What to do with the Law...

There is much confusion about the law these days. What do we do with the law? Is it still in force? Are we under the law or free from the law? If we are free, in what sense are we free from the law?

I wish I could say this post will answer those questions, but.......no, I don't think so. We'll have to stick with what Paul says in Galatians 3. Indeed this will take us down the road a bit to understand the answer to some of these questions.

So what does Paul say? Here are a few points to consider.

1. If you rely on the law for your righteousness you are under a curse. Paul quotes, "Cursed be everyone who does not abide by ALL things written in the Book of the Law, and do them." Why are lawkeepers under a curse? Because no one keeps all the law. So if you want to play the law game, know for certain you are under a curse.

2. The law was added (to the promise of Abraham) because of transgression. If you think about it, why do we have any laws? We have laws because people do things that are harmful to others or even themselves. People race their cars down the streets putting others at risk. So, we enact laws to curb this human tendency. Thus, the fact that the Law was put in place speaks to our human tendency to act in ways that are not loving, that put others at risk. The Law indeed shows us our sinfulness.

3. The Law is not able to provide for us a righteousness before God. Paul clearly says in verse 21, "For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law." But the fact is the law can't do that. In fact, it does a better job at condemning us for our lawlessness.

4. The law has temporal limits. It was not meant to be "in charge" forever. Paul says the law was added "until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made,..." That word "until" sets a limit of time. Again in verse 24 Paul says, "So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian..." Note that a guardian in classical times was a slave, whose task it was to conduct a boy to and from school and to supervise and direct his general conduct. The role of the guardian was limited by time and was not meant to replace the relationship with one's parents.

5. Thanks be to God that Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the Law. Paul says in verses 13-14, "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law by becoming a curse for us - for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree' - so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith."

The Law had an enormous role. It showed us our sinfulness. It showed us we are under a curse. It sought to guide and curb our behavior until we were led to the promise. Now having been led to the promise which is ours through faith in Christ we have been declared sons of God. We are no longer under the Law in this way, but now as sons we are under the law of Christ, which is His Spirit written on our hearts. The law is no longer something external to us, but has come to take residence in us, empowering us to live in a way that fully represents the loving ways of our Father. Thank God for His immeasurable mercies to us!

Two ways to glorify God

In our readings today we saw at least two ways to glorify God. One was found in Galatians; the other in Ezekiel.

The first concerned the Apostle Paul. He was a man of tremendous pedigree, education, zeal and more. He used these assets, in the name of religion, to promote and elevate himself. He went as far as to persecute those who identified themselves with "the Way" of Christ. From the casual observer it may have appeared that this would be the last man who would join the army of Christ.

But God was already at work, ready to be glorified through this man. As verse 15 instructs, "But when He who had me set apart before I was born, and who called me by His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son to (I think "in" fits better) me, in order that I might preach Him among the Gentiles,..."

From verse 15 we see that Paul had been set apart from before birth. God had a plan for Paul's life even before he breathed one breath of earth's air. God also took the initiative to pour out His grace upon Paul, thus enabling Paul to know and receive Christ. Having received Christ Paul's life was immediately transformed. Before he was destroying people who proclaimed Christ; now, He was Himself a vessel given over to revealing Christ in word and deed.

When others saw the dramatic change in Paul, according to verse 24, "they glorified God because of me." When they saw how a persecutor of the church of Christ became its main proponent and advancer, they glorified God. God's name was lifted up declaring that He had done an amazing work in transforming this enemy into an ally. That's one way God is glorified.

Buy there is another way God is glorified. That was found in our reading in Ezekeil 28. As with so many of Israel's enemies they enjoyed a time of prosperity. They may have had wealth and power, and success over God's people, Israel, but the Lord reminded them through the prophet Ezekiel, that things were going to change.

In verse 22, Ezekiel say, "Thus says the Lord God: 'Behold, I am against you, O Sidon, and I will manifest my glory in your midst. And they shall know that I am the Lord when I execute judgment in her and manifest my holiness in her;..."

In this instance God is being glorified through His judgment of evil nations. When those nations who think of themselves as secure, are brought down in a moment, God shows Himself strong, and He is glorified.

