He Is Not Like Us

“God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” (Nu 23:19 AV)

It occurred to me this morning, by the voice of the Holy Spirit, just how common it is for man to treat God as one of mankind.  Balak, the king of Moab, hired a Gentile Prophet called Balaam.  Balaam was asked to curse Israel as Israel lay in the valley preparing to enter Canaan.  Balak felt intimidated by Israel even though Israel never threatened them.  Perhaps Balak, in the back of his mind, knew God would eventually deal with Moab and not in their favor.  Balak thought he could hire Balaam to curse Israel with the promise of wealth and comfort.  The problems with this are many.  What Balak could not understand is God is not for hire.  This, in essence, is what Balak was trying to do.  Through God’s man, Balak is trying to manipulate, coerce, or control the LORD.  He has this wrong idea that God can be persuaded by the same means we use to persuade men.  The more I thought about this and the more the Holy Spirit worked with my heart, the more I realized times don’t change.

It is difficult to interact with God as He is.  We cannot see Him.  We cannot hear His voice directly.  We cannot interact with Him in the same way we do people.  There are personal skills we learn while living among mankind.  We learn how to work with others to accomplish that which is important to us.  We also relate to others strictly for their benefit.  We sacrifice.  We love.  We minister.  In our relationships, there is a noticeable give and take.  Every action has an equal reaction.  We learn how to work with others and the skills we need to make relationships work.  But God is not a man.  He cannot be related to like any other.  This is a struggle.  This requires reasoned and studied faith.  We read of who and what God is.  The word of God reveals the truth of God.  What we struggle with is comparing God with other experiences to understand Him.  But this is not adequate.  Nor can it be.  That is Balaam’s point.

What concerns me is the same error Balak made.  Balak knew better.  He even said so.  He acknowledges God as the LORD God of Israel.  He knew who it was he was trying to manipulate.  What concerns me is the deliberate devaluing of God.  Forcing Him to be more human than divine is common.  Most religions do so.  But there are some who do this to a fault.  The greatest of errors come from Christendom itself.  God is not someone you can conjure up to come down and serve you.  He is not a divine entity like a Genie in a bottle whom we require favor.  He is almighty God!  He does as He wishes.  He can be approached.  We can plead our cause with Him.  But, as Job learned, He is not obligated to act as we think He should.  He is God and we are His creation.  We are subject to Him and the very fact we can approach the throne of God by the blood of Christ is more grace than we can ever understand.  God is not common.  He is not like us.  In any way!  He is holy.  He is transcendent.  He is above all.  If God does anything for us, it is by mere grace alone.  He can be petitioned, but He cannot be manipulated.  He can be pleaded with.  But He cannot be coerced.  If we treat the LORD like a man, we are being disrespectful at least.  Blasphemous at most.  Yes, sometimes this is by ignorance.  Ignorance can be solved.  It is a matter of wanting to truly worship the LORD as opposed to doing so superficially.

Roadblocks Are Not Smart

“And Israel smote him with the edge of the sword, and possessed his land from Arnon unto Jabbok, even unto the children of Ammon: for the border of the children of Ammon was strong.” (Nu 21:24 AV)

You better be careful when you give God’s people problems.  Especially when you prohibit them from going on the king’s highway.  Israel, on their way to the Canaan, desired to travel the king’s highway.  The king’s highway was a public use way by which all could traverse from one place to another.  The King’s Highway was built by some victors like Egypt’s Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, Alexander the Great, and Rome.  They were built as a way to bring invading armies here and there.  They remained public lest one nation could use it to their advantage to the detriment of others.  So, for Israel to request passage on the King’s Highway was not out of the ordinary.  Sihon, king of the Amorites refused passage.  There was no reason for their request to be denied.  Israel was not a threat.  Israel would have benefited the Amorites.  Out of spite, they refused Israel's passage.  Then we read the passage above.  If the enemies of God restrict the liberty of the people of God to pursue God, then there is a price to pay.  You cannot shut down the king’s highway without paying a stiff price.

