The Greatest Miracle in the Bible

What is the greatest miracle recorded in the pages of scripture?  Certainly there are many from which to choose.  Depending on how you define what is or isn't a miracle, the Bible records more than 100 miracles performed by a small number of individuals, each of them displaying the glory of God to varying degrees.

Is it possible to classify or rank the miracles of the Bible?  Perhaps we could classify them by their perceived greatness, or the effort that it took to perform a particular miracle, or by the number of people affected by the miracle.  Is the parting of the Red Sea a greater miracle than Elisha parting the Jordan River, since the sea was bigger than the river?  Is Jesus' greatest miracle the feeding of the 5,000 because it affected so many people at one time?

If we define a miracle as a supernatural action or indecent that is unexplainable by natural processes, then it seems to me that one of, if not the greatest miracles of the Bible must be when the sun stood still in the sky, recorded in Joshua 10.  Joshua and the Israelites are in pursuit of their enemies, but once darkness falls they will be significantly inhibited from routing them entirely.  So Joshua prays that the sun would stand still in the sky, creating continuous daylight so that Israel can hunt down and destroy her enemies completely.  And it does.  The sun stands still in the sky!  Of course, we know that the sun did not stand still in the sky, but rather that the earth ceased its spinning for a period of time.  Imagine that: the earth stood still.

When we think about miracles as enlighten human beings, we want answers.  We want to be able to explain these unexplainable phenomena.  For instance, one scientist has attempted to show how the 10 plagues of Egypt could have been caused by global warming.  Many have attempted to do something similar in the case of the sun standing still by showing how, scientifically speaking, the earth could not possibly have stopped spinning without devastating and catastrophic consequences.  After all, the earth weighs 1000 trillion tons.  How can that much rock and water simply stop or slow down without falling apart?  What about life on earth?  How could it survive if the earth stoped spinning?  What about gravitational forces?  The moon?  There are serious scientific objections to the assertion that the earth miraculously stopped spinning.

In response to these objections, an 18th century Anglican minister named Bishop Watson said, "The machine of the universe is in the hand of God; he can stop the motion of any part, or of the whole, with less trouble than any of us can stop a watch."  In other words, of God is the Creator of the universe, and if he is sovereign over the universe, the notion that God either stopped or slowed the spinning of the earth in order to aid in Joshua's military actions is not only reasonable, but very believable.  Regardless, the halting of the earth's rotation at the request of Joshua must certainly be one of the greatest miracles of the Bible.

But it is not the greatest miracle, not by any measure.  There is one greater, although we don't usually think of it as a miracle.  The greatest miracle of the Bible must be the incarnation: God becoming man.  The incarnation is not just a miracle, but the miracle of miracles.  Because unlike the sun standing still in the sky, or the sick being healed, or even the dead being raised, there is no scientific theory or assertion that we can use to begin to explain how it happened.

Is it possible to make a square circle?  Of course not.  The question poses a logical impossibility, so the very notion of a square circle is nonsensical.  Yet that is similar to the incarnation.  Not that the incarnation is nonsense, but that it is beyond the ability of our minds to comprehend.  We cannot conceive of the infinite, let alone the infinite becoming finite.  How does the one who holds the stars in the palm of his hand, and who uses the earth as his footstool fit in the crook of his mother's arm?  How does the eternal God become bound by time in a human body that ages?  How does the one who created all plants and animals for food need to be fed?  How does spirit become flesh?  How do the invisible hands that created all life and matter become the flesh and blood hands nailed to the cross - the very wood and metal he himself created, nailed there by the very life he created?

These are questions that we can't even begin to answer.  They remain mysterious to us, so far above our capacity to understand that we can but wonder at the glory and power at work in the birth of Jesus Christ, the God-Man.  Just try to think about it for a few minutes, and then take a rest when your brain starts to hurt!

As you contemplate this greatest miracle of history this Christmas, allow yourself to be overwhelmed by the glory and power that God that was at work when God the Son became a human being.  And allow yourself to be overcome by the reality that God worked this miracle for you.

Remembering

Today is Memorial Day.  Memorial Day was originally intended to honor soldiers of the Civil War who died in combat, and was first observed on May 30th, 1868.  Observance of Memorial Day gradually caught on throughout the country and every state was celebrating it by the end of World War I, in honor of all soldiers who had given their lives in war.  We celebrate Memorial Day to honor the dead, those who sacrificed their lives in war to ensure our freedom and liberty.  Memorial Day is a day of remembe
ring.

But we are not to remember for remembering's sake.  There is to be a purpose in our remembering.  Remembering the sacrifice of those who have died for our freedom would be worthless if it did not change our thinking and living in the present.  As we remember those who died, we remember them in gratefulness for their sacrifice, and so that we might be changed by our remembering.

Memorials point us to God.  Throughout scripture, certain monuments, historical events, songs, or histories served to remind the people of the greatness of God.  God commanded his people to remember not specific people, places, or events primarily, but that they should instead remember the God who orchestrated the events, used the people, and created the spaces.  The Bible teaches us that memorials exist to remind us of the God who is working in the world.  Even days like our American celebration of Memorial Day serve to point us to the God who uses people for his purposes in the world.  God has used people in our nation's history to accomplish his purposes.  And as we remember them we must remember him.  "Remember the Lord your God."  This was the command to God's people throughout scripture, and it is the command to us this day.

The Bible is replete with memorials that are designed to cause God's people to remember (Exodus 12.11-14, Leviticus 2.16, Acts 10.4, Joshua 4.1-7, Luke 22.14-21, 1 Corinthians 11.23-26).  But why are they to remember?  God does not tell his people to remember for the sake of remembering, or for the sake of living in the past, or even for the sake of honoring a memory.  Nor does he tell his people to remember as a sentimental or nostalgic notion.  Rather, God tells his people to remember the past in order to affect the present.  Remembering the past is worthless if it does nothing to affect the present.

In Psalm 78 we read about the Ephraimites who, on the day of battle, turned back in fear and timidity.  The author of Psalm 78 directly connects their retreat to having forgotten the works of God (Psalm 78.9-16).  God had proven himself to the Ephraimites throughout history, and he commanded them to remember his works.  But they forgot his works and they wonders he had shown them.  And so, on the day of battle, they turned back, running away and forgetting that God is a God who works in the world.  The purpose of remember the past is to affect the present.  If we will not remember, we will not trust in God or in his power.

In Psalm 77, a man named Asaph sits alone in the middle of the night, feeling as though his life were pressing in on him.  His depression was deep; his suffering was profound; nothing in his life was going right, and it felt as though God had left him.  So he said to himself, "Will the Lord spurn forever, and never again be favorable?  Has his steadfast love forever ceased?  Are his promises at an end for all time?  Has God forgotten to be gracious?  Has he in anger shut up his compassion?" (Psalm 77.7-9)  To Asaph, it seemed as though the good ness of God was gone.  What could he do to convince himself that God truly cared?  What could he do to assure himself that God was present with him in his suffering?  What would lift his spirits?  Remembering.  Considering the memorials of the Lord.

