Tag: god’s love

Showing God’s Kindness (2 Samuel 9:1-13)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
King David reaching out and receiving Mephibosheth, 13th century Bible illustration

David asked, “Is there anyone from Saul’s family still alive that I could show faithful love for Jonathan’s sake?” There was a servant from Saul’s household named Ziba, and he was summoned before David.

“Are you Ziba?” the king asked him.

“At your service!” he answered.

The king asked, “Is there anyone left from Saul’s family that I could show God’s kindness to?”

“Yes,” Ziba said to the king, “one of Jonathan’s sons, whose feet are crippled.”

“Where is he?” the king asked.

“He is at the house of Ammiel’s son Machir at Lo-debar,” Ziba told the king.

So King David had him brought from the house of Ammiel’s son Machir at Lo-debar. Mephibosheth, Jonathan’s son and Saul’s grandson, came to David, and he fell to the ground, bowing low out of respect.

“Mephibosheth?” David said.

“Yes,” he replied. “I am at your service!”

“Don’t be afraid,” David told him, “because I will certainly show you faithful love for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the fields of your grandfather Saul, and you will eat at my table always.”

Mephibosheth bowed low out of respect and said, “Who am I, your servant, that you should care about a dead dog like me?”

Then David summoned Saul’s servant Ziba and said to him, “I have given your master’s grandson everything belonging to Saul and his family. You will work the land for him—you, your sons, and your servants—and you will bring food into your master’s house for them to eat. But Mephibosheth, your master’s grandson, will always be at my table.” (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)

Then Ziba said to the king, “Your servant will do whatever my master the king commands.”

So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table, like one of the king’s own sons. Mephibosheth had a young son named Mica. All who lived in Ziba’s household became Mephibosheth’s servants. Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king’s table. He was crippled in both feet. (Common English Bible)

This is actually one of my favorite stories in all of Holy Scripture. It clearly demonstrates why David is a king and a person who reflects God’s own heart. I believe that King David is at his best here, ruling and living exactly as the Lord wanted him to.

In much of the ancient world, whenever a king came to power and replaced the previous king of whom he was not related, it was a common practice to either exile or outright kill the sons and grandsons who would have become heirs to the throne. It was a literal cutthroat way of securing the new throne, by wiping out any potential rivals.

It’s quite possible that no one would have faulted David or batted an eye if he had made sure there was nobody around related to King Saul – who died in a battle with the Philistines. Not only did David avoid that practice, but he did just the opposite of it.

Finally on the throne of both Israel and Judah, one of the first acts of King David was to wield his power and authority by finding out if there were any relatives of Saul that he could show faithful love toward.

I can just imagine the servant of Saul, Ziba, being brought into David’s presence, thinking for sure that this is the end. Instead, David wanted to know if there’s anyone in Saul’s family to which he could show kindness.

The word King David used to communicate his benevolent intentions was “chesed” (חסד – pronounced “KES-ed”). This is rich Hebrew word which refers to God’s steadfast covenant loyalty and love toward Israel.

Because of its richness, chesed is translated various ways in the English translations, including: “mercy,” “kindness,” “loving-kindness,” “steadfast love,” “compassion,” and even “goodness.”

The big idea in today’s story is that David had the power to destroy, but instead used his authority in order to extend loving loyalty and mercy to Mephibosheth, son of Jonathan, and grandson of Saul – David’s old enemy and nemesis.

What’s more, David could have found out about Mephibosheth, learned that the man was crippled, in no position to ever do anything for or against him, and simply left him alone. And again, nobody likely would have thought anything about ignoring the man.

But not David. He was determined to embody chesed in the life of Mephibosheth. So, he brought him to Jerusalem and provided for him by having him sit at the king’s table for the rest of his life.

David didn’t have to do that. Yet, God’s steadfast love compelled him. You know grace has a hold of someone’s life, whenever they go out of their way to extend human kindness to another person who has absolutely no means of paying them back or reciprocating at all.

Jesus, the Son of David, clearly understood the idea of chesed and lifted it, taught it, and embodied it for his own followers:

“If you love those who love you, why should you be commended? Even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, why should you be commended? Even sinners do that. If you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, why should you be commended? Even sinners lend to sinners expecting to be paid back in full. 

“Instead, love your enemies, do good, and lend expecting nothing in return. If you do, you will have a great reward. You will be acting the way children of the Most High act, for he is kind to ungrateful and wicked people. Be compassionate just as your Father is compassionate. (Luke 6:32-36, CEB)

I wonder who it is that God wants you to show grace, mercy, and love toward?

Lord Jesus, as you commanded us to love one another, just as you love us, help us to demonstrate that love toward others. We acknowledge that it is impossible on our own, so we ask for the enabling of your Holy Spirit to produce that love in us.

