When God is pleased

Dove descending on Jesus at baptism - Artist unknown

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Matthew 3-4; Psalm 82

TO CHEW ON: "And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.'" Matthew 3:17

When people came to John to be baptized it was in repentance. Repentance implied they had done something wrong from which they needed to turn. Jesus, however, was sinless. He didn't need to repent, so why did He need to be baptized?

John objected when Jesus asked him for baptism: "I need to be baptized by You," he said - Matthew 3:14.

But Jesus countered with "'Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness'" (Matthew 3:15). What did He mean by "fulfill all righteousness"?

Matthew Henry in his commentary on this verse says He "fulfills all righteousness" in two main ways:

1] It shows His grace.
"There was a propriety in ever thing that Christ did for us; it was all graceful (Hebrews 2:10; 7:26); and we must study to do not only that which behooves us but that which becomes us" (in plain words, do not only what is required but what is fittingly attractive).

2] It shows His ownership of the divine institution of baptism.
The Old Testament law contains many washing ceremonies. Matthew Henry: "Thus Christ filled up the righteousness of the ceremonial law which consisted of divers washings; thus He recommended the gospel ordinance of baptism to His church."

The beauty of Jesus' obedience, humility, and graciousness was enhanced by what followed. In a burst of unusual demonstrativeness heaven broke through. The Holy Spirit descended as a dove on Jesus and God the Father called in a thunderous voice that echoed through the Jordan's hills (or I imagine hills—like the hills that surround the Saskatchewan River where I was baptized): "'This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.'" If there was any doubt in Jesus' mind that He was doing the right thing, it was now dispelled.

I submit that this is sometimes how God deals with us too. We have a choice. We consider the options and take the course of obedience. Often, at the moment we cast the die, there is no emotion to confirm us in our decision. But later, perhaps with a sense of surprise, we feel the divine smile, the warm, approving benediction. For our love for God and our obedience to Him are of one piece and prove that we are His (John 15:23-26).

Henry says of God the Father's declaration and us: "See how ready He is to own us in Him: He is my beloved Son not only with whom but in whom I am well pleased. He is pleased with all that are in Him and are united to Him by faith" -  Matthew Henry's Commentary on Matthew 3.


PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for this intimate glimpse into the relationship of the Godhead—Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Thank You for Jesus' example  and willingness to "fulfill all righteousness" in this humble way. Please help me to be as obedient. Amen. 

PSALM TO PRAY: Psalm 82

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Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version (NKJV) Used with permission. The Holy Bible, New King James Version Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

The river of God

Bridal Falls - BC, Canada

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Psalm 46:1-11

TO CHEW ON: "There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God,
The holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High." Psalm 46:4.

Though there was no actual river flowing through Jerusalem, it seems the city had a subterranean water supply that was the source of various fountains and pools throughout the city (K. R. Dick Iverson - study notes on Psalms, New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 723).

That unseen river makes a wonderful symbol of the hidden life of God for believers then and still today. All three members of the Godhead have a part in that flow.

God the Father: He begs the wayward to come back to Him as their life-giver - "For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewn themselves cisterns—broken cisterns that can hold no water" - Jeremiah 2:13.

God the Son: After a chapter in which the prophet Zechariah foresees Jesus' death (specifically Zechariah 12:10) he says: "In that day a fountain shall be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness" - Zechariah 13:1.

God the Holy Spirit: Jesus' offer of life-giving water to the Samaritan woman:
"'…but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life'" - John 14:4,

This is elaborated on later as the fountain of the Holy Spirit:
 "'He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.' But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified" - John 7;38,39.

What a picture of God's refreshing supply of life for us.
1. We leave our own stale cisterns of self-help and self-determination and turn to God.

2. We are cleansed from sin in the fountain of Jesus' blood:

"There is a fountain filled with blood
drawn from Immanuel's veins
and sinners plunged beneath that flood
lose all their guilty stains" - from the hymn by William Cowper.

3. We now live this new life by the power of the Holy Spirit. Its evidence is joy (Acts 13:52; 1 Thessalonians 1:6).

I ask you, have we taken advantage of this cleansing river? Is it refreshing and renewing us? Is living water flowing from our lives?

PRAYER: Thank You for this beautiful picture of life in and with You. May streams of living water flow from my life today. Amen. 

