John the baptizer has been featured since v 6, There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He was sent to prepare the people and point out Christ. This is his witness:

29  The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

Look at these powerful visuals: Word of God, true light, born of God, Lamb of God!

Then in 35-51 Jesus begins to gather disciples, including Andrew, Simon Peter, Philip, and Nathanael. How did they come to follow him?

Andrew says to Simon his brother, 41 We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.
42 And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.
43 The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow me.

45 Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth.

Nathanael wasn’t easily impressed. He answered Philip,
46 Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see.
47  Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!
48  Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.
49  Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.
50  Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou?

This is a very straightforward chapter: Jesus is called the Word of God, the true light, the Lamb of God, the Messiah. These disciples believed on him, that he was the Christ, the Son of God; and his invitation to them was follow me, which for them was quite literal - they left what they were doing and began to literally follow Jesus, going with him everywhere he went. They became disciples.

And Jesus was very straightforward with them. They were already prepared for the coming of Christ, so he begins with follow me. I would think the question for me is, Since I can’t literally accompany him everywhere as the disciples did, how can I follow him?

I began this wondering if born again was a regular or common visual for salvation. I find it interesting that it occurs in the very first chapter! But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. Jesus didn’t say it here, but it is clearly an important part of coming to Christ – receive him, believe on his name, born of God.

Salvation Pictures in John

A few weeks ago, May 27 to be precise, the pastor preached from John 3 for Trinity Sunday. He focused on the words of Jesus to Nicodemus, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. It was a good message. And like all good messages, it got me thinking.

I have spent my entire Christian life among brethren who lay great stress on being born again. I believe this and agree with them on the need and possibility of being born again. But from many preachers you get the impression that this is how Jesus dealt with everybody he met. I have often wondered if Jesus indeed told everyone he spoke to, Ye must be born again. I wondered again that Sunday.

This time, I not only pondered, I decided to go through the gospels to see how Jesus approached people. At first I was going to go through all four gospels, but then I realized that is a lot of material! I chose instead to focus on the Gospel According to John, where the phrase actually occurs, and see how Jesus spoke to people, and to answer the question, How did he describe his offer of and our need for salvation?

First, let me tell you this was a real blessing! It is probably safe to say that anytime you go through the Scriptures with an open and seeking heart you will be blessed. I admit, I was surprised by what I found. I was also strengthened and encouraged in this matter of presenting the gospel. The next several posts will be what I found in John in answer to my question.

The chapters are long, too long to include in each post, so if you are read these posts you may want to grab a Bible and read the chapters so you have the context. Imagine that, reading a chapter from John each time you read my post! Let me hasten to say, this isn’t a study of the chapter or of the book. We’re just reading through to see the big picture; looking at how Jesus spoke to people and what pictures he used. And by pictures I don’t mean to suggest being born again is not a real thing. Jesus used many visuals in his teaching: a sower went out to sow, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country and more. He was always using visuals and telling stories - apparently we remember better that way. So my question is, What visuals did he use for salvation when he spoke to people?

I will begin next week and post once a week (OK, maybe twice if I get excited!), probably each Tuesday, one or two chapters at a time. I hope you join me!

My riding mower died, but I pushed on

my riding mower, just sitting there

On April 20 my riding lawn mower died. It can be fixed, but for a variety of reasons I decided to wait on it. Meanwhile, I am using my push mower.

my just cut front yard

my yet to be cut back yard

I have a good size yard. It takes over an hour to mow the front yard and just under an hour for the back. I feel good about it and plan to continue. But . . .

I will confess, halfway through the front yard I begin to question the wisdom of my decision. And I abandon my plan to mow both the front and back this time.

It’s hot, I’m sweating up a storm, my legs are burning, but I press on. Several years ago, Mary described me as “a plodder.” And I don’t think that was a compliment. But it definitely captures me in the front yard – just keep going, one foot after the other!

But you know what? I feel good and plan to continue. Even though I fertilized the front yard this year and the grass is growing like crazy! I will plod on, or in this case, push on.

One photo is worth a thousand memories

 A couple of days ago I posted this photo for my anniversary. This is my Grandmother and Grandad. Seeing this photo brought back a flood of memories.

We rarely saw them when I was growing up - they lived in Nashville and we lived pretty much everywhere but Nashville. We stayed with them when my sister was born. I remember that night, but that is a bad memory of my father. The good memories include the ditch in their backyard. I was ten years old and it was like my own park!

Then we moved away again and I didn’t see them for several years. We were living in Hawai’i and my parents separated, so we moved in with my uncle in Hunstville, AL for a few months. Saw them a little then.

I was a big fan of Muhammad Ali and my Grandad was not. March 8, 1971 Ali fought Joe Frazier. Ali lost. I still remember the card my Grandad sent me exulting in his defeat. Even though I was upset by the loss, it was actually pretty funny.

