Faithful on Fridays Blog

Passion for God

I think there is a driving passion in all of us to know God. If you asked an atheist or an agnostic, “if there was a God, would you want to know Him?” I believe their answer would be a resounding “yes!” God has placed an empty space in man’s soul that can be filled by Him alone and consequently we all, at some level, want to know God. Let’s be clear; I don’t mean knowing ‘about’ God; I’m talking about intimately knowing God.

“Those who know Your name trust in You, for You, O Lord, do not abandon those who search for You.” (Psalms 9:10 NLT)

In the first covenant the way to know God was to know His character and His attributes; they knew Him by His names. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Moses, Joshua, and David all knew God by the way He revealed Himself to them. However, we are living in the New Covenant and our knowledge isn’t restricted to His character and attributes for we have the indwelling Spirit of God residing in us; that’s a better covenant.

And this is the way to have eternal life—to know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the One You sent to earth. (John 17:3 NLT)

Passion. The passion that drove Christ to the cross was His love for us as His Bride. He accepted the assignment from His Father before the world began to be the sacrificial Lamb that would cleanse the sin of God’s chosen ones. His jealous passion was for you and I to enter into an intimate relationship of love and trust that would guide our lives in this present world and prepare us for the next. There is no greater love than that. Jesus suffered the penalty of sin, which was death, in our place. The driving passion of that death was His bridal love for the Church (Heb. 12:2), you and I, and our relationship with Him that doesn’t end with physical death but continues forever with Him.

Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with Him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with Himself depends on faith. I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with Him, sharing in His death, (Philippians 3:8-10 NLT)

Talk to Him today with fresh desire to know and experience Him. He is waiting for your call.

Holocaust. It’s a word that brings to mind images that we’ve seen on TV or in movies. It’s an ugly word. The massive, reckless, deliberate, and systematic extermination of an entire race of people: that was Hitler’s goal. He intended to wipe the nations free of a group of people simply because they were Jewish. No other reason. Interestingly, the Hebrew word for ‘burnt sacrifice’, olah, literally means ‘going up in smoke’. The parallel is unmistakeable. The burning furnaces of the death camps was not God’s intention, it was Satan’s. His original plan was the burning sacrifice of an animal to take the place of the sins of His people until the Messiah appeared. Jesus would be the final substitute. Even though it seemed that Hitler’s plan of genocide was working, God’s plan was that His Son Jesus was the final solution, not the extermination of the Jews. How does this coincide with the book of Esther? Let’s dive into the story.

Hopefully you’ll remember from previous blogs that God had reached His limit with His chosen people and their idolatry. The Babylonian armies were allowed by God to capture and exile His people as Jeremiah had prophesied: a 70 year stay and so it was. We read last Friday that Ezra and Nehemiah, under the new Persian Empire, were assigned to return and rebuild with those who would go. Among the ones who decided to stay and continue their life within the empire was Hadassah, a young Jewish girl. As you read the dramatic story of Esther (Hadassah’s name was changed) keep in mind that Satan never is ahead of God. He will always try to steal, kill, and destroy but God doesn’t follow him: God is sovereign over him.

As Esther emerges into royalty through God’s divine plan, she becomes the star player; it’s quite poetic that her name means ‘star’. God moves His plan of deliverance through her in juxtaposition to the evil Haman’s plan. Satan has been working in the darkness to bring a holocaust to the Hebrew people in Persia. Haman-Hitler, the same evil spirit, tried, with no success, to systematically exterminate God’s treasured possession.

The Feast of Purim, instituted after Esther’s plan of deliverance was successful, is the year-end celebration of God’s deliverance of His people from their enemies. Remember back to Moses and the first feast of the year, Passover? God loves to celebrate with His people. There are many similarities between these two great deliverers, Moses and Esther, ending with the two yearly feasts as reminders of God’s covenant faithfulness. Jesus the Messiah is the final fulfillment of those two great forerunners as He was the chosen One, The Deliverer, that would bring salvation to the world. That is where we find Jesus in the story Esther.

No Haman, no Hitler, and no Antichrist will be able to thwart God’s plan of deliverance. He was in total control then and will be there for us as well.

