Advent 2024: The Tabernacle

“And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst.” Exodus 25:8

“This Moses did; according to all that the Lord commanded him, so he did. In the first month, in the second year, on the first day of the month, the tabernacle was erected. Moses erected the tabernacle. He laid its bases, and set up its frames, and put in its poles, and raised up its pillars. And he spread the tent over the tabernacle and put the covering of the tent over it, as the Lord had commanded Moses. He took the testimony and put it into the ark, and put the poles on the ark and set the mercy seat above on the ark. 

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.” Exodus 40:16-20, 34-35

As a noun, tabernacle is defined as “a fixed or moveable habitation, typically of light construction.” (Oxford English Dictionary)

For the nomadic Israelites, this type of moveable structure for God’s dwelling place on Earth made perfect sense. They had left the slavery of Egypt and been led into the wilderness, still very much uncertain of what was next before entering the Promised Land. It’s at this point– this in between– that Moses climbs Mount Sinai to meet with the Lord. And it is here that Moses receives not only the Ten Commandments, but also very detailed instructions to build the tabernacle, a place the Lord could draw near to his chosen people. 

Maybe, like me, you get to the details of the tabernacle’s construction and you begin to skim, but pause here. Imagine in your mind the artistry and architecture involved. Every detail of its design was meant to draw the people to remember who God is, his history with his people, and also to point to a future together one day in eternity. Pause again and imagine the sight of a massive cloud of God’s presence settling down overhead. 

As I began to prepare for Advent, the tabernacle immediately connected with me. This temporary dwelling feels so relatable to me at the moment. We sold our home over the summer and are in the process of building our new home. In the interim, we are leasing. It took a few months after settling into our new home and a few moments of quiet in a full schedule to put my finger on the lowkey hum of what I had been feeling– the feeling of being in an unsettled place. In an attempt to limit what we unpack now only to have to repack in a few months, we still have boxes piled everywhere. Though not nomadic like the Israelites, I feel the temporariness of our current situation. Yet when I take the time to look, to pause and really look, I cannot help but see the many gifts God has shown us in these months, the gift of his presence woven through this time. 

I don’t know what you are carrying into this Advent. You may be moving, finding yourself in flux in a relationship or at work, having lost a loved one, or just uncertain what the next step God has for you is. But I’d venture to guess many of us can readily draw to mind some experience that leaves us feeling unsettled, waiting, wondering. As we draw nearer to Christmas Day, can I invite you to pause in that feeling? And as you do, to remember our God’s presence with you in that space. 

Earlier, I shared one definition of tabernacle with you. Allow me to share one more. Merriam-Webster Dictionary also defines the verb form of tabernacle. To tabernacle means “to take up temporary residence, especially to inhabit a physical body.” 

The same God who met Adam and Eve in the garden, Moses at the burning bush, led his people by pillars of cloud and fire, and came near in the temporary dwelling of the tabernacle is the same God who took up temporary residence here on Earth in the form of a baby. The tabernacle was a temporary, earthly dwelling for our infinite, uncontainable God, but it was just a hint of what was to come when Jesus was born in Bethlehem. This Christmas, may we find peace with us in our temporary and wilderness places, knowing that as he was for his people throughout time, our God is near. 

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Editor’s Note: Whether he walked with Adam and Eve in the Garden, spoke to Moses through the burning bush, led the Israelites through the wilderness, or let his presence dwell in the Tabernacle, our God has always shown his desire to have a relationship with his people. These instances found in the Old Testament, amazing as they are, are only shadows of what would come when Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Each meeting brought us a step closer on the journey to Bethlehem, to the arrival of our Savior. 

Each week in our Advent reflections, we’ll take a look at one of the ways God drew near to his people leading up to Jesus’s birth.

Advent 2024: The Cloud of Smoke and Pillar of Fire

Imagine you look to your left, your right, before you, behind you, and all you can see are the thousands of people plodding onward into an unknown future. It’s a surreal feeling—you are leaving Egypt, the only home you have ever known, that anyone in your family has known for the past 400 years. You are leaving your job as a brick-maker, the only thing that ever gave you value in the world. And strangest of all, you are being led by a something so odd, you think your eyes must be playing tricks on you—a giant column of a cloud, which at night glows like fire. When it stops, your entire Israelite group stops and makes camp. When it moves, and where it moves, you pack up and follow. 

The whispers start to spread around camp one night, speculating about what even is this thing, as you nervously watch it in the distance. Glowing and waiting – almost like a shepherd watching over a flock. People start to remember some echoes of a story, a story passed down from generation to generation, nearly forgotten, like a candle about to go out. When you hear it, your heart beats faster and you immediately forget the weariness you’ve been carrying: “This isn’t the first time that the God of our people appeared like this”. 

You lean in close as you hear the story retold. The one chosen by God, Abraham, was also fleeing Egypt, and was in a place of doubt. He was losing faith that he could continue to trust God’s promise to him. Abraham asked God for proof—some reason why he could continue to believe. God responded in a strange way—that Abraham should set up a marriage covenant. 

And so Abraham did as he was instructed—gathering animals together and sacrificing them, using them to create a path. He knew what happened next. Two parties would take turns walking down this path of dead animals, declaring that “If I do not hold up my end of the promise, I deserve to be like these animals”. 

Abraham knew that it was now his turn. The less powerful party would walk first, followed by the more powerful party. But Abraham tarried. Maybe he was feeling the weight of what it would mean to make a promise with the One who placed the stars in the sky. As he waited, Abraham fell asleep.

He awoke with a start to a blazing light (could it have been the same one lingering over our camp right now?), and it was going down the path. It was as if God were saying “I promise to be your God, and you will be my people. If either one of us doesn’t hold up our end of the promise, I will become like these animals. I will pay the price”. 

The talk in camp dies down as people head off to sleep, but you lie awake pondering these things, the light of the fire ever-present in the distance. After 400 years of slavery and silence, are we really being saved by the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob? And could it be that this strange, mysterious force leading us and protecting us also cares for us, enough to make this marriage promise for us? 

Over a thousand years later, there was another family fleeing Egypt. This family arrived in Bethlehem, and a light in the sky again acted as a guide. But this time the light was guiding God’s faithful not to a place, but to a person. The Israelites had been again waiting 400 years in silence, waiting to be saved by the promised Messiah, the one God would send to reign on King David’s throne forever.  And he was here. His name is Jesus. He would say about himself “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life (John 8:12).” Could he be that same light from all those years ago? 

And ultimately, Jesus fulfills God’s promise that when we fall short of being God’s people, he would take the punishment and pay the price that we should have paid. 

And so this Advent, we remember that the long-expected Jesus, this Light of the World, is worth following after. By his light, all other things become clear. The Light of the World, who God has sent, lights up the darkness in our world around us, and the darkness in ourselves. This Light of the World ultimately guides us to the peace that our wandering hearts have been longing for. 

References: Exodus 13, Genesis 12, Genesis 15, John 8:12

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Editor’s Note: Whether he walked with Adam and Eve in the Garden, spoke to Moses through the burning bush, led the Israelites through the wilderness, or let his presence dwell in the Tabernacle, our God has always shown his desire to have a relationship with his people. These instances found in the Old Testament, amazing as they are, are only shadows of what would come when Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Each meeting brought us a step closer on the journey to Bethlehem, to the arrival of our Savior. 

Each week in our Advent reflections, we’ll take a look at one of the ways God drew near to his people leading up to Jesus’s birth.

Advent 2024: The Burning Bush

As we spend time waiting, once again remembering Jesus’ arrival on Earth to be with us, we also remember an earlier time where God was with his people, or rather, one of his people, for a moment, a sacred moment that sustained Moses for challenging tasks ahead. In Exodus 3: 1-6 and 11-15 we read,

“Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!”

And Moses said, “Here I am.” “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God…[and then after God explains that He has heard the cries of the Israelites in slavery and is commissioning Moses to go free them, Moses asks] “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ “This is my name forever, the name you shall call me from generation to generation. 

In Isaiah 7, the prophet tells of a future time when the Great I AM would come again to be with his people:

“Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.”

