Monthly Archives: March 2023

THE BLOOD THAT SPEAKS

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THE BLOOD THAT SPEAKS

“You have come….to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.” Hebrews 12:23, 24.

How amazing that blood has the power to speak! To the medical profession, it speaks volumes about the state of a patient’s health. How many diseases and conditions can a doctor diagnose through testing the blood; malfunctions of organs, infections and diseases in the body? 

The loss of blood also speaks. Since the life is in the blood, life ebbs away when blood flows. Severe blood-loss is a medical emergency that calls loudly for attention.

The Bible singles out the blood of two individuals that speaks of matters of eternal significance. “Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Where is your brother Abel?’ …The Lord said, ‘What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground…’ (Genesis 4:9, 10, NIV)

Abel’s blood cried out for vengeance and judgment from the ground. His life was violently taken from him by his brother, Cain, and God heard the voice of his blood and responded to its call. Cain had to bear the punishment for refusing to heed God’s warning (Genesis 4:6, 7). There is a constant cry for vengeance from the blood of every person that has been spilt on the ground.

But the blood of Jesus speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. His blood was shed, not because He was an unwilling victim of crime, but because He willingly laid down His life for the sin of the world.

“The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life – only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.” (John 10:17, 18a, NIV).

He may have been condemned to death by Pilate; He may have been crucified by Roman soldiers but, without His willing sacrifice, no-one could not have taken His life from Him.

This blood speaks of many things.

Through the blood of Jesus we are declared not guilty: “We have been justified by His blood…” (Romans 5:9, NIV)

It speaks of redemption and forgiveness: “…In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins…” (Ephesians 1:7, NIV).

It speaks of atonement: “God presented Him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in His blood…” (Romans 3:2, NIV).

His blood says that we have a new position: “But now, in Christ Jesus, you who once were far way, have been brought near through the blood of Christ.” (Ephesians 2:13, NIV).

Through His blood we have been reconciled to God: “…making peace through His blood shed on the cross.” (Colossians 1:20, NIV).

His blood speaks victory over the enemy: “They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb…” (Revelation 12:11, NIV). But the blood of Jesus will cry out for vengeance on those who have not received its message of mercy. His blood will never stop speaking.

FORGIVENESS

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FORGIVENESS

“For, if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:14, 15, NIV).

Forgiveness is an issue that believers struggle with, and yet it is one of the most important parts of our walk with the Lord. We know that unforgiveness hinders our fellowship with the Lord and fouls up relationships, but our anger and hurt make it difficult to let go of offences.

Jesus told a story which gives us insight into what forgiveness is about. It is a simple, step-by step process to handle our conflicts. The parable is recorded in Matthew 18:21-35.

A king wanted to settle accounts with his servants. Step one in the process of forgiveness is to take stock of the debt we are owed. Someone has caused us hurt or offence and we must know what it is.

One of the servants owed the king a large sum of money. The king had the right to demand payment even though the debt was too big for him to repay. His solution was to sell the debtor, his family and his possessions to recoup what was owed. We have the right to expect payment for the debt we are owed.

The servant, although he knew he could never repay such a large amount, pleaded for mercy and promised to pay. This is the turning point in the story. The king took pity on him, cancelled the debt and set him free. When we recognise that the one who has hurt us can never repay the debt, (what can anyone do to make up for the pain they have caused us?), we have one of two options. We can hold his debt against him and punish him by our refusal to forgive, or we can cancel the debt and let him go free. It is the compassion we feel towards our debtor when we realize that he cannot pay that will enable us to forgive the debt and release him. Forgiveness is really about cancelling the debt.

Our true attitude is often mirrored in the attitude the servant showed towards his fellow servant. He found one who owed him a small amount, grabbed him by the throat and demanded payment. He did what the king did not do – he had the debtor thrown in prison until he could pay. When the king found out, he was angry. This is what God feels about us when we refuse to forgive. Do we want to live our lives with our hands around the throat of everyone who has hurt or offended us?  The key is simple, “Why do you demand payment from someone whose debt has already been paid?” If we refuse to let go of his throat, we are demanding payment for a debt that has already been paid by Jesus, one-for-all, in full. But we must make the choice.

PSALM 23 – GROWING UP IN GOD

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PSALM 23 – GROWING UP IN GOD

The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
3 he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
for his name’s sake.
4 Even though I walk
through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever. Psalms 23

There are many ways of interpreting this psalm and many fascinating images that emerge from the Hebrew text. One way of viewing it is to recognise in it a description of the process of growing up from spiritual infancy to mature and responsible adulthood. Each verse introduces us to the next stage in the process and leads us on to the final goal; to be, and to be in, the dwelling place of God.

Verse 1 describes, in the imagery of shepherd and sheep, God’s tender care and responsibility towards His people. The Hebrew implies that we will never be short-changed or become diminished in any way through our relationship with Him as our Shepherd. For the sheep it’s plus all the way.

Verse 2 describes the period of spiritual infancy when God cares for us like a mother cares for her baby, answering every prayer and taking care of every physical and emotional need. It’s all about grass and water, the concerns of the “baby” Christian which override everything else at this stage.

Verse 3 focuses on the “teenage” stage of spiritual growth, when the moral values are being formed and tested, and God’s training and discipline shapes the soul and teaches us to walk in His righteousness. He works on the failures of our childhood and exposes us to the values He treasures and wants us to embrace.

