Category Archives: Grace

Too Much

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Ever feel like your head is about to explode?  Maybe it was in a class or seminar where the information was  shooting out of a fire hose.  I’ve felt that way, trying to wrap my mind around what Einstein was thinking, or figure out why my computer wasn’t working.  The first time I saw the Grand Canyon, I just couldn’t comprehend the size and scope of it.  It was too much to take in.  At times like that, it would be nice to push a button to get a mental power boost.

There’s a prayer for that kind of a power boost in the Bible.  The prayer is for the power to comprehend the vast love of Jesus!  It’s too vast, too much.  There’s no way to take it all in, without a supernatural power boost from the Spirit of God.  Check it out.  I’ve highlighted the main ideas in the prayer, but don’t dance lightly over the other stuff; it’s all important and all amazing:

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, …  (Ephesians 3:16-18)

The idea is that the love of Jesus is so immeasurable, it would make your head explode.  It’s too much to comprehend without spiritual help, even for those who, by faith in Jesus, have been “rooted and grounded” in His love.  We are like seedlings who cannot imagine becoming a flower.  Or a tree.

Perhaps that is why some reject Jesus, saying His crucifixion is too cruel to be required by a good God.  Perhaps they only see the cruelty because it is impossible to comprehend the love.

More on this next time…

Slaves and Sons

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How could God treat His people so differently in Old Testament times as compared to the New?  The Old Testament is full of long lists of rules and regs, along with severe penalties to be exacted upon those who break them.  The New Testament is all about grace and tells those in Christ they are free of the law.  What gives?

This is no big mystery.  The first part of the Old Testament was written for people who, for more than 10 generations, had lived as slaves.  After God sent Moses and arranged for their freedom, they obviously needed a bit of clearly defined structure.  The New Testament is about Jesus inviting us to become sons and daughters in God’s family.  For those who accept, He gives His Spirit as an internal guide, making rules irrelevant.

Ask yourself this question: Did you treat your two year old in the same way when he or she became 32?  I would imagine you began with rules, such as, “We never cross the street by ourselves.”  Later on, that rule changed to, “Always look both ways before you cross the street.”  And then, “‘Bye; Have a nice time!”

Here’s a great explanation of how God’s approach changed and why, taken from the New Testament:

I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything, but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.  (Galatians 4:1-7  NIV)

Powerfully Weak

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It was malpractice and folks got so upset, the doctor skipped town for good.  He had applied hot poultices to the eyes of a 6 week old infant, causing her to become permanently blind.  But that tragedy didn’t stop the child.  Even without the American Disabilities Act, Fanny Crosby managed to live a triumphant and happy life. 

You probably know she wrote the hymn, Blessed Assurance (maybe not; I had to  Google it…) but how many other hymns did she write?  How about 5500, and that’s just the ones she submitted to her publisher.  She had another 2000 in reserve.  But we cannot measure her life by simply counting the number of songs she wrote. Try to imagine their combined impact. Someone slides into the back pew of a country church, devastated and grasping for hope. When the song begins, she cannot bring herself to sing but soon the swell of the voices and the encouraging lyrics penetrate her gloom. As she hums along and then quietly, tentatively, joins in, her spirits are lifted. Multiply that experience by many thousands. Only God knows how profoundly Fanny blessed others as her hymns are still sung, well over 100 years later.  How could a blind person have led such a powerful life?  The answer is simple and yet profound: The Holy Spirit revealed His power through her weakness.

Paul said it like this:

…I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan [some believe this was also trouble with eyesight], to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.  …For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:7b – 9 & 10b with my comments in brackets)

If you see a strong man bend a pipe, you think, “No big deal; He’s strong.”  You see a little kid do it, then you start wondering, what’s the secret?  The same principle is at work when the Holy Spirit gives special strength to someone who is weak. 

Like Fanny.

Or you.

