Nicole and I babysat tonight for three kids, a little girl (3), a boy (5), and a bigger girl (8). I got to hang out more with the boy whose name was Liam. Before I get to my conversation with Liam, I must recount the harrowing event of the night. The little girl fell down the stairs as she was walking in front of Nicole, and she busted her nose, blood going all over. It was very scary, but she is okay now.
Anyway, in the aftermath of the bloody nose chaos, my job was to put Liam to bed. But he had been trying to build a city with his toys, and I hadn't gotten a chance to play with him with his toys, so we sat down to build a tower and a city. Apparently, as Nicole tells it, she came in twenty minutes later, past when he was supposed to be put to bed, and there we were in the floor, caught red-handed. Liam pointed at me and exclaimed, "He said we could!" Haha!
So we started putting the toys up and I began to tuck him in. He had his television on, and I went over to turn it off. Apparently he gets afraid at night, perhaps afraid of the dark, and he asked if he could keep his television on. I told him no, but I told him that I would tell him a story. It looked like he was about to tear up, and he started telling me about other times that he had been afraid.
I decided to tell him about how God would protect him, and that he should pray to God for strength and courage. And as a five year old, he definitely had questions. I started out by telling the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. It was fun. I would get dramatic and then quiet and ask him how he thought different characters would feel. For instance, how did Nebuchadnezzer feel when they didn't bow down to his statue? Mad! How mad? Enough to heat a furnace, not once, not twice, but seven times what it normally was in order to throw the three guys in. I told him before that the story would be a scary story because I wanted him to see God come through in a scary situation. He kept asking about when we got to the scary part. I told him the furnace would've scared me.
So they threw in the three, and the people outside starting counting. How many people did they see in the furnace? One, two, three? NO! There were four people in there? Who was the fourth? Who went in the furnace to protect them? Jesus!
I told him that even when he couldn't see Jesus that he could pray to him and that Jesus would be with him. Jesus is more powerful than even the most powerful fiery furnace. And we played a game. He would name things, and I would tell him that Jesus was greater. Especially all the superheroes he named.
But he had a question, a doubt. He said one time that he prayed to God to keep him from having bad dreams. But God didn't stop him from having bad dreams. He still had them that night. Well, sometimes God doesn't answer every prayer request exactly the way we want him to. And he doesn't always make things easy for us. Sometimes God puts us into situations to teach us to be brave or to teach us patience.
Also, along the line of the "Jesus is greater than" questioning, he got to a point where he said, "Greater than God?" And I got what might be the most awesome thing in the world: the opportunity to try to explain the Trinity to five year old who is actually interested. Well, Jesus is God. God is actually three persons. Jesus is God. The Father is God. The Holy Spirit is God. They love each other. But they are also all one God. Three in one. But how? And I gave an honest answer, "I don't know. But he is."
And then we prayed and I tucked him in, and I don't know if the ghosts in his room got him or what, but I hope some of those seeds come back to bear fruit. To my readers, never lose your childlike wonder at God, and never be afraid to ask even the tough questions. God is big enough to handle even your biggest questions, even if the answers are not neat and tidy to the way your heart already works.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
The Man of Lawlessness
Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
(2 Thessalonians 2:1-12)
1. Jesus is powerful. Very powerful. This passage talks about the man of lawlessness, so how is Jesus going to take care of him? Jesus will kill him with the breath of his mouth. And he will bring him to nothing simply by showing up. This Jesus is strong, mighty, definitely someone we must bow before.
2. This passage also confuses me. There are some difficult verses toward the end. This passage teaches that God will send a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false. I raise this not to come up with a neat solution for you. I simply want to point out a place that requires some wrestling. Scripture, after all, should stretch us, or else it would just be a mirror of all the things we already believed.
(2 Thessalonians 2:1-12)
1. Jesus is powerful. Very powerful. This passage talks about the man of lawlessness, so how is Jesus going to take care of him? Jesus will kill him with the breath of his mouth. And he will bring him to nothing simply by showing up. This Jesus is strong, mighty, definitely someone we must bow before.
2. This passage also confuses me. There are some difficult verses toward the end. This passage teaches that God will send a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false. I raise this not to come up with a neat solution for you. I simply want to point out a place that requires some wrestling. Scripture, after all, should stretch us, or else it would just be a mirror of all the things we already believed.
Building a Kingdom
Whose kingdom are you about? God's or your own? Far too often I am all about my own Kingdom. After all, that is our cruise control. Left to ourselves, we will choose what we think is best for ourselves. Left to ourselves, we will follow the path of least resistance to the thing we want most. We will do whatever we think makes us happy. It is really useless advice to tell someone to do whatever will make them happy. We are going to do that anyway.
