The Passover

"When the Lord goes through the land to strike down the Egyptians, he will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway, and he will not permit the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down."  Exodus 12:23

At first glance it appears that the Israelites escaped the last plague, the plague of death.  But actually there was a death in every household in Egypt.  The firstborn son in every Egyptian family died, but in the houses of the Israelites a lamb died in the place of the firstborn sons.

The Israelites were instructed to put some blood from the lambs they had slain on the sides and tops of their door frames.  When the death angel came through, he passed over the homes with blood--hence the name Passover.

The blood of the lambs that were slain foreshadowed Jesus' blood that was shed on the cross for us.  When God sees those who have been covered by Jesus' blood, He forgives their sins.  To be covered by Jesus' blood, we must acknowledge that we are sinners deserving God's punishment .  We must also acknowledge that Jesus died to pay the penalty we deserve for our sins.  Then we ask Jesus to the the Savior of our lives, committing ourselves completely to Him.  When we do this, we become God's children and are given eternal life.  There are some wonderfully reassuring words in Romans 8:1, which says,  "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."

In essence, Jesus is our Passover Lamb who frees us from the penalty and punishment of sin.  John the Baptist called Jesus "the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" in John 1:29.  In  Revelation 1:5 Jesus is called "him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood."  And in I Corinthians 5:17 Paul calls Jesus "our Passover Lamb."  He says, "For Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed.  Just as the Israelites' Passover lambs were sacrificed to provide the blood over the door frames, the precious, holy Son of God gave Himself as a Sacrifice so we could be forgiven and live eternally in heaven.  Are you covered with the blood of God's Lamb?

I thank You and praise You, God, for Christ, our Passover Lamb.  I praise you and thank You, Jesus, for Your sacrifice on our behalf.  Amen.

Potholes and Patches

"Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."  Philippians 1:6

In the summer time, all across our nation, reconstruction on our highways and avenues is taking place. The smell of hot tar is in the air, and the roar of paving machines assaults our ears. Parts of pavement have been stripped down to their "washboard" layer in preparation for being repaved. "Men Working" signs tell us to slow down, and men with "Stop" signs are directing traffic. "Detour" signs redirect us from our chosen routes. This causes us inconvenience and, in many cases, we become impatient and aggravated when we travel. We tend to gripe and complain about all the construction. But I wonder how much we would gripe and complain if our roads were never repaved? They would be full of potholes and patches. It really is pleasant to glide over smooth new pavement. We don't like the process, but the end result is very appealing.

God has His construction projects in our lives. Think of Joseph who was sold into slavery in Egypt and then unjustly thrown into prison where he spent several years. Think of Moses fleeing for his life from Pharaoh and tending to helpless, smelly sheep on the backside of a hot, barren desert for forty years. No doubt these men suffered during the processes that refined them, but God used them greatly afterward.

When we complain and lose patience with God's processes of refinement in our lives, we would do well to think what kind of people we would be if God had just left us alone. In Romans chapter one we see some people who so completely ignored God and so persisted in their evil deeds that "God gave them over" to exercise all their sinful desires. There are chilling words. When God works on us to make us more like Jesus, we should be grateful and cooperate with Him as much as possible. He is continuously filling in our potholes and repaving our patched areas. Even though we may chafe under the process, the results will be well worth it.

Heavenly Father, thank You that you never give up on those who belong to You. May we be grateful for Your refining processes in our lives and enjoy the beneficial results. Amen.

The Pharaoh's Heart Condition

"But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said." Exodus 8:15

Have you ever crossed your eyes or made another kind of silly face and had your mother tell you that you had better quit because your face might freeze that way? 

Jell-O conforms to the mold into which it is poured after it has gelled. Concrete hardens into the shape of the form into which it is poured. It bothers many people that the Bible says God hardened Pharaoh's heart, but God allowed it to harden into the mold, the form, into which Pharaoh himself had chosen. In Romans 1 the Bible talks about people who ignore God and continually do evil deeds, and it says, "Therefore God gave them over to the sinful desires of their hearts...." Romans 1:24 God allowed them to be set in the way they had lived. Our faces won't freeze in the silly ways we make them look, but our hearts will eventually harden according to the choices we make. 

