Check out the Summer 2016 edition of the COMPASS from Wesley Biblical Seminary.
http://wbs.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016-Summer-Digital-Compass.pdf
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
God Wants to Mark Us!
I Corinthians 6:19 “Or do you not know that your body is the
temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are
not your own?”
Body marking is all the rage in our culture. Tattooing, cosmetic implants, and bizarre
piercings are everywhere and on all sorts of people.
Those of us who know a little bit
of scripture might quote from the Mosaic Law. “Do not cut your bodies for the
dead, and do not mark your skin with tattoos.
I am the Lord” (Leviticus 19:28 NLT).
The response we are guaranteed to hear, “That is the Old Testament Law!”
Buffaloed for a response, and in a desperate quest to avoid
the taint of legalism, our bluff has just been called, and the Church has
become mute on these very practical matters that impact our lives. Silence.
But people are begging for answers, guidance,
direction. How shall we lead them?
Scripture contains an incredible truth about body
marking. The Bible teaches us two
corresponding truths: our bodies are not
our own and God wants to mark us as His own.
Yes, the Hebrews had prohibitions from God about tattooing
and marking their bodies for the dead.
Tattooing was associated with pagan worship, and God was trying to raise
up a holy nation that was separate from the prevailing influences of the sex
and religion cults of their neighbors. Ancient
people believed that cutting and piercing the skin allowed demons passageways
in and out of the body. The priests of
Baal practiced this sort of physical mutilation on Mount Carmel before their
defeat by the God of Elijah, who brought fire from heaven consuming the
sacrifices Elijah offered.
But there were some marks that God wanted His people of the
Old Covenant to embrace. God provided
Hebrew slaves with the voluntary mark of the love slave.
“And if the servant shall plainly
say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; ‘I will not go,’ then his
master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or
unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl; and
he shall serve him forever.” (Exodus 21:5-6)
Abraham was given the mark of male circumcision for himself
and all of his offspring. The mark of
circumcision became a defining mark in the flesh that identified men as Hebrew.
And God said to Abraham: “As for you, you shall keep My
covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. This
is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your
descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised; and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins,
and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you. He who is eight days
old among you shall be circumcised, every male child in your generations, he
who is born in your house or bought with money from any foreigner who is not
your descendant. He who is born in your house and he who is bought with your
money must be circumcised, and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an
everlasting covenant” (Genesis 17:9-13).
In Ezekiel’s time, God commanded an angel to mark the
foreheads of the righteous prayer warriors who were crying out to God in
repentance for their nation.
"Go through the midst of the
city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and cry over all
the abominations that are done within it" (Ezekiel 9:4).
The Old Testament marks of the love slave’s pierced ear,
male circumcision, and the angelic mark on the forehead of the righteous were
prophetic symbols of the marks described in the New Testament. Here are some incredible Biblical symbols of
God’s mark of holiness upon His people.
• God wants to circumcise our hearts by
faith. “In whom (Jesus) also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made
without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the
circumcision of Christ” (Colossians 2:11).
• God wants to mark us as His Love Slaves.
“But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you
have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life.” (Romans 6:22).
• God wants to place the seal of the Spirit
upon us. “Now he who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us
is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a
guarantee” (II Corinthians 1:21-22).
• God wants to write His law on our hearts.
“I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and
will be their God, and they shall be my people” (Jeremiah 31:33b).
• God wants to write His name upon us. "He who overcomes, I will make him a
pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. And I will write on him the name of My God
and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of
heaven from My God. And I will write on
him My new name” (Revelation 3:12).
These are the spiritual marks I must know. Do you know the
mark of God’s holiness upon your life and character? He longs to mark us.
Tuesday, June 7, 2016
Defending Jesus
Matthew 10:32-33 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven."
Dear Jesus,
I often ask You for courage to stand for You against the aggressive sinful agenda of our culture. I want to be like You. Even in standing, I want a Christ-like spirit. Thank You for hearing my prayer.
William Barclay wrote: "Often a man finds himself in a situation in which he would like to defend Jesus and in which he knows he ought to show his colours. Often he makes a kind of half-hearted defence, and is then reduced to an uncomfortable and ashamed silence. In our defence of Jesus Christ it is better to be reckless with our hearts than prudent with our heads. To stand up for him may bring us mockery and unpopularity; it may even mean hardship and sacrifice. But the fact remains that Jesus said he would confess before his Father the man who confessed him on earth, and deny before his Father the man who denied him on earth. Loyalty to Christ may produce a cross on earth, but it brings a crown in eternity" (In The Gospel of John, vol. 1, 1955, pp. 267-268).
