Where is He who has born king of the Jews? (Matt. 2:2)

 Where is He who has born king of the Jews? (Matt. 2:2)

I listened from a distance to last night’s Republican presidential debate. What would it have been like if Jesus had been there?

First of all, Jesus doesn’t share the stage. He is the stage. Remember the Mount of Transfiguration? Jesus took Peter, James and John, and then appeared Moses and Elijah. Peter chose to break the silence, and break it he did. He suggested that they build booths, or, for our “stage” setup, give podiums to each of them, Moses, Elijah, and Jesus. This great idea was interrupted by this: Matt. 17:5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!” In other words, Peter, “Quiet!” I would have liked to see the bright cloud a couple of times last night.

Or do you remember when Jesus was arrested? The gang of soldiers came from the chief priests, and Judas was to do the identifying. I have never understood why simple finger-pointing would not have worked instead of kissing. It just seems to me like a double offense. Here’s what happens next: John 18:4 “So Jesus, knowing all the things that were coming upon Him, went forth and said to them, “Whom do you seek?” 5 They answered Him, “Jesus the Nazarene.” He said to them, “I am He.” And Judas also, who was betraying Him, was standing with them. 6 So when He said to them, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground.” That’s what I would have like to have seen. The one anointed and appointed for the position speaks, and everyone else falls to the ground. Now that would be a good presidential debate.

We are not going to get any help on the presidential front. I suspect we may find ourselves told to vote for unacceptable options. It is not that there are no individuals who are up for the job. They just may not be on the ballot. And, God can work all that out.

We are not going to get any help on the presidential front. I suspect we may find ourselves told to vote for unacceptable options. It is not that there are no individuals who are up for the job. They just may not be on the ballot. And, God can work all that out.

But the title above isn’t about presidents. It is about kings. And kings are not about elections. They inherit the throne, and there is no higher throne than the one upon which sits the Son of God, identified in the last passage as “Jesus the Nazarene.” If Jesus is King, and if He is ruler of all, acknowledged or not, then how should I respond to Him? Let’s just use the answers from above. First, it is not so much about what you think, or, these days, feel. It is what Jesus says. That is, as the voice from cloud said, “Listen to Him!” We are to be excellent listeners. Also, we should bow before Him. Don’t wait to be knocked to the ground. Do it now. Worship the King.

Is this not a brand plucked from the fire? (Zechariah 3:2)

 Is this not a brand plucked from the fire? (Zechariah 3:2)

We are presented here with a heavenly scene. Poor Joshua stands accused by Satan in the presence the Lord, and Satan can be convincing! It would be similar to a conversation that Satan had with God about Job (who was not present), saying that Job was only faithful because he was blessed. Remove the blessing and Job would turn away from God. Amazingly, God gave Satan permission to afflict him, only to prove Satan wrong.

But in this instance, God stood up for poor Joshua. I call him “poor” because of how he is described: “Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments.” He looked like he had been dragged through the mud, with Satan doing the dragging. Priests were to be dressed in white. They were to be clean. Their appearance was to shout out the idea, “righteousness!” Joshua’s condition communicated nothing of the sort.

The Lord asks what I have listed as one of the critical questions of the Bible: “Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?” The idea here is that Joshua, in and of himself, is about to burn. But God has reached in to save him. It reminds me of Lot, living in Sodom which was about to be destroyed by fire, being dragged to safety by the angels (Gen 19, our text for this Sunday). It reminds me of Daniel’s three friends in the fiery furnace (Daniel 3) who emerged without even the smell of smoke on them. It reminds me of the Old Testament text about the future ministry of Jesus, “A bruised reed He will not break, And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish;” (Isaiah 42:3). It reminds me of you and me and everyone who finds salvation in Jesus. “Are we nothing but brands plucked from the fire?”

In Zechariah’s next verse, the Lord commands, “Remove the filthy garments from him,” and goes on to say, “See, I have taken your iniquity away from you and will clothe you with festal robes.” It reminds me of the old hymn “When He shall come with trumpet sound, Oh, may I then in Him be found; Dressed in His righteousness alone, Faultless to stand before the throne.” Dressed in His righteousness, that is, in Jesus’ righteousness. I don’t dress myself up for Jesus. Jesus dresses me up for God, because my best preparations would be inadequate. A newer song says, “When Satan tempts me to despair And tells me of the guilt within; Upward I look and see Him there Who made an end to all my sin.” The next stanza goes on to say, “Behold Him there, the risen Lamb; My perfect, spotless Righteousness.” That’s what Joshua needed. That’s what we all need. And that is all we need, Christ’s righteousness as our own.