And in Matthew 1, we read how an angel of the Lord spoke to Joseph and gave him courage to stay committed to Mary, saying that the son she carried, Jesus, was the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy. He would truly be “God with us.” Think about how similar the word Immanuel is to the words “I AM”; God with us is the great I AM.

I’ve been thinking about how God is always with us. Some of you know that Dave and I host a community group that uses the liturgies from a series of books called Every Moment Holy. The premise is that God is in every moment of life, not just the obviously religious ones. When we notice that and invite His perspective and create a moment of worship, we can make any moment holy.

And so I have been thinking about the holy moments that we are having with our Afghan family. Each time when we enter their home, we take off our shoes, just like God told Moses to take off his shoes. And I think about how this simple act reminds me that my time there with them is a holy moment where God is present. Maybe you have the routine of taking off your shoes as you enter your own home. Think about this simple act. Pause and remember that because Jesus came to Earth and was Immanuel— the GREAT I AM is actually present.

The same God who revealed himself through a burning bush and would be born a baby in Bethlehem who would live with his people, is today with His people through His omnipresent Holy Spirit. He truly is the Great I AM and we are part of the generations through the ages who proclaim that to be so.

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Editor’s Note: Whether he walked with Adam and Eve in the Garden, spoke to Moses through the burning bush, led the Israelites through the wilderness, or let his presence dwell in the Tabernacle, our God has always shown his desire to have a relationship with his people. These instances found in the Old Testament, amazing as they are, are only shadows of what would come when Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Each meeting brought us a step closer on the journey to Bethlehem, to the arrival of our Savior. 

Each week in our Advent reflections, we’ll take a look at one of the ways God drew near to his people leading up to Jesus’s birth.

Advent 2024: The Garden

Editor’s Note: Whether he walked with Adam and Eve in the Garden, spoke to Moses through the burning bush, led the Israelites through the wilderness, or let his presence dwell in the Tabernacle, our God has always shown his desire to have a relationship with his people. These instances found in the Old Testament, amazing as they are, are only shadows of what would come when Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Each meeting brought us a step closer on the journey to Bethlehem, to the arrival of our Savior. 

Each week in our Advent reflections, we’ll take a look at one of the ways God drew near to his people leading up to Jesus’s birth.

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The Garden

Genesis 3:8-10 – “Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, ‘Where are you?’ He answered, ‘I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.’ ”

I’ve often wondered what it was like to be Adam. First human being, first man, having the first woman alongside you for the ride. But more than that, I’ve often wondered what Adam’s relationship with the Lord was like and how I would have reacted if, on a cool, breezy, sunny day in that lush Garden all those centuries ago, God had suddenly decided to sidle up to me – as he did with Adam and Eve.

I would have been awestruck. Terrified. Diving for the nearest bush whether I was naked or not. I’d like to believe I would have realized the sheer magnitude and significance of that singular moment in time, but like Adam, I probably would have been ashamed, ignorant, or perhaps too self-involved to truly notice.

The Lord God’s stroll through the Garden that day marks the first time he was literally “with us.” Even though this remarkable appearance wasn’t in literal human form, God revealing himself to Adam and Eve as a sound – like that of an all-enveloping rushing wind – signified His desire to be with us, to share his masterpiece with us. After all, why would He have created us if he didn’t desire our companionship?

It's also important to remember that the Lord God, in all his infinite, boundless power and glory, could have lost patience with humankind right then and there, choosing to snuff out Adam and Eve and begin anew with more compliant, reverent models. But he didn’t. That incredible act of ceaseless love brings to mind the lyrics of an old hymn my childhood church used to sing quite often:

 “He speaks and the sound of His voice, is so sweet the birds hush their singing. And the melody that he gave to me, within my heart is ringing … And He walks with me, and He talks with me. And He tells me I am His own. And the joy we share as we tarry there, none other, has ever, known!”

How magnificent is that? The Lord God of Adam and Eve still walks and talks with us today, and he does so because of another miraculous, selfless choice. He opted to come to Earth as an innocent, pure baby; experience all of the same highs and lows Adam and Eve endured; then sacrifice himself on the cross for their sins and those committed by every single human being since that day in the Garden. He opted to declare, for all to hear, that he desires us forever and without exception.

So as we march headfirst into the usual hustle and bustle of the Christmas season, take a moment – take a few moments – to remember why the Lord God did all that. He didn’t have to. He wanted to. He wants to walk with us, to talk with us, and to continually, forever call us his own. And that’s something worth singing about.

Growing in Faith: Joey Firth's Story

At Riverbend, we are deeply grateful for and encouraged by the college students who call Riverbend their school year church home, as well as those who have grown up here and come home on breaks. We love what God is doing through this generation and through Cru in the Lehigh Valley, and thought you would be encouraged to hear the story of Joey Firth, as shared at the Cru Vision dinner this Spring.

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My life has been one of perpetual change as I have been swept around the world by my missionary parents. Yet amidst the constant change, my parents have faithfully taught me the Christian message. However, as I grew older I searched for something that would satisfy the nagging thirst in my heart. Matters were complicated further by my skeptical mind, which struggled to believe the Gospel without apologetics. It was only at the end of my first college semester that I had seen enough evidence to appease my head, but something else had to happen in my heart. In an undramatic way, God placed in me a mustard seed of faith that Jesus was the person I had been searching for. Despite my lingering questions, I build my life on the belief that I am broken at the core, that I need forgiveness for my prodigal life, and that Jesus has freely given it to me.

That first semester was only the beginning. Indeed, God did not transform me in an instant but has been transforming me throughout my college career. After a tentative email, I soon found myself in the Goose sandwich shop with Ed and the Cru student president, Austen. I was immediately drawn to the affection and selflessness of Ed. Austen, however, made me wonder what I was getting myself into. Yet my fears were soon erased and I was awed by this community of people who cared so much for each other and even more about their Father in heaven. In this environment, God took my brooding heart curved inward on itself, and slowly shifted my focus to love the people around me.

God’s work in me did not stop there. For the past two spring breaks, I have been challenged to attend Cru’s Panama City Beach evangelism conference. When I was first instructed to go start spiritual conversations with strangers, you can imagine my emotions: fear, self-doubt, and a deep desire to just go home. Yet through the experience, I have been able to practice gently but firmly sharing the Gospel, while leaving the results up to God. Not only has the exercise deepened my faith, but I have also been able to support younger students sharing their beliefs for the first time.

Aside from events, the hardest part of my life in Cru has been my role as student president for the past two years. The hardest parts have been speaking up front and taking the lead when someone has to, all the while yearning to keep the spotlight on Jesus instead of myself. These challenges have humbled me by revealing just how deep my selfishness goes, but have also encouraged me by reminding me of the grace that covers it all.

As I soon graduate and enter the “real world”, I step faithfully into it because of Cru’s impact on my college life. All of the experiences I mentioned and more have taught me what it is to live out practical Christianity. Most crucial has been the men and women of Cru who have guided and discipled me, helping my little mustard seed of faith to grow. Truly, the passionate love of God through his people in Lehigh Cru has changed my life, both in my college years and, Lord-willing, in the years to come.

Christ Stories: Jesus, Our Immanuel

And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”             Luke 1:31-33

She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,

    and they shall call his name Immanuel”

(which means, God with us).              Matthew 1:21-23

On this Christmas Eve, we are reminded of the birth of our Savior, Jesus. Jesus, whose name means “the Lord is Salvation,” was born in the humblest of circumstances with the greatest purpose already given to him. Many prophets spoke of this long-awaited king hundreds of years prior to this point. The angels heralded the news of the birth of the Son of the Most High. The star guided foreign seekers to Immanuel, God with us. God spoke through people, angels, and even stars to ensure we would not miss this unprecedented arrival of the Lord of our salvation, God with us. And yet, amidst all the fanfare, Jesus was born in a stable in a small village to a young virgin.

God had dwelt with his people before, first in the Garden—when humans were unstained by sin—then in the Tabernacle, and finally in the Temple— each place, while amongst his people, were still quite separate from them. This time, though, God chose to get dirty and humble himself to become the lowliest of people. He was no longer only with us when we were clean enough to enter his presence. No, Jesus’ humble beginnings illustrate that he now enters into our messy lives, truly “God with us”—in our pain, in our temptations, in our weaknesses and sorrows.