So there are two ways God is glorified. He is glorified when His power transforms the human soul and makes it one through which Christ is revealed. Or God is glorified in the judgment of people who insist in hardening their hearts in the face of God. Either way God will be glorified; His name and His power will be revealed. But it is far better to be among those who are glorified through God's transforming their soul.

If you are one in whom God has made that transformation, give thanks to God, and recommit yourself to being a vessel through which Christ will be revealed. If you have not yet ungone such a transformation, then today is the day to seek the Lord. Call on His mercies. He is ready to receive sinners and fill them with the glorious life of His Son.

Sufficiently Humbled

How difficult it must have been for David to have his own son rebel against him and seek to steal the kingdom from him. It must be exceedingly difficult to love someone and yet see them hurt you so badly. David must have had a mixture of emotions pulsing through his being: anger, love, anxiety, indignation,....

And if this weren't enough for one man to bear, David had to endure the indignities of Shimei. He cursed David, and said that he was getting what he deserved. He declared that Absalom would be king. He threw dust and stones at David to declare his contempt.

When faced with this, David's men had a solution: take this guy out! They knew in their hearts that the king should not be treated like this. But David's response was not what they expected. He suggested that the Lord might have sent him to curse David, and if not, David thought the Lord would reward his gracious and merciful response.

One has to wonder why David responded this way. Most kings would have taken this "dead dog" out. But I believe David was sufficiently humbled. His affair with Bathsheba and his deceitful scheming that resulted in Uriah's murder, taught him not to trust his own heart. No...he would not retaliate. Instead he would receive the curses and entrust himself to the God who had been so gracious and merciful to him.

I don't know the historical context for Psalm 71, but it could well have been at this time that David penned these words. Read the following verses and see how appropriate they would have been for this moment.

71:2-3: In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline your ear to me and save me! Be to me a rock of refuge, to which I may continually come; you have given command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress!

71;4-6: Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the unjust and cruel man. For You, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O Lord, from my youth. Upon you I have leaned from before my birth; you are He who took me from my mother's womb. My praise is continually of you.

71:12-14: O God, be not far from me; O my God, make haste to help me! May my accusers be put to shame and consumed; with scorn and disgrace may they be covered who seek my hurt. But I will hope continually and will praise you yet more and more.

Instead of taking things in his own hands, David chose to trust the Lord. He submitted to the difficulties of life believing that either God had ordained them for his correction, or that He would deliver him from them to the praise of God. Had he not had so great a fall it may be that David might not have reacted in this way. But he had been sufficiently humbled. He had been shown the capabilities of his own heart, and now his trust would only be in the Lord. The Lord had been good to him and he believed if he walked in His ways, God would continue to bless.

Have you been sufficiently humbled? Hopefully we all don't need to go through the kind of things David did, but how important it is to submit our lives into the care of our God. How important it is to see all things coming from the gracious hands of our God believing that He can turn them for good. That is the kind of confidence David had and that we can have as well. As David said in Psalm 71:20-21: You who have made me see many troubles and calamities will revive me again; from the depths of the earth you will bring me up again. You will increase my greatness and comfort me again.

Hiding from an all-seeing God

As humans who are sinful we do resort to hiding, trying to cover our sin with man-made means.

We saw this in our reading this morning in 2 Samuel 11. David had stayed away from leading his men in battle. That left him alone and more susceptible to temptation. As he went up to his roof and looked around a woman bathing caught his gaze. That was his first moment of decision. He could have looked away or looked in God-like love (always seeking the best for others), but instead he let lust rule the day.

He went on to inquire as to who this woman was, and though the answer was that she was another man's wife, he went ahead and sent for her. Again, he had a moment of decision. Would he violate so clear a command from God not to take another man's wife. But alas....he sent for her, had relations with her, and she became pregnant.

It is important to step back and consider what has happened here. David was a man so blessed of God. God had walked with him and protected him, and had now given him the kingdom. How could David, in ungratefulness, grasp for more? Likely there was a battle raging in his mind. I am sure the forces of truth were battle those of deceit. But in the end lies won out and David committed his sin.

