Afterwards

 

“Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but grievous; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”

—Hebrews 12:11 NKJV

No one wants to wait until “afterwards.” When we go through trials of all kinds, we want God to remove the pain and give us the results He has designed for us as quickly as possible. Yet, no one would expect a surgeon to allow a person to get up during a surgical procedure and immediately enjoy the results of that surgery. Likewise, a child must take the sting of the antiseptic before he or she can experience the healing from a cut or scrape.

We have ample illustrations of this point in the lives of biblical characters.

• In the case of poor Jonah, who ended up in the belly of a great fish because of his disobedience even after he confessed his sin and repented, he had to go through the process of being vomited out upon the beach! Only then could he properly respond obediently to God’s call.
  
  
• In John 11, Lazarus experienced death and decay in the grave. His family had to go through the grieving associated with his death. Only after this trial did Jesus come and speak those words to his dead friend in the tomb: “Lazarus, come forth!”
  
  
• As recorded in 1 Kings 19, Elijah went through a terrible windstorm, an earthquake, and a fire before he heard the gentle whisper of God. Only after these catastrophes could he hear the words of direction and relief for which he had waited from his Lord.
  
  
• Job experienced unbelievable loss, lived through pain, grief, the misunderstanding of his friends, and his own crisis of faith. Yet, when God finally did speak to Job and bring his trials to an end, Job replied, as recorded in Job 42:5:
  

  My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you.

While going through the deadly, mysterious, confusing storms of life, we simply don’t feel blessed. Afterward, if we persevere in faith and obedience, we can say with the Psalmist, as recorded in Psalm 94:12-13:

Blessed is the man you discipline, O Lord, the man you teach from your law; you grant him relief from days of trouble.

If the trial we experience seems more than we can bear, and if we see no good coming from it—even while we are still in the dark—we must decide before God to trust Him to help us through the trial and bring about the desired harvest in our lives. There will be an “afterwards.” And, it will be joyous, peaceful, and filled with God’s light.

 

 

God's Flying Buttresses

 

“Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

—Galatians 6:2

In a time of collapse, we would do well to have someone on whom to lean. We see this principle at work in the flying buttresses of Gothic Cathedrals.

According to Wikipedia:

“… the purpose of any buttress is to resist the lateral forces pushing a wall outwards…” which occurs with the load of heavy stone and glass in the walls of the largest buildings. “Another application of the flying buttress is to prop up a leaning wall in danger of collapse.”

The Apostle Paul served as such a support to the early churches, which he and other apostles founded in the first century. He not only traveled to stay with these young congregations, in order to encourage and help them, but he wrote long letters of instruction to them, so that they would not fail.

In carrying the load of these new churches, the Apostle Paul experienced endangering situations, such as ship wrecks, starvation, physical problems, beatings, imprisonments, riots, and sleepless nights. In order for his ministry to continue, he knew that he needed the “buttressing” of fellow servants of Christ to keep his ministry stable and upright. He relied on Titus and Timothy, John Mark, and Luke, as well as such lesser-known men, such as Tychicus, Epaphroditus, and the help of women, such as Nympha and Priscilla.

The Apostle Paul speaks of the Church of Christ as the “Body of Christ,” in which each member belongs to each other member, in order to complete the whole. He admonished the Church in 1 Thessalonians 5:11:

Therefore encourage one another, and build each other up.

This theme occurs often in Paul’s writings. He knew how hard life can become and what spiritual warfare these young Christians would face.

In our present age, we may have days when we don’t feel we can go a step further. Weariness, sickness, emotional pain, as well as with a too-long waiting for God, can beat upon us like heavy rain beats on a cathedral in a violent storm. In prayer, we can ask God to supply the support we need to keep from collapsing. He has already prepared a group of Christians to buttress us up during our difficult days. When the time of hardship ends, may we have the same grateful spirit as Paul did when he wrote to Philemon in verse 7:

Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints.

 

 

They Hung-Up Their Harps

 

“By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion. There on the poplars we hung our harps.”

—Psalm 137:1-2

We don’t know who from the Babylonian captivity of Jerusalem wrote the words in the Scripture passage above. The Bible tells us that the walls of Jerusalem had been torn down, the Temple burned, and all the articles of worship used there were carried away to Babylon. We also know that this enemy abducted the chief priest and others who worked in the Temple.

All of the people mourned at the loss of their homeland and the loss of their beloved Temple. But, no one mourned as much as those who had regularly prepared for the rituals of worship in the Temple and who had daily served and led in the worship of Jehovah, the One True God.

In the passage of Scripture above, we can clearly hear the heartbreak that they felt. From their land of captivity in Bablylon, they had lost all they had known and loved, including their music that led them in worship. Their hearts simply could no longer sing the songs they once knew, so in great sadness, they hung up their harps.

What did the Babylonians require of these Jewish exiles, who probably served as slaves in whatever capacity the enemy could conjure up? And, how could the Jewish exiles possibly respond to the taunts of their captives, while they labored under these wicked taskmasters? It was a simple fact that the exiles could no longer worship freely, nor could they experience the joy in worship that they had once known so well in Jerusalem.

