Today, we are going to Mineral Wells to visit with my Mother and Dad for Mother's Day. Can't go tomorrow, too much to do on Sundays.
Pray for President Obama as he travels to Tempe, AZ to deliver the commencement address at Arizona State University�for his safety and protection, and for his words to bring blessing and joy to all assembled for this special occasion.
I've been out of step with you for a long time,
in the wrong since before I was born.
What you're after is truth from the inside out.
Enter me, then; conceive a new, true life. (The Message)
"The passage affords a striking testimony in proof of the original sin entailed by Adam upon the whole human family. It not only teaches the doctrine, but may assist us in forming a correct idea of it. The Bible, both in this and other places, clearly asserts that we are born in sin, and that it exists within us as a disease fixed in our nature."
(Commentary from Heart Aflame: Daily Readings from Calving on the Psalms)
Let me interject here that agree 100% with Calvin. I also do not agree at all with the so-called "age of accountability" that we Baptists came up with over the years. The Bible teaches no such thing. We are accountable to God for sin from the moment we are born. Period.
"Chief of Sinners"
Weekend Reading
In the psychology of the Christian experience, should we feel good about ourselves or bad about ourselves? "Should I forget past failure and delight in present grace or continue to remind myself of the evidence of the depths of my depravity in my past record and present reality?"
May I say a resounding "BOTH!!"
However, modern Christian writing and advertising does not support this idea. "Everyone is happy. All the time. Nowhere is the dark side of the Christian life realistically depicted."
"The psychology of Christian experience, as described by the first generation of Christians, includes a massive dose of what some have disparagingly called 'worm' theology." Step back in time, if you will, with an old hymn called, "Alas, and Did My Savior Bleed." When Isaac Watts wrote this hymn around 1700, it said
Alas, and did my Savior bleed,
And did my Sovereign die?
Would He devote that sacred head
For such a worm as I?
Look up that hymn (also knows as "At the Cross") in any hymnal after 1950, and "such as worm as I" has been watered down to "sinners such as I."
Paul, the apostle, said this, "The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost." (Emphasis is mine)
Do you think Paul had a self-image problem? "Poor apostles. Unlucky them to have lived before the self-esteem revolution."
Why does Paul see the need to rehearse his past? Why hasn't he learned to see himself as God sees him--cleansed and forgiven by the blood of Christ? The good news is that he has. But he is careful not to forget whence he came.
Our "psychology" should be that of humble gratituded. "We are humble because we know the truth about ourselves: our corruption, our weakness, our conflicts, our helplessness."
This, in fact, makes me even more grateful for my salvation and forgiveness. When I am aware of the truth of my nature, the amazing awesomeness of God's grace is that much better! The magnitude of what I have in Christ is enhanced by the truth of who I am without him!
"A constant awareness of my past failure and continuing corruption is not only not contrary to a rich apprehension of grace but its necessary companion."
The point is, the Bible is replete with central people who declared their unworthiness before Christ. What is it that makes the present generation think that they are so much better than these Biblical "heroes??" I don't get it, myself.
"Forget past failures? Ignore present corruption? Better not. Embracing your depravity, past and present, is key to a proper Christian psychology."
(Quotes from article by Terry L. Johnson)
Week 3/Weekend "Grace and Merit"
John 1:17
For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
The "merit" he speaks of in the title is not ours, but Christ's. The grace of God and the merit of Christ are closely related. We can't experience one without the other.
However, there is an order. God's grace comes first.
"Christ's death was the result of God's grace; grace is not the result of Christ's death."
Today, I finish Genesis. Israel and Joseph's brothers, settle in the land of Goshen, and are provided for generously by Joseph and Pharaoh.
By the end of chapter 47, the famine is so severe that, through Joseph's management, Pharhaoh owns the entire land of Egypt and everyone in it. Joseph gave them all seed to plant, under the provision that 1/5 of everything they grew would be given to Pharaoh.
Israel is getting ready to die, and asks his Joseph to promise that he will not bury him in Egypt, but in the land of his fathers.
Chapter 48 contains the scene of Israel blessing Joseph's sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, and effectively making them his own. In Hebrew history, there are two half-tribes of Ephraiem and Manasseh. Following the family tradition, Israel gives the greater blessing to Ephraim, who was actually second born. Ironic, eh?
Chapter 49 contains Israel's individual blessings for his sons. Reuben was firstborn, but he would not have preeminence, because "you went up to your father's bed; then you defiled it."
Simeon and Levi killed men in anger. Their violence is cursed. They will be divided in Israel.
Judah would be praised by his brothers. His father's sons shall bow down to him. "The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet...he has washed his garments in wine and his vesture in the blood of grapes." Jesus, of course, came from the tribe of Judah.
Zebulun would become a haven for ships.
Issachar would become a servant at forced labor.
"Dan shall be a serpent in the way, a viper by the path, that bites the horse's heels so that his rider falls backward." Ok. I don't even pretend to understand that one.
"Raiders shall raid Gad, but he shall raid at their heels."
Asher would apparently be a gourmet chef.
"Naphtali is a doe let loose that bears beautiful fawns."
Joseph would be a "fruitful bough." He would be strong and immovable. God would be with Joseph.
"Benjamin is a ravenous wolf, in the morning devouring the prey and at evening dividing the spoil."
"When Jacob finished commanding his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed and breathed his last and was gathered to his people."
In chapter 50, Jacob is embalmed and Egypt mourns for him for 70 days. Joseph requested permission from Pharaoh to go and bury his father, and it was granted.
Afterwards, Joseph's brothers cooked up an elaborate lie to make sure that Joseph would not be angry with them anymore. They went to him and told him that their father had given them a message for Joseph, commanding him to forgive them. Joseph wept when they spoke to him, and here is his response. "Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones." So, yes, Joseph "got it." He understood God's providence.
At the end of Genesis, Joseph died and is placed in a coffin in Egypt, but not buried.
The main lesson I find in today's reading is that you never know what God has planned for you, so it behooves us to just go along with the plan, no matter how uncomfortable the circumstances may be. I don't think that means that we should never pray for our circumstances to change. We always desire better circumstances, and I don't think there is anything wrong with that. However, it doesn't do any good for us to moan and complain about it. It's okay to work to better ourselves and our situations, and to pray for better jobs, incomes, or whatever. But God has a plan, and he is going to work it out. Whether you go along with it or not. It's just a bit more comfortable if you go along with it, isn't it?
Another lesson is that we should always be willing to forgive, because, once again, we don't know what God has planned. What looks like betrayal at the hands of loved ones may eventually work out to be the salvation of the entire world! That's what happened with Joseph, isn't it? Holding grudges has no place in the lives of God's people. It's just ugly.
I pray for trust in my life. I pray that I can trust you to be in control. I believe you are. I am confindent that you are in control of all things. I pray that I can be content with whatever circumstances you have me in because I don't know what your plans for me are. Let me trust in your grace.
I also ask for the spirit of forgiveness to always be there whenever someone does me wrong (or at least when I percieve that wrong has been done). Let me never hold a grudge against someone. Your ways are infinitely higher than mine, and I have no way of knowing what the reasons are for what happens to me.
I will spend the remainder of this day finding that good. I will seek out the joy that is the Lord's as I go about my business for this day.
Grace and peace, friends!