I am very familiar with the verse John 3:16, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."(ESV) I learned it when I was a young girl sitting in a Sunday school class. This verse was a pillar of my faith journey, First I was able to hear the verse, then memorize it, proclaim belief in it, and finally recite it for others. It is the most beautiful verse that reveals God's heart for us and the depth of his love. I did not really anticipate that rereading John chapter 3 would be very revealing to me. I thought I would breeze through this chapter with nothing new to learn or think about. I was wrong of course and that mistake has made me appreciate again how the word of God is alive and speaks to me in new ways every time that I stop to read it and really open my heart to it.
Over this past year, it has troubled me when I have heard about famous pastors or worship leaders who have professed their disbelief in a God that they have spent most of their lives loving and serving. When I read articles about why they no longer believe, some of them talk about how they just can't believe in a God who would punish or condemn people to hell. They can no longer believe in a God who is angry and wrathful, who will create man and then condemn man to suffer punishment. It is almost like they now see God as more happy to condemn than to happy to love. In my heart, I know that this is not the God I serve. I know that he loves the world, John 3:16 spells it out so plainly, yet I have not had a clear answer to this question of why a loving and good God condemns us. However, as I read verses 17-21 again this week, where Jesus himself speaks of condemnation, it is here that my heart feels it has found an answer. An answer that these questioning pastors and worship leaders are searching for when looking out at a world that only seems to reflect suffering, greed, anger, division, and loss.
While reading John 3:16-21, I was reminded that God's only plan is to show his love for me and to save me. He does not wish me to perish but he wishes that I have eternal life. His desire to save me stems from a truth that I, and maybe those who are falling away, have forgotten. The truth that God is good and in his goodness he wants what is good for me but it is I that desire the opposite. I am like the child who wants to do all the things mom and dad tell me I can't and God is the parent who wishes to protect me and prevent me from harming myself. Condemnation is not found in Jesus but is found in me. I am condemned only by the nature of my own heart to love darkness and reject truth. Jesus himself said it this way,
"For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgement: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God."
and if Jesus said this, then I can trust that it comes straight from God because Jesus only said what God his Father told him to say while he was here on earth.
God has known since the garden that the heart of man bends towards its own will and way. He was there when Adam and Eve disobeyed him by eating the fruit. He understood that it was their selfish desire and rejection of his instruction that caused consequence to them. This rejection and selfishness is in the bible again before the flood. The bible says that man had corrupted its own way and caused violence on the earth. After the flood when God was making his covenant with Noah, God said "the intention of man's heart is evil from his youth" (Gen. 9:21 ESV). If God only desires wrath, he would have just left it there. He would have left man to his corrupted way, to endure the natural consequences of his corrupted actions, and God would have been overjoyed in punishing man with eternal condemnation. However, the verses after John 3:16 say otherwise. These verses show me that God's plan is to save me and every person on this earth from ourselves. Do I have to let go of my love of darkness? Yes. I have to let go of loving myself, of being selfish and putting my own pleasure ahead of loving him, following him, and serving others. Do I have to believe in Jesus? Yes. I have to believe that Jesus came to fulfill this plan of love and salvation. I have to believe that he is the artifact that proves that God desires me for relationship with him and wants me with him forever. Do I have to come to the light? Yes. I have to come to Jesus of my own understanding and desire. I have to love him and accept his truth. The truth that God is for me. God loves me. God desires relationship. God wants good for me, he wants to save me. God wants me to be with him forever.
I take comfort in the words of Jesus which reveal God's heart and his plan. His words are the truth I need to see when the world tries to say that God is something he very clearly is not. Jesus' words are the answer to the question "Why would a good and loving God condemn his creation?" Jesus tells us a good and loving God does the exact opposite of that. He saves his children, just like I want to save mine when I see them making the wrong choice. He loves his children and understands their nature, just like I love and understand my girls. He gives of himself, of his life to protect his children- just like I would give my life to protect mine. Knowing this about God causes me to rush into his arms, to believe in his Son and his plan, and to trust that I will not perish after my days on this earth are done. I have found the answer that fills and quiets my heart during times of question and uncertainty and hopefully this answer will fill and quiet your heart too.
Saturday, April 25, 2020
Sunday, April 19, 2020
Motherhood and Wine
These quarantined days of motherhood are not for the faint of heart. Mothers everywhere are now faced with one more hat to juggle, that of the teacher. Certainly the hats of productive employee, domestic goddess, dutiful wife, and mother of the year were quite enough to juggle before but now... teacher? It's enough to drive a woman to drink a good glass of wine (or two or three) for all the wrong reasons.
