A Net in Time

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Faith

Faith and Despair

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I’m not going to say this is an easy chapter to read in The Faith-Shaped Life, it comes on the heals of me reading half way through a book called Grace Like Scarlett, a book that has surprised me with how much I remember an intense couple of years of grief.   Therefore, when I read a chapter about what we learn from being in a valley of despair I just want to turn and walk away.  I do!

I’d rather not dwell on those moments of despair and what I have learned from them, but sometimes it’s a necessary thing you know?

Faith and Despair, picture showing lady with hand on rainy glass
Photo by Milada Vigerova on Unsplash

Mr. Hamilton points out a couple of things we learn from being in a time of despair.

  1. The knowledge that everything in life comes by the hand of the Lord.  Good or ill.  It’s from him and that’s a dependable a thing as we can count on.
  2. It’s a time to teach us to learn on the Lord.   To rely on his grace to get us through whatever we are going through.

I learned through the miscarriages we’ve had, that God’s hand is apparent EVEN IF at the time it wasn’t.   OH>>> It so wasn’t apparent. The tears shed, the loss felt…NOT FUN.  Really really not fun. 

But what I have is a delightful boy and he is enough.  Having one boy in this house is so just enough.  Is it fun having more around?  FOR SURE.  Noise and bustle, and then we can send them home again and quietness settles.   We like quiet.  🙂  So having one works for us, we would have made more work for us, but having one was God’s fore-knowing of how our household works best.  This knowing though.. it’s a hindsight thing, SO not something I would have wanted to hear back in the day when grief was real.    The knowing of it NOW though brings peace to those days gone past, a surety in my heart that God truly does know what is good and right for us. 

See what walking through pain WITH God does?  The knowledge it brings?

Don’t lose your faith because of the pain, but rather seek God through it.   He’s there. He knows.. oh heavens he knows. 

Mr. Hamilton goes on to talk about two actions to take when in the valley of despair

  1. Quote the word of the Lord.  Speak it out.  If faced by the enemy of God rebuke him with scripture.  Remember the promises of God in his word.  Speak them out, Hold their truths near to your heart.  Do you recall how Jesus did this when he was tempted?
  2. Call out to God for help.  Jesus did this too you know, remember in the garden of Gethsemane?  He didn’t look within himself for comfort and cheer, but called out to God. 

I was talking with a friend the other day about this book, she mentioned the loss of her sister and how it was for her.  She said that my loss was worse and I said no it wasn’t.  Loss is loss.  YES, miscarriage is hard, but so is losing a loved one.  Losing family, regardless of who they are, if they were well loved it matters, and it’s hard and it won’t be the same for everyone.  Grief takes it own way through for folks and we can’t play the comparison game.  Grief and loss are just that and we should respect it for everyone you know?

Just like going through hard times … like job loss, family troubles, accidents etc… they are hard times.  We shouldn’t make light of them or hurt folks already hurting.  It is SO not fun being on the receiving end of hurt when pain is real.  Things like telling a mom who has miscarried that she can’t have a flower on mother’s day… that’s a hard hurt.  Or telling folks without a place to live “oh something will turn up.. when they have two days to find a place”.   How is that being kind?  Those hurtful things are what cause people to struggle all the more with their faith.  Let’s be a help eh?   Let’s call people to what they need to do in hard times… Remember the promises of God (not in a light flippant let’s just say something to be done with it way, but in a do you remember God minds us full well and he sees you right now? way).   And praying, REALLY PRAYING with and for the person in struggle.   It matters. These are the things that help strengthen the struggling believers heart.  Be part of the help eh?  

Stubbornness and Anger

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Who is your father?  was our last devotional, today we consider the last few verses of John 8

48 The Jews answered him, “Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?” 49 Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon, but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me. 50 Yet I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge. 51 Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.” 52 The Jews said to him, “Now we know that you have a demon! Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet you say, ‘If anyone keeps my word, he will never taste death.’ 53 Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you make yourself out to be?” 54 Jesus answered, “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’ 55 But you have not known him. I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and I keep his word. 56 Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” 57 So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” 59 So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.

image man reading, truly truly I say to you

Oh…the Pharisees have an answer to Jesus’ thoughts that they are not of God. 

WHAT?   Aren’t we right in saying you are a Samaritan and have a demon?

