October 5
We can hardly begin to imagine the suffering that Christ endured. Yes, physical suffering has beset countless people through the millennia of man’s existence. Many have endured torture as Jesus did, many besides Him have been scourged and even crucified. But His suffering was far beyond the physical.
Jesus, the sinless Second Person of the Triune Godhead suffered in a way none of us ever can. He suffered from the weight of the sin of all mankind pressed upon His sinless person. Because He bore our sin, He could not sense the presence of the Father, the part of Himself that existed together with Him from eternity.
But there was a grand purpose to all He endured. He did not simply determine from the upper echelon of Heaven that He wanted to experience the worst the enemy could hurl at Him through the attack he would launch against a man who set about to live the pure life God had desired from the beginning for His finest creation.
No, “Because Christ Himself suffered when He was tempted, He is able to help succor those who are being tempted.” Paul’s words in Hebrews 2:18 resonate to us. We know we are tempted to sin, we may even be tempted to abandon our faith. But because Jesus understands, He is able to strengthen our hearts at the point of our greatest temptation.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
When You Think Not
October 4
The Bible is a book of prose and poetry and of history and of prophecy. Its language is soaring when recounting the exploits of mighty kings and tender when whispering sweetly of a man’s love for his spouse or of God’s love for man. It is accurately documented when chronicling the exploits of God’s people. There is no other ancient manuscript that has as many original source scrolls.
When it speaks of the unfolding of future events, its language is deliberately veiled in terms that can be understood only by those who are living in the time frame to which it is being addressed. All others find themselves in a fog of confusion that shrouds their understanding and which even scholars find baffling.
But when the Apostle Paul expounds to us regarding the end times in I Thessalonians 4:15-18, we must take note. He says, “According to the Lord’s own word…we who are alive and remain until the return of Jesus, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. The Lord Himself will descend from Heaven with a mighty shout of command and we will hear the voice of the archangel and the blast of the trumpet call of God and the dead in Christ shall rise first,,,
“Then we who are alive will be caught up together with them and meet the Lord in the air; and we shall be forever with Him…” If this doesn’t stir the soul of the believer, nothing will! And to add to the sense of anticipation, Paul states in I Corinthians 15:52, that it will all occur, “…in the twinkling of an eye.” The reality of this amazing eventuality encourages us to be ready, for as Jesus said, “At an hour when you think not, the Son of Man shall come…” Matthew 24:44.
The Bible is a book of prose and poetry and of history and of prophecy. Its language is soaring when recounting the exploits of mighty kings and tender when whispering sweetly of a man’s love for his spouse or of God’s love for man. It is accurately documented when chronicling the exploits of God’s people. There is no other ancient manuscript that has as many original source scrolls.
When it speaks of the unfolding of future events, its language is deliberately veiled in terms that can be understood only by those who are living in the time frame to which it is being addressed. All others find themselves in a fog of confusion that shrouds their understanding and which even scholars find baffling.
But when the Apostle Paul expounds to us regarding the end times in I Thessalonians 4:15-18, we must take note. He says, “According to the Lord’s own word…we who are alive and remain until the return of Jesus, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. The Lord Himself will descend from Heaven with a mighty shout of command and we will hear the voice of the archangel and the blast of the trumpet call of God and the dead in Christ shall rise first,,,
“Then we who are alive will be caught up together with them and meet the Lord in the air; and we shall be forever with Him…” If this doesn’t stir the soul of the believer, nothing will! And to add to the sense of anticipation, Paul states in I Corinthians 15:52, that it will all occur, “…in the twinkling of an eye.” The reality of this amazing eventuality encourages us to be ready, for as Jesus said, “At an hour when you think not, the Son of Man shall come…” Matthew 24:44.
Monday, October 3, 2011
The Angels' Mighty Cheering Section
October 3
There is something spine-tingling about the roar of the crowd at a football game. The fans are exuberant when their team appears on the field. Not only are the team’s colors prominently displayed by the official gear being worn by the players but also by the towels their supporters wave.
And the noise of the crowd is deafening! There is nothing somber about this occasion! The fans have come to demonstrate their passion for the hometown boys and one of the ways they do it is through their vocal support. When the team is at the point of a crucial play, they will turn to the cheering section and signal that they should shout even louder.
Unless you are truly into the game, and unless your team has brought you to the pinnacle of success by winning the Super Bowl, you probably can’t feel into the excitement. But if you are, and if it has, your appetite has only been whet for more. One Lombardi Trophy cannot satisfy the hometown crowd. One Super Bowl ring is never enough.
But the sound of the cheers at a football game pales in comparison to the glorious chorus of praise sung to our Holy God by the angels that is heard throughout the corridors of Heaven! In Revelation 19:6 we are told that John the revelator heard: “…what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting, ‘Halleluiah! For the Lord God Almighty reigns.’”
Until we hear the angels’ mighty cheering section praising God, we’ve heard nothing!
There is something spine-tingling about the roar of the crowd at a football game. The fans are exuberant when their team appears on the field. Not only are the team’s colors prominently displayed by the official gear being worn by the players but also by the towels their supporters wave.
