Last weekend I went to a family wedding. The bride, of course, was beautiful in her lovely satin dress; and the groom handsome in his black tux. But what struck me most was the anticipation on the groom’s face as he waited beside the pastor for his beloved, and then the incredible love that radiated when he first saw her as she stepped onto the unfurled aisle carpet.

That look was heart stopping and made me imagine what Jesus’ face would look like when He first sees His bride—the collective believers, His set apart ones. I imagine His face full of love and yearning. He has, after all, waited over two thousand years for this, for us, all one body, cleansed and beautiful in white as a bride should be. But I also imagine His eyes lighting up as He looks at each of us as though we are the only ones in the room, for He also loves us individually and not only knows our name but the very number of hairs on our head.

And He has paid handsomely for her. As required by ancient Jewish law governing weddings, the bride price is paid prior to the wedding and reflects the value placed on her by the groom. And this bride is greatly valued for she has been purchased by the very blood of her beloved. And she is so beautiful. No longer the reproach of the world, or despised and ridiculed, she is now radiant in her splendid garment and crown; flawless and without spot or wrinkle or blemish (Ephesians 5:27).

Every bride’s wedding is memorable and special, but this wedding between the heavenly bridegroom and His bride will be a day like no other. All the heavenly hosts will be in attendance. And the celebration? Oh, my, it will be beyond anything we have ever seen before.

So when will the wedding take place? Again, according to ancient Jewish wedding laws/traditions only the father of the groom can decide this. That’s why Jesus said only the Father knows the day or hour of His return. But even now Jesus is preparing a place for us (John 14:2-3).

Then what should we, as the waiting bride, do in the meantime? I think it wise to heed the words of Paul in 2 Corinthians 11:2-3 (Amplified): “For I am jealous for you with a godly eagerness and a divine jealousy, for I have betrothed you to one Husband, to present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But now I am fearful, lest that even as the serpent beguiled Eve by his cunning, so your minds may be corrupted and seduced from wholehearted and sincere and pure devotion to Christ.”

More than ever, we, the bride, need to be vigilant and keep our garments clean as we wait for out beloved.

Until next time,

Sylvia

Several weeks ago the subject of slavery in the Bible came up in a conversation along with the inference that instead of being condemned outright by God it was treated too lightly.  The conversation made me want to look into the subject more closely, and here are my conclusions.

First, I suspect that what Jesus said about divorce in Matthew 19:8 could also be said about slavery: “Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so.” In other words, slavery, too, is a product of the hardness of our hearts and not the will of God, nor did He intend this for mankind in the beginning.

And secondly, because slavery has existed from ancient times, God chose in His word to use it as an illustration of man’s condition. In John 8:34 (Amplified) Jesus says that “whoever commits and practices sin is the slave of sin.” But then two verses later He goes on to say, “So if the Son liberates you, makes you free men, then you are really and unquestionably free.”

Roman 6:16-20 confirms this by telling us pretty much the same thing; that we become slaves to whatever we yield ourselves to. If it’s to sin, then we become slaves to sin. Conversely, if it’s to Jesus, he frees us from the bondage to sin but then we become slaves to righteousness. So whether we want to admit it or not, we are all slaves.

Perhaps you find it offensive that Jesus has the right to call believers “slaves”. Even so, He does, for He purchased us with a great price—His very blood. But does He call us slaves? No. Instead, He calls us “friend”. In John 15:14-15a He says, “Ye are my friends, if you do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants (slaves).” But it gets even better. Galatians 4:7 tells us that we are no longer slaves of sin but a son “and if a son then an heir of God through Christ.”

Friend, son, heir. What a far cry from slave! Unfortunately, there are still too many who are slaves of sin and to this world. If only they would leave their captivity for the wonderful world of freedom God offers! If only they understood how much He loved them! Oh, pray that their hearts and minds be opened!

Until next time,

Sylvia

In the eternal sphere, something terrible happened in the heavens. A rebellion of unimaginable scope disrupted God’s perfect order. Things were obviously said about His nature and character, His motives, perhaps even His fitness and right to rule when one-third of the angles shook off His authority. Under the leadership of Satan, this horde struck out on their own with the intention of bringing down God’s rule because Satan obviously believed he could run things better. The Book of Enoch and Jubilees and Jasher all give a sense of just how old this ancient conflict between good and evil is.

