Jacob was led to believe that his son Joseph was dead, and his entire world came crashing down around him. His grief so consuming, that Jacob descended into that dark abyss of being beyond comforted. This may be you today, overwhelmed with distress & mourning… and so for a short time you may turn away from others. But don’t turn your back on God…for He truly understands the grief you’re going through, and He’s there to console you as only He can. (Psalm 94:19)
Our confidence in God’s promises must come from our trust in Jesus Christ. For all God’s promises were begun to be fulfilled in Christ’s First Coming, and they will be consummated at His Second Coming. Charles Spurgeon once wrote about God’s faithfulness to His promises like this, “In the same way the sun never grows weary of shining nor a stream flowing, it’s God’s nature to keep His promises. Therefore, go immediately to His Throne and say, ‘Do as You promised.'” We too can have that kind of assurance…that God’s graciously given, sincere & pure promises will never fail…or as II Corinthians 1:20 tells us, “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ.”
The other day as I grabbed a Devotional book that once belonged to my decreased Mother, a slip of paper fluttered to the ground & I immediately recognized her beautiful handwriting. On the paper was written the Scripture above, and by the looks of the faltering penmanship, it was near the time of her death. What comfort this must have been to her…knowing that God placed such value on her that even though she didn’t deserve it, God sent His Son, Jesus, to die in her place that she might have eternal life. What encouragement she must have had in this Scripture to trust in the steadfast & unchanging faithfulness of her Savior as she herself was going through life-ending changes. What consolation she must have gained by His grace being poured out on her…His unearned & unmerited favor… as she looked forward to heaven.
When we’re going through unbearable suffering & grief, God doesn’t expect a stoic response from us…and the Book of Lamentations is a good example of not just the venting of despair, but looking closely at God’s perspective in the midst of that despair. For without His great love, compassion, kindness, & mercy all creation would cease to exist. Job 34:15 explains it like this, “If it were His intention and He withdrew His Spirit and breath, all mankind would perish…” This Common Grace as it’s called, shows how compassionate & gracious God is, that He’s slow to anger, and abounding in love & faithfulness towards all. (Exodus 34:6) And so even in the middle of suffering we have everything we need forever in the person of Jesus Christ. So take ahold of His hand.
Within this one verse is the fulfillment of many Old Testament prophecies. Leviticus 23:40 gives directions that during the Feast of Tabernacles the people are to celebrate and rejoice before the Lord their God with palm fronds & leafy branches. In Psalm 118:25-29 it starts out with, “Oh Lord, save us!” Which is the Hebrew word from which the New Testament Greek word “Hosanna” can be traced to. And then we have Zechariah 9:9 that foretells of the coming of Zion’s King…the Messiah. “Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See your King comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” Showing that Israel no longer would rely on military strength (strong stallion war horses) but on the Prince of Peace. (a gentle donkey foal) Finally, we can see Daniel’s prophecy fulfilled as he sees The Anointed One coming. (Daniel 9:24-27)
Psalm 88 is a lament that vividly expresses the distress of the Psalmist as he grieves the loss of those he loves. There is real honesty in these verses as he articulates his feelings of abandonment, helplessness & hopelessness in the darkness of anguish. But underneath all his despair is a glimmer of hope…a confidence in God and the faith to persevere through the suffering. Most times we lament to God, “If You really loved me, you wouldn’t allow this to happen.”…looking at God’s love through our circumstances and the suffering we’re experiencing. When we should really be looking at our suffering through the truth of God’s love for us. Ephesians 3:14-19 is an excellent display of the Lord’s love, showing us clearly Christ’s love for His people…a love that is inclusive, inexhaustible, and self-sacrificing. So when the darkness of grief abounds in your soul, know that God hears you in the darkness & is right there beside you.
Instead of the Jewish leadership recognizing the mighty hand of God in the resurrection of Lazarus, they plotted how to quickly dispose of him. Rather than acknowledging the miracle of a corpse being recalled back to life, they only saw Lazarus as a threat to their positions. For in this twisted popularity contest, they saw themselves losing to Jesus as He gained more followers. And this only fed to their insecurities…endangering their authority, and jeopardizing their power over the people. They couldn’t deny that Lazarus was indeed walking among them…but if they had anything to do with it, it wouldn’t be for too long.
When God places a burning bush on your path, there’s no time to get ready…You need to be ready. The burning bush that caught Moses’s attention symbolized God’s Presence…revealing Himself & His all-consuming holiness as He called Moses into service. Just think of all the wasted time if Moses had questioned or doubted what he saw, or if he had told God, “I need to get ready first before I’m available.” So we also need to be prepared at any given moment to be used of God with willingness & obedience…for we’ll never know when a burning bush will appear before us.
Here Jesus was addressing Judas Iscariot after Judas had made a heartless & inconsiderate remark about Mary pouring an extravagant amount of Nard on the feet of Jesus & wiping them with her hair. Judas only saw the beautiful expression of love & devotion as a terrible waste – thus belittling the gift, the giver, & the recipient. Jesus was quick to come to Mary’s defense knowing that His time was near, and the opportunities to be in His presence & serve Him here on earth would never come again.
Just as yesterday’s post showed how Caiaphas’s utterance was solely directed by God…so this Scripture shows how very little we have control of. Human will & exertion are nothing before the supreme Will & authority of God. Take for instance God’s words to Pharaoh in Exodus 9:16, “But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you My power and that My Name might be proclaimed.” Pharaoh might of thought he was the most powerful man on earth & had the Jews right where he wanted them…but in reality, he was a mere pawn in God’s hands to be used for His glory. Or we could look at Balaam, a pagan prophet with a considerable reputation for supernatural powers who was hired by the Moabite king, Balak, to curse the Israelites. Three times Balaam started his oracle & three times his curses turned into blessings for the Jewish people. We may think we’re in control, but as Proverbs 16:9 tells us, “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.”
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