“…you shall worship no other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God” – Exodus 34:14 (ESV)

The absoluteness of God makes some people uncomfortable.  It is far easier to box Him up, limit Him in a way that fits our own desires and bents and present the Lord as a somewhat watered-down substitute of Who He is in His fullness. To do so is to make our own god (little “g”) that we can easily digest, who meets our whims and lives within the boundaries we set.

The problem is, in creating our own “god”, we make not a deity but an idol.  And what a slap in the face of the Almighty!  The problem with worshipping a boxed-up god is that we will be let down.  There are times we get upset or angry with God because He didn’t answer a prayer the way we expected or wanted Him to.  When things are tough and we’re hurting or reeling or confused and punch-drunk from all the blows we’ve been dealt, it can be very easy to blame God.

Here is the truth: God is God, and we are not.  God is going to do what God is going to do.  And while we have His Word and His promises, we must remember that God works perfectly – in timing and substance.  Consider the words of the psalmist:

1  Praise the Lord! Praise the name of the Lord, give praise, O servants of the Lord, 2 who stand in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God! 3 Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good; sing to his name, for it is pleasant! 4 For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself, Israel as his own possession. 5 For I know that the Lord is great, and that our Lord is above all gods. 6  Whatever the Lord pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps. 7  He it is who makes the clouds rise at the end of the earth,who makes lightnings for the rainand brings forth the wind from his storehouses. – Psalms 135:1-7 (ESV)

God is the Great I AM.  And, despite what some want to believe, there is only one way to God:

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” – John 14:6-7 (ESV)

When we are seeking God, there is a sense that we are seeking enlightenment and truth.  But notice that Jesus tells us there is only one way to God.  Jesus is not one way, one truth and one life.  His statement is absolute: Jesus is The Way, The Truth, The Life.

The Truth of God is not so simple.  Hence the requirement of faith.  If we reason all there was to know about God and figure Him out with mere human logic and fact, faith would be useless.  What God wants is for us to seek Him first and foremost.  Not an idol that represents our favorite parts of God.  Not the parts that make sense.  While God doesn’t expect us to abandon our intelligence (He gave us a brain for a reason!), He does expect us to lean on Him and seek Him – all of Him – in faith and trust.  Because when we build a box in which to contain God, we are creating an idol, a pale substitute for Who He truly is.

Ephesians 5:22-23 points out that Christ is the Bridegroom and we are His bride.  Now, when one gets married, we accept our spouse warts and all.  Even the parts we don’t like.  I am not saying there are any warts on God’s side of the relationship, but I will say that we humans are practically toads for all our warts.  Still, the Lord meets us where we are – despite our sin and shame, He loves us warts and all.  Who are we to accept a substitute god who is any less that the One True God, Who has given all for us?

God is not the author of confusion, but of peace. – 1 Corinthians 14:33 (KJV)

Peace.  Stop for a moment and savor that word.  Let it simmer a while in your soul.  Peace is a wonderful gift from God, and the clearer we understand it, the more we appreciate the gift.

Peace is not merely the absence of conflict.  It isn’t limited to the laying down of arms, signed armistices or a hippie ideal of ending all war.  These are outward signs of a cessation of aggression.

But peace – true, lasting peace – is something far deeper than signatures on a piece of paper or John and Yoko singing “Give Peace a Chance”.  Peace is unity: unity of spirit, unity of purpose.  It is finding a oneness with others, and with God.  Peace is the product of laying down self for the sake of unity in love.

Peace is the prosperity of the soul.  A soul at peace is one that is calm, focused, filled with faith and joy.  It is the polar opposite of chaos.  Take a moment to look at God’s creation.  Everything works together in harmony, in peace.    Right now it’s winter.  The earth is at rest.  But spring will come, bring the warmth and the rains that cause the fields to spring to life.  Summer brings the sun and heat needed to mature the fruit of the trees and plants and, come autumn, the harvest.

Look at the perfect positioning of the earth.  Angled at just the right axis, revolving around the sun at just the right distance and speed, turning at just the right speed… day, night, tides, atmosphere, gravity… all working together in perfect harmony.  All God’s creation at peace, working as one.

God Himself is the perfect example of peace, of oneness.  The Trinity – Father, Son, Holy Spirit – in harmony as One.  United in purpose.  Bound by love.  No confusion.