In John chapter 2, Jesus finds himself at a wedding celebration with his mother and his disciples when the wine reserved for the wedding festivities runs out. Wine at a Jewish wedding is symbolic. It represents sanctity, separation, blessing, joy, and celebration. To run out of it is indeed a bad thing. Mary, Jesus' mother, comes to him and tells him, "They have no wine." (vs 3). Go with me a moment as I imagine the beginning of this miracle from a mother's point of view.
As a mother, I look at my children and I see all that is possible for them. I see into their hearts and eyes and I know exactly what they are capable of. Wanting to be a good mother, I feel it is my job to push them to their full potential, to encourage them to try the very thing that they think they cannot or should not do. I feel this gravity of responsibility on me all the time to guide them into the best version of themselves. (I believe this is part of why this extra hat of teacher in these times of quarantine is driving all of us to the brink of our sanity. Teachers have always helped us with this task we find so important. Teachers are our partner for growing our child's potential- for motivating them to do big things, helping them stay focused, and encouraging them to give their best effort. They share our burden.) I imagine this is what Mary was feeling as the wine ran out and she relayed the problem to Jesus. I imagine that in the depth of her being, from the moment of his birth, Mary believed in Jesus as Lord. She knew in her bones that he was capable of so much, she was ready to push him to his potential. His response? "Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not come." (vs. 4) Not to be disrespectful to the miracle, but to a degree this makes me chuckle. It reminds me of my own teenagers when I ask them to do a task that they either do not want to do or don't see themselves as ready for. Still Mary did not lose her focus. She told the servants "Do whatever he tells you." (vs. 5) In my mind, her statement to the servants, spoken where I am sure Jesus could overhear her, was her good momma statement of encouragement to her child. It was also her faith statement to him..."You may not think your time is here, but I see you, I know you can do this, I trust in your, I believe in who you are and that you are sent from God to do great things." The rest of the chapter details how Jesus did indeed tell the servants to take 6 stone water jars and fill them with water. When the servants took the water to the master, instead of water, he tasted a very good quality of wine, one that was impressive, one that was better than the wine served first. The result of performing this first miracle of his ministry was that Jesus manifested his glory and his disciples believed in him.
For myself as a believer reading this miracle in today's world, it stirs in my heart that a relationship with Jesus is like the new wine in the jars. Relationship with him is richer, more full, and overflowing with good. By giving us Jesus, God has saved his best for us. We can spend a lot of our life tasting wines that we think are good for us (titles, money, relationship with the wrong people) but those wines always run out and leaves us disappointed. Those wines loose their sanctity, blessing, and joy. However, when we taste this new wine, this full relationship with Jesus, we are satisfied in ways that we did not know possible. We have sanctity, we recognize our blessings, and we feel so much real joy. So mothers of the world, let's not lose faith in our new role as teachers. Let's press on with seeing our children's potential, in encouraging them, in being there to support them, in loving them with grace during this difficult time. And when all the hats feel like too much and we feel like we have "run out" of our own ability, let's turn to the wine that truly satisfies before we pour that second or third glass of Moscato. Let's run to Jesus and allow him to pour himself into us. Let's worship him, give him thanks, speak to him with our prayers and read his word to fill our cup. Then we will find ourselves refreshed and ready to face another day of hat wearing. :)
In John chapter 2, Jesus finds himself at a wedding celebration with his mother and his disciples when the wine reserved for the wedding festivities runs out. Wine at a Jewish wedding is symbolic. It represents sanctity, separation, blessing, joy, and celebration. To run out of it is indeed a bad thing. Mary, Jesus' mother, comes to him and tells him, "They have no wine." (vs 3). Go with me a moment as I imagine the beginning of this miracle from a mother's point of view.
