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Man’s Good Vs. God’s Best

Reflect:
Genesis 11:4

Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”

You might read this story about the Tower of Babel and wonder, like I did, what’s so bad about Babel? I mean, was God just having a bad day or something? After all, it’s not often you see unity of purpose and effort achieved among human beings like this. The United Nations could learn a lesson here!

So why did God look upon what these folks were doing and say, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.” (Genesis 11:6-7) And with that, he put an end to their efforts, confused their language, and scattered them across the face of the earth. (Genesis 11:8-9)

UnknownThe problem was not the tower they were trying to build, nor their effort to achieve unity among the nations. In large part, public work projects and united efforts are a good thing. But in this case, good was the enemy of best. You see, after the great flood of Genesis 7-8, God had told these nations to scatter across the earth, repopulate it and establish human civilization wherever they went. (Genesis 9:1,7) In fact, this was a critical piece of the covenant God made with Noah and his descendants (Genesis 9:8-9), and was likely the reestablishment of the original covenant God had made with but had been forfeited by Adam. (Genesis 1:26-30)

What was wrong with Babel? Simply this: Disobedience, pride and independence from God. Instead of fully devoting themselves to God’s command, they thought they could do it better. They chose to go it alone. And God put a stop to it!

Babel represents any good of humankind divorced from obedience, humility and dependence upon God!

That’s always the problem with human beings, including you and me, isn’t it? Every single day, we wrestle with who is going to be God in our lives. Rather than seeking and doing what God says, we seek and do what we want to do. Of course, we acknowledge God to a degree, but then we pursue what we want. With regularity, we twist Jesus’ well known prayer of submission into, “God, not your will but mine be done!”

Stop and think about that today. Is there a Tower of Babel in your life—something that seems so good; something that makes sense to those around you; something that would advance your comfort, security and name? Remember, what looks good to you may in fact be the enemy of God’s best for you! Maybe it’s a purchase you are considering, a plan you are making, a relationship you are considering, or…you fill in the blanks.

Peter Marshall, the venerable Chaplain of the U.S. Senate in the mid-twentieth century, once prayed, “Save Thy servants from the tyranny of the nonessential. Give them the courage to say ‘No’ to everything that makes it more difficult to say ‘Yes’ to Thee.”

Revolt from the tyranny of the nonessential. Have the courage to say ‘No’ to everything that makes it more difficult to say ‘Yes’ to God!

That’s a great prayer: saying no to the good and yes to the Best!  Why don’t you join me in praying that prayer all this week?

Prayer: “Dear God, Your will, nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. Amen!”  

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You Must Master It

Reflect: Genesis 4:6-7

The LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry?  Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?  But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.”

There are occasions, of course, when anger is appropriate.  But let’s be honest, that’s not very often.  Benjamin Franklin once said, “Anger is never without a reason, but seldom with a good one.”

Proverbs 29:11 says that only “a fool gives full vent to his anger.”  How many times have you proven that platitude to be true?  If you’re like me, at least once, probably more!

The truth is, it is next to impossible to be angry and intelligent at the same time.  To be sure, some anger is good. Channeled anger has been the motivation for much of the justice and societal change that has benefited the human family over time.  Even the Bible indicates the appropriateness of righteous anger.  But—and this is a big one—only if the anger is wrapped in intelligent thought!

So the question is, how do we win out over anger, rid ourselves of it before it either corrodes or destroys our most significant relationships, and turn it into an emotion that propels us toward positive personal growth?

AngerThe story of Cain here in Genesis 4:1-14 is a great case study. Unfortunately for Cain (and for Abel!), anger was not brought under control. But from Cain’s failure comes several anger management principles we would be wise to embrace.

To begin with, from Cain we learn that our very first response to the emotion of anger ought to be self-analysis. In other words, whenever I find myself getting upset, I ought to stop and say, “What does this say about me?”  You will notice in the story how God attempts to get Cain to look within himself at the source of his anger:  “Then the LORD said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry?  Why is your face downcast?” (Genesis 4:6)

In essence, God is telling Cain that before he reacts, he ought to reflect.