I read this and I chuckled.  I know the church cannot expect the protection of God as Israel did.  At least the way in which the LORD works that out.  We are called to persecution.  Israel was not.  The reason Israel was persecuted was they did not follow the LORD.  We are persecuted when we do.  So, I know I cannot expect the same as Israel experienced.  But what the N.T. saint can expect is the very active hand of God as we seek to serve Him.  Sometimes, this does work out in immediate intervention.  As a preacher, I have seen them many times.  When I have someone who does not grant me the liberty to serve God as He has called me to do, I often see the hand of God do some very dramatic things.  I have seen unfortunate circumstances come in the lives of those who wish it do harm to the work of God.  It isn’t me whom God is protecting.  God is concerned about His plan.  Israel getting to Canaan was His plan.  When the church has a plan, and some are frustrating that plan, God takes it very seriously.  I am not speaking of an occasional difference of opinion.  Rather, when those who would be contrary to the work of God no matter the plan, the LORD has a very real opinion of it.

We may have to wait until eternity before we see justice on some, but God will not neglect His hand of justice.  It is coming.  We may become frustrated that we cannot traverse the King's Highway, but that isn’t going to stop God.  If that is the way the LORD would have us to go, He will open it and provide the way.  Man gets a really big head sometimes.  Mankind thinks they can manipulate and control the plan of God.  They see minor and inconsequential victories as an indication they are winning.  They force a Christian baker out of business or shut down a Christian school and they think they have won a victory of epoch proportions.  They can fine a Christian school millions of dollars or jail a preacher for preaching the truth and somehow they think they control the universe.   Keep it up!  Jesus is coming back.  What God wants is what God will get.  The world is so full of itself.  It is so arrogant.  They thumb their nose at God and believe with a few votes, a summary judgment, or a fist full of arms they control to plan of God.  How utterly foolish.  In the sight of God, they are nothing more than an annoying gnat.  The really sad thing is the God-haters have no idea our precipitous their situation is.  It is the grace of God alone that keeps air in their lungs.  There isn’t anything requiring God to show mercy.  He extends to them the free gift of salvation.  Despite their hatred for Him, He still loves them and wishes for their salvation.  But block the king’s highway – NOT. 

Blessed Forever

“Thou art fairer than the children of men: grace is poured into thy lips: therefore God hath blessed thee for ever.” (Ps 45:2 AV)

I know this psalm is a prophetic one.  This psalm’s theme is the LORD Jesus Christ.  When the psalmist writes that God has blessed the subject forever, he speaking of the Son of God.  Forever is eternally forever.  Since we had a beginning, we could not have been blessed forever.  The eternal blessings above are founded upon the character of the subject.  We cannot say the same.  There is no human being who is fairest of all.  There is no human being who can always speak words of grace.  However, we are blessed forever in the sense God blesses us continually.  Not because of who or what we are.  Rather, because of who and what Jesus is.  We are eternally blessed in the sense the blessings of God will continue from henceforth and for all of eternity because the blood of Christ has made us a child of God.  God loves us and eternally blesses us because of what Jesus did for us.  In Christ, we are blessed for ever.

I have to admit, I am not always aware of the blessings of God.  I don’t always see them.  Especially when life gets a little challenging.  I grew up in western New York.  I didn’t move from there until my mid-thirties.  So, I grew up with snow.  And, a lot of it.  I worked at a factory that had no easy way to drive to.  There were hills and valleys from home to work.  Work was about a half hour away.  During the winter time, this was an adventure, to say the least.  Most people think that going downhill on an icy road is more dangerous than going uphill.  But that is not the case.  I would rather go down a hill than try to get up one.  Going downhill, put your car in the lowest gear you have and let the engine work as your brake.  Going uphill, however, is an entirely different matter.  If you begin to slip and slide, there is little you can do.  There was this one hill I had to climb on the way home from work.  I worked the third shift which meant the roads had not warmed up and dried out.  This one hill had a slight turn to it as well.  Which meant I could lose control of the car really easily.  It was nerve-racking.  It was terrifying.  Especially when you are poor and drive a broken-down car with bald tires.  I was skinny back then because I drove in terrifying conditions and sweated all the fat out!  At that moment, it is hard to think on how blessed you are.  Once the climb was over and I felt safe, I felt blessed.  But in the moment of faith and fear, not so much.

