Bloody Hands

"Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all of you, for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God."

~ Acts 20:26-27

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Have you ever gotten the impression that someone was telling you something that sounded like you had heard it before?

Well, that was this passage for me just recently. I knew what Paul was saying sounded familiar, it really resonated in my heart like something I had even felt conviction about before. But I just couldn't place it. So I went searching. I probably went the long way about it (manually flipping through passages rather than consulting a reference source) but I finally found the reference - Ezekiel 33, where God places Ezekiel as a watchman for Israel.

So you, son of man, I have made a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, O wicked one, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked person shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, that person shall die in his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul. {Ezekiel 33:7-9}

This is probably one of the most frightening passages to me in all of the Bible.

It is true that this passage applied directly to Ezekiel. But Paul shows here that it applies to him and by extension it also applies to the modern follower of Jesus. It is saddening to think about people who are confronted with the truth of the gospel, yet still reject it for some reason or another. I find myself praying often for people in that category. But it is also incredibly convicting to think about the times I could have spoken the truth and shared my faith, my reason for living and hoping, but didn't. Aside from the fact that I disobeyed God by not responding to the prompting of the Holy Spirit, their condemnation before God is at least in part laid at my feet. If they never believe in Jesus for salvation, at the judgment day God will look to them and ask, "Did you not observe my creation? Did you not see evidence of me there?"

But He will also look to me and say, "Weren't you my watchman? Why did you say nothing?"

Of course, the Holy Spirit works in the heart and draws people to salvation - you won't be held responsible for something that's not even your responsibility in the first place. But we must preach. We must share. We must call people out of the darkness and into the light. It's the very DNA of who we are as Christians.

The last words (and last words are so important, aren't they?) of the Lord Jesus before He left this earth were that we were to be His witnesses throughout the entire earth.

And if we don't?

Their blood is on our hands.

Teachable

I am astounded sometimes at the pride I often have in my own knowledge. I think, "What can this person really teach me? I already know all about this passage of Scripture." Perhaps we all have that tendency? Perhaps we all want to know what we know, without any help from anyone else?

Regardless, I was reminded the other day (yet again) of the sinfulness of that kind of attitude. Pride, it seems, is how we got into this predicament in the first place. And I still struggle with the mindset and heart attitude of pride in my own accomplishment, that I can do things on my own and don't need God or anyone else to help me.

Enter the account of Apollos in Acts 18. The great example of teachability. Here is a man well educated in the Scriptures, eloquent in his speech, and fervent in the spirit.

But apparently he didn't know it all. There was something he got wrong because he simply didn't know. It seems unintentional, but he was preaching the baptism of repentance that John the Baptist had preached and did not know about the baptism of the Holy Spirit that came through Christ. An honest mistake - if only Twitter existed back then!

So Priscilla and Aquila corrected him.

Now what would your attitude be in that moment? There are times in my life where something similar has happened to me and I know exactly how I've reacted.

Defensive.

Offended.

Reasserting my position.

Mean-spirited.

While his reaction is not recorded in Scripture, we know the result. He wanted to continue in the work, even to the point of being a better defender of the faith as he continued to preach in another city! That certainly does not sound defensive and mean-spirited to me. It sounds like Apollos understood what it truly meant to have a malleable heart before the Lord.

And so I ask you (and myself) what is your heart more like: stone or clay? Are you staunch in your opinion, even in the face of rebuke, knowing you're wrong yet not wanting to admit it? Or are you like Apollos, teachable and ready to respond to what God is teaching you through His Word and through others?

It is absolutely important to hold to nonnegotiable Truth, those things that are essential to the gospel and not up for question or debate. But it is also important to have a teachable spirit. Some things are negotiable, some things are debatable, some things we just get plain wrong. And we must be ready to learn from those that the Lord puts in our path to show us the truth.

Clay is firm yet moldable.

Put enough pressure on a stone, though, and it will break.

Which will you be?

His Time

Driving home tonight a song came on the radio that I'm quite familiar with. I know the words. I love the words. But do you ever find yourself caught by some aspect of a song you didn't realize or recognize was there?