Let’s take a moment and look at this passage:

23 Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me. 25 “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 27  Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. 28  You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 29 And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. 30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, 31 but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here. – John 14:23-31 (ESV)

Here we have a beautiful example of peace.  The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit – unified as One God, working together, each in His distinct personage and role but All in harmony with One Another.  And, if we love the Lord, we are at peace with God as well.  And if we are unified in purpose and love with God, we have no reason to worry.  No need for doubt.  We have the peace Christ has given us.

That peace – the stillness that enables rest – comes from faithful unity with God’s purposes.  Seeking first the kingdom of God and not worrying about all the things that draw our attention away from Him.

“Not as the world gives do I give,” Jesus promised.  In the world there are always strings attached.  Even “love” is conditional.  Everything here is temporary and subject to change. But God is steadfast. “For I the Lord do not change” (Malachi 3:6, ESV).  Only God has the authority and strength and ability to never change.  God is always right, always just, always true.  He is always Who He says He is and will always do what He says He will do.  It is His very character.  God possesses a perfect absoluteness that we sinful being cannot.  He is our Solid Rock, our Foundation.  In Him, and Him alone, we find perfect peace – stillness of spirit, rest for our souls, the calming of the chaos around us, the right unity of purpose for our lives.

Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in every way. The Lord be with you all. – 2 Thessalonians 3:16 (ESV)

Note:  My apologies for the lateness of getting today’s post out.  I had some technical difficulties.  Which means I goofed something up.  Which means my lack of 21st century technological prowess got me again.  But, if any of you have an eight-track tape player in need of repair, I may be able to help you.

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1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. 3 He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, 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 goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. – Psalm 23 (ESV)

Jehovah-Raah. Literally the One True God Who is my Shepherd.

The 23rd Psalm is perhaps the best known of all the Psalms. Unfortunately some see it as a mere funeral fall back reading. But, despite our familiarity with this passage -or rather, because of it – I think it would be a good idea to slow down a bit and absorb these words.

Jehovah is my Shepherd. When I stray (as sheep sometimes do), the Shepherd pursues me. He fills my every need. He brings me peace and comfort from the hardness and storms of live. He leads me back to His will, guiding down the right path and rescuing me from sin, because that is His will.

The path I have to walk may be treacherous, my enemies waiting to attack. But God is on my side. What can man do to me? It is the very presence of God the Almighty that brings me strength and comfort, fortifying and guiding me through my journey.

I am blessed beyond measure simply because of The Lord, my Shepherd. I am blessed by His goodness, and that goodness will follow me throughout this life as I move toward a glorious eternity with YHWH.

Throughout this passage, we are led by God. We follow Him because we are His sheep.

“The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” – John 10:3b-5 (ESV)

We know the Shepherd’s voice, and that is what we His sheep follow. And we can rest assured that, whether we understand where He is leading us – whether the road ahead seems rocky or dangerous or uncertain or frightening – as long as we are following the Good Shepherd, we can go in peace, faithfully knowing that His will is right and pure and purposeful and good.

11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this.” – John 10:11-16 (ESV)

Jesus – God Incarnate – came to earth, lived among us and willingly died an unjust, humiliating death, gloriously rising on the third day in fulfillment of His promise. This He did strictly for us. What did God have to gain through His incredible selfless humbling act? Not a thing. He did it – and all He does – out of love.

Surely He is a Good Shepherd we can follow faithfully.

11  “Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders? 12 You stretched out your right hand; the earth swallowed them. 13 “You have led in your steadfast love the people whom you have redeemed; you have guided them by your strength to your holy abode.” – Exodus 15:11-13 (ESV)

Imagine a name so awesome in holiness, so great and reverent, that you dare not speak it for fear of accidentally taking the Lord’s name in vain.  The name for God is spelled out in four Hebrew consonants:  יהוה, or YHWH (known as the Tetragrammaton, meaning “the four letters”).  Today we pronounce it Yahweh, or Jehovah.  But the true pronunciation of the word is lost since people basically stopped verbalizing it long ago.

In the King James Bible, we honor the holiness of the name by using all capital letters for the translated YHWH: LORD.  Personally I am quite fond of the habit of capitalizing references to our One True God, even using all caps for LORD.  I have even seen people who use no caps at all for their own names to further emphasize our relationship between God and us, humbling ourselves in fearful reverence to the LORD.

