Just a Thought! - 24 December 2012

At the time of Jesus, the nation of Israel was expecting a Messiah that would come and depose the Romans and rule the nation with a mighty arm. Mary would have been no different. In the final section of her prayer, Mary continues to look back on God's mighty acts for the nation. Let us look at the final verses of her prayer as see what we can learn as Christmas approaches.

Mary's Reflection

The Greek of the first part of verse 54 paints a picture more beautiful than any of the English translations. The word translated as "given help" (antelabeto) literally means to be taken by the hand and helped up. The picture is of a nation that could not help itself, being lifted up by the mighty, merciful hand of God. All done in accordance with the prophecies and promises spoken to the nation through Abraham and his descendants.

Here Mary is likening her miraculous pregnancy to God's continued merciful acts. The greatest act of grace and mercy that God could do for the nation, He was about to do through Mary. An act that she saw as a fulfilment of prophecy.

Mary's prayer is a remembrance of God's mercy, not only in terms of His actions, but in terms of His character. God by nature is merciful. Though at times we may not see it, He is always acting mercifully towards His people. As she looked back into the history of the nation, Mary remembered God's many acts of mercy towards the nation. From the time of Abraham, to the Maccabees, God had continually acted mercifully towards the nation of Israel, and indeed to the rest of the world as a result. And Mary also recognised that this mercy was going to continue.

Mary's prayer is also a remembrance of God performing according to His promises. God's mercy was not only acted out, but it was also declared, spoken by God since creation (see Genesis 3:15), through the time of the patriarchs, David, and the prophets. Mary understood that what God has spoken about, He will perform. He had in the past in other areas, and He will in the future.

Our Reflection

How often do we look back over our lives and thank God for His acts of mercy towards us? How often have we been in a situation where there was absolutely nothing we could do, and God reached down with His mighty hand and rescued us? Times of despair and depression, hopeless situations that seemed would never end?

How often do we thank God for His fulfilling the promises and prophecies dispersed throughout the Bible? And following from that, how much hope do we have for the fulfilment of the prophecies and promises concerning His second coming? Do we truly trust Him, like Mary did, that He will continue to do what He said He will do?

But more importantly than that, how often do we thank God for His greatest merciful act towards us, our salvation? Through Mary, God provided a way for our sin to be dealt with. He reached down and pulled us out of the darkness, saving us from the judgement that is to come.

This Christmas, let us put aside all the stuff and nonsense that so easily fills the season. Though it is good to be with family, enjoy a meal together, and to give gifts, let us not make them the most important part of the day. Rather let us look back and remember what God has done in our lives. Let us give thanks that the birth of Jesus ultimately lead to His death, because if He had not died, we would still be living in darkness and sin.

Let Christmas be a day we remember God's mercy and character, and His reconciling us to the Father.

Just a Thought!

© 2012

Just a Thought! - 17 December 2012

"He has done mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart. He has brought down rulers from their thrones, and has exalted those who were humble. He has filled the hungry with good things; and sent away the rich empty-handed." (Luke 1:51-53)

Imagine for a moment that you were told that God is going to make His boldest move in centuries and that you were going to have the chief role. How would you feel? How would you handle the situation? Would you take the bull by the horns and say, "Give it to me God. I can handle it" and then charge on ahead with the task He has assigned you? Would you tell everyone about it and rally people behind you to support you?

Mary was in such a position. It was her task to carry God's Son in her womb for nine months, and then to raise Him as her own. Betrothed to be married to a righteous man, and in a town of very little significance, this certainly seemed like a major task for her. It would certainly be life-changing. So how did Mary deal with it? Let's take a look at the next part of her prayer.

Mary's Perspective

In our verses today we clearly see that Mary understood where the power lay. God may have given her an important role in His plan to bring the Messiah into the world, but she recognised that at the end of the day it was God who had the power.

Being a true Jewish girl, Mary would have been known the history of the nation. It was taught through the feasts and sacrifices that they perform and in the synagogues. She was living in a town overlooking the Jezreel Valley that had witnessed many major events in the nation's history. A history filled with many mighty and godly men and women: Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Deborah, Ruth, David, Elijah, Nehemiah, to name but a few. Their actions and faith were highly regarded by the nation of Israel, and in some cases, envied by other nations.

But Mary, probably recalling these people and their actions at this point in time, declares that it was God who performed the mighty deeds. That He raised up the humble, which all of these men were, and destroyed the proud, such as Pharaoh, Saul, Nebuchadnezzar and Darius. And that it was God who provided.

