MORE THAN COMFORT

This is the word of the Lord the God of your father David: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you.  2 Kings 20:5, N.E.B.


Picture this scene in the emergency room of a hospital: A doctor is standing over an accident victim, comforting her, "There, there!" he soothes.  "I see your tears; I understand how badly you are hurt!"  As the hemorrhaging woman, calmed by the reassuring words of the physician, ceases her crying, he slowly backs out of the room, satisfied that he has brought solace to the injured woman.  Meeting her disgruntled husband in the hall, he smiles warmly.  "Your wife's fine!  She's stopped crying!"  Ten minutes later she is on her way to the morgue.

"Ridiculous!" you say.  And yet do we sometimes credit God with such misprocedure?  Do we believe that He is more interested that we stop "crying" than He is that we stop "bleeding"?  Do we think that our profession of faith is of more value in His sight than is the restoration of our friendship with Him?

We have much to unlearn about our wonderful God.  Even those of us who hold "enlightened views" concerning Him have clung to ideas about Him that keep us tethered to fear and/or a poor self-image.  It's time to reevaluate every concept we have that casts a shadow upon free-flowing communion with Him.

In our text today we see God listening, watching, understanding.  We believe that; we count on it.  We even believe that He wants to heal us.  But sometimes we fail to grasp how much He desires to do just that!  We argue about how healed we can expect to be.  Yes, He can take away the cigarette habit.  He can reform us and realign our priorities.  But can He make us perfect?

"Whoa!" you say.  "Nobody's perfect!"  (See what I mean?)  But, then, what do we mean by "perfect"?  In the usual sense perfect means you never do anything wrong again, and we have to reexamine the whole idea of growth throughout eternity.  However, if you understand perfect to mean fully won back to loyalty to God...

Can God fully win back our loyalty?  Can our misunderstanding about Him be fully healed?  Can we dare hope that our misgivings will be fully assuaged as He thoroughly and finally dismantles our misinformation?  In fact, what else could establish our undying loyalty and love to Him?

Friends, I'm counting on just that!

​THE REAL TEST OF RELIGION

The king will answer, "I tell you this: anything you did for one of my brothers here, however humble, you did for me."  Matt. 25:40, N.E.B.


My students have learned through the years that I do not give academic credit for religious cliches.  Even the most conscientious students can easily fall into the pattern of thinking that spiritual success is found in putting together the right string of religious phrases.  So when I hear them talking about being "cleansed by the blood," or "broken at the foot of the cross," or even "justified by the propitiation made as an atonement for our transgressions," I ask a question: "Can you describe that same experience without using any religious words?"

Many people have become skilled religionists, experts at "God-talk" and pious phrases.  For many of them, religion is a thing talked about in a realm apart from that which is lived and experienced.  They see the world divided into two distinct parts: the real and the religious.  Since neither God nor heaven have been observed, conversation about them seldom needs to be verified in the common, actual world.

But Jesus knows that heaven is a very real world, as it is all His creation, and that its future residents will be real people who have learned to take heaven's principles into their daily relationships.  So when He described the test of genuine religion, to be applied to those anticipating entrance into heaven, He did not measure how many nice things they could say about God or their smooth doctrinal statements.  He spoke instead of the way in which people relate to the common, unspectacular, not-too-impressive people around us.

Have the principles of the kingdom become such a real part of us that we will express them to those who will give us no honor for doing so?  Will our own family members (whom we have long since ceased trying to impress) be treated with the same respect and deference as the wealthy corporation executive who could do us a favor?  Can we spot a stranger in a crowded market and consciously regard him as a valuable person, in spite of his evident status in life?

The unguarded, impulsive responses, scattered through a busy day of ordinary pressures, really are the most valid measure of the shape of our souls.  They are the unconscious reflection of the Object of our affection.