How Much is Enough? (Haggai 1:4 NAS95)

How Much is Enough? (Haggai 1:4 NAS95)

Haggai is a post-exilic prophet, that is, he is writing after a portion of the Jewish people have returned to Jerusalem from the Babylonian/Persian captivity. It is a remnant, and the homeland is a mess. It is difficult to put things back in order, to resurrect resources and institutions that will allow the people to cooperate and even think about prospering. The most basic needs of food and shelter and defense are a critical challenge. It is easy for people to think most about taking care of themselves.

But then as time goes on, people begin to move from survival to improvement. They look forward to a better standard of living. The processes are working, and they are able to think ahead a bit.

The age-old question applied then, and applies today: how much is enough? At what point does the believer in God - the God who gives and gives and gives - at what point does the believer increase giving at the expense of gaining? I’ve found very few people, including myself, who have worked through that issue enough to be able to give a straight answer.

In Jerusalem, the house of God was still in ruins, though there were people who had “paneled houses.” I do not know enough about construction materials at that time to even know what kind of paneling they were talking about, and what the paneling was covering up. Is God here referring to something extravagant, or just nice, or a bit nicer than nice? We aren’t sure. What we know is that God says that the people are focusing on their own gain and personal enjoyment rather than developing a thriving center for community worship at the temple.

As we seek to apply this today, the “temple” is Jesus and His Body, that is, the Church. It is the community of the redeemed. It is not the church buildings, though local churches certainly benefit from having buildings in which to meet. But if we are to apply the challenge in a new covenant setting, it is the building up of the Body of Christ rather than the building of “me” or “mine.” Certainly family discipleship is essential. But it is also not the totality of the “building up of the Body of Christ.” In fact, if you are not actively engaged in building up the Body, then you are setting a pretty poor example for your family, perhaps a little like enjoying the paneling and ignoring the ruins.

There are always widows and orphans for which to care. There are those who doubt who must be taught; there are those in danger of slipping into grievous error; plenty are still struggling with their sin. They don’t need your paneling. They need your love and ministry.

Who is a God like You? (Mic 7:18 NAS95)

 “Who is a God like You?” (Mic 7:18 NAS95)

This is the second “critical question” that I have chosen from the prophet Micah. As it stands in the title, it is an important question, but when one considers the context, it is even more dramatic.

One could hardly find a more devastating critique of a culture. I have to be honest: there are things here that remind me of what is going on in our world today, and I know there are many places where these things are constant and happen on a daily basis. I invite readers to turn to Micah 7 and read it for yourselves.

It is not just that Micah is pointing fingers at others around him who are the problem. He identifies himself as part of the problem. In v. 9 he says “I will bear the indignation of the Lord Because I have sinned against Him.” But that is not where his statement ends. Confession of sin is but a step in the process toward restoration. Micah continues, “Until He pleads my case and executes justice for me. He will bring me out to the light, And I will see His righteousness.”

But with all the terrible sin and perversity of which the people are guilty, who could expect God to forgive? It depends upon what kind of God He is. That is our critical question. And we find that He is a God who pardons iniquity: 18 “Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity And passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession?”

We shouldn’t think this is an easy thing, because God is a God of justice. Sins do not simply get swept under the rug. It required an atonement which could only be provided by the death of His Son.

The reason, though, that God is willing to do this is found in the answer to, “Who is a God like You?” Here is the answer in the text: “He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in unchanging love.” He is not like us, who continue to nurse grudges against people long beyond their expiration date.

And then the text gives us some wonderful word pictures of how He handles our offenses: “He will tread our iniquities under foot.” Yes, He will smash our sins in the sidewalk to be swept aside and seen or considered no more. And here is another: “Yes, You will cast all their sins Into the depths of the sea.” For Jewish landlubbers, this is akin to throwing them into the bottomless pit. They are gone.

Who is a God like You? who is marked by such faithful reliability and unchanging love, traditionally known as “full of grace and truth.”