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

---

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.

But God

Perhaps my two favorite words in the whole Bible are "But God."


These two words are used together hundreds of times throughout the Bible, but I was reminded of one of my favorite passages in Scripture while working on another post. For this entry, however, I just want to post the passage Scripture. It's a little bit lengthy as far as quoted passages go, but...well, here. I'll let the passage speak for itself.

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience - among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our traspasses, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved - and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Eph. 2:1-9

Just a reminder today of the power and sufficiency of the gospel.


Live and trust in Christ alone.


He is our only hope.

The Flood

Have you heard the story of the two men building a house? One builds on the rock and the other on the sand? It's here if you haven't read it. Go check it out. I'll be here when you get back.


Did you read it? Good.


A few things strike me as interesting in this parable.


The righteous man. He builds the foundation of his house on the rock. I can almost see the listeners nodding their approval - this man knows what he's doing! As a result, the storm and flood do not prevail against him.


The unrighteous man. He builds the foundation of his house on the sand. The crowds probably laughed and shook their heads, knowing how dimwitted this man was behaving. As expected, the storm and flood easily prevail.


The flood. Notice that it still came, even in view of the righteousness of the first man. The passage says "when" the flood comes, not "if." The indication here is that the flood is coming, the trials will happen, we will face troubles and persecution for the sake of Christ. Your righteousness (or lack thereof) will not stop the storm. This is because the storm is not the point. The point is the God who is Lord over the storm. He is the One in whom we place our trust. He is the One for Whom we are faithful.


The question is: Will you be found righteous or unrighteous when the storm comes? Will you be found faithful, having diligently prepared for the storm? Or will the crowds laugh at you too, easily recognizing that you have been building on the wrong foundation this whole time?


Don't be surprised when you give in to trials and temptation if all along you have not been diligent to build a solid foundation on the Lord and the principles of His Word. What else do you think will happen when the storm comes?


And don't be surprised either when you withstand the storm and make it through temptation or trials if you have been faithful all along. That's the benefit of being faithful. Just make sure your response is one of praise to the Father for being your strength, rather than pride in yourself for standing firm. You couldn't have stood firm without the Rock on which you stood.

Significant

This is part 2 of 2 about Luke 3:23-38. Click here to read the passage, click here to read the first part, and then come back!


...




When you read the end of Luke 3, there's one thing that is glaringly obvious - there are loads of people in this list of names. And I don't even know half of them. If they were walking down the street, I couldn't pick them out of a crowd. I couldn't tell you their greatest accomplishment. I certainly couldn't tell you their name. I mean, this is not the Hall of Fame we're talking about here.


But I would also venture to say it doesn't matter, either.


Really.


God chose them. He put them where He did, when He did, for the purpose that He did. And I must trust His judgment.


More importantly, I must withhold my own. I see the name Menna or Sala on a list like this and I think, "Who's that guy?" Honestly, that might be the guy I'd be tempted to make fun of in the cafeteria at school or standing by the water cooler at work. He might be the guy with quirky behavior or the girl who's laugh is just the wrong pitch. We all know those people who for whatever reason get on our last nerves.


And we judge them. Maybe even bully them. Maybe even abuse them verbally...or physically.


And this genealogy reminds me today that the people I don't know are just as significant as the ones I do know. Because God selected them. They have meaning and purpose. They have value and a place in God's Story and Kingdom.


And I am convicted. How often do I mistreat someone because they are different or seemingly unimportant? How often do I treat people as if they weren't made in the image of God, just like I am?


Don't ever count someone out because you don't see their value. Don't ever consider someone unimportant because you don't see their worth. God chooses each person for a special purpose and just because we can't see it or understand it doesn't it make it any less significant.


Live knowing that you are significant to God. Live treating others with that same significance.


"This is how we have come to know love: He laid down His life for us. We should also lay down our lives for our brothers." 1 John 3:16


Christ died for us. Christ considered us worthy of his sacrifice. The only response after faith is to value others in the same way, even to give our lives so that they might come to know and believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Counted Worthy

This is part 1 of 2 about Luke 3:23-38. Click here to read it, and then come back!


...

