A Favorite Christmas Ornament

18Now the birth of Jesus Christ happened this way. While his mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19Because Joseph, her husband to be, was a righteous man, and because he did not want to disgrace her, he intended to divorce her privately. 20When he had contemplated this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21She will give birth to a son and you will name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” 22This all happened so that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet would be fulfilled: 23“Look! The virgin will conceive and bear a son, and they will call him Emmanuel,” which means “God with us.” 24When Joseph awoke from sleep he did what the angel of the Lord told him. He took his wife, 25but did not have marital relations with her until she gave birth to a son, whom he named Jesus.

Matthew 1:18-25 (NET)

Do you remember when you found out you were going to be a parent?  I remember that pregnancy test home kit, and seeing the blue check mark.  But, most of all, I remember my husband's reaction. Basically, he was so overwhelmed with emotion at the prospect he was "zombie-fied" for about 3 days.  I imagine that is how Joseph must have felt:  a carpenter who dreamed of the birth of God.1

Today, Christians talk about Jesus' return, and we say we believe this to be a certainty.  I'm sure that the Jews of Mary and Joseph's day felt the same about the coming of Messiah.  But, I'm equally sure they felt that "someone else" would be chosen to be His earthly parents.  What a shock this must have been!

The mystery of the Incarnation.  I can't wrap my mind around it.  A friend of mine wrote a Christmas song in which she tried to express the unfathomable fact that Mary gave birth to the One who had created her, who had known her before her own birth.  "We Have Met Before" :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u568DbaOyZc

"Newborn Son, yet Ancient of All Days"...

God the Father gives to us God the Son.  This is the essence of Christmas:  God gives us the only path to soul salvation, His very own Beloved One, His Only Begotten. 

Do you have a favorite Christmas tree ornament?  I do.  It is the subject of the picture at the top of today's post.  It is not a particularly beautiful ornament, in the aesthetic sense.  In fact, it looks out-of-place, nestled in the "front and center" of our tree.  The ornament is a long iron stake, a "nine-inch nail", if you will, suspended by a scarlet red ribbon.  What is the meaning there?  It symbolizes the culmination of Jesus' first Advent, the stake mimicking one that nailed his wrists or feet to the harsh wooden beams, the red ribbon symbolizing His precious blood, spilled for me.

This poignant ornament is there to remind me that Christmas was only the beginning of Jesus's earthly ministry. If He had only been born and then had lived a life marked by sinful choices, or if He had refused to fulfill His purpose here, there would be no spike ornament on my tree, nor would there be any reason for a Christmas celebration at all.

God With Us...Immanuel.  You can't take the Babe without the Broken and Suffering.  You can't worship the Newborn without embracing the Triumphant King.  There is no worship of Jesus apart from embracing His finished work on the cross and His earth-shattering emergence from the borrowed tomb.  He loved us ... to death, and back again.

Even after He returned to Heaven, to sit at the right hand of our Father God, He did not leave us comfortless.  Through His Holy Spirit, God is still with us, with those of us who have believed and confessed, "I am His and He is mine."

As he lay dying, the renowned 18th c. Methodist evangelist John Wesley is said to have uttered these words:  "The best of all is, God is with us."

Amen and amen.

Thanks be to God, for His indescribable Gift!  2 Corinthians 9:15

Source:

1 Voskamp, Ann. The Greatest Gift: Unwrapping the Full Love Story of Christmas. 

Innkeepers and Guest Rooms

This afternoon, my sister and I left my mother's house.  We spent a large part of "Boxing Day", December 26th, visiting, talking, laughing, eating and getting into various mishaps.  While at mother's, I stayed in one of her guest rooms, the one in which Hubster and I (or, in this case, just I) always stay.  Ironically, it was never my bedroom as a child but was instead my brother's and then later, my sister's.

And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

Luke 2:7 (KJV)

We had a very merry Christmas.  I had wanted to blog on Luke 2:7 yesterday, but got off my trajectory due to all the family celebration.  Late last night, after everyone had gone to bed I watched a couple of Christmas videos on YouTube.  One was by Nabeel Qureshi, who made the point that "the inn" was actually likely not an inn at all, but was instead the home of a relative.  The Greek word Luke used was only used by one other person, Jesus, in the New Testament.  In those other two occasions (Mark 14:14 and Luke 22:11) where the word is used, it κατάλυμα (kataluma) was translated "guest chambers" or "guest room."  So, in actuality, a more accurate rendering of the story would be like:  "Mary and Joseph went to Bethlehem for the census and had planned to stay with relatives, but all the guest rooms were taken.  The only place available was the stable, which is where they ended up, and where Jesus was born."

