“The Lord will give strength unto his people; the Lord will bless his people with peace.” Psalm 29:11

I’m attempting to post something God highlights to me in the Word every day. This is pretty much for my own benefit, but if anyone happens to take a gander and God uses it, Amen.

The thing that strikes me about this verse is the promises it contains. Its very matter-of-fact. God WILL give His people strength. God WILL give His people peace. Period. I love promises like these in the Bible because there is no interpretation needed. And I can stand on these promises when the circumstances of life seem to suggest or even shout otherwise. Ultimately, God’s Word is what shapes reality, and so nothing we perceive as real will ever be more definitively true then God’s Word. This reminds me of something that Dan McCullam said regarding God’s inability to lie. He said that while it is true God can’t lie because its contrary to His nature, the main reason He can’t lie is because the moment He speaks, Heaven and Earth rearrange themselves to obey His Word.

So anyway, I like having two more promises in my back pocket to meditate on, and use against the enemy whenever necessary. When I’m feeling weak… boom, Jesus says He gives me strength. When I’m feeling anxious, scared, or stressed… boom, Jesus says He gives me peace. You have to buy into that, cause what activates God’s promises is our faith. His promises are yes and amen. He supplies the yes, the infallibility and power of His Word, and we activate it with our “Amen.” 2 Cor 1:20 says, “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through Him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.” I find it to be pretty amazing that through aligning ourselves with the Word, Jesus gives us the power and authority to alter our circumstances and bring this earth closer in alignment with heaven. Go Jesus.

“But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.” James 3:17

So I’ve been thinking about this verse since this morning, and I think it’s really cool that it’s at the tail end of a chapter on controlling the tongue. Wisdom is a complex quality with many sides and angles, so having my attention brought to the subject of controlling my tongue helps give focus and specificity to this verse. I found myself thinking about wisdom as something God gives me for myself and for others.

Wisdom from above is first pure. It is pure in its source, pure in its content, pure in its application, and pure in its deliverance. God’s wisdom is not derived from what is logical or seemingly prudent in a given situation. “God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise” 1 Cor 1:27. God’s wisdom is not mixed with our own thoughts or opinions. One time a friend of mine was sharing some issues they were facing, and I was attempting to be a good friend and give them some logical Christian advice. As I drove away, I realized that I was not content with just giving my friend “good” advice. I wanted to be a channel for God to speak into his life. So I asked God to give me wisdom that I could extend to him, and God told me what to say. The more I get to know my Jesus, the more I realize how worthless my own perspective is and how much I need to see as He sees.

God’s wisdom is gentle and peaceable. So many times I find myself angry with someone’s behavior, and I want to give them some “wisdom” that I know is for their own good (and mine). But I know that if I ever open my mouth out of a place of anger, I will have completely undermined any thing God wants to speak through me. God’s wisdom stems from His love, and we must deliver it out of that same love. God’s wisdom does not provoke conflict. It is true that His Word is “lliving and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” But don’t be so eager to whip out the swords. The “dividing asunder” is God’s part, not ours. God has called us to “speak the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15). And James 3:17 confirms this idea of gentleness and peace.

The wisdom from above is easy to be entreated. This is also translated as “modest” and “submissive.” God’s wisdom, like his love, does not push itself to the forefront (1 Cor 13:4). I think this really dovetails the previous point about peace and gentleness. We aren’t supposed to push God’s wisdom on people. We walk in it ourselves and offer it to those who have an ear to hear.