So what would he do next? Well, when deceit rules the day, it leads to further deceit - it leads to hiding. So David tried to deceive Bathsheba's husband. Could he get him to leave the battle and go lie with his wife, thus covering David's sin. Much to David's disappointment Uriah was too much a man of integrity. He would not lie with his wife when the rest of Israel was unable to do so because they were attending to their duty. Uriah's character and choice was such a contrast to David's at this time in his life. It must have panged David a bit, but not enough to abandon his life.

So having failed to deceive Uriah, David continued his cover-up attempt by having Uriah killed. He sent word to Joab with instructions to put Uriah at the front of the battle and then when the fighting got heavy to withdraw from him.

His plan seemed to work.....or did it? The last verse of the chapter says it all. "But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord." Trying to hide from an all-seeing God doesn't work. How foolish it is to forget this.

As humans and sinners this is an important truth to always consider. We live under the gaze of God. He sees all and He sees all with perfect clarity. We can try to cover our sin and hide, but those attempts do us no good. We cannot fool the Lord, and such hiding only does damage to our souls.

Instead we should take the counsel of Ezekiel 18:31-32: "Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn and live."

The call is to repent - turn and live. Hiding or covering our sins is not the answer. Uncovering them by confessing them before the Lord and then letting the Lord cover them with the blood of Christ is the only way to see those sins cast away as far as the east is from the west.

Oh sinner, come clean before the Lord. Stop your hiding! Come and receive the only cure at the fount of Christ's cross!

Remembering Amazing Grace

In two of our readings today we were met with dramatic renderings of God's amazing grace.

The first was found in 2 Samuel 9. David has now been established as king. He has great power and is esteemed in the eyes of the people. More importantly he is blessed by his God. But even in this state which might have puffed him up he seeks to show God's kindness to someone.

He asks Ziba if there is anyone in Saul's house to which he might show kindness. Ziba admits that there is a young man name Mephibosheth, who is Jonathan's son, thus Saul's grandson. Mephibosheth is lame due to an accident that occurred earlier in his life.

So here is the picture - the strong powerful king, David, summoning the lame Mephibosheth into his presence, supposedly to show kindness. But was this only a rouse? After all Saul had tormented David for years. Maybe this was time David would avenge himself on his enemies.

But no - that was not his intent. When Mephibosheth comes before him, David extends tremendous grace. He restores to Mephibosheth all the property that belonged to Saul, and then invites Mephibosheth to eat at the king's table.

I love the response of Mephibosheth to David's kindness. He says, "What is your servant, that you should show regard for a dead dog such as I?" It appears that Mephibosheth grasped the greatness of the grace that David was extending to him. Sadly, as we will find out in a later chapter, Mephibosheth seems to forget this amazing grace.

Ezekiel 16 also gives a a graphic picture of grace. God describes it like this in verse 6: "And when I passed by you and saw you wallowing in your blood, I said to you in you blood, 'Live!' I said to you in your blood, 'Live!' I made you flourish like a plant of the field...." A few verses later the Lord shares how he washed her, anointed her, clothed her, adorned her with fine ornaments, even a ring and a crown. The transformation couldn't have greater - from abandoned and wallowing in blood, to being cared for in the ultimate way.

Sadly, for Israel, she forgot God's grace. As the rest of the chapter details she went "a whoring" in the most foul ways. But even after proclaiming judgment God still in the end speaks His intention to extend grace once again. He says in verse 62 -63, "I will establish my covenant withy you, and you shall kknow that I am the Lord, that you may remember and be confounded, and never open your mouth again because of your shame, when I atone for you for all that you have done, declares the Lord."

Brothers and sisters, take a moment to consider these pictures: the lame man before the king, the abandoned child wallowing in its blood. These describe us in our sins - not deserving in any way - not having something within ourselves that compels the Lord to act. Yet He has acted in His Son, Jesus Christ. For the lame and the one abandoned one, the Lord gave His life so that we might eat at the King of King's table all the days of our life - so that we might be adorned by Him in the finest of clothes.

May we often look back at the grace which drew us to God. May we not, like Israel, forget God's amazing grace. Perhaps that is why the Lord instituted His table, so that frequently we could remember the depths of God's grace, and be continually transformed by it.

Do you know God's amazing grace? Has He brought you to His table? Has He adorned you with His robe of righteousness? Never forget what the Lord has done for you. Marvel every day at the greatness of His grace!

