God’s Scandalous Grace
Unmerited favor. This is the typical definition of the word grace. It sounds nice and I suppose it sort of explains grace in a short pithy statement, but what does that even mean? And is that what God intended for us to understand about his grace? I will boldly declare the answer is no! Grace means much more than “unmerited favor.” It is the act of God in saving and sustaining mankind throughout the Bible and continuing into today. And it is scandalous! The Bible is filled with stories of people making decisions. Some people obeyed God, and he blessed them. Others made poor decisions that had drastic effects on them, and God redeemed those poor decisions for an even greater purpose. Lets look at two of those stories.
First is the story of Abraham.
Abraham is from the Mesopotamian town called Haran. God calls Abraham to leave his father, his culture, his gods, and all he ever knew to follow him. Now Mesopotamia was a cultural hub of the Ancient Near East world in his day. Each tribe of people had their own language, their own gods, and their own identity. When God calls Abraham, in Abraham’s mind he is one of many gods, but the only difference is this specific god calls him, and tells him to follow him into a new land. And out of this new land, Abraham is promised to be the father to offspring that outnumber the stars in the sky and will make Abraham a great name (Gen. 12:1, 15:5). So, like any good follower of their god, he followed.
One evening Abraham asked God how this whole thing was going to happen? God told him to bring him a heifer, a goat, and turtledove, all three years old, and to slice them in half and divide the pieces opposite each other (Gen. 15:9). In Ancient Near East cultures, in order to make a covenant, or agreement between two people, the slicing of these three animals were necessary (sort of like a modern-day pinky promise, but bloodier and much more real). Then each person would walk between these three sliced animals. Why? Because if one person breaks this important covenant, then that person will likewise be sliced in half. Yes, that is correct, sliced in half, blood, guts, and all. To make and oath or covenant was serious business. All they had to offer was their word. There is an interesting twist in this particular covenant. Later in the night, God places Abraham into a deep sleep and explains to Abraham what is going to happen to his promised offspring, the slavery for four hundred years, and the powerful work of redemption by which God would save them. While Abraham is still in this deep sleep the story takes an amazing turn. “When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. On this day the Lord made a covenant with Abram saying, ‘To your offspring I give this land… (Gen. 15:17-18)’” God made the covenant alone! He is alone handling the work and bearing the responsibility of the covenant. Abraham didn’t (and really couldn’t) make this covenant. Any act of disobedience would show that he couldn’t hold his end of the covenant and therefore would lead him to be sliced in half. Rather, God made the covenant by himself. This was the promise that he made to Abraham. In a sense it showed Abraham that this God was serious and he meant business, and thus propelling Abraham in full submission, which attributed him as the father of faith (Gen. 15:6; Heb. 11:8).
This is Grace!
The ultimate outcome of Abraham’s offspring would be Jesus, the promised Messiah and King of Israel and all mankind. He would serve as the judge and redeemer of the world. God’s ultimate grace of salvation through Jesus started with his gracious covenant through Abraham. He did it utilizing the cultural background and understanding of Abraham of his day. God is personal and particular. When we read the stories of the Old Testament and see some of the strange ways that God acted, it helps to understand that what is strange to us was normal to them. When we say that God transcends time, we have to remember that this also means he is active in it across cultural boundaries. He moves in our cultural understandings as much as theirs. Typically we think that God moves in supernatural terms, which he most definitely does, but he doesn’t ignore what we know as natural terms. God’s grace is involved in all details of life. We are not robots by any means, but God lovingly uses our life choices, whether good or bad, for ultimate and greater outcomes.
This leads to the next story of Judah and Tamar.
This story comes at such an odd point in the Genesis narrative (Genesis 38). Genesis 37-50 is all about Abraham’s great-grandson and Judah’s brother Joseph, but the author takes a brief pause in the Joseph story to fill us in on an interesting event about Joseph’s brother Judah.
Judah had three sons, Er, Onan, and Chezib. His oldest son, Er, had a wife named Tamar, but God killed Er because he was so wicked and therefore he had no children. The custom of that day was that the next brother-in-line would marry the wife of the previous brother so she could have offspring for her deceased husband. Unfortunately, in continued wickedness the next son, Onan, would have sexual relations with Tamar, but would refuse to get her pregnant, so God had him killed too. Well, by this time Tamar reasoned with herself that she would find a way to get Judah to impregnate her. She poses as a prostitute, he sleeps with her and she becomes pregnant, with twins. These two illegitimate children were named Perez and Zerah.
This reveals God’s grace in the greatest detail! First, there is no hidden agenda in the story. Judah, his sons, and Tamar are all wicked, and live and act in complete disobedience. However if we notice the genealogy in Matthew 1, it states that Jesus comes from the lineage of Judah, Tamar, and Perez (Matt. 1:3). This is incredible! God did not condone wickedness at all, and two people in this story died because of it, but he still used a horrible decision of Judah and Tamar to bring about the ultimate hope that would come through their son Perez, culminating in the hope found in Jesus.