After each plague Pharaoh told Moses If God would lift the plague, he would let the Israelites go worship in the wilderness. Yet after each plague was over, Pharaoh changed his mind until the last and most painful plague of all. 

I wonder if any of us have cried out to God to rescue us from one situation or another and have made promises to God about what we would or wouldn't do if He would just help us, yet after God has rescued us, we have forgotten or ignored our promises until the next time we are in a jam and crying out to God to rescue us again. One reason God allows our problems and troubles is to tenderize our hearts and to draw us closer to Him. We have a choice. We can allow God to change us so that we become more Christ like, or we can rebel against God's hand and harden our hearts toward Him. But one day we will face God's judgment, and our lives will be set according to how we have chosen to live. 

Father, make my heart tender toward You and obedient to Your word. Amen. 

Those in Authority

"Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities."  Romans 13:1a

This is not one of my favorite verses in the Bible.  Submission to authority goes against the grain of our humanity.  We want to be in charge.  And, besides, I really don't approve of all those who are in authority nor agree with how they handle the power and responsibilities they have been given.  I think the government wastes a lot of our tax money. It makes some poor laws.  Many government officials have some glaring character flaws.  It is much easier, and, in a way, more satisfying to our human nature to bash the government and all others in authority.

However, God tells us to be subject to the governing authorities.  If I am unwilling to do that--to obey the laws, pay my taxes, and respect and honor those in office no matter how much I may disagree with them personally--I will be disobeying God's command, and disobedience is always a sin.

If I approach this verse positively instead of negatively, I can see some very good reasons to have people in positions of authority and responsibility.  I need to remember that none of them are perfect because all people are flawed, and I need to cut them some slack rather than being super critical.  I should not expect them to be perfect.  Instead, I should be very grateful for the work they do and the services they provide for all the citizens.  Very importantly, we have military and police protection.  We have peace in our nation.  Imagine the chaos that would ensue if we had no government.  We also have such benefits as highways and a postal system.  

Is there anything we can do to enhance our government and our other officials? There certainly is.  First of all, we are instructed to pray for those in authority.  We can respect these people and cooperate with them, perhaps even helping them do their job.  As we spread the good news and more people become Christians, that should make a difference.  A good Christian should be a good citizen, with gratitude for all the things governing people do for us and for the privilege of living in peace in the greatest country in the world.

Father, thank You so much for the United States of America!  May we be good citizens of this great country.  Amen.  

Our Enemy

"Be alert and of sober mind.  Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour."  I Peter 5:8

My back yard joins my daughter Weety's back yard.  I have two dogs.  One of my dogs, a Pomeranian named Missy, is a very social animal.  When Weety and her husband Mike have company, Missy trots over to join the crowd.

Weety and Mike have two new puppies, and Missy wants to make friends with them and satisfy her curiosity about these newcomers on the hill.  The puppies stay in a fenced off portion of the yard that is accessible by a screened porch, so Missy goes onto the porch to visit the puppies.  But, there is a problem. The screen door on that side of the porch only opens one way--inward.  Once Missy is on the porch, she can't get out.  She is trapped.  Someone has to let her out.

The puppies are like bait to lure Missy to the porch where she becomes trapped.  We have an enemy who uses bait to trap us into disobeying our Heavenly Father.  Unfortunately, like Missy, we don't seem to understand, or maybe we don't care, what the results of our actions will be.  We join the crowd or try to satisfy our curiosity, and all of a sudden we have taken Satan's bait again.

To what kind of bait do you most readily respond?  Do you find that you fall for the same enticements time after time?  Do you often need someone to help you out of the enemy's trap?  Fortunately there is Someone who will come to our rescue.  1 John 1:9 tells us,  "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

Is there anything we can do to avoid taking the enemy's bait and falling into his traps?  Indeed, there is.  James 4:7 instructs us to "Submit yourselves, then to God.  Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."  God is always stronger than the devil, and if we call God into our temptation situations, we will be victorious.