And he is our Salvation. Immanuel’s purpose is written in his name, “the Lord is Salvation.” He does not leave us in the mess to fend for ourselves. He gives us healing, resistance, strength, and comfort. He walks through the valleys with us. And after all that, he saves us from our sin. Salvation from sin and its conclusion is freely given to all who trust in Jesus. The gift of salvation is the greatest gift any of us could get.

This Christmas, let us remember God’s deep love for us in sending the Son of the Most High to take on human flesh to be God with us and the Lord of our salvation. Let us be generous with the grace given to us and extend that gift to others. May we praise him, the Son of the Most High, for joining us in our broken state and lifting us out of the depths of our sin and into his marvelous light.

Christmas Stories: Simeon & Anna

25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, 28 he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,

29  “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word;

30  for my eyes have seen your salvation

31  that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,

32  a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” 

33 And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. 34 And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed 35 (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.” 

36 And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, 37 and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. 38 And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem. Luke 2:25-38

There isn’t much scripture devoted to the lives of Simeon and Anna. Simeon is described as righteous and devout, waiting for the Savior’s appearance, and that the Holy Spirit was upon him. He had been promised that he would see the Messiah before his earthly life was over. Anna is described as a prophetess of the tribe of Asher, widowed until she was 84, and did not depart from the temple, worshipping night and day.

Simeon and Anna were nearing the end of their lives. Both had spent their lives in love of and service to the Lord. They were each described in ways that seem to indicate they had close relationships with God. But we are left relatively in the dark over much of their life stories. Did they ever, in their decades of serving, wonder what God was up to? Wonder when his promise of a Messiah would be fulfilled? Did they ever grow weary of waiting? We don’t know about the years in between. The moments leading up to their meeting the Christ child probably seemed just as everyday… as every other day.

As I began my study of Simeon and Anna, I was working through a Bible study that included a study of the intertestamental time. In case you’re unfamiliar, the intertestamental time is the 400 years between the end of the prophets’ warnings of the Old Testament and Jesus’ birth in the New. It is sometimes called “the silent years”—a time seemingly without purpose, action, movement. 

But God was actually very much at work behind the scenes during this time. As the intertestamental period began, the Israelites were scattered and in exile, synagogues spread all throughout Asia Minor. It would be the creation of over 50,000 miles of roads and the spread of a common language, Greek, during this period—events that from a glance seem irrelevant to God’s plans—that would in reality be the work that would allow Peter, Paul, and other missionaries of the early Church to spread the Gospel.

Like the intertestamental years, at a glance, Simeon and Anna’s in-between years could be viewed as unimportant, without purpose or movement. But like the intertestamental years proved critical to the spread of the Gospel, I believe those long years of serving and worship were critical years to building both Simeon and Anna’s faith.

While we don’t get to see their “silent years”, we do get to see a pinnacle moment of their faith. Finally, that moment arrives when they each lay eyes on the promised and long-awaited Savior, and they are filled with praise. Their brief meetings with the young Messiah point us to a time of waiting fulfilled. It may not have been easy in the waiting, but this is their moment to celebrate. To hope. To praise.

Maybe you enter this Advent in a waiting season of your own. What will you do after school? Is there a new job or a much desired marriage or child in your future? How much longer before God shows us our new church home? Maybe life feels hard, or it could just be stagnant. You wonder what God is up to. I won’t discount the challenge and hard of silent times. But may we follow the lead of Simeon and Anna. May we serve faithfully and deepen our relationships with God. Trust that God is at work, though we may not know how it will all unfold. Take this moment, this day to remember, no matter what else is going on, even in whatever else is going on, our Messiah has come. Our Savior came here. He is Immanuel, God with us in the Now, and he is with us in the Yet to Come. 

Christmas Stories: The Shepherds

This week in our Advent reflections, we take some time to learn more about the shepherds who were the first witnesses to the Messiah’s birth.

8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. 10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

14 “Glory to God in the highest,
    and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”[d]

15 When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. 17 And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. 18 And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. 20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. (Luke 2:8-20)

It is widely accepted that at the time of Jesus’ birth, whatever their exact standing in society was, shepherds were generally not looked upon with great favor. This was not always the case, however. A look back into the Old Testament reminds us that Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Job, and David, just to name a handful of Israelite patriarchs, were all shepherds of great esteem.

But by this time, shepherds’ standing had declined. Their testimony held no sway in court, they were often uneducated and illiterate, deemed little better than wandering vagrants or gypsies. In fact, due to their very job in overseeing the flock—their ordinary day-to-day work of caring for dirty animals—they were considered ceremonially unclean under Mosaic Law. They held no hope of being seen by the very people who would benefit from their everyday obedience.

In Behold the Lamb of God: An Advent Narrative, Russ Ramsey says,

“A good shepherd was someone who cared deeply for the lambs under his watch, many of which were appointed to die on the altar of the Lord for the sins of the very people who looked down on the shepherds. The shepherds’ lives were, in effect, sacrifices.”

Close your eyes a moment and consider what this holy night must have been like for these men—outsiders in every way, alone in the world but for their flocks of sheep. Each day spent faithfully doing their job with no fanfare or applause. Think what that moment just before the angel came to announce the Messiah’s birth must have been like—just like every other night. And in an instant, everything changed.

“Though they lived most of their lives on the outside looking in, they would not be outsiders to this gift. They were the recipients of it.” (Ramsey)

This Advent season, do you find yourself feeling alone? Do you feel like an outsider? Forgotten? Overlooked in your ordinary work—work done outside the home or inside, in the classroom, in the office, in the playroom—that goes unseen or unappreciated? Do you feel like your life is made up of the ordinary stuff of life as opposed to the highlight reels of social media?

Take heart, because like the shepherds, you and your everyday faithfulness, is seen. It may not meet the fanfare mountaintop of the angels announcement to the shepherds that first Christmas Eve. But you are seen by the One who, like the shepherds were expected to lay down their lives for their sheep, laid down his life for us. His gift of presence and your salvation is for you, the day you put your trust in him and every day after.  

But this is not the extent of the beautiful layering of the shepherds’ Christmas story. At the surface level, it gives us hope that we are not alone, that our ordinary faithfulness is seen by the Lord, and that the gift of our Savior’s sacrifice is for us all. But digging deeper into the choice of these shepherds as the first witnesses of Jesus’ arrival, the role of the shepherds foreshadows who had made his arrival—the Good Shepherd. Immanuel, God is with us, came to a motley crew of shepherds to be our Great Shepherd.

“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. John 10:14-15

Our comfort, our hope. If this Advent season feels heavy and hard, or you feel alone, may you find the comfort of our perfect Shepherd and remember his gift of presence and eternity for you.

Christmas Stories: Mary & Joseph

Editor’s note: The Christmas story is a familiar one, even if you never grew up in the Church. We see the Nativity scene in homes and yards, on billboards and cards. This Advent, we will look deeper into the people whose key appearances in the Bible take place in the time of Jesus’s birth. Some may be familiar, some less so, but each has a story, and each person’s story can impact our own lives and, hopefully, draw us closer to our Savior. Join us for Christmas Stories, our Advent reflection series!

Mary and joseph’s Story

“In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!’ But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his Father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end. And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”

And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.  And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.”  And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.”   Luke 1:26-38

Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband, Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel (which means, God with us). When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.” Matthew 1: 18-25

The Christmas Season is upon us again. For some, the arrival of December might have seemed to cut the fall a bit short and too quickly thrust us into the whirlwind of Western Christmas traditions! However, this season of Advent isn’t primarily a western holiday season, but first the Church’s season of preparation.

Advent is when we as God’s people dwell on the amazing miracle of God faithfully carrying out His promised plan to bring sinful man back into a relationship with a holy God. God’s promise of a Savior to the world was carried out though humble people, in particular, Mary and Joseph. They were not yet married. Both were told the news of Jesus in the quiet of being alone. In fact, Joseph was sleeping. Scriptures don’t tell us that they were blessed to receive the commission of birthing and raising the Savior in a community of people like Paul and Barnabas did when the Holy Spirit told them to go on a mission trip together in Acts 13.