This is Grace!
What is even more incredible about the placement of this story is that it rests in the middle of the Joseph story. If we read the story of Joseph clearly, we see a man of faith and patience and obedience to God. It would appear that the coming king of Israel would come through the line of Joseph. Nope! Jesus would come through the line of Judah, and not one of Judah’s legitimate sons, but his illegitimate son Perez, who was conceived from a sexually immoral act.
This is Grace!
God’s radical and unfathomable grace in the Old Testament led to the ultimate grace of giving his son Jesus to die for the sins of the world. This act of total redemption set forth the redeeming act of the Holy Spirit through the continued act of proclaiming the good news of Jesus by the Church throughout the entire world today. You and I are not a chess piece in a crazy cosmic chess match. You and I are loved and cherished creatures of an Almighty Creator that allows us to live our lives and make choices. We will make very bad choices and yet in Christ, we are still loved and redeemed (1 John 2:2). God’s grace is salvific in that it is only by his love and patience and providence that we are saved, but it is also sustaining in everything we do. I challenge you to view God’s grace as pervasive in all aspects of your life. Praise God for the fact that your heart beats and for the food he provides. Praise God for seeing you through bad choices, and redeeming you in spite of them. Praise God that through wicked and sinful people, that he sent Jesus to live, die, and rise for us, that in him we have life eternally, and in him we have hope eternally.
This is Grace!
Be Strong and Very Courageous…in God’s Word!
This is a passage from today’s Bible reading through the Rock Church. http://www.sdrock.com/bible/
“Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.” Joshua 1:7-8
When my children were young, my wife and I had them memorize Psalm 1, which eventually became our family life Scripture. I can only think that Joshua’s writings here were probably influential upon David’s poetry. Both my wife and I each came to complete faith in Jesus Christ through the reading of the Bible. It wasn’t through a pastor or through some evangelistic event, but rather through a search of the Scriptures to see if the things of Jesus were true. As a result of this early revelation, we have daily made a commitment to read through the Scriptures together as husband and wife. And this is not a religious duty, obligation or boast, but is rather our life source in love.
We have been overwhelmed by the graciousness of the Lord towards our friends and family as God continues to transform us through His Word. And this we confidently know is a direct relationship to His promise as affirmed above. Jesus desires to lavish upon us His abundant blessings. Yet it is our choices of obedience or rebellion that puts us in the place of directly receiving or negating these blessings. Personally it is this desire for God’s blessings upon your life that I feel compelled to write these thoughts. It is my utmost hope and prayer that you would align your heart’s pursuits within God’s will and destiny for your life. As you fall in love with Jesus, you will fall in love with the Bible and the Word of God will transform you into a faithful witness to carry out the Great Commission with a passion that brings hope to the world.
Does Character Really Matter?
No Longer a Hero
It seems that every couple of months another leader or celebrity athlete is disavowed because of a lack of character. When the recent scandal with Lance Armstrong began, I didn’t believe it because he seemed like such a “good guy” and an example for overcoming adversity. But when the truth came out and his character was exposed, another hero was taken off the pedestal.
Perhaps the most troubling is when it’s a Christian leader. Every time a pastor or TV evangelist falls into sin, the media has a field day, and there are so many negative comments about the church and Christians. Upstanding character isn’t just for leaders or public figures though; God has designed for every Christian to grow to become more Christ-like in their attitudes, motivations, and behaviors. One of the realities is that many people base their perceptions of God on our character! When they observe a lack of integrity or an attitude of always complaining, we misrepresent what it means to live a life of faith in our amazing God.
Jesus put it this way: “…let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16 (NIV)
What kind of life have you been shining before others lately?
There’s a great passage about our growth in godliness that at first glance seems like a paradox, but as you dig deeper, you’ll see that there is a divine partnership between God and us. Take a few minutes today to read 2 Peter 1:3-9. http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20peter%201:3-9&version=NIV
To dig a little deeper, grab your journal to record your thoughts on these questions:
- Read 2 Peter 1:3-4: What do these two verses promise? What is God’s role in our growing in godly character?
- Read 2 Peter 1:5-9: What is our role in growing in godly character? What might hinder you from that growth?
Verse 8 gives a promise that I think every Christian wants a piece of:
“For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
In other words, growing in the character qualities listed in that passage will give you an effective and productive Christian life. That’s the kind of life that I want to live! Let’s make every effort to grow in the godly character qualities that Peter listed, and let’s give God thanks for being at work in us, giving us EVERYTHING that we need for life and godliness!
Dave Stewart
Community Group Pastor
Scripture
As we continue to read the Bible together as a church and community, a passage comes to mind that really makes something very clear but rarely understood.