The Scam and The Truth

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Someone says to send him 20 bucks and God will make you rich. Don’t believe him; he is a lying sack of garbage.  He’s taken a beautiful truth in the Bible and twisted it for his own evil, greedy purposes.

But what is the “beautiful truth” and can we trust it?  Pay attention to what this says and what it does not say:

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.  (2 Corinthians 9:6-8)

If you give generously, will God make you rich?  No, He will “bless you abundantly,” so you will be able to be more generous (“abound in every good work”).  That is, if your motive is to bless someone else, not to get anything back for yourself – a reward, public notoriety, brownie points with God, etc.   When we give with the right attitude, it really is true that God blesses us – abundantly!

Check it out for yourself.  Take that 20 bucks I just saved  you and ask God to show you how you might use it to truly bless someone, as an expression of His grace.  Maybe He will show you someone who needs the money.  Maybe, someone who is lonely and could use coffee and conversation.  The possibilities are unlimited.  It’s an exciting experiment, one which God encourages us to to try.  The more you see how it works, the more it does work.  You learn to trust it and enjoy it. 

When I want to water my lawn, I use the sprinkler that most efficiently passes the water along to the grass.  If one of the sprinklers blocks the flow, I throw it away.  God uses His people to pour out tangible grace to those in need.  Those who understand their role as conduits of His generosity, receive more from Him to pass along.  Those who hoard, receive less and miss out on what could have been an exhilarating dance with God. 

Have fun…

You Can’t Say That…

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Women are weaker than men.  Are you shocked?  Is it even legal to say such a thing?  Is it sexist?  My dictionary says that sexism is arbitrary   stereotyping of men or women, based upon their gender.  But when you describe a difference between men and women that is grounded in reality, it is no longer arbitrary.  Over the course of my life, I’ve discovered some very wonderful differences women have from men.  And, women are, in fact, weaker.  That is why they compete separately in athletics.

But does being weaker make women lesser?  Not according to this verse in the Bible:

Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, …  –  (1 Peter 3:7a)

Husbands are instructed to be understanding of their wives and to show them honor as the weaker partner since, as co-heirs  of God’s grace, they are equals.  Weaker, but equal: how can that be?  Or, perhaps more to the point, why would that be?  Is it possible that women’s weakness makes them uniquely equipped for a special function?  And also, men, in their strength?

My guitar is very fragile.  It must be fragile in order to resonate with a beautiful tone.  So, I protect it with a tough case.  The case is stronger but it is not better or more important.  When I want to play music, most of the time I use the guitar, not the case.  But without the case’s protection, my guitar would have been destroyed long ago.  Which is more important?  It depends on whether you are talking about music or security.  The guitar and the case need one another and work together in their separate roles.

As do women and men. “They” say we can’t say such things.

“They” are wrong.

 

Unlimited

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This time you went too far; Jesus is ready to give up on you.  Ever have thoughts like that?  No?  Well, then, this post is not for you.   But if you have, consider, Jesus taught us to pray:

“…and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.”   –  ( Matthew 6:12)

Later, when Peter asked:

… “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.  –  ( Matthew 18:21b—22 )

No doubt, Peter thought he would be commended for suggesting we should forgive someone for repeating an offense as many as seven times.  When you think about it, it would take a pretty big heart to keep forgiving after the second or third time.  But Jesus suggests a number so big it effectively means an unlimited number of times.

And we are to forgive like that  because that is how much we need God’s forgiveness!  The rest of Matthew 18 is a parable through which Jesus taught us to forgive as we have been forgiven, which means in unlimited measure. 

It’s not that God is a soft touch.  He’s not amused, doesn’t think what you did is cute.  He doesn’t smile and say, ” Well, boys will be boys…”  Instead, God forgives with unlimited grace because He knows what you need.  His plan is to set you free from everything for which you need forgiveness.  His love and His grace overpowers our sin.  Every time.

Good thing to remember, the next time you are telling yourself, “This time I’ve gone too far.” 