"Then Asaph said, 'I will appeal to this to the years of the right hand of the Most High.  I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old.  I will ponder all your work and meditate on your mighty deeds.  Your way, O God, is holy.  What god is great like our God?  You are the God who works wonders; you have made known your might among the peoples.'"

The remedy for Asaph's depression and suffering was remembering.  Its was in remembering the works of the Lord that Asaph knew that the goodness of God had not ceased.  It was in remembering the works of the Lord that Asaph knew that God had not left him.  It was in remembering the works of the Lord that Asaph knew that God would act again on his behalf.  It was in remembering the God who works wonders and who has made known his might among the peoples that this God would work wonders yet again, and make his might known among the peoples once more.  It is through remembering the past that God's people draw strength for the present.

In his letter to the Romans, Paul declares that the cross of Christ is the ultimate memorial that should speak to us of what God will do in the future.  He says, "He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also along with him graciously give us all things?" (Romans 8.32)  The cross of Christ is a memorial.  It speaks of the greatness of a God who created the world and its inhabitants, and who loved them and desired to show his glory among them.  But they rebelled against him.  They exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator (Romans 1).  This rebellion separated them from God and made them worthy of the just and holy judgment of God.  But in his mercy, God desired to save his creation for his own glory.  So he sent his Son.  "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Corinthians 5.21).

And now, Paul says, "Look at that cross!  Look at the Son of God who died there and remember the love of God for you.  God did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all.  That cross is a memorial of his great love and mercy.  And since he has given us the gift of greatest price - that of his only Son - know this: he will graciously give us all things!  IN all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.  As you look to the future, look back to that memorial cross and know that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present northings to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from then love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."

The cross is the ultimate memorial that points to God's continued faithfulness.

As you celebrate Memorial day, remember the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country.  And remember the God who works in the world, who has shown his power through his mighty works, and who has made the ultimate sacrifice for the freedom of all those who will trust in him.

Not the Kind of King We Want

This Sunday marks Palm Sunday, the day when the church remembers Jesus' triumphal entry into the city of Jerusalem.  At Riverview, we mark this Sunday by singing triumphant hymns, and watching as cute preschoolers march down the center aisle, waiving palm branches and shouting "Hosanna!"  Additionally, Palm Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week - the final week of Jesus' life - when we remember his crucifixion, death, and subsequent resurrection.

But the celebration of Palm Sunday has often confused me, and still does.  Aside from the fact that Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem fulfilled scripture (Zechariah 9.9, Psalm 118.25-26), and the fact that Israel's rightful king was entering into her capital city, I don't see much to celebrate.  If anything, the "celebration" that took place on the original Palm Sunday only served to show that Jesus is the kind of king the people don't really want.

There has been some scholarly debate recently over whether or not the crowd who cried "Hosanna!" on the day of Jesus' entry was the same crowd that cried "Crucify him!" just a week later.  John Ensor says that the two crowds were distinct, and that those who welcomed Jesus on Palm Sunday were not the same as those who called for his execution later in the week, whereas Dave Miller thinks the two groups were one in the same.

My opinion?  It doesn't really matter.  Regardless of which crowd you find yourself in - either the "Hosanna!" crowd, or the "Crucify!" crowd - when it all boils down, Jesus isn't the kind of king you want.

Obviously those in the "Crucify!" crowd didn't want Jesus to be their king.  If they did, they certainly wouldn't be calling for his execution.  But I would also argue that those who declared "Blessed is he who comes in name of the Lord!" also didn't really want Jesus to be their king.  The reason for this is that Jesus wasn't the kind of king they wanted.

The people wanted a national king - a king who would re-establish Israel as a world-power; a king who would release them from he tyrannical grip of Rome; a king who would bring them peace and prosperity; a king who would assert their dominance as an international force to be reckoned with, like in the days of king David; a king that would rule over the nations, with Israel as its head.  Israel wanted a king that would align himself with a predetermined political agenda.  That is who they thought he was, and that is what they thought he would do, and that is why they shouted, "Hosanna!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"

Even Jesus' closest friends and followers - his disciples - were very confused on this issue.  They thought that Jesus' kingdom would be an earthly one - one over which they would help him rule.  This is why they asked to sit at his right and left hand when he came into his kingdom (Mark 10.37).  Presumably, when Jesus entered Jerusalem, his disciples probably thought that all they had imagined about his (supposedly earthly) kingdom was about to come true.  And even when Jesus was about to ascend into heaven after his resurrection, his disciples thought that he was still going to establish an earthly kingdom (Acts 1.6).  Put simply, the crowds who shouted "Hosanna!" - and even the disciples - didn't know what kind of king Jesus was.

But they would learn, and quickly.  Right after Jesus went into Jerusalem, he "cleansed" the temple by driving out all of the merchants and their wares, essentially condemning the corruption that had become a regular part of Jewish religious life.  To drive the point home, he declared Jerusalem spiritually bankrupt and publicly condemned its religious leaders and teachers.

"Wait a minute," the people say, "maybe this guy isn't who we thought he was..."

Jesus didn't enter Jerusalem to establish a new or continuing earthly kingdom in Israel.  He didn't come to defeat their enemies and set Israel up as a leader on the world stage.  He wasn't the kind of king they wanted.

We want a king who will do what we tell him to do, not the other way around.  Or, as my mentor Dave Wick used to say, "Most people want to serve God in an advisory capacity."  That is, we're happy to shout "Hosanna!" as long as the king does what we want him to do.  What we want is a king who thinks and does exactly like we do.  We want to be our own king.  I am the kind of king I want.

But this is not the kind of king Jesus is.  Jesus will not be forced into a political agenda; Jesus will not be subservient to your desire to obtain a prosperous life.  Instead, Jesus is the kind of king who is "the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.  For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities - all things were created through him and for him.  And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church.  He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.  For in him the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross" (Colossians 1. 15-20).

Is that the kind of king you want?  Because that's the kind of king Jesus is, and that is what he came to do.

If we will know Jesus for who he truly is, then we will not set him up on some man-made pedestal that he was never meant to be on (as many of even his own followers did in the first century), and then become angry when he doesn't live up to our selfish expectations of him.  Jesus came to fulfill his purposes, not mine.

Palm Sunday is a time for us to know who Jesus is, in truth.  It is a time for us to submit ourselves to Jesus' kingship, rule, and reign.  It is a time to remember the kind of King he is, and to worship him in spirit and in truth.  It is a time to remember that my own rulership of the world only leads to sin and sadness, and that his way leads to life.  It is a time to submit my own will and desires to his sovereign rule.  It is a time to repent of trying to force the will of God into my own agenda.  It is a time to trust and rejoice in our good King.

3 Reasons to Go to Church on Christmas Sunday

I once heard a presentation from a preacher that suggested that Christians should move their celebration of the Christmas holiday to July.  After all, the celebration of Jesus' birth isn't directly tied to December 25 (Jesus was not born on Christmas day).  His reasoning for this was mostly because it has become to easy to get lost in cultural aspects of the Christmas season and to miss a meaningful celebration of the birth of Christ.  If Christmas were in July, we wouldn't be so wrapped up in gift giving (no pun intended), family gatherings, parties, cookies, and everything else that comes with the cultural celebration of Christmas.  If Christmas were in July, he reasoned, we could focus entirely on the purpose of the holiday - celebrating the incarnation - and save the cultural celebration for December.  

