Deep Dive into Jesus

 

Jesus Christ is the most revered, the most respected, the most pivotal Person who ever lived. But He is also the most reviled, the most controversial, the most misunderstood, it seems to me. His entrance onto the stage of history changed everything, and yet, people still do all they can to explain away, deny, or resist the Savior’s influence.

To believers, Jesus Christ means salvation from all that is wrong with this world, and from all that is wrong with ourselves, as well as all that is wrong between us and our Creator. His humble birth, His sinless life, His atoning death, His victorious resurrection, and His promise of forgiveness and eternal life all make Him one of a kind.

So…I have to ask myself: Why am I so often ashamed of Jesus Christ?

If I truly, totally, savingly trust in Him as my Savior, Lord and King, then why is His name so seldom found on my lips, in my conversations, sometimes even in my prayers? Is it just that there is a pervasive anti-religious sentiment in our culture permeating the air all around me? Is it merely because of our pluralistic philosophical bent I’ve been steeped in here in the American “melting pot”?

If I had a machine in my possession that could completely do away with war, disease, hatred, greed, crime, poverty…and I was too ashamed to tell people about it–tell everybody I knew–wouldn’t you call me a fool…an insane monster…to keep quiet about it? Is my thinking so twisted and clouded and cowardly, that I tend to keep the truth of Jesus Christ to myself?

For the past year or so, I’ve been listening to a certain podcast on the internet that focuses on one of my favorite TV shows from back in the 1960s. It happens to be a very unique series that was adventurous, fun and thought-provoking. For its time, it was quite controversial in many ways. This podcast features two men in their 40s who were analyzing the series episode by episode, doing what they referred to as a “deep dive” into the writing, the characters, the direction, the messages, and the lasting impact of that TV program. Both hosts on the podcast confessed that they were so obsessed with the show, they considered it a major influence in their lives.

They also confessed that, when they were in their teens, their devotion to this particular show had been ridiculed by their peers, and they had both suffered from a kind of “geek shame” over their obsession, and secretly wondered if there was something wrong with them deep down. In their minds, while they loved this TV series immensely, they still felt alone and isolated in their devotion to it. But their love for the show persisted over the years, and when they finally met one another and discovered how they shared this obsession, they were eager to explore the show from a more analytical standpoint, digging into how it was written, how the characters were developed, etc.

One of the results was that they came to realize how absurd it was for them to have been ashamed of their obsession. The more they did their “deep dives” into each of the episodes, the more reasons they found to be proud of their original devotion to the series, its excellence, its ideals, its sense of adventure, its prophetic outlook toward the future. As they describe this growing realization, it almost comes across like a religious epiphany or a life manifesto.

While I listen to this podcast, and the rapturous words of the two guys hosting it, I can’t help but compare their obsession to the other fandoms that exist in our TV and movie-soaked culture today: Lord of the Rings…Marvel characters…Harry Potter…Jane Austen novels and films…the list is endless. Certainly we all have our favorites, our pet obsessions. And then I think…

What do we think of Jesus? How obsessed are we with the Savior? The King whose story wasn’t concocted in the mind of a TV or screen writer, but in the mind of Almighty God? All the heroic and grand ideals you and I meet in our favorite myths and adventure tales pale to nothing in comparison with the eternal God’s plan of redemption that features His one and only Son.

A wonderful book I’ve been reading by teacher and theologian Dr. Michael Bennett is entitled Beginning with Moses: Finding Christ in the Old Testament. Dr. Bennett does a fantastic job as he dives deep into the Scriptures to discover the clues of Jesus’ mission, His offices, His roles, His names, His appearances, His place in prophecy, things that span the entire timeline of this planet…and beyond! As I read this insightful book, my excitement swells considering the total tapestry of the Father’s plan–a plan to rescue and redeem a fallen, helpless, sin-ridden race, all for the sake of His beloved Son. Who could not be moved by the story of a Father who chose to sacrifice His Son for ungrateful sinners such as I?