So maybe there were moments when she was alone, afraid, and Mary wondered if she was crazy. Perhaps Joseph wondered if his dream was nothing. Didn't he just have a dream he was a bird last week? And when their small community found out, did she feel the urge to explain the angel’s “visit” over and over and over again? Did Joseph feel tempted to punch the disdaining looks off of the other men’s faces when he chose to stay betrothed to his “unfaithful” fiancée?  What did Mary feel when she walked through Nazareth pregnant before she was a proper wife? How did Joseph experience having a fiancée that was pregnant, but not by Him? We can imagine that they had confusing emotions just like we might. And still… they had listened to God and believed.

We can only speculate, but if there were moments like these, Mary still obeyed. And Joseph obeyed. They walked by faith into what God called them to do. When Mary was told of the miraculous conception and birth, she replied with faith and obedience, “Let it be done to me as you have said.” And Joseph obeyed. He stayed married, and named the baby Jesus as the angel had directed.

Being able to respond by faith in the way that they did didn’t just happen. I believe it makes sense that they were prepared to receive God’s call for them by having hearts that walked by faith before the Lord called them to this “assignment.”

I think they were prepared. Hearts that are tender towards God are hearts that practice daily obedience and communion with Him. As the calendar barrels towards Christmas, in our season of Advent we can prepare to celebrate Jesus by being obedient in the small and big things He has laid before us to do. Are we working? Then we are to work faithfully and excellently, filled with the Spirit. Are we in school? Then we can prayerfully study and use our minds for the glory of God. Are we parents? Then we can gently and truthfully point our children to the grace of Jesus. Are we single? We can rejoice in our friends and the ways God uniquely uses us in the lives of others.

Two lowly and humble people were part of the plan to do the miraculous— that is, to allow the Savior of the world to be born, grow, and eventually die for the souls of men and women who were lost in darkness.

How can you prepare your heart to celebrate the coming of Jesus as a babe? We don’t know what God will call any of us to do in the future, but our daily obedience, Bible reading, confession, and prayers are the tilling of the soil of our hearts so that God might use our lives for His glory.

The ripple effects of God’s plan being carried out by these two lowly people changed the course of mankind for eternity. Their hearts obeyed because they were prepared. Oh, Lord, let us obey because we, too, are preparing our hearts to celebrate your coming and for whatever you may call us to. Amen.

The Fruit of the Spirit

“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”  Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT)

Can you imagine a world full of love, joy, and peace—people living together with patience, kindness, helping one another with gentleness, and working together with self-control? What would that be like? In a word, it would be paradise, which is what Adam and Eve had together with God before sin. 

This is the abundant life that Jesus wants us to have in him (John 10:10). Now, how different would this world be if Jesus’ church was full of the fruit of the Spirit—if all throughout the Lehigh Valley his disciples were known for love, joy, and kindness? 

“For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:7 (NIV)

Unfortunately, that has not been many people’s experience when they think of Christians. Our friends and neighbors see people who claim they follow Jesus putting their hope in the things of this world. Yes, we might belong to a church, but our hearts are chasing power and glorifying ourselves. 

“Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.” Galatians 6:8

The fruit of our lives show that our hope is not rooted in Jesus. Our fruit shows that we are connected to what is temporary and self-centered.

“No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” Luke 6:43-45

A tree full of apples cannot claim to be a peach tree. A lemon tree cannot fool you into believing it’s an orange tree. In the same way, we are known by our fruit, so how can we bear the fruit of the Spirit that Paul is describing here?

“Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:4-5

We must embrace that Jesus is the vine, and we are his branches. It is vital that we stay connected to him, that we know how loved we are by him, and that our value comes from him.  He wants to be close and intimate with us. As we spend time in prayer, reflection, and reading his Word, we know him more. The Holy Spirit transforms us, and his fruit becomes apparent to everyone.

“And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:18

Our Heavenly Father is an amazing gardener. As we know him more, he prunes us, opening our eyes to what he wants to remove to make us even more fruitful.

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” John 15:1-2

In his love, he changes our desires, making us to be more like Jesus day by day. Our desire becomes to be with the one who loves us most, not as a duty or obligation. As we abide in him, the fruit of the Spirit begins to grow in our homes, neighborhoods, and workplaces, drawing the hungry and hurting to the eternal fruit of his perfect love.

 (For Further Reading on the fruit of a Spirit-filled life: John 6:63, Romans 15:13, 1 Corinthians 12:3-13; 14:12, 2 Corinthians 13:13, Galatians 5:5, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-22, 1 John 3:23-4:6; 4:12-15, Jude 1:18-21)

Walking in the Spirit

“God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” John 4:24

The first time this verse really spoke to me was during my junior year of college, in a book I was reading called “Worship Matters” by Bob Kauflin. The book was given to me by a friend because I had just stepped into being worship team leader for Cru and was incredibly apprehensive. 

As it is geared towards worship leaders and teams, the book uses this verse to discuss worship music selection. To sum up the author's point briefly: songs that are musical masterpieces but shallow (or lacking) in theology are nothing more than pleasant melodies. Songs that are theologically rich but musically lacking are, well, tedious, to put it nicely. The sweet spot is the song that is both theologically rich and musically moving. That is worship: Spirit-led, driven by truth. Worship like that has power.

Spirit-led, truth-driven worship doesn't just exist in a church service on Sunday morning. Off the stage and outside of the industrial park where Riverbend resides, our lives are a song of worship—even more so than inside the four walls of a church building. So what does it look like to live a life that worships in Spirit and in truth?

“So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” Galatians 5:16-25

The truth is, as we follow Christ, we are called to die to our flesh and its desires. Verse 19 says that the acts of the flesh are obvious; however, based on the amount of hatred, discord, and selfish ambition present in God’s greater Church today, perhaps they are not so obvious. It may, in fact, be that the truth of repentance hasn’t intertwined with the gift of the Spirit in our collective hearts.

If we focus solely on the law, we become ensnared in trying to earn our own righteousness, which we can never obtain. Instead, we are called to walk with the Spirit—taking the fresh fruits that it offers, even when acts of our flesh feel more gratifying. What a beautiful song our lives would be to daily die to our flesh and grasp the fruits of love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. What freedom is found in the fact that the acts of the flesh can’t exist with the fruit of the Spirit. You cannot have fits of rage when you are gentle; you cannot be drunk when you have self-control; you cannot hate when you love.

Walking with the Spirit, rooted in the truth, draws us to lives of worship and leads us, united as one chorus, to the One.

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.

Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one

body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:1-6

Will you join the chorus of God’s body in Spirit and truth? Or continue to pursue the solo of the flesh and self-righteousness?

What does your life-song sing?

(Further Reading: Romans 7:6; 14:17; 15:30, 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; 6:19-20, Galatians 3:2-6, Ephesians 4:29-5:4; 5:15-21; 6:17-18, Philippians 3:3, 2 Timothy 1:14)

Further worshiping:

“And now my lifesong sings” by Casting Crowns

“Before the Throne of God” by Shane and Shane

The Work of the Holy Spirit

Last week, we looked at Pentecost, a time we remember as when the early church received the gift of the Holy Spirit, the promised gift Jesus mentioned before his death (John 14:15-31). This gift is not just something we apathetically accept, only to stick on a dusty shelf and move on with our lives. The Holy Spirit is needed, active, and working in and through us in various ways as believers.

The church at Corinth was established by Paul on one of his missionary journeys. By the time 1 Corinthians was written roughly 20 years following Jesus’ death and resurrection, the Corinthians’ focus is completely broken—the entire culture there, but even Corinthian believers within the church, had succumbed to focusing on their own power, eloquence, appetites and glory. In 1 Corinthians 2, Paul offers the church at Corinth a perspective shift. Prior to writing Corinth, Paul had been imprisoned in Philippi and run out of Thessalonica, among other attacks—he very well could have been feeling empty of physical and emotional strength.

And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. 2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. 4 My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, 5 so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.

6 We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. 7 No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. 8 None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 However, as it is written:

“What no eye has seen,

what no ear has heard,

and what no human mind has conceived”—

the things God has prepared for those who love him—

10 these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. 11 For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12 What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us.