Jesus is King, and we are part of his Kingdom. We are his subjects. He is our Lord. He commands, and we follow his command. Of course, our world is full of distractions and our hearts are full of sin, so we do not often see Jesus as a person who commands our allegiance and obedience. We see him as a sort of far-off person that we are supposed to have some sort of relationship with, which basically means we try hard to have a quiet time to pray and read the Bible. But as a very real person who commands our hearts and actions, we have a hard time perceiving this.
There is in all of us a clash of kingdoms. Down deep in our hearts there is a battle of conflicting motivations, and it is from our hearts that we live. Who is in control there? Us or Jesus?
When Jesus is in control of our hearts, and when we are about his Kingdom, we become open to change. We more readily admit the continuing sinfulness of our hearts and the necessity of change, the necessity of spiritual surgery. Then, when all the big hurts and heartaches, as well as all the low-grade hassles and annoyances come our way, they may not lose their sting, but we taste their bitterness in a new light. We are being chiseled and molded through sometimes painful processes into being Christ-like in our character because every piece of God's Kingdom is meant to point to Jesus.
When someone is bothering you, realize that God is sovereign and put them in your life for a reason. God knows what he is doing. You will never regret doing the right thing. You will never regret giving love and grace, instead of acting spitefully toward someone in an effort to build your own kingdom. All our kingdom-building for ourselves will inevitably come crashing down as sure as the tides erase our sandcastles. Only God's Kingdom will endure.
Jesus is King, and we are part of his Kingdom. We are his subjects. He is our Lord. He commands, and we follow his command. Of course, our world is full of distractions and our hearts are full of sin, so we do not often see Jesus as a person who commands our allegiance and obedience. We see him as a sort of far-off person that we are supposed to have some sort of relationship with, which basically means we try hard to have a quiet time to pray and read the Bible. But as a very real person who commands our hearts and actions, we have a hard time perceiving this.
There is in all of us a clash of kingdoms. Down deep in our hearts there is a battle of conflicting motivations, and it is from our hearts that we live. Who is in control there? Us or Jesus?
When Jesus is in control of our hearts, and when we are about his Kingdom, we become open to change. We more readily admit the continuing sinfulness of our hearts and the necessity of change, the necessity of spiritual surgery. Then, when all the big hurts and heartaches, as well as all the low-grade hassles and annoyances come our way, they may not lose their sting, but we taste their bitterness in a new light. We are being chiseled and molded through sometimes painful processes into being Christ-like in our character because every piece of God's Kingdom is meant to point to Jesus.
When someone is bothering you, realize that God is sovereign and put them in your life for a reason. God knows what he is doing. You will never regret doing the right thing. You will never regret giving love and grace, instead of acting spitefully toward someone in an effort to build your own kingdom. All our kingdom-building for ourselves will inevitably come crashing down as sure as the tides erase our sandcastles. Only God's Kingdom will endure.
Monday, April 2, 2012
Esther
I just finished reading the book of Esther with my wife. I thought I would offer a few thoughts on it for the edification of the internet world.
1. God is never mentioned in the book of Esther. I had heard someone mention this before, so I was attuned to it while we were reading. Literally, mention of God is never made during the book. However, the sequence of events is obviously providential. There is an obvious sovereign plan at work to place Esther in the right place at the right time to save her people.
Practically, this means that even when we are not talking about God, it does not mean that he is not at work. He is still working all things together for the good of his people, even when we are not talking about it. God is never absent. Even when we cannot see God, he is still present.
2. God's justice will be done. Twice the tables are turned against Haman, who hates Mordecai and plots to kill the Jews. First, when the King asks him what he should do for the one whom he delights to honor, Haman comes up with an extravagant list, thinking the King has him in mind. But no! In a dramatic turn of events, the King honors Mordecai. And later Haman has a gallows made with plans to have Mordecai hanged on it. But it ends up being Haman who is hanged on that very gallows.
As you read the book, you are obviously meant to root against Haman who gets bothered by Mordecai and plots to use the King's signature to kill the Jews. He is like an old-timey Hitler who was thankfully thwarted before his plans could come to fruition. He is punished for this. In this book justice is done. But it doesn't always work out that way this side of eternity. As Christians we know that our God of perfect justice will ensure that justice is perfectly performed. His just wrath rests on all unrighteousness, and it all will be punished perfectly. Praise be to Jesus for the grace that took our unrighteousness and placed it on his cross-bearing, wrath-absorbing back. Every evil deed not absorbed by the cross will still be punished, for there is a judgment day coming. Therefore, as Christians we do not need to seek revenge. God has it all covered.