Our first and best response to anger is simply to think about it. That simple action would keep us from so much of the hardship that results from our uncontrolled anger. William Penn wrote, “It is he who is in the wrong who first gets angry.” In reality, anger reveals what kind of person I am—what is really in my heart, my true character. C.S. Lewis said,

“Surely what a man does when he is taken off his guard is the best evidence for what sort of man he is. If there are rats in a cellar, you are most likely to see them if you go in very suddenly. But the suddenness does not create the rats; it only prevents them from hiding. In the same way, the suddenness of the provocation does not make me ill-tempered; it only shows me what an ill-tempered man I am.”

So if you find yourself reacting in anger, ask yourself what the presence of anger is saying about your spirit or your character. Practice “slowing” … what James 1:19-20 says is being, “Quick to listen…slow to speak…slow to anger!”

Develop the discipline of stopping to think it through!

Another crucial lesson this story teaches is that our response is more important than the circumstances that cause the anger. The truth is, what happens to me is never as important as what happens in me. That what God is saying to Cain: “If you do what is right, you’ll be accepted…”  (Genesis 4:7) God doesn’t address the fairness or unfairness of what’s happened; he just says, “Cain, do the right thing!”

When situations arise that disappoints me, I can either unleash an emotional reaction or I can offer an intelligent response that honors my walk with God and releases his blessings in my life.

Finally, Cain’s story teaches us that we are accountable to God for our anger. When Cain fails to do the right thing and instead, murders his brother, God calls to him to account: “Where is your brother?” (Genesis 4:9-12)

What we must remember is that one day we will stand before God and give account for our lives, including the inappropriate display of our anger. Jesus said in Matthew 12:36 that on judgment day, we’ll be answerable even for every idle word we speak. We won’t be able to say on that day, “My wife made me do it…my husband pushed me too far…my kids drove me nuts…the devil made me do it…I was genetically predisposed to anger…” If we try that excuse, God will look at us and say, “I expected you to master it, and you didn’t.”

We’re accountable for anger!

Angry feelings are inevitable. We can’t escape them, but our anger doesn’t have to destroy the people we love—and in the process, cause our own spirits to shrivel. If we do the right thing with our anger, God says to us just as he said to Cain, “you will be blessed!”

Prayer… Father, thank you for making me response-able.  With your help, I will give diligent effort to master the emotion of anger and the sin that is crouching behind it so that I can turn it into a response that glorifies you and makes me blessable before you.  

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It All Starts With God

Reflect: Genesis 1:1

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”

If you accept the Bible to be true, that it was inspired by the Holy Spirit and that it is the authoritative Word of God, then this opening sentence in Genesis 1:1 is nothing less than explosive—the most important statement ever uttered in human language! Think about it:

“In the beginning, God created…”

That is more than just a good opening line to a great novel. It is the fulcrum by which everything moves in your life.  Or at least it should be!

god-creates-man-sistine-chapelWhat do those words tell us? Simply, yet profoundly, this: It all starts with God (by the way, go to the end of the book and you will see that it all ends with God too!) He created everything that exists—all the planets, all the systems that bring order to the universe, all the life that exists in the created order. He designed it, built it, owns it, sustains it (a fact invisible to all but the spiritually aware) and therefore—get this—has a right to rule over it as he chooses.

The Creator gets to set the rules—it is his work, after all! And that includes ruling over you. Your very existence, every breath, abilities, accomplishments and aspirations for the future are from him and therefore should be for him. Remember, he is the Creator.

So the question every person, including you, must ask is, “does he truly own me? Am I living for him—which is only fair, since he created both me and everything at my disposal—or am I living for my own pleasure and to accomplish my own purposes?”

Remember, if you accept the fact that it all starts with God, there is no other logical conclusion than to recognize his total rulership over all the details of your life. If you don’t recognize his ownership of you, then you can go your own way—the Creator made you with that choice. But that does not lessen the truth that he is the Creator and still has right of rule over you (a reality that will come home to roost some day).

Now if you accept God’s rulership, then here is something else you would do well to remember; it is repeated throughout Genesis 1: What he created, including what he had in mind when he created you, is “good.”

“And God saw that it was good.”

And what you can conclude from that oft repeated analysis is that his plans for those who honor his right to rule will also experience his good rule over their existence—present and future.

The Creator owns you—and that is good!  So honor his right to lovingly rule your life, and let the good times roll.