I believe we take God too lightly.  We fail to recognize Who God is, and who we are.  YHWH is the Jewish personal name for God.  It literally refers to The Self-Existent Eternal One.  Often, it appears with the word Elohim, the generic term for God.  Put them together (LORD God) and you get the message that God, the One and Only God, is our God.  Our God is holy – perfect in all His ways, powerful and reigning over all creation, pure in His every intention.

To be holy is to be worthy of all praise and glory and honor and devotion.  To be holy is to be righteous. And when we are talking about God, these terms are absolute.  God isn’t just righteous, He is righteousness.  He is truth.  He defines morality.

God isn’t just pure, He is purity.  He is absolutely without sin, which is why only the perfect sacrifice (Jesus Christ) would do.

God is to be feared.  For some reason, we seem to have a problem with that particular idea, as if the idea of fearing a loving God is too paradoxical.  The love of God is to be emphasized, for God is love.  But, in doing so, we must take care to not soften God in our eyes.  Through Jesus we have access to the LORD.  And Christ is the Good Shepherd and we are His sheep.  But our Father is mighty in power, awesome in His very being.  This is the God to Whom every knee will bow and every tongue confess Him as Lord and Savior of all (Philippians 2:10-11).  You cannot tell me no man will fail to tremble in fear of the awesome holiness of God when we see Him.

Consider Moses’ encounter with God in Exodus 33.  We are told “the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend” (Exodus 33:11, ESV).  Not many people can honestly make that claim.

17 And the Lord said to Moses, “This very thing that you have spoken I will do, for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.” 18 Moses said, “Please show me your glory.” 19 And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. 20 But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.” 21 And the Lord said, “Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, 22 and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. 23 Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen.” – Exodus 33:17-23 (ESV)

We cannot look God in the face and live.  His holiness is such that we cannot handle it.  But, in God’s great love, He makes a way that we can see Him and live, so that we may proclaim Him as YHWH, LORD.  And notice that God moved Moses and covered Him.  Moses didn’t do anything but ask to see YHWH’s glory.  God’s tender love and awesome holiness fearfully and wonderfully coexist.

This is why it is so important that we give God His due.  Because He asks so little, yet deserves so much.  Because He is God and we are not, and we possess no good thing without the grace of God.  Because we get so caught up in our little lives that eternally trivialities drive our days and pull our attention away from the reality of the LORD, the Great I AM, the One True God Who reigns over all creation with astounding power and might, the Righteous Judge Who chose to redeem His children because He – YHWH – loves us.

1  Praise the Lord! I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation. 2 Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in them. 3  Full of splendor and majesty is his work, and his righteousness endures forever. 4 He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered; the Lord is gracious and merciful. 5 He provides food for those who fear him; he remembers his covenant forever. 6 He has shown his people the power of his works, in giving them the inheritance of the nations. 7 The works of his hands are faithful and just; all his precepts are trustworthy; 8 they are established forever and ever, to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness. 9 He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant forever. Holy and awesome is his name! 10  The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!  – Psalms 111:1-10 (ESV)

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…” – Matthew 28:19

There are a lot of things I do not understand.  Quantum physics is one.  Another is how Minnesota professional sports teams all seem to be cursed (except for the Lynx – those ladies play a great game of basketball!).  The biggest stumper for me is the Holy Trinity.

It isn’t the fact of the Trinity that confounds me.  I can fully accept in faith that God is Three in One: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  It is trying to figure out the how and why that twist me up.

The New Testament makes it very clear that God is three persons.  References abound throughout to all three (or any combination thereof) of the personages of the Lord.  It is also clear that Father, Son and Holy Spirit are, in essence, One and the Same (“I and the Father are one” [John 10:30]; “Now the Lord is the Spirit…” [2 Corinthians 3:17]).

Then I go back to the Old Testament.  In the very first reference we have to God, in the very first verse of all Scripture (“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” [Genesis 1:1, ESV]), God isʾelōhîm – a generic term for gods.

Gods.  Plural.

The word ʾelōhîm appears around 2600 times to describe God in the Old Testament.  By using this generic word to describe Himself, He is establishing His power and might.  He is the Only True God.  Any other “gods” are not deities but man-made idols, devoid of any real power and useless in His sight.  He is the Great I AM – Existence Himself.

But the fact that ʾelōhîm is the plural form of the Hebrew word for “god”, along with what we have already read about Jesus being active in creation and the references to the Holy Spirit and His activity in the Old Testament, leads me to see God as Three in One – always has been, always will be.