What is the Bible all about?
The Bible for many believers is about them, they go about reading it looking for THEM in scripture, when in actuality scripture not about us at all, but entirely about JESUS. All of scripture points us to him, each recorded account teaches us something more about Jesus.
This is an important detail because if you are reading a scripture to discover something about yourself you might find something important, but even more important than that is discovering something new about our savior. Jesus shared this with us in John 5:39 “You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me!” – In Other words, seek me for eternal life, without your heart seeking me, scripture is just knowledge from a book.
Jesus was talking with Bible scholars of his day, although HE was the living word, in the chapter we reference here they were memorizing God’s word, studying God’s word, they really knew God’s word but they were also idolizing the word of God instead of worshiping the God of the word.
God’s word is filled with encounters, events and truth…allow God to reveal who HE as you read it, is as we continue to learn more about GOD through scripture, be encouraged to know that as you seek HIM the text on the pages will JUMP out to you in fresh ways.
Check out the Rock Bible Reading Plan at http://www.sdrock.com/bible/
Find Your True Love
In the aftermath of Valentines week, a time when those that are single are reminded of how painfully single they are—which can be more that a little depressing. I thought it appropriate to share some thoughts about true love, especially since the culture communicates something entirely different than what the Bible does.
First, true love is comprised of three components: Romance, Emotional Intimacy, and Commitment. Romance is often referred to as “chemistry”; at it’s most basic level it is physical attraction. If a relationship only has this it is shallow and will fizzle out in time. Emotional Intimacy is about connection; this is when two people share what’s deep within their hearts with no walls, instead of pushing each other away they draw one another closer. If a marriage only has emotional intimacy the spouses become roommates, it can become a passionless relationship. Commitment is all about loyalty. Those involved in relationship with a high level of commitment are not looking for something better but are willing to stick through the tough times and make things work. Any relationship without all three components will eventually breakdown but a relationship with all three is considered “True Love”.
Now the question becomes, “How do you find True Love?” The answer is simple; before you can find your true love you must first find your First Love. The problem that plagues most relational paradigms is that people are looking for the right person, hoping to find wholeness in a relationship, thinking the answer to all their problems is found in Mr./Mrs. right. But the truth is that no one will ever complete you or make your life better. If anything, relationships don’t fix your problems, they expose them. If you want to find true love, you need to stop looking for the right person and start becoming the right person. If you are not the right person, when you find true love you will end up destroying it.
How do you become the right person? Return to your First Love. In the hustle and bustle of life it is easy to forget your First Love. In Revelation 2:2-5 Jesus says, “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary. Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works”. It’s interesting, these people did all the right things, they looked good on the outside, but they had left their first love. The state of their heart did not match the appearance of their lives. Does yours?
What do you do when you realize that you have left your first love? Remember, Repent, and Return. Remember from where you have fallen—can you think of a time when you were more in love with Jesus and aware of His presence than you are today? If you can, remember what it was like. Next, Repent. Realize that if you are farther from God today than you were a few months ago or even a year ago, that is no okay—you need to repent! Finally, return to the first works. There are things you can do to nurture a deep and abiding love of God (e.g. prayer, meditation, solitude, study, etc.), begin engaging in those activities once again.
Don’t let your fire for God dwindle into smoldering ashes, stoke the flames and let your love for the Lord burn brightly. Remember, if you lose your First Love, you’ll never be able to find your true love.
Bamboo Trees and the Art of Perserverance
In the Far East the Asian people plant a tree known as the Chinese Bamboo. During the first four years they water and fertilize the plant despite seeing little or no results. Then during the fifth year, they again water and fertilize the tree – and in five weeks’ time the tree grows ninety feet! The obvious question to ask is: Did the Chinese bamboo tree grow ninety feet in five weeks, or did it grow ninety feet in five years? The answer is: It grew ninety feet in five years. You see, if at any time during those five years the people would have stopped watering and fertilizing the tree, it would have died.
Many times our dreams and plans appear as if they are going nowhere, and we are tempted to give up and quit trying. But on the contrary, we must keep watering and fertilizing those dreams and plans God’s placed inside us. Because we know that if we do not quit, if we show perseverance and endurance, we will also reap a harvest.
As we enter into this exciting new year, take this story, and implement it into your ministry team, your community group, or your own walk with Christ. Remember that outward results may or may not accurately reflect inward realities. Don’t forget that small acts of kindness, often reap huge dividends even if you don’t immediately see the effect. Galatians 6:9 says “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
Bamboo Trees and the Art of Perserverance
In the Far East the Asian people plant a tree known as the Chinese Bamboo. During the first four years they water and fertilize the plant despite seeing little or no results. Then during the fifth year, they again water and fertilize the tree – and in five weeks’ time the tree grows ninety feet! The obvious question to ask is: Did the Chinese bamboo tree grow ninety feet in five weeks, or did it grow ninety feet in five years? The answer is: It grew ninety feet in five years. You see, if at any time during those five years the people would have stopped watering and fertilizing the tree, it would have died.