We believe that you love and care for those who are suffering from illness, violence and persecution. We pray for protection, comfort and healing for those in need or who are forgotten.

Enliven us with your Holy Spirit, so that we may be instruments of your peace and love in a troubled world. Use us and all believers as your ambassadors to our families, colleagues and neighbors.

Holy God, you demonstrated your love for us through the Resurrection of your Son and our Savior Jesus Christ. We commit to making decisions as who trust in your ever-present love and grace. Guide us in becoming a people who welcomes all, and values mutuality and partnerships.

Provide us courage and insight as we seek to be a community who provides respite, and a place to sooth souls. Grant us all the things necessary for our common life, and bring us to be of one heart and mind within your Church; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Compelling Love of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:6-17)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment

So we are always confident, even though we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord— for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we do have confidence, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to be pleasing to him. For all of us must appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each may receive due recompense for actions done in the body, whether good or evil.

Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we try to persuade people, but we ourselves are well known to God, and I hope that we are also well known to your consciences. We are not commending ourselves to you again but giving you an opportunity to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast in outward appearance and not in the heart. For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For the love of Christ urges us on because we are convinced that one has died for all; therefore all have died. And he died for all, so that those who live might live no longer for themselves but for the one who for their sake died and was raised.

From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we no longer know him in that way. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; look, new things have come into being!(New Revised Standard Version)

Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the supreme authority over all things; and that we are ruled by Christ. Yet, the sort of rule Christians submit to is without any belligerence from us. In fact, it is quite the opposite.

We are ruled by Christ’s love for us. Believers are convinced that since Christ died for all, then all of us have died. Jesus died so we would no longer live for ourselves, but for the one who died and was raised to life for us. Since love is our guide and rule in life, we are careful not to judge people by what they seem to be. Anyone who belongs to Christ is a new person. The guilt and shame of our past is forgotten; everything is made new.

Love is the distinguishing mark of the believer in Jesus Christ. A person filled and ruled by Christ’s love sees all of life in a new and different way: 

  • Positive confidence and optimism replaces negative skepticism and pessimism
  • Grace overwhelms and overrules the old judgmental spirit
  • Being attentive and mindful of others erases holding onto old hurts and animosities

The person who does not change, refuses transformation of heart, and forsakes renovation of the mind, is not being ruled by Christ’s love. 

Conversely, the person who allows the love of God in Christ through the cross to thaw their cold heart to a new white hot passionate life in the Spirit, is experiencing the resurrected existence to which we have been called.

Here is a little exercise to try today: Monitor your words and actions. And at the end of the day, ask yourself a series of questions:

  1. Were my words and actions done in love?
  2. What percentage of those words and actions were loving and unloving?
  3. Was I compelled by Christ’s love, or by some other love? 
  4. How can I bring the value of love to be more operative in my behavior and speech? 
  5. Who will I share my plan with?

The reality is this: Everything comes down to God, to the Father, Son, and Spirit. 

The distinctive manner we live is to be an expression of the triune God who exists in perfect unity, harmony, love, and mission. Whether in our families, neighborhoods, workplaces, or churches, God wants to exercise and express divine love in us and through us. God’s love compels us.

Holy Scripture says that the triune God is love (1 John 4:16). God’s nature and purpose is love itself. The reason we love God with heart, soul, mind, and strength is that God is love. 

As people created in the image and likeness of God, there is within us a deep desire to know and love God. Yet, it’s possible to lose touch with this primal instinct to love God. We may become so familiar with hearing about God that we go about our days not really know God, and the love of God in Christ.

Without knowing the God who is Love (with a capital L) people might go through the motions of living, even worshiping, without any love behind it. Like spiritual zombies, we may walk about the earth, but are really dead to what is going on in God’s wonderfully big world.

For the Christian, our first love is Jesus. We may live moral lives, operate with sound ethical principles at our jobs, and diligently serve family and church, yet miss the heart and soul of loving God. 

Jesus himself said to the church at Ephesus, who had performed good deeds, that they had forsaken their first love (Revelation 2:4). The Apostle Paul put it this way to the church at Corinth: “If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.” (1 Corinthians 13:3)

A new robust life of love is possible because the Father first loved us, sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins, and gave us the Spirit in order to display God’s love toward one another. (1 John 4:10-13) 

Jesus reminded us that all of Scripture hangs on the dual command to love God and neighbor (Matthew 22:37-40). This has been understood throughout church history as The Great Commandment. 

Christ also told us that the supreme task of the Church is to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19). This has been rightly discerned through Christian history as The Great Commission. 

In order to live into The Great Commandment and The Great Commission, we are to wholeheartedly embody the community of love which exists within the triune God. This is a single-minded loyalty to do what is right, just, and good for our neighbor; we might describe this as The Great Commitment.

