Israel

Wholly Loved

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Exodus 19:1-15; Psalm 27:7-14; Matthew 22:34-23:12

 

“I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” Psalm 27:13-14

God calls His Bride, the Church, to be set apart, as a holy people. We are to “conduct [ourselves] in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ” (Philippians 1:27). How can we live perfectly holy before an Awesome God? Well, we can’t. This is actually good news for us. It is exactly why Jesus sacrificed Himself on the cross to make a way for wayward people like you and me. We cannot clean ourselves up or ever be good enough- there’s a hole in our holiness. Even if we reform the outside, our hearts are dead apart from God. We are no more than a whitewashed tomb.

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In our Exodus passage, God commands Moses to tell the people of Israel to prepare themselves before entering the Lord’s presence. They were to wash their clothes and consecrate themselves so by the third day they would be ready. Under the New Covenant we have Christ’s Presence always with us as His children. He did the work of making us righteous and presentable before a Holy God.

Jesus does not denounce our lack, weaknesses, or limitations. He tenderly tells those who belong to Him they are condemned no more. The indwelling Holy Spirit patiently teaches us how to live in holiness, as we learn to operate out of God’s power and not our flesh. Our Father promises to not give up on what He’s started in you and me, to make us more like Christ (Philippians 1:6). We can be confident we will see Jesus face to face one day in the land of those who’ve really lived. You are His treasure, holy and loved, wholly loved.

 

Grace upon grace,

April

Long-suffering Mercy

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Exodus 15:19-17:7; Matthew 22:1-33

“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” -2 Peter 3:8-9
How do we handle the sins of others against us? When we’ve been deceived, betrayed, lied about, or mistreated? How does God deal with sin? How has He dealt with my sin?
We are all unrighteous before the Lord yet He freely offers grace for those who recognize their need for Him. Jesus has prepared a place for such people. Some respond to the invitation of the Gospel with apathy, others openly rebel in opposition to God’s gift. The kingdom of Heaven is not for them. So the Lord chooses an array of people from every nation, tribe, and language to serve His Name, delighting in His feast. He is mercifully long-suffering.
Moses cried out to God when the Israelites complained of hunger and thirst. The Lord heard him and miraculously provided in the desert, meeting their physical needs. Water from a rock, meat in the evening and manna in the morning- for forty years! He is mercifully long-suffering.
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In His earthly ministry, our Lord Jesus addressed the religious leaders intent on destroying His reputation and credibility. Jesus knew their hearts better than they did. He responds to the attacks to trap Him with patient wisdom, demonstrating His authoritative knowledge over the ways of men and Scripture. He is mercifully longsuffering.
Sometimes the word ‘long-suffering’ seem to fit better than ‘patient’. Long-suffering gives an image of endurance, perseverance, love bearing all things. This is exactly what Jesus did and does for you and me. In any of these examples God could have annihilated anyone questioning His provision, goodness or authority. But He didn’t. The Lord is slow to anger, abounding in love not wishing any should eternally perish. Think of His response during the mock trials, insults, beatings, and ultimately, His crucifixion (Isaiah 53:7-11). He is mercifully long-suffering. Jesus has invested His life in all the elect, knowing we would not walk perfectly, knowing there would be days you and I completely fail.
But His mercies are new each day.
In light of how the Good Savior treats us, eventually sacrificing Himself for our eternal good, we can respond with mercy and patience when we are sinned against. Because I hope someone would extend the same grace to me when I sin against them. Cry out to God when you feel wronged, be sober-minded with self-control, quick to forgive, slow to anger. Because this is what Jesus did for you. This is what God loves.
Grace upon grace,
April

Set Apart

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Exodus 8:1-9:35; Psalm 24; Matthew 19:13-30

 

There is a fatal misconception that there many ways to heaven- in the end all people are God’s people. This simply isn’t true. The Bible shows us how God set apart the people of Israel for Himself. He is a Covenant-keeping God, long-suffering with wayward, scared, ungrateful and at times faithless people. Good news for us. We aren’t that much different in our sin nature from Israel and yet God still pursues His people, displaying a love and power only He can possess.

The Lord wields His dominion over creation with the plagues He set upon Egypt. Scripture specifically points out how God protected His people from these afflictions, passing over the land of Goshen where the Hebrews lived (Exodus 8:22-23; 9:4; 26). He saved them from His wrathful plagues. The wonder of salvation is that none of us deserve it. We are all dead in our sins, guilty to have plagues set upon us before a holy God. Yet in His great mercy the Lord created and preserved a holy nation, a royal priesthood, the body of Christ, the Church. We who are in Christ Jesus are set apart as His holy possession. All acts of redemption recorded in the Bible foreshadow God’s greatest work in Jesus, rescuing us from the slavery of sin, resurrecting spiritually dead men and women for His ultimate Glory and our eternal good.

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Jesus told His disciples that with man salvation is impossible. We cannot save ourselves or find another way to heaven than through Him (John 14:6). But with God, the miracle of salvation is not only possible, He actually made this a reality for all who place their trust in Jesus. God makes the impossible, possible.

Since the beginning of Time it was God’s desire to enjoy fellowship with His creation- us. When we separated ourselves from Him in sin, God made a way in Christ to set us apart once again, but this time with a purpose to make us holy. As Christians we are no longer held captive to our culture and the depravity of man. He has made and is making us holy to be like He is. Paul explains it this way, “And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified” (Romans 8:30). If you are a Christian, you are becoming what God has already called you to be. He is faithful to sanctify you and me until the day of Christ Jesus when we see Him face to face (Philippians 1:6). As God’s beloved, we are set apart to be free.

 

Grace upon grace,

April