Remembering we are eternally blessed means seeing the big picture and not the details of today.  Rehearsing the fact God brought me through seven winters working at the factory without one accident is key to feeling blessed.  When we look back at life, and are honestly doing so, we can say without a doubt, life could have been a whole lot worse.  We are blessed.  We are eternally blessed.  The understanding of just how blessed we are goes a long way in getting through present circumstances.  As I wrote earlier, God is not out to get us.  He is not out to destroy us.  If anything, the LORD wished to reconcile, restore, and regenerate us.  God is all about life.  He is all about blessing.  He is all about bringing His children the best we can enjoy.  We are blessed!  Eternally blessed.  Today.  Right now.  In the past.  And in the future.  Faith is the key.  Believing we are blessed opens our eyes to just how blessed we are.  I trust you will have a great day today no matter what happens.  I hope you see God’s blessings as greater than your trials.  Doing so will bring joy to the heart and hope to the soul.

A Joy Above All Others

“Then will I go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy: yea, upon the harp will I praise thee, O God my God.” (Ps 43:4 AV)

This phrase jumped out at me because of the simple word, exceeding.  I looked up this word in Hebrew and it was no help to me.  The word exceeding means joy.  The word joy means a circle ( a complete revolution) or an age; as in an era.  I am no scholar, so I will not attempt to understand this is the original language.  What I do know is the English definition for these two words.  Webster’s 1828 dictionary says of ‘exceeding’, “Great in extent, quantity or duration; very extensive; In a very great degree; unusually; as exceeding rich.”  Of joy, the same dictionary states, “Joy is a delight of the mind, from the consideration of the present or assured approaching possession of a good.”  Again, it is the word ‘exceedingly’ that caught my attention.  In the definition above, ‘unusually’ also brings to the heart an impelling interest.  Unusual means it is not common.  It is above or apart of what would be considered normal.  This suggests a very deep truth.  That which brings joy naturally in life would not bring as much joy as God Himself.  The psalmist is sharing that of all the things that could bring joy, God exceeds them all.

A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege to marry a young couple in our church.  What a blessing.  It brought back to my mind my own young married life.  My mind went back to a stroll my wife and I took from the Toronto Science Museum and the subway stop.  It was at that moment I appreciated the full meaning of being married.  Life had become stable and purposeful.  Marriage brought a sense of definition.  I also remember the birth of my sons.  There was something about all three.  Each of my sons did not come into this world in a routine fashion.  What a joy to have children.  I remember some of the milestones and special moments we shared.  I remember the debates around the dinner table about some difficult doctrines of the Bible.  I remember their weddings which I was blessed to officiate.  I remember the birth of my grandchildren.  Now, we are building new memories as each of them is accepting Christ as their savior.  I remember baptizing my children.  I remember their high school graduations.  I remember the many times my wife and I went on dates.  We still do.  I remember the highs and the lows.  The highs brought great joy.  The world cannot take those away no matter how difficult life will get.

But of all the joys we could have, the LORD should be exceeding them all.  This is David’s point.  He had much to celebrate at the defeat of his enemies.  He had much to rejoice over when ascending to the throne and serving the LORD in the manner to which he was called.  David could rejoice greatly at the fall of Goliath or the death of Saul.  There was much to rejoice in.  But the one object of joy which exceeded them all was God.  David’s walk with God was his heart and joy.  Life happens.  Life is unpredictable and often difficult.  It has its highs and lows.  It has its time of rejoicing but it also has its time of sorrow.  The one object of joy that stays the same is the LORD.  He is the object of David’s joy that exceeds them all.  His joy in the LORD is unusual.  His joy in the LORD is not natural.  It exceeds anything life can bring.  If the joy of the LORD is not exceeding, we have our eyes and hearts on the wrong things.  We look to temporary things to be our exceeding joy.  There is nothing wrong with rejoicing over temporary things.  But they cannot be our exceeding joy.  Only God can fill that bill.  Only God can claim that title.  Only God can meet the heart's needs where everything else eventually falls short.  He is, or should be, our exceeding joy above all else and all others.  God is our exceeding joy!

