Tag: god’s purpose

The Age of the Spirit (Joel 2:18-29)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment
“Come, Holy Spirit,” by Mary Anne Durnin

The Lord was deeply concerned
about his land
    and had pity on his people.
In answer to their prayers
    he said,
“I will give you enough grain,
wine, and olive oil
    to satisfy your needs.
No longer will I let you
    be insulted by the nations.
An army attacked from the north,
but I will chase it
    into a scorching desert.
There it will rot and stink
from the Dead Sea
    to the Mediterranean.”

The Lord works wonders
    and does great things.
So tell the soil to celebrate
and wild animals
    to stop being afraid.
Grasslands are green again;
fruit trees and fig trees
    are loaded with fruit.
Grapevines are covered
    with grapes.

People of Zion,
celebrate in honor
    of the Lord your God!
He is generous and has sent
the autumn and spring rains
    in the proper seasons.
Grain will cover
    your threshing places;
jars will overflow
    with wine and olive oil.

I, the Lord your God,
will make up for the losses
    caused by those swarms
and swarms of locusts
    I sent to attack you.
My people, you will eat
    until you are satisfied.
Then you will praise me
for the wonderful things
    I have done.
Never again will you
    be put to shame.

Israel, you will know
    that I stand at your side.
I am the Lord your God—
    there are no other gods.
Never again will you
    be put to shame.

Later, I will give my Spirit
    to everyone.
Your sons and daughters
    will prophesy.
Your old men
    will have dreams,
and your young men
    will see visions.
In those days I will even give
my Spirit to my servants,
    both men and women. (Contemporary English Version)

Fresco of the prophet Joel in the Altlerchenfelder Church, Vienna, Austria

We are in the wake of Pentecost Day. But it ought not to have come as a surprise. There were prophetic rumblings of the Spirit’s future tornadic activity, long before the time of Jesus.

The prophet Joel, along with all the Old Testament prophets, had both a message of grace and of judgment. And so, this prophetic book falls naturally into those two parts.

Within the first part of the prophecy, Joel speaks of a terrible locust plague that came over Israel as a judgment from God. The people had strayed from their spiritual and religious ways of covenant with God. The locusts, destroying every plant in their path, reflected the people’s lack of spiritually thriving and growing in grace. They, too, were vulnerable to destruction. They needed to repent and to return to their God.

Yet, the Lord’s anger lasts only a moment, but God’s mercy and blessing endure forever. So, words of grace were offered to the people. There is a time coming, Joel insisted, when God will pour out the divine Spirit far and wide to bless the people and contend with the nations who oppose the covenant community.

Put another way, the first part of the prophecy describes how God fought against God’s own people, to bring them back to their spiritual senses. And the second part of the prophecy describes how the Lord will fight against the nations who fight against God and God’s people.

The people’s affections and allegiance became attached to other things rather than God. So, the Lord sent an army of locusts to oppose them, to challenge their milquetoast and half-hearted attempts at following divine instructions.

Joel foresaw two things coming as the great Day of the Lord approaches: a great outpouring of the Holy Spirit; and a terrible time of divine judgment. 

Let’s take a few things to heart as a response to Joel’s prophecy:

Be aware of God’s purpose in history

From grasshopper swarms to world-wide judgment, to the dissolving of sun and moon—God’s purpose is to reveal divine glory to all the world.

“You will know that I am in the midst of Israel,
        and that I am the Lord your God—no other exists;
        never again will my people be put to shame.” (Joel 2:27, CEB)

“Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you.” Jesus (John 17:1, NRSV)

Stay close to the Lord

Don’t wander from God. But, if you do, the Lord will spend all kinds of energy in bringing us back and restoring us.

“But even now,” declares the Lord,
“return to me with all your heart—
with fasting, crying, and mourning.” (Joel 2:12, GW)

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. (1 Peter 5:10, NIV)

Change the inside, not the outside

Repentance and faith are to be a way of life, and not simply a one time event. The way we present ourselves on the outside is a projection of what we want others to see. But God sees the heart, so we must go there and focus on the inner person.

