Jesus our scapegoat

Isaiah 53:4 (ESV)

Surely he has borne our griefs

    and carried our sorrows;

yet we esteemed him stricken,

    smitten by God, and afflicted.

Christ, the scapegoat, bearing our curse is well illustrated by a story I read on line called What It Will Take to Change the World by S. D. Gordon. The following is a paraphrase of the story about a couple who discovered that their 14-year-old son had lied to them. The young boy, whom we'll refer to as Steven, had skipped school three consecutive days. He was found out when his teacher called his parents to inquire about his well-being.

The parents were more upset by Steven's lies than his missing school. After praying with him about what he had done, they decided on a very unusual and severe form of punishment. Their conversation with him went something like this:

"Steven, do you know how important it is that we be able to trust one another?"

"Yes."

"How can we ever trust each other if we don't always tell the truth? That's why lying is such a terrible thing. Not only is it sin, but it also destroys our ability to trust one another. Do you understand that?"

"Yes, sir."

"Your mother and I must make you understand the seriousness, not so much of skipping school, but of the lies you told. Your discipline will be that for the next three days, one for each day of your sin, you must go to the attic and stay there by yourself. You will even eat and sleep there."

So young Steven headed off to the attic and the bed prepared for him there. It was a long evening for Steven and perhaps longer for Mom and Dad. Neither could eat, and for some reason when dad tried to read the paper the words seemed foggy. Mom tried to sew, but couldn't see to thread the needle. Finally it was bedtime. About midnight as the father lay in bed thinking about how lonely and afraid Steven must be, he finally spoke to his wife, "Are you awake?"

"Yes. I can't sleep for thinking about Steven." "Neither can I," answered Dad.

An hour later he queried again, "Are you asleep yet?" "No," answered Mom, "I just can't sleep for thinking about Steven all alone up in the attic."

"Me neither."

Another hour passed. It was now 2:00 A.M. "I can't stand this any longer!" Murmured Dad as he climbed out of bed grabbing his pillow and a blanket. "I'm going to the attic."

He found Steven much as he expected: wide awake with tears in his eyes.

"Steven," said his father, "I can't take away the punishment for your lies because you must know the seriousness of what you have done. You must realize that sin, especially lying, has severe consequences. But your mother and I can't bear the thought of you being all alone here in the attic so I'm going to share your punishment with you."

The father lay down next to his son and the two put their arms around each other's necks. The tears on their cheeks mingled as they shared the same pillow and the same punishment ...for three nights.

Dear Lord, thank You for bearing our sins on You. Thank You for being the scapegoat. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Blessings unaware

James 1:17 (ESV)

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

"The good Lord must know when I'm out of my comfort zone," says Marlene Creech who lives on a pension, "because that's when interesting things happen!" One day Marlene could not get on line. Her computer kept flashing the message that her dial-up server was down. After two or three tries, Marlene quit.

The "server is down" message continued for another few days, and finally Marlene called the company. "The automated phone systems are not easy for me at my age," she says  "but finally I reached a person, and told him the problem." After checking, the man told her that her dial-up phone number was bad, and she needed to get a new one.

"The problem here is that there are no more local numbers available," he told Marlene. "You'll have to choose one of three long distance numbers." Marlene never thought to ask if there would be a change in cost for this. She chose a number, and used it for a month. And when she received her phone bill she almost fainted. The bill was $257.

How could this bill be so much higher than usual? "With my budget being so tight, I had to call them again, get myself through the automated system again, and tell my story to two or three people before reaching an employee who understood what I was asking," she says.

"Your town only has one local number to get on line, and it's perfectly fine," he told her.

"Then why did that other man tell me that my line was bad?" She asked. This employee had no answer, just the suggestion that she return to the local number, which she did.

"The next day I called the phone company again, this time to see if I could set up payments on this large bill, as my pension was already stretched to the limit," Marlene says. By now she was a pro at navigating the automated phone system, and she ended up with yet a third employee, to whom she repeated the entire story. "Let me look up your account," he suggested. A few moments later he came back to the phone, a bit puzzled. "A deduction to your account was made yesterday," he told her. "You have a balance of $85, not $257."

It was the exact amount of the long distance overcharge, Marlene realized. Although she had not gotten angry or even complained, someone had taken pity on her and removed the charges. "The encounter left me so thankful," Marlene says. "Many times we receive blessings, and don't even know it."