One thing of which I'm sure - - - there is no part of the Bible IN the Bible by accident.  What does it matter whether it was stranger (an innkeeper) or a relative who had no room for the little family? Why is this detail even important?  It is one thing for a merchant to tell you that there is "no vacancy" or that the last faddish toy of the season has been sold.  It is another to be treated shabbily by family members.

At a Christmas Eve party I was listening to friends discuss sleeping arrangements for that night and the next few.  The three adult children and their children were on the way.  There was never any talk of putting anyone into the "unfinished basement" or "the garage".  (They had no stable.) . I guarantee you that the homeowners would have given up their own bedroom before that occurred!

Yet, here we have this very, very pregnant, first-time about-to-be mother, a frightened teenager, and her slightly less young, probably bewildered husband, who were relegated to the family's stable for the night.

How do most decent people treat guests?  We warmly welcome them and give to them our best, right?  The guest room is usually pristine and clean, smells good and is very comfortable.  We want our guests to feel valued and respected.  Even...loved!

It was a not-so-warm welcome from the family of man to the Savior, wasn't it?  Not a lot of hospitality from the very ones He created and then became one of, in order to save.

My little friend, Wyatt, made this ornament in his Christian school, shortly before Christmas.  The message is so important as we wind down from Christmas and head into the new year.  Quite a while back I heard a preacher say that if Jesus is not Lord OF all, then He is not Lord AT all.  What that preacher meant was that Jesus doesn't want to reside merely in a guest room of our spiritual house, but that he wants to permeate all the rooms of our "house".  While that is true, I dislike the statement he made because it sets up an almost impossible standard, especially for those who are considering following Jesus, who are contemplating inviting Him in.  It is a warning that nearly says, "you must be perfect to become a Christian or to follow Christ."  Some will respond, "Well, just forget it then!" Most of us have a drawer or closet in their "house" they would prefer Jesus just keep His nose out of, thank you very much!  We adore the concept of total Lordship, although the consistent practice of it is quite a challenge.

I'm more concerned about those who refuse to let Jesus into their houses at all, those who are like the relatives in Luke 2:7, sending the "infant holy" to the stable.  If we welcome Him into our "guest room", then follow Him by giving Him our best, He then leads us into deeper devotion to Him.  He gently shows us how to let Him become Lord of all our house.  The most urgent question, the one which must be answered first, is this:  "Is there room for Him AT all?"

Innkeepers, I hope each one of you has answered or will answer "yes".

To Dwell Again

I was idly listening to a couple of entertainers on talk radio this afternoon as I drove home from church.  One of them was telling (true or not...) of a lady who had been a vegetarian for most of her life. Then, one day, she decided while at a coffee house, to try a turkey sandwich.  Now, she's enjoying BBQ!  She said that after one taste of that turkey sandwich, she just can't get enough!

That's the way it is for me with the study of the Word of God.  I have been severely deprived of my Bible study these past few days, due to a home/family project of large magnitude.  As a result, I am starving!

So, here we are, on the first Sunday of Advent which, this year, also happens to be the first day of Advent!  As a Baptist, we don't celebrate Advent the way the more "high church" denominations do; and, I think that's a shame, really.  So, since I love my particular denomination, I just choose to add Advent celebration on in my personal study.  Since beginning this blog, I have used two different Advent devotionals the past two Advents.  The first was from John Piper's "Solid Joys", and the last one was from Ann Voskamp's Advent study: "The Greatest Gift".  Both added a wonderful flavor to meditations on this sacred season.

This year, here in the blog (because in my personal devos) we will be hearing from A.W. Tozer, an early-to-mid-20th century theologian.  Not a Baptist, Tozer was a pastor in a denomination called the Christian and Missionary Alliance (the C&MA).  He wrote several books, including the famous "The Pursuit of God".