While I don't think I'd like to move the celebration of Christmas to July, I think this preacher was on to something: all too frequently we put other things in front of Jesus when we remember his birth each year.  It's easy for us to focus on "cultural Christmas" rather than the true purpose of the holiday.  

No church on Christmas day?

This reality is made apparent every six years or so when Christmas day falls on a Sunday.  Many churches cancel their Sunday worship services so their members can focus their time and energies on family gatherings and all of the things that come with it, such as gifts, meals, parties, and so on.  After all, it's difficult to open the presents, eat a Christmas meal, and spend enough time reminiscing with family and friends and go to church all on the same day.  And so, in order for people to "celebrate" Christmas, many church's Sunday services are frequently canceled when they fall on Christmas day.  

This trend is, in my estimation, a bad one, and one against which we should push back.  Allow me to offer you three reasons why you should go to church this Christmas Sunday.  

3 reasons to go to church on Christmas day

1. It's Sunday!  The main reason you should to to church this Christmas Sunday is because that's the usual day we gather to worship.  Sunday is the Lord's day, and we gather on that day to celebrate, remember, and worship him.  This tradition has existed since the resurrection, 2000 years ago.  Far be it from us to break it for the sake of having more time to open presents.  Even if you're out of town visiting family, find a way to get to church and continue on the tradition of worshipping on the Lord's day, in the Lord's house, with the Lord's people. 

2. Going to church on Christmas day is counter-cultural.  As described above, our culture has mostly appropriated Christmas as a secular holiday.  Taking time to put the cultural celebration of Christmas on the back burner and focus on its primary object (Jesus) is a way for you to buck the trend and speak into our materialistic culture and remind it that there is a reason for this season, and it's not gifts, family, or anything other than Jesus.  Our culture wants us to focus on all of the physical aspects of Christmas.  Instead, be counter-cultural and focus on Jesus by going to church. 

3. Because Christmas is about Jesus, and that's it.  Despite what our culture says or what you may think, Christmas is only about Jesus.  Sure, we gather together with friends and family at this time of year, and we exchange gifts and eat Christmas dinners, but none of those things are what Christmas is all about.  Those things are all good, and when understood correctly they point us to Jesus, but they are not the focus of this holiday.  Christmas is only and all about Jesus.  If we are tempted to put Jesus on pause so we have enough time for the cultural aspects of Christmas, we've simply missed the boat.  Don't let the culture tempt you from taking your focus from where it should be.  

So whether you're at home or you've gone over the river and through the woods to Grandmother's house, get to church on Christmas day!  I hope to see you there, this Sunday. 

A Savior, Who Is Christ the Lord

Several years ago I heard about a big church that was on the cutting edge of Christian culture.  They were experimenting with different ways of "doing" church, and a lot of those ways were hip, trendy, and cool.  They were very much what you would call "seeker sensitive."

One of the new things they were doing was changing their terminology for Jesus.  We commonly refer to Jesus as "Lord and Savior," after all, he's our Lord because he rules over us, and he's our Savior because he died to save us.  This particular church, however, thought that the titles "Lord and Savior" were either too technical, too old fashioned, or sounded to much like "Christianese" speak, so they decided to change the language they used in reference to Jesus as "Life Leader and Forgiver."  While this change in language may create a more palatable image of Jesus that is more welcoming and inviting to "seekers," it is a potentially dangerous change that we should be very slow to make.  There are certain ideas and images that are given by the term "Lord," for example that are not necessarily communicated by the term "Life Leader."  And "Forgiver" does not encompass the meaning of the term "Savior."  But what's the big deal?  Do we really have to insist on certain language in reference to Jesus?

As we consider Jesus' first coming this Christmas season, it is a good idea to full understand just who it was that was born into the world, and the language that describes him.  In Luke 2, when the angels announce to the shepherds that Jesus had been born, they use three specific titles to describe him: Savior, Christ, and Lord: "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord" (Luke 2.11).  This is who was born: Jesus the Savior, Jesus the Christ, and Jesus the Lord.  Let's briefly consider each of those three titles.

Jesus the Christ
The Greek word for "Christ" is "Christos," which literally means "anointed one."  And "Christos is the Greek word for "Messiah" in Hebrew.  So when the angels announce Jesus' birth and that he is the Christ, they are literally saying that God's anointed one has been born.  But what does that mean?  What does it mean that a person has been anointed?

In the Old Testament, certain people were anointed (set apart) for specific jobs or roles.  For example, prophets, priests, and kings were all anointed - that is, they were set aside for a particular role.  Jesus was anointed as well.  He was set apart to be the Savior of all who would trust in him.  But with him, the title of "Christ" or "Anointed One" is more than just a title or a role that he is to play - it is the essence of his being.  He exists to be devoted to the service of God and performing the will of his Father.  He has been separated from all other humans for this purpose (Philippians 2.7-8).  So when the angels tell the shepherds that the Christ has been born, they're referring to the Son of God, sent into the world for the specific purpose of dying for the sins of the people.

Jesus the Savior
Jesus is only referred to as "Savior" twice in the gospels - once in Luke 2.11 and once in the gospel of John.  The church I referenced earlier had changed their terminology for Jesus from "Savior" to "Forgiver."  What's the difference?

The Greek word for "to save" is "sodzo" and it literally means to deliver or protect.  Salvation is more complex than just forgiveness, but don't get me wrong: you must be forgiven in order to be saved.  But you don't just need to be forgiven - you need to be saved and delivered.  Why do you need a Savior?  From what do you need to be saved or delivered?  The answer is that you need to be saved and delivered from the punishment your sin deserves.  That's why Jesus died on the cross.  he bore the punishment for your sin, thereby saving you from punishment and delivering you from having to bear God's justice for yourself.  That's more than just being forgiven.

Think of it like this: imagine that you're standing in a court room and you've committed a terrible crime and you've confessed your guilt.  The judge is about to pass the sentence: death.  But before he does, you say to him, "Your honor, I know that I've done wrong, and sir, I ask your forgiveness."  The judge is moved by your plea, and he looks at you with compassion and says, "I believe that you are sorry for what you've done, and that you regret your actions.  I forgive you."  And then, BANG!   He slams his gavel down and you are lead off to your execution.  You can be forgiven, but justice must still be satisfied.  What you need is to be saved from justice - you need someone to deliver you from the punishment that you deserve.

God can forgive your sins, but that will not satisfy his justice.  In order for justice to be satisfied your sin-debt needs to be paid.  You need someone to pay that debt for you.  But even that won't be enough.  Not only do you need your sins forgiven and your penalty paid, but you need to be perfect in order to be with God.  This is what Jesus does.  He earns your perfection through his life, and he takes the deserved punishment for your sins and he pays the price on your behalf so that justice can be satisfied, and in the process, your sins can be forgiven.  And to be saved is to throw yourself on those realities - to put your faith in them - and to trust in them as you would trust in a parachute on a crashing plane.  And through your faith, God applies the righteousness that belonged to Jesus to your account, and transfers all of the sin from your account to his, as he hung on the cross.  So now you can stand before him as innocent - fully forgiven! - fully justified! - fully righteous! (2 Corinthians 5.21)  When the angels tell the shepherds that the Savior has come, that is what they mean.  Not just a Forgiver, but a Savior.