As a mother, I look at my children and I see all that is possible for them. I see into their hearts and eyes and I know exactly what they are capable of. Wanting to be a good mother, I feel it is my job to push them to their full potential, to encourage them to try the very thing that they think they cannot or should not do. I feel this gravity of responsibility on me all the time to guide them into the best version of themselves. (I believe this is part of why this extra hat of teacher in these times of quarantine is driving all of us to the brink of our sanity. Teachers have always helped us with this task we find so important. Teachers are our partner for growing our child's potential- for motivating them to do big things, helping them stay focused, and encouraging them to give their best effort. They share our burden.) I imagine this is what Mary was feeling as the wine ran out and she relayed the problem to Jesus. I imagine that in the depth of her being, from the moment of his birth, Mary believed in Jesus as Lord. She knew in her bones that he was capable of so much, she was ready to push him to his potential. His response? "Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not come." (vs. 4) Not to be disrespectful to the miracle, but to a degree this makes me chuckle. It reminds me of my own teenagers when I ask them to do a task that they either do not want to do or don't see themselves as ready for. Still Mary did not lose her focus. She told the servants "Do whatever he tells you." (vs. 5) In my mind, her statement to the servants, spoken where I am sure Jesus could overhear her, was her good momma statement of encouragement to her child. It was also her faith statement to him..."You may not think your time is here, but I see you, I know you can do this, I trust in your, I believe in who you are and that you are sent from God to do great things." The rest of the chapter details how Jesus did indeed tell the servants to take 6 stone water jars and fill them with water. When the servants took the water to the master, instead of water, he tasted a very good quality of wine, one that was impressive, one that was better than the wine served first. The result of performing this first miracle of his ministry was that Jesus manifested his glory and his disciples believed in him.
For myself as a believer reading this miracle in today's world, it stirs in my heart that a relationship with Jesus is like the new wine in the jars. Relationship with him is richer, more full, and overflowing with good. By giving us Jesus, God has saved his best for us. We can spend a lot of our life tasting wines that we think are good for us (titles, money, relationship with the wrong people) but those wines always run out and leaves us disappointed. Those wines loose their sanctity, blessing, and joy. However, when we taste this new wine, this full relationship with Jesus, we are satisfied in ways that we did not know possible. We have sanctity, we recognize our blessings, and we feel so much real joy. So mothers of the world, let's not lose faith in our new role as teachers. Let's press on with seeing our children's potential, in encouraging them, in being there to support them, in loving them with grace during this difficult time. And when all the hats feel like too much and we feel like we have "run out" of our own ability, let's turn to the wine that truly satisfies before we pour that second or third glass of Moscato. Let's run to Jesus and allow him to pour himself into us. Let's worship him, give him thanks, speak to him with our prayers and read his word to fill our cup. Then we will find ourselves refreshed and ready to face another day of hat wearing. :)
Saturday, April 18, 2020
Origins
So it's April of the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic and everything is different from what it used to be. Changes have happened to almost every area of our daily lives from how we procure necessities like toilet paper and meat to where and how we do our jobs, how close we can stand together when we talk, how many people can be together at one time, and where we attend church. People are wondering where the origin of this awful virus came from and when will it find its ending.
During these weeks of social distancing, which was also leading up to Easter weekend last week, I have spent time reading through the book of John. I read one chapter a day and spent time highlighting and digging deeper into the things that spoke to my heart. I decided that after I had read through the book, and if we were still social distancing, I would go back and reread it again, only this time I would give life to my thoughts and record them here on this blog. So today is the origin of the journey of documenting my walk with Jesus through the book of John.
The word origin is defined as "the point or place where something begins, arises, or derives," (Merriam-Webster), "the point at which something comes into existence," (Free dictionary), and "the beginning or cause of something." (Cambridge) Upon my first reading of John, I noticed that John did not begin the way other gospels began. He did not give an account of the lineage of Jesus, thus establishing the origin of his right to Kingship, as in the Gospel of Matthew. He did not describe the steps taken before Jesus began his ministry, thus showing the origin of that ministry, as in the Gospel of Mark. He did not lay out the foretelling by angels of the births of both John the Baptist and Jesus, thus establishing the origin of order that fulfilled prophecy, as in the Gospel of Luke. Even though John's Gospel began differently, upon this second reading of the first chapter I can see that is is clearly a story of origin as well.
John's opening in John 1:1-5 details the origin of Jesus before coming to be God with us, God made flesh, our Emmanuel. These verses establish Jesus as being in heaven with God at the very beginning. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God." (John 1:1,2 ESV) This is a deeper sense of origin than in the other gospels. An origin before our time and space began. John's words then go on to show us a beautiful picture of the origin of everything we know to be, including ourselves. In these versus, Jesus is on display as Creator and in full authority before anything else came into being and in authority over all that came into being. He himself is the point of origin for everything. "All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men." (John 1:3,4 ESV)
Those four verses are packed with establishing the origin of Jesus as sovereign over all but it is verse 5 that gives me the most comfort and hope in these troubling times of pandemic. After setting Jesus's role as life and establishing that this life is the light of men, verse 5 goes on to say that "the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." This is a truth that right now is important to keep in perspective and hold on to. I can take comfort that Jesus was before the beginning of things and that he created all things through himself but, I can also take comfort in knowing that his life, his light was not, has not, and will not be overcome by darkness. Because I believe in him and in the one who sent him, that same light/his light resides in me. When I feel fear or uncertainty at what will be, when theories of the origin of Covid-19 try to keep me up at night, when I fret about how long this period of time will last and will all the people I love endure, I can be encouraged that darkness does not have authority to overcome light. I do not have to allow the light in me to be swallowed up by the fear, division, and destruction darkness wants to cause.