Tell me, dear ones, at least for a season has the Lord asked you to “hang up your harp”? Has a twist of fate taken your familiar and gifted service to God from you? Have the people you once joyfully served moved on without you? Has your family forced you out of the nest? Have they given your beloved job to someone younger? Have you had to trade your familiar home with its cozy kitchen for retirement living?

Has God asked you, by this unwanted development in your life, to serve Him in another role—one for which you feel totally unprepared or ill-equipped? It is an all-too-common fact that sometimes God takes us away from the familiar so that we might learn a hard, but necessary, lesson from Him.

Consider Moses, who grew up in the palace in Egypt, but later was forced to flee at the age of forty into the desert to tend sheep for yet another forty years. We know that eventually God called Moses out of the desert and back to Egypt to negotiate with the king for the release of the entire nation of God’s chosen people. Looking back from a new perspective, we can clearly see that God had a reason for taking Moses’ “harp” from him.

We learn in Psalm 126 that the Jewish people taken captive into Babylon did indeed return to Jerusalem after seventy years. Once back in their homeland, God again filled their mouths with songs of worship. Psalm 126:1-2 tells us:

“When the Lord brought back the captives to Zion, we were like men who dreamed. Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy.”

Once again, God made use of the harps that for seventy years had hung on those poplars. As we consider this incident recorded in Scripture, we can come to realize that God also may allow us to once again take up our own “harps.” Or, He may teach us how to play and sing using a different “instrument.”

Whatever He chooses to do, we know that God does all things well. Though we may not sing the same songs of joy we once did, God will surely give us the grace to once again make music through our lives. We simply need to allow Him to make the choice!

 

 

Reflection

 

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

—John 8:12

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

—Matthew 5:14-16

Have you ever considered how differently the brightness of the moon affects what we can see at night? Driving seems so much easier. And, the distance we can see is so much farther. Nights with a full moon allow us to see so much more than we can see when the moonlight is absent or diminished.

Scientists tell us that the phases of the moon, and the amount of light we observe from the moon, results from how much of the moon’s surface faces the sun and reflects the sun’s radiance. The moon produces no light of its own. It serves only to reflect the glory of the sun.

When we meditate on Jesus’ words in the first Scripture passage at the beginning of this blog post, where He told us that He is the Light of the World, we must realize that Jesus has given us the same designation that Creator God gave to the moon. As His devoted followers, Jesus expects us to understand that we give divine light to those around us only to the extent that we reflect Him. The more “face time” we have with Him, the more fully we will reflect His powerful light.

In the second Scripture passage at the beginning of this blog post, where Jesus said that we are lights of the world, He used the illustration of a lamp. Even if we shine as lamps in this dark world, we must have oil, or power, from some source other than ourselves. The image of oil in the Bible often refers to the power of the Holy Spirit.

We cannot expect to give off the Light of Christ in this world unless we reflect Him, just as the moon reflects the sun, nor can we shine as lamps without the oil of the Holy Spirit. The divine light must come from outside our own selves.

This question, then, is worth asking ourselves:

“Is the ‘light’ I give off coming from the dimly lit bulb of my own selfish glory, or do I truly reflect the glory of my blessed Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the glory of God, my Father in Heaven?”

How we answer that important question makes a difference. And, that difference is like night and day!

 

 

Dead Branch or Budding Endorsement?

 

“He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither.”

—Psalm 1:3

In this season of political endorsements, I enjoyed reading the way in which God, in front of the Israelite nation, set up Aaron as His endorsed leader from the tribe of Levi. The story, recorded in Numbers 17, occurs just after the nation complained against Aaron and Moses as their leaders. A group of men had become insolent and had risen up to take the leadership and the priesthood away from these two whom God had chosen.

You may remember the story in which God allowed the ground to swallow these imposters, as a testimony to His anger against their sinful rebellion. However, this didn’t end the rebellion, and God sent a plague that killed 14,700 to show His power. And, even though Aaron stood between God and the rest of the Israelites and stopped the plague, interceding for them, they continued to grumble about his leadership.

At this time, God told Moses to have the leaders of the twelve tribes come to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting and bring with them their staves or rods, the symbol of the authority of their governmental leadership. We read in Numbers 17:5 that God said:

“The staff belonging to the man I choose will sprout and I will rid myself of this constant grumbling.”

The next day, when Moses entered the Tent, he found Aaron’s staff not only sprouted, but budded and blossomed, producing almonds! From that day on, God asked Moses to keep that rod before the Testimony as a remembrance of God’s decree and endorsement of Aaron as leader!

Isaiah predicts another time, yet to come, when God will endorse His people before the world. Here’s what He promises in Isaiah 60:21:

“Then will all your people be righteous and they will possess the land forever. They are the shoot I have planted, the work of my hands, for the display of my splendor.”

