“God – The Great I AM”

 Scripture:   Exodus3:13-16; Matthew 11:28-30; Mark 10:37-39

 Most of us have heard the expression “The Great I AM”, before, and we usually relate it to the seven “I AM” sayings of Jesus in John’s gospel.  But the truth is that there is a basis throughout scripture for His using this saying to describe Himself.  For today, though, the question is “What does this name mean for us as Christians?”  For those who call Jesus Christ LORD, everything that Jesus taught has a meaning for us – not necessarily in a worldly sense, but always in a spiritual sense.

 It's the way of God that we follow and celebrate, not the physical aspects of His creation.  And that can be a problem for us – we live in the created world, but Jesus is preparing us to live with Him in eternity.  Obviously, there are also lessons that teach us about this life, but even at that, the lessons are based in Godly truths and ways - in the spirituality of God - not in the humanity that we have always lived and understand.

 Today, we consider the spiritual significance of God’s “I AM” existence, and the depth of what it means for our life in the LORD our God.

 Read Exodus 3:13-16

 In this passage, we find Moses standing in the presence of God at the Burning Bush. (Exodus 3:1-6)  The LORD God Jehovah is telling the man that he has been chosen to carry a divine message to Pharaoh, that he is to release the people Israel from slavery so that they can journey to the land that had been promised to them hundreds of years before.  Moses had fled from Egypt after taking the life of an Egyptian who had been beating a Hebrew.  Now there was a price on his head, and he knew that if he returned, his own life would be in jeopardy, and Moses was frightened over both the realization that he was in the presence of God, and because he was being told to go back and confront the very one who wanted to kill him.

 He gave as many excuses as he could come up with (which most of us have also tried!), trying to convince God that he was the wrong choice for this task.  And one of those reasons was “What if they ask me who has sent me.”  This would be a logical request – after all, if someone was telling us that we have to do something, wouldn’t we want to know if that order had any authority behind it?

 But how do we describe God’s authority, or even worse, God’s Being?  The attributes and characteristics of God go so far beyond our discussions over these past few weeks, that it would be impossible to put God’s description into human words and concepts.  So God simply tells Moses that it is “I AM WHO I AM” who is sending him.

 Not much of an answer to Moses’ question, but at the same time, it is still the best possible answer!  After all, God is, within our limited abilities, impossible to describe, define or explain.  And since the LORD is infinite and eternal, creator of far more than we will ever know, and above all, impossible to completely understand, what better descriptive could there be than “I AM WHO I AM”?

 The New Interpreter’s Bible explains the Name this way.  “This God is named as the power to create, the one who causes to be.  This God is the one who will be present in faithful ways to make possible what is not otherwise possible.  This God is the very power of newness that will make available new life for Israel outside the deathliness of Egypt.”  If the LORD had given Moses this explanation as to who was sending him to Pharoah, who in the world would have understood it?  Personally, I AM WHO I AM was just as mysterious, but far easier to accept as an indication of being infinite and eternal!

 Never beginning, never ending, truly loving, and infinitely capable!  I AM!

 Read Matthew 11:28-30

 In this passage, Jesus, the Great I AM, offers us the reason that we should trust in His ways and words.  And the focus is in the significance of the term “yoke”.  For Israel, the yoke was a symbol of obedience through servitude.  Most notably, the people were “yoked” to the law – to Torah.  But Jesus was offering the nation a new and radically different form of yoking.  It was a servitude that would replace Torah, and would be the only means to God’s infinity and eternity.  It would offer an obedience that would be stranger, but more loving and compassionate than Torah.  It was a yoke that only I AM could create and define.  The new Yoke was Jesus Himself. 

 The first difference between the two yokes was that this yoking was offered, not imposed.  Torah was demanding and administrated by the Sanhedrin, the high court of Israel; I AM’s yoke was a gift from God.  Human government is one thing; God’s way is totally different!

The second difference was that Jesus’ yoke would teach and grow and bless within us, while Torah’s only becomes more and more oppressive.  The lesson of Jesus would be based in the love of I AM, not in the degrading nature of Torah.

The power behind Jesus’ yoke is the third difference – that it comes from the “gentle and humble” heart of I AM, not from the cynical and man-made heart of Torah.