Dear Lord, thank You for the blessing that You continue to shower upon us. Help us to take the time to recognize the things You do for us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

God's masterpiece

Hosea 6:1 (ESV)

 “Come, let us return to the Lord;

    for he has torn us, that he may heal us;

    he has struck us down, and he will bind us up.

During World War II the bombers wreaked havoc over Europe to help bring an end to the war. In a small village near an industrial plant, one of the bombs fell off-course and destroyed the village cathedral. After the war, the people of the village gathered any items that they had of any value and gave them to the pastor to sell, in order to buy materials to rebuild their place of worship. A year passed and the pastor hired an architect to draw up the plans for the new building. After the drawings were completed and the townspeople had given to the pastor everything but the bare necessities that they needed to live on, a contractor was hired to rebuild the cathedral.

The contractor was given a strict time frame in which to complete the building. He had no trouble finding brick masons, stonecutters, carpenters and other craftsmen to work on the project. He needed three stained glass artisans to complete the project on time, but could only find two in postwar Europe. One day a disheveled-looking little man came to the contractor and said he was a stained glass artisan and had heard the contractor needed a third worker. The contractor scoffed at the little man with tattered clothes, unkempt hair and a rough face covered with stubble of a beard: You? You are a stained glass artisan? "Yes," replied the little man with a smile. "Not only that, I will work for three meals a day and a place to sleep at night. When my window is finished and if you and the townspeople approve of it, then pay me the same rate of pay that you are paying the other two artisans." The contractor felt like he could not lose and agreed to the man’s requests. As the little man was leaving, he asked for one more item. Could you put a curtain around the window where I will be working? I don t like people watching me work. Sure, okay, replied the contractor. He asked the man’s name, but he said his name was not important.

Months went by and the building rose from the ashes. Every morning the little man would speak to the other two stained glass men and then quietly go behind his curtain to work. As the contractor’s deadline neared, he grew more and more nervous about what the window would look like or if it would even be finished on time. Finally the day came for the townspeople to inspect their new cathedral. The contractor showed off the fine woodwork, the precision cut stones, the glistening marble and then moved over to the first two stained glass windows. The beauty of their new church home astounded the people. A quiet hush fell over the building as they approached the curtain covering the third window. All they heard was the tapping of a hammer. The contractor barked out, Are you finished yet? The little man tapped his hammer one last time and said, Sure, take the curtain down!

There before the people was the most magnificent, most wonderful, most elegant and most beautiful stained glass window anyone had ever seen. Tears welled up in their eyes as they admired the craftsmanship and the pure beauty of the glass used to make the window. The contractor was relieved to see the astonishing work. He asked the little man for his name again. Yet once more, the little man said his name was not important. Then the contractor asked him if he could at least tell them where he got the glass to make the window. It was far superior to all the glass in the other two windows. "Sure," replied the little man. "Every morning as I talked to the other two workers, I would reach down into their trash barrels and take out the broken, unwanted pieces of glass. I used those discarded pieces to make my window."

This is a story that tells how God, working through others, can take whatever you have become and make you whole again. It does not matter how shattered, broken or discarded you feel, nor does it matter what sins you have committed. He can put you back together in a far superior manner than you alone can.

So who are you in the story? Are you feeling like a discarded piece of glass that will never amount to anything? Perhaps you are the skeptical contractor, not believing that something can be made of what seems to be nothing? Maybe you are one of the townspeople, giving all you can to help rebuild other people s lives. Perhaps you are like the other two stained glass artisans. Your life is acceptable, but maybe you have become complacent. You stopped striving to be the very best. Maybe you are the almost-completed window and God is taping the final pieces into place, crafting you even more into the image of the greatest Masterpiece ever, Jesus. I don't know who you are, but I do know that if you will let Him, God is not going to stop working on you and He will never give up on you until you become all that He intends for you to become.

Dear Lord, thank You for not giving up on us and using us no matter the condition we are in. Thank You that You are there refining us into the master piece that You have designed for us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

What might God want to accomplish through your life?