Jesus is so patient with them.  He has repeatedly told them who is Father is, and how he honours him, seeking only the glory of his father, the judge.   THEY are dishonouring him by not believing him.   He brings them back to the point that believing in him means eternal life but he phrases it differently.  Keep my words, and you will never die.

Those stubborn Pharisees eh?   DIE!!…YOU SAY WE WILL NEVER DIE?   Get real man!!!! (I so imagine then saying that).  EVERYONE dies.   You must be a demon to say such a thing!  I can almost see them snorting their derision of him.  Who does this Jesus think he is?

Jesus, of course, being Jesus told them. 

  1. He doesn’t glorify himself, to do so is meaningless.
  2. His Father glorifies him. 
  3. This Father is the one they call God.
  4. BUT they don’t know God, even though they say they do. 
  5. If Jesus said he doesn’t know God, then he would be same as the Jewish leaders, A liar.
  6. He reiterates that he knows God, and God knows him.
  7. Then speaks to how Abraham rejoiced that “he would see my day”.  (hmm… not quite sure on the meaning of those words.  Abraham died long before Jesus was born… UNLESS Abraham knew he would live forever, and therefore knew he would see God’s promises fulfilled.  THAT might be the answer there.

The Jewish leaders were shocked at this.  Jesus was not even 50, how in the world could he have known Abraham?

Then Jesus used it.  The “I AM” statement.  “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” Total blasphemy in the eyes of the Pharisees so at once they wanted him stoned.

Didn’t happen of course as Jesus hid himself and left the temple.   

Their anger at the “I AM” statement?  Only God called himself the “I am”.  No Jewish person would ever take that title on.  To do so was calling yourself God. By using it, Jesus clearly told the Jews who and what he was.   THEY DIDN’T LIKE THAT!  (because they didn’t believe he came from God).  They simply couldn’t get that idea into their heads. Jesus’ bold statement did though…just unfortunately not in a good way. 

I leave this passage thinking… who am I more like?

Am I more like a person willing to believe Christ?  To know he is Lord, son of God?  Or am I more like the Pharisees, just not able to see the truth even when it’s told to me plainly?  Sometimes it’s a bit of both eh?   There are some truths in scripture that I find hard to wrap my head around, and then I feel like the Pharisees here…just fighting it, cause it just doesn’t make sense to me.  But then…there is truth that I hear as plainly as anything.  IT’s good to have that truth eh?  To know who he really is.  To know that truly he was the only one who could ever pay my debt and declare it null, void, no penalty to be paid as it was fully cleared. 

I do so wish I could be like that with all scriptural truth eh? I’m working towards it.  🙂  

Are you?

Who is Your Father?

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The Truth will set you free was the topic of our last meeting.  Today we ask the question “who is your father” in John 8:39-47.

39 They answered him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works Abraham did, 40 but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did. 41 You are doing the works your father did.” They said to him, “We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one Father—even God.” 42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. 43 Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. 44 You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45 But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. 46 Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? 47 Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.”

John 8:39-47

Jesus closed off his statement last week with this line “I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.”  The simple comparison eh…one that spoke volumes, especially in light of the verses coming eh?

Their response “Abraham is our father“.

Jesus refutes that claim saying “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works Abraham did, but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did. You are doing the works your father did.“

The Pharisees didn’t much care for this response (at least that’s how it reads to me) because suddenly they bring up “We were not born of sexual immorality.  We have one Father – even God.“

This too Jesus refuted this as well “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. 43 Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word.“

And then went on to clearly say “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

He closes out his conversation with them “45 But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. 46 Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? 47 Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.”

Part of me wonders what to do with this passage.  I can break it down to it’s parts, but part of me feels like I’m missing something. I think it’s because I can just see their resistance here you know?  They just didn’t really get it at all!  That resistance just has me wanting to avoid dealing with this passage I think.  Jesus is so clear with them though.  They aren’t of Abraham, and they aren’t of God, what they are of, is the devil.  They act like him, so they must be from him.   They can’t see that he tells the truth, ergo…they are not of God. 

I read this passage and I just feel sad.  You know?

Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise

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Have you ever sung this hymn by Walter C Smith?  Speaking to the truth about who God is and how we should praise him for who he is.  It’s a lovely song indeed.

Immortal, invisible god only wise

Written by Walter C Smith, he was a Scotsman who served in churches in Glasgow. London and Edinburgh.  A member of the Free Church of Scotland, he served as it’s moderator for a spell.