The fourth difference is in the yoke of obedience itself – it is made easy in the glory of the LORD I AM.  Torah’s yoke is impossibly difficult, because it was crafted by the extremist imagination of men.  The yoke of Christ, through trust and obedience to His way, comes from the all knowing, all loving, and all wise God.

 As Joshua told the people at the Shechem Assembly, “choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve”. (Joshua 24:15)  And that is what all people – yesterday, today, and tomorrow – must also do.  Choose between the burdensome law that humanity puts together, or the easy yoke that the Great I AM has called us to follow.

 Read Mark 10:37-39

 James and his brother John come to Jesus at the Passover with a request – that they might also receive the glory and honor that Christ will soon receive.  Interestingly, Jesus doesn’t dismiss their request, even though we would all probably agree that it was a bit presumptive on their part!  And what does Jesus tell them?

 Basically, that glory will be theirs, but it will cost them the same that it will cost I AM.  By faith in Jesus, the eternal and infinite plan of God will encompass all who respond to His call, who accept His Yoke, and who follow Him through both glory and persecution.

 All who would know God must come to the Way, the Truth, and the Life of Jesus Christ. (John 14:6-7)  There is no cheap grace, no simple glory, and no perfect understanding for any of us.  Faith is all about trusting in what Jesus has taught us, given us, and has done for each and every person on the face of the earth, throughout all time.  The Great I AM has put everything in its proper place, that we might know Him, and meet Him, and discover just what His infinity and eternity are all about.

 This name that is above all names (Philippians 2:5-11) is just that – above us, beyond us, infinitely greater, eternally loving, giving of all that He has for our benefit, and unlike anyone else we will ever know.

 The Great I AM?  Absolutely!  Great in Himself, and great for all who will come to Him.  Won’t you come to know His greatness today?

“God – The Gracious”

Scripture:   John 1:14-17, Romans 3:21-25, Ephesians1:4-6, Ephesians 1:7-10

 In volume 1 of A. W. Tozer’s “Attributes …”, (pg.98), he writes “an attribute is something God is, not what God has … grace flows out of the goodness of God.”  The attributes that we have been considering, as well as the few still remaining, are not earned or developed by God, but are part of the very character that defines our LORD.  And even better than that, God will grant them as gifts to those who put trust in Him!  And these gifts are just that – gifts; gifts that are unearned, undeserved, indescribable, and unanticipated.

 Today’s attribute – grace, or graciousness – is that aspect of God’s goodness that brings divine goodness, in its many forms, to our lives.  Forgiveness comes by grace; healing comes by grace; a relationship in Christ comes by grace; the love of God comes by grace; and worthiness to stand before the judgment seat without fear comes by grace. 

 Grace is referred to a number of times in scripture, but it is mentioned nearly 10 times more frequently in the New Testament than it is in the Old Testament.  It would seem that grace has been with us forever, but it only became obvious through the life of Jesus!  So let’s look and see what scripture tells us about God’s great gift of Grace.

 Read John 1:14-17

 The first thing we read in this passage is that the incarnation of Jesus Christ was made possible through nothing less than GRACE!  And not only did the LORD come to earth in the form of a man, but He came in that form to walk and talk and teach us once again, just as He did in the garden with Adam & Eve. (Genesis 3:8-9).  He came, not to chastise us for our sinful ways, but to show us a better way to live through Him.  And the best part is that the Christ came, not to stand apart and aloof from us, judging us, examining us, considering who we had become, but rather to “dwell among us” – to live with us, not separate from us; to walk with us, not around us; to establish a personal relationship with us, not simply as God above and beyond us. (Ezekiel 37:26-28)

 By God’s grace, He has become present with us, right in the middle of our reality.  It is no longer “what has been” or even “what will be” - it has become “what is”.  By the grace that has been shown to us in Jesus Christ, God has become present and personal for each and every person on the face of the earth.  And the only contingency occurs in whether we accept His presence or not. 

 It was the law that God gave to Moses, and then which he gave to Israel, that was the first step in our experiencing grace.  Instead of expecting us to figure God’s way out on our own, the commands that God had for our lives were handed down on Mount Sinai.  But when we started meddling with them, that was the beginning of the failure that law brought to our lives.

