January 4

GENESIS 4
“But it was just a nickel. . . .” I had stolen it from my Dad’s dresser. I knew he kept his loose change there. It was an act for which I felt incredible guilt. My intent was to go around the block and buy a pack of baseball cards. On the way my nose intersected with a brick which had been thrown by another kid at someone other than me. I had the misfortune of riding my bike between them on my way to the store. It knocked me off of my bike. I was bleeding profusely and in incredible pain. Leaving my bike, I ran home. All the way home I heard in my mind, “It was because you stole the nickel.” Now you might be saying, “But it was just a nickel. God wouldn’t punish you in that way.” But was it a punishment or a warning? I can tell you this, “I was never again tempted to steal my dad’s loose change.” By the way, I healed quickly. The kid, who threw the brick, actually walked my bike back to the house and apologized. Although My nose is a bit crooked, I do not think that it is a result of intersecting with that brick.
Cain performed an act that most of us would consider very terrible, certainly worse than stealing a nickel, or is it? Yet God dealt very gently with him. He warned him before he committed murder. He asked him questions to force him to see his own guilt after he committed the murder. He even gave him some relief when he cried out for mercy. Cain certainly didn’t show Abel any mercy. What’s up with this? I thought God was just. Shouldn’t He have taken his life? God is merciful to each one of us. His Spirit warns us through our conscience before we sin. His Spirit convicts us of our sin after we commit it. The warnings and convictions are for our good. They are there to lead us to repentance. Sin is sin. It is not just a nickel. Theft is sin. Sin deserves death. But it is the glory of God to work with us and show us mercy by giving us time to repent and return to Him. Eventually, His patience comes to an end and judgment comes. But in the mean time, He calls and waits for us to repent. That is His glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

PSALM 4
I remember the early days of our relationship. Laura’s face would literally brighten when she saw me. I cannot put into words how fulfilling that is to me. Here is the person of my choice, and she brightens when she sees me. “Lord, lift up the light of Your countenance upon us.” That word for countenance is literally face. Listen to what the Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (TWOT) says of this word:

This particular word always occurs in the plural, perhaps indicative of the fact that the face is a combination of a number of features. As we shall see below, the face identifies the person and reflects the attitude and sentiments of the person. As such, panim can be a substitute for the self or the feelings of the self. . . . A “shining” face is evidence of joy. . . . Most of these idioms and phrases are also applied to God. God’s face “shines” as a sign of favor and good will.

To ask God for the light of His countenance upon us is to ask Him to be joyful about us. It is to ask for His favor upon us. It is to ask the person of greatest worth to treasure us. It is to ask the person of our choice to enjoy us. It is to ask Him to fulfill us. It is to crave Him, to desire Him. It is more than just a smile of joy. It is to know that He is pleased with us. Remember in the movie Chariots of Fire where Eric Liddell says, “I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure.” That is Eric experiencing the light of God’s countenance. God has indeed made us for a purpose. That purpose is related to how He made us physically, mentally and spiritually. When we seek Him to fulfill that purpose, God experiences inexpressible joy in our seeking. He in turn sheds the light of His countenance, His pleasure, upon us. It is ecstatic.
This is the divine romance. Nothing is more pleasurable to me than when my wife joyfully responds to my pursuit of her. Nothing is more deadening to me than when my wife ignores my pursuit of her. Nothing is more deadening to my wife than when I expect her to respond to me when I have not pursued her. I would hope that nothing is more life giving to her than when I have pursued her, and she responds. Our marriages are to reflect the marriage of Christ and the church. He pursues us, but do we respond to Him? The divine romance is that He pursues us and we respond by pursuing Him. Is it any wonder that there is such a lack of divine life in our congregations when there is such a lack of response on our part to His pursuit of us?
In mountains near Ashville, North Carolina, lies the Biltmore Estate. Built by George Vanderbilt near the turn of the 20th century, it is America’s largest single family dwelling. It rests on 8,000 acres of land. The house has his and her bedrooms. One is at one end of the mansion; the other is at the other end of the mansion. Each bedroom is larger than my house. It is a couple of minute walk from one bedroom to the other. I understand that the Vanderbuilts only had one child. I really don’t know, but it sounds like their sleeping arrangement might have had something to do with it. It sounds like there was a problem with pursuit and response. In the midst of opulence and wealth, there was very little offspring life. Sounds like the American church.
Could it be that we have failed to respond to His pursuit of us? Could it be that as the culture around us turned the glory of our Groom into shame that too few of us were angered by it? Could it be that those who were angered by it responded in a sinful way? Could it be that we have failed to meditate upon our beds concerning the ecstasies of the righteousness of our Groom? Could it be that when He was pursuing us to let the light of His countenance fall upon us, we were ho-hum about it thinking, “Who will show us any good?” Would that not deaden His pursuit of us?
Is it not time for us to cry out to Him, “Lord, lift up the light of Your countenance upon us!” If we responded in such a way, would He not pour out gladness in our hearts? Would it not bring joy in excess of this world’s wealth or wine? Would we not then lie down in peace in sleep? Would we not then experience true safety? Would it not produce an overflow of glory to His name? Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