On one level, I suppose that You need no defense. You stand alone as truth. On another level, our living testimony of Your transforming Presence in our lives is essential if Your work is to abide and advance in our lives.
I can acknowledge and identify with You through my words, actions, and silence. In the same three ways, I can just as easily deny You... words, actions, or silence. Help me to acknowledge You today. Empower me to own You, Jesus Christ publicly and privately as my Lord and Savior.
Rebuke me when I would resort to silent shame and embarrassment over You. Urge me past my tentative defense of Your Name. Prompt me to demonstrate my love for You with reckless abandon. Then grant me courage to endure the hardship and suffering that are guaranteed to come. Empower me to live for Your acknowledgement. May You own me in the life to come, as I seek to own You in this life.
I confess You as Lord with words, silence, and action, ever listening to Your prompts and checks. I will witness for You today.
In the Name of Jesus, the Son of God, my Savior and Lord,
Amen.
William Barclay wrote: "Often a man finds himself in a situation in which he would like to defend Jesus and in which he knows he ought to show his colours. Often he makes a kind of half-hearted defence, and is then reduced to an uncomfortable and ashamed silence. In our defence of Jesus Christ it is better to be reckless with our hearts than prudent with our heads. To stand up for him may bring us mockery and unpopularity; it may even mean hardship and sacrifice. But the fact remains that Jesus said he would confess before his Father the man who confessed him on earth, and deny before his Father the man who denied him on earth. Loyalty to Christ may produce a cross on earth, but it brings a crown in eternity" (In The Gospel of John, vol. 1, 1955, pp. 267-268).
On one level, I suppose that You need no defense. You stand alone as truth. On another level, our living testimony of Your transforming Presence in our lives is essential if Your work is to abide and advance in our lives.
I can acknowledge and identify with You through my words, actions, and silence. In the same three ways, I can just as easily deny You... words, actions, or silence. Help me to acknowledge You today. Empower me to own You, Jesus Christ publicly and privately as my Lord and Savior.
Rebuke me when I would resort to silent shame and embarrassment over You. Urge me past my tentative defense of Your Name. Prompt me to demonstrate my love for You with reckless abandon. Then grant me courage to endure the hardship and suffering that are guaranteed to come. Empower me to live for Your acknowledgement. May You own me in the life to come, as I seek to own You in this life.
I confess You as Lord with words, silence, and action, ever listening to Your prompts and checks. I will witness for You today.
In the Name of Jesus, the Son of God, my Savior and Lord,
Amen.
Monday, June 6, 2016
Are You Puzzled?
Matthew 7:7 NKJV "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you."
John 7:333-34 NKJV "Then Jesus said to them, 'I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me. You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come.'"
Isaiah 55:6 NKJV "Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near."
Dear Lord,
Thank You for the invitation to seek You. You are a worthy search. For at the end of the search, You are there.
Saint Augustine wrote: "We were made for Thee and we cannot rest until we rest in Thee."
So we search.
In our desperation, we substitute. Like children playing with their first jigsaw puzzle we try to force incompatible pieces to fit together. They don't fit. We fill the void within us with relationships, achievements, work, stuff, sex, alcohol, and drugs. We turn the pieces and pound them ferociously, demanding that they fit and fill the void within. Our desperate frustration bends, warps, and breaks the very pieces of our lives that we are seeking to force together. Sin distorts and destroys even the potential good.
French Philosopher Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) wrote: “What else does this craving, and this helplessness, proclaim but that there was once in man a true happiness, of which all that now remains is the empty print and trace? This he tries in vain to fill with everything around him, seeking in things that are not there the help he cannot find in those that are, though none can help, since this infinite abyss can be filled only with an infinite and immutable object; in other words by God himself” (Pensees, p. 75 New York; Penguin Books, 1966).
John 7:333-34 NKJV "Then Jesus said to them, 'I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me. You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come.'"
Isaiah 55:6 NKJV "Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near."
Dear Lord,
Thank You for the invitation to seek You. You are a worthy search. For at the end of the search, You are there.
Saint Augustine wrote: "We were made for Thee and we cannot rest until we rest in Thee."
So we search.
In our desperation, we substitute. Like children playing with their first jigsaw puzzle we try to force incompatible pieces to fit together. They don't fit. We fill the void within us with relationships, achievements, work, stuff, sex, alcohol, and drugs. We turn the pieces and pound them ferociously, demanding that they fit and fill the void within. Our desperate frustration bends, warps, and breaks the very pieces of our lives that we are seeking to force together. Sin distorts and destroys even the potential good.
French Philosopher Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) wrote: “What else does this craving, and this helplessness, proclaim but that there was once in man a true happiness, of which all that now remains is the empty print and trace? This he tries in vain to fill with everything around him, seeking in things that are not there the help he cannot find in those that are, though none can help, since this infinite abyss can be filled only with an infinite and immutable object; in other words by God himself” (Pensees, p. 75 New York; Penguin Books, 1966).