 So a new aspect of grace came to revitalize and renew the grace already given.  It wasn’t that God failed, it wasn’t that Moses delivered the wrong message – it was our failure to let God’s way become our way, instead of putting our own edits and stamp of approval on His word.

 So grace came to us again, in a new form – a human form, and not simply in written word that we might meddle with again, but in a holy Word – God Himself in Christ Jesus.  God’s grace will never cease to bless us, to teach us, and to make us whole through Him, if we allow it in.

 Read Romans 3:21-25

 Paul reiterates what John said in the beginning of his writing, that the righteous life is no longer based in the law, but through faith in Jesus.  This doesn’t mean, though, that the law has gone away.  Jesus told us that the law – God’s law – will never fade away, but more than that, He has come to fulfill the law, not to abolish it. (Matthew 5:17-18)  What Jesus and the apostle are telling us is that God’s law is still appropriate for our lives, but that it has nothing to do with proving either our righteousness or our salvation, for that can only come through the faith that we claim in the name of Jesus, and the grace that is shown to us by the love that Almighty God has for His creation.

 And Paul is quick to point out that no one is worthy of God’s gracious salvation, for no one can ever obtain it on their own.  Once a sinner, always unworthy!  But God has offered us a hope that the law never could.  The law requires perfect obedience, which is impossible for the likes of you and me.  But in Jesus, the grace of God, we have been redeemed from our sin through the atoning sacrifice of God Himself at Calvary. 

 Can you even imagine this!  Jesus, the Son of God and Son of Man, the only perfect Man who will ever live, taking upon Himself all the sin that will ever be committed, and freely submitting to the penalty that we so richly deserve, solely to allow us, by faith, to live eternally!  And why would Jesus have to do this?  Because it was the sin of humanity that is our downfall, and therefore it had to be a man who would pay the price.  But since mankind could never pay for all of their sin, it would be up to God to be the Redeemer for us all.  Human sin, human penalty, and Godly forgiveness – resolved completely by One Person -   a Man to pay the price, and God to be the Redeemer!  It was the only way!

 Read Ephesians 1:4-6

 The plan of redemption through Jesus Christ has been in place since before the beginning.  God knew that His Law would never be enough, but He also knew that His grace had to work its way into our lives – beginning with imperfect and incomplete human effort, then through Perfection itself.  But the Plan for our redemption, and the offer of adoption into the family of God, would never be sidetracked.  Its conclusion was pre-ordained and the LORD knew that it was the only hope that we could ever have.  And grace continued its work - for our benefit, and to the glory of the One who came to be our salvation.

 The LORD deserves our undying gratitude, for He has paid the debt that we owe for the sin we have committed.  How great a love must God have for the sinner!  The unworthy have been made worthy; the sinner has been proclaimed righteous; the mortal has been offered immortality; and the one who deserves death has gained the right to eternal life.  And all that it will cost us is the surrender of this finite and futile life through faith in Jesus Christ.

 But does that mean that grace costs practically nothing?

 Read Ephesians 1:7-10

 It’s true that grace cost us nothing, but consider what it cost our LORD!  He had to leave the glory of His heavenly home and trade it for the animosity of earth.  He had to suffer the hatred and intrigue of the Jewish religious leadership, He had to endure the disbelief of the masses, and the distrust of the Roman authorities.  He was demeaned, falsely accused, convicted, and sentenced to death, beaten within an inch of His life, and executed as a common criminal by the most horrid and painful means known to man, and in the moment that He took on every sin that the world had known, His own Father had to turn His face away from His precious Son.  The pain and humiliation was excruciating, and God took it all on Himself willingly.

 Jesus took the worst that this world had to offer, and in return, He offers His exquisite, priceless, loving, and infinitely costly grace.  Faith in Jesus is the only truly uniting factor that we will ever know, while at the same time, it results in the greatest divisiveness that we will ever know.

 God’s plan of redemption and salvation for humanity has never changed, never delayed, never been disrupted, and will never end until all is in place for the Day of Christ’s return and judgment.  And our only hope is to give our life over to the teaching and way of Jesus Christ, to confess Him as LORD of our life, now and always, to depend on the atoning power of the blood He shed at Calvary, and to trust Him and Him alone.

 And it is all made possible through the grace of God in Christ Jesus.  How have each of us experienced God’s grace at work this week? 