The song is "What Life Would Be Like" by Big Daddy Weave. If you aren't familiar, you can listen here.


Anyway, I was just driving along, listening and singing, and a phrase struck me: "He opened blinded eyes to see that the sun rises on His time, yet He knows our deepest desperate need."


What awesome truth is captured in those words! I paused for a moment to savor it. How often, in the midst of life, through joy and sorrow, in laughter and tears, do we lose sight of the fact that this life is not our own? Time is not ours to plan down to the very minutiae of the day. Rather, each day is a gift, each moment a treasure. God is gracious to us not only to give us this life but to give us the opportunity to glorify Him with all that we are, including the time that He has blessed us with.

I don't ever want to forget the implications of that simple phrase:


"The sun rises on His time."


Time is His to give and His to take away. Who am I to question God's plan? Does He not know infinitely better than I do? Can He not see all of time and, regardless of my extremely short sighted ideas, choose the best course for me? All I have to do is trust! And in return, I am to glorify the Father with all that I do and say.


I don't know about you, but apart from salvation that is one of the most comforting and reassuring truths I could ever attempt to wrap my heart and mind around.


Does it seem like everything is going wrong with your life? Does it seem like everything you try to do fails? God knows. God sees. And He sees how those disappointments and failures are going to eventually bring about His own glory. All you have to do is trust Him.


Does it seem like everything in your life is perfect? Maybe all the pieces have fallen into place without you even trying? Good. God sees and knows that too. But in the midst of that blessing don't forget that God is due the glory and praise. And He will get it, even at the expense of your pride.


You see, it's His time. It's His plan. It's His will. And I am reminded tonight that nothing happens in this world that is not first sifted through His hands. So, in my valleys I will praise Him. And on the mountain top, I will glorify His name. Because His is the name that is above every name. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.


Paul says it best, "Indeed, to me living is Christ, and dying gain."


What better way to live than in the shadow of the cross?

Desperate

Often when I'm getting dressed in the morning I turn on Pandora. Most of those occasions I pick a station that has Kari Jobe, Mandi Mapes, Meredith Andrews, Shane and Shane or ... (there are so many to choose from...) - the point is that I gravitate toward artists whose focus is intentional worship. It helps me start my day with the right mindset...anyway, for some reason I changed it up the other morning and started my Grits/Lecrae station. (Maybe I was feeling tired and needed some beats to perk me up a bit?)


One of the first songs that came up was 'Desperate' by Lecrae. Have you heard it? No? Okay, even if you've heard it before, watch the video below.

I had never heard that song before. Man, did it strike a chord in me! I don't know about you, but sometimes I feel exactly the way that Lecrae describes. I feel the deep shame that only sin can bring. My sins feel like a burden. They slow me down and discourage me. I get paranoid thinking other people know what I've done and are secretly condemning me for it.


We all feel that way at times in our lives, don't we? We're human and therefore sinful by nature.


I'll be honest (as I'm prone to do here) - if the song stopped at 1:00 or so, I don't know what I'd do. It's depressing to think about having no rescue from this world of sin and shame. All doubts aside, even if you don't believe in God or accept the Bible as Truth or want anything to do with 'that religious stuff,' we all have to admit that we know when we've done wrong. Even if we want to deny or justify the wrong we do in some way, we still know it's wrong. Because God made us in His image. And anything we do that doesn't fit that image is like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. We know there's an edge or corner that doesn't belong, even if we don't know (or want to admit) exactly why.


Thankfully, however, the song doesn't end after a minute. Lecrae so poetically echoes the voices of David and Paul from Psalm 51 and Romans 7, respectively.


So many times since then I have been reminded of that song and encouraged at the thought of the cross, of Christ and his sacrifice for me. Sometimes I just sit in awe of the grace that God has shown. Some people say that God is mean for punishing sin - what kind of loving God would do that kind of thing? My answer is two-fold. First, God is justified in treating sin the way that he does because he is holy. Second (perhaps more importantly?), God is, in fact, extremely kind and loving. Need proof?


He made a way where there was no way.