After my Dad died in my junior year we moved back to Nashville in 1972. Saw them a lot then! Actually, when we relocated to Nashville we moved in with them. They had a small three bedroom house, one of which had been converted into an office. The two of them were suddenly joined by the six of us!! Culture shock for everyone!

Obviously this little house on Harper Place in Donelson was not big enough for eight people. When we lived in Hawai’i we had a three bedroom house for the eight of us (mom, dad, six children), but that was different. And it must’ve been a little bigger, because we didn’t fit in their house. So from someone they got a little camper, parked it in their backyard, and (at least) me and my brother slept in that camper the first summer we were there. I actually liked that. And I still remember watching “Dialing for Dollars” movies weekday mornings.

My grandmother worked in a doctor’s office and managed to bring home all kinds of medicine samples. In one corner of her cabinet, under the counter, she had a Lazy Susan full of medicines! She also had no sense of direction. She would literally be lost a block away from her house. I always wondered how she managed to find her way to work every morning.

Grandmother playing skittle bowl. We spent many an hour playing skittle bowl in their garage. The next door neighbors would come over and sit in the door of the garage and we would all play skittle bowl, my Grandmother nursing a beer and my Grandad his Coke and Old-Grandad. These are such good memories!

After that summer, we rented a house on Donna Hill Court, some 5 miles away. Then my mother bought a house on Hurt Dr and we were just two, maybe three blocks up the road. We spent a lot of time together then.

I graduated from high school in 1973. January of 1974 I went off to college in Martin (University of Tennessee at Martin). Shortly after this my mother and family moved to California and then I was married in 1975. Once again, I didn’t see them for many years, until they and my mother moved to Murray, KY. I saw them a couple of times while they were living in Murray.

One day my Grandad and I were sitting at the kitchen table and he told me about my father and his abusive treatment of me. I don’t remember much of my first ten years of life and was always very tentative when faced with new things - a light went on in my spirit that day.

My Grandmother used to make lemon ice box pies for Grandad. They were so good. Imagine the honor I felt when one day, while we were visiting in Murray, she called me over to her house and presented me with a lemon ice box pie!

They both passed away in Murray and were interred in Nashville. My mother chose to not tell me about this until afterward, so on one of my trips to Murray, we (Mary K, Erica, and me) stopped by the grave site to pay our respects.

Yes, this one photo brought back these and other memories of my Grandad and Grandmother. I loved them. I miss them.

And I read on

This past Sunday we were in Ohio and went to church with our daughter. The pastor is going through Nehemiah, and this week he was in 8:1-13. He preached a fine sermon. My only complaint would be that they didn’t conclude by singing the chorus from 8:10 (see at end). Oh well. Anyway, he said he didn’t have the time to go through the whole chapter and encouraged us to read the rest of this chapter as well as 9. So at some point, I read on. This is a great section and I want to share what I found.

Just a few things from 8:1-13

2 this took place upon the first day of the seventh month

2-3 And Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation both of men and women ... And he read therein ... before the men and the women
The pastor said this speaks of the importance of our personally reading the Word, and that is a good word, but I believe this speaks more directly to the importance of the public reading of the Word.

8 So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading
This is not so much sermons as we know them, but more like a running commentary. The people were unfamiliar with the Scriptures and maybe even with Hebrew, so they offered brief explanation of difficult spots. I believe this is the origin of the Jewish Targum, a paraphrase and interpretation of the Bible.

10  for the joy of the LORD is your strength – the source of our chorus!

This was a great day, the people were assembled, the Law was read and explained, and the people were attentive. Amen and Amen. But it actually gets better!

14 And they found written in the law which the LORD had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month:  
15 And that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth unto the mount, and fetch olive branches, and pine branches, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written.  
16 So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim.  
17 And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths: for since the days of Jeshua the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness.  
This is what you call revival: the Scriptures are restored to the people of God, they rejoice in it and are renewed in their minds by it, and they begin to do what it says, which they were not doing! All the weeping and rejoicing and feasting of v 9-10 are meaningless without this. As they used to say, “It’s not how loud you shout or how high you jump, but how straight you walk when you land.”

Even more exciting is the last part of v 17, for since the days of Jeshua the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done so. This is amazing. All those years the feast of tabernacles had not been observed. Revival. No wonder, And there was very great gladness.

18 Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto the manner
This was a great movement. This speaks of commitment and sacrifice on the part of the people.

9:1 Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them.  
2 And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers.  
3 And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of the LORD their God one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped the LORD their God.  
This was a great revival. It included conviction of sin, confession of sin, and separation from all strangers. Strangers? Non-covenant people. They were separating themselves from people who were not committed to walking in the light of the word. Revival brings joy and gladness, conviction and confession of sin, obedience, and holiness. And verse 3 tells us how it worked: they would read a while (at least 3 hours!), then respond by confession and worship for another 3 hours. This is the way church is supposed to work, only maybe not half the day (!)