Isn’t it marvelous?

"God - The Righteous"

Scripture:   Ezekiel 18:25-29; Ezekiel18:30-32; Revelation 16:5-7

 Have you ever considered what the word “righteous” actually means?  For many, the concept ranks right up there with “holy”, and it scares them half to death!  Is it one of those attributes of God that we can only strive for?  That it means that we have to attain perfection first?  That it is something that we can work toward, but never actually arrive at?

 Well, it is true that we will never become as righteous as God is, but that doesn’t mean that we can never gain that status for our own life!  Some of the meanings of the word imply concepts such as just, moral, good, honest and honorable – all being terms that should define our Christian life.  Of course, holy and sinless are also part of a righteous life, but remember that by faith in Jesus Christ, all of our sin is forgiven, and through faith, we become the children of God – which means that we are blessed by our heavenly Father with His holiness!

 In Paul’s introduction to his letter to the Romans, he writes  “To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people” (Romans 1:7)  Are you beginning to see the hope and promise that resides in living the righteous life?  It is all contained within our rejection of the ways of earth, and surrendering to the way of God by faith in His Son, Jesus the Christ.  We need to remember, though, that this, and all that the LORD is, simply defines what God is all about.  And His great gifts to us, those that come to us by faith, are not for our benefit!  They are for us to share with others – those who have yet to discover what a relationship with Jesus can be for their life!

 And God’s attributes are not what make us better – they allow us to help others to become better!

 Read Ezekiel 18:25-29

 Let’s consider one of the synonyms that I mentioned earlier – that of “Just”.  In Micah 6:8, we read that we don’t have to decide what the LORD wants from us.  The fact is that God will always show us what to do and even how to do it, and the only thing we need to do is to follow Him.  Sharing what the righteous life can bring is just one is one example of how the LORD can reach out through us.  First, the LORD showed us, and next, we are to show others.  And a “just life” is only one of these characteristics.

 The problem, though, is that there is an incredible conflict between the world’s version of justice, and God’s!  The prophet Ezekiel begins to address this very issue.  The faithful know that the way of heaven is good and right, but that is something that requires a major change from the worldly way that we once lived.  The world will always believe that they are right and that God is wrong, which Ezekiel tells us is just backwards!  But this isn’t just a difference in opinion – it’s a difference in truth, a difference in attitude, a difference in living.

 Is God unfair or unreasonable in the life He desires for us?  Is it unjust that He calls us to live a life that He has defined and established for us? Is it wrong for God to want His creation to want to be with Him?  We can’t live both, for both ways will never work together – we must choose one or the other!

 Read Ezekiel 18:30-32

 At the time of Ezekiel’s prophesy, the Babylonians had already taken many of the people of Judah into captivity.  Both kingdoms, the Northern and the Southern, had decided that their worldly ways were more appropriate than the one that Jehovah God was calling them to live.  A great part of the people were exiled in foreign lands, and the remainder were enslaved back in their own nation.  By this time, the truth of which way was right should have become obvious to them, but instead, the people thought that God had caused their defeat and had sent them into this new and unwanted life to die. 

 Truth?  It was the people’s sin that caused their current demise, and the prophet reminds the people that God is the one who judges, and that His decisions are always right and just.  And the judgment wasn’t that they had to be punished, but rather that they weren’t ready for rescue until they had learned His ways.  Jehovah’s benevolence would, one day, come to the Jews, but it would be 70 years before that day could become theirs.  This would be a time of learning about God’s plan, and it would come from another one of His prophets.  In Jeremiah 29:10-14, they were reminded that their “just” and “righteous” LORD had always put their very best to work.  And His plan is designed to “prosper” them, and to bring them “hope and a future”.   And the world’s plan?  It’s just a plan that is based in unrealistic desires, and usually in unattainable goals.

 God takes no pleasure in any person’s trials, or hurt, or death – He only rejoices when they accept the very best that He sends.

 Read Revelation 16:5-7

 This passage opens with the thought that God has existed forever – He is Eternal, and has seen it all!  He is all wise and all knowing – He is Omniscient, He is the source of all that is  - He is Creator of all that is, seen and unseen, His understanding is infinitely correct and beyond comprehension, He is faithful in all that He says and promises, and His ways are just and right.

