Good Morning ya’ll,

 This is a reflection on My Utmost For His Highest from Oswald Chambers for March 31.  Let me know what you think.

“If any man see his brother sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and He shall give life for them that sin not unto death.” 1 John 5:16

I confess my lack as an intercessor.  It is because I am too lazy to persevere, perspire and prevail in prayer.  The 3 P’s should be a guide post for us but only after we have fully turned our eyes toward Jesus to seek first the kingdom and His righteousness.  Once we have done this and know His mind in the matter we can prevail in our work of intercession and not be, as Oswald calls it, an amateur providence.

Lord, I would that my prayers, through faith, would move mountains.  I want the kind of faith that steps out of the boat and the steadfastness to not take my eyes off Jesus!  Amen.

And as they followed, they were afraid. Mark 10:32

The following is an excerpt from, ‘My Utmost For His Highest’ by Oswald Chambers

At the beginning we were sure we knew all about Jesus Christ, it was a delight to sell all and to fling ourselves out in a hardihood of love; but now we are not quite so sure. Jesus is out in front and He looks strange. “Jesus went before them: and they were amazed.”

There is an aspect of Jesus that chills the heart of a disciple to the core and makes the whole spiritual life gasp for breath. This strange Being with His face set like a flint and His striding determination strikes terror into me. He is no longer Counselor and Comrade, He is taken up with a point of view I know nothing about, and I am amazed at Him. At first I was confident that I understood Him, but now I am not so sure. I begin to realize there is a distance between Jesus Christ and me; I can no longer be familiar with Him. He is ahead of me and He never turns round; I have no idea where He is going, and the goal has become strangely far off.

Jesus Christ had to fathom every sin and every sorrow man could experience, and that is what makes Him seem strange. When we see Him in this aspect we do not know Him, we do not recognize one feature of His life, and we do not know how to begin to follow Him. He is out in front, a Leader Who is very strange, and we have no comradeship with Him.

The discipline of dismay is an essential necessity in the life of discipleship. The danger is to get back to a little fire of our own and kindle enthusiasm at it (cf. Isaiah 50:10-11). When the darkness of dismay comes, endure until it is over, because out of it will come that following of Jesus which is an unspeakable joy.
Chambers, Oswald, My Utmost for His Highest, (United Kingdom: Marshall Morgan & Scott) c1927.

This morning, during my prayer, reading and journaling time I had an image of Jesus that just blew me away.  To completely understand it you have to know that the Bible describes our relationship with Jesus as the bride of Christ.  For the Jewish man and woman who were betrothed, which is a little like our getting engaged, there was a great deal of anticipation.  Here’s how it went in a very brief and simple synopsis.

The marriage was usually arranged by the parents.  Then the man and woman had a betrothal ceremony in which they pledged themselves to each other even unto death.  After that time the man and woman went to their respective homes, the woman to prepare for the time when her husband came back to get her to take her to their new home.  The man went back to his home, which was with his parents, and began to add onto the house the room or rooms that would be his and his wife’s home.  She couldn’t join him until he was done.  The problem was that the only one who could determine when the man’s work was complete was the grooms father.  Finally a day would come when the father would say, “Ok, it’s time.  Go get your bride.”  The groom would then go and collect his bride, who had to be ready and prepared at any moment for her husband’s arrival.  This could take, literally years.  Can you imagine the anticipation of the bride and groom, never knowing when that time was going to come? The Bible says that no man knows the hour or the day, not even Jesus, only the Father.

So in that light, here’s my image.  Jesus is sitting on a throne at the right hand of the Father.  He is grasping the ends of the chair arms and scanning the world eagerly.  He glances to His Father and back to the world repeatedly, starting and resting back, all the time saying, “Dad, can I go?  Can I get my bride?  Is it time?”  And the Father gently but firmly places His hand on His Son’s arm.  “Not yet my son.  Patience is required for grace and mercy to reach its full extent.”

Amazing, here is Jesus who suffered indescribably at His bride’s hands and yet He can barely restrain Himself to return for her/us as He said He would.  Such love!  Such agape!

Oh, that we might become more like Jesus.  That we might have such agape for our brothers and sisters who have not chosen Him and those who have.  Amen!

“We learn by prayer to detect the difference between God’s order and God’s permissive will.  God’s order is–no pain, no sickness, no devil, no war, no sin:  His permissive will is all these things, the ’soup’ we are in just now.  What a man needs to do is to get hold of God’s order in the kingdom on the inside, and then he will see how to handle the riddle of the universe on the outside.”  Oswald Chambers

Has anyone ever asked you how a loving God can permit bad things to happen to good people?  The above quote helps me understand the answer to that question much better.  See, God loves us enough to give us free choice.  Seriously, is it really love if God creates us to love Him and then doesn’t  give us a choice as to whether to accept that love?  That sounds more like a robot or to be more crass, a love slave.  I, personally, love that God gives us the choice to accept Him or to reject Him.  I wouldn’t have done it that way if I were God so you can all be thankful that I’m not.

So what does that have to do with bad things happening to good people you ask?  Well, here’s the thing, as my favorite character, Monk, would say.  God allows free choice and in free choice “WE”  that is mankind, chooses evil.  Not every day in every way but ultimately we have allowed Satan to have tremendous power over our lives and the lives of others which through generation after generation has allowed  illness and sin to abound and in spite of science and technology I don’t really see it getting better.  In fact, the Bible tells us clearly that, because of sin, things are going to get worse and worse until Jesus returns.  So when a political leader or even a religious leader tells you that if we just follow him every thing will be fine, be suspicious, be very suspicious.

Any thoughts?

I don’t know about you but I get concerned when I watch the news, and it doesn’t really matter what channel I turn to, none of them have anything positive to report.  Ok, that’s a broad sweeping generalization but really, when is the last time you saw something uplifting on the news?  Please note that I said I get concerned, not anxious.  I truly believe the Word when it says; “…be anxious for nothing…”  It’s not that I am beyond getting anxious, it’s more like I believe the Word when it also says, being anxious never helped anyone.  Worrying never added a day to a person’s life and modern science confirms that worrying actually shortens your life and reduces the quality of your life.

It is truly in times like these that we must believe, with all our hearts, that God is on the throne and He is not going anywhere.  I look to my left and see agony and despair.  I look to my right and see hopelessness and helplessness.  I turn on the TV and see anger, hatred and  fear.

I like so much what Corrie Ten Boom said; “If you look at the world, you’ll be distressed. If you look within, you’ll be depressed. If you look at God you’ll be at rest.”  Let us take that advice to heart.  Let us look to Jesus.  Let us remember that He is still on the throne.  Let us be secure in knowing that He works all things for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28)

So, as my dear brother Scott said today; “We need to keep looking up and when our neighbor comes out and asks what we’re doing, tell him.  We’re watching for Jesus.  We don’t know the hour or the day but we can sure tell the season!”

Rest well brothers and sisters.  Your redemption draweth nigh!

In His Love,

Pastor Marty