Then, in verses 4-38 we find the prayer of confession and commitment by the Levites. This is serious and they are serious. According to v 4 they cried with a loud voice unto the LORD their God. Gotta be significant.

This is a great prayer, and we can learn a lot about prayer from it, but I am going to skip down to the last verse of the chapter:

38 And because of all this we make a sure covenant, and write it; and our princes, Levites, and priests, seal unto it. 
This is how serious they are. They are not only committing themselves to the doing of the Law, but they are writing down this commitment and signing it. “We the undersigned do hereby pledge ourselves to the keeping of the Law...” This may have included something about encouraging and exhorting one another in this commitment. They have a covenant with God to be His people by the keeping of His Word, and now a covenant with one another to the same. This is real reformation and revival.

Then I came to chapter 10. The first 27 verses is simply a list of all those who signed this covenant. Then in 28-33 we find more details on this covenant. This is practical and specific. Revival is salvation (they were restored from Babylon), and holiness (“separated”; practical see 29-32), and corporate (“They clave to their brethren”; “we”). This is a really great section! And what a lesson on revival, especially when you add the New Testament element of the pouring out of the Spirit!

Anyway, that’s what I got out of church this past Sunday.

And I can end with my song! Won’t you sing with me?

The joy of the Lord is my strength (3x)
The joy of the Lord is my strength

He heals the brokenhearted and they cry no more (3x)
The joy of the Lord is my strength

He gives me living water and I thirst no more (3x)
The joy of the Lord is my strength

Since you have His joy you may shout with it
Since you have His joy you may dance with it
Since you have His joy you may laugh with it
The joy of the Lord is my strength

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha (3x)
The joy of the Lord is my strength

The Joy Of The Lord
Alliene Vale
© 1971 Universal Music - Brentwood Benson Tunes / His Eye Music / The Joy Of The Lord Publishing

Christ in Isaiah

As I promised last week, here is a simple listing of all the prophecies in Isaiah concerning The Life And Ministry of the Christ. You can examine each one in more detail, including their fulfillment in Jesus of Nazareth, by reading each post beginning on March 1.

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6:8 And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go to this people? And I said, behold, I am here, send me. And he said, Go, and say to this people, 
9 Ye shall hear indeed, but ye shall not understand; and ye shall see indeed, but ye shall not perceive. 
10 For the heart of this people has become gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them. *

7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; behold, a virgin shall conceive in the womb, and shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Emmanuel. *

9:1 Act quickly, O land of Zabulon, land of Nephthalim, and the rest inhabiting the sea-coast, and the land beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles. 
2 The people who walk in darkness saw a great light, those who dwell in the region and shadow of death, a light shall shine upon you.
3 The multitude of the people which thou hast brought down in thy joy, they shall even rejoice before thee as they that rejoice in harvest, and as they that divide the spoil. 
4 Because the yoke that was laid upon them has been taken away, and the rod that was on their neck: for he has broken the rod of the exactors, as in the day of Madiam. 
6 for a child was born to us and a son was given to us, the rule was upon his shoulder, and his name is called messenger of great counsel, wonderful counselor, strong God, ruler, prince of peace, father of the coming age; for I bring peace upon the rulers, peace and soundness.
7 His government shall be great, and of his peace there is no end: it shall be upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to establish it, and to support it with judgement and with righteousness, from henceforth and forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts shall perform this. *

11:1 And there shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse, and a blossom shall come up from his root: 
2 and the Spirit of God shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and godliness shall fill him; 3 the spirit of the fear of God.
3 He shall not judge according to appearance, nor reprove according to report: 
4 but he shall judge the cause of the lowly, and shall reprove the lowly of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the word of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he destroy the ungodly one. 
5 And he shall have his loins girt with righteousness, and his sides clothed with truth. 
6 And the wolf shall feed with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the young calf and bull and lion shall feed together; and a little child shall lead them. 
7 And the ox and bear shall feed together; and their young shall be together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 
8 And an infant shall put his hand on the holes of asps, and on the nest of young asps. 
9 And they shall not hurt, nor shall they at all be able to destroy any one on my holy mountain: for the whole world is filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as much water covers the seas. 
10 And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall arise to rule over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust, and his rest shall be glorious. *

28:16 Therefore thus saith the Lord, even the Lord, Behold, I lay for the foundations of Sion a costly stone, a choice, a corner-stone, a precious stone, for its foundations; and he that believes on him shall by no means be ashamed. *
(combined with)
8:14 And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

35:4 Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save you.
5  Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
6  Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. (read the entire chapter)

40:3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight the paths of our God. 
4 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low: and all the crooked ways shall become straight, and the rough places plains. 
5 And the glory of the Lord shall appear, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God: for the Lord has spoken it. * (read the entire chapter)

42:1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
2  He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
3  A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
4  He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.