Today's Advent meditation concerns God's interactions with mankind, from the time of Adam and Eve until Jesus' birth.  In the Garden of Eden Genesis 3:8 tells us God walked through the Garden. Clearly, He regularly communed with Adam and Eve there freely, in their sinless states before The Fall. After their catastrophic, cataclysmic choice to believe Satan rather than God, everything changed.  God, for thousands of years, no longer "dwelt among", that is lived among, mankind.  It was not until the birth of Jesus our Savior that God once again was for a prolonged time "with us". "And His name shall be called Immanuel, 'God with us'." (Matthew 1:23)  The gospel writers were adamant about this point.  John too, in his gospel, drove the point home:  "The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us..."(John 1:14)

In the intervening years, from The Fall to The Incarnation, God appeared to men from time to time. He manifested Himself as various natural phenomena, such as a recurring, guiding cloud or a column of fire (the Shekinah Glory.)  At other times, He took on the form of man briefly (appearing to Abraham and to Moses, to Gideon, Daniel, Jacob and others).

But, when He put on flesh and revealed Himself as The Son, He came to abide with us, to dwell with us forever.  The Son has declared the Father, the Scriptures say in John 1:18.  In the Person of God the Son, Jesus makes manifest all the fullness of God the Father, whom no man has actually seen. We would be unable to bear such radiant majesty and glory.  We so lack the capacity to absorb His greatness that to actually see the Father would utterly destroy us.

"And we beheld His glory...." (John 1:14b)

When the first century folks saw Jesus with their physical eyes, they were looking at God, though very few realized it.  When we 21st century people "see" Jesus with eyes of the spirit, it is being revealed to us then all there is for us humans to know of God.  Jesus gives us as much of God the Father as we can tolerate in our humanness. And, Jesus does this miracle now through the Third Person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit.

Yes, today, when we embrace God through the Person of His Son, when we worship Him with the offering of our lives, we are given the Holy Spirit to dwell with us forever.  He seals us as God's own, never more to be separated.  Physical death cannot then separate us from the love of God.  In fact, nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:38). Nothing has that power. The Holy Spirit marks us permanently, like with a Sharpie permanent marker.  (If you've ever tried to get Sharpie ink off a surface or out of a fabric you can appreciate the analogy!) Even stronger, greater and more final than a Sharpie is the seal of the Holy Spirit on the soul of the believer in Jesus Christ.

He dwells with us who are His, and we will dwell with Him forever.

God's Sister

Well, good afternoon!  I had to take a brief hiatus, in order to create a 25-page document for a friend. That intense and time-intensive project used up all of my writing mojo!

Do you have a sibling?  I have two.  When I became pregnant with our first child, I knew immediately I desired to have at least one more.  My husband and I became parents late in life.  I didn't want an only child to have the additional burden of being "alone" in this world at an early age, should God desire to take my husband and me on home to glory.  God graciously blessed with two sons, and now each has the other to call "brother".

There have been times when they have wanted to cheerfully kill each other!  Well, you can't choose every member of your biological family... Hopefully, in the end, they will love and support each other, if they allow the Holy Spirit to rule and reign in their lives; such is my daily prayer.

In our Hebrews passage today, Jesus Christ is called the "brother" of those who belong to Him. Doesn't that add an interesting dimension to our relationship with our God and Savior, Jesus Christ?

Consider these verses from chapter 2, especially verse 12, and let's look a little more deeply at what this term "brother" means.  The three Old Testament quotations in today's passage correspond to the Father's proclamation of Jesus' divine Sonship in 1:5-14.  Hebrews 2:12, in particular, corresponds to Hebrews 1:5.

10For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. 11For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source.^b That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers,^c 12saying,

“I will tell of your name to my brothers;

in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.”

13And again,

“I will put my trust in him.”

And again,

“Behold, I and the children God has given me.”

"Children of God" is perhaps easier for us to grasp, and we'll most likely look at that verse tomorrow.  But, brother?  Here is what Bruce had to say in his commentary:

The quote in verse 12 is from Psalm 22:22, a psalm which early Christians all attributed to Jesus Christ as speaker.  Why?  Because he quoted from the earlier part of Psalm 22 on the cross.  So, it logically follows that Jesus would be the prophecy fulfillment, the speaker, in the second part of the psalm also.
"And since those who are sanctified to God through his death are sons and daughters of God, the Son of God is not ashamed to acknowledge them as his brothers and sisters - - not only as those whose nature he took upon himself, but those whose trials he endured, for whose sins he made atonement, that they might follow him to glory on the path of salvation which he himself cut."

I want to put down a comment here from Cockerill, concerning the "For it was fitting...." aspect of verse 10.  Cockerill says it so beautifully!
Christ's suffering was neither a logical necessity forced upon God, nor a mere decision of his will, but an appropriate expression of the divine character.  Thus his incarnate suffering was integral to the Son's person as the ultimate revelation of God's nature."