Thank you, Father, for making it possible for us to obey You in every situation.  You know that we don't always do that, but thank You for making a way to cleanse us and give us a new start whenever we ask.  Amen.

Brokenness Mended

"He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds."  Psalm 147:3

There are two dogwood trees in my front yard.  One is truly magnificent, the tallest dogwood tree I have ever seen.  It is bell shaped with branches that sweep the ground like eyelashes sweep the cheeks when the eyes are closed.

The other dogwood tree is so small it almost seems insignificant.  Last year the top of the trunk rotted and fell off, taking with it most of the flowering branches and leaving a jagged stump of a trunk bare and exposed.  It was such an eyesore that I considered chopping it down, but I decided to give it a chance to recover and see what would happen.  Today the new leaves and branches almost hide the ugly stump in the middle, and it's well shaped, round and almost symmetrical.  In another year or two it should be a beautiful tree.  

Sometimes, through illnesses or accidents or other kinds of damage, people appear to be like that old jagged stump of a trunk.  They may seem to be beyond repair.  Our bodies and minds and hearts and souls may reveal the ugly results of all kinds of hardships in life.  But God, the Great Physician, will go to work and begin to repair us.  Often He uses people to help cover up our broken places and hide our scars.  Many times it takes willingness and patience and love to heal bodies, minds, hearts, and souls.

Do you need the healing touch of the Great Physician?  Will you place yourself in His hands and trust Him patiently as He works in your life?  Do you know anybody who might need another chance and your helping hands?  May we look beyond the ugly scars in our lives and the lives of others and visualize what we can become if we are mended.

Father, thank You for Your healing touch in my life.  May I be Your hands and Your heart to help as You heal the broken places in the lives of others.  Amen.

     

The Reunion

"So they went up out of Egypt and came to their father, Jacob, in the land of Canaan.  They told him, 'Joseph is still alive.  In fact he is ruler of all Egypt!'  Jacob was stunned."  Genesis 45:25-26a

Jacob could hardly believe the news his sons brought him--that Joseph was alive and a ruler in Egypt and that he wanted his family to join him so he could take care of them during the famine.  So the whole family of seventy packed up and set out for Egypt.  However, as eager as Jacob was to see his son Joseph, he stopped at Beersheba and offered sacrifices to God.  And God gave him reassurance for the journey.

When Joseph got word that his family was close, he went to meet his father.  Genesis 46:29b says,  "As soon as Joseph appeared before him, he threw his arms around his father and wept for a long time."  I bet there wasn't a dry eye in the whole crowd as they witnessed this tender reunion.  

The reunion of Joseph and Jacob is a picture of the reunions we will experience as we join our loved ones in heaven.  Gibran, in his book The Prophet, wrote,  "The deeper sorrow carves into our being, the more joy we can contain."  Both Jacob and Joseph had endured years of sorrow and grief at the separation between them.  Neither one had expected to see the other one again in their lifetimes.  But we can expect to not only see those who have died in Christ again, but we will have all of eternity to rejoice at their presence with us.

When my precious mother died, I wrote a little poem in anticipation of our reunion.  It is called The Hundred Year Hug, and it makes me think of Jacob and Joseph and all who are separated at this time from those they love the most.  One day our sorrows will be replaced with great joy.

The Hundred Year Hug

When I get up to heaven and Mother meets me at the gate

I'll throw my arms around her, and all else will have to wait.

I'll hug and hug and hug her, 'mid many smiles and tears,

And then I'll hug and squeeze some more, for about a hundred years.

As that beautiful song, Because He Lives, says, "Because He lives, we too shall live."  Rejoice, Christian, for the joy that is coming.

Father, thank You for the joy that we will one day experience in Your presence and the presence of those we have loved on earth.  Amen.