Don’t rip your clothes
    to show your sorrow.
Instead, turn back to me
    with broken hearts.
I am merciful, kind, and caring.
I don’t easily lose my temper,
    and I don’t like to punish. (Joel 2:13, CEV)

Endure what you suffer as being a father’s punishment; your suffering shows that God is treating you as his children. Was there ever a child who was not punished by his father? If you are not punished, as all his children are, it means you are not real children, but bastards. In the case of our human fathers, they punished us and we respected them.

How much more, then, should we submit to our spiritual Father and live! Our human fathers punished us for a short time, as it seemed right to them; but God does it for our own good, so that we may share his holiness. When we are punished, it seems to us at the time something to make us sad, not glad. Later, however, those who have been disciplined by such punishment reap the peaceful reward of a righteous life. (Hebrews 12:7-11, GNT)

Earnestly seek the outpouring of the Holy Spirit

On the Day of Pentecost, the Apostle Peter said that the coming of the Holy Spirit was a fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy (Acts 2:16). That was just the beginning of the blessing. The Holy Spirit is still operative and active in the church and the world. The prophecy is far from complete.

In reply to those who were concerned about others prophesying and thereby possibly challenging authority, Moses said:

“Are you concerned what this might do to me? I wish the Lord would give his Spirit to all his people so everyone could be a prophet.” (Numbers 11:29, CEV)

And those who observed and heard the Spirit being poured out, exclaimed with slack jawed amazement:

“Aren’t these all Galileans? How come we’re hearing them talk in our various mother tongues?

Parthians, Medes, and Elamites;
Visitors from Mesopotamia, Judea, and Cappadocia,
    Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia,
    Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene;
Immigrants from Rome, both Jews and proselytes;
Even Cretans and Arabs!

“They’re speaking our languages, describing God’s mighty works!” (Acts 2:7-11, MSG)

The age of the Spirit is here. It hasn’t gone away. So, let’s pursue the spiritual life with all the energy given us, to the glory and praise of God. Amen.

Living with Purpose (Exodus 19:1-9a)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment
Moses, by Marc Chagall, 1956

On the first day of the third month after the Israelites left Egypt—on that very day—they came to the Desert of Sinai. After they set out from Rephidim, they entered the Desert of Sinai, and Israel camped there in the desert in front of the mountain.

Then Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain and said, “This is what you are to say to the descendants of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.”

So Moses went back and summoned the elders of the people and set before them all the words the Lord had commanded him to speak. The people all responded together, “We will do everything the Lord has said.” So Moses brought their answer back to the Lord.

The Lord said to Moses, “I am going to come to you in a dense cloud, so that the people will hear me speaking with you and will always put their trust in you.” (New International Version)

If I were to list every job I’ve ever had in my life, it would be a long list. I’m sure, at this point in my life, that I wouldn’t immediately recall some of them. Some workplaces were run well. Others, especially in the factories I worked, were characterized by inattention to working conditions and expected employees to be more like extensions of their machines than like people. And I typically never knew why we were doing what we were doing.

I’ve also been in many churches and pastored a wide array of congregations. Some of the churches were run well and were attentive to their mission and service to the world. Others left a lot to be desired. Without trying to be simplistic, today’s Old Testament lesson gives the clue to what makes the difference: a clear sense of purpose. 

God made it clear that Israel was given the mandate “to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”

Although there was always a remnant of Israelites who held to this original purpose, we know the end of the story. Israel largely failed to fulfill their God-given reason for existence and did not follow through with their missionary goal. They ended up in exile, mostly because of straying from their intended purpose, which then also led to a lack of holiness.

When Christians, Churches, and faith communities of all kinds lose sight of why they exist, they degenerate into a bunch of finicky cats who want ever richer food and a lusher bed to sleep on. 

So, let’s be clear about the reason for our existence as an institutional Body of believers: We exist not to be catered to, but to be people who do the priestly work of interceding for others so that the nations might come to know the God of all the earth. 