Had Jesus Christ not assumed the flesh and blood of humanity, He would have been unable to redeem it!  Unlike us, His brothers and sisters, who are being changed by His Holy Spirit who lives within us, Jesus Christ did not go through a period of "moral development".  Instead, He assumed the human nature and lived a life of perfect and complete obedience, even under the worst kind of suffering and, ultimately, the most torturous death.   Praise His Name forever!

By confessing His brotherhood with us, His people, He thereby extends an invitation for us to rest in and to enjoy that filial relationship with God which has been made available for us by our Brother, the Pioneer.

Dear Triune God, Your magnificence is past comprehension!  You have made me Your daughter, and Your sister.  I just can't even begin to fathom that.  But, I thank you with all my heart for choosing me and for allowing me to choose you.  I look forward to an eternity of exploring more fully what that means.  In Jesus' name, amen. 

Sources:

Bruce, F. F. The Epistle to the Hebrews. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 1990. Kindle edition.
Cockerill, Gareth Lee. The Epistle to the Hebrews. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 2012. Kindle edition.

In Subjection

I was joking with a Southern brother the other day about how he was pronouncing a word, in his S. Alabama drawl.  The word in question was "foothills".  My point was that if he pronounced the word "foot-heels" he was going to change the connotation for his hearers immensely!
"Foot" and "Heels" come to mind as I contemplate today's scripture passage - - Hebrews 2:5-9 (ESV)

5  For it was not to angels that God subjected the world to come, of which we are speaking.  6  It has been testified somewhere,

“What is man, that you are mindful of him, 

or the son of man that you care for him?

7  You made him for a little while lower than the angels;

You have crowned him with glory and honor.

8  Putting everything in subjection under his feet."

Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him.   9  But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

In trying to think of an analogy for today's "scripture-picture" I thought about teaching.  You see, today, this "old dog" is going to learn a "new trick"!  (Or, perhaps more than one!)  Yes, I have a friend who is teaching me how to use social media to expand my little RDM (Resplendent Daughter Ministries).  We have an appointment later today for me to learn "stuff".  So excited!  Here's the thing, though:  my friend is going to have to "make himself a little lower" than his current state of understanding, in order to teach me.  All great teachers have the ability to do this.  It is not enough to merely possess knowledge, if you are going to teach.  In addition to the knowledge of the subject matter, you must be able to communicate it in a way (usually several ways) your various human pupils will comprehend!

Our scripture passage for our meditation today is the first of a "trio", which together comprise Hebrews 2:5-18.  Overall, the larger passage drills home the importance of Jesus Christ's incarnation as the God-Man, as well as His suffering, both required by Father and also the instrument by which the Son came to the place of exaltation described in Hebrews 1:1-14.

Jesus lowered Himself to put on flesh, to become a human, in ways we will never understand.  Yet, during all of His earthly ministry, still all things were under his control (vs. 8).  All things were still "subject" to Him.  (Remember Him calming the waves, stilling the storm on the Sea of Galilee in Mark 4:35-41?)  Cockerill exclaims, "No other early writer expounds both the deity and humanity of Christ more eloquently than the author of Hebrews."

I am riveted by this statement today:  (vs. 8) - - "We do not yet see everything in subjection to Him."
All is in subjection to Him, controlled by Him, obedient to Him....but we can't see it.  Now, that can be taken in two ways.
1.  It can be that we are either blinded by Satan or willfully refuse to see this truth.
2   But, an equally fascinating interpretation to consider is that we just simply have no idea of all He rules and reigns over!  Here we are on our tiny planet, in a vast universe.  How much we do not know!  All of it, we will NEVER know!  I am confident that we have an extremely insufficient view or understanding of His vast kingdom, which is eternal, which will never end.

This truth begs the question, "What about those who refuse His lordship in their lives?"  Well, they are still subject to Him, to His eternal plan, like it or not.  You can go easy by accepting Christ as Savior, the path by which you can experience fullness of joy, the abundant life.  Or, you can go ugly and rough - - rejecting Him, scrambling through by your own measly power, ever perhaps "accomplishing something", only to find at the end of your life that it has been meaningless.

Everything and everyone is under His rule NOW, His power, part of His plan, for good or for evil (our choice).  I fully recognize that this post is going to tick some people off - - those who have no desire whatsoever to accept, follow, or serve Jesus Christ.  Not my intention, but there again, these scriptures are God's words, not mine.  Don't shoot the messenger!

