Tag Archives: cross

A God with Dirty Knees

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In preparation for and ever since our worship gathering last Sunday at Valley Life Church, I have not been able to stop thinking about the first line of Psalm 23, “The Lord is my shepherd.” This passage has never really meant much to me besides a sappy, “Christianese” sentiment, but this week it came alive to me.

'Shepherd and Sheep' by Anton Mauve

‘Shepherd and Sheep’ by Anton Mauve

To start out with, this is a Psalm of David, who was raised to be a shepherd. Those in his family that cared for him were shepherds. To him a shepherd was one that cares for others, human and animal, with a sense of deep commitment and personal investment. A shepherd uses more that his staff. He uses his hands, knees, back, and head (his smarts) to make sure that the ones under his charge we well cared for and protected.

In the ancient world, a shepherd was looked down upon as an unfortunate profession. It was a necessary role, but not a sought after career path. In fact, shepherds were not able to worship God where everyone else gathered, because they were deemed unclean. It is interesting, though, that the major spiritual leaders in the Bible were shepherds. It is likewise noteworthy that God is revealed to God’s people as a shepherd, their shepherd.

What this speaks to me is that if the Lord is our shepherd, then our God has dirty knees. God is not put out with the fact that we need help, real help, the kind of help that gets messy. The Lord is not only willing, but already knee deep in it with us. What more could you ask for? The God of the universe caring and dwelling with us, wherever we find ourselves, and with the strength and love to help and save us.

Jesus is the Good Shepherd who gives his life for his sheep. (John 10:11)  He fulfilled in the flesh the promise received in Psalm 23, and continues to do so until the end of the age. “I heard a loud voice from the throne say, ‘Look! God’s dwelling is here with humankind. He will dwell with them, and they will be his peoples. God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes.'” (Revelation 21:3-4, CEB)

So, when I remember that the Lord is my shepherd, it’s no longer a sentimental trope. It is an affirmation of the life surrendering and life giving love of God through Jesus Christ. I am confident that my God has dirty knees and that my God loves me. I am confident of the same for you.

Grace and peace,
Brook

Turning a Blessing Inside-out

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I concluded last week’s devotional with this verse.

 

This is how we know love: Jesus laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. (1 John 3:16)

 

In theological circles they have a term to describe this type of living. They call it cruciform (a life formed by the cross of Christ). It is a concept I use regularly as a filter to assess my thoughts and actions.

 

The other day I was praying through the Priestly Blessing in Numbers 6:24-26.

 

The Lord bless you and keep you.

The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. 

The Lord lift up his face to you and grant you peace. 

 

I realized that this blessing wasn’t to stop with the first recipient, but in turn be re-appropriated as an outflow of being blessed. This is a covenantal blessing that can be extended to include others in the covenant with God through a life lived sacrificially. 

 

I will try to unpack this passage to illustrate what I mean in a concise manner. 

 

The Lord bless you and keep you. 

The word bless has two meanings that create a word picture. It means to kneel and to speak well of. The way I see it is when we humble ourselves before the Lord he is then able to speak well of us and extend his covering of keeping grace over us. In turning this blessing inside-out we see that by submitting our lives to King Jesus we are better equipped to not only bless others but to extend keeping grace to our brothers and sister.

 

The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. 

I see this passage as subsequent to the first. The Lord rejoices over those he has blessed and makes himself available with mercy, grace, and help in times of trouble. When the joy of the Lord is our strength, we are more inclined to be gracious.

  

The Lord lift up his face to you and grant you peace.
The Lord longs for us to know him face to face, and it is in this close relationship that we find peace. In the Hebrew mindset, peace (shalom) is the highest form of blessing known to man. Jesus intends that through our earthly relationships we would make known him who is the source of our peace, and how he can be that source to them as well.