The Presence of God

In the Old Testament the presence of God was symbolized by the Ark of the Covenant. Picture the Ark in the middle of the camp surrounded by the twelve tribes. This was a statement that Israel was a people, called out by God, among whom He lived. It was a beautiful image!

But it must be remembered that having God in your midst is not something with which to trifle. You'll remember when the Ark was captured by the Philistines how it became a curse to them. Each city that took the Ark experienced such hardship that they couldn't wait to pass it on to the next city. Our God's presence can be a thing of terror.

These facts may help us understand the events in 2 Samuel 6. David has just been made king by all of Israel. It took over 7 years, but now the promise of God for David to be shepherd of Israel has come to pass.

Now, in a wise act David seeks to bring the Ark into the City of David. By this David is saying that God's presence is central to his being blessed as a king, and to the people being blessed as well. But along the way, something tragic occurs. One of the men, Uzzah, who is bringing the Ark up to the City of David, extends his hand to settle the Ark, and for this he is taken out by God. Here again is the message that the presence of God though potentially a blessing to His people, can also be a thing of terror. There needs to be much respect for the presence of God Almighty.

That respect was lacking during the days of Eli. When Israel was confronted by the Philistines and things weren't going well, they decided to bring the Ark up, hoping that the presence of the Ark would turn the tide of the war. But it was not to be, for treating the presence of God as a rabbit's foot to get what one wants is never a respectful way to treat the divine presence. In fact, we ought to think about the presence of God not as something that can get us what we want (ie: blessing, etc,...), but rather as something that enables us to be and do all that the Lord desires for us.

In our day, the people of God no longer carry around an Ark to symbolize God's presence. Something far more amazing has happened! God's presence now dwells in human hearts through the Spirit. That fact, ought fill us with reverence - the Holy One of Israel dwells in our hearts. Oh, how we must want to carry that presence carefully.

We should also realize that that presence, though a great blessing to us, is not first designed to "get us what we want". It is first designed to enable us to live according to God's will. In a sense we coudl say it is designed to get God what "He wants" - ultimately His glory.

Fellow Christian, we are enormously blessed in our day. As those who have placed our trust in Christ, we are indwelt by the very presence of God. We need to let this sobering reality sink in to our hearts. But not only that - we must realize that that presence is an enabling presence that will give us the power to live in such a way that brings God's blessing to the nations, and thereby extends His glory. When we live in this way we will find in the end that we are as well most blessed.

God the script writer

Who is writing the script of your life? Is it you, or is it God? If we were honest we would have to say that often we are trying to write our own script, and when things don't go our way, we fall apart. But is this the way God wants things? I know we would all say God doesn't want us to be the script writer. He is Creator of all things; He gives life and breath to us all. Certainly He has the right and the perspective to write the script of our life. When we accept this life tends to go much smoother.

Consider the life of David. We saw that he was anointed as king way back in 1 Samuel 8. Yet for years he was chased around the countryside by Saul. His life was in continual danger. Several times he had the opportunity to do away with his enemy but refused to harm the Lord's anointed in any way. (He even put to death the person who claimed to finally end Saul's life.) Can you imagine how hard that must have been to know that you are going to be king, but having to wait for so long?

Finally, Saul dies and one would expect that David would be anointed king over all of God's people. But what happens? Abner anoints Ishbosheth as king over Israel. David is only anointed over the small territory of Judah. This lasts for over 7 years. Can you imagine again how this might have affected David? He waited all those years to be king, and then when Saul dies God throws another twist in the script.

The amazing thing that we observe is that this seemed to be all right with David. Though many other men would have tried to rewrite their script, David continued to be submissive to the Lord. He continued to inquire of the Lord and follow the Lord's leading.

This seems to be key to a life that is marked by peace. Allowing God to be the script writer of our lives takes a lot of pressure over ourselves. Allowing God to guide and direct events and seeking only to be God's servant in every life situation seems to be the way God designed it for our good.

Brothers and sisters, how do you view the script of your life? Are you trying daily to make things happen according to your plan, or have you relinquished your life to the Lord. Do you tell Him in good times and bad that you are OK with HIm writing the script of your life? Are you seeking His will and guidance in all that occurs in your life, desiring only be a faithful servant?