The final and ultimate fulfillment of Christ's rule will culminate in His return to earth to set up His earthly kingdom.  At that time the prophecy of His enemies becoming His "footstool" will be literally and physically made so.  See Psalm 110:1, 1 Corinthians 15:24 and Hebrews 10:13.  Oh, and Genesis 3:15 - - Satan's head will be utterly crushed.

"Bow now or bow later" because, eventually, ALL WILL BOW.

Lord Jesus, I don't want to merely be subjected to You; I want to serve You, in all my ways, through all my days.  And then, through forever, may my service and worship of You go on and on an on.  In Your Name, amen.

Source:

Cockerill, Gareth Lee. The Epistle to the Hebrews. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 2012. Kindle edition.

Image Inexplicable

Most Bible commentators I've read believe that Paul wrote his letter to the Colossians because that little church was being unduly influenced by Gnostics.  (Sounds like a group of aliens from Star Trek, doesn't it?)  We'll look more deeply into the beliefs of Gnosticism later, but let's start by confronting a couple of their false beliefs.  The first is that Jesus Christ was merely one of God's manifestations (appearances, emanations) to an evil, material world.  Gnostics also believe that all physical matter is evil and that God could have no contact with it.1

Because of this alarming incursion of Gnosticism into the Colossian church, Paul launches into a series of verses in which he describes who Jesus Christ actually was and is.

15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation,

16for all things in heaven and on earth were created by him – all things, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions, whether principalities or powers – all things were created through him and for him.

17He himself is before all things and all things are held together in him.

18He is the head of the body, the church, as well as the beginning, the firstborn from among the dead, so that he himself may become first in all things.

19For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in the Son

20and through him to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross – through him, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

Paul begins with establishing the deity of Christ by detailing His various interactions with mankind, as you see in the verses above.

Today, we are going to focus on verses 15-16:  incarnation versus emanation.

I do not fully understand the mystery that happened between God the Father and God the Son, when the decision was made to give the Father "form" - - material, physical form.  This is not fully explained in the Bible, perhaps because we don't have the capacity to understand.  Most certainly, this occurred before any other created thing was created, because both verses 15 and 16 state that it occurred prior to creation AND that Christ WAS the creator of ALL things.  So, in a move that runs totally counter to Gnosticism, we see the Creator God the Son making the material and constructing the spiritual realms.  The apostle Peter also confirms this in 1 Peter 1:20.

He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was manifested in these last times for your sake. 
(NET)

A little bit ago, I was musing...does God the Father or Son or Holy Spirit EVER in the Bible manifest as any created thing?  Oh, He inhabits created spaces, such as when "His glory filled the Temple".  In other scriptures He is referred to (in his Christ form) as "the angel of the Lord".  But, He never manifests as an eagle or a bear or a serpent (as Satan did).  He is called the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, and C.S. Lewis portrayed Him as the lion, Aslan, in his fictitious allegory series, The Chronicles of Narnia.  But....He always takes the form of a man, the God-Man, whom we learned at his birth to call, Jesus.

Man was created by Jesus Christ, the God-Man, in His image.  Jesus is the image of God the Father, who Himself is Spirit, invisible. And we are created in His (Jesus') image.

"Through him and for him" - - -

Having expounded upon the first, let's consider the last.  We, mankind, were created FOR God, for Jesus Christ, who knew what the future held for Him, who knew that, even in creating us we would fall into sin; we would need a Redeemer, and that He was the only One who could save us.

"Slain, from the foundation of the world".... 

(Revelation 13:8 KJV)

Not only did He create all things, He became us, became a human, ultimately the human named Jesus Christ, fully God and fully Man.  The incarnation (the "en-fleshing", encasing in human flesh) of the invisible God.  The human body is not evil, as Gnostics claim.  If it were, Jesus would never have incarnated Himself into one!

As a result of The Fall, all human love, all of it, is tainted by self-interest.  I am unable to conceive of a love like Jesus Christ's, a love so pure and holy.   A love that could not bear to see us forever lost, forever separated from Him, a perfect love which constrained Him to snatch us back from the pit of Hell at an incalculable personal cost.