EZRA 4
If God can move the heart of Cyrus the Great, king of Persia to order and finance the rebuilding of the temple, surely he can also move upon the hearts of the people living in Jerusalem upon the return of the Jews. Why doesn’t he do that? Surely He is able. Therefore, this is something He has permitted. Why does He do things like that? Even in the midst of God accomplishing His grand scheme in history, He still seeks to do it in such a way that He causes us that we willingly bring our own hearts for the accomplishment of His plans. The time span from the death of Cyrus the Great to the ascension of Darius I is about 8 years. Therefore the minimum amount of time from Cyrus’ decree for the Jews to return to the incident recorded in today’s passage is a minimum of 8 years. In all likelihood it was at least 12 years. Motyer figures that it was 18 years from Cyrus’ decree to when Haggai proclaimed his prophecies exhorting the people to finish the temple.
Why after 8-12 years was only the foundation of the temple built? The answer is found in our own hearts that are easily dissuaded from following the Lord. The Lord is showing us how easily we can be discouraged and stop the work that He has called us to do. It can come in the form of direct opposition as it did from the people who discouraged the returnees when they wrote a letter to Darius. But the returnees had already been dragging their feet. I would think that 8-10 years was more than enough time to build more than just a foundation. Why doesn’t the Lord move the obstacles? He wants to show the people their hearts first. That is part of His glory. He desires to change our hearts with our cooperation. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John

MATTHEW 4
The Son of God is led by the Holy Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. Adam was a man without sin. When he was tempted in a paradise to eat what He shouldn't, he yielded even though his yielding was not out of a physical hunger. After all, he was surrounded by delicious fruit that was his for the picking. He simply desired the fruit more than he desired obedience to his Creator. Jesus is a man without sin. He fasted for 40 days. The physiological sensation of hunger at the end of a 40 day fast is far greater than most people will ever experience. Satan capitalized upon the situation in order to bring the fullest temptation possible to Jesus to misuse His power to meet his need of food. Jesus resisted.
Adam sought to force God to find him by hiding in the bushes. Satan sought to tempt Jesus to force God to reveal His care for Jesus by throwing Himself from the temple pinnacle. Jesus was a man and God. Yet no one to this point really recognized who Jesus was. As a man, He was tempted to the fullest extent to receive a public affirmation of His identity. Jesus remained content in who He was no matter if anyone else ever knew.
Adam brought ruin upon all posterity by his sin. Jesus came to deliver Adam's entire race through His agonizing death. Satan tempted Jesus to bypass the agony of his mission by simply worshipping him. Jesus felt the full power of that temptation in a manner greater than any of us will ever experience it. Yet He is without sin. Our Lord, as a man, felt every temptation that we can feel and yet remained sinless. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John