UNLAWFUL RIGHTEOUSNESS

Have you not read what David did when he and his men were hungry?  He went into the House of God and ate the sacred bread, though neither he nor his men had a right to eat it, but only the priests.  Matt. 12:3, 4, N.E.B.

Walking through grainfields on the Sabbath day may not have been considered inappropriate in Jesus' day, but picking and eating the grain as one went along certainly was.  Pointing to the offending disciples, some Pharisees who had noticed what they were doing asked the Master why this forbidden activity was taking place.  Jesus' answer must have shocked them.  It might shock us, enlightened even as we are in the twentieth century.

He reminded them of the time that David and his men ate sacred bread from the Temple.  In essence He gave them an example of an "unlawful" act as a precedent for His disciples' innocence.  He added, " 'If you had known what that text means, "I require mercy, not sacrifice," you would not have condemned the innocent' " (Matt. 12:7, N.E.B.).  The New English Bible translation of Hosea 6:6 reads "Loyalty is my desire, not sacrifice."

It might be easy to explain Christ's logic by making light of the Temple rules, except that as far as the sacred bread was concerned God made the rules!  And Jesus came to fulfill the law, not to abolish it (chap. 5:17)!  May I suggest that what the Master was trying to do was to get the Pharisees to look past the rules to the Rule Giver.  The intent of the law is to draw us back to the Father.  It was our "custodian until Christ came" (Gal. 3:24, R.S.V.), at which time the Father would be fully revealed.  Sacrifices were offered because men continued to be misinformed about God, and consequently they behaved badly.  "How much better," Christ was saying, "to know the Father well enough to be loyal in the first place!"

When David and his men ate the shewbread, David revealed that he understood that God's ultimate purpose in setting up the Temple services was to nourish Israel back into healthy relationship with their God.  So secure was David in his knowledge of God that he did not hesitate to appropriate "God's bread" to alleviate his men's immediate need for physical nourishment.

David was righteous (in right relationship with God), though eating the sacred bread was technically unlawful.  Think about it.  Both God and His rules are for the sake of His people.

BEING SURE OF ETERNAL LIFE

This letter is to assure you that you have eternal life.  It is addressed to those who give their allegiance to the Son of God.  1 John 5:13, N.E.B.

It was a New Year's Eve, and we were sponsoring a restless group of church youth on Colorado Boulevard in Pasadena, California.  The plan was for us to try to stake out some sidewalk space for the Rose Parade.  We ended up being jostled by countless thousands of people with the same idea but who were more aggressive than we.  It was an education in itself.

One sheltered youth, fresh from his first exposure to a "street preacher," laughingly reported that someone had just asked him if he was saved.  He told how he had brushed the man aside with a terse comment, then he looked for my approval.  "Well," I asked, "Are you saved?"  He looked stunned, sure that I was jesting.

So we spent the next hour of that very cold night exploring whether one could indeed know that he had entered into life.  These passages from John's Epistle became very precious to us that night, for the young man truly did not know of his salvation.  John said that eternal life belongs to those who have given their allegiance to Jesus Christ.

Some people may see this verse through different eyes.  They see the sin problem as fundamentally one of legal standing, of one smarting under the legal condemnation of the law, guilty as charged.  In their eyes the solution to be sought is a pronouncement of innocence.  To be justified, then, is to be saved.  I suspect that is what the midnight street preacher had in mind.

But John's words draw our attention clearly in another direction.  As J.B. Phillips translates verse 12: "It follows naturally that any man who has Christ has this life; and if he has not, then he does not possess this life at all."  The issue is relationship, not legal standing.  The key to eternal life is not in hearing a pronouncement of innocence but in knowing the One behind such a declaration.

"Genuine contact with Christ '' is a Person-to-person experience, not just a nod toward God.  It means finding one's highest satisfaction in thinking about, talking to, and speaking of your well-known Friend.  It means that we can approach God with confidence (see verse 15), for the Life-giver has taken His rightful place in the center of our lives.

LET'S MAKE IT MUTUAL!