So what was God to do? He could easily have struck down the rebels with a flick of a finger or clamped them in irons. After all, they were created beings. His created beings. But that would still leave the swirl of accusations, begun by the Accuser, to possibly foment another rebellion among those angels still loyal.

A definite predicament. How to, once and for all, extract justice for the crime perpetuated against Him and His kingdom, while at the same time illustrate His true loving character and lay rest all those lies and accusations circulating about Him? His plan was brilliant, magnanimous, and terrifying all at once. He would create time, a set span of minutes and hours in which he would unfold His plan and display His true nature, and thus repair the torn fabric of His kingdom. Indeed, we see in Genesis 1:1 where it states “In the beginning, God . . . .” In the beginning of what? Since eternity has no beginning, it obviously means the beginning of time, the beginning of the present age. And what did He do in this “beginning”? He created the heavens and earth for the first time, then recreated them again in Genesis 1:2 for the second time. Since God never creates anything that is void and without form, many Bible scholars believe there is a gap between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2, and that the first world was destroyed sometime after Satan’s rebellion. I think it’s a plausible scenario.

Then God created man, and gave him the charge to replenish the earth (Genesis 1:28) again alluding to the fact that this earth on which man now walked was a recreation. And God did all this while allowing Satan to continue fomenting rebellion, and while knowing that man, too, would sin and need a savior. And God did it all knowing that He Himself was to be the remedy and that it would come at a great cost. Revelation 13:8 talks about the “Lamb slain from the foundation of the earth,” showing God’s foreknowledge not only of man’s original sin but also of what God’s intended solution would be.

Thus, we are all living in a timeline, a timeline set by God, Himself, and one that will last only until His full plan is accomplished. So where are we on this timeline, now? According to the Bible, very little remains to be fulfilled. It seems that more and more commentary is coming out about it every day: the rapture of the church, the rise of the antichrist, the one world government and monetary system, the seven year tribulation, the return of Jesus.

I don’t think it’s unreasonable to conclude that time is running out. It’s running out for Satan, for us, for the world systems.  And at its end, God will have put to rest all questions of His character, His nature, His love and kindness, His fairness, His patience and long suffering. No angel, no demon, no man, no woman will be able to cast doubts about Him again, for all He will have to do is point to the corridor of time as His witness.  And then there will be a clear divide between those who love Him and those who don’t. And that divide will remain forever as, once again, things revert back to eternity.

Until next week,

Sylvia

What brings a person to Godly repentance? Is it fear that God will strike him down or load him with troubles in this world? Or fear of hell in the hereafter? Or maybe a desire for rewards in heaven? They could all play some part, initially. But according to the Bible, the reason we are brought to repentance is God’s kindness. Yes kindness. Romans 2:4b (NIV) specifically tells us that God’s kindness leads us to repentance.

Indeed, kindness is one of God’s attributes. Nehemiah (Ne 9:17) talks about God’s kindness in His dealings with rebellious Israel during their wilderness experience. In Psalm 117:2 the psalmist tells us to praise the Lord “for his merciful kindness is great toward us”. Isaiah 54 tells us that God’s kindness is everlasting and will not depart from His people. Joel 2:13 (Amplified) tells us that God is “gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in loving-kindness.”

It’s this kindness that prevented God from letting sinful mankind languish in his sin; that prevent God from allowing mankind to be lost forever with no means of escape. It was this loving-kindness that brought Jesus to earth, so He could make, for us, a way back to the Father. How miserable we would be if this were not so! It would mean living in a world without hope, without a future; a world in which mankind was condemned to exist in lawlessness and ever-increasing despair, then face an eternity forever separated from their Creator.

When we begin to understand the magnitude of what God did for us, the magnitude of what He saved us from, the magnitude of what it cost Him; when we begin to see His tender heart toward us, and His longing that none should perish, it’s easy to bow before Him and confess we are sinners and in need of salvation. What a small thing it is for us to humble ourselves before a God whose character is one of such boundless mercy and love; a God Who cares about us and Who wants only the best for us; A God Who yearns for us to come to Him so, as Ephesians 2:7 says, “that in the ages to come he (God) might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.”