Jesus is the Lord
The Greek word for "Lord" is "kurios," which can mean "sir" or "master," or a title or respect.  But in reference to God, it is a title that refers to one who is in supreme authority.  The angels said that Jesus - the tiny baby born in Bethlehem - was the Lord, the one in supreme authority.

Over the past several years, many people have enlisted the services of life coaches.  Life coaches come alongside a person and help him think and work through decisions, though processes, behavior patterns, and so on.  Life coaches certainly serve a purpose, and maybe you have even enlisted a life coach to help you in your day to day life (I have!).  At the big church I described earlier, they had replaced the term "Lord" for Jesus with the term "Life Leader."  When I hear that term, what I think of is a life coach - someone who will walk alongside me and help me think through decisions, etc.  But Jesus is not a life coach.  He is Lord.

Jesus is not merely someone who comes alongside us and offers suggestions - he's not just someone who gives advice - he's not just someone who comes alongside and encourages his followers.  Does he do all of those things?  Indeed, but that is only the beginning of his power and authority.  Instead, the Bible paints a picture of Jesus not as a life leader, but as the supreme sovereign of the universe, to whom every knee will bow and every tongue confess that he is Lord, and that his name is above every other name.  Consider Colossians 1.15-18: "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.  For by him al things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities - all things were created through him and for him.  And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.  And he is the head of the body, the church.  He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.  

Does that sound like a life leader to you?  Not to me.  Jesus is the Lord!

We use a phrase a lot in Christian circles in which we tell a person, "You need to make Jesus Lord of your life."  We need to stop using that phrase, in my opinion, because it is quite simply impossible.  You can't make Jesus Lord of your life - he already is.  To say that I can make Jesus Lord of my life implies that his lordship relies upon my permission.  Jesus isn't sitting at your feet, imploring you, "Will you please make me Lord of your life?"  No!  Jesus isn't Lord because you call him "Lord."  He is Lord because he is the sovereign ruler of the universe, and that has nothing to do with whether or not you want to acknowledge his lordship.  The laws of gravity don't apply because I believe in them, but because they simply are.  Jesus is not Lord because you confess him as Lord, but because he simply is Lord.  The question is not whether or not you will make him Lord of your life.  The question is whether or not you will bow then willingly or by force.  One way or another, you will submit to his lordship.

As we gather together in this Christmas season to remember the One who entered into the world as a tiny human being, I think it's important to realize just who it is that is lying in the manger: the Savior, the Christ, the Lord.   Let us come and worship him and give him the glory that is due to the sovereign, self-sacrificing, Deliverer.

When Christmas Hurts

Everything in our culture tells us that Christmas is a joyful season: friends, family, food, and gifts all encourage us to celebrate Christmas.  But for many people, the Christmas season can be a painful reminder of the difficulties of life.  Many people will celebrate this Christmas for the first time without a spouse or a loved one that has died.  Some people will celebrate this Christmas for the first time without their spouse, due to a divorce.  For others Christmas can be a painful reminder of financial hardships.  Ironically, it is often during those times when we are supposed to be happy and joyful that our suffering and pain can be felt most vividly.  

Christmas in a Broken World
It can be hard to have a "merry Christmas" because the reality is that we live in a world that has been utterly damaged and broken by sin.  When Adam and Eve fell into sin, the world fell with them (Genesis 3.17-19).  Before sin entered the world, there were no thorns; now that sin is here, there are thorns a plenty.  Before the world fell, work and labor were easy and joyful things; now they are toilsome and difficult and painful.  Before the world fell, human beings enjoyed a perfect relationship with God; now we are separated from him.  Before the world fell there was no disease and no accidents; but now that the world is marred by sin there is suffering.  When we look around and see the pain and suffering of the world, and we wonder, "Why?" the Bible gives us a very good explanation: because we live in a sinful fallen world, filled with sinful fallen people, who do sinful fallen things.  If we trace it back far enough, sin is the root cause of all of our problems and difficulties.

For this reason, times and seasons that should be merry and joyful, aren't.  When we experience the sadness of a first Christmas without a loved one who has died, we are getting a very real taste of the effects of sin.  And the fact that we live in a broken, fallen world can make even joyful occasions bitter.  The Apostle Paul calls these effects of sin that we experience our "sufferings of this present time."  He says that the world has been "subjected to futility," and that it is in "bondage to corruption" (Romans 8.18-21).  Because we live in this kind of world, we taste death and pain and suffering, and happy times - like Christmas - can hurt. 

Responding to Christmas Pain with Gospel Hope
Although we live in such a world where suffering exists because of sin, Paul says that is no reason to lose hope.  There is coming a day when all things will be made new - the earth and the bodies of those who are trusting in Christ will be restored to their condition before sin entered the world.  There is coming a day when all things will be made new, and there will be no more pain, no more death, and no more suffering.  Imagine a world where there is no suffering to due accidents or severe weather; a world where the doctor will never call with bad news about a suspicious lump or a dark spot on the X-ray.  This world is coming, and it will be so glorious that all of the effects of sin under which we suffer in this world won't even be worth remembering (Romans 8.18).  

But we aren't there yet.  So until that day comes, we wait for it with eager longing.  And because we are still here, and because the world hasn't been restored yet, we still feel pain, we still suffer, and we still cry our way through the holidays, missing a loved one or mourning a broken relationship.  But because of the hope that we have, Paul says that our attitude as Christians - even and especially when we are living in a world where we suffer from the effects of sin - should be one of expectant hope (Romans 8.24-25).  We should view our suffering under the effects of sin through this lens: that there is a glorious rebuilding of the earth and redemption of our bodies in the near future.  Let us suffer well in light of this hope.  

Although we live in a world that has been damaged by sin, God foresaw our need and enacted a plan for the restoration of the world right after Adam and Eve fell into sin.  God said that there would be One who would come - a descendant of the woman (Eve) - who would restore all things to perfection.  This One would come into the world and suffer the same ways that we do.  He would feel the effects of living in a sinful world.  He would be bruised.  But in so doing, he would likewise crush the effects of sin (Genesis 3.15).  Through his bruising he would crush sin; he would crush death; he would crush suffering; he would crush pain and sadness.  All of this Jesus accomplished through his life, death, and resurrection.  The effects of sin have been crushed, and now we await the day when all things will be set right again.  Because of him, there is coming a glory that will soon be revealed, to which the sufferings of this present time cannot be compared.