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.  Prov. 13:12, R.S.V.

Mutuality: it's the key to all successful and productive relationships.  It prompts you to say, "I feel the same way!" or "I've been there!" and allows you to "rejoice with those who rejoice" and "weep with those who weep" (Rom. 12:15, R.S.V.).  IT is tremendously comforting when someone shares your grief and immensely satisfying when they understand and applaud your goals.  As a matter of fact, life isn't much fun, and is scarcely endurable, without some degree of reciprocity.

There is an interesting component in the issue of mutuality.  It did not originate in the heart of man.  We read in Genesis 1:26, "Then God ["Elohim," plural] said, 'Let us make man in our image' " (R.S.V.).  The very creation of man was a cooperative undertaking of the Godhead.  The need for mutuality was "built in" to mankind in that we were made like God.

Conversely, one of the greatest centerpieces of the gospel is that Jesus was made like us in every way (Heb. 2:17), and therefore sympathizes with us in our fallen condition (chap. 4:15).  God is virtually saying, "I understand how you feel!  I've been there!"  He says it in a thousand different ways all through the Scriptures.  And if we read very carefully, we shall also understand God.

We hear Him in Proverbs 13:12 when He says, "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life"--I know how sick at heart you feel when your expectations are thwarted.  In creating mankind, I intended for you to reveal to the watching universe what I am like!  That hope has been deferred, buy My desire shall still be fulfilled.  And when it is, we shall all rejoice together.

And in 2 Corinthians 1:4: "He comforts us in all our troubles, so that we in turn may be able to comfort others in any trouble of theirs and to share with them the consolation we ourselves receive from God" (N.E.B.)--thereby revealing His comprehensive understanding of our need not only to be comforted, but to give comfort and share experiences.

Perhaps one of the most poignant texts is Isa. 1:18: "Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord'' (R.S.V.).--I'll listen to you, and you listen to Me.  It's important to Me that we work out our problems together!

We matter to God!  He understands how we feel!  Let's make it mutual!

April 15    TRUSTING YOUR DESIRES

Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.  Ps. 37:4, R.S.V.

He was a conscientious young man, eager to leave behind all the habits and attitudes of his pre-Christian life.  Having been very self-indulgent before his conversion, he knew that giving in to his desires could plunge him back into the hedonism he was trying to leave behind.

The result, however, was that making decisions as a Christian became an anguishing task.  Any time he had any personal feelings involved with a choice, he was certain that those feelings had to be denied, since they were assuredly selfish desires.  Yet most of the time the course of action he desired seemed to be good.  And so he froze in indecision.

What freedom and joy he began to experience, however, when he discovered the essence of today's verse!  He began to trust the promise that one really is changed by beholding Christ, and that the change includes basic desires of the heart.  And he cherished the gem insight that God is not One who will forever tell us that we cannot have what our heart desires.  Rather, He changes what we desire!

A new Christain is often rightfully distrustful of his wishes, for the habits of the old life die all too slowly.  That which has for years brought him delight is not easily forgotten.  But the Psalmist introduces a new ingredient into the believer's life--a new source of rapture.  "Take delight in the Lord," David says.  Be excited about your God.  Be enthralled with the qualities of His person.  Be drawn toward this magnificent Friend.  Be fascinated with the way He does things for His family members.

The transforming power of a new affection will fundamentally change the kinds of things that bring delight to one's heart.  God is too wise to give us the desires of our confused, darkened, self-serving hearts.  But He is also too wise--and too loving--not to give us the desires of our transformed, enlightened hearts.

For what does a person desire who is enraptured with God, but deeper fellowship with Him, deeper involvement with His lifestyle, deeper interaction with His people?  No wonder, then, that those whom God takes home with Him to enjoy eternal fellowship will do--throughout eternity--just exactly whatever their hearts desire.  They will walk in perfect freedom, for there will be nothing in their hearts that needs to be denied!