6  I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles;
7  To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.

49:6 And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. (entire chapter!)

50:4  The Lord GOD hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned.
5  The Lord GOD hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back.
6  I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting.
7  For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.
8  He is near that justifieth me; who will contend with me? let us stand together: who is mine adversary? let him come near to me.
9  Behold, the Lord GOD will help me; who is he that shall condemn me? lo, they all shall wax old as a garment; the moth shall eat them up.

52:13 Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high.
14  As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men:
15  So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider.

53:4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. (entire chapter for sure!!)

55:3  Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.
4  Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.
5  Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the LORD thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.

61:1 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me; he has sent me to preach glad tidings to the poor, to heal the broken in heart, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind; 
2 to declare the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of recompence; to comfort all that mourn; 
3 that there should be given to them that mourn in Sion glory instead of ashes, the oil of joy to the mourners, the garment of glory for the spirit of heaviness: and they shall be called generations of righteousness, the planting of the Lord for glory. *

62:11 For behold, the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the earth, say ye to the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy Saviour has come to thee, having his reward and his work before his face. *

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* LXX or Septuagint, Greek translation of the Old Testament. Why am I using the LXX? This was the version used by Jesus, the apostles, and the early church.

Grace is the secret

Last fall I accidentally discovered a Christian radio station. I began listening to it whenever I took the kids to school or picked them up, and I confess it was rather distressing, discouraging, and draining. “What??!! Aren’t these preachers Bible-believing?” Yes, they are. So what's the problem? Well, for many of the ones I’ve heard the Christian life is all about psychology or trying harder (being more sincere, more committed). It seems the secret to living the Christian life is me trying harder. That is wearisome. And actually, not gospel.

In the past few months the Lord has been refreshing my spirit with the news of his grace, and I’ve had a few opportunities to share this.

The first time I was at a Bible study I was leading at the time. I shared the frustrations mentioned above and then we looked at the chapter for the day, which was Ephesians 3. Paul explains his ministry:

Ephesians 3:7-8 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power. Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
Paul was a minister by the gift of the grace of God – it was a work of God in him, grace that is given to me of God.

The second time was at the church I’m attending (Resurrection Church). They announced a special meeting one Sunday night in April, they called it Soaking Prayer. Sounded interesting so I went. We sang, prayed, were individually prayed over, and then had a sharing time. I shared my story and this verse:

James 4:6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

Yes! He gives grace. Here is the secret to living for Jesus – he giveth more grace.

In June they (Resurrection Church) also began a once a month prayer meeting the first Friday of the summer months (they call it Corporate Prayer). I liked the sound of that as well, so we went. The pastor shared a few verses for us to think on and pray from, among them:

Romans 15:15-16  Nevertheless, brethren, I have written the more boldly unto you in some sort, as putting you in mind, because of the grace that is given to me of God, That I should be the minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles,

This is the same truth as in Ephesians, Paul was a minister of the gospel because grace was given to him to be an apostle.

Ephesians 1:16-17 Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: 

Colossians 1:9 For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 

This is cool and refreshing indeed! Paul did not pray for the Ephesians and Colossians to be more faithful in reading their Bibles, or to attend theology class more often, no, he asked God to give them something they didn’t have (spirit of wisdom and revelation) and to fill them with something they couldn’t get on their own (knowledge of his will). This is grace.

And a few more verses
1 Thessalonians 3:12  And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: 

1 Thessalonians 4:9 But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another.

I have to walk in love, but God will make me to abound in love; He will teach me how to love my brother. At the Corporate Prayer meeting a sister shared an example of how God had taught her to love a family she otherwise wouldn’t have been friends with. Grace.

Hebrews 13:20-21 Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. 
Amen indeed! What is the true secret of the Christian life? God working in me what is wellpleasing in his sight. I have to live the life, but God gives me grace to do it.

2 Peter 1:2-4 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
Look at this! According as his divine power hath given unto us; exceeding great and precious promises; partakers of the divine nature ... He giveth more grace!

Grace is not simply an attitude of God toward me, it is something he gives me. He provides me what I need to live for him, he works in me what I need to please Him. While I do the living, the secret to successfully doing so lies not in me, but in the grace which he gives me. I’m commanded to love, be kind, rejoice, be at peace, be humble, pray, endure and more, but the amazing truth of the gospel is He fills my heart with love, and joy, and peace; he helps me pray; he makes me humble. Amen! There is nothing he asks of me that he does not first work in me. The secret then to successfully living the Christian life is to go to God first and ask him to work in you what you need to live for him. And his grace will enable you. This is good news!

There is an A.B. Simpson hymn that I never taught to any church I pastored, but which I regularly used in my own prayer time, and I believe it captures the essence of what I’m saying. If you can read music, then sing with me!