Philippians 4:13 (ESV)

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

What might God want to accomplish through you in your lifetime? As a workplace believer, you may yet have your greatest contribution to society. Such was the case of Cyrus McCormick, born in 1809. Raised on a farm by an inventor father, Cyrus McCormick sought to invent a mechanical reaper to harvest wheat. His father's attempts at inventing a successful machine had failed until Cyrus, at 22, created one that worked. McCormick had to overcome many setbacks including the loss of his patent 14 years after his first invention. This opened up competition. Then, in 1837 he went bankrupt due to the bank panic of 1837. However, these setbacks did not prevent McCormick from achieving his goals.

He expanded his market by trying to sell his machine to European farmers in 1851. A long series of honors compensated for the lack of recognition and praise from his American compatriots. By 1856, he was not only a world figure but his factory produced more than 4,000 reapers a year.

McCormick was a committed believer. He lived during the time of D.L. Moody and gave $10,000 to Moody to start the Chicago YMCA in 1869. That building burned along with his Chicago factory in 1871. By this time, McCormick was over 60 and wealthy enough to retire. Before his death in 1884, he had given $100,000 to help open Moody Bible Institute. His son, Cyrus Jr., was to become the first chairman of the school's board. Cyrus McCormick was a devoted Christian who passed his faith on to his son who later met up with J. Pierpoint Morgan to become the first president of a combined reaper firm, the famed International Harvester Corporation. [John Woodbridge, ed., More Than Conquerors (Chicago, Illinois: Moody Press, 1992), 328-331.]

What might God want to accomplish through your life?

Dear Lord, thank You that we can surely do all things through You who strengthens us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Victory is within your reach. Will you take hold of it?

1 John 4:4 (ESV)

Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

It seems the world is in absolute turmoil. The financial crisis in Greece is frightening, North Korea’s rocket launching is distressing, the threat of nuclear war in the Middle East is terrifying, and the world economy is nightmarish at best.

But should we, as believers of the Most High, be disturbed by these?

Throughout the Word of God we read about people who faced unimaginable odds. God, however, came through for them every time, and that same God will do so for us today! We can live in peace, resting completely in the arms of Jesus. We can face anything, for: "[God] gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Cor 15:56 NIV)

Last Monday while working out I collapsed to the ground with chest pains and shortness of breath. Before I knew it I was completely filled with anxiety. I tried to combat it. After all, I am a child of God and I have nothing to fear. Still, insecurity haunted my soul.

As I was at the hospital I approached the throne of God, and He gave me hope. He reminded me of the following bible passage:

“When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth - Gog and Magog - to gather them for battle. In number they are like the sand on the seashore. They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God's people, the city he loves.” (Rev 20:7-9a)

Imagine being surrounded with such a tremendous foe, the largest army ever brought together, consisting of everyone on the planet who opposed God. Their goal: to destroy everyone who worships God. Pretty scary, don’t you think?

Should we be trembling with fear? Should we try to hide among the rocks? Should we let ourselves be filled with anxiety?

“But fire came down from heaven and devoured them.” (Rev 20:9b)

God will come through, no matter what our circumstances may be, for even the most unimaginable odds are nothing for Him! And He will come through for me as well, even as I struggle with health conditions.

As we place ourselves in the caring hands of our loving God our fears will evaporated. Adventures with God can be anticipated in such conditions. Yes, there may be some tough times, or this threat may be nothing more than just that: A threat! But whatever happens, God’s presence will be felt.

We don’t need to control our circumstances! God is in charge!

Furthermore Jesus promised us: “What is impossible with men is possible with God.” (Luke 18:27)

Dear Lord, we thank You for the way You take care of us and are in control. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Don't loose your face

Matthew 17:20 (ESV)

He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”

It's so hard to lose face in front of people! Even more so if they are personal friends or people who have respect for you. All of us however, will sooner or later face such embarrassment, some more than others.

In 1945, New Hampshire declared the Old Man of the Mountain their official state symbol. This was a rock formation at the top of a mountain, and from a certain angle, it looked very much like the profile of a human face.

The residents quickly fell in love with this "Old Man of the Mountain", but unfortunately, it was not a rock formation that was meant to last. As early as 1871 state geologists noticed that the Old Man's huge forehead boulder was slipping. In 1916 something was done to stop this trend: The top stones were anchored with steel cables. That was sure to do the trick!

But the threat to the poor "Old Man" was far from over. In 1958 repairs were done to fill a forehead fracture with a wire, epoxy and fiberglass membrane. Surely everything should be fine now!