MORE: "There is a Fountain Filled with Blood"

 

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New King James Version (NKJV) Used with permission. The Holy Bible, New King James Version Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Creator Spirit

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Psalm 104: 19-35

TO CHEW ON: "You send forth Your Spirit, they are created;
And You renew the face of the earth." Psalm 104:30

"In the realm of nature it is the role of the Holy Spirit to give life to all animate creatures, whether on the ground or in the sky and sea," says Wayne Grudem in his chapter "The Work of the Holy Spirit," Systematic Theology, p. 636.

I haven't seen much mention of the Holy Spirit as creator. But if we look at the creation story, there He is: "The earth was without form and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters" - Genesis 1:2.

And so we can take all of this psalm of creation (Psalm 104) as a praise song to God the Holy Spirit whose role it was to fulfill the Word of creation (John 1:1-3).

The Spirit sustains life too: "You take away their breath; they die and return to their dust" - Psalm 104:29.

Of course we can't see the Holy Spirit in His role of giving physical life without remembering that He is also the One who gives Spiritual life. Grudem again:

"Parallel with this (the Holy Spirit giving physical life) is the role of the Holy Spirit to give us new life in regeneration. Jesus told Nicodemus, 'That which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born anew' John 3:6-7" p. 636.

In this same line of work, it is the Holy Spirit who:

• Conceived Jesus in Mary's womb (Matthew 1:18,20; Luke 1:35).

• Raised Jesus from the dead (Romans 8:11).

• Will give us life at the resurrection (Romans 8:11).

What dynamic, creative power we have in the Holy Spirit, who lives within us: "Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?" - 1 Corinthians 3:16.

PRAYER: Dear God the Holy Spirit, thank You for giving and sustaining physical and spiritual life. May I be very careful not to resist, grieve, or quench Your life in me. Amen.

MORE: The life of the Spirit in us.

We can offend the Holy Spirit and effectively staunch His blessing in our lives. We do this when we:

• Resist Him - Acts 7:51.

• Grieve Him - Ephesians 4:30.

• Quench Him - 1 Thessalonians 5:19.

• Sin against Him - Acts 5:3,9.

• Blaspheme Him - Matthew 12:31-32. (Sometimes called the unpardonable sin. " '...blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven...' " Jesus made this pronouncement about the Pharisees who attributed the powerful work of the Holy Spirit to Satan - Matthew 12:24.)

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

He identifies with us

"Baptism of Jesus" by Isabella Colette

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Mark 1:1-13

TO CHEW ON: "And it came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan." Mark 1:9

Mark makes it clear that people were coming to John for baptism to confess their sins and for the remission of their sins. So why did Jesus (who was sinless—2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15; 7:26—ask to be baptized?

I would submit that one purpose for His baptism was to identify with us. How so?

He would become sin for us. Paul says that God "...made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.." Though Jesus never committed sin, in His baptism He foreshadowed those awful / wonderful hours on the cross when He bore all the sins of all the people that had ever lived and would ever live (including yours and mine).

We can trust Him because He understands the human experience. Hebrews 2 talks more about what His identifying with us means:

• He was subject to physical death (Hebrews 2:14). But His death was loaded with significance in that He would, by dying, satisfy God's wrath against sin ("make propitiation for the sins of the people" - Hebrews 2:17).

• By taking on human existence, He understood/understands our temptation and is able to help us when we are tempted (Hebrews 2:18; 1 Corinthians 10:13).

• When He limited Himself to a human body, He became subject to our weaknesses and so has compassion (deals gently) with us in them (Hebrews 2:5).

I love the aspect of Holy Spirit 's involvement in Jesus' baptism that unfolded when Jesus came up from the water and "He saw the heavens parting (torn open) and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove" accompanied by the message of Father God's approval: "You are My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased" - Mark 1:11.

This scene pictures the trinity—Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It reminds us of the source and energy of spiritual life following repentance: the Holy Spirit.

Let's thank God for Jesus, our older brother (Hebrews 2:17) who was there first and who understands and sympathizes with our human struggles.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for Jesus's humility and obedience to subject Himself to a human body and go through with the act of baptism. Help me to live the post-baptism Holy Spirit-empowered life. Amen.

