Grace

God is showing me a lot about grace this week.

When I continue to mess up at something, it is because I am not asking for God's help to get rid of that sin in my life. This is pride. Then I feel guilty, thinking that God is upset with me, when he is actually just waiting for me to give up the struggle and let Him take it from me. Sin will always defeat me, but it will never be too much for God.

I am learning that grace is when God takes the responsibility for our sin and our struggles. Without becoming humble and and admitting that sin has a hold of my life, I can't accept God's grace. I so often beat myself up when I mess up, convinced that this is what I should do after sinning. But when sin becomes habitual, so do our worthless repetitive confessions. The only way to truly defeat habitual sin is to admit that it has a hold on us and allow God to handle it.

Like a child trying stubbornly to be independent, I have rejected your grace and your help far too long. Like a father you have watched patiently until I finally realize that I need your help. I turn around and look at you, tears filling my eyes. Too proud to ask, I look to the ground. "My daughter," you say, "can I take that burden from you? Can I fix it?" Tears begin to stream down my face and you quietly take what I am struggling to fix and mend it with one swift motion. I am ashamed that I waited this long to ask you. You smile gently and stroke my hair, knowing that I have learned a valuable lesson today. Even though it took me so long to realize my frailty, you are proud of me, proud of what I have learned. I cannot understand your grace, but I am grateful for what you are to me, grateful that you are God and I am not.

"Oh how can I give you up, Israel?
How can I let you go?
How can I destroy you like Admah
or demolish you like Zeboiim?
My heart is torn within me,
and my compassion overflows.
No, I will not unleash my fierce anger.
I will not completely destroy Israel,
for I am God and not a mere mortal.
I am the Holy One living among you,
and I will not come to destroy."
-Hosea 11:8-9

Lord's Supper: Luke 22:7-23

I had the amazing opportunity to participate in a Messianic Passover service the week before Easter. As simple as it was, it has changed the way I view the history of what I believe in a huge way. I believe that before we understand Christianity, we must have some basic understanding of Jewish culture and traditions. Since I have begun to make an effort to learn about Judaism, I have begun to understand how magnanimous Jesus' life, death and resurrection really were! It is interesting to me that modern-day Jews still practice the traditions that lead to Christ.

There is an element of the Passover meal in which three pieces of unleavened bread, or matzah, are taken out. The middle piece of bread is broken in half to symbolize the affliction suffered by the Jews, and one of the halves is wrapped in a special cloth and hidden. The Passover meal is a family tradition, so during the meal, the youngest child finds the special piece of matzah, also known as the afikomen (dessert), and presents it at the end of the meal. The father of the household buys the afikomen back from the child by giving them money or a gift. The last food eaten during the meal is the afikomen.

Do you see the similarities of this ceremony and the death and resurrection of Jesus? The three pieces of bread would be the Trinity- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The middle one is taken out and broken. It is then wrapped, just as Jesus was wrapped in burial clothes, and hidden, like a burial. The bread is then brought back and enjoyed by all at the table. "It is shared as the Passover lamb was shared from the time of exodus until the destruction of the temple." This piece of bread symbolizes the Passover lamb-- Jesus is also called the "lamb of God;" the ultimate sacrifice.

So in Luke, when Jesus is partaking in this very same meal with his disciples, he breaks this piece of matzah and instead of saying what they normally hear, he says, "This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." He opens their eyes to the prophecy they have been partaking in all their lives without even realizing it! Jesus is the afikomen, the dessert, the perfect Passover Lamb.

I think this last Passover meal with Jesus also is very powerful for the Gentiles, because it gives a new meaning to this meal-- not only to remember the Jews' freedom from exile in Egypt, but now also to remember the freedom from the slavery of humanity to sin. This meal covers all of us. We are all, Jews and Gentiles alike, to remember the event that freed us from the bondage of sin-- permanently.

That is why we partake in the Lord's supper. It is so much more than what we have made it.

A Picnic to Remember!