However, that time has not yet come.  We are still in waiting; we are still groaning; we are still suffering.  We are still enduring the holidays without a loved one or in a broken marriage.  But take heart in this: God has set a plan in motion to restore the world and redeem the bodies of those who are trusting in Jesus, and it's only a matter of time until that plan comes to fruition.  Until we reach that day, remember that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.   At Christmas, we celebrate that Jesus came into the world as a man in order to crush the effects of sin in our lives.  They no longer leave us hopeless and full of despair, but instead that hopelessness is replaced by an expectant hope for the revealing of the glory of God.  This is the hope of the Christmas season, even when Christmas hurts.  

ThanksGIVING

(Listen to Pastor Joel's sermon on this topic here)

Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday: food, family, friends, and remembering all the ways that God has blessed us.  It's also a time for us to pause and reflect on all of the blessings that we have received, and to express our gratitude to God.  But we shouldn't just stop at a feeling of gratitude - our feelings should translate into action.  Even the word "thanksgiving" involves action - the action of giving thanks.  But how do we do that?  Is there anything tangible that we can do to express our gratitude?  Yes, indeed, and the Bible gives us three simple ways that we can turn our feelings of gratitude into action that all involve some sort of giving.

Leviticus 7 tells about "peace offerings" - sacrifices that the Israelites could make whenever they wanted to in order to celebrate the peace they enjoyed with God and the blessings they received from God.  There were several different sacrifices that the Israelites were commanded to make, most having to do with forgiveness of sin and to obtain ritual purity.  But the peace offerings were different.  They weren't required like the other sacrifices, and anybody could make a peace offering at any time for any reason out of gratitude to God.  It's the characteristics of these peace offerings that offer us some suggestions about how we can tangibly express our gratitude to God.

Give of yourself.
The primary characteristic of a peace offering was that the one who made the offering sacrificed his own resources to do so.  Peace offerings required the sacrifice of an animal and also several loaves of bread.  In order to make this offering, the worshiper had to give up something that he owned (an animal and the bread).  Remember, he wasn't required to do this, but did so out of the desire of his heart to thank God for all that he had done.  But in order to give a peace offering, the worshiper had to give of his own precious resources.  The lesson for us is the same.  One tangible way that I can thank God for all that he has done is to find a way to give of my resources.

Give back to God. 
When we give of ourselves as a way of thanking God, we primarily give back to God.  With the peace offerings, the first portion of the sacrifice (the animal and bread) was burnt as an offering to the Lord.  This symbolic gesture communicated the reality that everything the worshiper had belonged to and came from God.  Giving these resources back to God through a burnt offering was a way of acknowledging that everything a person owns comes from God, and so we thank him by giving what he has given to us back to him.  So if you'd like a tangible way to express your gratitude to God, think of a way that you can give back to God out of all that he has given to you.

Give to others.
A third characteristic of the peace offerings is sharing what we have with others.  After the worshiper gave a portion of his offering to the Lord, the rest was for him to eat and enjoy.  Typically the worshiper used the leftover meat and bread and threw a feast for his friends and family.  This was yet another symbol of appreciating all that God has done.  It's a statement that declares: "God has blessed me immensely!  Come and share in God's blessing!"  So this Thanksgiving, think of some ways that you can thank God by giving to and sharing with others.

Learning to be thankful.
If you're like me, it's easy to take God's blessings for granted.  I often don't even realize how blessed I am because I am willfully blind to all of the ways that God has provided for me.  Little children have to be taught and trained to say "Please," and "Thank you."  Like them, I have to train myself to recognize the ways that God has blessed me and provided for me.  The peace offerings of Leviticus 7 weren't required or enforced.  Rather, they relied upon someone simply realizing and acknowledging all of the ways that God had blessed them and responding to that realization with a sacrifice of thanksgiving.  We need to learn to be thankful, and then respond to our feelings of gratitude with the action of thanksgiving.

Free Citizens of Heaven

For most of us, the Fourth of July means a time of celebrating American independence, barbecues, parades, fireworks, and so on.  In fact, just a few hours after I finish writing this post, I’ll be hanging out with family members, eating grilled food, and enjoying watching my children play with their cousins, and we'll end the day with a resounding fireworks show.  We are inclined to use this day as a day of thanksgiving to God for his continuing providential provision of freedom for our country for more than 200 years, as well we should.  As we reflect on our country in a spirit of patriotism, however, the Fourth of July is also a wonderful occasion to reflect on the freedom and citizenship we have in Christ.  This reflection and celebration should trump (no pun intended) any that we give to a country – even the country of which we are citizens. 

First, we must remember that the freedom afforded to us by American independence is but a pale shadow of true freedom.  In America, we celebrate the reality that, to a large, yet ever diminishing extent, we are free to pursue our own desires in whatever way we see fit.  This freedom is certainly beneficial, and I thank God for it.  But let us not stop there.  Let us reflect on the freedom brought to us by Christ.  The Bible describes people in their natural state as slaves to sin (John 8.34, 44).  We have no choice but to follow the commands of our sinful nature.  Fight as we might, we are bound by its power.  The only "freedom" we enjoy as slaves to sin is to mine the depths of our wickedness (Romans 6.20).  But in Christ we are set free from such slavery (John 8.36).  We no longer have to obey the cruel master of sin, but instead are free to obey Christ.  

This freedom is a cosmic miracle, considering that our natural inclination is to remain slaves forever (Romans 3.10-18).  Instead of pursuing freedom, by nature we pursue more slavery.  Instead of pursuing the knowledge and understanding that leads to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness (in the spiritual sense), we are inclined as slaves to pursue all of the things that only increase the cruelty of our slavery and lead to death (Ephesians 2.1-3).  Indeed, the fact that this freedom is accessible to us is no less amazing than the dead being brought to life (Ephesians 2.4-5).  

Secondly, let us remember on this Independence Day, that we are citizens of another country.  Jesus said that his kingdom is not of his world, and so those who would live in it are likewise not of this world (John 18.36).  Those who are following Jesus have been transplanted from their home in the world to their home in his kingdom (Colossians 1.13).  Our ultimate citizenship is no longer American, but heavenly.  In this sense, wherever we are at the current moment, we are not at home - we are strangers until we reach our true home (Ephesians 2.19, Hebrews 11.13, 16).  America is just a land that we are visiting.  Let's remember this as we light off fireworks tonight. 

It is these truths that, to me, will make the hotdogs taste all the better on this Independence Day, and will make the air feel fresher, the fireworks more astounding, and my enjoyment of God's many good gifts all the sweeter.  

Minions, Ironman, and Jesus

Easter is a big deal for churches, and rightly so.

Recently, my Facebook feed has blown up with advertisements from local churches trying to entice people to attend their Easter services.  Seeing as Easter is often one of only two times in a year that many people attend a church, many churches want to make the most of it.  So in order to draw people in, there are all kinds of promotions and gimmicks that churches use.  Here are a couple examples from my Facebook feed:

Our Good Friday service is going to be EPIC!  Huh.  I can think of a lot of adjectives to describe a Good Friday service (such as serious, sober, somber, etc.), but "EPIC" isn't one of them.

This Easter, experience something different.  Um, like what, exactly?  Something other than the glory and power of the resurrection?  No thanks.