Bound Up and Freed

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If the ability to fix broken hearts is an identifying mark of the Messiah (See the previous post: “What to Do with a Broken Heart”), what about James Taylor?  Remember his song,”Handyman?”

Hey girls, gather round, listen to what I’m putting down.
Hey babe, I’m your handy man.
I’m not the kind to use a pencil or rule, I’m handy with love and I’m no fool,
I fix broken hearts, I know that I truly can.

Nobody who starts out with “Hey girls, gather round…” knows how to truly fix a broken heart.  I think the same critique can be leveled against a newer song by the group, Indecent Obsession.  (“Fixing a Broken Heart”  –  Really?  With an indecent obsession?  Give me a break!)   When Jesus came to bind up the brokenhearted, it was by the power of the Holy Spirit, a genuine healing, not the temporary whitewash of a new infatuation.  It was that genuine healing or “binding up” that marked Him as the Messiah.

But it was not the only identifying role of the Messiah.  Here’s a bit of the rest of what Isaiah prophesied:

The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to those who are bound  –  (Isaiah 61:1)

There is more to it, but some of what the Messiah (Jesus) was sent to do was to bind up broken hearts and to set free those whose hearts were bound up as prisoners or slaves.  Most of us know what it is to be broken-hearted.  And most of us know what it is to be stuck or bound in our hearts with an unhealthy habit or addiction.  Jesus came to fix both circumstances, especially since the things that bind our hearts are frequently also what caused our hearts to be broken.  Much of the time, I suspect, this is the case.

Before you try to grapple with the deeper issues of sin and atonement, the cross and resurrection of Jesus, make sure you understand this part of what He came to do for you.  He came to repair what is broken in your heart and to set free what has been held captive there.

Why would He do that for you?  Because He made you and He loves you.

Beyond “Wisdom”

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“Help! Rape!”  My little boy eyes bulged as wide as yo-yo’s as I read the damp message I’d found in a bottle, floating in the lake.  I knew it was something bad, but back then, little boys were not taught much about rape, or even sex.  I had no recourse but to ask my mother what it meant.  I laugh to think back on that moment, the look on her face, because she would have been profoundly uncomfortable if I’d asked her what necking was!  She went through a few inarticulate false starts and then informed me that rape meant “misbehavior.”  Aha!  New information, I thought.  I hurried over to my brother to impress him with my advanced knowledge and wisdom.  “I know what rape means,” I proclaimed.  “Really?”  “Yes,” I said, drawing myself up to my full, second grade stature, “it means misbehavior!”   That was a moment of great pride for me.   That is, until I began to realize how incomplete my lofty wisdom really was.

There have always been people who think they know it all, who draw themselves up and make proclamations based on the fullness of their great wisdom.  God laughs.  In their wisdom they have been blinded to some of the most basic elements of reality.  So Paul wrote:

Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,”.  (1 Corinthians 3:18-19)

Every year about this time, as we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus, we hear from the “wise” who consider us foolish. They draw themselves up and proclaim how ludicrous it is to believe in a God Who would allow His Son to be tortured, and how naive it is to think He could have been restored to life.  Which is tragic, because Jesus endured that torment out of love for them, to rescue them.  And they cannot see it.

For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”  –  (1 Corinthians 1:18-19)

Before you bet your life on the wisdom of those who sound smug, consider the difference between what it means to be “perishing” and “saved.”  No doubt, there were some experts on the Titanic who knew it was folly to think such a ship could go down.  After all, it had been designed by the best engineers to prevent such a thing.  If only they had been able to see beyond their own wisdom…    Just possibly, the God of the Universe knows a bit more than those who think they are wise here on earth.

Powerful Love

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What would you do if your power was unlimited?  If you had the power to do anything, what would it be?  You could find a phone booth, grab your cape and be like Superman, flying about avenging injustice and stomping out evil.  Sound good?  It did to Jesus.  Except Jesus  didn’t use a phone booth and a cape.  No x-ray vision, no powerful explosions.  The first equipment He used included a bowl, a washcloth, and a towel.