Not only does he have wrath against sin that must be satisfied, but he poured out that wrath on himself in order to be satisfied.


The Judge stepped down from the bench and took our place as the defendant.


Praise God! He has shown us grace so that when we sin against him, it doesn't have to be counted against us! He has shown us mercy so that when we sin against him, it's already paid for!


Don't live in sin. That says the cross doesn't matter.
But don't live in shame, either. That says the cross wasn't enough.

Hearing Voices

A while back Isabella went to a birthday party for one of her babysitter's friends. After class I went to pick her up. When I walked in the door, I greeted everyone and Isabella said, "Daddy!" and immediately ran to me.


Now, that wouldn't normally strike me as blog-worthy except for the fact that she had not seen me come in. It could have been anyone arriving at their apartment and greeting everyone, let alone me. One of the girls there said something, however, that has resonated with me ever since:


"Aw! She recognizes her daddy's voice."


It's true. She does. Out of a crowd, she would know my voice over anyone else's. Were she blindfolded and forced to choose between multiple dads all calling for her to "Come here, darlin'! Come to Daddy!", she would choose correctly every time. Why is that?


Because she knows my voice.


Taken a step further, we also know the voice of our Father, don't we? We know His call like my daughter knows mine. Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." The question is, and this is the hard part, do we listen? Do we answer? Do we come when He calls?


Here is the rest of that verse in its context:

Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are one."

Obviously Jesus is speaking about His followers - they know Him, they hear His voice, they answer Him and they follow Him. The implication of these verses though, that is what convicts me more than anything. Verse 26 says it all, and it just grabs at me: "but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep."


What do sheep do? They listen to their shepherd. They follow his voice.


So, if I am not listening to and following the voice of my Good Shepherd, then doesn't that mean that I am not behaving as one of His sheep? If I am not listening to His voice, then whose voice am I listening to? What shepherd am I putting in place of Him?


In short, what I'm trying to say is this: The voice that you listen to is what you have made god over your life, whether you realize it or not. The voice that you follow is the one you have allowed to reign on the throne of your life.


What is it? Is it your image or your reputation or your peers or yourself? Does the identity you find in your skills and abilities hold more sway than the identity you have in Christ? Honestly, most of the time what sits on the throne of my life is me. I sit there, all high and mighty, looking down on the people around me. I condescendingly peer down and judge people for all the sins I can see (or even think I can see) in their life, completely ignoring the trash in my own life...or even worse - justifying it.


The very heart of my sin, of anyone's sin, is pride. It's the control that I try to assert in place of submitting to God. It's the self-justification I try to apply instead of being justified by God. And those are just the things that I battle with. I'm sure you have your own.


Ultimately, I have to ask: what do I do with this kind of thought? Do I walk away from a passage like this questioning my salvation, worried that I won't be allowed into heaven because I listen to myself more than God? No, the end of the passage makes it clear - His sheep can never be snatched from His hand. Once we are a part of God's flock, we are permanently a part of God's flock. This is not a passage that should produce doubt.


No, the take away is this - do I have the eternal life that Jesus offers? Once I have it, how do I know, listen to, and follow the Good Shepherd's voice?


Getting the eternal life that Jesus offers - that's the easy part.


The hard part is answering the other question. That's the part that takes a lifetime. How do I learn to hear my Shepherd's voice? And once I know what it sounds like, how do I train my ear to listen to it and my feet to follow? In a word, the Bible. God has spoken, extensively. He inspired godly men to write the words that we now have today and which we call the Bible. Is it a how-to manual? No. Is it a self-help book? Not at all. Will it answer every question you ever have about life and faith? Not explicitly.


But it is trustworthy. It is without error. It is authoritative.


So, open up the Word. Get in the habit of reading it consistently. Write down your thoughts and questions as you read. Find someone that you trust who is a step ahead of you in life and ask them to help you in the process, ask them questions about what you read, ask them to help you figure out how it applies to your life. It's difficult and it's work, but in the end you'll find yourself recognizing more easily, listening more closely, and following more quickly the voice of your Father in heaven.


And even better, you'll find that you run into His arms every chance that you get.