Finally, one advertisement in my feed is for a church whose Easter service boasts 75,000 eggs | 4 Easter Bunnies | Princess Anna & Elsa | Ironman | Kaboom the Robot | Minions | and tons more! Well, you've definitely got my daughter's attention at the mention of Anna and Elsa, and although my son doesn't know who Ironman is, I'm sure he'd be excited when he saw him.  That's quite a guest list, although one name is conspicuously absent.  I'm sure you can guess who.

Let me be clear: I'm not trying to besmirch the reputation and work of other churches for their Easter services - on the contrary, I hope thousands of people are drawn and come and hear the gospel (assuming the gospel makes its way into the mix after Kaboom the Robot leaves the platform).  Rather, I'm pointing out the apparent reality that the culture in general, and the church in specific, does not seem to be amazed by the glory of the resurrection anymore.  It certainly seems that we don't think the resurrection of the Son of God is "enough" to draw people to church, and that is demonstrated by the gimmicks, themes, and marketing strategies that many churches employ in order to draw people.  Instead, now it has to be the resurrection of the Son of God plus Minions, or the resurrection plus Ironman, or have the guarantee that our service will be "EPIC" in some way.  What has happened?

I think there are two primary things that have happened that have caused our celebration of the resurrection to be lackluster, or to at least be ordinary enough that we have to dress it up with appearances by Disney princesses.

First, I think we've lost sight of the resurrection as an actual, historical event.  Is it possible that we believe in the resurrection more so as a story rather than something that actually occurred?  Let's be frank: most people have heard the resurrection story, and hear it year after year (and, at good churches, week after week).  I think it's possible, and even likely, that the resurrection has become just another thing that we know by heart.  And when we become familiar with a thing, its tendency to amaze us is diminished, and maybe even to the extent that we forget that Jesus actually, physically rose from the dead.  Seriously.  Jesus was dead - killed by God because of the sin of all those who would believe that he took upon himself.  He was buried in a tomb and stayed there for three days.  On the third day, his dead body was reanimated and he came alive again.  It wasn't just his spirit that resurrected; it wasn't a symbolic resurrection; it was an actual, physical resurrection that involved his whole body.  His heart started beating again; his brain began to once again send signals to his body.  And unlike Lazarus and others who were raised to life from death - but died again later in life - Jesus still lives.  He has never died again, and he is living at this very moment, as you read this, making intercession before the Father on behalf of all those who will trust in him (Hebrews 7.25).  This isn't just a story.  It's what actually happened, and is happening at this very moment.  If you need pop culture icons to help you get excited about the reality of what took place at the resurrection (and what is taking place right now as a result), you may have lost sight of what the resurrection actually entails.

Second, I think we try to gussy up our Easter celebrations because we've lost sight of resurrection power.  In Philippians 3 Paul talks about desperately wanting to know the power of the resurrection, and doing whatever it takes to get a taste of that power.  What Paul means by the "power of his resurrection" is the ability to tap into the implications of what Jesus' resurrection accomplished.  What did the resurrection accomplish?  For one, it broke the power of sin.  Death is the final enemy (1 Corinthians 15.26), the final and ultimate consequence of sin.  By rising from the dead, Jesus proved that he has power over sin and its disastrous effects in our lives.  This is what Paul saw as the resurrection power that he wanted a piece of: the ability to kill sin in his life and gain freedom from it and its horrible effects - both temporal and eternal.  This freedom would not have been possible had Jesus not risen from the dead.  No amount of effort, good behavior, positive thinking, or anything else can give you power over sin and its effects - only the resurrection of Christ can do that.  So because Jesus rose from the dead, believers have power.  Do I share Paul's desperation for tapping into that resurrection power?

For some reason, we have lost sight of these two realities: that of an actual, physical resurrection, and the power associated with it that is accessible by all believers.  And so now, in order to motivate us to celebrate the resurrection, we need epic services with pop culture characters.  My brothers and sisters, this should not be so.

This Easter I would urge you to put aside all of the external things that might draw your attention away from the glory of the resurrection and its power.  Thankfully, at Riverview, we're not clever enough to come up with marketing slogans and gimmicks for our Easter service.  We figure, Jesus rose from the dead, and that's more than enough reason to be excited.

A Thanksgiving Conversation

This week’s sermon at Riverview was a bit different than usual, as it featured a fictional Thanksgiving meal and conversation between a nameless character and David, King of Israel.  The foundation for their conversation is Psalm 92.  You can listen to the sermon here, or you can read the transcript below.  

May your Thanksgiving conversation be filled with remembrances of God’s grace and goodness, and may you come to know that it is good to give thanks to the Lord.

I’m going to ask you to imagine that it is Thanksgiving Day, and your whole family is gathered around the table for the Thanksgiving feast.  But in addition to your family, you’ve also invited king David to your home for Thanksgiving.  Yes, that king David – the one from the Bible – the one who fought Goliath – the one who ruled over Israel – the one who wrote the psalms.  All the food is prepared, and everyone is ready to begin diving into the many delicacies laid before you at the table.

But before you eat, you ask your guest of honor to pray a prayer of Thanksgiving over the meal.  He agrees, and he prays thus: 

“It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night, to the music of the lute and the harp, to the melody of the lyre.  For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work; at the works of your hands I sing for joy.  How great are your works, O Lord!  Your thoughts are very deep!  The stupid man cannot know; the fool cannot understand this: that though the wicked sprout like grass and all evildoers flourish, they are doomed to destruction forever; but you, O Lord, are on high forever.  For behold, your enemies O Lord, for behold your enemies shall perish; all evildoers shall be scattered.  But you have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox; you have poured over me fresh oil.  My eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies; my ears have heard the doom of my evil assailants.  The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.  They are planted in the house of the Lord; they flourish in the courts of our God.  They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green, to declare that the Lord is upright; he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.  Amen.”

Everyone around the table confusedly echoes a faint “Amen,” after David concludes his prayer.  You sit down, having expected the usual prayer of “Lord, thank you for this food and your many blessings,” but instead you got a psalm!

Everyone begins to pass the food to one another and heap it onto their plates and begins to eat, including you and your guest, David.  

But you interject: “David, I couldn’t help noticing some things about your prayer just now.  For instance, you said that it is good to give thanks to the Lord.  What do you mean by that?  What do you mean by ‘good’?”

David has a somewhat perplexed look on his face, but quickly responds, “I mean it is right to give thanks to the Lord.  After all, look at what he’s done!  Everything we have comes from God.  How could we not thank him?  Even the little blessings that we don’t even notice are from him.  And it is right to thank him for them.  For instance, I once knew a man who, for financial reasons, had to move into a one-room apartment with 8 other people.  After a time, he goes to a Jewish priest and complains: “Life is unbearable.  There are nine of us living in one room.  What can I do?”  The priest answers, “Take your goat into the room with you.”  The man was incredulous, but the priest insists: “Do as I say and come back in a week.”  A week later the man comes back looking more distraught than before.  “We cannot stand it,” he tells the priest.  “The goat is filthy.”  The priest then tells him, “Go home and let the goat out, and come back in a week.”  A radiant man returns to the priest a week later, exclaiming, “Life is beautiful.  We enjoy ever minute now that there is no goat – only the nine of us.”  