Hunger and Thirst for God

We’ve spent the last few weeks discussing discipleship but now I want to move into an area that is directly related: discipline. I know some of you may have groaned; who wants to talk about discipline? Stay with me, though, as you may be surprised.

The Latin word ‘discipline’ has the same root as ‘disciple’ so we know there’s a connection. From my perspective, being a disciple requires discipline. In the process of learning (being a disciple) there must be some training or instruction (discipline). We saw in scripture that Jesus, Peter, John, and Paul all received some type of teaching and they responded to it. Discipline has a broad range of meaning so let me narrow it down for you by saying that I will be discussing the spiritual disciplines. These are methods that have been developed over the centuries by our fathers in the faith and are often neglected. Christian men and women from the 3rd, 4th, and 5th centuries were frontiersmen in the disciplines that would bring their behavior under the control of the Holy Spirit. Their heart’s desire, as we read about them from historians, was to draw closer to God. Many of them were experiencing a hunger for God that was not being fed, a thirst for God that was not being quenched, and a longing in their heart to be more like Him in a world that was materialistic and self-centered.

I want that kind of a heart. I want to be able to say to God,

As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him? (Psalms 42:1, 2 NLT)

As a New Testament believer we are assured of the truth that we have access to God through Jesus Christ that the Psalmist did not experience. However, are you experiencing his desire to know God more intimately?

One of the Desert Fathers (or Saints), Antony of Egypt, experienced that hunger and thirst for God in the 3rd century. Do you know his story? He left all of his worldly possessions and went to the Egyptian desert to seek God. He knew the wealth he inherited would distract him from knowing God more intimately so abandoned it all. He spent the rest of his life practicing the spiritual disciplines of fasting, solitude, prayer, and scripture meditation. His example was so powerful that many fled to the desert to receive his teaching and counsel. “What is God saying to you, Antony?” the people would plead. An effective disciple and discipler of others has learned the value of discipline. For the next few weeks we’ll consider the early mystics and their hunger and thirst for God:

Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied. (Luke 6:21a NASB)

My husband and I have built two homes since we’ve been married. Each time the anticipation of our ‘move in’ date escalated with each month. When that day arrived we were ecstatic and ready to begin our new life in our new home. That’s a similar scenario, I submit, to the way Ezra and Nehemiah felt as they received the charge from God to return and rebuild the city of Jerusalem and the Temple.

After 70 years of exile in Babylon God worked through the Persian (Iranian today) leader Cyrus to release the Jews to go home. Not all of the Jewish people were anxious to return to the land of their forefathers. A new generation had emerged and many had no desire to leave their new-found lives in Persia: only the remnant returned (Ez. 3:8; Is. 10:21-22). Even though only about 50,000 of the approximate 2 million wanted to return, those whose hearts God stirred were going home. But what were they going home to? What was left of their beloved city and Temple? Nothing. It would be their assignment, should they choose to accept it, to return, rebuild, restore, revive, and reform their land and their relationship with God. This assignment had one goal: get ready, spiritually and physically, for the appearance of Messiah.

Israel, the people and the land, worked hard and long but it would take another 400 yrs. of divine silence for God to move on a priest in Jerusalem: Zechariah, father of John the Baptizer. The chairos moment, a specific time set in history, will arrive and a virgin will conceive and bring forth a Savior, Jesus the Messiah (Luke 1-2). That’s where we find Jesus in these partner books; the same place we find ourselves in these end times: waiting for the arrival, the coming, the parousia, of Christ for the second time.

Ezra, a religious figure, and Nehemiah, a political figure, were used mightily by God in calling for a reformation through repentance much like that of Martin Luther several thousand years later. They called the people to look at themselves honestly and decide if their hearts were ready to receive Him. They interceded for the people, much like our leaders in the Church today, asking God for revival. Israel is no longer a divided land and a divided people; they became one again, unified, as in the time of David. The stage is set and life goes on as each generation stands in faith that God will complete the Plan of Redemption and visit His creation. As I mentioned earlier, it took 400 years for God’s divine time to arrive and He became flesh and lived among us.

Ezra and Nehemiah remind us of the importance of preparation and Jesus echoes that in the New Testament:

You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” (Luke 12:40 ESV)

What an exciting time we live in!

