Christ, Our High Priest

I don’t know about you, but I love hearing the Christmas story.  It’s a joy to hear the awesome words of the prophet Isaiah, “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given.”  And in Luke’s gospel, to read the beauty of the words spoken to Mary, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you. You will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.”  These stories are majestic proclamations of the coming of a King….our King!  And we, experience the timeless wonder that God, the Father would send God, the Son, as a babe.  The Redeemer of mankind sovereignly placed in the arms of a young couple.  His ways are undoubtedly superior to our ways.

The image of the babe in the manger has literally and figuratively captured our world.  Nativity scenes appear globally in this season.  But this year, for me, it isn’t the presentation of the babe in the manger that has captured my attention, but it’s the presentation of Christ, Our High Priest that has impressed my heart.  The words that leave me awestruck in this season are from Hebrews 10:5 - 7 –

 

     Therefore, when He came into the world, He said: "Sacrifice and offering You did
   not desire, But a body You have prepared for Me.  In burnt offerings and sacrifices
   for sin You had no pleasure. Then I said, 'Behold, I have come-- In the volume of the
   book it is written of Me - To do Your will, O God.' "                               

When I consider that Jesus came as High Priest, not attired in costly robes, linens, headdress or ephod, but that He came bare into the world and accomplished His priestly duties bare upon a cross, I’m struck by the perfection of God’s ways.  I sense the magnificence of His deep love and wisdom.  His love expressed in the fact that Christ came to earth for mankind.  His wisdom expressed in the fact that Christ came to serve.  Through Christ, the foreshadows of the Old Testament received new light and our pattern for life was set forth!  Our High Priest has made us to be priests, accepted into the beloved.  And we are a priesthood who serve of the Most High !

     Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler 

     over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins 

     in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father.                   

                                                                                                Revelation 1:5-6

I rejoice in this Christmas season that I have been cleansed from a sinful hopeless life.  I rejoice in knowing that my life has purpose and meaning. Christ has made me a priest who serves a holy God.  Amazing Grace!  I’m grateful to serve as He did!  My service is an opportunity, not an obligation.  I’m thankful to understand that service is the pathway by which we are matured, conformed into His image and prepared for eternity!

      And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be 

      in it, and His servants shall serve Him.                                         Revelation 22:3

Oh, come let us adore Him!

Merry Christmas Beloved!

Don’t Shrink Back

^“Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,  I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”                            

                                                                                                                      Philippians 3:12-14 (NKJV)

Years ago my husband and I were introduced to a book written by Steve Farrar entitled, Finishing Strong.  The book was written primarily for men and it contains an alarmingly high estimate for the number of Christian men who do not ‘finish strong’.  The purpose of the book is to motivate men to live each day faithfully with the goal of reaching the end of their lives with long-standing, healthy relationships with God, spouse and family intact. After reading this book, my husband and I began a tradition with our children.  Whenever they would come to the end of a project, a school year, a work experience, any type of closure, we would always remind and encourage them with this phrase, ‘Now Remember…..Finish Strong!’  From our own personal experiences, we know how easy it is to start off strong.  It’s a time when you’re riding on the wings of excitement and adrenaline.  But can you press through until the end?

In Philippians 3: 12-14, the Apostle Paul gives us the formula for finishing strong.  He states,

Forgetting those things which are behind!  The failures of our past are the weapons that the adversary uses to make us ineffective in our present.  The dominions of darkness are constantly reminding us of past failures.  This tactic diverts attention and energy from ‘today’.  A healthy response to failure is to learn from our mistakes, adjust and move forward. A constant dwelling upon the past makes you a slave to what was or should have been. Remaining unavailable for the demands of ‘today’ and the promises of ‘tomorrow’ leads to a vicious cycle of ineffectiveness which can last a lifetime.  Our God is a forward looking, forward-moving God.  Spending too much time looking back makes us susceptible to getting out of step with Him.  And let us not forget the lessons to be learned from Lot’s wife.

Reaching forward to those things which are ahead.  Our hope, our faith in Christ Jesus should keep us always forward looking.  We serve a God who can change what “was meant for evil” to good.  Our Lord can restore the eaten away areas of our lives.  We serve a God who turns our mourning into dancing and give us beauty for ashes.  Our God is truly amazing and our ‘today’ should always be energized by the hope of our ‘tomorrows’.  And that hope should manifest in action.  James said, “ I will show you my faith by my works.”  The activities of our day-to-day should reflect a ‘reaching’ forward, a ‘pressing’ forward.  Be very careful of any voice that suggests that you give up or give in.  I have found in my lifetime that that voice belongs to the same one who tried to deter Jesus from His mission, asking Him to turn stones into bread.

I press toward the goal.  Paul had one goal and that was to be identified fully with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Our lives today are filled with so many distractions.  This information age with its technological advancements offer so many avenues of diversion.  Paul had one goal and his attention and efforts were focused upon reaching that goal.   That meant that his daily decisions and actions were sifted through the grid of his future goal.  We too must remain focused and consistent in our Christian walk.  Anything that works against our hope should be tossed out.  Our hope, our faith for tomorrow requires a ‘press’ within our today and Jesus encourages us along the way in this daily pursuit.  He has filled us with His Spirit for all wisdom, power and strength.  Because we have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit, who makes us able, our Lord says,

          Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him."