 The prophesy also tells us that the trials and persecutions that others have subjected His faithful to will be avenged.  The reference to drinking blood is reminiscent of Israel’s story of the 10 plagues in Egypt which would eventually lead to their release from that bondage (Exodus 7:16-10).  God’s justice, and righteousness, and faithfulness, are always perfect, even when He allows us to make our own choices that bring about our own condemnation.  But in His faithful righteousness, our LORD God Almighty is prepared to forgive us our sin, and welcome us back into His mercies.

 The problem with humanity is that in the eons that have passed since creation brought us into existence, we think that we have gained so much wisdom that we know it all!  And yet, there is still so much that we don’t know, and even more that we only think we know!  

 And the point of today’s theme – the Righteousness of God – is that there is so much that we will never understand about ourselves, and so much more that we will never understand about our Creator, that we need to start leaning upon His goodness, His love, His perfect ways, and above all, upon His just and righteous heart.  And whether we understand it or not, and whether we believe it or not, our letting go of the ways of earth will bring the greatest joy to both our Triune God and the great host of heaven.  In Luke’s gospel (Luke 15:10), we read “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

 Isn’t it much better when we give the LORD cause for rejoicing, instead of burdening Him with sorrow over our impending condemnation?  His way is always “right”, while ours is only right through our own imagination and inadequate reasoning. 

Won’t you give God a chance to work within your life?  TODAY!

 

          

"God - Eternal Love"

 Scripture:   John3:16-19; 1 John 4:7-10; John 20:10-16

 In the second volume of his works emtitled “The Attributes of God”, (page 196), A. W. Tozer writes “The love of God is the hardest of all His attributes to speak about.  You may not understand God’s love for us.  I don’t know that I do myself.  We are trying to comprehend the incomprehensible.  It is like trying to take the ocean in your arms, or embrace the atmosphere, or rise to the stars.”

 Interestingly, we haven’t even begun to accomplish the first two, but our rising to the stars has already experienced a humble beginning,  It will be many years before we are able to cross the millions of miles between us and the nearest star, but we have begun to reach out to the planets in our solar system, and that is a huge step – probably one that Tozer never thought possible!  The point, though, is that the love of God is so vast, so embracing, so consuming that, for many, it seems to be out of reach, that we will never understand it, no matter how hard we try.  So we settle for the one step that we can imagine – that of considering how Godly love drives all that the LORD is and does, and how those acts are intended to bless our lives.  And could that be similar to taking our first steps toward rising to the stars?

 Some will say that scripture proves that God is not always loving, but I would offer a personal experience to suggest otherwise.  Years ago, when our oldest son was about 4 years old, we visited a mall near our home to do some shopping.  We had chosen several items for purchase, and while we stood in the checkout line, we suddenly realized that Chris was nowhere to be seen.  He had apparently wandered off, and we began to frantically search for him, forgetting all about the items we had come to buy.  It took us several minutes before discovering that he was standing in the middle of several racks of clothing, watching us.  After letting him know how worried we had been, and how he had to stay near us in the store, we got back in line to resume our plan to pay for our purchases.  It didn’t take long, though, before he began to move away from us again, and we quickly realized that he was playing “hide and seek” with us.

 

We decided to play the game with him, and when he wasn’t looking at us, we snuck out of line, circled around, and got behind him to watch his reaction.  It didn’t take long before he realized that we weren’t where he thought we should be, and he began to get the most frightened look on his face.  Mom and Dad had disappeared!  Oh no - where did they go?  My wife and I stepped out and called his name, and the game ended with him running back to us – at least for that day.  He stuck like glue to us for the rest of our time checking out!

 Were we being hateful toward our little boy because we had let him become so frightened?  Not at all – we loved him dearly, and still do, but we had to let him discover for himself what might happen if we could no longer protect and guide him.  We never punished him that day – he did that very well all by himself.

 Sound familiar to what God’s love does for us?

 Read John 3:16-19

 “For God so loved the world”, that He came to live with us, to become part of our lives, and to die for us,  so that we might know just how much He loves us and cares for us, and wants to keep us close to the goodness that is in store for all who do stay close to Him.  And the only way we can even begin to understand the love of God was for Him to “give” us His Son.  It wasn’t intended to be a test, and it was never set up as a trap – it was, pure and simple, an act of love designed to let us discover that the LORD only has the best at heart for our life with Him in this place and beyond.