Our Perspective

We are living in a society that puffs itself up. That elevates certain men and women above others. Where people are praised for what they have accomplished or achieved in their lives. It is also a society that looks down on people who seem to be of a lower station. Where the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. A society that criticises and points fingers at people who do not do things they way they "should" be done. A society where the ordinary person on the street has to struggle to get by in life. Sadly, this attitude is in the church too.

It is so easy for us to think that we do not have any task to perform for God and His Kingdom. That those tasks are for the people "closer" to God or more holy than us. After all, none of us will ever be given the task of being the mother or father of the Messiah, nor will we be chosen to lead a nation out of captivity and through a great river. Those things have already been done and have served their purpose.

However, each of us in our own right has been tasked with some work for the Kingdom, no matter how small and seemingly insignificant it may be. Each of us has been given gifts to use within the Kingdom. It is up to us to just get busy and do what we can.

But we need to remember that the gifts and accomplishments in our lives are not as a result of anything we have done, but rather are from and by God. Nor must we allow ourselves to become proud about it, because God will cut us down to size. Rather we are to do our bit for the Kingdom in submission and humility before the one who has all the power, and when we do, God will use us in ways beyond our imagination. Just like Mary.

Just a Thought!

© 2012

Just a Thought! - 10 December 2012

"For the Mighty One has done great things for me; and holy is His name. And His mercy is upon generation after generation toward those who fear Him." (Luke 1:49-50)

At Christmas time, we as believers celebrate the first coming of Jesus to earth. It is a time of looking back to the Saviour of mankind crossing the great divide between Heaven and earth to become a man in order to reconcile man to God. Despite what Christmas is meant to be about, there are many who have either forgotten the true meaning, or ignore it.

Mary's prayer in Luke 1 is a great example to us of what the Christmas season is truly about. It is not about gifts, family, parties, or holidays, but rather it is all about God. Let us continue to investigate her prayer.

Mary's Attitude

Imagine it was your responsibility to pick one person who would be responsible to raise the next president of South Africa. Who would you choose? Someone famous maybe, such as a pop star, an actress, a celebrity, a TV presenter? Or maybe someone influential, such as a politician, a lawyer, a teacher, a doctor or a pastor?

Chances are you would not do what God did by choosing Mary. In His plan to provide a Saviour for the world, God starts in an obscure town in Galilee called Nazareth. A town that everyone ignored and even mocked. And he calls a young woman, probably a teenager, who is still a virgin and is engaged to be married to a man would rather cast her out than to raise an illegitimate child. Let's face it, in terms of modern society she was not the ideal woman for the job, but in God's eyes she was.

But why did God choose Mary? There are a number of reasons, but one that is evidenced in her prayer is that she trusted Him with her whole heart. Throughout the Bible, God chose the obscure, unimportant people who feared Him to do His work. He never chose the proud, the powerful, or the rich. If anything God cut those people down to size. But in every major event in the Bible, God used the lowly in order for His mercy, grace and power to be displayed. He did this in almost every generation of Israel from the Exodus to the closing of the Old Testament. And God was doing it again. This time through Mary and her cousin Elizabeth.

We see here in Mary's prayer that she recognised this. Though God had been silent for four hundred years since Malachi, Mary still recognised His hand in her life. She praised Him for the great things he had done in her life, and for all people for generations. She trusted Him and worshipped Him wholeheartedly.

Our Attitude

We are living in a society that does not recognise Christmas for what it is. The person and character of Christ has been taken out of it. It is a season that has been reduced to parties, family gatherings, food, gifts and decorations. There are even many in the church today who do not celebrate Christmas because of it being such a commercial time, and also because historically Jesus was not born on 25 December.

The question that we are faced with then is not whether or not we celebrate Christmas, how even we celebrate it, but rather, what is our attitude? Do we celebrate Christmas with an attitude of praise like Mary did? Do we recognise God's hand of mercy, grace and power in our lives and do we express gratitude to Him for it? Do we express the honour and respect that is due Him? Fearing Him the way the Bible commands us to?

But we also need to remember that this is an attitude that is not only for Christmas, but for our whole lives. We need to fear God at all times and express our gratitude to Him for all that he does to and for us. From the mundane, to the miraculous, God is worthy to be praised.

As Christmas approaches, let us come before God on a daily basis and praise God like Mary did.

Just a Thought!