MORE: More on Jesus' identity with us

"All through the Bible it is revealed that Our Lord bore the sin of the world by identification, not by sympathy. He deliberately took upon His own shoulders, and bore in His own Person, the whole massed sin of the human race - "He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin," and by so doing He put the whole human race on the basis of Redemption. Jesus Christ rehabilitated the human race; He put it back to where God designed it to be, and anyone can enter into union with God on the ground of what Our Lord has done on the Cross" - Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest, October 7 reading.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Spirit of order

"Creation of Light"
- Woodcut by Gustave Doré

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Genesis 1:1-2:4a

TO CHEW ON: "The earth was without form and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters." Genesis 1:2


What is an earth "without form and void"? The Hebrew uses two rhyming synonyms "tohu" and "bohu" for "without form and void." A sidebar article in my Bible defines them:

["Tohu" - a formless chaotic mess, a waste, a worthless thing, emptiness and desolation, for no purpose, for nothing. Tohu and its rhyming synonym bohu are coupled to describe a scene of disorder, confusion, and lack of arrangement. Elsewhere tohu refers to a howling waste, a trackless wilderness, a scene of utter disarray, desolation, and barreness. Tohu suggests 'sheer emptiness' as opposed to order and balance" - New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 927.]

And who was there "hovering" over that chaos? The "Spirit of God" that same Spirit who came to inhabit individual Christians on the day of Pentecost and who comes to lives in us when we are reborn.

My Bible's notes on Genesis comment on the word "hovering": "Hovering connotes sweeping or moving rather than staying stationary. The Holy Spirit is the 'executive arm' of the Trinity so He was quite active as God spoke each word" - R. Russell Bixler,  New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 4.

A grand account of creation follows. It's a marvel of writing, really, if you think of how much the verses of today's reading describe.

It's also a majestic display of the Trinity working in harmony.

God: "In the beginning God created..." Genesis 1:1.

Jesus: "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him and without Him nothing was made that was made... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us" John 1:1-3,14.

Holy Spirit: "And the Spirit was hovering ..." Genesis 1:2 — sweeping, moving, and executing the Word.

If we bring together these thoughts about the Spirit, we have a wonderful promise to take into the day:

• God the Holy Spirit can bring order to chaos.

• This Spirit lives in us (1 Corinthians 6:19)
  

• We can trust Him with the chaotic messes, the mysteries and confusions of our lives. He can order them into something meaningful, beautiful, and fruitful;  make out of them something that could be described as "good."

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for this account of You working in creation, Please bring order to the confusing, disordered, chaotic parts of my life. Help me to cooperate with You in this. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Why serving fulfills us

The white trillium is a symbol of beauty, 
purity, healing, and is often associated 
with the Trinity.

TODAY'S SPECIAL: John 16:4-15

TO CHEW ON: "He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you." John 16:14,15

In a recent talk, local speaker Kimberley Morrison reminded our women's group of how we're most fulfilled when we live in fellowship with God and others, preoccupied with how to serve them. Why is this? Because we're made in the image of God and that's His nature.

He is trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. When we observe these three persons of the godhead throughout the Bible, we discover they are continually in fellowship with, mentioning, praising, uplifting, and serving each other. That's what is happening in our focus verses:

"He (Holy Spirit) will glorify Me (Jesus) for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father (God the Father) has are Mine (Jesus's) . Therefore I say that He (Holy Spirit) will take of Mine (Jesus's and God the Father's) and declare it to you."

A sidebar article in my Bible completes the circle for us as it explains how the Holy Spirit helps us serve others by ministering the things of God (the Father, Son and Spirit) to them. The Holy Spirit enables us to: 

1. Have a righteousness that goes beyond and is deeper than traditional religion (see Matthew 5:1-7:29, especially 5:20). 

2. Teach the things Jesus taught, in the way He taught them, always staying in tune with the Father (John 5:19; 6:38; 7:16; 8:28).

3. Do the things He did in the manner in which He did them. Jesus...

• treated people with dignity (Luke 7:36-50) 
• was motivated by compassion (Matthew 9:35-38).  
• never did anything to selfishly draw attention to Himself (Matthew 8:4)  
• never performed based on others' agendas (Matthew 16:1-4).\

 4. Work with Jesus to see all nations (groups of people) become His followers (Matthew 28:19,20) - Todd Hunter,  "Relaying the Ministry of Jesus," New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 1473.

PRAYER: Dear God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, please help me to open myself to You in surrender, worship, fellowship, and service. Help me to be true to Your image in me by relating to and serving You and people by the enabling of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

MORE: Day of Pentecost (Whitsunday)

Today is the day the church celebrates the coming of the Holy Spirit to the disciples assembled in the Jerusalem upper room. Read the story in Acts 2:1-21.

Here is the Collect prayer that begins the Day of Pentecost liturgy:

"O God, who on this day taught the hearts of your faithful people by sending to them the light of your Holy Spirit: Grant us by the same Spirit to have a right judgment in all things, and evermore to rejoice in his holy comfort; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen."