Tag Archives: dust

HE RESTORES MY SOUL – 1

Christian Life, ,

Genesis 2:7 NLT
[7] “Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person.”

A quick reading of this verse gives the impression that God made the first man in two parts – the combination of a material part made from the elements of the earth and a non-material part by breathing His own breath into him. Man became “nephesh”, a living being, or a living soul.

The soul, sometimes referring to the non-material part of a human, relates to God, called, or through, the “spirit”, and to people and the world around us through our mind, will, and emotions.

Since humans are a unit, we cannot compartmentalise ourselves strictly into body and soul since soul can mean more than one aspect of our non-material nature. For example, we use the word “heart” to relate to everything about our inner being, while out “soulish” part drives our actions and reactions.

However, when Adam chose to defy God, everything about him was infected by sin. His body became subject to disease, disabilities, and eventually death . His spirit lost communication with God. He was completely cut off from Him. Adam, the first human who represented the human race, passed on his tainted and corrupted nature to mankind.

Ephesians 2:1-3 NLT
[1] “Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. [2] You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. [3] All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else.”

Our sin nature, pandering to the demands of our ungodly desires, controlled us. Our minds, will, and emotions were out of order, causing chaos in our understanding, beliefs, and behaviour.

Where once the human mind, corrupted by sin, could only think false thoughts, God restored through His grace. Our thought processes are now based on an understanding of the truth, and we develop a belief system which influences our will to do the right thing. Our decisions and actions fall in line with the truth and our emotions follow, confirming the choice of our will. The outcome of the soul’s function in the correct order is peace.

Chaos results when the soul, out of order, reacts to our emotions rather than to the truth. When an unpleasant situation occurs, emotions run amok. Instead of stopping to think the situation through, we make wild, unreasonable decisions based on the way we feel, cand take sinful, often selfish action that exacerbates the situation.

Only God, by His grace, can teach us and enable us to function in an orderly way so that our souls are at peace rather than in a state of emotional disturbance.

Paul gives us a simple prescription for life that helps us get our souls back into God’s way.

Philippians 4:6-7 NLT
[6] “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. [7] Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”

We automatically slip into “worry” or “anxiety” mode when we run into situations outside of our control. Our disturbed emotions upset rational thinking and decision-making. Paul says, “Stop! Don’t do anything. If you believe in God, turn your situation over to Him. When you thank Him, you release your anxiety into His hands. In return, He restores peace in your heart.”

Can you understand the process? God restores peace to the soul when we function in the correct order. Jesus gave us His peace to steady our lives. There is no need to live in a state of mental and emotional disturbance when we approach our challenges with the correct attitude.

There is one more step in this process of restoration in our souls. Paul’s prescription is only fully effective when we do as he says.

Philippians 4:8-9 NLT
[8] “And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. [9] Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.”

We cannot put in place the beliefs1 that influence our choices, decisions, and behaviour unless we fill our minds with the thoughts that shape what we believe. For example, we will not trust God when stuff happens if we do not believe that He is good all the time.

So, says Paul, fill your mind with thoughts that enhance your faith in God. Put another way…

Romans 12:2 NLT
[2] “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”

Restoration of our souls, then, is not one-sided. It’s a partnership between God and us. When we fill our thoughts with the truth of His
Word, and apply those truths in difficult times, He helps us to react in the right way, turning our anxiety over to Him and trusting Him to take care of the situation. He restores peace which lifts us above the situation to a state of tranquility where anxiety cannot intrude.

And… to crown it all, He will actively intervene to support, sustain, and bless us as He did both Joseph and David in the Old Covenant by His presence.

“The God of peace will be with you.”

To be continued…

The Rabbi’s Blessing

Bible Study, , , ,

THE RABBI’S BLESSING

“‘When you enter a town and are not received, go out in the street and say, ‘The only thing we got from you is the dirt on out feet, and we’re giving it back. Did you have any idea that God’s kingdom was right on your doorstep?’ Sodom will have it better on Judgment Day than the town that rejects you.'” Luke 10:10-12 (The Message).

This is a bit vindictive, isn’t it? Does it sound like Jesus? What is He getting at?