© 2012

Just a Thought! - 3 December 2012

"And Mary said: "My soul exalts the Lord,and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave; for behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed." (Luke 1:46-48)

Throughout Scripture songs have accompanied special events. For example, Moses and the crossing of the Red Sea (Exodus 15:1-2), Deborah and Barak after they defeated the Canaanites (Judges 5), and many more. Even Jesus and His disciples sang songs before He went to the Garden to pray on the eve of His crucifixion. In our text today we see the same thing with Mary, the mother-to-be of Jesus. Her song is a shining example of both praise and submission to God.

As we prepare for Christmas, let us look at this song together and see what we can learn and apply from it.

Structure

The song can be divided into four basic partts:

- Mary's confession of her understanding of who God is and of who she was in comparison to Him (vv46-48),

- A description of what God is like (vv 49-50),

- Mary marvelling at God's intimate concerns for the details of her life (vv51-53),

- A reflection of God's convenant with Abraham (vv54-55).

Mary's "Hallelujah"

Verse 46 is typical Hebrew poetry, where the second line parallels the first. Mary was clearly glorifying God. But why? Was it because God had done something for her that she had asked for? The truth is, God had done the opposite. In Israel, to be pregnant and unmarried was a crime punishable by stoning. This was certainly not something Mary would have wanted. So then why praise God? Simply because she knew that it was in God's plan, that He had specially chosen her to carry His Son. Despite what could potentially happen, she trusted Him and glorified Him for it.

Notice the personal pronouns in these verses. Except in verse 46, Mary does not use the first person pronoun (I/me). Instead she spoke only about God and what He did for her. It is also interesting to note that Mary never referred to God as "You." For her, God was too wonderful and holy for her to refer to Him so casually. He was not a friend, or just another person in her life. He was her God and she honoured Him accordingly.

In verse 48 we see the word "humble." I have heard many a sermon using this passage to teach us to be humble like Mary was. However, in the Greek the emphasis is not on humility, but rather on the fact that God was mindful of her, even though she was such a lowly person with no credentials, unmarried, and still very young. Mary's focus here is all about God and not her humility.

Our "Hallelujah"

Now put yourself in Mary's place. Imagine for a moment an angel came to you with the news of a similar nature about how you are going to fit into God's plan. That it was going to be the hardest thing you would ever do and that it may even cost you your life. How would you respond? Would you sing a song like Mary and give all glory to God, totally ignoring your own comfort and desires? Or would you try and reason your way out of it like Moses, or even run away from it like Jonah? But remember in both cases, God still had His way.

The key here is true, wholehearted, voluntary submission to God's will simply because of who He is - God. It is better to submit ourselves to His will, than to be dragged kicking and screaming and being forced to do it.

This Christmas, let us wholeheartedly submit to God and give Him all the glory and praise, not only for what He has done in our lives, but for who He is and what He is yet to do - like Mary did.

Just a Thought!

© 2012

Just a Thought! - 26 November 2012

"But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does." (James 1:22-25)

Over the last few weeks we have looked at the Word of God and the implications of various passages to our lives. One theme that comes out quite strongly is that of the necessity to read the Bible. We have been also challenged in terms of passion, discipline, and its benefits. But our reading of the Bible should not end there. In our verses today, James tells us that our responsibility goes further than that. It demands obedience.

Hearing is Not Obeying

It is clear from this passage that God expects to take our reading of the Bible and put it into practice. In fact, James warns us that to not do so means we are deceiving ourselves. James likens it to a person looking into a mirror and forgetting what they look like when they walk away.

To understand James point here we need to understand the purpose of a mirror. Quite simply, for the most part it is for self-examination. As you look at yourself you see the flaws and do something about fixing them. Imagine waking up in the morning and looking at yourself in the mirror to see bloodshot eyes, dishevelled hair, unshaven face, and then you dress and leave for work forgetting what you saw in the mirror? For the rest of the day you will look like a fool and people may ridicule you for it. This is what James is talking about.

When we read the Word of God, we see ourselves in it. We see our faults and sin. But to walk away and do nothing about it is pointless. We need to do something about it by obeying what God says.

Obedience and Blessing

Seeing ourselves in the mirror of God's Word is not a pleasant experience. No one like to see their true state of sinfulness. David was in the same predicament when he was challenged by Nathan for his sin of adultery with Bathsheba and the resulting murder of Uriah. When David heard Nathan's parable about a man who stole another man's lamb, David was enraged, but then Nathan pointed it out to him that David was himself that man (2 Samuel 11-12).

We hate people pointing out our flaws and sin, and we do not like it when the Bible points it out to us either. Sometimes it happens when we read the Bible for ourselves, read a book, hear a sermon, or even have someone confront us like David did. The question is, what are we going to do about it?