And it was. For almost 50 years. But early in the morning of May 3, 2003, two state park employees noticed something amiss. The Old Man was no longer there. Where could he have gone?

Within hours, all the inhabitants of New Hampshire heard this sad news, and many mourned his disappearance. To some it was an utter embarrassment. How could they have neglected to at least try and save the Old Man?

As it turned out, moisture had infiltrated the beloved monument, and this had been the cause of its collapse. The state of New Hampshire had quite literally "lost face" ... The face of their beloved state symbol.

If you wish to visit the Old Man of the Mountain now, you will find nothing but a cross near the spot where he fell. Upon the cross are the words, "Always Forever in our Hearts."

Joshua was facing the potential of total embarrassment as well. Israel had a river to cross and it didn't help that it was quite tumultuous at that time of year: "Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest." (Joshua 3:15a, NIV2)

Joshua had heard from God, and he had a choice to make: He could either trust in the Lord or trust in his instincts. He didn't doubt even for a second, but boldly declared: "Tell the priests who carry the Ark of the Covenant: 'When you reach the edge of the Jordan's waters, go and stand in the river.'" (Joshua 3:8, NIV2)

But wasn't that a bit too reckless when the river was such a menace?

According to Joshua, before these priests even had the opportunity to place a foot in the river, the result would be made clear: "And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the LORD--the Lord of all the earth--set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap."" (Joshua 3:13, NIV2)

Joshua had faith. He had no doubt that it would happen according to what God had declared.

Would it be the same for most of us? Wouldn't we tend to wonder what would happen if, in fact, it didn't occur? What if we heard God wrong? Wouldn't we lose face in front of all of these people and be disgraced?

Joshua didn't worry about any of this. He trusted in God. Worry was not warranted. He didn't even worry about the fact that the river was at flood stage. Circumstances were against him, but God is bigger than our circumstances!

"Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (that is, the Dead Sea) was completely cut off." (Joshua 3:15b-16a)

Consequently "The people crossed over opposite Jericho." (Joshua 3:16b) and "The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground." (Joshua 3:17)

They were all on dry ground, even though they should have been swallowed up by the tumultuous water of the river!

This can be our reality as well, if we put our total trust in God. Misery and anxiety shouldn't have a hold on us, for we are, after all, God's children! If we give in to our circumstantial adversity, however, we will certainly lose face! It will swallow us up whole!

Imagine crossing that tumultuous river without God's presence!!! Too often we are defeated because we don't consult with God or wait on Him. It doesn't have to be this way! Our dire circumstances can be dried up just as easily as the Jordan River at Harvest! And we, too, can reach the other side in total safety. But...this requires faith. No faith, no drying up of the water!

There may be something important to learn from Jesus' words: "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." (Matthew 17:20b)

We win by losing. Or in other words, we can only be victorious when we stop relying on ourselves and start depending on God! Ask Joshua! He sure can vouch for that!

Dear Lord, thank You that when we rely on You that we can be victorious. Help us put our trust completely in You today.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen. 

The prayers of a righteous man

James 5:16  (ESV)

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.

In his book Miracles in Black, Dr. John C. Wengatz tells of an African convert who was left at a new mission station to carry on the Lord's work with a cannibal tribe. It was the dry season when Joao Mbaxi took over, but soon the tropical rains would be coming. Month after month went by, however, without a cloud appearing in the sky. Then came the time for the normal dry period. By now everyone was suffering, and many were on the brink of starvation.

In all the years they had worshiped their ancient gods, the rains had never failed them, and so Joao was told that he must leave the country and take "the white man's God" with him. The courageous Christian refused to go. Then, flushed with anger, the chief sullenly warned, "If your God is as good as you say and so powerful that He rules the sky, why doesn't He send us the needed showers? If it doesn't rain by sunrise tomorrow, we will drink your blood and eat your flesh!"

Recalling the Biblical account of Elijah, Joao went to his hut and prayed for divine help with the same urgency as that of the ancient prophet. Meanwhile the members of the tribe waited for the dawn when the Christian leader would become the victim of their horrible feast. Just before daylight, thunder was heard in the distance, lightning flashed across the sky, and abundant rain refreshed the entire region! As a result, Joao was able to continue his work for Christ.

The prayer of someone who is totally dependent on the Lord is powerful!

Dear Lord, we are sorry for any sin in your life. Please help us be people of up good character and be righteous people. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.