Prayer… Creator God, you rule. You rule over this world and you rule over my life. Forgive me when I live in ignorance of, or even in complete disregard of that truth. Today, I acknowledge and surrender control to you and your purposes. Fulfill your good plan through me, I pray.

 

 

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Forever!

5×5×5 Bible Plan

Read: Revelation 22
Meditation: Revelation 22:5

“And they will reign forever and ever.”

Shift Your Focus… Today we come to the end of the Bible, and in this chapter, the description of the beginning of the rest of eternity. As beautifully alluring as John’s words are, they certainly cannot capture what it will be like in God’s presence for all eternity.

But we do know that no longer will there be the taint of sin’s curse:  “No longer will there be any curse.”  (verse 3).

We know that evil will no longer be permitted in God’s recreated world: “Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.” (verse 15).

We know that God himself will physically be among us: “The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light.” (verses 3-5).

We know that God will assign us to eternally rule over his boundless creation, universe beyond universe, as his partners in Divine love, grace and justice: “And they will reign for ever and ever.” (verse 5)

We know that in God’s eternity, we are invited to experience the full satisfaction of our beings that only God can supply: “Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.” (verse 17).

And we know that even though time no longer exists there, we will be no closer to exhausting God’s love and grace a billion years into eternity than when we first begun.

The end will just be the beginning of dwelling with God himself in the perfection of his glorious presence.

And all we can say is what John said, “Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!” (verse 20)

“One should go to sleep as homesick passengers do, saying, ‘Perhaps in the morning we shall see the shore.’” ~Henry Ward Beecher

Prayer… Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

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It Is Finished—Finally

5×5×5 Bible Plan

Read: Revelation 21
Meditation: revelation 21:6

“It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End.”

Shift Your Focus… The Great Finisher—that’s who God is.  What he begins, he finishes, and what he finishes he finishes well.

It Is Finished—Part I: In Genesis 2:2 we read that “on the seventh day God had finished his work of creation, so he rested from all his work.” For six days, God had created the universe, and after he had finished each day’s work, he pronounced, “It is good.”

Especially good was God’s divine artistry with the earth itself. It was the perfect environment for the highest of his creation, man. It was a place so amazing that God himself physically strolled with man and woman every day in the wonder and beauty of the divine creation. But then the human couple messed it up by rebelling against God, choosing to sin instead of trusting their Creator.

It Is Finished—Part II: Fast-forward thousands of years to Christ, when in the fullness of time, God stepped back into his creation to recreate what man had corrupted. The Bible calls Jesus “the second Adam.” The second member of the Holy Trinity, God the Son, became a man, lived a sinless life, and died the perfect sacrifice to redeem what man had lost in Eden—a right relationship with Creator God.

When Jesus hung on the cross, paying the awful price for the sin of the world, he breathed his last breath and said, “It is finished.” He had fully transacted the work of redemption, and as indescribably painful, physically, emotionally and spiritually as that was, it, too, was good.

It Is Finished—Part III: But that’s not all—fast-forward at least two thousand years into the future to a date not yet set but quickly drawing near.

After Christ’s sacrifice, there was still a world with whom this Good News needed to be shared. Opportunity still had to be given for sinful man to repent, experience redemption and be brought back into that perfect place God had originally intended in the Garden.

Sadly, much of the world would stubbornly reject this great redemptive “do-over”. Satan, the god of this world, had blinded the eyes of sinful man. So after the appropriate time had been given for repentance, God brought judgment upon sin, Satan, and stubborn humanity. Everything that had stood in rebellion against this gracious, patient God was cast into eternal punishment. And the sin-corrupted earth—what was once God’s most perfect creation—was destroyed by God’s holy fire.

Then the God, who always finishes what he begins, said once again, “it is finished.” And what is revealed next is so good that it defies description: a new earth. Read John’s description slowly, and as best you can, picture in your mind what God has in store for his redeemed—which includes you and me:

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, ‘Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.’” (Revelation 21:1-3)

Best of all, once again, you and I will walk personally and physically with God himself. As Adam and Eve once enjoyed unhindered, uninterrupted fellowship with their Father Creator, so shall we.