I am grateful to these five verses written by John and their establishment of Jesus' origin . First, these verses increase my faith of who has watch and care over me. Second, they realign my perspective and thoughts when the world around me is teeming with chaos. Last, these verses and especially verse 5 increase my hope that we will not be trapped in a time of loss forever. Times right now are sad, they are bad, and they may or will increase in sadness and loss but that will not be the last word. Darkness does not get to have the last word, light does. Light had the first word and it will have the last. So with that knowledge, I will do my best to share the light, spread hope and love, use the wisdom God gave me to listen to doctors and make good decisions, and trust in him when I don't understand all the rest.
During these weeks of social distancing, which was also leading up to Easter weekend last week, I have spent time reading through the book of John. I read one chapter a day and spent time highlighting and digging deeper into the things that spoke to my heart. I decided that after I had read through the book, and if we were still social distancing, I would go back and reread it again, only this time I would give life to my thoughts and record them here on this blog. So today is the origin of the journey of documenting my walk with Jesus through the book of John.
The word origin is defined as "the point or place where something begins, arises, or derives," (Merriam-Webster), "the point at which something comes into existence," (Free dictionary), and "the beginning or cause of something." (Cambridge) Upon my first reading of John, I noticed that John did not begin the way other gospels began. He did not give an account of the lineage of Jesus, thus establishing the origin of his right to Kingship, as in the Gospel of Matthew. He did not describe the steps taken before Jesus began his ministry, thus showing the origin of that ministry, as in the Gospel of Mark. He did not lay out the foretelling by angels of the births of both John the Baptist and Jesus, thus establishing the origin of order that fulfilled prophecy, as in the Gospel of Luke. Even though John's Gospel began differently, upon this second reading of the first chapter I can see that is is clearly a story of origin as well.
John's opening in John 1:1-5 details the origin of Jesus before coming to be God with us, God made flesh, our Emmanuel. These verses establish Jesus as being in heaven with God at the very beginning. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God." (John 1:1,2 ESV) This is a deeper sense of origin than in the other gospels. An origin before our time and space began. John's words then go on to show us a beautiful picture of the origin of everything we know to be, including ourselves. In these versus, Jesus is on display as Creator and in full authority before anything else came into being and in authority over all that came into being. He himself is the point of origin for everything. "All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men." (John 1:3,4 ESV)
Those four verses are packed with establishing the origin of Jesus as sovereign over all but it is verse 5 that gives me the most comfort and hope in these troubling times of pandemic. After setting Jesus's role as life and establishing that this life is the light of men, verse 5 goes on to say that "the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." This is a truth that right now is important to keep in perspective and hold on to. I can take comfort that Jesus was before the beginning of things and that he created all things through himself but, I can also take comfort in knowing that his life, his light was not, has not, and will not be overcome by darkness. Because I believe in him and in the one who sent him, that same light/his light resides in me. When I feel fear or uncertainty at what will be, when theories of the origin of Covid-19 try to keep me up at night, when I fret about how long this period of time will last and will all the people I love endure, I can be encouraged that darkness does not have authority to overcome light. I do not have to allow the light in me to be swallowed up by the fear, division, and destruction darkness wants to cause.
I am grateful to these five verses written by John and their establishment of Jesus' origin . First, these verses increase my faith of who has watch and care over me. Second, they realign my perspective and thoughts when the world around me is teeming with chaos. Last, these verses and especially verse 5 increase my hope that we will not be trapped in a time of loss forever. Times right now are sad, they are bad, and they may or will increase in sadness and loss but that will not be the last word. Darkness does not get to have the last word, light does. Light had the first word and it will have the last. So with that knowledge, I will do my best to share the light, spread hope and love, use the wisdom God gave me to listen to doctors and make good decisions, and trust in him when I don't understand all the rest.
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