Full of mercy and good fruits. This is really important to me because God has spoken to me about it before. Going back to the tongue, verses 9 & 10 state, “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.” God’s wisdom dictates that our words should be full of mercy, exemplifying the fruit of the Spirit, and highlighting the fruits of the Spirit evident in the lives of those we talk about. Often I hear people publicly criticize and denounce various figures in the ministry. While God calls us be discerning and “test the spirits” (1 John 4:1), that is for our own walk and for those we are discipleing/fathering. In 1 Samuel 26:9, David, a “man after God’s own heart” (Acts 13:22), forbids his mighty man Abishai from harming King Saul saying, “Don’t destroy him! Who can lay a hand on the LORD’s anointed and remain guiltless?” Later on, David executes a man for harming Saul, God’s anointed (2 Samuel 1). If God is so serious about how we treat someone as fallen as Saul, then who are we to think it is okay for us to denounce God’s anointed today, whatever their faults may be? If God only used perfect people, Jesus Christ would have been the Earth’s final minister. God’s wisdom is full of mercy.

Finally, God’s wisdom is impartial. God is no respecter of persons; He doesn’t play favorites (Acts 10:34). And His wisdom is free of hypocrisy. “You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye” Matthew 7:5.

So this is what I have been meditating on today. I’ve been writing for a while. I like how I’m getting to review a lot of verses while thinking about the initial verse. God You are good. You are so good. Make my life a sweet sweet sound to Your ear. Thank you for replacing my broken life with Your abundant life. Sanctify my soul and renew my mind as You wash me with the water of Your Word. Amen.

“The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed” Luke 4:18

So this is gonna be short and sweet, but this verse has been on my heart all day. I really don’t have any profound or interesting thoughts about it; I’m just in awe of the phenomenon that is God’s anointing, as well as the heart of God and His love for me and everyone on this earth. And that through all our doubting, questioning, and blaming He still anoints us to heal the broken and free the captives. So many spend their time wondering why God allows bad things to happen when the fact is, we are the ones He has empowered to walk in victory over sin and the effects of sin on this world. He’s given us the keys to the kingdom and the power to bind and to loose (Matt 16:19). We just have to say “Yes” to His “Amen” (See Previous)

“Blessed are the pure in heart, 
For they shall see God. 
Blessed are the peacemakers, 
For they shall be called sons of God. 
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, 
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matt 5:8-10

So I was trying to read my Bible this morning and my flesh was giving me all sorts of trouble. I could not stay awake, nor could I keep my mind fixed on the Father. I had just decided to give up for the time being when God just sort of dropped verses 8-10 on my heart. Like most Christians, I am pretty familiar with the Beatitudes so I began to speak them and meditate on them.

I think the biggest thing that stood out to me was “Blessed are the peacemakers.” It reinforces was God was showing me earlier (See Link). It’s not a hippy, liberal sort of peace. It’s a modest peace, a humble peace, a selfless peace; a peace that “surpasses all understanding” (Philippians 4:7).

So tomorrow I’m going to lead a Bible Study for a college ministry group called “Chi Alpha.” We’ll be finishing a five-week look at Abraham, and I’ll be focusing on Genesis 22:1-19. I’m pretty excited about this chapter because there are so many awesome things written that are pivotal to our Christian walk.

For starters, in verse 2, God says “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom you love, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell you.” This sounds very similar to when God first called Abraham in Genesis 12:1, “Now the Lord had said unto Abram, ‘Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show you.’” So basically, Abraham finally finishes His journey with God in chapter 21 with the birth of Isaac, the promised child; and in chapter 22, God is already starting him on a new journey. [Have you ever had a time where you put a lot of work and effort into something, and then as soon as your done, something else pops up immediately and you barely get a break?] God is often just like that in His dealings in our lives; He never stops working with us. There is always more. He takes us from “faith to faith” (Rom 1:17). And what did Abraham do when God called him the first time? He obeyed. And what did he do when God called him the second time? We’re about to find out.