 

I pray that we find the grace to turn this blessing inside-out, to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, with all your mind, and with all your strength …[and to] love your neighbor as yourself.” (Mark 12:30-31)

 

Grace and peace,

Brook

 

On Dying Daily

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 Last week I shared on finding joy through expressing gratitude. This is completely backwards to our way of thinking. We usually give thanks for the things that make us happy. This happiness/joy experience is generally viewed as magical or serendipitous. Something we have no control over. My point in sharing this last week was two-fold. The first is that we are responsible for our own joy. The second is that genuine joy brings glory to God. 

 

What does this have to do with dying daily? 

 

Well, since I posted this last week, I have been personally challenged to be more grateful. And, through the testing I’ve learned that in choosing gratitude I needed to let go of something within, usually pride, in order to focus on someone else (spouse, child, co-worker, God). When Jesus calls us to be his disciple he is calling us to embrace the cross. Jesus died our death and rose to life that we might die his death and rise to life in him. 

 

As I opened my iPhone Bible reading app this morning, I was greeted with this Verse of the Day:

 

This is how we know love: Jesus laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. (1 John 3:16)

 

My prayer for us (myself included) is that we will continue learning to love one another as Jesus loves us. 

 

Grace and peace,

Brook

It’s Still Easter

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The thoughts in this week’s devotional I owe in large part to the author of one of my favorite blogs, Storied Theology. Thank you, Dr. Kirk.

 

Today, as I was reading Luke 24 as suggested by Pastor Stuart in his Daily Scripture Reading email, I was stopped by verses 30-31.

“After he took his seat at the table with them, he took the bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Their eyes were opened and they recognized him, but he disappeared from their sight.”

Now we can infer a lot from this passage of why the disciples didn’t recognize Jesus. But, we do know that after he broke the bread for supper their eyes were opened.

 

Last weekend we celebrated the resurrection of Jesus after his death by crucifixion. Easter is impossible without Good Friday. And, as we see in this passage in Luke, it’s still Easter. Resurrection life and power were not limited to Jesus and the Easter event 2000 years ago. Jesus made himself alive in the hearts of his disciples that evening after they recognized his sacrifice for it symbolized in the breaking of bread.

 

To continue with this thought, it is still Easter today. The resurrection life and power is still available for us as we choose to lay our lives down at the cross. The cross is not only for us and our sin, but also for others that they might come to experience Jesus’ resurrection life and power. The cross for us is also service to others through which Easter can flow, today.

 

Grace and peace,

Brook

 

Crossing Over: The Cross as the Only Bridge into the Kingdom

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As we continue in this discussion of building bridges, I must admit my way of visual thinking is kicking in again. Though, what I see and what I believe seem to be at odds, but there is a further truth still. I still don’t believe that using “us and them” language is helpful in reaching people for Jesus, but the fact of the matter is that there are those who are in God’s kingdom and those that are not. In my mind’s eye I see believers and unbelievers mingling in the borderlands of the kingdom. As I wrote two weeks ago, the church is the bridge to the kingdom. The church with its daily interactions with the world can only bring people to the edges of the kingdom. The cross of Jesus is the only bridge into the kingdom of God.

 

You may have seen a picture something like this one when you heard a presentation of the plan of salvation.

Bridge04

The only way for a person to enter into the kingdom of God is to receive the saving work of Jesus Christ through his death and resurrection. As the Apostle Paul wrote in his first letter to the Corinthians, “Christ died for our sins in line with the scriptures.” (1 Corinthians 15:2) Paul also wrote to the Ephesians that because of our sin we were rendered as dead to God, but “God is rich in mercy. He brought us to life with Christ.” (Ephesians 2:4) This new life in God’s kingdom is a gift of his grace and received only by faith. (Ephesians 2:8-9) 

 

This is only the beginning. This first step enters a person into the greater story of the gospel and also into the people of God who continue the ministry of Jesus, which is to bring salvation in all its forms to anyone in need. (Luke 4:18-19) May our life in Jesus be a bridge to new life in him through his cross.

 

Grace and peace,

Brook