The Attitude of a Disciple

The last few weeks we’ve looked at the calling and discipling of Peter, John, and Paul. These three men were specifically called and chosen by Jesus Himself. They were given instructions, authority, and assignments to complete (see Matt. 10). I believe there is a divine reason why they are prime examples for us to follow.

Take Peter, when Jesus called him he was fishing and catching nothing. Jesus performed the miracle of an exponential amount of fish in his net and what was Peter’s response? “Depart from me Lord, for I am a sinful man.” There it is, the first attitude of a disciple of Christ: humility. This word may conjure up all kinds of pictures in your mind but the essence of humility is a lack of self-centeredness. As we progress in our discipleship, with humility at the forefront, the will of God, not our will, becomes front and center.

Discipleship takes sacrifice as Peter, John, and Paul knew, but it was worth it to them. When John completed writing the Book of Revelation do you know what he did? He fell down and worshipped (Rev. 22:8)! John knew he was chosen to experience this divine calling to write about the end-times and he was humbled. John was also Jesus’ best friend. Now you may think that he was boastful about that but I see a man who followed Christ first, accompanied Peter in his ministry (Acts 1-8, notice he is always mentioned second), and is satisfied with that assignment. When he penned his letter we call First John, he constantly pointed to the Father and His Son. He didn’t take credit for his ministry; the glory went to God. We saw Paul in his humility last week: persecuted believers, no one trusted him, and he identified himself a slave of Jesus Christ.

What are the qualifications Jesus gives for discipleship?

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. (Matthew 16:24, 25 NLT)

Ouch. Turn from your selfish ways? Take up your own, individual cross? Follow me? These seem to be hard terms in this new way of life but thank God He has given us the Holy Spirit to empower us, equip us, and guide us through this assignment. All of our crosses (things that need to die in our lives) will look different. Some may need to die to fear of rejection, maybe fear of ridicule and mockery, possibly the feeling of not being included and accepted for following Him. I encourage you to die to the things that keep you from following Christ with your whole heart. It will take some sacrifice and courage but it is worth it!

They say that repetition is the key to learning; undoubtedly, that’s why Chronicles is so powerful. Once you get through the monotony of the kings you’re relieved only to find these next books repetitive. Why is that?

The two books of Chronicles duplicate, yes, however, in a positive way. They bring us back to the life of David focusing on the southern kingdom of Judah. The Chronicler, or historian, probably wrote during the Babylonian captivity to give the history of the Hebrew nation (beginning with Adam) in chapters one through nine and the rest of the chapters to bring encouragement and hope that one day they will return to Israel.

David is the focus because of the Messianic hope it foreshadowed yet these books also follow Solomon and the kingdom divided. It reviews the Davidic Covenant and David’s Prayer in 1 Chron. 17 in an effort to remind the people of two things: return and restore.

The Chronicler followed the kings with Hezekiah as a pinnacle in 2 Chron. 29-32 as he restored worship in Judah, following the example of his ancestor, David. We see references from the prophets Isaiah and Amos regarding this restoration of worship and also see in the New Testament that it was a foreshadow of the true worship to be experienced when Messiah returns:

… then a throne will be established in steadfast love, and on it will sit in faithfulness in the tent of David one who judges and seeks justice and is swift to do righteousness.” (Isaiah 16:5 ESV)

“In that day I will raise up the booth of David that is fallen and repair its breaches, and raise up its ruins and rebuild it as in the days of old,” (Amos 9:11 ESV)

Peter has related how God first visited the Gentiles, to take from them a people for his name. And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written, “‘After this I will return, and I will rebuild the tent of David that has fallen; I will rebuild its ruins, and I will restore it, that the remnant of mankind may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who are called by my name, says the Lord, who makes these things known from of old.’ (Acts 15:14-18 ESV)

When reading the Chronicles you’ll notice the strong, spiritual component of the writer (possibly Ezra) and his effort to gain the reader’s attention by focusing on prayer, seeking the LORD, and worship, not the sin and rebellion of the kings. We find Jesus in the books of Chronicles through David and the everlasting throne he represents. Remember, Jesus is returning and will sit on that throne forever.

