So, God comes to the world to live among His own creation? Surely God demands respect and dignity! Yet Luke makes it a point to emphasize that Jesus was born of humble means. First, He is born to a young woman of Galilee. Galilee was not known for its wealthy citizens. In fact, the reputation of Nazareth (a city of the Galilee region and the town Mary was from) and Galilee is shown to be questionable in the Gospel of John. Nathanael questions whether any good thing can come from Nazareth in 1:46. Then, the multitude questions whether the Christ would come from Galilee in 7:41 and whether a prophet would arise from Galilee in 7:52.
Luke also shows the humble means of Joseph and Mary through the sacrifice they offer as they present Jesus to the Lord in Luke 2:22-24. Their presentation of two turtledoves is what is prescribed for those who have insufficient means to offer the required sacrifice (Leviticus 5:11 & 12:8). In addition, Luke mentions not once, not twice, but three times in chapter two that Jesus was placed in a feeding trough when He was born into this world—not quite the place one would expect to look for the Savior of the world, the Christ and the LORD (2:11).
What should we expect from a God among men? What qualities would He portray for mankind to realize He was among us? It is ironic to see the many ways He emptied Himself for the sake of mankind. Imagine the Bread of Life going hungry for 40 days to begin His ministry in the will of the Father, or the source of Living Water ending His ministry hanging on a cross and proclaiming His thirst! Imagine the One who tells us to take His yoke and He will give us rest being weary at the well in Samaria. Why would He empty Himself this way? Can you picture the One with the power to cast away the demons being accused of having a demon? How about the King of the universe willing to pay tribute to an earthly king? Does it make sense that the One who will one day wipe away all our tears wept over Lazarus? He was sold for a measly thirty pieces of silver yet He purchases for God men from every tribe, tongue and nation. He is the Good Shepherd who was willing to be led as a lamb to the slaughter. He was willing to die in order to strip away the sting of death! Are these the kind of things you would expect from a God among men?
Anyone who pictures God as harsh and vengeful, waiting for us to mess up so He can strike us down, is just not paying attention to the picture given through Jesus! What He was willing to give up for us is amazing! Consider one final picture of Jesus: He enters into Jerusalem riding on the back of a donkey and being celebrated as the King of Kings. Jesus certainly deserves the respect and dignity due this role, however, what is incredible is that Jesus is also willing to play the role of the donkey, carrying the glory of His Father upon His back as He empties Himself and serves in humility. Do you know this picture of God shown consistently through Jesus? This is what God among men is really about! A God who will empty Himself and come among mankind is exactly what we need! What a coincidence! That is the kind of God we happen to serve!
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Sunday, January 20, 2008
God's Law Trumps Murphy's
Most of us understand the premise of Murphy’s Law all too well, which is basically stated: “If something can go wrong, it will, and usually at the most inopportune time.” Why is it that the gasoline light on the dashboard of your car comes on when you are already running late for an appointment? How come your child discovers homework is missing when you are ready to walk out the door for school? Why is the severity of an itch inversely proportional to one’s reach? Why is it that a spilled drink flows in the direction of the most expensive object? Why are paper towels and toilet paper always strongest at the perforations? It seems as though there is a conspiracy of universal proportions mankind must deal with as we live on this planet called earth!
Former heavy-weight boxer James (Quick) Tillis tells about his experience when he moved to Chicago from Oklahoma in a quest to fulfill his dreams of being a top-level boxer in the early 1980s. He claims: "I got off the bus with two cardboard suitcases under my arms in downtown Chicago and stopped in front of the Sears Tower. I put my suitcases down, and I looked up at the Tower and I said to myself, 'I'm going to conquer Chicago.' "When I looked down, the suitcases were gone." (This story is from Today in the Word—September 10, 1992)
NO WONDER WE NEED A SAVIOR!!! No wonder Luke felt it was necessary to write a book we classify as a “Gospel”, which literally means, “Good News”! We could all use a little of that, couldn’t we, after all we have been through in our lives? And as we study the writings of Luke over the next 6 months, he is going to have plenty to say concerning the frustrations we encounter in this life and the victory God has to offer through the gift of His Son as our Savior!
One of the emotions consistently emphasized by the characters found in chapter one of Luke is the JOY they have over the invasion of God into their lives and their history! A barren couple is given reason to rejoice by bearing a son who will be a “prophet of the Most High” (Luke 1:76)! A woman from Nazareth (“Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?”—John 1:46) is selected by God to bring forth and care for His “Son of the Most High”—(Luke 1:32)! A time of oppression and darkness is visited by the “Sunrise from on High”—(Luke 1:78)! In other words, God is actively working in this world to bring us peace and light and hope and victory, even in the face of Murphy’s Law and other negative aspects of this life!