You chuckle quietly, but David’s point is made.  Even though it’s almost cliché, you realize David is right that we take for granted God’s many blessings – even the little things.  And it would be wrong to not thank him for them.  

“But there’s more to it than that,” David continues.  “You see, you cannot thank God for your blessings without first thanking God for being the kind of God who gives blessings.  That’s what I mean when I say that it is good to give thanks to the Lord.  It is the right thing to do, because he is so good.  Anything less than complete acknowledgement of who is and what he does would be wrong.”

“Ok,” you respond.  “That makes sense.”

But David’s not done.  “When I think about all that God has done for me in so many ways, the only natural response I can have is to be glad.  If I truly realize all that he has done, it seems to me that the right response is to break out in song!”

There’s an awkward silence, and part of you thinks David is about to start singing.  But he doesn’t.  Instead, he continues, “When something or someone makes you glad, the only natural and right response is to be thankful.  When I think about all that God has done for me, that is how I feel.  And that is why it is good and right for me to give thanks to the Lord.”

You spear a piece of turkey with your fork and dip it in some gravy and pop it into your mouth.  Using somewhat bad manners, you ask David while chewing your food: “Like what?  What has God done?  Why is he so deserving of thanks?”  You understand the concept, but part of you wants to press David for some specific examples.  

David clears his own food from his mouth with a big swallow of milk.  He wipes his face with his napkin and says, “Everything.  Pick something.  God has done it, and he deserves praise for it.” 

David pauses to take another bite of turkey, and you do the same.  You chew your food for a few seconds, thinking about what David has just said.  It makes sense.  If God truly is who he has said he is, and if he has done what he has said he has done, then it is right – it is just, even – to give him thanks.  Because there is something about who God is and what he has done that simply requires praise – that requires thanksgiving.  In fact, if what God has done and said is true, then it seems like it would almost be a form of cosmic treason to not give him thanks – it would be an injustice.  

Then David breaks into your thoughts by saying, “But more specifically, God deserves praise because everything he does is right and just and fair.  For all people.  Everyone gets what they deserve.  Everyone is treated fairly.  There is no evil person who goes unpunished, and no righteous person who is not rewarded.  God is completely just and right in all that he does in the world, and in all that happens.”

“Whoa, I have to stop you there,” you say.  “David, apparently you haven’t heard that just last week 129 people in Paris who were minding their own business were murdered by terrorists.  So how is God just?  Where is the justice for those people?  How is that fair?  How is it fair that 129 people were removed from this earth in the blink of an eye?  How can you say that God is just when things like that happen in the world?”

As the words leave your lips you almost immediately regret saying them.  Here is this man, a guest at your table, and you feel like you’ve just taken all the air out of what he has been saying.  To fill the awkward silence, you fill your mouth with some mashed potatoes.  

David pauses a moment, then says, “Yes, that is hard to understand.  And if we only look with our physical eyes and hear with our human ears, the world does indeed seem to be a place of injustice.  So in order to understand things like terrorist attacks and how God can remain a God of justice, we need to use spiritual eyes and ears.”

David looks at you expectantly, as if he expects you to either agree with him or respond to his statement.  Instead, all you can manage is “Uh, what?”

“It’s like this,” David says.  “In my life, there have been many times when it has seemed like wicked people always get their way.  They’re successful in all they do, they hurt people and get away with it, they cheat, they lie, they steal, and no one ever calls them to account.  For example, I once had a crazy man named Saul chase me all around the countryside trying to kill me, for no reason other than that he was jealous of me.  What did I do to deserve his hatred?  Nothing.  And when I see how the wicked seem to sprout and grow like grass and do whatever they want, and how they can seemingly get away with whatever they want – and when that makes me angry, I am only seeing it with my human eyes.  I need to look at them with spiritual eyes.”

“OK,” you say, confused: “Then what do they look like through your ‘magical spiritual eyes?’”

“They’re not ‘magical spiritual eyes,’” David responds.  “Instead, they’re eyes that allow me to see and know what God does to maintain justice.  You said that 129 people were killed in Paris last week.  Those who committed that crime will not get away with it.  Even if they took the coward’s way out and killed themselves so as to never face a human court, they will face God’s court.  And they will not get away with it.  There is no such thing as a perfect crime in God’s system.  Because God is a God of justice.  He will see that justice is satisfied.  That’s what it means to look at the world through spiritual eyes: to know that God is in control, and he will see that justice is served, either in this life or the next.  And those who are wicked will be doomed to destruction forever.  But God will reign on high forever.  When all is said and done, all of God’s enemies will perish.  Because he is a God of justice.”

David pauses to put some fresh butter on a warm dinner roll, and you’re grateful for the time to process what he has just said.  

After thinking for a few moments, and as David begins to eat his freshly buttered roll, you say, “So David, you’re saying that no matter what happens on earth – whether something is just or unjust to us – that God will always make it right in the end?”

“Yes.  And that, my friend, is reason to praise God.  There will be a reckoning.  There will be a judgment.  And God will always be found to be fair and right in all that he does.”

“Huh,” you remark.  “Well, then let me run this by you: last week there was a shooting in Minneapolis.  A police officer killed a man, and people are saying that it was racially motivated, and that white police officers are targeting members of the black community.  And they’re saying justice is not served.  What do we do with that?”

David shrugs his shoulders.  “I do not know, nor can I know,” he says.  “I wasn’t there.  I don’t know the facts of what happened, nor can I see into the heart of either man.  But here’s what I do know: God knows.  And God will do what is right.  Even when something seems to us to be a travesty of justice, it will not be so forever.  God is a God of justice, and there won’t be any wool pulled over his eyes.”

You understand what he is saying, but you want to probe further.  But before you can, David begins to speak again.

“Do you know what this means?” he asks.  “This means that you will never have to be worried that evil will win.  It means that you never have to concern yourself with vengeance or getting even.  God says, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay.’  He will see that justice is done.  It is our job to trust him.  And that, my friend, is good news.  That is news for which you should give God thanks.”

As you listen to what he says, you understand it, but something about it just doesn’t sit right with you.  Perhaps you don’t have those spiritual eyes he was talking about.  

“OK then,” you say, “If God is just, then what does he do with people who don’t know right from wrong?”

“What do you mean?” David asks.

“I mean people who, for whatever reason, can’t know the difference between right and wrong.  Maybe they have an intellectual disability, or maybe they have a mental illness, and this prohibits them from doing what is right, or maybe even from knowing who God is in the first place.  There are certainly people with mental disabilities who simply can’t even understand that God exists.  What does God do with them?”

David sits quietly for a moment, thinking.  When he opens his mouth, he speaks quietly: “I do not know how God will judge people who can’t understand him because their mind will not allow it.  But I do know this: whatever God does with those people will be right and good, because that’s the kind of God that God is.  The kind that always does the right thing, and the kind that always does the good thing.  Again, my friend, that kind of God is the kind that deserves our thanks.”

