A Thousand Words of a Ravenous Wolf

'This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme. ' 1 Timothy 1:18-20 I couldn't help but think about Hymenaeus and Alexander when I read this. Their sole appearance in the Bible is as a warning to others. Why is it so much easier to see someone else's danger than it is to see the disaster bearing down on me? This is yet another reason why humility is so critical.  Instead of wagging my head knowingly when I see someone else headed for trouble, I would be better served to use the folly of their error as a reason to examine my own sails.  There are two ways of learning from someone, I suppose; following a good example or avoiding a bad one.

'The sins of some people are conspicuous, going before them to judgment, but the sins of others appear later. So also good works are conspicuous, and even those that are not cannot remain hidden. ' 1 Timothy 5:24-25 I have found this to be true.  The harder I try to keep my sins contained, managed, and hidden, the more I can feel them banging and thumping on the door behind me.  They seem so powerful and uncontrollable.  I can picture people asking, "Hey, what do you have in there? What's making that racket?" and me defensively replying, "Nothing to see here.  I've got it under control." Sometimes we keep the cat in the closet at night so he doesn't sleep on our faces.  Two things are shocking: how much noise a cat can make when he doesn't want to be in a closet, and how much damage a cat can cause in the same situation.  Isn't sin the same way? It makes way more noise and causes way more damage when it is given free rein in a d...

' Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, "The Lord reigns!" Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it! Then shall the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord , for he comes to judge the earth. Oh give thanks to the Lord , for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!' 1 Chronicles 16:31-34 Today I am asking myself a simple question.  Can I join the song?  Can I share's David's joy that the Lord reigns?  Everyone has a day where they don't feel joyful; today is one such day for me.  God, please remind me that your steadfast love endures forever!

Coming into the world was not simply an academic or intellectual exercise for Christ. He was placing himself on the line.  It says in Galatians 3 that "'Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us".  It is a very sobering thought to think about Jesus picking up my file, reading through the full extent of my depravity, and agreeing to assume the responsibility for my sin.  It is humbling to think that He did this not out of obligation, but out of love.  Finally, it is painful to think about how I sin even now, and those sins are not charged to my account because of the cross. God, thank you for your mercy towards me. Thank you for sending your son to save me. Please continue to hear me, and when you hear me, Lord, forgive.  Let me be a small part of what you are accomplishing in this world.  Let my words and actions bring glory to you.

A sunflower turns to the east while the sky is still dark in order catch the first hint of light.  This is a profound metaphor to me.  It is a physical example  of faith in the dark hours of our life.  I'm reminded of what I just read today in 1st John: 'Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes. ' John 2:7-11 So many times God is referred to as a source o...

Think of the most complicated problem you are wrestling with today.  Don't you daydream about having the ability to resolve it with a snap of your fingers?  I do.  When I read this passage, I was overwhelmed by the promise contained in it. My problems are at most mundane murmurs in the face of the divine power I have been given access to.  Yet so many times I walk the other way when I am confronted by one of these fleshy strongholds. I don't even attempt an assault,  though my weapons could tear through their defenses like tissue paper. Don't believe the lie that Satan shouts down from the walls: This fortress has never fallen and it never will.  Like an ancient castle helpless in the face of modern artillery, Satan's high places in our lives cannot keep out God's power if we are willing to bring it to bear. 'For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have di...

Hebrews 12 is one of my favorite passages in the Bible ( Hebrews 12:12-13 have been my life verses for years).  The language of unpleasant discipline is really close to my heart during this phase of life.  Instead of something to be avoided, can I rejoice in the fact that discipline is conforming me to the form God requires me to be? When I read this passage, I pictured myself as a lump of poor quality iron.  The potential for utility is there; as a master craftsman God can see it.  But the only way to work the impurities out of the ore is with heat and repeated painful blows.  If the heat never comes, the metal can't be worked.  If the blows never fall, the impurities remain and the metal is weak and useless. As the impurities are worked out and the metal is purified, it can be shaped into a form that is useful to the maker.  Only then can it become what its crafter intends.  In my own life, I want to fast forward to the 'being useful' par...

Wisdom cries out in the street (Proverbs 1:20) My church does a men's bible study throughout the year and the current session is going through the book of Proverbs.  When I heard this was going to be the plan, I groaned inwardly.  Many people find Proverbs as a source of deep wisdom and comfort, but I have always struggled to apply what I read in Proverbs. Many of the truths listed there come across as "fortune cookie maxims".  I struggle to view them as something I can reconcile with the messy and often painful realities of my life.  There also is a certain amount of repetition associated with the Proverbs that can make a deep dive into the book a challenge. Although the scripture is God's word breathed onto paper, it is not uncommon to hit a book or passage that is difficult to read.  This could be a section like Numbers where the content is simply dry.  It could be passages like those found in Joshua where there are theological implications that ar...

'Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. ' Hebrews 12:1-2 When I was reading this passage, it occurred to me that laying aside weights, while not easy, is infinitely more simple than setting aside our sins which cling so closely.  I pictured some horrible creature with his hooks buried deep in my back. His damp breath thick with graveyard stench, he whispers lie after lie into my ear.  Time after time he tries convincing me that I am not who God says I am, that God is not who He says He is.  His presence is unwelcome but so familiar that it is almost inconceivable to imagine life without him perched on my back.  Th...

As I read this passage, the imagery of in vitro fertilization came to mind. I thought about how the scientists in Jurassic Park began to bring back the dinosaurs without considering the consequences. I thought about the hubris of sin, and how many times temptation masquerades itself as something that can be controlled. "I'm completely in control of the situation", we tell ourselves as we begin to listen to our desire. We fertilize the embryos of sin ourselves and hold on to the illusion of control right up until our sins consume us. "Who could have seen this coming?" We lament. We stand in the ruins caused by the chaos of our creation, a destroyed Park where our worst vices run amok. The answer is pretty simple. Anyone could have seen it coming.  Our sinful hearts are only coy to us . Others can look on disbelief and shake their heads at one bad decision after another. This is why community is so critical. We need responsible friends to knock the pipettes ou...

'They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, "See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain." But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. ' Hebrews 8:5-7 This passage brought to mind Plato's allegory of the cave .  In that exercise Plato painted a vivid picture of prisoners chained to the wall, watching shadows. In that vein, I thought of someone dying of thirst. They see the shadow of a person pouring a tall glass of water.  The person offers them a sip from the glass, but the projected shadow of the glass cannot offer any refreshment.  It only adds to their frustration as a visible reminder of something th...