13 This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. 14 The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. 15 The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, 16 for,

“Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?”

But we have the mind of Christ.

1 Corinthians 2

Paul knows his need for the Holy Spirit to work in and through him. He knows his weakness; it is in his weakness the Spirit will have the leeway to work most powerfully, and God will get the glory, not himself (v 4-5). The Holy Spirit is our interpreter, revealing God’s truth to us as he is God in us (v.10, 12; 2 Peter 1:21). He searches our hearts, he teaches us that we may understand spiritual truths (v 13).

He is also our helper. As we come to understand the brokenness inside of us and come in contact with the brokenness in this world around us, we are bound to meet moments where our heart feels heavy in our chest and our mind cannot grasp the words we need to even form a prayer. In these moments, the work of the Spirit is intercession before the throne of grace on our behalf. There is a peace and comfort in knowing the Spirit is taking up the task on our behalf. Since he both lives in us and is God, who better to connect our hearts to the Lord? 

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

The Spirit helps us through the sanctification process.

But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:16-18

In some translations, v. 18 use of contemplate is translated as looking in the mirror at. Mirrors in this time were not the glass reflective pieces we know now but were polished metal. In order to see one’s reflection, the mirror had to be held closely, and even then, the reflection was far from perfect. Even as we hold close to the Lord, we can never have a perfect representation of God this side of eternity; however, the Holy Spirit’s sanctification work in us transforms us ever closer.

The Holy Spirit, given to those who call on Jesus Christ as their Savior, cleanses us.

But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. Titus 3:4-7

The Holy Spirit dwells in those who recognize their need for Jesus Christ as their Savior. Just as we recognize we could never do enough to earn our salvation, may we remember it is not by our own power that we are sanctified. Thanks be to God for the gift of the Holy Spirit who works in and through us for his glory!

(Further Reading: Romans 5:2-5; 15:16, 1 Corinthians 6:11, 2 Corinthians 3:3-9, Galatians 2:22, Ephesians 3:4-5; 14-19, 2 Thessalonians 2:13, 1 Peter 1:10-12, 2 Peter 1:21, 1 John 5:6-8)

The Gift of the Holy Spirit (Pentecost)

Last week, we discussed the promises God made throughout the Old Testament and the Gospels to send the Holy Spirit. Today, we look at the fulfillment of that promise. Acts 2 records the moment when the Holy Spirit came down to fill Christ’s followers. God chose the time of Pentecost, or the Feast of Weeks (Shavuot), to send his Spirit down. It was one of three festivals a year where all of Israel was gathered in Jerusalem.

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

5 Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. 7 Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? 9 Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” 12 Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”

13 Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”

14 Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15 These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! 16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

17 “‘In the last days, God says,

    I will pour out my Spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophesy,

    your young men will see visions,

    your old men will dream dreams.

18 Even on my servants, both men and women,

    I will pour out my Spirit in those days,

    and they will prophesy.

19 I will show wonders in the heavens above

    and signs on the earth below,

    blood and fire and billows of smoke.

20 The sun will be turned to darkness

    and the moon to blood

    before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.

21 And everyone who calls

    on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

This prophecy from Joel 2 and the many others like it are amazing, considering the ways the Spirit worked before Christ. He would fill special people—kings, prophets, leaders, artisans—for specific tasks for a limited amount of time and then leave them. The idea that your average person, that all people, could be filled indefinitely with the Spirit was unprecedented. But that day had come. Peter continues,

22 “Fellow Israelites, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24 But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. 25 David said about him:

“‘I saw the Lord always before me.

    Because he is at my right hand,

    I will not be shaken.

26 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;

    my body also will rest in hope,

27 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,

    you will not let your holy one see decay.

28 You have made known to me the paths of life;

    you will fill me with joy in your presence.’

29 “Fellow Israelites, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30 But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Seeing what was to come, he spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that he was not abandoned to the realm of the dead, nor did his body see decay. 32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,

“‘The Lord said to my Lord:

    “Sit at my right hand

35 until I make your enemies

    a footstool for your feet.”’

36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.”

37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

40 With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.  Acts 2

Peter explains to those witnessing this amazing event that it is through Jesus that his disciples were given the gift of the Spirit, who enabled them to proclaim the good news of Christ in every language represented there. He tells those there—and us today—to repent (turn away from our sin) and be baptized in Jesus’ name in order to receive the Spirit.

In Romans 8 (a passage I would recommend reading as a whole), Paul speaks a lot about life with the Spirit.

14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.  Romans 8:14-17

This gift of the Spirit is a mark of our standing as sons and daughters of the Most High God. When we receive his Spirit, we are adopted into his family.

Each and every one of Christ’s followers has the Spirit working in us. Go back to The Spirit Before Christ to see just how amazing that is. The Holy Spirit manifests himself in each person differently, as Paul explains to the Corinthians.

There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.

7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8 To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

12 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.  1 Corinthians 12:4-13

This gift that we’ve been given is truly amazing. And this gift that we can live empowered through is a seal or mark of a future gift we’re awaiting.

In him you also were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and when you believed. The Holy Spirit is the down payment of our inheritance, until the redemption of the possession, to the praise of his glory. Ephesians 1:13-14

Our inheritance that Paul mentions here is the inheritance of eternal life with God. He states that when they heard the “word of truth” and believed, they were given the Holy Spirit. Paul says believe in the Word, Peter says repent and be baptized—we are then given the gift of the Spirit until the end. There is no incantation to say, and God is not withholding any part of himself from us. We have full access now. Asking God to fill us or to come down on us or to give us more of him is a nice idea, but it’s wholly unnecessary. The better ask would be for him to tune our hearts and minds to his will and work.

I pray that we understand the magnitude of this gift we’ve been given through Christ, that we open our eyes and ears to the will of the Spirit in us. May God tune our hearts and minds as the Spirit works in us so that he may work through us to accomplish his will.

(For Further Reading: Romans 8:1-13, 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; 5:4-5, Galatians 3:13-14; 4:6-7, Ephesians 1:16-20; 2:18, 1 Thessalonians 1:4-6; 4:8, 1 Peter 4:14)

The Promise of the Holy Spirit

A Tale of Two Couples

You’ve probably heard of Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities. Well, this is a tale of two couples and how it taught me about God’s provision for my life and family. When we were a young working couple, Dave and I had a slightly older couple who came into our lives and supported us. They were surrogate grandparents to our children as they were born. They were our late-night counselors when work stress became overwhelming. They welcomed us into their social circle and taught us what hospitality looked like. And then, when we were very dependent on them, they shared the news that they were moving to Georgia. In my inner being, I panicked. How would we make it without being able to jump in the car in an emergency and drive a couple miles to their home to get hugs and courage in the face of a storm? Who would hug our kids and laugh with us as they grew and challenged us? What kitchen table would we linger and “do life” at? It seemed like an unfillable hole.

What I didn’t realize was that God already knew, and He was already putting circumstances in place that would bring another couple, also a bit older, into our world. He would connect the dots and provide for us in ways we couldn’t have asked or imagined. This second couple brought seasoned engineering knowledge, a love of nature and the outdoors, and a faith in God to the friendship. They worshipped at our church, but we didn’t really know them. We shared some mutual friends. And shortly after the first couple moved, the husband in this second couple became the godfather for our youngest child. God provided and continues to provide.

That was the story that was unfolding in John 14. Jesus was preparing His disciples for His departure. In that preparation, He promised to send the Holy Spirit. Jesus promised that even though He was leaving, He would not leave his disciples alone, unsupported, unguided, unprotected. That provision extends to us too.

“I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you…All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” John 14:16-18, 25-26

In the Old Testament, long before Jesus walked the earth, the prophet Isaiah told of a future time when not just an elect few were given the Spirit, but all people of faith would receive Him and that God’s Spirit would stay with each believer. He would not come and go.