“Intercessory prayer might be defined as loving our neighbor on our knees.”

Charles Bent

We exist for holiness, set apart to be the conduit between heaven and earth so that others might come to embrace the life that is truly life. 

Christianity recognizes that it was Christ who fulfilled the great promises of God as the ultimate Prophet, Priest, and King. Through his holy life, Christ became the priest who made the once for all sacrifice to end all sacrifices. He reigns over a moral kingdom which is a light to the nations. And the Church, as Christ’s Body, is to continue this purpose of kingdom ethics by letting the light of Jesus shine into the shadowy dark places of this world.

Wherever you find complaining, backbiting, gossip, and slander, there you will find a profound lack of purpose. Because without a “why,” people fill the vacuum with endless squabbling about petty affairs which amount to nothing, in the scope of eternity.

And wherever there is only talk of how others can meet personal needs and satisfy pet desires, in that place there is a lost mandate to be a priest bringing others to God. 

The gracious and priestly work of intercession is the purpose many are lacking. Believers everywhere must return to this holy and sacred vocation.

Jesus modeled for us the work of intercession when he prayed:

“Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.” (John 17:24-26, NIV)

The Lord has said what the divine purpose is. It is our task, therefore, to do everything God has spoken.

O sovereign and majestic God, you are holy. So, I choose to be holy in all I do. I intercede for those around me who either cannot or will not come to you on their own. Draw them to yourself so that they might experience the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Together As One (Philippians 1:1-11)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Exploring Church Ministry Blog, Year ALeave a comment

From Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus—

To all God’s people in Philippi who are in union with Christ Jesus, including the church leaders and helpers:

May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.

I thank my God for you every time I think of you; and every time I pray for you all, I pray with joy because of the way in which you have helped me in the work of the gospel from the very first day until now. And so I am sure that God, who began this good work in you, will carry it on until it is finished on the Day of Christ Jesus. You are always in my heart! And so it is only right for me to feel as I do about you. For you have all shared with me in this privilege that God has given me, both now that I am in prison and also while I was free to defend the gospel and establish it firmly. God is my witness that I tell the truth when I say that my deep feeling for you all comes from the heart of Christ Jesus himself.

I pray that your love will keep on growing more and more, together with true knowledge and perfect judgment, so that you will be able to choose what is best. Then you will be free from all impurity and blame on the Day of Christ. Your lives will be filled with the truly good qualities which only Jesus Christ can produce, for the glory and praise of God. (Good News Translation)

One In Purpose

The Church is the community of the redeemed, the Body of Christ. In order to maintain health, the spiritual body needs unity, joy, and fellowship. This happens through a shared purpose of embracing the good news of Jesus Christ and proclaiming it to others.

Paul emphasizes throughout his letter that the church is to be a common community, sharing life together, working on supporting one another and reaching out to others.

Every pronoun, “you,” used in today’s text is plural, not singular. And that’s significant. We’re in the Christian life and the Christian Church together. Just as God is one, we too, in union with Christ, are one Body.

Wherever there is an absence of shared purpose, there you will find complaining, arguing, and a bunch of crotchety curmudgeons who nobody wants to be around. Without being one in purpose, we become divided and fight one another.

A Common Mission

Our common life together as believers, revolves around a shared mission of gospel proclamation, namely, that the kingdom of God is near. Through repentance and faith in the person and work of Jesus, there is forgiveness of sins, new life, and participation in the life of God.

Christian mission is not for larger church attendance, although that is nice and may happen; it isn’t to do more, or to get other people to stop swearing, avoid tattoos, or vote Republican.

The Apostle Paul knew without a focus on mission, on encouraging one another with the good news and sharing the gospel with others, the lack of purpose would create spiritual sickness. Apart from a deliberate focus on centering life and mission around the person and work of Christ, a group of people will nit-pick one another to death with their various opinions and wants.