And if you have any doubts about the truth of this promise, hear the words of the Great Finisher himself,

“And the one sitting on the throne said, ‘Look, I am making everything new!’ And then he said to me, ‘Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.’” (Revelation 21:5)

Blessed is the one who hears God say, “it is finished” for the third time, for it too, will be “good!”

“If our Creator has so bountifully provided for our existence here, which is but momentary, and for our temporal wants, which will soon be forgotten, how much more must He have done for our enjoyment in the everlasting world!” ~Hosea Ballou

Prayer… Father God, I can only imagine what my future home will be like. And best of all, I will be able to commune in perfect fellowship with you, just as Adam once did. Until that day, I will faithfully love, serve and obey you, and long for your appearing.

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Why The Millennium?

5×5×5 Bible Plan

Read: Revelation 20
Meditation: Revelation 20:4

“I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been who given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years.”

Shift Your Focus… At the end of the earth’s time, after the battle of Armageddon, the most amazing epoch of human history will be ushered in—the millennium.

It will be a time when Satan will be bound for a thousand years and thrown into the bottomless pit (verses 1-3). He will no longer be able to deceive the nations, manipulate institutions to do evil, and tempt people into sin. Imagine that—a world without the devil’s manipulations. That is a perfect world—heaven on earth.

It will also be a time when the people of God rule the earth with Christ’s authority (verses 4-6). They will judge—what they will judge is unclear. It may mean sitting in judgment over all created beings, or it could mean having authority over the nations that have survived the great tribulation. Whatever the case, they will reign with Jesus Christ on Planet Earth for one thousand years.

Then at the end of the thousand years, Satan will be released from the bottomless pit for a short season (verses 7-9). How long that season will be is unclear, but it will be long enough to deceive many people from among the nations over whom the saints have been ruling and reigning during this millennium period.

Amazingly, after living in the perfect conditions of peace, prosperity, health and happiness during the thousand-year reign of Christ, some people will still turn back to Satan. Such is the power of his deception (he truly is the “father of lies” as Jesus called him) and the power of sin in the heart of unredeemed humanity. I agree with C.S. Lewis, who believed that “the damned are, in one sense, successful, rebels to the end; that the doors of hell are locked on the inside.” The millennium will be not all that unlike the Garden of Eden—perfect in every way, and yet man still chooses sin.

Perhaps that is the main purpose of the millennium: for God to test the hearts (free will) of those who came out of the great tribulation—to see if they would truly love and serve him and choose righteousness when given an alternative.

At the end of this season, however, God will quickly dispatch Satan, this time for good, into the lake of fire (verse 10). And then the final judgment begins—the Great White Throne judgment. This will be a time when the wicked are judged, from all of human history, and they, like the beast and the false prophet, like Satan himself, will be cast into the Lake of Fire for all eternity.

And last of all, both death and the grave will be tossed into that eternal lake as well (verse 14). Sin’s worst consequence, man’s worst enemy—death itself—will be banished forever and ever.

So ends the millennium, wrapping up all the loose ends of sin and its consequences. And now, we are ready for the great “do-over”. Chapters 21-22 will describe life from eternity forward as God originally intended, now recreated for those who have loved him, this time without the possibility of Satan, sin, and suffering.

To be continued…

“Satan, as a master, is bad; his work much worse; and his wages worst of all.” ~Thomas Fuller.”

Prayer… Lord Jesus, how grateful I am that I have been redeemed, and as such, I have no fear of the final judgment and no part in the second death. Your blood has fully and forever covered my sin. Now I am safe and secure for all eternity.

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Merry Christmas

5×5×5 Bible Plan

Read: Luke 2
Meditation: Luke 2:10-11

The angel said to the shepherds, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

Shift Your Focus… It was the Sunday before Christmas, and a little brother and sister were in church singing a Christmas hymn with the congregation. And as the song finished, the boy belted out rather loudly, “sleep in heavenly beans.” His sister gave him the most righteously indignant stare she could muster, and in a not-too-soft whisper said, “It’s not ‘heavenly beans’. It’s ‘sleep in heavenly peas.’”

As you know, they both butchered the words of the most well-loved Christmas hymn of all time. What you may not know is that back in 1818 that hymn was born. The birthplace was St. Nicholas Church in a small Austrian alpine village where a 31-year-old church organist by the name of Franz Gruber composed a melody on his guitar because the church organ was broken. The melody was for a poem that had been written earlier by the 26-year-old pastor of that church, Joseph Mohr. The poem was entitled, “Stille Nacht”, and the melody quickly formed in Gruber’s mind.