The God of Today

“On the tenth day Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai, prince of the children of Dan, offered:” (Nu 7:66 AV)

This verse just goes to show you there are deep truths in every single verse of the Bible.  Chapter seven of the Book of Numbers records the first-time offerings of the tribes of Israel for the construction and dedication of the Tabernacle.  Each tribe gives exactly the same thing in the same manner.  The chapter is over eighty verses long.  One would think it would take up much less space to simply list all the tribes and their representatives, and then list what they gave.  But the LORD felt we needed a list of all twelve tribes, their representatives, and what they gave individually; even though it was the exact same thing.  I am so glad He did because in doing so, we learn a great truth here.  We learn that God does not hold our future against us.  In His foreknowledge, the LORD knows how much we will or will not succeed in walking with Him in faith and obedience.  Whether we succeed or fail in the future, God relates to us as we are in the present!  Let me explain.

There is a controversy over the absence of Dan in the list of the twelve tribes of Israel found in the Book of Revelation.  There are several explanations for this.  However, there is one that persists.  It is assumed since Dan was the Trible that introduced Idol worship to the nation, God judged them by eliminating the tribe from the covenants given to Israel.  If that is true, it gives us a basis for the point made above.  We find Dan in the throws of idol worship in the Book of Judges.  Although Rachel brought the idols of her father with her, Jacob found them and buried them in Shechem.  Even though Israel entertained the idea of idol worship in the wilderness while Moses was atop the mount, Moses quickly judged this idol worship.  He ground the golden calf into powder and made the people drink it.  That had to be unpleasant.  In judges, we see idol worship become a point of contention.  Not to eliminate it, but rather, to incorporate it.  Idol worship almost brought war.  It is the first time Israel welcomed idol worship as a planned thing.  Prior, it was impulsive.  Now, it was deliberate.  Dan was the tribe to push this.

Which brings me to my point.  God knows what we will do or fail to do with the years we have remaining.  He knows if we will go out with a flame or a flicker.  He knows all things, good or bad.  Yet, the LORD chooses to see us as we are today and not what we will be tomorrow.  That gate swings both ways.  Future obedience does not excuse present failures.  God deals with us as we are at this moment.  This is an encouragement.  In fact, it gives great hope.  If the LORD knows I will fail Him tomorrow, yet sees me as obedient and trusting today, then He blesses me today.  This gives me hope that God may know what tomorrow holds, but I do not.  Therefore, from my perspective, I can do the right thing tomorrow.  I am not destined to fail.  If the LORD held me accountable for tomorrow’s failures today, what incentive would I have to obey and trust tomorrow? None!  If the LORD were to bless me today for the good things I might do tomorrow, why do them?  I have already received the blessings.  What a great God we serve.  What a just and fair God we love and obey!  I am so grateful the LORD shows mercy today for what He knows is coming tomorrow.  The more I meditate on this, the more I am so thankful Jesus saved me and the LORD is my heavenly Father!  Praise be to His name.

Favor Measured in Victory

“By this I know that thou favourest me, because mine enemy doth not triumph over me.” (Ps 41:11 AV)

There is something here that is important.  Note the past tense and not the future tense.  The enemy does not triumph and not ‘will not’ triumph.  The condition of victory is in the perfect present tense.  If God is for us, even in the midst of adversity, if we are not defeated, then God is with us.  He favors us.  Endurance is evidence of God’s presence and work.  This is important to remember when it seems as though we are losing ground.  David had a life of trouble.  He was constantly harassed by enemies. He spent a quarter of his time running from those who wanted him dead.  The promise above does not mean the absence of adversity.  Rather, if God favors us, then amid adversity, we will eventually be the victor.  What an encouragement!

We’ve won the battle.  We simply are not fully aware of it yet.  The promise of eternal life and the blessings which naturally result from it are irreversible.  Nothing or no one can separate us from the love of God.  Listen to the words of Paul.  “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? [shall] tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Ro 8:35-39 AV)  We simply forget how much God loves us and is always near.

