Tag Archives: Hebrews 4

He doesn’t get tired…. ever, even of me!

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I lift up my eyes to the mountains: from where will my help come? 

My help is from the Lord, maker of heaven and earth.

He does not let your foot stumble. Your guard does not slumber.

Look, He does not slumber nor does He sleep, Israel’s guard.

The Lord is your guard, the Lord is your shade at your right hand. By day the sun does not strike you, nor the moon by night. The Lord guards you from all harm, He guards your life. The Lord guards your going and your coming, now and forevermore.

(Ps 121, R Alter translation)

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are – yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

(Heb 4.15&16)

“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me – just as the Father knows me and I know the Father – and I lay down my life for the sheep…… My sheep listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no-one can snatch them out of my hand.”

(Jn 10.14,15,27-29

I think it is impossible for mere mortals to grasp the passionate tenderness with which our heavenly Father loves us, and which our Lord and Shepherd brings to his care for us his flock. We are not equipped to compass such depths and heights of love, and can only glimpse them, catch brief tastes of his delight in us; discern as if from afar the sweetness of his care and the power which he is continually exerting on our behalf. Those tantalising moments are enough though, aren’t they? We are lifted up to mountain tops for a little time, viewing the great glory unrolling all around us, and basking in the love of the eternal as in the rays of the sun.

Our God never fails in his care for his children; never grows tired of hearing their voices, receiving their petitions and sacrificial praise as they bring all that troubles them to his throne of mercy and grace. Our Saviour in glory bears the remembrance of our weakness and mortality, the way our burdens lie so heavy and our horizons shorten abruptly in the face of fear, illness and doubt. He never, ever, ever grows weary of lifting those burdens, wiping our tears and loving us as tenderly as only he can. I find this unbelievably comforting and it inspires me to worship and praise this loyally loving Shepherd, resting in what he has done and who he is for me and for all that is good, true and eternal. And to think that it is as I rest, as I fling my burdens at his feet over and over again, that I am worshipping and bringing him glory – what a marvellous transaction! The thing I most need to do, is the very thing which best honours my dying and rising Lord in all his glory.

Friends, let this truth be our anchor and rock as we face trials – our own, those of our family and friends, and in our wider world. No matter what is going on, the best thing to do is to bring it to the Lord, rush headlong with grief, pain, fear, doubt, weariness, the lead-weight of inexplicable suffering – and lie before him in complete honest abandonment. He will never abandon his lamb, nor spurn the cries of his beloved; he is never asleep on the job, or bored with our presence, but longs that we share it all with him.

This pattern of life doesn’t guarantee that we will see every trial fade away like dew in the warmth of the sun; even now, I can think of faithful believing friends dealing with the suicide of a spouse, the painful death-before-death of a spouse through dementia, the resurgence of cancer, the abrupt curtailing of health and strength by a stroke, the slow debilitating progress of degenerative conditions, the apparently permanent rejection by beloved children of the faith in which they were raised.. and that is before I look to wider social ills and global uncertainties. We do not become believers to become wealthy or secure in the world’s eyes, but to gain eternal life and the sure hope of a glorious future which nothing can steal from us.

For us, to live is Christ, and to die is gain – and since we must face trouble in this world, surely it is good news that we have the unwearying, loving presence of our Lord as we go, and his assurance that we are ever safe with him, no matter what happens. May He give us grace to walk by faith, day-by-day, trusting him completely, for His name’s sake, Amen.

Daring to believe….

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Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are – yet was without sin. 

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

(Heb 4.14-16)

..he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him…

(Ps 103.10-13)

IF we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

(1 Jn 1.8&9)

Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him…The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body.. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace!

(Rom 6.8,10-12&14)

I wrote last week of how a long-standing confusion and trouble in my thinking was being gently removed as God revealed what I have long misunderstood.. perhaps you wondered what that was?! Well, I have long been bewildered by what I – as a mature, well-taught christian woman should think about the fact that I still sin. What should my attitude be? Do I beat myself up for my shortcomings? It has been all-too-often the case that the devil has used awareness of sin as a means to entrap and bind me in self-pity and despair – which then made me feel even worse as that was not godly!!

Anyway, what I want to write about today, and perhaps more in coming weeks, is what God in his mercy and gentle compassion has shown me to be true, and to share something of the transformation which that is bringing. I want to glorify and praise the God who touches his children just where they need healing, and to encourage any reader who might be similarly struggling, not to lose heart..

As a believer, I am new-made and as dead to the power of sin and death as Jesus is in his glory at God’s right hand. The authority of sin over me is broken, and it no longer masters my heart or mind, nor defines my being. I share the life of God, since the Holy Spirit dwells within me; I am learning to recognise sin and to name and view it as God does (this is what confession means) – a blight upon his good creation. As God’s beloved child, my problems are his problems – and everything that troubles me is his business, as every loving parent knows!