David dealt with it. Psalm 51 is an excellent portrayal of David's heart at this time. He saw the error of his ways, that he had sinned against God, and requested God to change his heart. When confronted with God's Word, David obeyed.

When we are confronted with God's Word we need to obey it. And when we do, we will be blessed in what we do. Note that the blessing is tied in with obedience to God's Word. It is not that we will be blessed in every area of our lives, that we are now going to be healthy and wealthy, but rather that through our obedience, we will receive blessing in those areas where we obey.

The challenge is, do we obey God's Word in everything, or do we only obey the things we like, that we believe still apply in our situation or culture? Though not every command in the Bible applies to us directly, we still have the responsibility to learn from them and apply the basic principles to our own lives. After all, God has called us to be holy as He is holy, and to do that requires obedience to His Holy Standard given to us, the Bible.

Just a Thought!

© 2012

Just a Thought! - 19 November 2012

"Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You." (Psalm 119:11)

How highly do you value the Bible and its message for you? Your answer may depend on how much you practice what it tells you. Or it might depend on how often you read or study it. It may simply depend on how thick the dust is that has settled on it since you last read it. Too often we tend to put the Bible aside for other things in life as if reading it is optional.

Busyness and Sin

There are two things in our lives that tend to keep us from the Bible - busyness and sin. Too many people allow their lives to become so filled with activities that they have little time to read the Bible. As a result, they depend on what other people have studied about the Bible than actually studying it themselves. When this happens, then we begin to sin more and maybe even justify our sin if someone points it out to us. We ignore what the Bible actually says because we have not studied it for ourselves.

In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus said that "where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:21). Although in this context He was not speaking about the Bible directly, the principle is true none the less. If you value things that are not of God; such as possessions, idols, self, sin, etc. then that is where your heart will be. Those things will consume you and you will do anything for them. Even neglect God and his Word.

However, if you value the things of God, including God's Word, over everything else, then you will become so passionate about the Word that you will want to study it as often as you can, and you will want it to change you. And when it does, the things in life that seemed absolutely important previously, will seem less so. The truly important things will then be provided, for as Jesus promised later in the Sermon on the Mount, "seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you" (Matthew 6:33).

There is a saying that is so true in this regard: The Bible will keep you from sinning, but sin will keep you from the Bible.

Hide the Word in Your Heart

So many claim that they cannot memorise the Bible. However I can almost guarantee you that you can quote 10 arbitrary facts off the top of your head? You probably know the words to a number of TV commercials by heart. You could probably also sing along to a number of well-known contemporary songs on the radio without even thinking about it. Men, I bet you remember a whole host of sports or car facts.

Yet for some reason we believe that we cannot memorise the Bible. Did you know that in the time of the Bible, a young Jewish boy could quote the entire first five books of the Bible (Genesis - Deuteronomy) by heart by the time he had his bar mitzvah at age thirteen? What a challenge for us!

So what is our excuse? I suggest two: laziness and a low value of Scripture.

David in our verse above treasured the Scriptures in his heart. Also in Psalm 119 we read that David meditated on the Word, that he delighted in God's statutes, and that he loved God's law. How many of us can say that?

How much do you study the Word of God? How much do you treasure it and delight in what it has to teach you? Do you consider it to be essential to life, or is it merely a book you take to church on Sunday or a weekly Bible study? How much dust does it gather on the shelf?

The challenge to all of us today is to value God's Word far greater than any other worldly possession, and to hide it in our hearts as much as possible. Allow God's Word to change you from the inside out.

Just a Thought!

© 2012

Just a Thought! - 12 November 2012

"Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished." (Matthew 5:17-18)

Some have said that these two verses are the hardest to interpret and understand in Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. With three interpretations of verse 17 alone, there have been a number of teachings that have circulated in the modern church as a result. Some with consequences that make the church look more worldly, or, at the other extreme, seem "too holy." Let us look at these words briefly and see how they apply to us today.

The Fulfilled Law

There are three basic interpretations of this text:

1. There are different types of law; moral, civil and ceremonial (This comes more from interpretations of the laws rather than from the Word directly), therefore, we are not bound by the ceremonial laws as Christ fulfilled them, or by the civil laws as they were specific to the Israelite nation, but we are bound to the moral laws (e.g. the Ten Commandments). One simple word in the text seems to imply this is an incorrect interpretation, "all," Jesus was clearly referring to ALL the Laws.

2. Jesus came to confirm the Law, therefore we are still bound to obey all the Old Testament Laws. However, when you look at the Jewish sacrificial system in the Old Testament, Jesus fulfilled all of them on the cross, where He declared, "It is finished," implying that there is no longer a need for the sacrifices. Clearly this interpretation is also incorrect.