Lyrics

Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
In light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
Most blessèd, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
Almighty, victorious, Thy great name we praise.

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
Nor wanting, nor wasting, Thou rulest in might;
Thy justice, like mountains, high soaring above
Thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.

To all, life Thou givest, to both great and small;
In all life Thou livest, the true life of all;
We blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree,
And wither and perish—but naught changeth Thee.

Great Father of glory, pure Father of light,
Thine angels adore Thee, all veiling their sight;
Of all Thy rich graces this grace, Lord, impart
Take the veil from our faces, the vile from our heart.

All laud we would render; O help us to see
’Tis only the splendor of light hideth Thee,
And so let Thy glory, almighty, impart,
Through Christ in His story, Thy Christ to the heart.

The Believer’s Joy

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Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say rejoice.  Phil 4:4

This is an injunction from Paul, reminding us of the importance of rejoicing in the life of a believer.

Part of a larger passage

The whole passage reads as follows

4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

image saying the believers joy

Just as:

So just as we are not to be anxious about anything, and JUST as we are let God, with an attitude of thankfulness, make our requests known to him through prayer and supplication.   And JUST AS we are supposed to think about the true, the honourable, the just, the pure, the lovely and so on and forth… Just as we do all those things we are to rejoice ALWAYS.

It is so important that Paul repeats himself.  Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say rejoice.  It starts off his list of things a believer should be doing.  Rejoicing is the first mentioned, and it’s mentioned twice.  Means it rather important eh?   To rejoice in the Lord.

Now it’s not always easy to do so I find.   It’s hard when things are tough to remember that God’s got our back and we can rejoice even in those hard times.  It could always be worse right?   But whether it could be worse or not, the reason we rejoice is not because of our circumstances.  We rejoice because of who the Lord is.   It’s a good thing to remember that The Lord is God and he has done so much for us.

Saving us from our sins, calling us sons and daughters, his constance love of us, the refusal to be separated from us and how he watches over us so much.   THIS THIS is the one we rejoice in.

Creator, sustainer, protector, saviour, redeemer, Lord of lords, King of kings, Father, the I Am, THIS is the God, the God that we rejoice in. 

Let us then take this injunction to heart, just as we do with everything else in this list, considering what is pure, honourable, true and the like.

Not recommended

I was recently reading a “not recommended” book list, and some of the books were strongly recommended against and I was surprised at a lot of them.   Some of them were books that I have enjoyed over the years, it had me thinking, am I just oblivious?  Do I just not see the things in these books that this individual is seeing?  It brought to mind this same passage in Phillippians.  I was trying to formulate my words to a friend tonight and I think started to answer myself. One of the frequent comments by the author of this list was “the hero isn’t a good person” or “the hero does things a person of good moral character wouldn’t do”.   And I suppose it’s just that, that attracts me sometimes to the books I read and enjoy.  I see this broken person who has their faults (we all do since we aren’t God) who despite their faults does good.   Despite their faults there are redemptive qualities about those heroes who don’t always exhibit good character.

What to keep in mind:

Do we need to keep in mind that we shouldn’t be engaging in things that aren’t honouring of God, that aren’t true , just,  pure,  lovely,  commendable,  excellent, or worthy of praise.  We shouldn’t be. And it’s a hard field to navigate you know?  I like watching cop shows… seeing bad guys come to justice, I don’t like watching shows were the bad guys get away, and sometimes the shows have bad guys as the stars who end up being good guys by the end of the show.  Not perfect good guys, not guys I’d want my son being best friends with, but guys (or gals) with redeeming qualities. The question that faces me is this: Which qualities do I look at?   Do I look at the redeeming qualities and say…this makes the show worth watching, or do I only see the death and mayhem or potential bad language, and say “nope, can’t watch this”.   I don’t know.

I can remember to not be anxious about anything, and to prayer with an attitude of thankfulness and I can put my mind to rejoice always.  I get that.  I can be about the recalling to mind the goodness of the Lord.  Can you?

 

 

Truth Will Set You Free

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Some of them believed, remember?   Today Jesus talks to those new believers in John 8:31-38.

31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?”
34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. 38 I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.”

John 8 written on steps

I heard a story once,(and I’m a bit fuzzy on all the details) about a new believer who, once she returned home with her son (who was also a new believer) started to doubt her faith.   Her son, guided by the Holy Spirit, reminded her that God promised he would never leave them.   He called them his children and wouldn’t ever leave them.   Mom’s faith restored, she grew in her faith.   