Don’t let the things of this world strip away your JOY!!! God is in control and by walking with Him we can see how Murphy’s Law is trumped by the love and activities of our Father in heaven! Jesus might say it this way, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)
Former heavy-weight boxer James (Quick) Tillis tells about his experience when he moved to Chicago from Oklahoma in a quest to fulfill his dreams of being a top-level boxer in the early 1980s. He claims: "I got off the bus with two cardboard suitcases under my arms in downtown Chicago and stopped in front of the Sears Tower. I put my suitcases down, and I looked up at the Tower and I said to myself, 'I'm going to conquer Chicago.' "When I looked down, the suitcases were gone." (This story is from Today in the Word—September 10, 1992)
NO WONDER WE NEED A SAVIOR!!! No wonder Luke felt it was necessary to write a book we classify as a “Gospel”, which literally means, “Good News”! We could all use a little of that, couldn’t we, after all we have been through in our lives? And as we study the writings of Luke over the next 6 months, he is going to have plenty to say concerning the frustrations we encounter in this life and the victory God has to offer through the gift of His Son as our Savior!
One of the emotions consistently emphasized by the characters found in chapter one of Luke is the JOY they have over the invasion of God into their lives and their history! A barren couple is given reason to rejoice by bearing a son who will be a “prophet of the Most High” (Luke 1:76)! A woman from Nazareth (“Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?”—John 1:46) is selected by God to bring forth and care for His “Son of the Most High”—(Luke 1:32)! A time of oppression and darkness is visited by the “Sunrise from on High”—(Luke 1:78)! In other words, God is actively working in this world to bring us peace and light and hope and victory, even in the face of Murphy’s Law and other negative aspects of this life!
Don’t let the things of this world strip away your JOY!!! God is in control and by walking with Him we can see how Murphy’s Law is trumped by the love and activities of our Father in heaven! Jesus might say it this way, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)
Sunday, January 13, 2008
The Breath of God
Can you imagine forgetting to breathe? No way! Your body cannot function without air and will quickly let you know when the supply is cut off! Imagine you are swimming in a swimming pool and you see something shiny reflecting from the bottom of the pool. You dive down to the drain to see what it is and while investigating you get your finger stuck in the drain! This is not good! You try not to panic, but a shot of fear pulses through your brain. You pull against the drain but you are wedged in pretty tight. The lack of air is starting to be a problem, so you exhale what little air you have left in you and push with your feet against the bottom to break free. The swim to the surface is agonizing as your chest is constricting and your head is pounding due to the lack of air! At last you break the surface of the water and are able to breathe in deeply the only thing you really care about at the moment—AIR!!!
We were created with the vital need of air intake! There is no getting around it—without it we will perish! Interestingly, one of the pictures of Scripture is of God breathing out His word for our intake so that we might be “adequately equipped for every good work” (II Timothy 3:16-17). This image is intended to show us how important it is for us to have a consistent intake of God’s word! How can one live without the breath of God?
With this in consideration, our look at the influence of Josiah this morning and his reaction to the discovery of the Book of the Law is undeniably significant. As we talk about the incredible legacy Josiah is remembered by, one of the keys that brought this about is the respect and value he gives to the word of God—this is LIFE! Josiah was in touch with this and his heart was moved when God’s word was read in his presence.
How is your heart doing? One of the great warnings found in the book of Hebrews (3:12-13) says this: “Take care, brethren, lest there should be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart, in falling away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called ‘Today,’ lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” In Josiah’s time they had gone through several kings who had not heeded this warning and the nation was close to being destroyed. The Book of the Law had been lost and the nation of Israel was definitely NOT adequately equipped for every good work during that time. However, as we will see this morning, one man stood in the gap and left a powerful example for all of us to learn from. He breathed deeply from the word of God and changed the direction of a nation. Some of the most flattering words stated in the Scriptures are reserved for this man because he understood where life truly came from—the breath of God—His word!
Do you want to build something special as a husband, daddy, wife, mother, child, employee, community member, student, etc.? The life force of this type of legacy comes from God! Breathe in deeply from His word and let it guide you to become all He has created you to be!
We were created with the vital need of air intake! There is no getting around it—without it we will perish! Interestingly, one of the pictures of Scripture is of God breathing out His word for our intake so that we might be “adequately equipped for every good work” (II Timothy 3:16-17). This image is intended to show us how important it is for us to have a consistent intake of God’s word! How can one live without the breath of God?
With this in consideration, our look at the influence of Josiah this morning and his reaction to the discovery of the Book of the Law is undeniably significant. As we talk about the incredible legacy Josiah is remembered by, one of the keys that brought this about is the respect and value he gives to the word of God—this is LIFE! Josiah was in touch with this and his heart was moved when God’s word was read in his presence.
How is your heart doing? One of the great warnings found in the book of Hebrews (3:12-13) says this: “Take care, brethren, lest there should be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart, in falling away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called ‘Today,’ lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” In Josiah’s time they had gone through several kings who had not heeded this warning and the nation was close to being destroyed. The Book of the Law had been lost and the nation of Israel was definitely NOT adequately equipped for every good work during that time. However, as we will see this morning, one man stood in the gap and left a powerful example for all of us to learn from. He breathed deeply from the word of God and changed the direction of a nation. Some of the most flattering words stated in the Scriptures are reserved for this man because he understood where life truly came from—the breath of God—His word!
Do you want to build something special as a husband, daddy, wife, mother, child, employee, community member, student, etc.? The life force of this type of legacy comes from God! Breathe in deeply from His word and let it guide you to become all He has created you to be!
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