This is not an aloof, removed God, afraid to get His hands dirty.  This is a God who not only plunged right into the fallen world, to abide with us, but who also longs to be with each of us in every way, every day, even now.  This is a God who finished redemption's work so that all of Gnosticism's rule-following is rendered void, and replaced those heresies with grace, pure grace alone.

Hallelujah for that!

https://youtu.be/YnM3lc-LyzY


Source:

1   Wiersbe, Warren W., and Warren W. Wiersbe. The Wiersbe Bible Commentary: The Complete New Testament in One Volume. Colorado Springs, CO: David C. Cook, 2007. Print, p. 659.

Mercy Me!

{No pic today; laptop has crashed; same reason today's post is late. :( }

The more I study about God the more I realize He is foreign to me.  I make that statement, fully realizing how asinine it sounds.

What do you think it means, that man is made in God's "image"?  I don't think any of us truly know, except that the general consensus is that, because man was created an eternal spirit, this is the point of convergence, the point of similarity - - - how we have God's "image".

I wonder sometimes how different Adam and Eve were from the rest of us, before The Fall.  What must it have been like to live as a human, in a sinless state, before the ultimate act of rebellion, of disobedience, which resulted in the eating of the forbidden fruit!  To live for hundreds of years with a sin nature, after having formerly existed in human form "without sin"!  Perhaps mankind most closely resembled God at that point, for that incredibly short window of time.

Today's topic is God's mercy and the text is Psalm 136, if you want to go ahead and turn there.  I'm not going to reproduce the verses here.  We have finished Romans, but I was just not hungry for more of Paul's writings this morning.  Our next foray will be into the book Ephesians, followed by Philippians, Colossians and 2nd Colossians (also known as Philemon).  But not yet.

Think about this.  Had Adam and Eve not sinned, could we know of God's mercy?

In their short-lived sinless states, Adam and Eve had no need for the mercy of God.  Mercy, you see, is all about God withholding the judgment that we deserve because of our sinfulness, that sin nature we inherited from Adam and Eve.

Southerners have an exclamation that goes, "Lord, have mercy!"  It is usually used by one human to express dismay over the antics of another.  The exclamation is a plea for God not to strike the other person down for his or her foolish behavior.

Although we want God to be merciful humans are not generally concerned with extending mercy to others.  The Assyrian Empire, which was the dominant world power for approximately 1900 years was a brutal, merciless regime.  They were not interested in melding their culture with that of conquered peoples; they simply mowed them down.  Merciful they were not.

In the Old Testament, the two Hebrew words that occur most often as English translations to "mercy" are "has-dow" and "hes-ed".  These are also often translated "lovingkindness".  According to the Englishman's Concordance the first term occurs 58 times in the Old Testament, and of those, 26, nearly half, occur in Psalm 136, our text for today.  ("Hes-ed", according to the same source, occurs 66 times.).

There's a principle in scriptural interpretation called "the law of first mention".  In other words, how is a word used when it is first mentioned in the Bible?  We first see the word "mercy" in Genesis 19:16, where the angelic beings God had sent to Lot in Sodom took hold of the hands of him and his family, transporting them outside of the city.  In so doing, Lot's family was delivered from horrific judgment; they were spared.  "Mercy", then, is a "compassionate act of love which spares the loved one from judgment/punishment/disaster/destruction".

Now then.  Let's look at Psalm 136.

The repeated refrain in this song is as follows (various translations of same Hebrew text):

• For His lovingkindness is everlasting (NASB)
• His love endures forever (NIV)
• His steadfast love endures forever (ESV)
• His loyal love endures (NET)
• His mercy endureth forever (KJV)
• His love never quits (MSG)

Interesting, isn't it?  One commentator I read today made the observation that these translations which translate "mercy" as "love" lose something in translation, most notably the connotation of deliverance from earned consequences.

At any rate, the psalmist is praising God for ....what?  His generic love?  No.  The psalmist is praising God for His mercy which over and over again delivered His people from almost-certain horror.  With a strong hand and an out-stretched arm, The Supreme, Matchless Creator, who formed the universe in perfection, snatched His beloved people from the brink of disaster.  Following is a list of the events the psalmist is most thankful for in this song:

• (Vs. 10) He delivered the firstborn children of Israel even as He killed the firstborn of every Egyptian family, in order to deliver the Israelites from the slavery of the Egyptians.
• (Vs.13-15). He parted the Red Sea, allowed the Israelites to walk over on dry land, and destroyed Pharaoh's army.
• (Vs. 16) He sustained His people during their wilderness wanderings. 
• (Vs. 17). He destroyed great kings on behalf of His people.
• (Vs. 21-22). He gave the Israelites The Promised Land as their heritage forever. 
• (Vs. 23). And this is prophetic - - - He "remembered  their low estate".