We had a picnic today for the community of Opelika, and it went so well! We had about 100 people come and eat. Many of them were excited "about next year!!" We were not sure what to expect. Little did we know, most all of our food and drinks would be donated. We entered a video in a contest and were hoping to win some money (we didn't). But God provided more than we could have ever imagined. We had so much fun and built some great relationships with the people who came. It was a beautiful day. I can't think of a better way to spend a Saturday. We hope to do many more events like this in the future! God is good!

James 1

What an incredible chapter.

James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations: Greetings.

Trials and Temptations

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must ask and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

The brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position. But the one who is rich should take pride in his low position, for he will pass away like a wild flower. The sun rises with scorching heat and withers away the plant; the blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich man will fade away even as he goes about his business.

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, for when he has stood the test, he will be given the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. 

When tempted, no one should say "God is tempting me," for God cannot be tempted by evil nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

Do not be deceived, dear brothers, for every good and perfect gift comes from the father of heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, so that we might become a kind of first fruits of all he created.

Listening and doing

My dear brothers, take note of this: Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger. For man's anger does not bring about the righteous life God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted within you, which can save you.

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like man who looks at his face in the mirror, and after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to this, not forgetting what he has heard- he will be blessed in what he does.

If anyone who considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless as this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. 

This chapter is jammed full of what seems to be random advice for living a Christ-like life, but if we look a little deeper into the meaning of this chapter, it is much more than that. It is also a testament to the sovereignty of Jesus! 

Being that James was Jesus' brother, I think it's really cool that he calls him "the Lord Jesus Christ" in the first verse- I don't think I would be so keen to do so unless I was absolutely convinced that my sibling was undoubtedly the Messiah. :)

The first chunk ("Consider it pure joy-all he does") seems to jump from persevering through trials to asking God for wisdom to asking and not doubting. In the past I have wondered why James changed ideas from sentence to sentence, but now, I see an important correlation. I think James is trying to say here, 

"When hard times come, you get tough. You learn how to maneuver through life better with every situation you pull through. As you become more mature, you will begin to hunger for wisdom to make the right decisions, because that's what maturity is all about-- desiring to please God. When you begin to feel the need for this wisdom, just ask God. He wants to give it to you, but you must go through those trials and become mature and complete before you are ready. When you reach this point, ask God and know that he is going to give you the wisdom you need to keep maturing. If you aren't ready for that wisdom, you will doubt that God is going to help you. If you're doubting God's generosity, you're not ready for his wisdom. Take a few more trials and learn to be a little more mature. You don't want the wisdom God has to give if you're not prepared for it. It's heavy stuff."

How does this relate to the next chunk about the poor man taking pride in his high position and the rich man taking pride in his low position?

I think it all has to do with the idea that trials, humble circumstances, or whatever you want to call "I-think-the-grass-is-greener-over-there" situations aren't always what you think they are. We are always trying to run away from hardships, thinking that if we are ever faced with something unpleasant it's not God's will for our lives. James is saying that this is contrary to what Jesus teaches-- He wants us to value humility before we value an easy life full of money and worldly success. There are three definitions of humble:

1. not proud our haughty; not arrogant or assertive

2. reflecting, expressing, or offered in a spirit of deference  or submission

3. ranking low in a hierarchy or scale insignificant, unpretentious. Not costly or luxurious.

I think of Jesus when I hear all three of those definitions. Jesus requires these qualities of us as well, no matter what personality we have or how ambitious we may be. I think this is a problem for many of us, and I'm not just talking about money. Anything that makes us feel like we are important and anything that we prize more than we should robs us of a humble spirit and causes us to wither away like a wild flower. Think of a those yellow flowers kids always pick from the weeds in the yards and bring to their mothers. The blossom begins to fade hours after it is picked, useless and ugly. But the dirt under the weeds remains season after season, humble, but unchanging and reliable. Are we dandelions or dirt? 

Calling it a night... I'll finish this another day.