Finally, here is yet another few questions for both committed believers and church leaders to ask themselves:

  1. In what ways might we, in this contemporary world, faithfully and obediently live into the calling we have been given by our Lord? 
  2. How do we effectively engage this primal quest of loving God, loving one another, and loving our neighbor?

Loving God, you demonstrated your love for us through the cross of Jesus. May my life be so filled with grace that what comes out of my mouth and what is done in my behavior is consistently characterized by the sort of divine love which is always true of you. Amen.

Temporary vs. Permanent (2 Corinthians 5:1-5)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment

For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. (New International Version)

Back in the day, when my kids were small, we did our fair share of camping. We had a large two room tent that we called “The Tabernacle.” But even that large tent could not compare to finally getting back home to our house.

We are all on something of a perpetual spiritual camping trip. It may or may not feel like one, but every person is living in a tent. 

One of the challenges of the biblical writers is that they worked to communicate hope and spiritual realities in concrete language. They often made use of metaphors to help us understand. So, when the Apostle Paul likens our current lives to being in a tent, he means that what we are experiencing now with our bodies is temporary. 

Compared to the permanent resurrected body that will be coming in the future, our existence now in this present life, in this body, is not very glorious.

We consider someone homeless if they live in a tent on a permanent basis. In many ways, the Christian is homeless; we are not completely at home in this present body, nor in this present world. So, it seems rather curious to me that many believers in Jesus can be ruthlessly attached to the trappings and stuff of this contemporary campground.

If we were to make a list of all the things we do and all the things we have that are extra-biblical, that is, not specifically mentioned in the Bible, it would not take long to discover that much of what we do on a day to day basis – not to mention religiously and through church ministry – is rather quite temporary. Yet, too many persons cling to their stuff and their ways as if all of it will endure forever.

In those times when we experience bereavement; in the situations that demonstrate that we are mortal; and, in the circumstances that occur in which we glimpse how fleeting this present life can be, we begin to understand that what we need to be living for is the permanence of relationships expressed through the ever-present Spirit of God. 

It is good for us to long for a better day when we will no longer groan in the tent of this body so that we will connect with the unseen God who goes before us, with us, after us.

Camping can be both fun and challenging. But if we had to make an actual tent our real home, I can easily imagine how much groaning would happen every day. We would certainly long for a more established residence. Paul gets at this exasperation, which a temporal finite existence can be, when writing to the Roman Christians:

We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. (Romans 8:22-23, NIV)

Because we have the Spirit, we have help. The Spirit is our advocate. Sometimes, because of our situation, our prayers to God only come out as groans; words can seem far away from us. Yet, that is enough. The Spirit speaks groaning, and knows how to interpret it.

The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. (Romans 8:26-27, NIV)

God has our back. We may not know what exactly we are going through, and why we are going through it, much less how to even pray about it. But the one thing we do know is that God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

With the Spirit alongside us, there is the continual assurance and reassurance that we belong to God. Our present existence may be temporary, but the presence and love of God are permanent and will never change.

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39, NIV)

Our present circumstances will eventually pass; they are temporary. But the love of God has staying power; it is permanent and forever. Our bodies are always changing; someday we will die. Yet, because of Christ’s resurrection, believers shall be raised with a body fit for eternity. Our tent will be fashioned into a house.

Eternal God, who always has been and always will be, help me to so connect with your Holy Spirit that I can discern the difference between what is temporary and what is permanent. Guide me with your holy hand so that I can place my present efforts into the things that will make a difference for eternity, through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.

Leave a Supportive Spiritual Legacy (Deuteronomy 11:18-21)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment

 “So commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these words of mine. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Teach them to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, so that as long as the sky remains above the earth, you and your children may flourish in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors.” (New Living Translation)

The biblical book of Deuteronomy is a farewell address by Moses to the Israelites.

Moses was about to die. The Israelites were about to enter the Promised Land.

So, Moses restated God’s law and called the people to remember all that God had done. He exhorted the people to communicate the law and their heritage to the next generations.

If God’s words and God’s ways are continually observed, then the people would prosper in God’s Promised Land.

The overarching call and command of Moses to the people is to love God with everything they have and everything they are.

God’s people are to have a dedicated commitment of mind, body, emotions, and spirit to the law of God. Each ability and gift, and all that makes a person a person, is to have its clear direction and orientation toward loving God through obeying God’s commands.

The love of God is meant to become a habit in the normal daily rhythms of life. How do we do that? Impress God’s commands by talking about them in every sort of context: home and family; neighborhood and workplace; morning and evening. People are even to write out God’s commands and have them in front of us all the time. 

Indeed, the entire day is an opportunity to love God by talking about God’s words. Discussing God’s words and commands doesn’t need to be forced or awkward. Yet, it is something which needs some intention and purpose to it.