By this time, the main portion of the meal is over, and the plates and dishes are being cleared away.  Soon the pumpkin pie is being served, with an immense dollop of whipped cream on top.  

As David takes his first bite of pie, he says, “Now, my friend, you have asked me about terrorist attacks, police shootings, and people who are not able to understand God because their mind will not allow them to.  So now let me put a question to you.”

“Go ahead,” you say.

“If everything I’ve been saying about God is true – and that he will always do what is right, and that he will always punish evil and reward righteousness, what will he do with you?”

“What do you mean?” you ask, suddenly getting nervous.  

“Well, it seems to me that the news that God is just is both good news and bad news for you.  On the one hand it is good news in that you can know that God will always have the last word and the final say, and that wicked men will not go unpunished.  On the other hand, it seems to me that it is bad news for you that God is just, because his justice applies to you as well.  If God is just, then he must punish your sin too.  He must hold you accountable for what you have done.  If he didn’t, he wouldn’t be just!”

You are suddenly very uncomfortable and the pie in your mouth begins to taste bad.  “What are you trying to say?” you ask, quietly.  

“I’m saying that if you are a sinful person, then you must one day face God’s justice.  What will it be like for you on that day?”

A mild anger flares up inside you.  “David, listen, with all due respect, I invited you to my house for Thanksgiving dinner, and you’re telling me that I’m going to be judged by God for my sin.  Don’t you think that’s a bit…I don’t know…rude?”

“No offense intended, my friend,” David says quickly, putting his hands up in the air.  “I simply know that I myself have been an evil man.  I have been the wicked man who has flourished.  I was a king, after all, and I could have anything I wanted.  And let me tell you, I had anything I wanted.  Money, women, possessions.  There were times when I was the wicked man who prospered.  There were times when I was the one who lied, cheated, stole, and even killed.  And no one could touch me for any of it.  I could get away scot-free.  But I knew in my heart of hearts that I could not get away from God, because God is a God of justice.  He would hold me accountable.  And the thought of his justice terrified me.  It caused me to turn from my sin and to put my trust in him.  And now, I don’t have to fear his justice.  Another reason to give God thanks!”

“Wait, wait, wait,” you say.  “All this time you’ve been going on and on about how God is a God of justice, and he always does what is right, and now you’re telling me that you’re an evil man who deserves justice, but God doesn’t give it to you.  How is that just?  Apparently God isn’t as concerned with justice as you said he was.”

David smiles, and you get the impression that there is some detail that he left out that is crucial to his story.  “You’re right,” he says.  “It would not be just for God to leave me unpunished for all I’ve done.  And the list of my sins is long – so long that I am not able to stand under its weight.”

He pauses, as though remembering something, and smiles again.  You nervously take another bite of pie.  

“But let me tell you what is even more scandalous,” he says.”  “Not only did I not receive judgment for my sin, but God has blessed me and sustained me, and given me all sorts of good things that I do not deserve.”

“So you’ve done all sorts of bad things, but received all kinds of good things from God?  Yeah, that sounds real just,” you say, half incredulously and half spitefully.

“Just hear me out,” David says.  “I deserved to be punished.  I deserved to be judged.  But instead of giving me what I deserved, God gave me what I didn’t deserve: grace.  Instead of bringing me down low, God raised me up.  Instead of taking my life for my sin, God enriched it with his grace.  Instead of snuffing out my life, God has sustained it.  And so with the life that God has given me, I can declare that the Lord is upright.  He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.”

“But David,” you interject, “you haven’t dealt with the reality that what you’re describing isn’t just.  You’ve been saying throughout our whole conversation about how God loves justice and is always just.  But what you’re describing about your life isn’t just.  If you’ve done all of these horrible things, you deserve do be punished.  But you haven’t been.  How do you reconcile that?”

“On my own, I cannot,” David says.  “Like I said before, God’s justice is good news and bad news.  It means God always does what is right, and we should thank him for that.  But it also means that he must judge my sin, because I am a sinner!  But God made a way for justice to be satisfied that doesn’t end in my destruction.”

“What?” you ask.  “How?  How can God punish your sin but not punish you?”

David looks down into his lap, contemplative and quiet.  “God promised my forefathers to send us a deliverer.  And through this deliverer all nations on the earth would be blessed.   And this deliverer would repair the breech between man and God because of their sin.  This deliverer would live a perfect life.  And for his perfection, God would give him the crown of righteousness – the reward for a person who is perfect.  But that crown was not to be his.  Because he would volunteer to instead take the sin of those who would trust in him upon himself.  And then, as the consequence of their sin – so that justice might be satisfied – God would punish him, and the payment for their sin would be born by him.  So he would go through death, for them.  And then, in the greatest exchange that would ever be, in all history, he would give them his righteousness.  So now when God seeks to satisfy his justice, it would be poured out on him – the punishment would be paid.  And as God seeks to reward the righteous, he would reward those who have the righteousness of the deliverer.”  As David says all of this, his head remains bowed, his eyes staring into his lap.

“OK, I get it,” you say.  “It’s the great exchange: the deliverer gets our sin, and we get his righteousness when we trust in him, and God’s justice is satisfied by punishing him instead of us.  But there’s still one thing that doesn’t make sense.  How is it fair that this deliverer is punished for my sin – especially if he never did anything to deserve it?  That, to me, seems to be the most cosmic injustice – a man punished for things he never did.”

David’s eyes are still on his hands, folded together in his lap.  “It would be an injustice, yes, if a man were forced into such a position.  But the deliverer is not forced into this position.  Instead, he volunteers.”

“What?” you say.  “Why would anyone volunteer for that?  Why would someone volunteer to be punished for things he never did?”

“Nobody would volunteer for that,” David responds, quietly.  “Unless he were motivated by a kind of love that is other-worldly – a love that is divine – a love that you and I can’t even begin to comprehend.  And the deliverer is motivated by that kind of love, because he is not just a man, but he is also God himself.  And he loves his people so much that he is willing to be killed for their sins.  And he is willing to give them the righteousness that he earned.  But it could be no other way.  If he were to not come, then all men would be lost in their sin.  All men would be doomed to destruction.  But he has come.  And so I sit before you today: a condemned sinner, saved by grace through this deliverer, and found not guilty.  All because God is a God of justice.”

David lifts his eyes and connects with yours, but you turn from his gaze, as it seems he’s staring into your soul.  He goes on, and you look sheepishly off into the corner.

“And now,” he says, the intensity of his voice rising, “I can have confidence in this life.  I don’t have to live in fear of a vengeful God any longer.  Because the deliverer has paid the price of my sin.  Now all I know is grace.  Now I can approach God with confidence.  I no longer call him my enemy, but instead I call him my friend – my rock!”

You turn your gaze back to David and your eyes connect.  At this moment, nothing else seems to matter: the meal, the holiday, the pumpkin pie – all of it is of no importance.

David says, “Do you see now how this is good news?  Do you see now why it is good – it is right – to give thanks to the Lord?  To sing praises to the name of the Most High?  To declare his steadfast love in the morning, and his faithfulness by night?  Do you now see why I have been made glad by his work, and why, at the work of his hands, I sing for joy?”