Conversely, with a polestar on mission, the community of the redeemed work closely together and enjoy one another. Happy people are a breath of fresh air to be around. A good healthy spirit is a delight to others. Folks will inevitably find hope and healing through a common purpose of life together which imbibes liberally from the redemptive events of Jesus.

Good news is fun to share. It is joyful. The gospel of Jesus Christ is wonderful news, worthy of exuberant celebration. The Apostle Paul had fond memories of his partnership in the gospel with the Philippian believers. Although he had been jailed and beaten in the city of Philippi, Paul joyously sang in the prison – to the point where the jailer took notice and listened to the gospel of new life in Christ. The jailer and his entire family became followers of Jesus. (Acts 16:16-34)

Shared Experiences

The Philippians were Paul’s spiritual children. They had sacrificed with Paul toward the shared vision of proclaiming good news. So, Paul wanted them to remember their own significant events of coming to faith, enjoying fellowship together, and working toward common objectives.

In reminding the Philippian believers, Paul hoped to help get their heads screwed on straight again. He was confident this would happen, having an unshakable belief that God would continue the good work started within them.

This confidence was the basis of Paul’s prayers for the church. He beseeched God to unleash the Philippians’ collective love in a grand experiential knowledge of the divine so that they might discern well, making solid decisions which place the gospel as central to all of life.

There is an incredible depth to human need – a deep spiritual longing for what is good and beautiful. Relational unity brings out the beauty and majesty of humanity. Sometimes, when we are facing hard circumstances, we need to recall our collective shared experiences, to remember why we were joyful.

In difficult times of injustice, we need a vision of humanity which locks arms in unity without vilifying one another. When we place priority on the good news, I believe we will again discover the joy of life, of knowing Christ.

Perhaps, with a watching world observing basic human kindness and joyful relations, we will find ways of being better together and working toward the common good of all persons. And methinks, Jesus wants to help with this, if we will only let him.

God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ: Give us grace to set aside our cranky unhappiness and divisive spirits. Take away all hatred and prejudice, and everything which hinders us from godly union and connection: that, as there is but one Body, and one Spirit, and one hope of our calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all; so we may be all of one heart, and of one soul, united in one holy bond of truth and peace, of faith and love, and with one mind and one mouth to glorify you, through Jesus Christ our Lord, and in the strength of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Make the Impossible Possible (Judges 7:12-22)

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

The camp was huge. The Midianites, Amalekites, and other eastern nations covered the valley like a swarm of locusts. And it would be easier to count the grains of sand on a beach than to count their camels. Gideon overheard one enemy guard telling another, “I had a dream about a flat loaf of barley bread that came tumbling into our camp. It hit the headquarters tent, and the tent flipped over and fell to the ground.”

The other soldier answered, “Your dream must have been about Gideon, the Israelite commander. It means God will let him and his army defeat the Midianite army and everyone else in our camp.”

As soon as Gideon heard about the dream and what it meant, he bowed down to praise God. Then he went back to the Israelite camp and shouted, “Let’s go! The Lord is going to let us defeat the Midianite army.”

Gideon divided his little army into three groups of 100 men, and he gave each soldier a trumpet and a large clay jar with a burning torch inside. Gideon said, “When we get to the enemy camp, spread out and surround it. Then wait for me to blow a signal on my trumpet. As soon as you hear it, blow your trumpets and shout, ‘Fight for the Lord! Fight for Gideon!’ ”

Gideon and his group reached the edge of the enemy camp a few hours after dark, just after the new guards had come on duty. Gideon and his soldiers blew their trumpets and smashed the clay jars that were hiding the torches. The rest of Gideon’s soldiers blew the trumpets they were holding in their right hands. Then they smashed the jars and held the burning torches in their left hands. Everyone shouted, “Fight with your swords for the Lord and for Gideon!”

The enemy soldiers started yelling and tried to run away. Gideon’s troops stayed in their positions surrounding the camp and blew their trumpets again. As they did, the Lord made the enemy soldiers pull out their swords and start fighting each other.