I guarantee, though life will not be smooth, it will be much more peaceful when we allow God to write the script and when we seek only to be found obedient and faithful. May God grant us this freeing perspective today and for the days ahead.

Living to God's Glory

There is much talk about living to the glory of God these days. That is a good thing, but I wonder if we really understand what it means. It certainly may resonate in our hearts that we want to live to God's glory, but what does that look like? It is an important question which I believe the apostle Paul answers, at least in part, in 1 Corinthians 10.

Starting in veres 23 and following Paul speaks of what we eat and drink. He declares that since there is no such thing as an idol that we are able to eat and drink things that might have been offered to idols. If indeed there is no such thing as an idol (because, of course, there is only one true God - all other deities are false) what we are eating was in truth offered to something that doesn't really exist,......I think you get the point.

Paul also mentions that we can eat and drink anything because the "earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof." God owns it all and he has given it to His creatures to enjoy sanctifiying it through the Word and prayer.

Though there is a great deal of freedom here, Paul offers a decisive limitation. Though we are free to eat and drink - though as Christians we have tremendous freedom, we are not to be ruled by that freedom. Instead we are to have a higher purpose and that purpose is to do all things that will promote the good of my neighbor.

Thus, I am free to eat and drink anything, but if my eating and drinking causes a brother to stumble and drift from Christ, then my eating and drinking is wrong. I should in love limit my eating and drinking because I consider my brothers soul so much more important than my personal freedoms.

This loving behavior Paul ties to living "to the glory of God." In verses 31-33 Paul says, "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Give no offense to Jews or Greeks or to the church of God, just as I try to please everyone in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved." Clearly in these verses Paul ties living to God's glory to acting in such a way to promote the advantage of my brother.

Actually when you think of it, this makes perfect sense. To live to the glory of God is to live in such a way that you reflect the character of God. And what is more like the character of God than laying down your rights / freedoms to promote the advantage of others.

This is what Christ did. His life is the most potent example of a life lived to the advantage of others. He not only laid down freedoms but Himself took on the form of a bondslave and gave His life to the cross. He did this to secure our good - our advantage - our salavtion.

Now when we reflect this in our lives - considering first the advantage of others - we do indeed live to the glory of God.

Don't miss this connection. It is a very prominent one in the Scriptures. Living to the glory of God is tied to living in a self-sacrificing way, desiring to promote the good of those around me.

May the Lord, grant us all grace, to live to His glory in this way, today and every day.

The Focused Life

What is the focus of your life? Don't read on until you have answered that question..........have you answered it? Now - does your life - your choices - your lifestyle support that focus, or do they contradict that focus?

In our reading today in 1 Corinthians 9 we were introduced to a man who was focused. He is the Apostle Paul, and everythng about this chapter suggests he had a focus that he really lived out.

What was Paul's focus? We get hints from verses like the following:

9:12 - Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right, but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. (There is a strong focus on seeing the gospel move forward.)

9:16 - Paul succinctly says, "Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel." (He is obviously focused on proclaiming the gospel to others.)

9:19 - Numerous times in this verse and the verses that follow Paul says, "...that I might win more of them." (He lived to see others affect by the gospel.)

9:23 - Paul says, "I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessing."

Now was all this more than a mantra for Paul. Did he actually live it out? The answer screaming out from this chapter is an absolute "yes". Even as he says in verse 26 "So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air," Paul disciplined his life to accomplish the goal God set before him.

So committed was Paul to this goal that he would gladly give up his rights. At the beginning of the chapter Paul speaks of different rights he had as an apostle of Christ, but Paul says he would gladly give them all up. Paul lived for something greater than his rights. He lived for the gospel, and if his rights got in the way of the flourishing of the gospel, Paul laid his rights down.

In a day and age where we fight for rights (women's rights, gay rights, children's rights, immigrant's rights,.....) it is amazing to see a man who lived for something beyond his rights. He was a true servant of Christ whose life matched his stated focus.

May God help us all, first to embrace a godly focus - to embrace a life that is given to proclaiming the gospel in word and deed. And then may He help us to live out this focus. May others see in us a demonstation of the gospel. May they see that there is something vastly more important to us that our rights or our pleasures.

The same Christ who equipped Paul for this focused way of life lives in us. May we know His grace and strength as we live out His calling on our lives.