Verse 4 is the defining time of our lives when we either choose to remain in spiritual infancy or advance to spiritual maturity by submitting, in trust and obedience, to the tough discipline of our Shepherd. He takes us through “death valley” so that we can learn to stake our lives on Him instead of choosing our own way and living in the twilight zone between light and darkness. He may have to take us through “death valley” over and over again until our self-will is surrendered to His higher purposes and we submit to Him willingly and spontaneously without putting up a fight over every new instruction.

Verse 5 opens up new vistas of experience on this journey with our Shepherd; bounty, pleasure and satisfaction. The reward for enduring the process is beyond our imagination. Paul describes it like this: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared fro those who love Him – “(1 Corinthians 2:9, NIV). There is honour, abundance, and victory for those who stay with the Shepherd through the dark times, trusting in His goodness and mercy and never giving up until the valley is conquered and the way breaks out into the sunshine of God’s favour.

Verse 6 assures us that this journey is going somewhere. It is the Shepherd’s passion to make His home with us in the realm where His love and perfection rule. The final reward far outweighs the hazards and discomfort of the journey.

GETHSEMANE – THE PRESS

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GETHSEMANE – THE PRESS

“He took Peter, James, and John along with Him, and He began to be deeply distressed and troubled. ‘My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death’, He said to them. ‘Stay here and keep watch.’” (Mark 14:33, 34, NIV).

Gethsemane was an olive grove outside Jerusalem where olives were cultivated. The Greek word, gethsemane, meant “olive press” which symbolised the crushing weight of sin that Jesus bore on the cross. It was also symbolic of the weight of the human burdens which the Jewish people carried and the economic leash which tied the poor to the wealthy of Israel. The masses waited eagerly for Messiah to come, a Branch from the stump of the olive tree, to release them from their burdens.

Olives had great economic and religious significance for Israel. They were more than food. Olive oil had many uses, including in religious rituals. Olives underwent a laborious process to extract the precious oil. Firstly, an animal-drawn millstone was rolled over the olives to crack them open. The cracked olives were then gathered into bags and stacked beneath an enormous stone column which pressed the olives and forced the oil to drip into a pit at the base of the “gethsemane”, from where it was collected.

This process also had deep spiritual significance for Jesus in His agonising hours in the garden. As the oil was pressed from the olives by the weight of the stone column, so the world’s sin, pressed into His body, made the blood run from the pores of His skin.   

Every year, on the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, a bull and two goats were chosen for the sacrifice. The High Priest would sacrifice the bull on the altar and sprinkle the blood on the Mercy Seat in the Holy of Holies to purge the tabernacle/temple from defilement caused by the misdeeds of the priests and their families. One of the goats was chosen by lot and sacrificed as a sin offering for the people. The High Priest would again enter the Holy of Holies and sprinkle the goat’s blood on the Mercy Seat.

The second goat, called the Azazel or scapegoat, was chosen to carry the sins of the people away into the wilderness. The High Priest would lay his hand on the goat’s head and press the sins of the people onto the goat as he confessed them over the animal which was driven away into an uninhabited land to bear away the people’s sins for another year. In Isaiah 53, the prophet saw this event in the spirit and wrote, “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”

As the oil was pressed from the olive, as the sins of Israel were pressed upon the goat, so Jesus bore the weight of the world’s sin in His own body, for us.

PILATE’S DILEMMA

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PILATE’S DILEMMA

“Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked Him, ‘Are you the king of the Jews?’” (John 18:33, NIV).

Never had Pilate encountered a man like this. 

Although He was the prisoner, Jesus was clearly in charge. The leaders and the people had lost it, screaming and yelling like kindergarten kids while He stood calmly observing them. He could have walked free on a few words of self defence, but He refused to respond to their lying accusations. He knew who He was. Pilate was unnerved. “Don’t you realize I have the power either to free you or to crucify you?” he demanded. Lies! Jesus responded with the truth, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above.”

Pilate was caught in this dilemma through no choice of his own. As governor of Judea, it was his responsibility to ratify the death sentence on those found guilty by the Jewish High Court. Jesus had been sent to him because the Sanhedrin had found Him guilty of blasphemy by claiming to be God. As a Roman, this was nothing to Pilate, so the Sanhedrin changed the charge to treason since Jesus also claimed to be king of the Jews.

“Are you the king of the Jews?” Pilate demanded. It was a desperate question and on Jesus’ answer depended His fate.

“My kingdom is not of this world…You are right in saying that I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”(John 18:37, NIV). 

“What is truth?” Pilate spat back. He was not interested in the answer. Without waiting for a reply, he turned on his heel and walked away. Faced with the worst dilemma of his life, his mind reeled. The mob was yelling, “Crucify Him, crucify Him.” Inside, his mind was screaming, “Innocent, innocent.”  Even more disturbing was the warning he had received from his wife.

“Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of Him.” (Matthew 27:19b, NIV).

What was he to do with Him? Yield to the mob and save his skin or yield to the truth and save his life? He chose to save his skin and lose his life.

Every day we face the same dilemma…follow the lies of the world and save our skin or follow the truth and save our lives.

“What is truth?” asked Pilate. Peter declared, “God had made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” (Acts 2:36b, NIV).  

The apostle John wrote, in the thick of terrible persecution, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” (3 John 4). We alone can make the choice to walk in this truth or take the consequences. Are you walking in the truth?