I like that! Not for the aggrandizement of these chosen ones, but for the display of God’s splendor.

And, in our world today, how does God endorse us? We know that, by ourselves, we display nothing but the image of a dry stick. However, with the life Jesus gives us through His atonement, we can bud with His “sap” running through our veins. I compare this to the sermon Jesus gave in John 15 about the Vine and the Branches. The only way the branches can provide fruit, is when they continue to exist, attached to the Living Vine.

We are nothing but dry branches without Him. John 15:5 makes it clear with these words of Jesus:

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

God wants to endorse us by displaying His splendor through us, by living His life through us, and by making our lives spiritual food for others. May we know that kind of usefulness to bring Him glory!

 

 

Going Overboard

 

“Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea.”

—John 21:7b

I love impetuous Peter. He couldn’t hold back his enthusiasm or his love for the Lord Jesus. Familiar around boats all his life, twice we read in the Gospels that he jumped overboard into the water.

The most familiar story we remember comes from Matthew 14:22-32. This passage tells the story of the storm on the Sea of Galilee, or Lake of Gennesaret, in which the disciples feared for their lives. Jesus came to them on the water, and Peter jumped out of the boat and walked on top of the water to meet Him. Here Peter exhibited enough faith to take a few steps toward Jesus before he had to call out for rescue.

A lot of time and experience had passed between that event and the one in which Peter again jumped out of the fishing boat to greet his Lord. Jesus had gone through the torturous death on the cross and come out of the grave alive. The disciples had seen Him a few times before He came to them on this morning after they had fished all night. Yet, Peter had haunting memories of his three denials of his Lord (recorded in John 18) and couldn’t let this moment pass to show his love and even shame over what he had done.

I like Peter. He always seemed to show his love to Jesus in obnoxious ways. He would say things and do things that appeared unorthodox and perhaps silly. No one could keep him and his wild passions for Christ from going overboard. In more ways than two!

Peter had zeal. We don’t often use that word anymore. But, it fits the description of this powerful disciple. God likes zealous people. In Numbers 25:10-13, God rewarded Phinehas for his courage in defending the honor of his God and his zeal. In John 2:17, the disciples watched Jesus overthrow the tables of the wicked in the temple and commented on His zeal for God.

In Romans 12:11, we read instructions to those who know Christ:

Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.

We should ask ourselves:

• Can people see in us a definition of zeal for God, for Christ’s name, for His church?
  
  
• Do we dare go overboard for Him, even though others might scoff at us?
  
  
• Do we love God with an eagerness that glorifies His greatness and causes those who don’t know Him to take notice?
  
  
• Does our fervor encourage others to display the same fervency?
  
  
• Does it keep us going even when all seems bleak?
  
  

Let us pray with the hymn writer who asks God for “one holy passion filling all my frame.” ¹ His love for us went overboard when God sent His only Son to us, and then allowed His death on the cross to pay for our guilt. He deserves nothing less than our passion for Him!

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1 Croly, George. “Spirit of God, Descend Upon My Heart.” Public Domain.

 

 

Moreover

 

So God said to him [Solomon], “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for—both riches and honor— so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings.”

—1 Kings 3:11-13

Solomon began his reign as king with a humble heart. He was seemingly aware of his own frailty and the enormity of the position which his father, David, had left him.

The Lord had appeared to Solomon in a dream and told him to ask for whatever he wanted from God. This sounds so much like the “genie in the bottle” theme of three wishes. But, it’s not. God seriously wanted Solomon to take on this new task of king with all the resources that he needed. And, in order to rule well, Solomon asked for a discerning and wise heart. The Scripture says that this pleased God. So, God fulfilled His promise and gave Solomon the discernment and wisdom for which he had asked.

Then, right in the middle of God’s response to Solomon’s request, we see the word, Moreover. Far beyond what Solomon had asked, God added riches and honor to the gifts He gave Solomon that day. Now Solomon would be able to showcase the glory and splendor of his God to the whole world.

You see, God gives abundance to His children, to those He knows have the right heart attitude and will use the gifts He gives them for His glory. So, it is no surprise that when Solomon chose to ask for qualities that would help him rule justly, God gave Him those qualities and also showered Solomon with even more.

But, what about us? Should we expect the same abundant gifts that God gave Solomon? Not necessarily, but we can expect Him to give us an abundance of His grace, which comes in a multitude of ways to His dearly loved children. In Jesus’ teaching about Himself as the Good Shepherd, He states in John 10:10:

I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full [abundantly].

Much like the plain and simple water that Jesus turned into a splendid and special wine during the wedding at Cana, God intends to turn the ordinary things for which we ask Him into blessings we can give back to Him and manifest His glory. He will always be known as the God of Moreover—the God of abundance and lavish blessing.

Let’s look at our lives and our prayers through the eyes of Solomon and through the eyes of those people attending the wedding at Cana. What “above and beyond” blessings has God given to us on top of those things for which we have asked? Then, let’s praise Him and glorify Him through all He has given to us!