 But why doesn’t everyone understand and accept this?  Why do so many believe that God is vindictive and angry and condescending toward us?  Because they have no relationship with God, and have never shown their love in return.  The love of God is offered to everyone, but only those who accept the Son, the divine Gift of love, will ever feel that love for themselves.  And without that gift, the world would still be lost and hurting, and wouldn’t have the faintest understanding of why!

 It all centers on whether we have accepted that offer of a relationship with God, or not.  And without the LORD in our life, our only concept of love will be that which is based on our own limited intellect and personal experiences.  And that would be the only way we would ever be able to show love –as a poor substitute for true love.  But with the experience of God’s love playing such an incredible part in our lives, whether we completely understand it or not, we will begin to love others as only God can love - through the love He has first shown to us.

 And we have to make the choice to either experience the incredible love of our Almighty God, or to manufacture one that reflects the false image of earth - and which ever one we decide on, will be the one that will decide our future.

 Read 1 John 4:7-10

 John is telling us that unless we love as God loves, our life will be devoid of love, and without that pure love, we have no life in Him.  Remember Jesus’ words in John 13:34-35, when He told us to love others as He has already loved us.  It is His example and gift that allows us to truly love the people of this world.  Notice that Jesus didn’t say to love those who also have God’s love within them.  The commandment is to offer God’s love to everyone we encounter, and to never withhold it for any reason.

 The example of this passage is explaining that God is the only one who gets to define what love is, and His love is proven in that Jesus was sent to us so that we might live through Him.  Does this mean that there is not only no love within us, but that there is no “life” either?  The key word in the last verse is “atoning” – a word that many have chosen to either ignore, or flat out deny.  Atonement is, basically, God’s act of accepting our penalty for sin, while never being guilty of sin Himself.  By giving our sin over to His Son, we can escape the sentence of death, and become worthy of that holy relationship with Jesus, as well as the right to live in eternity with Him.

 This doesn’t mean that we will never sin again, but rather that forgiveness for sin will be ours when we confess our failures, and seek the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ.  The hold that sin has on us has been broken – not because of anything we have done, but by what Christ has done for us at Calvary. 

 But the Gift didn’t stop at Good Friday!  It continued through the resurrection of Easter morning, and it continued on to the ascension.  Easter has become the LORD’s promise that once sin has been broken by faith in Jesus, eternal life, through the eternal love of our Almighty God, can be ours once again.

 Read John 20:10-16

 If we read the few verses that precede this  passage, we discover a very interesting truth.  It tells of Peter and John’s arrival at the tomb, and what do they see?  An empty tomb, and burial cloths, and nothing else.  Contrast that to what Mary sees.  She also saw the empty tomb, but she also sees the Risen Jesus, and recognizes Him after He speaks her name.  The two men only see an empty grave, but had no true understanding of what it meant for them.

 All too many people today know the Easter story, but how many have discovered what it means for their own life?  How many claim the truth of that holy morning as the basis for their own eternal life?  How many experience the love of God at work, both then for those who followed Jesus, and now for those who believe through faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:6-7).  The disciples believed because they saw;  Mary believed because she heard Jesus called her. 

 That was Thomas’s problem a week later – he wouldn’t believe until he could see and touch the wounds in Jesus’ hands and side, and the LORD would call him to account for not believing by faith. (John 20:24-29)

 Have you ever realized that your tomb can be just as empty as this one is?  Have you felt the love of God at work within you and through you?  It isn’t simply by reading this story that salvation becomes ours – it is by putting ourselves in Mary’s place, by taking her sorrow upon ourselves, by accepting the realization that  Jesus had to die to give us the chance to avoid our own punitive death.  By faith in Christ, and by living in the love of God that can now be our own, our self-imposed sentence of spiritual death, our “reward” for unrepentant sin, can be replaced by the empty tomb that has our name chiseled into the stone that once blocked its entrance. 

 Salvation and a divine relationship with Christ is by faith, by call, by trust, and not by intellect, or proven fact, or by what we can prove.  Is your love of Christ that strong?  Let His Love roll the stone away from your death, today!