Paul, the Disciple

As you read through the gospels it’s easy to see how Jesus taught and gave practical experience to His twelve disciples. Even after His death and resurrection He continued to take advantage of His time left and opened the scriptures to them:

Then Jesus took them through the writings of Moses and all the prophets, explaining from all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. (Luke 24:27 NLT)

My question this week is, since Jesus was gone, “Who discipled Paul?” You may remember that Paul became a follower of Christ a few years after His ascension, so then, who stepped in and became his teacher and mentor? Jesus clearly teaches that you have to ‘be’ a disciple before you ‘can’ disciple. Paul was already an educated guy in the scriptures, a Pharisee who was tutored in the Old Testament by the well- respected rabbi Gamaliel (Acts 22:3); so who discipled Paul in the ways of Messiah?

I submit to you that after Paul’s conversion (Acts 9) he was guided by the Holy Spirit into an intense discipleship program led by the Holy Spirit. He was not one of the Twelve, he did not benefit from the hands-on training of Jesus, however, Gal. 1:17-18 tells us that he left Jerusalem and went to Arabia for three years. There is no record of this time in Paul’s life but I had to ask myself, “What was he doing in those silent years?”
Consider these thoughts:

1. Was he spending time in the Word verifying the ancient Messianic prophecies with what he already knew about Jesus Christ? As an astute teacher of the scriptures, could God have been imparting fresh revelation of Himself (Matt. 13:52)?

2. Was it a time of solitude? Paul states in Gal.1:14-16 that he had direct revelation of the Son; was God sending him away for a time of solitary meditation and communion with Himself? His passion and zeal that caused him to persecute believers would be transformed into passion and zeal for people to come to Christ and grow in Him (2 Cor. 11:2-4).

3. Was he receiving an impartation from the Holy Spirit for understanding the mystery of the marriage relationship of Christ and the Church (Eph. 5:22-33) that believers would need in time of tribulation? That intimate picture of Bride and Bridegroom gives hope and encouragement in times of trouble would bring peace and joy in place of fear.

4. Was he experiencing a crash-course discipleship program from God Himself? Paul has now been discipling people for over 2,000 years, he undoubtedly was led by the Spirit to this remote place to learn, grow, and experience Jesus Christ again, more intimately now, in order to teach and write for future generations.

Believers all over the world are discipled by Paul to this day and whatever he was doing, I thank God that we can benefit from his obedience.

Today in America we celebrate Independence Day with much pomp and circumstance. Fireworks, BBQ’s, get-togethers, and a day off work for some are given to remember the high cost of our liberty. When the Puritans escaped from England it was the beginning of what John Adams called ‘a day of deliverance’ and a ‘gift from God’. In the Books of Kings (I’ll deal with them as one) we find independence a continuing theme, however, Israel wanted independence from God not independence to worship Him freely. Our nation was founded on Biblical principles and with a consciousness of God that has lasted 238 years and Israel’s rebellion against God lasted for over four centuries.

King Solomon continued to rule over the united kingdom of Israel but at his death he divided the land. He appointed his son Rehoboam over the south and called it Judah and his servant Jeroboam over the north and called it Israel. More bad decisions from Solomon.

The books of the kings remind us that people need godly leadership; without it we fall deeper and deeper into sin which leads to judgment. That’s true for Israel and also for America. After 19 kings in the north (Israel) who were all evil and 20 in the south (Judah) with only 8 who were good, we see God’s judgment: exile. The northern kingdom was eventually conquered by the Assyrians, deported into captivity, and dispersed throughout the empire. Meanwhile, due to the hard work of the 8 good kings in the south, God allowed Judah to remain for another 150 years. The day of judgment finally arrived and they were exiled to Babylon for 70 years.

Even though the kings would come and go we get a sense that this account, written during the Babylonian captivity, would bring a sense of hope and encouragement that Messiah was indeed coming. God graciously communicated through the prophets during this dark time in their history calling them to repent and return to Him, yet to no avail. It was God’s plan from the beginning to preserve the southern kingdom of Judah and we find Jesus there.

And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.” (Revelation 5:5 ESV)

God preserved His remnant from Babylon so that the final King, Jesus Christ, would arrive to rescue them and set up His eternal reign. The books of the kings look forward, along with Christians today, to that final King.

From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords. (Revelation 19:15, 16 ESV)