The sin which remains active in the life of the believer is not part of their born-again self. It is tied up with the mortal body, which one day will be put off and transformed into a perfect and sinless one. It is removed from the core of our being, detached from our essential new self as Christ-followers. We are now on God’s side against it, and the glorious news is that in Jesus, sin IS already conquered – both past and also future sins which his children may commit before they die. So I am simply being invited to access all the rich resources of Christ in dealing with a problem which is NO LONGER an issue for God. This has been a critical point for me to grasp, and how gloriously, joyously liberating it is to realise that my Father delights to show forgiveness to me for as long as I live.

 Beloved Heavenly Father, how glorious it is to know that I am the object of your love and compassion even as I depend upon your abundant provision over and over again. Thank you that you have shown me that you are not reluctant to pour out all and more than I can ever need, since this is exactly what Jesus died and rose again to make possible! I am now and forever united with you, and the sin that remains is your business to deal with – the more often I come to you for aid, the better pleased you are! Thank you, and all my praise is yours for such grace in Jesus my Lord, Amen.

It’s not too late…

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Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker, for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. Today, if only you would hear his voice, “Do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah, as you did that day at Massah in the wilderness, where your ancestors tested me; they tried me, though they had seen what I did..”

(Ps 95.6-9)

“Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit…. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

(Jn 3.3-6&16)

Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed.

(Heb 4.1&2)

We live in a culture which is obsessed with youth, and with preserving it at whatever cost in terms of investment of time, energy and money. To become old is to fail, to disappear from public consciousness, to let others down by acknowledging human mortality and the inevitability of death. I am very aware that now I am white haired, I have become largely invisible, having joined the undistinguished mass of ‘old’ people, who are not relevant to a culture devoted to denying ageing.

This is not God’s plan for us, not his way of looking at us, and he certainly does not write people off after they reach a certain age – Moses and Abraham, Simeon and Anna, Samuel, John on Patmos – all of these served God and powerfully witnessed to him in their later years. The bible speaks of the dignity which comes with age – to have many years is to have received God’s blessing, and to be an asset to one’s community. Is this something which our churches today need to remember too? It is right that we seek to reach young people – children, teenagers, young adults – but not at the expense of respecting and valuing our middle-aged, and older communities!

Age is neither a barrier to faith, nor to active, joyful and fruitful service in God’s kingdom. While it may be true that age brings a settled pattern of thinking, an apparent resistance to the gospel, we need not give up hope since we have a God who is powerful to save, and whose Spirit is at work in lives all around us to stir up a hunger for the only true Bread, the living water. The need for forgiveness, for peace and deliverance from guilt; the desire to have hope as we face infirmity and death – these things do not diminish as we get older, but grow stronger! This means that as we love and reach out to the older members of our communities we have good reason to be confident. We have good news for them, for their circumstances.

Heavenly Father, we pray today for your children in our communities who are older, perhaps feeling invisible and unwanted; perhaps feeling that they have got life sorted! We pray for the work of your Spirit in their lives to stir up hunger for more, for hope, for assurance in the face of death. We pray against the indifference which comes with years; against the defences which were put up after some historic event which hurt them or put them off church; we pray against lethargy and against the fear that it is too late to find salvation.

Help us, as your light and witness in our communities, to demonstrate the love of Christ – to respect and cherish each and every one; to offer hope in his name and to speak of the power of your Spirit to transform. May those of us who are already aware of being older not give up serving you with gladness, but rather grow in confidence since we can look back on the years and see your goodness to us. Make us fruitful in the kingdom, and may we reach out to our peers, bringing them to meet our beloved and beautiful Lord that they might find life, hope and peace. In Jesus’ precious name we pray, Amen.

Never stop learning!

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Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still; teach the righteous and they will add to their learning. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

(Prov 9.9&10)

Teach me, Lord, the way of your decrees, that I may follow it to the end. Give me understanding, so that I may keep your law and obey it with all my heart…Teach me knowledge and good judgement, for I trust your commands…It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees…Your statutes are my heritage for ever; they are the joy of my heart. My heart is set on keeping your decrees to the very end.

(Ps 119.33,34,66,71,111,112)

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

(Heb.4.12&13)

I was greatly blessed recently by the presence in our home of two of the brightest saints I know, whose company is always a joy and encouragement, and whose zest for life and the service of their Saviour is unquenchable. It was an honour, but also a very humbling experience, to see their strength in the Lord’s service, their zeal for his glory, and their vigour. They would claim no special talents, but only boast of the wonderful God who has enabled them for a lifetime of service – on the mission field in Africa, and here in Scotland – which continues in their “retirement”, with a schedule that would leave many of us gasping.