 It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love. … Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God;  so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.  After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.  –  (John 13:1–5 excerpts (NIV84))

This was an act considered so demeaning, it could only be required of a gentile slave.  Jesus knew there was no limit to the power God had given Him, so He humbled Himself and did what seemed to be the least powerful thing.  What He did seemed weak, but in fact, that act of love still powerfully rips through the earth, destroying evil wherever it is remembered and imitated.

I suppose Jesus, with all power at His command, could have refused to go to the Cross.  But He used His power to endure the assignment given by His Father, knowing it would ultimately defeat evil forever.  At the time of His arrest, as Peter whipped out his sword to resist,

 Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?”  –  (John 18:11 (NIV84))

When Pilate was looking for an excuse to release Him,

Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.”  –  (John 18:36 (NIV84))

In this world, people try to overcome evil with increasingly powerful acts of violence.  We brag about “shock and awe.”  We post signs saying, “This property protected by Smith and Wesson.”  Of course, the bad guys are using the same tactics.  Violence proliferates.  But Jesus’ Kingdom is not of this world, and He knows those ways don’t work.  Because He had unlimited power, He chose unlimited acts of humble, powerful love.

His way works.  His way wins.

 

Real Joy

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A toddler picks her first dandelion seed ball and marvels at the symmetry.  She blows on it and delights to watch each tiny parachute in flight.  Can you see her face, lit with joy?  Now, imagine the kinds of things that will occur in her life that will work to erase that look of joy, replacing it with caution, suspicion, sorrow, weariness, insecurity – the list will be long.  Who among us does not yearn for our bygone innocence and unadulterated joy?  Someone who also yearned for you and I to recapture real joy was Jesus.  Just before He went to the Cross, He said these words to His disciples:

These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.  (John 15:11)

The Creator of all things (John 1:2) wanted His followers to be filled to overflowing with His joy!  It is a sad irony that so many people who believe they are following Jesus are known for being joyless.  But how can we attain this joy?  What were “these things” He spoke in order to give us His joy?  Let’s look back to see:

As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love.  If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.  (John 15:9-10)

Jesus loves you – His words, not mine.  How much does He love you?  He loves you like the Father, all-perfect, all-loving God loves His only Son.  Jesus loves you with the kind of love that prompted God to give His only Son to rescue you.  His love is unconditional, perfect, thorough, unchanging and powerful.  The kind of love that prompted Jesus to willingly lay down His life for you.  Jesus loves you, right now, in the condition you are in right now.  No matter what you have done.  He loves you.  We cannot earn that love and we cannot do anything to shut it off.  

But we may not be able to experience it.  That’s why Jesus tells His followers to “abide” – literally, to make their home in – His love.  Let His love surround you, let it be the environment within which you live.  And how does one do that?  How do we “make our home” within His love?   He tells us.  We do it by keeping, or following His commandments.  Jesus says, if we keep His commandments, we will live in His love, His joy will be in us, and our joy will be full.

Again, a sad irony.  People get the idea that to follow Jesus’ commands would rob us of joy.  We would have to dress in black, live within the confines of harsh and strict “thou shalt nots.”  We would not be able to laugh, but would have to sing mournful Gregorian chants and stare at candles.  No way!  Jesus came that we might have a more abundant kind of life, the kind of life we were designed to have, that would fill us with light and that by living according to our “Manufacturer’s” instructions, we would be filled with His kind of joy!  Following His commands would naturally lead us away from the kinds of things that change the face of a young child into the face of a wounded, disillusioned adult.  And return us to joy.
PS – Don’t misunderstand: I am aware that some have sensed a call from Jesus to dress in black and sing chants, etc.  In voluntarily obeying that call some have found exquisite joy.  I am not denying or diminishing their experience.  But those who reluctantly surrender to such a life, thinking that they are earning Jesus’ approval, have misunderstood His grace, the idea of abundant life and have missed out on His joy.