3. The Jews used the words "the Law and the Prophets" to refer to the whole of Scripture, therefore:

Jesus fulfilled, but not yet completely, the Prophets through His death on the cross, and all will eventually fulfil the rest in the last days upon His return. But He also fulfilled the Law in every aspect - moral, civil and ceremonial - through His sinless life and death on the cross.

Looking at the context of the passage, it is the third interpretation that is the correct one. Jesus was making a bold statement about himself that none of the teachers of the law could have made. Jesus in obeying and fulfilling what was written in the Scriptures was saying that He came to show the true meaning of the law.

The Eternal Law

Verse 18 tells us that not the smallest letter, nor the slightest stroke of a pen, in the Scriptures will pass away until all the Law and the Prophets have been fulfilled. In terms of our studies the last few weeks, this has a couple of important implications for us.

Firstly, every single thing written in the Bible is of importance to God. It does not matter whether we consider it important or not, it is God's decision as to what is important. We may prefer certain words or phrases in one translation over another, or we may believe that certain laws or statements do not apply to us, but at the end of the day, it is not up to us. God has clearly deemed all Scripture important.

Secondly, God's Word is eternal. We can take things out of our Bibles, or ignore certain passages, but at the end of the day, what God has determined to be part of His Law and Prophets will remain there until all is fulfilled. As we read in Isaiah 55:11, "So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; it will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it."

God's Words will last until the end of time and will fulfil everything that God has determined them to fulfil. Therefore, let us heed His Word, study it, and let it work in our hearts to fulfil what God desires it to do in us. We cannot change God's Word, but God's Word can change us.

Just a Thought!

© 2012

Just a Thought! - 5 November 2012

"Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry. And the tempter came and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread." But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.'"" (Matthew 4:1-4)

God in His wisdom created man and beasts with the ability to know when we are hungry or full, so that we will desire or refuse food in order for our bodies to function properly. We have all been told how important it is to have breakfast in order to function for the day. We are also aware of what foods are good or bad for us. We also know when we have eaten too much. We also understand the consequences of ignoring all of the above.

The question is though, do we understand the consequences of ignoring our spiritual diets? Do we know the signals to heed when to eat and what not to eat?

Spiritual Hunger

Our natural desire to eat causes us to search out food to satisfy our hunger. The problem is, when we eat the wrong food, we continue to desire food. We are not truly satisfied. For example: we are hungry and we see a chocolate cake, we cut a slice and eat it. Afterwards we are either still hungry and search for more food or have another slice, or we feel sick and wish we did not eat it in the first place.

The same is true with our spiritual hunger. We have urges to satisfy our souls in one way or another. The problem is, most people eat the wrong spiritual food in order to satisfy that hunger. Some chase after money, others careers, others recognition or praise, and still others chase after people that teach wrong doctrines just to tickle their ears (2 Timothy 4:3). The problem is, when one feeds on those things, one is either never fully satisfied and searches for more, or one realises that it is not what they really wanted and wish they never had it.

Later in the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew records the following words of Jesus in the Beatitudes, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied" (5:6). We can concluded from this that there is something that will satisfy our hunger, and that is righteousness. Satisfaction is not found in money, promotion, recognition, or teachings of man, but in the righteousness that comes from God. And how can we know what this righteousness is like if we do not read the Bible. It comes out of the very mouth of God and as Jesus said in His rebuke of the devil, we cannot live without it.

The Signals

As with our physical bodies, our spirit also gives us signals on when we need to feed of God's Word. For example, have you ever felt as though God is not hearing your prayers, that He is so distant from you that you feel like crying out with Jesus on the cross, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" (Mark 15:34)? This is a sign to take seriously that you need to start eating from God's Word.

Other times such as when it feels as though the world is falling down around you, that life is falling apart and that it is not worth carrying on, they are all signals of spiritual hunger. It could also be a conviction you feel when you hear a stern message from the pulpit, in a book, or when a loved one confronts you about an issue in your life. Though you may feel hurt and offended, they are times when you need to get into the Word and see what God has to say about it. To feed off His truths and allow them to satisfy you.

Eat of His Word

I encourage you to spend more time in God's Word. You need the truths it contains to satisfy that craving you have in your spirit that is never quenched. It will encourage you, convict you, equip you, and strengthen you for life. Without God's Word, you will be a sitting duck for the devil, and you will not be able to defend yourself against him should he challenge you like he did Jesus in the wilderness.

Just a Thought!

© 2012