When I think of this story–this true story, I want to dive deep, deeper, deepest, into the chronicle of God’s truth, God’s holy Scripture. And I want to become so obsessed with the riches of His living Word, His only begotten Son, that His name is continually in my mind, on my heart, falling from my lips. I want everyone to hear of Him, to love Him, to trust Him, to know Him eternally. I want you, my friend, to become part of His story.

MNA (3/21/2023)

Psalm 119 Stanza 6

                       Themes from the Psalm of Psalms

(Loving the God of Psalm 119)

Stanza Six

Waw: The Mercies of God’s Salvation Empowering Me to Live Out His Truth

41. Let Your mercies come also to me, O LORD—/ Your salvation according to Your word.

42. So shall I have an answer for him who reproaches me, / For I trust in Your word.

43. And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, / For I have hoped in Your ordinances.

44. So shall I keep your law continually, / Forever and ever.

45. And I will walk at liberty, / For I seek Your precepts.

46. I will speak of Your testimonies also before kings, / And will not be ashamed.

47. And I will delight myself in Your commandments, / Which I love.

48. My hands also I will lift up to your commandments, / Which I love,

And I will meditate on Your statutes.

This poem of King David is without a doubt the Psalm of Psalms! Like no other passage in God’s word, Psalm 119 extols the virtues and the awesome value of the law of God. When the ancient Jews and the early church confessed their love and respect for God’s “law,” they weren’t just speaking of the rules and regulations and commands given to the nation of Israel. They were extolling ALL the words of the sacred Scriptures. All the utterances from the holy mouth of their Lord and King Yahweh.

Long ago, English translators brought the sacred name of God into our language using the title “Jehovah.” This is to many people a more familiar translation than the name Yahweh, but Yahweh is a more direct rendering, as it uses the sounds of the four Hebrew consonants that were given as the Lord’s covenant name: YHWH, a four-letter term that means “I am.” Every time a Hebrew addressed his covenant God using that name, “I AM,” he was reminded of how God revealed Himself to Moses from the burning bush, telling him: “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: I AM has sent me unto you.” David uses this eternal, holy name for God when he begins many of the stanzas of 119.

There is a remarkable contrast between the two stanzas HE and WAW. David’s focus throughout the last stanza HE was on his requests of the Lord for understanding and guidance so that he could resist unrighteous ways and run in the path of God’s commandments. The sixth stanza, however, has a different focus. Stanza WAW begins with one additional request. David includes the word “also” in verse 41, indicating that this request follows the ones he made previously. In effect, he is saying, “O Yahweh, in addition to your wisdom and your guidance, let your MERCIES come to me as well!” And he continues by defining what those mercies mean: “Your salvation according to Your word.”

This is the first of six times the word “salvation” appears in Psalm 119. The use of this word, and the fact it is used as a synonym for the word “mercies,” is very instructive, especially to people who have a love and respect for the laws of God, as David did. We already saw that David admitted that he needed to “cleanse his way.” He saw himself as a young man, a child in need of being taught and guided. He was very aware that he was a sinner in need of salvation, not only from sickness, danger, enemies and calamities, but salvation from the judgment of a holy, perfectly just God. This verse makes it plain that, while he longed for God’s salvation, he didn’t fool himself with the idea that God owed it to him. It is only by the MERCIES of God that any person receives salvation from the Lord.

Mercy is a quality that places a limit on the carrying out of JUSTICE. It is an act of mercy when a judge sentences a murderer to life in prison instead of the death penalty. It is mercy when a father withholds a spanking from his child because the child has tears in his eyes. It is mercy when a debt is forgiven because I know the person who owes me is having a hard time. And whenever a sinner receives any kind of blessing from God, that blessing is an act of DIVINE mercy. David asks for God’s merciful salvation, “according to [His] word.” It is a promised salvation. He’s asking God to keep His word by rescuing him, even though he knows he doesn’t deserve it!