The enemy army tried to escape from the camp. They ran to Acacia Tree Town, toward Zeredah, and as far as the edge of the land that belonged to the town of Abel-Meholah near Tabbath. (Contemporary English Version)

It took some doing, but Gideon finally got around to taking on the massive army of people.

For years, marauders from the East came and raided Israel. They ate crops and livestock, then destroyed anything that was left. The Israelites, of course, were miserable. Yet, what could they do? There were so many of them!

So, they begged God for help. (Judges 6:6-7)

And the Lord responded. God chose Gideon to be the agent of change.

But Gideon failed to see it. He just couldn’t wrap his pea brain and small heart around the fact that God was choosing him to lead the charge against this humungous mean-spirited ornery bandits.

It was as if Gideon was Barney Fife, being made Sheriff in the Old West town to try and stop the powerful thieves from making off with all their cattle and drinking all of the saloon’s whiskey.

So, it took a while for Gideon to envision what the Lord was doing. And, on top of it all, God went and whittled the Israelite army down to 300 men. That’s it. A few hundred townsfolk against an army that was too big to count.

Yet, Gideon, bless his doubtful and fearful heart, was handed one last piece of gracious information. He caught a conversation between two of the enemy about a dream; it emboldened him to listen and act. And the result was a miraculous victory in which the big bullies were driven from the valley – not because of Gideon’s superior faith or ability – but because the Lord made it possible through him.

And that is precisely how it still works today.

I’m a guy who likes his research; and I can study something to death before pulling the trigger. For me, knowledge is power; and I’ll gobble up every morsel of information I can get my hands on in order to feel a semblance of confidence and courage. But the real issue is trusting God and sensing the Lord’s presence. God is with me. And if God is with me, who can be against me? (Romans 8:31-39)

And I’m not the only one. We all have our ways of trying to feel better and make some sense of the nonsensical situations we get put into, such as:

  • Creating a detailed plan of everything that’s going to happen, accounting for every contingency possible. But God already has a plan. The real issue is: Will you accept it?
  • Making everyone around you happy. Giving, helping, serving. If you could just bake enough cookies for all those men, then everything will be okay, right!?… Wrong. God already loves you and has your back. If some people don’t like you, that’s not the end of the world.
  • Working harder than everyone else. Putting your nose to the grindstone and determining you’ll outwork the enemy. That might get some short term results, but it will only result in burnout. The victory isn’t up to you; it’s up to God.
  • Giving in and giving up. Meh. Why even try? They’re just going to beat up everyone and steal everything anyway. I’ll just tap into my spirit animal, Eeyore, and watch a bunch of British dark comedy on TV. Yet, that approach helped get you into the mess you’re in now. Pay attention to the Lord’s voice, not somebody else’s.
  • Retreating to the high ground. We just need to get away. Stay safe. Keep everyone protected by getting them out of harm’s way. However, anyone outside of God’s will is never safe. If the Lord says to take on something, that’s the safest place you can be.
  • Throwing a party. Hey, let’s try and make the best of it. Let’s eat and drink today, for tomorrow we die. It’s better to go out having fun than wasting away worrying about everything. Pass the chip dip, please. *Sigh* You’re the dip! Trying to put a positive spin on a terrible situation is a terrible solution that will have negative results.
  • Taking charge. If everyone will just listen to me and do what I tell them, we’ll get out of this mess. Reality check, my friend: Who put you in charge? The Lord is God; you are not him. Stop it! Start taking orders from God and follow the Lord.
  • Failing to take a side. Why all the conflict? Can’t we all just get along? Maybe if I take a nap it will all go away. I’m not even going to touch that one. Did you hear yourself?

Most of life is about calming ourselves long enough to hear the voice of the Lord speaking to us. And if we will just take a few deep breaths and follow through with what God tells us, it’s going to go a lot better than any of our contrived ways of coping.

God is with you. God loves you. God makes the impossible possible. Faith over fear. Calm over chaos. Armed with that understanding, you’ve already won.