Recently, we have been going through another trial of faith.  It is hard to not expect another shoe to drop.  Having a life-altering diagnosis has a way of making one gun shy when a new symptom appears.  But, the LORD gave me sense enough to call friends and ask for prayer.  With these phone calls came helpful advice.  It was fascinating to me the words spoken were miraculously familiar and without knowing of the others, each counselor affirmed the counsel and encouragement of the others.  Psalm 40 kept coming back.  In fact, as you can see from my entry, yesterday I read that very psalm.  One observation shared was that God is our high tower.  I had never thought of this in the way my blessed friend shared, but it really made sense.  I had always seen the high tower as something to which one could run for protection and absence from the battle.  But that is not it at all.  The tower was built as an observation point by which the battle can be seen and arranged.  In other words, God sees it all when we can only see a small portion.  Because He can see it all, He has a plan for us to defeat the enemy.

We cannot control our futures.  Our choices may play a part, but God is ultimately in control.  He can see all the years of our lives.  He has decreed a plan for it that we might come forth as gold, tried in the refiner’s fire.  We may suffer a bit in this life.  Partly because of the choices we made, the choices others have made, or a deep trial of faith.  But no matter the battlefield, the LORD has it all in view and knows the way that I must take.  He has a plan and that plan is for my good.  That plan is for His glory.  We all have no choice but to trust the LORD no matter what.  Our enemies are strong.  They are not to be taken lightly.  But our God is infinitely stronger and He will show himself strong on behalf of those who trust in Him.  “For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of [them] whose heart [is] perfect toward him...” (2Ch 16:9 AV)

More Than We Can Count

“Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.” (Ps 40:5 AV)

This entire verse is an incredible and completely true statement.  God shows more grace, mercy, and benevolence to His creation than we could possibly fathom.  It is that second half that really blows my mind.  If we tried to tally all that God has done for us, there is no possible way we could come close to listing it all.  David states that even if we tried to tally them, it is virtually impossible to come close to the times God has done wonderful works toward us.  And infinite God is infinitely benevolent.  This naturally and necessarily suggests God does things we are totally unaware of and the majority of what He does we do not notice.  Or, could never notice.  This is true even more so for the child of God.  God works wonders on our behalf that we will never know of, or cannot know, especially on this side of glory.  This is particularly important to remember when things are not going as wonderfully as we had hoped.

When I think of this truth, I think of the comparison between Jonah and Paul.  Both were on a boat in the middle of a storm which threatened the lives of everyone on board.  Yet, the two of them reacted completely differently.  Jonah was determined to be self-destructive.  Paul, on the other hand, chose to trust the LORD.  Why?  Because Jonah saw only the dark side of trusting the LORD and Paul only saw the upside.  Again, why?  Jonah could not see his situation and calling in life as a blessing from God.  As far as he was concerned, the LORD had called him away from a prosperous and relatively peaceful ministry in the midst of an ungodly and unrepentant people to a place that hated God but would repent.  He saw the call of God as a loss.  He saw God’s hand as a step-down.  He could not see God’s will is always better than one’s own.  Paul, on the other hand, saw suffering as a means to show the strength of God to those who have none.  Paul’s eyes were not on his circumstances nor on what he may or may not lose.  Paul’s eyes were on those whom he could help and on the glory of the LORD Jesus Christ.  Throw Peter in there and now you have a third person in the same circumstances.  Peter chose to trust what Jesus could do because he had seen mighty things from the Son of God.

When the storm is swirling around you, it is very easy to forget how good God has been to you.  Trust me, I know.  When we are consumed with our own failures and doubts, it is easy to forget how good God has been to us.  I know.  Trust me.  When you do the unwise thing of thinking back on the past with regret over decisions you made or wonder how the trajectory of your life might have gone if certain events never happened, it is easy to forget how good God has been.  Trust me, I know.  The thing is, we can to a certain degree, recollect the blessings of God.  What David says above must be accepted by faith.  If we cannot number them, it does not make it untrue.  We must believe that God is a reward of those who believe Him and diligently seek Him.  Hebrews chapter twelve, in part, deals with the chastening hand of God.  The writer makes a comparison between the chastening of our earthly fathers to our heavenly Father.  He makes the point that even in times of correction, God shows far more compassion and love than is humanly possible.  Even in hard times, the benevolence, mercy, and love of God are more than we can comprehend.  The point is to trust in it even if we cannot see it or comprehend it.  Trust in the hand of God is the strength of each and every trial we will ever face.