Who, indeed, is like our loving, merciful, kind God?

Until next time,

Sylvia

Everyone knows appearances can be deceiving, yet we have all, at one time or another, been fooled. And it happened even in the Bible. Take for instance David, the shepherd boy. Who would ever think that an uneducated, insignificant shepherd would become the great king of Israel? And then there’s Daniel, the Jewish teenager, who was dragged to Babylon as a captive, only to become advisor to the most powerful rulers of the then known world. And Rahab, the harlot, who became part of the lineage of Jesus.

But the best example is God Himself who came down to earth as Emanuel in the form of a helpless baby, born in a smelly stable, and who lived the life of a humble carpenter before beginning the greatest ministry of all times, that of reconciling man to God; and changed the world forever. Many were fooled then, too, and couldn’t believe that such a thing was possible. Even Nathanael, one of the twelve apostles, when first hearing of Jesus said, “”Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?” (John 1:46).  And people are still being fooled today.

As Christians decorate their trees, buy presents, and display nativity scenes to celebrate the birth of Jesus, many others still can’t comprehend that this so called “good man” was in reality the Creator of all, the God of the Universe, the Commander of the Hosts, the One who brought everything into existence with just His spoken word. His having been clothed in the body of a baby fools them. So does the humble way He worked as a carpenter. And they still don’t understand that the reason Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice of forfeiting His life was so that we could have a hope and a future, not only in the present but for all eternity.

As we prepare the room of the inn of our hearts to receive Him, once again, this season, and throughout the New Year, let’s remember and pray for those we know who have yet to receive the King of Glory into their own hearts. Who have yet to receive the God who loves them more than they could ever imagine.

Until next time,

Sylvia

It seems like the “in” thing, even among some Evangelical Christians, to claim that there are many ways to heaven. It sounds rather sophisticated, too, like it’s coming from someone who’s been around and knows a thing or too. And isn’t it oh, so, tolerant? Almost making all other positions appear narrow-minded. But is it true?

Every religion in the world, other than Christianity, has a system of works, whereby you must earn your way to heaven. Only in Christianity are we told this has already been done for us, and done by the person of Jesus Christ; and that all we need do is accept it and believe in Him. Based on my years on this earth and observing how people operate and what generally motivates them, my logical mind tells me it’s impossible for any of us to work our way to heaven. For one thing, our motives usually stink. Like the Pharisees in the Old Testament who stood on street corners and had trumpets blown when they presented their tithes so that everyone would see them, our motives are all too often based on a desire to be admired by others. Oh, what a “good person” he/she is!  Don’t misunderstand, I’m stating a fact, not pointing a finger for I’ve been guilty of this myself. But knowing this makes it easier for me to understand that man is sinful and in great need of a Savior, thus Christ satisfies my need.  For me, any other route would be like embarking on “Mission Impossible”.

I do, however, understand the draw of a “works” religion. When my children were toddlers and I would try to help them do something, they often said, “me do”. And this was fine as long as what they wanted to do wasn’t dangerous or way beyond their capability. But most times they wanted to do something unsafe or what they sorely lacked the ability to do, and this while not even understanding these realities. So it really boils down to a question of pride. And doesn’t the Bible tells us that “pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall? (Proverbs 16:18 KJV)

But when it comes to Christians believing there are many ways to heaven, well, this is a real puzzler to me. If indeed there are many ways, why did Jesus have to come at all? Why did God the Father send Him to be tortured, beaten, brutalized and hang on a cross to die an agonizing death? Is God a sadist? Is He unfeeling? Or a cruel jokester? If there are other ways to heaven then Jesus’ death was unnecessary and that’s tantamount to pouring His precious blood down a drain.