                                                                                                          Hebrews 10:37-38 (NKJV)

Loved ones, let us not be naïve about the warfare that’s been waged against us.  Let us live with the goal of hearing the words, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant’!  May I encourage you  to always  Finish Strong!

Be Blessed.

It’s Discipline That Identifies You as a Son or Daughter

'..the Lord disciplines those He loves, and He punishes everyone He accepts as a son.'  

                                                                                                                                 Hebrews 12:6

Scripture speaks of discipline as a necessary component of parenthood. It is this facet that distinguishes a parent/child relationship.  It is an action borne out of love and care.

When I first became a parent, I had the opportunity to learn this spiritual principle in real time.  When my son was born he was a bundle of sweet innocence and joy.  Yet, all too quickly, as he grew so did his desire to have his own way.  Regardless of my instruction, regardless of right or wrong, regardless of impending harm, he wanted what he wanted.  I watched as my perfect, beautiful, sweet baby boy would try to deceive me.  Initially, I couldn't bring myself to correct him.  He was just too cute and whenever he slept he still looked so angelic.  I even went so far as to pick him up and run if his father tried to correct him. Well time passed and a significant revelation came.  One day he had again disobeyed me, but this time the act was worse than anything he had done previously.  It was at that moment that the Lord whispered, 'If you don't correct him, what happens next will be worse' and I had a 'fast-forward' glimpse of his life. I understood that if I didn't begin correcting him, beginning with that moment, I was contributing to the foundation of an unruly lifestyle. There would be no turning back to innocence.  My son needed a parent who was willing to do what was necessary for his good, so I disciplined him. From those years, I learned that the discipline my children needed would best come from their parents and how unwise it would be to leave their needs to the responsibility of others who did not love them as a mother or father would.  For their protection and well-being I needed to discipline those I loved, because of love.

Spiritually, we became the sons and daughters of God when Christ bore the punishment (the correction) for our sins. As descendants of Adam we were born into sin (Romans 5:12) and born into the debt declared for Adam's sin, which was death.  Knowing our inability to overcome the consequences of Adam's sin, Jesus, God the Son, was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities and by His resurrection from the dead He paid the debt of Adam's sin, thereby making we who believe, sons and daughters of God.  God's mercy upon us is spoken of in Psalm 103:10-11.  The psalmist wrote, 'He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities, for as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him'.  Jesus took on the greatest burden of our punishment leaving us with the encouragement as sons and daughters to endure the discipline of being conformed into His image.  What love!

Today many perceive punishment or discipline as cruel or restrictive.  Our societal ill of child abuse has frightened many away from healthy measures of disciplining their children.  I know of a case where a mom was rudely and inappropriately told to leave a store because she was preventing her child from breaking items on the store shelves.  Without thinking, the store management issued a more severe discipline upon the mother than the discipline between the mother and her child. 

In child-rearing, we must remember to view discipline from God's perspective.  Discipline should always promote love and well-being and the disciplinary measures taken should be appropriate to the needs of the child.  It is the measure taken which says, 'You are my child and I love and care about you, both your present and your future!'

Be blessed.

Hear Ye Him!

My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.

                                                                                                   John 10:27

There is a direct correlation between hearing the voice of God and following Him.  When man truly hears the sweet voice of his Savior, it is impossible to resist Him.  Only the coldest of hearts could possibly turn away.  I remember listening to a Focus on the Family radio program that featured the story of a convicted serial killer who had turned his life around because he audibly heard the voice of God warning him.  Before the police could capture him, the voice of God had arrested him and from that very moment he was a changed man.

We who are seeking Him have many opportunities to experience His still small voice.  He’s speaking to us in so many ways, but our greatest gift is the voice of His word!  Daily we’re able to sit and ‘sup’ with Him.  We get to know Him deeper and thereby know and understand ourselves and our world better.  His word is THE guidepost for our existence.  It heals, directs, loves, clarifies, nourishes, encourages and corrects.

            For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.    Hebrews 4:12                                                                                                         

Today we’re challenged because we live in a world of many voices.  Because of the vast variety of media and social media available to us each day – available each moment of our day – many are distracted away from the simple quiet time of supping with their Lord and Savior.  I’ve watched the latest version of friends visiting one another.  They sit side by side, talking, with each looking at their mobile device.  My, how times have changed.

Also, those of us who are pursuing Him must also be careful of the voices that would imitate of His.

            For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.  

                                                                                                 2 Corinthians 11:14-15

Our responsibility is to make sure that everything we hear lines up with the Word of God, in word and in deed.  If someone speaks the truth, but does not live according to the dictates of the Word, then that person is out of order, do not follow them!  We’re so easily swayed by charismatic leaders and the intelligential of the day. And we can also become distracted by those close to us, those who ‘understand’ us and yet not see ourselves being pulled, ever so slightly, away from His guidance and direction for us.  Listening to other voices is spiritual laziness.  Pursue His voice and all that ‘line-up’ according to His voice. 

It’s so simple, live with the Book open, striving daily, with all your heart to do what it says …in every area of your life!  Then there’s the promise,

            And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

                                                                                                   Jeremiah 29:13

There is a wonderful joy in hearing His voice and being known by Him.  And together let's follow Mary's instruction, "Whatever He says, do it!"

Be blessed.