And the noise of the crowd is deafening! There is nothing somber about this occasion! The fans have come to demonstrate their passion for the hometown boys and one of the ways they do it is through their vocal support. When the team is at the point of a crucial play, they will turn to the cheering section and signal that they should shout even louder.
Unless you are truly into the game, and unless your team has brought you to the pinnacle of success by winning the Super Bowl, you probably can’t feel into the excitement. But if you are, and if it has, your appetite has only been whet for more. One Lombardi Trophy cannot satisfy the hometown crowd. One Super Bowl ring is never enough.
But the sound of the cheers at a football game pales in comparison to the glorious chorus of praise sung to our Holy God by the angels that is heard throughout the corridors of Heaven! In Revelation 19:6 we are told that John the revelator heard: “…what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting, ‘Halleluiah! For the Lord God Almighty reigns.’”
Until we hear the angels’ mighty cheering section praising God, we’ve heard nothing!
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Look Up!
October 2
Though there are countless worldviews that expound their ideas of how heaven is to be attained, there is only One who came from heaven and gave us the roadmap to get there. That One is Jesus.
The exclusivity of His plan is offensive to some people. They cannot accept the idea that other directions to heaven will not lead to heaven. These are the very people who, if they boarded a plane for a certain city would fully expect that the proper coordinates would be followed to arrive there.
Those who have seen the light of this truth fully grasp the reality that, “There is no other name given under heaven whereby men might be saved,” Acts 4:12. The man who has caught a vision of his own depravity and his own need for a Savior has no trouble receiving the sinless Christ who shed His blood to wash man clean of sin.
And from the moment he sees and receives, that man realizes that he is no longer a citizen of this corrupt world. No! The citizenship of the believer in Jesus is now, “…in heaven and we eagerly await our Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,” Philippians 3:20. We “Look up…” knowing our redemption draws near (Luke 21:28).
Though there are countless worldviews that expound their ideas of how heaven is to be attained, there is only One who came from heaven and gave us the roadmap to get there. That One is Jesus.
The exclusivity of His plan is offensive to some people. They cannot accept the idea that other directions to heaven will not lead to heaven. These are the very people who, if they boarded a plane for a certain city would fully expect that the proper coordinates would be followed to arrive there.
Those who have seen the light of this truth fully grasp the reality that, “There is no other name given under heaven whereby men might be saved,” Acts 4:12. The man who has caught a vision of his own depravity and his own need for a Savior has no trouble receiving the sinless Christ who shed His blood to wash man clean of sin.
And from the moment he sees and receives, that man realizes that he is no longer a citizen of this corrupt world. No! The citizenship of the believer in Jesus is now, “…in heaven and we eagerly await our Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,” Philippians 3:20. We “Look up…” knowing our redemption draws near (Luke 21:28).
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Christ Our Living Water
October 1
There is a longing, deep within the human bosom, for something better. It doesn’t seem to matter how good or how bad things already are, there is within each of us a realization that this isn’t all there is.
The Bible, God’s holy, inerrant word confirms this. He who has fashioned us and who has planted within us the hopes and longings that define our humanity understands our yearning for the perfection we lost in the Garden.
Jesus came to earth as a Man and lived the perfect life that we are incapable of living in order for our lost heritage to ultimately be returned to us. Though we do not see it in its entirety while we remain in a tabernacle of flesh, we do have the earnest of it. When we receive Christ as Savior and Lord, His Holy Spirit quickens within us a realization that our eternal hope is alive and glorious! The Word, which gives us a glimmer of the glory He has prepared for us whets our longing to see Jesus face-to-face.
Revelation 7:16-17 gives us wonderful assurances that, “Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them…the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their Shepherd; He will lead them to springs of living water. And God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes.” No more hunger or thirst—not physical; not spiritual. There will be no more dry places in a literal desert or in a desert of the soul. Christ, our Living Water, will quench our thirst for life and we shall not cry again.
There is a longing, deep within the human bosom, for something better. It doesn’t seem to matter how good or how bad things already are, there is within each of us a realization that this isn’t all there is.
The Bible, God’s holy, inerrant word confirms this. He who has fashioned us and who has planted within us the hopes and longings that define our humanity understands our yearning for the perfection we lost in the Garden.
Jesus came to earth as a Man and lived the perfect life that we are incapable of living in order for our lost heritage to ultimately be returned to us. Though we do not see it in its entirety while we remain in a tabernacle of flesh, we do have the earnest of it. When we receive Christ as Savior and Lord, His Holy Spirit quickens within us a realization that our eternal hope is alive and glorious! The Word, which gives us a glimmer of the glory He has prepared for us whets our longing to see Jesus face-to-face.
Revelation 7:16-17 gives us wonderful assurances that, “Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them…the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their Shepherd; He will lead them to springs of living water. And God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes.” No more hunger or thirst—not physical; not spiritual. There will be no more dry places in a literal desert or in a desert of the soul. Christ, our Living Water, will quench our thirst for life and we shall not cry again.
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