How could that be prophetic, you ask?  Do you remember Mary's Magnificat, in the book of Luke?
Let's revisit it again.  Luke 1:48 KJV

For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

When God so loved the world, when He "John 3:16ed", He made His ultimate act of mercy.  He regarded humankind's "low estate", and in His mercy, He stretched out his arm to put on flesh, like putting on a coat; and then, about 33 earth-years later He stretched out both His arms, to be nailed to a Roman cross.  This God, who knows and has ever known the end from the beginning, His changeless character overflows with mercy.

O give thanks unto the God of heaven: for his mercy endureth for ever.

Psalm 136:26 KJV

Dear Father, thank you for extending mercy to us, your fallen creation.  Our sin is a gulf only You could cross, a blot only You could wash clean.  I'm so grateful to be the recipient of such mercy, which is an unalterable part of your perfect character.  And so, Your mercy endures forever.  That's certainly worth singing praises about!  In Jesus' name, amen. 

On Fire!

A few days ago, while walking in my neighborhood at dusk, I stopped to stare in wonder at a beautiful sight.  In my neighbor's front yard was this gorgeous tree, on fire with spring color and waning sunlight.  It truly appeared to be on fire.  As I almost always have my phone when walking, I took this picture which, I promise, does not even begin to capture the glory of that moment, in which God reminded me of the burning bush of Exodus 3.  (If you have been walking with me through Romans, no worries!  We will get to our Romans text in a few moments!)

1Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”

4When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!”

And Moses said, “Here I am.”

5“Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6Then he said, “I am the God of your father,^a the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.

7The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—

Here was Moses, just an ordinary Hebrew man, doing what he did every day (working for his father-in-law) when God appeared to him in such a surprising, wondrous way!  I could spend several blog posts examining the beauty of this theophany of God (the angel of the LORD), but will instead refer you to the source at the bottom of today's blog so that you can explore that concept on your own.1

Our main text for today is Romans 13:8-10.

8Owe no one anything, except to love one another, for the one who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. 9For the commandments, “Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not covet,” (and if there is any other commandment) are summed up in this, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 10Love does no wrong to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

This admonition from the apostle Paul applies to anyone ("neighbor) that the LORD brings into our "circle of influence".  Paul echoes the words of Jesus in Matthew 22:36-40 here.  He reiterates that a Christian may "follow all the rules" of Scripture perfectly.  However, if we do not show the love of God to those around us, we have ignored the two greatest commandments of them all.

As stunningly beautiful as was my neighbor's "burning bush", I am even more stupefied by the reality that this God, this immortal Being with no beginning and no ending (Psalm 90:2) desires a relationship with me, and with any person who truly seeks Him (Jeremiah 29:12-13 ).  He saw His people in their misery in Egypt and "came down" to rescue them, in the form of holy flames of fire that did not consume a bramble.  The Savior likewise, thousands of years later, was God-Come-Down, Immanuel - - God With Us - - (Isaiah 7:14), who came to rescue us from the slavery of sin. Jesus Christ, the Ultimate Theophany, who brings us into the "promised land" of eternal salvation! May His name be praised forever!  Baruch Hashem!2

How do we love our neighbors? If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, we must (as we should in all things) listen for His voice.  When He urges us to reach out to someone in love, we should do it.  So, the answer to how we love our neighbors is different for each of us.  There are some commonalities, of course - - - we are to feed the hungry and care for the sick.  We are to share the gospel of Jesus Christ's life and work, above all.  But, beyond that, we are to follow the leading of His Spirit, living inside us.

So, Believer, if He prompts you today, if He speaks to You today from a "burning bush", don't run the other way.  Listen!  And, then ... love your neighbor.

Father, I can still see that ruler, in my mind's eye - - - that little wooden ruler, given to every student at Clarkesville Elementary all those years ago.  I can see "The Golden Rule" written on it, "Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You", which is basically a restatement of Romans 13:8-10.  Please make me more sensitive to the needs of others and give me more opportunities to share the greatest news this world has ever heard - - - that in You is freedom and life and joy, forever!  In Jesus' name, amen.

Source:

1   http://www.gotquestions.org/burning-bush.html
2   Hebrew: Blessed be G_d!