3. Who is the man whom the king delights to honor? That question is asked in this book, and within the context there is a flesh-and-blood specific example of the humble man being honored in the person of Mordecai. Jesus later instructs that when there is a feast, it is better to take the lowly seat and be moved high than to seat yourself high and be moved down. The last shall be first and the first shall be last. God has a day set against all that is exalted, so everything must be humbled in order to most clearly his glory, which is why were created, what we were created for.
Jesus is the greater Mordecai. Jesus displayed perfect humility. Jesus came up with a plan, not a temporary one but a lasting plan, by which his people might be saved forever. Jesus humbled himself, becoming a man, taking on human flesh and human likeness. And when he humbled himself, even to being crucified, he was vindicated gloriously in the resurrection, and in the ascension he was given the place of highest honor, and he was given a name above all other names. He was the slain Lamb who alone is worthy of worship and worthy to open the scrolls unlocking history. To Jesus, perfectly humble, belongs the highest praise.
4. I urge you to read the Bible. Stop reading my blog and read more of the Bible. It is filled with amazing stories that happen to be true. And it will change your life, and it will lead you into deeper relationship with the God who is there. I hope and imagine that the tenor of all of my posts will strike this chord. May my writings, if you happen to read them, help to awaken your taste buds for something greater that finds ultimate satisfaction in God alone through the Word alone.
1. God is never mentioned in the book of Esther. I had heard someone mention this before, so I was attuned to it while we were reading. Literally, mention of God is never made during the book. However, the sequence of events is obviously providential. There is an obvious sovereign plan at work to place Esther in the right place at the right time to save her people.
Practically, this means that even when we are not talking about God, it does not mean that he is not at work. He is still working all things together for the good of his people, even when we are not talking about it. God is never absent. Even when we cannot see God, he is still present.
2. God's justice will be done. Twice the tables are turned against Haman, who hates Mordecai and plots to kill the Jews. First, when the King asks him what he should do for the one whom he delights to honor, Haman comes up with an extravagant list, thinking the King has him in mind. But no! In a dramatic turn of events, the King honors Mordecai. And later Haman has a gallows made with plans to have Mordecai hanged on it. But it ends up being Haman who is hanged on that very gallows.
As you read the book, you are obviously meant to root against Haman who gets bothered by Mordecai and plots to use the King's signature to kill the Jews. He is like an old-timey Hitler who was thankfully thwarted before his plans could come to fruition. He is punished for this. In this book justice is done. But it doesn't always work out that way this side of eternity. As Christians we know that our God of perfect justice will ensure that justice is perfectly performed. His just wrath rests on all unrighteousness, and it all will be punished perfectly. Praise be to Jesus for the grace that took our unrighteousness and placed it on his cross-bearing, wrath-absorbing back. Every evil deed not absorbed by the cross will still be punished, for there is a judgment day coming. Therefore, as Christians we do not need to seek revenge. God has it all covered.
3. Who is the man whom the king delights to honor? That question is asked in this book, and within the context there is a flesh-and-blood specific example of the humble man being honored in the person of Mordecai. Jesus later instructs that when there is a feast, it is better to take the lowly seat and be moved high than to seat yourself high and be moved down. The last shall be first and the first shall be last. God has a day set against all that is exalted, so everything must be humbled in order to most clearly his glory, which is why were created, what we were created for.
Jesus is the greater Mordecai. Jesus displayed perfect humility. Jesus came up with a plan, not a temporary one but a lasting plan, by which his people might be saved forever. Jesus humbled himself, becoming a man, taking on human flesh and human likeness. And when he humbled himself, even to being crucified, he was vindicated gloriously in the resurrection, and in the ascension he was given the place of highest honor, and he was given a name above all other names. He was the slain Lamb who alone is worthy of worship and worthy to open the scrolls unlocking history. To Jesus, perfectly humble, belongs the highest praise.
4. I urge you to read the Bible. Stop reading my blog and read more of the Bible. It is filled with amazing stories that happen to be true. And it will change your life, and it will lead you into deeper relationship with the God who is there. I hope and imagine that the tenor of all of my posts will strike this chord. May my writings, if you happen to read them, help to awaken your taste buds for something greater that finds ultimate satisfaction in God alone through the Word alone.
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