As we continue in the chapter, we come to verse 5, and Abraham says to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.” This is the first time in the Bible where the word “worship” is used. And what is Abraham describing as worship in this verse? A sacrifice. In 2 Samuel 24, King David is buying a field in order to offer a sacrifice to the Lord. The seller tells David he will give him the field free of charge and David responds in verse 24, “No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the LORD my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.” Worship involves us offering our lives up to God. If what we offer to God doesn’t cost us anything, its not worship. [Has anyone ever had someone repackage a gift and give it to you, or buy something super cheap and give it to you? not ironically or humorously, but out of half-hearted obligation. How valuable is that gift to you] Its the same way with God. He gave everything for us. He wants us to give Him the things that matter to us. And as we are about to see, He really just wants us to give Him what He has given us.

As we continue reading, Abraham is about to kill Isaac on the alter and God tells him to stop. As a side note here, what if Abraham had taken the directive from God to kill Isaac and then just rushed off and did it on His own, without staying connected to God along the way? This is why its important to stay in connection with God even after He gives you a directive. Don’t try to do it through yourself, or you’ll end up killing the promise instead of passing the test.

In verse 13, Abraham looks up and “behold, behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son.” Earlier in the story, Isaac had asked his father where the burnt offering was, and Abraham replied, “My Son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.” This is a picture of Christ providing a lamb as an offering for the sins of the world, so that we would not have to bear the punishment for our own sins.

In verses 16-18, God reiterates His promise to Abraham, “By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son; That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the seashore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.”

Remember early on in Abraham’s journey, he “believed God, and it was reputed to him as righteousness” (Gen 15:6). Abraham was not righteous. We have seen this over the last few weeks. He pimped out his wife to Pharaoh (Gen 12). He sought to fulfill God’s promise through making babies with the servant girl instead of doing it God’s way (Gen 16). But because of Abraham’s faith in God, God looked at him as righteous. This is a foreshadowing of our own justification through Jesus’ death. When we believe on Jesus, God calls us sinless and righteous and looks at us that way. But if it ended there, Christianity would be the biggest scam this world has ever seen. Because calling a caterpillar a “butterfly” is not correct unless that caterpillar at some point actually turns into a butterfly. In the same way, God didn’t call Abraham righteous and leave it at that, He worked in Abraham’s life on a daily basis, despite Abraham’s mistakes, until Abraham was so in love with God that He was willing to offer His only son. God had actually completed a work in Abraham’s life and developed righteousness in him, so that He was no longer simply calling Abraham “righteous,” but now Abraham actually was righteous. And God wants to do the same thing in our life, He wants to sanctify ever part of us, making us into His likeness and image.

[So what’s our part to play?] Well if we look at Abraham’s life we see two things: he obeyed and he worshiped. When God told Abraham to go, he went. And as he went, he sacrificed his life and the things that mattered, living a lifestyle of worship. And as he did his part by worshiping and obeying, God was faithful to sanctify him and make him a righteous man of God, through whom all the nations of the world have been blessed. If we will obey and live a life of worship, God will continue to mold us, despite our mistakes, into His likeness and image, and use each of us to impact this world for His glory.

Often I hear people use the words “faith” and “belief” interchangeably. Faith has nothing to do with one’s beliefs. Faith is the “evidence of things hoped for” (Hebrews 11:1). Faith is undeniable evidence. If you believe in something, your belief has absolutely no power to affect the accuracy or substance of the object of your belief. But faith is not believing. Faith is knowing. And faith has the power to change the very nature and fabric of reality, to redefine everything, because faith cannot be false. There is only one thing that the Bible says God cannot do: it is impossible for God to lie (Hebrews 6:18). And why is that? While the elements of God’s nature could certainly be discussed in an answer to this question, the simple fact is that God cannot lie because the moment He speaks, all of heaven and earth realigns itself to conform to what God has declared. Romans 10:17 says that faith comes from hearing a Word from God. So the moment we hear God speak, we do not simply believe His Word to be true, we KNOW that all of creation has realigned itself to obey God’s Word. And when God personally communicates a Word to us, we are given the privilege of declaring God’s Word, and watching as the heavens above and the earth beneath makes haste to fulfill the Word of the Lord.