“The rabbi’s dust” is a euphemism for the rabbi’s blessing. It was the disciples’ duty to walk behind Him; to follow Him, literally and figuratively. The one who walked close behind Him picked up dust thrown up by His sandals. It was an honour for a disciple to “wear” his rabbi’s dust because it indicated that he walked closest to Him.

To shake off his rabbi’s dust was to scatter the blessing of his rabbi on others. Would Jesus really have advocated that His disciples thumb their noses at people who refused to receive them? He always had an attitude of compassion towards everyone, even those who rejected Him. He knew that they would be the losers. He wept over Jerusalem for not recognising the time of His visit to them.

It would be out of character for Jesus to instruct His disciples to call down curses on a family or community that rejected Him. He had stopped James and John from wanting to incinerate a Samaritan village for refusing Him hospitality. Why would His attitude to any other community be different? If we read this story through the spectacles of Jesus’ redemptive mission, what He was instructing His disciples was not to retaliate but to leave behind the rabbi’s blessing, even if the people did not receive them.

Another lesson His followers had to learn was that they were representatives of their Master. Whatever they said or did was on His behalf. He would not want them to act out of character with Him or His Father. However people treated them was what they thought of Him but that did not deter Him from wanting to bless them. After all, did He not say that His Father pours out rain on the just and the unjust?

What is God’s wrath all about then? Is He not angry with wicked people, and does He not plan to take vengeance on those who refuse to believe the gospel? God’s punishment always takes the form of the consequences people call down on their own heads when they refuse to heed His Word. Jesus said that it was not He but His Word that would judge them in the end (John 12:47, 48).

God’s wrath, rightly understood is His passionate grief over wasted potential. He has a good plan for every person and, when they choose their own way and make a mess of their lives it causes Him sorrow because of what they could have been. His plan is that every one of us should be a member of His forever family, to live with Him and to share all the benefits of a perfect world in fellowship with a living and generous Father.

He wants us to be like Him so that we can mirror His splendour (Isaiah 61:3), enjoy the freedom of the children of God and live in the safety and provision of His love. Why should we want to run away from that and set up a life of our own which can only bring us disappointment and emptiness?

God has proved His love for us by giving His own Son as a sacrifice of atonement for our sin, so that we can be reconciled to Him and return to the family as beloved sons and daughters. Jesus paid the debt of sin for the whole world and He is not mad with anyone any more. Can you get hold of that?

It is never His intention to take vengeance on anyone for not receiving the good news of His kingdom. The consequences of our choices are enough to contend with. His passion is that we respond to His invitation and enjoy the blessing and benefit of being members of His family.

With arms wide open He says, ‘Come home.’

 

Whose Dust Are You Wearing?

Bible Study, , , , ,

WHOSE DUST ARE YOU WEARING?

“And when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you.'” Luke 10:10,11

Jesus was a rabbi, trained in the educational system of His day. It was customary for a rabbi to select a group of disciples to be trained to follow and imitate him. His shoes were fitted with a flap which kicked up dust when he walked. His disciples would walk in a line behind him and the one closest to him would be covered in the dust kicked up by the flaps on His shoes.

It was such an honour to be covered with the dust of one’s rabbi that one would not wash it off but rather show it off. This dust symbolised the blessing of the rabbi’s influence and it was used as a verbal blessing spoken over people, “May you be covered in the dust of your rabbi.”

By contrast, Jesus instructed His disciples to wipe off the dust of a town that would not receive them. He did not want them to be influenced by the attitude of hardness expressed by that town’s rejection of them. They were His representatives. What they said and did was what He said and did because He identified with them completely in their ministry. Therefore, if the people of a town rejected His disciples, they rejected Him and His Father.

There is a lesson for us in this teaching of Jesus. If we are disciples of Jesus, we are to wear His yoke, His way of interpreting the Scriptures and His way of living the Word of God. We will live under His influence, covered with His dust, if we walk close behind Him. But if we allow the influences of ungodly people, their dust, to cover us, we will, in turn, shake off that dust on other people as we go through life.

Jesus said that we are to shake off the dust of unbelieving people because it will affect the way we wear His yoke and carry His dust in the world. We need to ask ourselves daily, “Whose dust am I covered in today? Do I walk close enough to my rabbi to be covered in His dust, or am I carrying the dust of the ungodly world because I have not shaken it off?”