Many times our dreams and plans appear as if they are going nowhere, and we are tempted to give up and quit trying. But on the contrary, we must keep watering and fertilizing those dreams and plans God’s placed inside us. Because we know that if we do not quit, if we show perseverance and endurance, we will also reap a harvest.
As we enter into this exciting new year, take this story, and implement it into your ministry team, your community group, or your own walk with Christ. Remember that outward results may or may not accurately reflect inward realities. Don’t forget that small acts of kindness, often reap huge dividends even if you don’t immediately see the effect. Galatians 6:9 says “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
It is Written
5 Now the Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. 6 And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, 7 keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.”
8 So Moses made haste and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshiped. 9 Then he said, “If now I have found grace in Your sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray, go among us, even though we are a stiff-necked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us as Your inheritance.”
The Covenant Renewed
10 And He said: “Behold, I make a covenant. Before all your people I will do marvels such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation; and all the people among whom you are shall see the work of the Lord. For it is an awesome thing that I will do with you.
Exodus 34:5-10
Christians are Called, Beloved, and Kept
V.1 Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James, to those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ.
Jude writing to an unknown Christian audience starts his essay-letter by saying they are called, beloved, and kept for Jesus Christ. He rightfully expresses these truisms about the believer due to the theme of his letter. There are false teachers among these true believers. He reminds them of their position in Christ Jesus being called, beloved, and kept, as contending for the faith with the false teachers is unavoidable. These 3 words have powerful implications for the believer.
Lets first examine the word called. The word implies that these Christians were called for a particular task. What were their tasks? Before we answer that question lets explore some other examples of being called in the scriptures. Paul in Romans 1:1 was called to be an Apostle. The life of a believer is called to be saints (cf. Rom. 1:6–7; Eph. 4:1). Paul and Timothy were called to preach the gospel (cf. Acts 16:10). Finally in Jude the calling was to contend for the faith (v. 3), live in purity (v. 20), and persevere (be kept v. 1, and 21). These Christians needed to know that they were beloved and kept by Jesus Christ while being called to content for the faith.
The word beloved means that you are “more than a friend” of God. God the Father used these words to express His deep relationship with His only begotten Son (Matt. 3:17; 17:5; Mark 1:11; and Eph. 1:6), but now we see it used for the believer in (cf. vv. 3, 17, 20; I Pet. 2:11; 4:12; II Pet. 3:1, 8, 14, 17).
The final word we will highlight is the word kept. Believers need to know that through the contending for the faith or whatever the circumstances they face God will continue to be keep them, preserved for Jesus Christ. Beloved and kept are both in the (present tense, passive voice) which means that the believer is always, continually, never ending, forever BELOVED by God and that you’re always, continually, never ending, forever be KEPT for and by Jesus Christ. The icing on the cake is that the passive voice implies that this is nothing that you have done, but all that Christ has done for you.
Be reminded today that God loves you and keeps you with an everlasting love and keep no matter the circumstances.
Fresh Word
Many of us have read the story of Abraham and his son Isaac. (Gen 22:2) God’s promise to Abraham and his wife, years of waiting and praying and the blessing that Isaac was. It didn’t take long for Isaac to become an idol for Abraham which is why God asked him to sacriice it, that’s another blog post but for now I’d like to direct your thoughts towards this idea: What is a fresh word? A fresh word from God?
I hear from God daily. Either in sitting still or through reading scripture. It’s a habit I began several years ago, you see as kid I wasn’t aware of Bible reading plans or ways to read the Bible so I would just pick the Bible up and read about someone’s family tree or some strange prophetic event that involved creatures and stuff. Every time I would try, I would get confused and just put the Bible back down. Until I started reading with an intentional plan or format. There are many to choose from that help you better understand the Bible as a whole.
You see hearing from God takes an intentional effort and a daily effort, it’s like any other relationship right? How often do you talk with you wife or husband? Your kids? A few times a day, a few times a week? A relationship with God is the same, it takes an intentional effort daily to know him, understand him, learn about him, learn his heart, hear his voice through the texts.
Abraham was given a word to sacrifice his son, he went about getting everything prepared and right before he struck the blow that would kill his son what happens…. he hears a voice saying “Don’t lay a hand on the boy” (Gen 22:12). What would have happened if Abraham was still operating under an old word from God? The difference bewteen Isaac living and dying was a fresh word from God. How do you get a fresh word?
Read God’s word daily. Reflect on it, ask him to prepare your heart for it every time you read and share with us what God is revealing to you here.
You can begin a plan here
Lead worship Pastor, Marc Millan