On that evening, in time for Midnight Mass, the world’s most famous Christmas Carol was heard for the very first time. It’s the same song that by tradition believers still sing every year during the season of Advent. It’s the song, “Silent Night.”

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon Virgin,
Mother and Child
Holy Infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace.

Now I don’t want to spoil your Thomas Kincade image of “Silent Night”, but I’m not too sure how “calm” and “bright” the night of Christ’s birth was. The Bible tells us that Mary’s pregnancy had been suspect in the eyes of her village from the beginning. She had been unmarried when the news arrived that she’d be pregnant with the Messiah by the power of the Holy Spirit. Not too many of the townsfolk had bought that story, and she likely became the object of their cruel and incessant gossip.

Then when the time came for the baby’s birth, Mary and Joseph had been required to travel by foot the arduous journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem, not an easy trip for anyone in those days, especially for a woman in the late stages of pregnancy. When they arrived, they were forced to stay in a stable because the inn had no room. And there among the squalor of the smelly, noisy animals, alone, with no family to rejoice with her, no mid-wife to assist her, a teenage virgin girl gave birth to the king of the world. And if Jesus was like most infants, like my two daughters when they were born, there was anything but peace and quiet that night.

Yet in the simple, humble, unlikely birth of Jesus, something Divine, something Eternal was released on Planet Earth. As someone has pointed out, the best Christmas present ever was wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in the manger. Franz Gruber truly did capture that indescribable, priceless gift with the words, “heavenly peace.” That night, God invaded earth, and heavenly peace was left in the wake of the Divine invasion. The angels who announced the Christ’s birth to the nearby shepherds couldn’t have put it any better,

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace on whom his favor rest.

The infant Jesus may not have slept in heavenly peace that night, Mary and Joseph may not have enjoyed a peaceful night’s rest either, but God’s peace invaded earth that night in Bethlehem, and you and I on this Christmas Day are its beneficiaries.

So let me ask you a very important question: Are you benefiting from God’s peace? Is the peace of God, as Paul called it in Philippians 4, “guarding your heart and mind in Christ Jesus”? Is the peace of Christ, as Colossians 3 describes, “ruling in your heart”?

Perhaps the peace that passes all understanding is the last thing characterizing your life today. Maybe worry, anxiety, fear and stress dominate your world at the moment. My friend, God wants you to have his heavenly peace. That is his gift, wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger, and the gift is just for you!

Now God’s peace is neither a blanket guarantee of global harmony nor a promise that your life will be conflict-free. It is just simply saying that if you are in God’s favor, which comes by virtue of accepting his Son as your Lord and Savior, his peace will guard your mind, it will rule your heart, and it will sustain your life.

The “heavenly peace” that Gruber wrote about and the angels announced is God’s gift to you this Christmas, even if your world seems a long way from being peaceful. It is simply the peace that comes from knowing that in the birth of Christ, eternity irrevocably invaded time and God drew near to you and me through Jesus Christ, our Immanuel.

That’s the heavenly peace God wants you to have on this very day, and every day for the rest of your life.

One night the small voice of a little girl was heard from the bedroom across the hall, “Daddy, I’m scared!”

The father’s response came quickly: “Honey, don’t be afraid, daddy’s right across the hall.”

After a brief pause the little voice was heard again, “I’m still scared!”

Again the father responded, “You don’t need to be afraid. God is watching over you.”

There was a longer pause, but the voice returned, “Daddy, I want someone with skin on!”

Jesus is God “with skin on”, and he is right here, right now, forever with you, powerfully present through Christ, who invaded earth for all time at Bethlehem.

And if you have received him by faith, you can sleep in heavenly peace.

“It is good to be children sometimes, and never better than at Christmas, when its mighty Founder was a child Himself.”  ~Charles Dickens

Prayer… O God, how much you loved me that you would give me the best and costliest gift ever, wrapped in swaddling cloths and placed in a manger. Thank you. Once again, on this Christmas Day, I receive the Prince of Peace and invite his peace to rule my heart.