Then, based on God’s granting this one final request, David gives a list of his noble intentions: a number of commitments or resolutions he wishes to fulfill in response to his God’s saving mercies. In this stanza we get a picture of the redeemed soul’s desires. When a man or woman is genuinely saved by the grace and mercy of God, through faith in our Savior Jesus Christ, that person’s heart is changed. Made willing and eager to think, speak and act in accord with the word of God. He now has a new trust in the character of God: His truth and faithfulness in keeping His promises. His perfect power and wisdom to give her strength and guidance and understanding.

Verse 42 speaks of the saved person’s confidence in answering those who mock and taunt him for his new God-pleasing path of life. “I am simply trusting in the word of my God,” he will say. It doesn’t bother him that those who reproach him talk and act the way he himself once did. He has an answer for them: the very message of salvation that has been shared with himself. It is up to the God of mercies to do His work in the mocker’s own heart, as the child of God shares the truth he’s been given.

Verse 43 expresses a redeemed one’s desire to never speak anything that contradicts God’s truth. The best way she can fulfill that desire is to always have that truth “in her mouth.” Her hope has been placed in the “ordinances” of God—that is, in the revealed expressions of his perfect will: His word. I have recently been impressed, even amazed, hearing the testimony of several women who have committed whole chapters…even whole BOOKS of the Bible to memory, so that God’s word will continually be in their minds, their hearts, and their mouths.

That hope in God’s revealed truth carries over into the following verse. “So shall I keep Your law continually…forever and ever.” Again, here we hear the heart cry of David the psalmist, the “man after God’s own heart.”  The precious, treasured, savored, memorized word of God is his source of hope. It is in that divine truth that he received God’s promises: promises that Yahweh would grant him victory. That He would never leave him. That He would grant an eternal kingdom to one of His descendents: the Lord Jesus Christ. God’s truth in David’s heart and in his mouth, would assure his obedience.

“And I will walk at liberty, / For I seek Your precepts.” Verse 45 continues David’s list of resolutions. The word “liberty,” of course, is a familiar word to Americans. We cherish our liberty as citizens of a largely free society where we can speak, think, worship and travel as we choose. But David is extolling more than just political or social freedom. He is hailing the blessings of SPIRITUAL liberty, where his heart and mind have been set free to walk in the paths of righteousness, rather than remain in bondage to his own sinful flesh and the slavery to Satan that opposes the gracious words of Yahweh. 

Having the written word of God gives us a deep, deep mine of purest gold—His own wisdom and knowledge that He’s seen fit to share with us. Sometimes we must dig into it to find our answers. We must be willing not only to be FED the truth of God, but also to diligently SEEK it, lest our liberty be impeded by the wrong turns we’re liable to take. Careful study of God’s word is never to be seen as a burden or a chore. It is rather a privilege, a journey of joyful discovery, an exercise of our liberty!

How many of us would be prepared to “speak of [God’s] testimonies also before kings” (verse 46)? David was resolved, as one who received Yahweh’s saving mercies, to do just that. Certainly as the ruler of ancient Israel, King David had many opportunities to confer and take counsel with other rulers who surrounded the holy land. His victories in battle had subdued the armies of many nations such as the Philistines, but this also gave him opportunities to testify about the one true and living God who had given him those victories. Naturally he hoped and prayed that Yahweh’s renown would spread and be respected in all the earth, even as the prophet Nathan had predicted (see 2 Samuel 7). When we are knowledgeable about God’s testimonies, we can be confident in the presence of the most imposing leaders. For the wisdom of the Scriptures is far superior to the mere philosophies of human beings. 