​SECURE AND INTRIGUED!

Now to him who by his power within us is able to do infinitely more than we ever dare to ask or imagine--to him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever, amen!  Eph. 3:20, Phillips.


When I first began to use a home computer, I was amazed at what I could do with it.  Now I am even more amazed, because I realize that it can handle far more than I will probably ever know how to initiate.  Its capacity makes me feel both secure and intrigued.  Today's text makes me feel the same way about God.

There are probably two basic things most Christians worry about when they think about heaven: Will they be there, and what will they do once they get there?  Much is spoken about the assurance of salvation.  Perhaps it is time to mention the promise of Paradise, remembering that heaven begins here.

First things first: God has set about to assure us that "he destined us--such was his will and pleasure--to be accepted as his sons through Jesus Christ" (Eph. 1:5, N.E.B.).  Indeed, the whole gospel story is that of our forgiving and accepting Father.  What we may have overlooked in our haste to experience security is that, for God, that is only the beginning!  While it is thrilling to learn that we are secure in His wonderful salvation, it is even more exciting to become aware that His plans for us exceed anything we could ever imagine!  Now and eternally!

It is imperative that we move from clinging to our assurance of salvation to soaring with thoughts of God's fantastic declaration of His plan for our development.  The way I read Ephesians 3:20, "infinitely more" means that we should unabashedly anticipate an incredibly close relationship with God as well as confidently aspire to ever greater heights of attainment in personal achievement and growth.  Having laid the foundations, God declares the good news that there is no ceiling!

I feel wonderfully secure in God's ability to fulfill His intentions concerning me, and I am delightfully intrigued as to the consequently endless potential involved!  I know that His desire is that I "attain to fullness of being, the fullness of God Himself" (chap. 3:19, N.E.B.)  And so I find myself excitedly "reaching out for that which lies ahead" (Phil. 3:13, N.E.B.).

Perhaps God is encouraging us to lead expectantly positive lives on earth in order to prepare us to live in the unimaginable excellence of His presence.

​WHO DUG THE CHASM?

Your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you so that he does not hear.  Isa. 59:2, R.S.V.

The position of Jonathon Edwards on the subject of hell and salvation is useful as an object lesson in what not to believe.  For example, he believed,

"The God that holds you over the pit of Hell, much as one holds a spider, or some loathsome insect, over the fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked; His wrath towards you burns like fire; He looks upon you as worthy of nothing else but to be cast into the fire; He is of purer eyes than to bear to have you in His sight; you are ten thousand times more abominable in His eyes than the most hateful venomous serpent is in ours."

Though hidden behind gentler language, these same emotions of abhorrence of sinners are ascribed to God by many Christians today.  Often they will quote today's text to support themselves.  They explain Isaiah as meaning that God "digs a chasm" to keep from being contaminated by sinners, that they must stop sinning before God will condescend to listen to them.  They fail to see that Isaiah was taunting a group of people for their arrogant hypocrisy.  They were making bold claims to be religious (Isa. 58:1-3), yet were engaged in all manner of oppression and strife.  Isaiah affirms that God knows better than to take seriously their double-talk.

Edwards and other "gentler spirits" of the same persuasion are forgetting that the chasm between God and man was of man's choosing, not God's.  His children walked away from Him and then as a result got into doing sinful things.  God did not catch them doing sinful things and then in disgust walk away from them.

Who would wish to come back into the presence of such a God as Edwards saw?  Though Edwards might argue that God would mellow considerably once His people start behaving, to be in the presence of One who is even capable of such explosive anger brings no comfort.

Tragically, Edwards missed the point of Jesus' life.  He who touched lepers, who ate supper with prostitutes, who announced forgiveness to men who were pounding nails into His wrists, and who said, "I have come to show you the Father"--He had a better way of dealing with sinners.  He decided to love them into wholeness.  And--praise God--it works!