Reading this passage I can just imagine these new believers gathered around Jesus, wondering about their new found faith, despite the criticism and scorn of the Pharisees.  Jesus taught them to stick with his words.  If they did so they would be his disciples, knowing the truth.  That truth would set them free. 

Oh, the calm assurance that would have been to them. Can’t you just see them?  Oh, making sure they remembered the words of Jesus.  Pondering them, growing, becoming more sure of the truth contained within them.    At least that’s what I want to see….

Instead…. They asked questioned what Jesus meant by saying “you will become free”.  After all, they weren’t slaves, they didn’t need freedom.

Jesus turns them from looking only at the physical.  Showing them the spiritual side of sin instead. This crowd would have known slavery, what it means to not be your own person.  They lived in the Roman empire where it would seem that every other person you met was a slave.  Jesus shows them that being captured by sin is the same as slavery.  If you sin, you are a slave to it.  Knowing the truth of Jesus’ words will set them free from the bondage to sin.   As he says “if the Son sets you free, you will be free“. 

The slave doesn’t stay in the home you know?  Slaves can be bought, sold, transferred from one place to another.  The children of the household are the ones that remain.   A slave must be given his freedom, a child of the house already has it.

But once a slave is freed, they are freed.  Meaning that if we believe in Jesus and HE (the Son) sets us free, that freedom lasts. It’s not a temporary measure.  It’s lasting. 

We who believe in Jesus, believe also in the Father because remember…Jesus only speaks what God gives him leave to speak, only what God has taught him.  

This means that those who seek to kill him don’t believe in him. They don’t believe him because the words that Jesus taught find no place within them.    Listen to Jesus, listen to the Father, find freedom from sin.  Don’t be a slave to it anymore. 

 

Believe in Me

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Remember last week I was supposed to read John 8:12-30 and I broke the passage in half?   We saw Jesus speaking the truth?  Today I’ll finish that passage. 

21 So he said to them again, “I am going away, and you will seek me, and you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.” 22 So the Jews said, “Will he kill himself, since he says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?” 23 He said to them, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. 24 I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.” 25 So they said to him, “Who are you?” Jesus said to them, “Just what I have been telling you from the beginning. 26 I have much to say about you and much to judge, but he who sent me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from him.” 27 They did not understand that he had been speaking to them about the Father. 28 So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me. 29 And he who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him.” 30 As he was saying these things, many believed in him.

Picture of cross on sunset, words from John 8

Do you remember Jesus talked to the Pharisees, telling them how his testimony is true, and how God is his Father.  He continues talking with them, telling them how he is going away, they will look for him, and they will die in their sins, unable to go where Jesus will be.

We see him making comparisons, making it clear there are differences between him and them. 

Pharisees                                                              Jesus
From below                                                   from above
Of this world                                                not of this world

Then we see this promise.  You will die in your sins UNLESS you believe in him.  I just loved seeing this line.  Even though the Pharisees called him a liar, mocked him, tested him, scorned him…. Jesus still made that offer to them.  Believe in me, don’t die in your sins.  BELIEVE.

And again they ask “Who are you?”

Jesus’ response was that he’d been telling them all along, but they just didn’t understand what he had been telling them.  He was telling them the truth, telling them about God, telling them about himself, telling them how much there was to judge, and to be told.   But they just didn’t get it.

Jesus let them know that once he was dead (lifted up) then they would understand who he was. “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me. And he who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him.”   

I can understand the Pharisees to a certain extent… Not really understanding how this man could claim God as his Father, yet at the same time I wonder why they couldn’t, because many people who listened to him that day believed in him.  Jesus only talked about what God taught him.  Jesus did nothing on his own choosing.  He simply did what he was supposed to, said what he was supposed, and always knew that God was there for him.  Why?   He always did the things that pleased God. 

Can you imagine that?  Always doing the things that pleased God.  It just amazes me sometimes the example we have in Christ.  Knowing he only taught what he was taught, only lived as he aught to live, only doing what God wanted him too.  Such a clear and perfect example is he.   I know people cant’ say the same about me.  Wouldn’t it be cool if they could?   To know that I have learned to follow him so clearly that people can see him, can see God in me all the time?   It’s a lofty goal to live for.