Those who call themselves Christians should actually believe in who Jesus Christ is, what He did, and what He said. And that includes the hard sayings, like this one where Jesus claims, “Before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58 KJV) proclaiming His eternal existence. Or “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man cometh unto the Father but by me” (John 14:6 KJV) proclaiming He is the only way to heaven. Or this one, “I say emphatically that anyone who listens to my message and believes in God who sent me has eternal life, and will never be damned for his sins, but has already passed out of death into life” (John 5:24 LB) proclaiming that forgiveness of sins comes by Him. Or “I am the resurrection, and the life; he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live;” (John 11:25 KJV) proclaiming that belief in Him is required for gaining eternal life. Oh, there are so many more I could quote, but just these four show how radical Jesus’ statements were, and how He purposely left no wiggle room. Either Jesus is exactly who He says, or He’s a liar, and a madman or con artist. It’s a question that each of us must answer for ourselves. But no true Christian can have it both ways. For him/her, Jesus is the only way to heaven.

Until next time,

Sylvia

In Biblical times leprosy was a dreaded disease. It affected both skin and nerves. A leper could have oozing sores and gross disfigurements. He could lose a part of his body: a nose, ear, finger. Lepers were shunned, driven from society, forced to live outside the community, and denied human contact with non-lepers. And you can well imagine how they smelled!  And when they encountered anyone while walking down a road, they had to cry out “unclean, unclean!” That’s why when a leper approached Jesus in Matthew 8:2 and said, “Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean,” Jesus’ reaction was so astonishing.  The first thing he did was touch him!  Then He said, “I will; be thou clean.”

Oh, how much this tells us about Jesus! About His heart. His kindness. His love. His mercy. He could just as easily have healed the leper with a word.  Only a few verses later in Matthew 8:5 He does just that for a centurion’s servant.  

We are all spiritual lepers, and Jesus wants to make us clean, too, and He’s not afraid to put His finger into our puss-filled sores. He’s not afraid to touch the dirty, the defiled places within us. He’s not afraid to look upon our poor spiritual deformity. In fact, He delights in it, delights in healing us, delights in making us what He always envisioned us to be. The wonderful thing is this: God sees us for what we really are, but loves us anyway. And He loves us not because we’re good, but because He is good.

We might as well settle this once and for all. We’ve all sinned and fallen short.  We all need a Savior. Could there be anyone more wonderful or tenderhearted than Jesus? We need not fear committing everything to Him.  And when we do, He will begin to make those ugly wretched places in us, beautiful.

The question is, do we have the courage to let Him?

Until next week,

Sylvia

Beware of this valley.  It’s dangerous.  The name itself, Gerar, means to drag off roughly.  What happened here?  In Genesis 26:12-22 Isaac, Abraham’s son, has been mightily blessed by God and has “became very great,” so great in fact that the Philistines who lived in the area were envious and their envy drove them to stop up all of Isaac’s wells. And everyone knows how vital water is, especially in the Middle East.  Eventually, the local king got into the act and, in the interest of peace, asked Isaac to leave, thus Isaac was symbolically “dragged off roughly”, to the valley of Gerar.  But even here his troubles didn’t end because the new wells his herdsmen dug were contested by the herdsmen of Gerar.  After a cycle of digging wells then giving them up to the protesters, Isaac finally dug a well that he was allowed to keep.

So why do I think this is a dangerous valley?  Because it’s a valley that can easily breed resentment.  Imagine you are happy, “on top of the world,” and living in peaceful union with God, blessed mightily by Him, when all of a sudden, because of the sins or selfishness or carelessness or malevolence of others you are forced to go to a place you don’t want to go; forced to endure hardship, suffering, heartache, humiliation, all because of something someone else did. It could be a spouse who did not handle the finances wisely and now you are facing bankruptcy, or a spouse who has violated the marriage with an adulterous affair, or a business that has been mismanage and now you are out of a job, or a rebellious child who has run away from home and turned your world upside down.  It could be any one of a dozen things but the result is the same.  You find yourself where you don’t want to be, “dragged” there by someone else. And because you believe it’s not your fault, bitterness can sprout like a weed. 