Most people like talking about things which are important to them. If someone is really into classic cars, he does not have to try and force a conversation about it because it just comes out of him. Because they go to car shows, maybe own a classic car that they are continually tinkering with, and read up on car magazines, a discussion about the subject is quite natural to them.

So, the best way to live into God’s law is to spend time with God through regular Bible reading, focused and earnest prayer, conversing with others, and taking advantage of opportunities to learn and know about God. For the Christian, talking about Jesus is meant to be organic, springing from a heart which loves God and observes God’s law.

When it comes to family, an expert theologian or biblical scholar is not needed; there just needs to be a willingness and a curiosity to ask questions.

Back when raising my girls, most of our conversations at the table centered around one question I would ask. We discussed it, talked about it, and mulled it over. Sometimes it was a deep theological question. At other times, it was a practical question. My wife and I often had others share a meal with us, so I usually asked our guests to tell their God story or participate with us in the question. If they were not Christian, I would ask them what they thought about Jesus and faith, and why.

God loves it when we have conversation in the home around biblical teaching. God also loves it when we have discussions in public. Some Orthodox Jewish persons still to this day wear a “phylactery” on their foreheads – a small box with little Scripture passages inside of it – testifying to their value of the written Word.

I’m not sure that’s what Moses had in mind when he talked about binding God’s commands on the forehead and tying them as symbols on the hands. Much of the Hebrew language is metaphorical, speaking about concrete things as a way of communicating something intangible. So, I wonder if the big idea here is simply to be open about faith and love for God and the law.

Although I don’t believe we have to take today’s verses quite so literally, there is, however, something to be said for keeping Holy Scripture continually in front of us, in order to remember divine commands and promises.

It’s good to write some Bible verses and place them on your bathroom mirror, the dash of your car, in your pants pocket, or anywhere you will see them on a regular basis. It’s a practical way of remembering to observe all that God has commanded.

Physical reminders of significant spiritual events can help us keep the words of God in our lives. When the Israelites experienced God in some significant way, they built an altar. For example, when they approached the Jordan River to enter the land, God caused the water to stop flowing so that they could cross over. Here is what happen next: 

Joshua erected a monument, using the twelve stones that they had taken from the Jordan. And then he told the People of Israel, “In the days to come, when your children ask their fathers, ‘What are these stones doing here?’ tell your children this: ‘Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry ground.’

“Yes, God, your God, dried up the Jordan’s waters for you until you had crossed, just as God, your God, did at the Red Sea, which had dried up before us until we had crossed. This was so that everybody on earth would recognize how strong God’s rescuing hand is and so that you would hold God in solemn reverence always.” (Joshua 4:20-24, MSG)

Passing the spiritual baton and leaving a heritage for future generations is a sacred trust. One of the best ways for that to happen is within the home, talking about God and Scripture as a daily routine, as well as freely conversing about spirituality in public.

There are several ways churches can impress Scripture to younger generations: 

  1. Train them to lead. Adults do not have to do everything in the church. Every generation can be empowered to engage in ministries on a regular basis. Everyone needs a mentor to do anything well – which means taking others with us along the journey of ministry so they can both shadow and participate.
  2. Empathize with young people and young families. That means avoiding criticism. It’s easy for older generations to be critical about another generation’s lack of involvement; or how they live their lives. They don’t need our criticism, but our help. Empathy means that we recognize others are trying to do the best they can in a crazy world. And it’s a world quite different from the one I grew up in. This is a very competitive world, requiring more energy and drive than previous generations. Being a student today is not like being a student when I was a kid.  Being a young parent is not the same today as it once was. Today’s family structure is completely changed; what we think of as a traditional family only makes up 7% of the American population. The stance to take on this is not to criticize, but to encourage and help.
  3. Take the message of Jesus seriously.  Discussion, conversation, questions, and mutual sharing are the ways Jesus developed his followers; and it’s a way we can reach younger generations. Dialogue goes a lot further than simply telling others what they should believe and do.
  4. Adopt a young person, or a young family. If you consider yourself part of an older generation, consider taking a younger person or family under your wing, who is not related to you. Invite them to a meal, read these verses, and discuss them together. Commit to praying for them daily for a set period.
  5. Look for ways to support children, teens, and young families. Prioritizing younger generations means they don’t have to do everything our way. Rather, it means we will listen to what they need in loving God and building into their own families.
  6. Be great neighbors. Discuss, teach, empower, and develop young people – without criticism – into good neighbors who engage their local community by addressing issues with great love and lots of compassion.

There are many more ways to engage. The idea here is that we think about how to embody the teaching we have in Deuteronomy by passing on God’s love and God’s words. So, where will you start?…