Verses 47 and 48 conclude David’s resolution list he wants to fulfill, having received the mercies of salvation, according to the promise of the Lord. He writes: “And I will delight myself in Your commandments, Which I love. My hands also I will lift up to Your commandments, Which I love, And I will meditate on Your statutes.” When we take delight in something, like the birthday of a loved one, or the victory of a sports team, or the receiving of an award, whatever, that delight often takes over control of our bodies. We might throw up our hands in joyful ecstasy. We might actually jump up and down, even do a little “happy dance!” When is the last time we truly took delight in the commandments of our God? When did we throw up our hands in appreciation for what our Creator has chosen to reveal to us in His word? Without the Bible, we could know nothing of His merciful salvation He provided for mankind through the giving of His only begotten Son, who died on the cross to free us from sin, death, Satan and everlasting suffering in hell.

I want to encourage you, and myself, to take time to meditate on God’s statutes: His uplifted, established word, words that will never be broken, and will never fail. Words that reveal what a great, holy, righteous, mighty, merciful, gracious Creator He is. His justice, His holy hatred of our sin could have caused him to wipe us all out and imprison us in chains of torment forever. But praise Jehovah! Instead He chose to show us the divine smile of His mercy. Have you opened your heart to this God? Has his gift of eternal life and forgiveness of sin become yours? If so, let’s resolve, you and I, to treasure, ponder, study, hope in, speak about, and delight in, the truth of David’s merciful God!

Amen.

MNA

3/6/2023

God's Love Differs from Ours

Yes He is a God of Love.

In fact…God IS Love.

But God’s love is not like ours.

Our love is only a dim shadow of His.

His love is not a reflection of ours.

We cannot love in the divine sense,

until we truly know this loving God.

Until we know the God who is love,

our love will be poor, blind, selfish.

How does His love differ from ours?

God’s love springs from His desire

to extend His own perfect holiness and favor,

shared by Father, Son, and Holy Spirit from eternity.

The loving Trinity chose to create heaven and earth

as the outflowing of their love for one another:

a perfect love that required nothing in return,

but for the creatures to enter into this love,

and enjoy their Creator’s benefits forever.

God made Adam and Eve innocent and upright,

able either to enter into this perfect love,

or to choose a path of disobedience.

Their bad choice set the life course for all of us,

resulting in a race of fallen sinners,

bound only for eternal judgment.

How does His love differ from ours?

God’s love, though unrequited, never gave up

on the fallen, sinful race of humanity.

The sentence of death He gave us was delayed—

ultimately to be paid by a Savior He promised to send.

All who heard and believed in this promised One

would never have to pay the price for their sins.

Down through the ages, the Savior was called by many names:

“Seed of the woman,” “Offspring of Abram,” “Lion of Judah,”

“Shoot of Jesse,” “Son of David,” “Son of Man”...

And, finally, John the forerunner called Him: “The Lamb of God.”

How does His love differ from ours?

God the Son became a Man to show us how:

Jesus gave up the splendor of his divine glory

to take on the creaturely form of the lowliest servant.

He voluntarily submitted to the smallest letter of the law

to reflect and obey the holy character and demands of God.

His love was so obedient that it totally pleased the Father,

and His love for people was accepting of the worst of sinners.

His love for God’s truth made religious hypocrites hate Him.

His love of God’s mercy made penitent lowlifes love Him.

His love of God’s justice made Him die as a cursed man,

as the final sacrificial Substitute for all who trust the Promise.

His love for His people made Him bear all their sins on the cross.

His love for His Father caused Him to be raised to heaven’s throne.

How does His love differ from ours?

God’s love is more than a concept. More than a sentiment.

More than a lenient whim. More than a fawning niceness.

More than a self-serving passion. More than a heroic martyrdom.

God’s love created. It gave us freedom to choose.

God’s love held back His justice from those who sinned.

God’s love promised freedom from the bondage of our sins.

God’s love pursued fallen sinners with truth, goodness, mercy, grace.

God who IS love, became the MAN who is love.

God loved the world by giving His only Son,

so that all who believe in Him shall not perish,

but have everlasting life.

MNA

3/5/2023