Verse 19 of Genesis 26 tells us that in the midst of this valley, Isaac’s servants found a “well of springing water (KJV).” The Amplified calls it a “well of living (spring) water.” Jesus tells us in John 4:10 that He will give “living water” to whoever asks, the only kind of water capable of quenching spiritual thirst.  Gerar is a tough valley to be sure, but oh, what a deep and marvelous well God has for us there if only we ask!  It doesn’t have to be a place of bitterness.  It can be a place where circumstances make us more open to the Lord, as well as a place of deep refreshing.  As usual, the choice is ours.

Until next week,

Sylvia

I was surprised to find Abraham in another valley, the Valley of Shaveh (Genesis 14:17-20) right after his victory over King Chedorlaomer.  Why was he there and not back up in the mountains since valleys are taken as low points in our lives?  Only after giving it some thought did it seem reasonable. God had given Abraham a great victory, but the victory came with a price. The Bible calls what happened in the last valley, the Valley of Siddim, a “slaughter”.  Abraham had been at war. He had blood on his hands.  He had killed many. And he had made enemies.  Would the sons or relatives of those enemies seek revenge?  These things had to weigh heavily on his mind. No wonder he had no peace.

But here’s the good part, while he’s lingering in this low point, Melchizedek, priest of the most high God and King of Salem, the very King of Peace—for Salem means peace—comes to Abraham bearing bread and wine, and blesses Abraham.  And by this blessing he assures Abraham that God was still with him, thus restoring his peace.  And who is this Melchizedek?  The pre-incarnate Jesus, the ever-existing One, who appears many times in the Old Testament.  In Hebrews 5:6, speaking of Jesus, it says, “Thou are a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec”, and Hebrews chapter 7 goes into more detail.

Oh, there is so much in these passages of Genesis! It would take a proper Bible study to lay it all out.  But suffice it to say, that after we have been in a valley of conflict, and the conflict is now over, it still may be difficult to regain our peace.  So many unpleasant things happen during a conflict.  People are wounded, relationships may be destroyed, and this could leave us still trapped in a valley of remorse, despondency, or fear of the unknown.  But praise God! Jesus is willing and able to meet us there like He did Abraham.   And if we commune with Him (symbolized by the bread and wine brought by Melchizedek); if we spend time in fellowship with Jesus, He will restore us back to a place of peace, and bless us going forward.  What a gracious God we serve!

Until next week,

Sylvia

He had been breaking rules all his life.  In little ways, at first, ways that seemed inconsequential because his friends were doing them, too: snatching candy bars from grocery stores, plagiarizing school work, driving 50 in a 20 mile zone. It was inevitable that as he grew so did his crimes: cheating on his taxes, slandering the man whose position he coveted in hopes of getting ahead, engaging in dishonest business practices, driving drunk, and finally, the hit and run that cost a woman her life. Now, standing before the judge for sentencing, he knew it had all caught up to him—this accumulated debt to society—and payment was due.

Most people in the courtroom thought the judge would be lenient since he had a reputation for being a kindly soul.  But everyone gasped when they heard him pronounce the harshest penalty allowed by law.  And they gasped again when another man, prominent and well known in the community for his goodness, stepped forward and declare, “I will pay the penalty for him.  I will serve his sentence.” A final gasp was heard when the judge accepted the offer and declared the real criminal, “absolved”.

It’s hard to believe that something like this could ever happen.  But it did, almost two thousand years ago when Jesus, the sinless Son of God, stepped forward and willingly took upon Himself our just punishment. Without exception, we have all broken the rules. We have all violated God’s laws. And just like those people in that fictional courtroom, many believe our Heavenly Judge will be lenient and that somehow they will escape their due punishment.  But though our Heavenly Judge is loving, He is also just, and His sense of justice must be satisfied. Thus our violations carry a terrible punishment, eternal separation from God.

But oh, what a tremendous thing Jesus accomplished! And at such a great cost!  Hanging on a cross in unspeakable agony and torment, He took upon Himself every single one of our sins.  And just before he died, John 19:30 tells us Jesus cried out “It is finished.” That word “finished” in the Greek literally means to discharge a debt, to mark it “paid in full.”

If we accept Jesus’ sacrifice we are “absolved”, too, and our sin debt is marked “paid in full”.  If we don’t, then we will be required to pay this debt, ourselves. The choice is totally ours.

Until Next Week,

Sylvia