In the course of one of our many conversations, we touched on the importance of having a “teachable spirit”, and by that we did not mean being one who pursues learning for the sake of head-knowledge, but rather the one who is always aware that they are not yet what God desires them to be, and that there is always something to learn. The verse from Proverbs puts it beautifully, showing that wisdom can ALWAYS be added to, and that those who truly seek to grow in godliness will find God willing to teach them. Those who fear the Lord, will truly make it their aim to be life-long learners, pursuing to the very end of their days a deeper understanding of his word and of how he desires us to live.

There are perhaps two distinct kinds of wisdom in view here. Firstly, that which we direct ourselves, through our choices in reading, listening and watching. As followers of Christ, we can choose to engage with the bible in a way that helps us to understand deep truth, to wrestle with moral and ethical issues in the light of its teaching, so that our witness will be informed, humble and truthful. This is where conscious choice operates, perhaps based on events around us, or on topics which have arisen in conversation or in a sermon.

The other kind of wisdom is directed by our own circumstances, or those of our loved ones, where we have little or no control over events and cannot forsee where they are taking us. When the psalmist writes that it was “good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees”, he is touching on a mysterious truth. Human beings learn faith best under adverse circumstances; our pain and suffering drive us beyond our own resources to admit that we are not in control and to cling to God for strength and aid in our extremity of need.

My visitors have known both kinds of learning, and their lives testify that they continue to seek after God’s truth both in their deliberate study of his word and also as they experience trials of many kinds. It takes humility to admit that after decades of following Christ, one still has things to learn, and that is what we meant by that phrase a “teachable spirit”. Do I have it?…

When I find myself impatient with the failings of others….Lord, forgive me, and grant that I might learn your patience, because you have not given up on me;

When I find myself confident in a human being, trusting in an organisation and a structure……Lord, forgive me, and grant that I might learn that all men are as grass, frail and fallible and none may be truly relied upon save you alone;

When I find myself despairing of my own failings…..Lord, forgive me, and grant that I might learn to live in the light of your promises, resting on the assurance of your putting away of all my guilt through the death of Jesus for me;

When I become proud, and independent….Lord, forgive me, bring me back to utter dependence on you and grant that I might learn to walk ever more closely with you.

A cold shower?

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Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word..

(Ephesians 5.25&26)

The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes.

(Psalm 19. 7&8)

For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

(Hebrews 4.12)

Sometimes, the things which are good for us, are not the easy or comfortable things…as fallen creatures, we lean constantly towards the quick fix, the path of least resistance, and the minimising of effort and discomfort. But in our hearts, we know that such traits are unhealthy – in the long run, we will pay the price for our current bad choices.

Healthy eating, appropriate exercise, moderation in our spending and generosity in our giving…we know that these are good for our bodies and minds, but what about the nurture of our spirits?

The bible is very clear that for the follower of Jesus, there is an obligation to pursue holiness – a lifelong quest to become like Christ, in obedient and loving response to his sacrificial death for us. It is also made clear that left to ourselves, we will twist and distort this noble quest into some travesty of God’s plan – we become bitterly judgemental like the Pharisees of Jesus day, and fall into the sin of pride in our own achievements.

Praise God, that in his mercy, he has not left us alone to pursue this quest. Instead, we read that it is Christ at work in us, the Spirit moving in power, who makes the changes. And the tool he has appointed is his word, the revelation contained in the bible, which is God’s inspired and infallible word to us his children.

We turn to the pages of the bible gladly enough for comfort, and for inspiration, but there is a danger that we will choose to ignore those passages which come too close to our bad habits and cherished sins! It is certainly true that God is working to sanctify – to make us clean and pure and whole – but we are called to work to cooperate with him in that process. Such co-operation requires our willingness to be open to rebuke, correction and the death of pride. When God grants us faith to believe that his love is perfect, and has only our good as its goal, then we find the will to trust that love in action, in convicting us of sin, bringing us to repentance, and re-shaping our minds and hearts so that sin’s stain is forever removed.

I believe that we must discipline ourselves to submit every part of our lives to God’s searching and transforming power, holding nothing back. It may be that there will be things we don’t even recognise as sins until the Spirit takes the word and cuts through to the heart, showing us the ugly realities of thought and deed. God is merciful, he knows how frail we are, and does not choose that we should be overwhelmed by understanding all at once just how deeply rooted our sinful nature is – we are not able to bear such self-knowledge. Instead, as we open ourselves up to the truth of the word, he opens our eyes, little by little, so that over the years, he washes us clean of stain after stain.

These words of an old hymn express a beautiful prayer for such steady, cleansing interaction with the word of God – an interaction which should be just as much part of our daily routine as eating, washing and brushing our teeth!

Make the book live to me, O Lord, show me Thyself within Thy word;

Show me myself, and show me my Saviour, and make the book live to me.

(R. Hudson Pope)

Sometimes, it will be a comforting encounter, sometimes as shocking and bracing as a cold shower, but every time we open the word, we invite God to do something in our lives. All praise to him, that in his mercy he is working patiently and lovingly to make us holy, and beautiful in his sight!