HOW TO BE GROWN-UP

Let us speak the truth in love; so shall we fully grow up into Christ.  Eph. 4:15, N.E.B.

"Grow up, will you!"  Have you ever heard these words?  Have you ever spoken them?  They carry a sting and are usually meant to shame the individual to whom they are addressed, for the message they bring is clear: "You are not acting your age!"

Paul, in his letter to the believers at Ephesus, talks about Christian maturity.  But his words entreat and exhort; they do not harangue and humiliate.  He deals strictly with reality, yet his expressions are full of grace.  Even as he urges the people to "live up to your calling" (Eph. 4:1, N.E.B.), he cautions them to "speak the truth in love" (verse 15, N.E.B.).

Unfortunately, people tend to fall one way or the other: They either hold back truth in order to keep from hurting someone or they indiscreetly "tell like it is," regardless of the consequences.  Much of what passes for frankness is bluntness, yet often our deference thwarts resolution and growth in our lives and in the lives of others.  How can we learn to be discriminating, sensitive, and still absolutely committed to reality?

Listen: "Give up living like pagans with their good-for-nothing notions.  Their wits are beclouded, they are strangers to the life that is in God....Were you not as Christians taught the truth as it is in Jesus...You must be made new in mind and spirit, and put on the new nature of God's creating, which shows itself in the just and devout life called for by the truth" (verses 18-24, N.E.B.).

"The truth" referred to here is "the life that is in God" as portrayed in Jesus.  And only as we allow this truth (about God) to change our thinking and ways of relating to others will we "fully grow up into Christ" (verse 15, N.E.B.).  Whatever we say, we can speak "the truth" as Christ did--we can represent God accurately..  We do not have to feel the need to avoid hard realities, because we have come to understand how God Himself deals with us.  He always speaks to us forthrightly, but with compassion.  He honestly addresses our condition, yet He knows what we can become.

We have a lot of living to do in this world before Christ can come to take us home.  "In a word," let us "try to be like him, and live in love as Christ loved [us]" (chap. 5:1, N.E.B.).

​CHANGE VERSUS CHAINS

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.  Isa. 61:1, R.S.V.

Is it possible to tame a wild animal?  Certainly some have done so.  Others have tried and failed.  But I am sure of one thing: If the animal has its leg caught in a crushing trap, taming is out of the question, at least until the beast has been freed and brought to some degree of comfort.

What about the vicious German shepherd tied at the end of a fifty-foot chain in the neighbor's yard?  "Good thing!" you might express.  "He's just plain mean!"  Then one day you notice he's gone.  "Sold him," your neighbor tells you, "to a boy's ranch."  The wisdom of such a decision leaves you reeling!  "How could you!" you exclaim involuntarily.  "Aren't you afraid he'll chew somebody up?"  Then you learn that the dog has the run of the ranch, sleeps on the boys' beds at night, and is as tame as a yearling.  You go away shaking your head.  But it was not natural for the dog to live at the end of a chain.  He was meant to be free.  All the energy that could not escape in wholesome ways displayed itself in ferociousness.

Are we any different?  Bound by the guilt we feel for the wrongs we have done, our behavior may be only slightly more acceptable than the shepherd's.  God knows that we cannot respond to Him until we are loosed.  So He sets us free from the crushing weight of our guilt, binds up our broken hearts, and tells us that we need no longer be chained to our sins.  Then He draws us to Himself.  Well might we exclaim with David, "Set me free from my prison, so that I may praise thy name" (Ps. 142:7, N.E.B.).

It isn't a trade-off or bribe; it's reality.  We are no more able to praise God while crushed with a sense of guilt than is the wild animal able to be tamed while caught in the trap!  Chained to our sins, we snarl and lunge at life.  God comes to take our guilt upon Himself, and He says, "I do not condemn you.  You may go; you do not need to sin anymore" (see John 8:11).  And because He does not demand "taming" before healing, we know we can trust Him.  Even more, we are free to love Him.