“I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.” Isaiah 44:3b

In Isaiah 59, the prophet describes people’s sinful, disappointing behavior. And then God describes how He will come and work His righteous way, including using Isaiah to speak His word. It doesn’t end with Isaiah; He says, “My Spirit, who is on you, will not depart from you, and my words that I have put in your mouth will always be on your lips, on the lips of your children and on the lips of their descendants—from this time on and forever,” says the Lord.” (v. 21)

And in Ezekiel, scriptures provide this beautiful promise,

“I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God.  Ezekiel 11:19-20

We will have this “new spirit” because God’s Holy Spirit will be IN us. At Christmas we often rehearse the scripture Matthew 1:23 “and they will call him Immanuel (which means “God with us”).” Immanuel, God with us. That’s what Jesus was—God with humanity, God come to earth.  The Holy Spirit also is that--God with us, literally in us. In the Old Testament, the prophets promised. In the Gospels, Jesus promised. In Acts, the promise was kept (Acts 2:4). The Holy Spirit comes—a gift to each believer for the rest of time. God dwells IN us. All humans are made in God’s image. When we accept Jesus and become a Christian, God, in the form of the Holy Spirit, comes to dwell in us.

He is our comforter, our advocate, the revealer of truth, and convicter of sin. He is our helper and guide. Those who do not belong to Christ have no “interpreter” to guide them to know and understand God’s Word. They do not have One who will intercede for them with God (Romans 8:26). The Holy Spirit is God’s seal on His people. He is the One who gives us our story of who we are in Jesus.

God has kept His promise to us in sending the Holy Spirit. Each time a promise from scripture is kept, it communicates to a hurting, disillusioned humanity that our God—three-in-one, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—can be trusted and is truly dependable.

When your world feels unpredictable and untrustworthy, remember that you have GOD in you. The Holy Spirit dwells in each believer. It is your greatest hope to live your day fully in God’s power, seeing the world through His eyes, bringing His kingdom to your community in all that you do and in the ways that you embrace your circumstances. You don’t have to do anything more than believe. The promise has been kept. God is with you. You are never alone. You are never unseen.

Holy Spirit have your way. Guide. Comfort. Sustain. Assure. Equip. Empower.

(For further reading: Joel 2:28-29, Ezekiel 36:26-27, Matthew 28:18-20, John 15:26-27, Acts 1:4-8)

The Spirit before Christ

We often associate the activity and work of the Holy Spirit with the New Testament church era, and this makes sense – the scope of the work of the Spirit was certainly a bit different in the Old Testament. Grudem’s Systematic Theology states that the work of the Holy Spirit is to “manifest the active presence of God in the world, and especially in the church” (Grudem, 1994, Ch. 30). In the Old Testament, God was manifest in many unique ways outside of specific mention of the Holy Spirit. These are the glorious displays of his presence which would have been jaw-dropping to see, the “theophanies”, or physical ways in which God and his glory was present: a hip-popping wrestler, a burning bush, an angel or commander, a quiet voice, the fourth man in the fire in Babylon, heavenly fire leading his people or filling his temple. All of this most crucially leading to him embodied as a craftsman from Nazareth. 

Today, in the church age, the primary way that God is manifest is through the Holy Spirit, poured out on all people (Joel 2, Acts 2). The breadth of the Holy Spirit’s work in and through people undoubtedly changed at Pentecost. But his objective has not. What we sometimes miss as we are caught up in “What exactly can the Spirit help us do?” and “Can some people have more of the Spirit than others?” is that the Spirit is working to bring about evidence of God’s presence, not evidence of our greatness. As Spirit-filled believers, we would do well to look to the Old Testament to see whom God filled with his Spirit, situations where his Spirit is mentioned, and for what purposes. He is working those purposes through us even still. 

The Spirit works for the purpose of displaying beauty worthy of the Creator: 

“See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills—to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts. Exodus 31:2-5

The Spirit works within people for the leading of his people (as only he can): 

I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take some of the power of the Spirit that is on you [Moses] and put it on them [Israel’s leaders]. They will share the burden of the people with you so that you will not have to carry it alone. Numbers 11:17 

The Lord replied to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man who has the Spirit in him, and lay your hands on him. Numbers 27:18 (CSB)

The Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully upon you, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you. 1 Samuel 10:6-7 [Saul anointed]

So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David. Samuel then went to Ramah. Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul,… 1 Samuel 16:13-14a [David anointed]

The Spirit’s presence was a protection in difficult times (and whose absence was a crisis): 

(concerning Israel and the exodus)

Yet they rebelled
    and grieved his Holy Spirit.
So he turned and became their enemy
    and he himself fought against them.

Then his people recalled the days of old,
    the days of Moses and his people—
where is he who brought them through the sea,
    with the shepherd of his flock?
Where is he who set
    his Holy Spirit among them,

who sent his glorious arm of power
    to be at Moses’ right hand,
who divided the waters before them,
    to gain for himself everlasting renown,

who led them through the depths? Isaiah 63:10-13

Do not cast me from your presence

or take your Holy Spirit from me. Psalm 51:11

The Spirit provides guidance (both in wisdom and physically):

Teach me to do your will,

for you are my God;

may your good Spirit

lead me on level ground. Psalm 143:10

The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. Ezekiel 37:1

The Spirit reveals the word of God:  

And Balaam lifted up his eyes and saw Israel camping tribe by tribe. And the Spirit of God came upon him, and he took up his discourse Numbers 24:2-3

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,

because the Lord has anointed me

to proclaim good news to the poor.

He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim freedom for the captives

and release from darkness for the prisoners, Isaiah 61:1

They made their hearts diamond-hard lest they should hear the law and the words that the Lord of hosts had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets. Zechariah 7:12

For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. 2 Peter 1:21

May we read these words and find boldness that he who worked these things for Israel has now been poured into us, for the flourishing of his church and the manifestation of the presence of God in this world (Joel 2:28). 

The Holy Spirit at the Beginning

In the weeks leading up to Pentecost, we will be exploring the Bible for what it says about the most elusive part of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit. Many don’t understand his role or may think of him as some mystical power or force, but the Bible actually says a lot about the Spirit throughout both the Old Testament and New. We hope that you will embark on this journey with us to discover this very important and active part of the triune God. Let’s dive in!

The first mention of the Spirit is in Genesis, which shows us that the Holy Spirit has been present from the beginning of all time.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. (Genesis 1:1-2*)

Not only was he there, but Job says he played a role in the creation of humanity.

The Spirit of God has made me,

and the breath of the Almighty gives me life. (Job 33:4*)

Two Hebrew words are both translated as spirit and breath, depending on the context.   רוּחַ (roo’-akh) is translated as Spirit here, but in other verses it is translated as breath (e.g., Genesis 6:17). נְשָׁמָה (nesh-aw-maw’) is breath in Job 33:4, where he alludes to Genesis 2:7, but it, too has been translated as spirit in other passages (e.g., Proverbs 20:27). Each time we see the Spirit of God mentioned in the Old Testament, it is רוּחַ (roo’-akh).

Then the Lord God formed the man out of the dust from the ground and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, and the man became a living being. (Genesis 2:7*)

From these passages, we can logically say that the Holy Spirit is the one who gave humanity life at the beginning. In the New Testament, a main attribute of the Holy Spirit is his life-giving nature—not just the first breath of life with Adam, but also eternal life with Christ.

The Spirit is the one who gives life. The flesh doesn’t help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life. (John 6:63*)

I hope you join us as we explore more of the roles the Holy Spirit has played throughout God’s Word. Next week, we will discuss his work throughout the Old Testament.

For further reading, see Job 32:8, Romans 8:10, & 2 Corinthians 3:6.

*All verses are from the Christian Standard Bible (CSB), bold and underlines added.

Not by Might

Throughout Lent, the 40 days leading up to Easter, we shared a reflection series called Return to Me: A Pause for Lent. We had opportunity to, like David, invite God to search our hearts for anything that has caused a breach in our relationship with him. This inspection is heavy work, but it’s also redemptive. Confession and repentance feel painful, but they are a kindness and gift from our loving Father, an invitation to return to him.

This is not, however, work that we do on our own, in a vacuum. The heart-searching of Lent and the salvation offered through Jesus’ death and resurrection on Easter meet in the work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, God himself, lives in us, works in us. Beginning April 17th and leading up to Pentecost, we will share a new series on the Holy Spirit. In the meantime, we are honored to share the work that the Holy Spirit is doing in one of our own, Kyle Lara, as she laid a struggle before the Lord and he has begun to redeem it.