Imago Dei--Your image in me, crafted in Creation, marred by Adam's sin, obscured by my own, nevertheless lingers. The image glistens with a twinkle of goodness, reminding me of You. Your prevenient grace beckons me forward into Your heart. You call me to seek You, my Creator who knows me best.
William Barclay wrote: "So long as sin still hurts us, and the unattainable good still beckons us, the chance to seek and find is still there. But a man must have a care lest he grow so used to sin that he does not know that he is sinning and neglect God so long that he forgets that He exists. For then the sense of need dies, and if there is no sense of need, we cannot seek, and if we cannot seek, we will never find. The one thing a man must never lose is his sense of sin" (In The Gospel of John, vol. 1, 1955, pp. 258-259).
Lord, bring our puzzling search to an end, until we rest in You.
William Barclay wrote: "So long as sin still hurts us, and the unattainable good still beckons us, the chance to seek and find is still there. But a man must have a care lest he grow so used to sin that he does not know that he is sinning and neglect God so long that he forgets that He exists. For then the sense of need dies, and if there is no sense of need, we cannot seek, and if we cannot seek, we will never find. The one thing a man must never lose is his sense of sin" (In The Gospel of John, vol. 1, 1955, pp. 258-259).
Lord, bring our puzzling search to an end, until we rest in You.
Thank You for making me to know You.
Amen.
Friday, June 3, 2016
But I Don't Understand!
John 7:15-18 The Jews were amazed. "How," they said, "can this fellow read when he is quite uneducated?" "My teaching," said Jesus, "is not mine, but it belongs to him who sent me. If anyone is willing to do his will, he will understand whether my teaching derives from God, or whether I am speaking from no source beyond myself."
Ephesians 3:14-21 KJV For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.
Philippians 3:7-12 KJV But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,
And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;
If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.
Dear Jesus,
Ephesians 3:14-21 KJV For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.
Philippians 3:7-12 KJV But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,
And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;
If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.
Dear Jesus,
The more I study and learn of You, the more I realize I don't know. Your truth is an unending web of interconnectivity. Each component is rich, multi-faceted, and multi-layered within itself. When all of these truths come together in the richness of scripture and Christian thought, they glisten as an unending dew-drenched web in the morning sunlight.
But I don't understand all of it. The more I learn, the more I realize I don't know. The more I don't know, the more intimidated I become. But I cannot turn away in despair. I seek truth, and in You, I find it. You continue to draw me past my ignorance, and into Your heart and mind.
William Barclay wrote: "If we wait until we have understood everything, we will never start at all. But if we begin by doing God's will as we know it, God's truth will become clearer and clearer to us. We learn by doing. If a man says: 'I cannot be a Christian because there is so much of Christian doctrine that I do not understand, and I must wait until I understand it all,' the answer is: 'You never will understand it all; but if you start trying to live the Christian life, you will understand more and more of it as the days go on.' In Christianity, as in all other things, the way to learn is to do" (In The Gospel of John, vol. 1, 1955, p. 251).
William Barclay wrote: "If we wait until we have understood everything, we will never start at all. But if we begin by doing God's will as we know it, God's truth will become clearer and clearer to us. We learn by doing. If a man says: 'I cannot be a Christian because there is so much of Christian doctrine that I do not understand, and I must wait until I understand it all,' the answer is: 'You never will understand it all; but if you start trying to live the Christian life, you will understand more and more of it as the days go on.' In Christianity, as in all other things, the way to learn is to do" (In The Gospel of John, vol. 1, 1955, p. 251).
So, I do what I know to be right, just, and true. The entire web of truth is too complex for me to understand at this moment. But each glistening jewel of the web has been verified as truth to date. Therefore, I pursue truth. I pursue You. I pursue understanding, light, and spiritual illumination through the authority of Your Holy Word and the revelation of Your Holy Spirit to my heart, mind, and step. I take the next step of obedience. I "do" my way to understanding. I "act" my way into knowing.
No, I don't understand all of Your infinite goodness and grace. I cannot comprehend the entirety of Your grace, Your character, Your great salvation, or Your plan for my life. But I know that You are good, and I can trust You. So, I step forward in faith. I behave my way forward, penetrating through the wall of my own thickness, my willfulness, and my dullness, drawn by grace into Your intimate Presence and fulness in my life. Thank You for the invitation to journey ever more deeply into You.
In the Name of the All-Knowing God, Your Son Jesus Christ, and Your ever-present Helper and Comforter who compel me past my ignorance, to know You,
Amen.
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