If I'm truly honest, I usually skip the genealogies. I mean, who really wants to read "And he begat so and so..." over and over again?


But today I read the one in Luke 3. Out loud. I'm not saying this to get a pat on the back. I simply needed a way to stay awake because I was determined to actually read each word. And the Lord impressed something on me.


I realized as I was reading that there were only a handful of names that I actually recognized. Of that handful there were an even smaller number that I knew their story or what made them significant. But does that mean the other ones are not important?


They probably get skipped over often, maybe not even given a second thought, but God inspired Luke (and the other Gospel and Old Testament writers) to include their names. That alone makes them important. But why are they important? In the Gospels, especially the one in Luke, they're the lineage of Christ all the way back to God. That seems obvious.


But the thing that strikes me today is this: I think they're important simply for the fact that they're unremarkable. I don't know what Admin or Er did. And I don't think it really matters. What matters is that God counted them worthy to continue the line of blood that led to Christ.


I don't know what you've done either (good or bad), but if you're a follower of Christ then it doesn't matter if I know. I can trust that God has chosen you, for a purpose, and you are carrying the name of Christ wherever you go. You are a child of God. You are counted worthy.


Don't worry about whether your life is important to the world or whether people know your name like they do David or Paul. God says you're important. God knows your name. And God has an important task for you to do to further His kingdom. That might mean a smile and friendly wave to the gas station attendant. Or continuing to do your job with integrity. Or sharing the gospel with your neighbor.


Whatever it is, do it with excellence for the glory of God. He has counted you worthy enough to send His only Son to die on the cross for your sins. He has counted you worthy enough to be co-heirs with Christ. He has counted you worthy.


Now live in that worthiness.

Mandates

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." Exodus 20:8


I learned recently that there are two kinds of command, a mandate and a prohibition. Mandates are the "do's". Prohibitions are the "don'ts". The fourth commandment, the Sabbath one quoted, is a mandate. In fact, with the fifth commandment (honor your father and mother), there are only two mandates in all ten of the Commandments.


I was thinking about that idea, of mandates and such, and something occurred to me. Prohibitions are easy to follow.
Don't murder.
Don't give false testimony.
Don't rollerblade without pads and a helmet.
I tend to gravitate toward them because it is easier to gauge whether I have measured up to the task. If I'm really honest, I must admit it's also easier to judge whether other people have lived up to it, too. Maybe that's why the Pharisees liked the rules so much?


Mandates, however, are much harder to follow because I never know how much is enough. The person who gives the mandate could always require more of me, could always decide there are further expectations of the previously mentioned mandate.


Jesus says, "Love your neighbor as yourself."
I think, "But how much loving do they really need? Can I love them once and be finished? Maybe twice? Just in case the first time wasn't loving enough?"
The disciples asked the same thing. You probably do, too.


I realized something else, though, and herein lies the key to figuring out mandates. Maybe all ten of the commandments are mandates at their core. I mean, prohibitions really just keep us from doing things. They alter our external behavior. But mandates, those are the ones that really get at the heart of the issue - namely, our hearts. They alter our internal attitude. When viewed that way, it's easy to say don't commit murder. But Jesus was right, hating your brother is the same thing because the attitude is the same in both scenarios.


So often I tend toward the legalistic approach of doing, doing, doing. The problem is, these Ten Commandments are merely the minimum. They could all be rewritten in the form of a mandate, specifically a mandate that is of such a high standard that I could never do enough. I can never live up to the expectation that God has for holiness.


It's crucial then to remember two things - futility and grace. Futility looks at the commands of God and honestly says, "I have no chance." The mature Christian must realize the gripping reality of his hopelessness before God. But grace! Grace allows us the freedom to follow the mandates of God and offers us the forgiveness to fail. And fail we will.


That's why Jesus came. Because it was such a futile effort to live up to the standard which God has set for us. Jesus lived a holy life, according to all the "law" of God, not just because we couldn't but so that we didn't have to. Not only did He live the life we couldn't live but He died the death that we deserved. All so that we could be brought back to a right relationship with God.


This grace truly is amazing. This grace is so overwhelming, so lavish, so above and beyond anything we could have hoped or expected that the only response is worship.


How could it lead to anything else?