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Recently, I took my son to Skate-Away, and I'm grateful to have the experience of doing something like this with him. It doesn't get lost on me how fleeting and special this time is for us.  But it also isn't lost on me that if I hadn't given up alcohol for Lent and if I’d indulged in all the regular St. Patrick's Day "shenanigans," I would be too hungover and tired to even think about taking my son skating. And that would lead to feeling guilty for not being intentional and present with my family, ultimately leading to depression, anxiety, and shame.

Life without alcohol has been awesome, and I can say that as someone who genuinely enjoys the taste of beer.  It's given me a perspective that has completely changed my relationship with alcohol, and for that alone, I feel very blessed.  I keep thanking God for His grace and mercy because if it wasn't for Christ in me, I'd most likely be boastful about the success I have had with how many "dry days" I have had in a row.  There's a word for that, you know?  It's called "striving," and it's exhausting. I know this because of how hard I've been on myself when I wasn't successful at giving it up for longer than a week. I would probably be prideful in my ability to abstain as if willpower had anything to do with it.

The truth is, I am nothing and have nothing without Jesus. It's only because of His selfless and generous gift of salvation that I am not only forgiven of my sins but loved even while wading in sin knee-deep.  When you are loved here, in the wade pool, in a place of disdain for yourself and your actions, it changes you. This is the love of Jesus.  It's transformative. It's a type of kindness that leads to repentance, ultimately leading to a new way of life.  I could stay in this moment forever, because in this moment is a deep understanding that God can, does, and will forgive me.  He has given me more opportunities than I can count to choose Him again and again. See, this is His goodness, the kind that chases you down every day of your life.  This is His kindness and love for you. And this is His desire for my life.  How do I know that? I know that because I'm still here.

As I laced up some rental skates to follow my son around a roller rink for a few hours, it's not without the deep knowing that His Spirit goes with me.  It's His Spirit that is even making this moment possible.  Giving up alcohol for Lent has made it crystal clear that the flesh is weak.  My flesh loves St. Patrick's Day, green beer, and bar hopping; it hates early mornings, headaches, and hangovers.  But when we ask the Holy Spirit to lead us through the temptations of indulgence, I found that the Spirit of the living God is willing to carry me.  And I believe that it's in these moments—when I am surrounded by what truly matters and living joyfully without the one thing I thought only amplified my joy—that allows Christ to be most visible in me.  I am showing up fully present without alcohol on my breath and without regret in my heart.  It hasn't been without temptation and teeter-totter thoughts. It has been challenging and lonely at times. But it's also been incredibly rewarding.  I'm only able to show up because God loved me to this place.  This is the place where fullness becomes tangible:  full of His love, full of His peace, full of His Spirit willing to lead and love me forward. A place where filling myself with the light and love of God I've received can be shared with anyone else who wants to be here, in "this place" with Him too.

Return to Me: A Pause for Lent, Week 6

Day 1:

We’ve reached the final week of our Lenten reflections! We know that spending time in reflection, asking God to search your heart, confessing and turning from anything that has separated you from God is heavy work, but we pray it’s been a blessing. Hopefully you’ve been reminded or encouraged that the mercy and kindness of God, and that repentance is a gift that allows you to draw closer to the Lord.

Our final passage comes from James 4:7-10. Each day this week, we’ll build on these verses, but for now, simply read the passage and think on it. If you like, read it in more than one translation and see if anything sticks out to you.

James 4:7-10 (ESV)

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

Day 2:

Re-read James 4:7-10.

The book of James was written by Jesus’ half-brother, who led the church in Jerusalem after Christ’s ascension. Rather than addressing this letter to a specific church, James wrote it to Christians everywhere as a reminder of how we are to live out our faith. In this series, we’ve seen how God calls us to return to him, using his words in Scripture and the community around us. We’ve seen how we can and should respond to this call by humbly confessing our sins and running to the Father who greets us with open arms. We’ve seen that once we’ve returned to God, we can invite others—the whole Body—to join us, and we can intercede on its behalf.

Here, James, too, is calling on the whole church draw near to God. He is reminding the people he invested most of his life to serving (and us) that when they submit, draw near, repent, and humble themselves before God, he will draw near and lift them up. As we can see from this series, this is not new information—it wasn’t news to the original readers, and it isn’t news to us. Sometimes, though, as our days come and go, we need this reminder. And sometimes, we need to be the ones reminding others.

When we live, share, and serve together as a community of saints, we can and should speak truth into each other’s lives. God has given us the words to encourage and build each other up, for, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). When we have submitted ourselves to God and we remain rooted in Christ, we can humbly train others to do the same. This takes knowledge of Scripture, prayer, and fellowship with the church community. We must be committed to God and his ways before we can instruct others to commit to his ways. May we choose to be a conduit for his love and truth to flow through us to those around us.

Day 3:

Re-read James 4:7-10.

There are great benefits to hand copying scripture. It increases your focus on the words and aids in memorization. Today, pick a verse from James 4:7-10 (or all) to copy down in your own hand or to memorize. If neither of those fit with your personality, draw a picture that comes to mind while reading it or read the passage over multiple times, maybe in a different translation.

In your handwritten copy of this scripture or in your Bible underline the verbs as you look over our verses in James. This passage is filled with calls to action.  Start with “Submit” and “Resist.” Continue to mark each verb, allowing your mind to notice these active ways to follow God’s directions.

Day 4: 

Re-read James 4:7-10.

Today in our Pause, we invite you to pray over the passage. Think through the scripture itself, what you may have learned from Day 2, or what has come to mind in your own personal study and pray it out. If you need some help, we’ve provided a prayer below.

Father God,

You have asked us to draw near to you, so here I am. I’m not always sure how to draw near, but I am trusting that in my willingness, you will draw near to me. You will hold me. This is a strange week in the church calendar—so many highs and lows, not so different from my life. My joys are quickly dashed, and disappointments and reality can knock me so low. And in my own reflection this Lent season, I have spent time facing some of my own sin. I am so sorry. I don’t want to stay where I am. With your help, with your power, I am turning away from Satan and all he is dangling before me. I am asking for your power to pull me from my sinful habits. And even as I remember today—Maundy Thursday, where you washed your disciples’ feet and shared a last meal—I remember that your body was broken for me. God, you were lifted up on a cross, paying for my sin.  Oh God, your mercy to me is so great! Please walk with me, lift me up, help me on my way today.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Day 5:

Re-read James 4:7-10.

Reflect and Apply:

• How many times a day do you wash your hands? Put this verse on a sticky note near your sink. As you wash your hands, think about the internal, spiritual, repentant cleansing that God wants to do in you. What does he want to wash away?

• James is the only Biblical author who uses the term “double-minded” (from the Greek word dipsuchos [dip’-soo-khos]). That description hints at the idea that believers can find themselves torn between competing ideas or interests, conflicted in their thoughts, easily thrown off course. Write down some things that pull your focus away from Jesus and his priorities for your life.

• The U.S. culture is often not comfortable with deep sadness. We shy away from lament or outward demonstrations of sadness. Push yourself today to spend some time in honest sadness. Allow yourself to cry, to sit with your personal pain, to maybe even be mad at God a bit. One position of humility is to physically kneel, to kneel with your head to the floor or even to lie face down on the floor. Spend time in this humble physical position and listen for God. He will raise you up.

Based on this week’s passage, take some time to think through an application that you can begin to carry out moving forward. And on Sunday we will all be able to sing His praises as we celebrate a lifted up, risen Savior.

Day 1:

This week in Return to Me: A Pause for Lent, our scripture for reflection comes from Joel 2:12-13. So far, we have looked at God’s invitation, and individual’s experiences with repentance. Today, our passage also includes a call for corporate repentance. Each day this week, we’ll build on this passage, but for now, simply read the passage and reflect on it. If you like, read it in more than one translation and see if anything sticks out to you.

Joel 2:12-13 (CSB)

“Even now — this is the Lord’s declaration — turn to me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning. Tear your hearts, not just your clothes, and return to the Lord your God. For he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in faithful love, and he relents from sending disaster.”

Day 2:

Re-read Joel 2:12-13.

Joel was living through a time when Israel was experiencing the consequences of their sin and breaking their covenant with God. He’s also telling Israel about a future Day of the Lord where God’s judgement will be poured out on the land. But right in the middle of this book, he offers hope. He calls on Israel to repent—to return to the Lord, and in doing so they may receive God’s mercy from the impending judgement. With his own repentance, Joel invites Israel into a corporate repentance. They, as a nation, rejected God and his purposes for them. They had chosen to serve other gods and allow injustices to flourish in their land. For this, the whole people needed to repent, not just a few individuals. And this repentance needed to be genuine, not just an outward act, but a returning to God with all their hearts.

We, too, have turned to other gods—our phones, our jobs, influential people, our tribes, our own liberty, etc.—and have allowed injustice to flourish. As God’s people, we are to be a light to the world, we are to be his hands and feet, and we are to be united (though not uniform). We need to rend our hearts, confess and grieve the ways we, as a body, have fallen short, and return to God and his ways. God’s character has remained the same from before the beginning.

He is gracious and compassionate towards us. He is slow to anger and overflowing with faithfulness and love. We are so blessed to be able to come to him, confess our sins to him, and receive his mercy and forgiveness. Christ’s sacrifice has allowed us to approach God’s throne, and even more amazingly, opened a way for God’s Spirit to reside in us. Though we deserve his judgement, we’ve been given so much more than his grace.

Day 3:

Re-read Joel 2:12-13.

There are great benefits to hand copying scripture. It increases your focus on the words and aids in memorization. Today, pick a verse from Joel 2:12-13 (or both) to copy down in your own hand or to memorize. If neither of those fit with your personality, draw a picture that comes to mind while reading it or read the passage over multiple times, maybe in a different translation. The idea is to pause over the Word and let it sink in.

Day 4: 

Re-read Joel 2:12-13.

Today in our Pause, we invite you to pray over the passage. Think through the scripture itself, what you may have learned from Day 2, or what has come to mind in your own personal study and pray it out. If you need some help, we’ve provided a prayer below.

Most holy God,

We have sinned. Though we have been called to be your people, your body, we have turned to other things to try to satisfy us. We have allowed our dreams and desires to turn us away from you and your ways. May we, as a people, return to you, Lord. Out of your grace and compassion forgive us from our sin. Thank you for the abundance of your steadfast love toward us. Draw us to you and lead us in your ways forever.

May all your people say “Amen.”

Day 5:

Re-read Joel 2:12-13.

Reflect and Apply:

• As a culture that values individuality, it may be difficult for us to see ourselves wholly as one unit, but the Bible clearly states that we belong to each other when we belong to God. Think about your relationship with others in the body of Christ. Are you building up or tearing down?

• What corporate sins do you see in the church? Take time to confess them and intercede for us.

• Brainstorm a few ideas of how you can “stir up one another to love and good works.” (Hebrews 10:24)

Based on this week’s passage, take some time to think through an application that you can begin to carry out moving forward. (Though we’re focusing on Joel 2:12-13, I would encourage you to read through all of Joel if you have time.)

Please come back Monday morning for the post on Week 6.

Return to Me: A Pause for Lent, Week 4

Day 1:

Each week of our Lenten series, Return to Me: a Pause for Lent, we will focus on one passage in which God invites us to be in relationship him. This week’s passage, Luke 15:11-32, is a familiar one—The Prodigal (or Lost) Son. This is a lengthier passage, but if you have time, read it a second time, maybe in a different translation. We’ll continue reflecting on this passage through the week, but for today, take your time reading.

Luke 15:11-32

11 And he said, “There was a man who had two sons. 12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.’ And he divided his property between them. 13 Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. 14 And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. 16 And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything.

17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’ 20 And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’22 But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.

25 “Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.’ 28 But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, 29 but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ 31 And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and now is found.’”

Day 2:

Re-read Luke 15:11-32.

The parable of the Prodigal (or Lost) Son is the longest, most detailed, and arguably the most famous of the parables Jesus shared during his ministry. There are many lessons to pull from these verses and we certainly can’t cover them all here*, but we’ll discuss a few details, particularly as they pertain to our Lent theme of Return to Me.

Although the title of this passage may indicate a single son is the focal point of Jesus’ story, this parable actually revolves around two sons and their father. The younger son chooses to walk away from his father and embrace sin—anything is fair game. By the end of the parable, he recognizes the brokenness he lives in and humbly returns home to his father; the relationship is restored.

The older son represents the Pharisees—self-righteous of their own standing and unfeeling towards the repentance of others. He, unfortunately, does not repent and turn back to his father by the end of the parable.

The father in Jesus’ story gives us a picture of our heavenly Father. He waits eagerly for the younger and older sons alike to recognize what they have in him. When the younger son returns, we glimpse a beautiful picture of the father joyfully and lavishly welcoming him home that gives us just a hint of the love God has for us.

Let’s be clear: both sons have gone their own way and turned from their father. Just as Adam and Eve were tempted in the Garden to believe that God did not have their good in mind and that God was not enough, both the younger and older brothers initially believed that a relationship with their father was not enough.

Thankfully our Heavenly Father also has a Son, and his name is Jesus. As we draw nearer to Easter, we know that we have been given an invitation to draw near to the Father through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Whether you relate more to the younger brother or the older brother, take a moment to remember your sin separates you from the Father, but even more incredible, remember what a gift you have been given to be able to call Jesus brother. (Hebrews 2:11)

 *[If you have never heard a thorough breakdown of this story and the way that each son has grieved the father and the father’s heart for his sons, as well as additional cultural context, please take the time to listen to Timothy Keller’s teaching on the Younger Brother and the Older Brother . They are each about 10 minutes. Even if you have, these are excellent teachings to refresh your memory or learn more!]

Day 3:

Re-read Luke 15:11-32.

There are great benefits to hand copying scripture. It increases your focus on the words and aids in memorization. Today, pick a verse from Luke 15:11-32 (or the whole passage) to copy down in your own hand or to memorize. If neither of those fit with your personality, draw a picture that comes to mind while reading it or read the passage over multiple times, maybe in a different translation. The idea is to pause over the Word and let it sink in.

Day 4: 

Re-read Luke 15:11-32.

Today in our Pause, we invite you to pray over the passage. Think through the scripture itself, what you may have learned from Day 2 or what has come to mind in your own personal study, and pray it out. If you need some help, we’ve provided a prayer below.

Dear Father,

Thank you for giving me such a beautiful understanding of your Father’s heart towards me, your child. Thank you that you long for me to stay close to you and be full of thankfulness for all you give me in your Son, Jesus. I confess that just like the younger brother, I can often look “over the fence” at other things in this world that I think I want more than I want you. I am grieved that I have chased other things for joy and fulfillment instead of trusting you and staying close to your side. I know that if I stay close to you, you will give me things you know are good for me and provide for all my needs. 

Father, I know it’s also in me to live according to your ways, but instead of giving you glory and thankfulness, my heart can swell with pride and self-righteousness like the older brother’s did. Would you break me of my pride and convince my wandering heart that only by your grace am I able to want you at all.

Thank you, Lord, that your heart is kind. Thank you for longing for us to come back to you when we wander and are filled with pride. You are the God who runs with joy towards me when I repent and come home. Remind me that your heart towards me is kind, you are not stingy or far off. You are generous, warm, kind, and inviting me to come home and stay near to my Father who loves me.

Amen.

Day 5:

Re-read Luke 15:11-32.

Reflect and Apply.

• Do you relate more to the younger son or the older son in this parable?

• In our introduction to this Lent series, we explored the Fall in Genesis 3 and talked about how Adam and Eve were tempted to believe that God did not have their good in mind, that God was not enough, and they went their own way. How did both the younger son and the older son believe that their father was not enough?

• How are you tempted to believe that God is not enough for you? Be specific with God. Turn those lies over to him and ask him to replace them with Truth.

• As you close your time in this passage, take a minute to imagine the joy with which the Prodigal’s father welcomed him home—then imagine how joyously God delights in your drawing near to him.

Based on this week’s passage, take some time to think through an application that you can begin to carry out moving forward.

Please come back Monday morning for the post on Week 5.