And God is three personages, not three Gods.  The Almighty is not schizophrenic.  He is One God.  But that One God is made up of three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Hence the expression of “God” (singular) with a plural term.

Early church father Tertullian is largely credited for being the first to describe God in Trinitarian terms.  He spent considerable time and effort in standing up against modalism, a belief that God is not three persons, but one who appears to His people in three different modes – and never more than one at any given time.  In his treatise Against Praxeas (written around 213 AD), Tertullian argues that God is One, three distinct yet inseparable personages:

…not in condition, but in degree; not in substance, but in form; not in power, but in aspect; yet of one substance, and of one condition and of one power inasmuch as He is one God from whom these degrees and forms and aspects are reckoned under the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.

I do not mean this to be a cop out, but there are certain things we simply must take on faith.  We are not called to understand everything – especially not about God.  God reveals His attributes to us through His Word and in this way we can know Him.  But we have to accept that we are simply not smart enough to fully grasp the greatness of God.  His thoughts and ways are way out of our pay grade.

The Trinity is one of the greatest mysteries to man.  Father, Son and Holy Spirit are One.  They have a relationship with One Another and yet are all God.  It is a testament to the exceeding greatness of God that He exists as Three in One, outside as well as within time and space.  If you think you can figure out the Great I AM, good luck.  Better to be content with faithful knowing than mere human logic.  I don’t know about you, but I’m just not that smart.  Besides, faith is the medium God works in. And where God is, that’s where I want to be.

For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. 1 John 5:7-8 (ESV)

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.” – John 14:15-17 (ESV)

He is one of the most mysterious, difficult to grasp aspects of God.  The Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity.  He can be tough to wrap around our heads around because so much about the Holy Spirit makes so little physical sense.  The Father is in heaven, and Jesus walked this earth with us.  We have some level of understanding, at least on a distant level.

But the Holy Spirit… He is the One Who brings it all home. (And, yes, the Holy Spirit is He, not “It”.  He is as much God as the Father and the Son.)  He makes faith very personal for each and every believer because He dwells inside us:

And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” – Acts 2:38 (ESV)

This is not the place for a discussion about baptism and what it is and isn’t.  But, in essence what is being said here is that once we have turned away from our sin and embraced Christ as our Lord and Savior, we are cleansed and forgiven and we receive the Holy Spirit within us.  And I personally believe this all happens pretty instantaneously.

Why do we need the Holy Spirit?  He is the One Who brings us understanding of Who God is because He is God living within us.  Think about it: the twelve disciples walked with Jesus for probably about three years.  Day in, day out.  They heard Jesus speak.  They sat at His feet.  They witnessed – even participated in – a wide variety of miracles.  And yet, repeatedly, they didn’t get it.  Even in Jesus’ last moments leading up to His crucifixion, they didn’t get it.  They were confused.  They misunderstood what they saw.  Their faith was shaken.

They were human.  And they thought like humans.  Acted like humans.  Flawed, lacking understanding.

We are human.  We think like humans.  Act like humans.  Flawed, lacking understanding.

It is the Holy Spirit Who enables us, empowers us, guides us, teaches us, comforts us… helps us.

At Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit came like a rushing wind and filled the disciples, we see God’s indwelling power make the necessary change these men needed.  Peter, who had previously acted like a coward by thrice denying Christ to save his own skin, is now standing up boldly and proclaiming Jesus.  He gave them the words to speak – and in languages they didn’t know so that all in Jerusalem, no matter where they came from, could hear and understand the message of Jesus Christ and be saved!

“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.” – Romans 8:26 (ESV)

God realizes our weaknesses.  He knows we are merely flesh, and sinful to the core.  Jesus forgives us of our sin; the Holy Spirit keeps us on track, even going to the Father on our behalf (since we ourselves are incapable of even knowing what to pray for).

“…do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,  for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” – 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (ESV)

What God has done for us – the ultimate act of selfless love, humbling Himself by sending His Son to live with us, give us the example of God in the flesh, and die as the perfect sacrifice for our sin, then sending the Holy Spirit to live within us as our Helper – is amazing.

And as I type that word “amazing”, it just doesn’t seem to do justice to what the Lord has done.  He created everything and let man enjoy perfection, only to have Adam and Eve disobey the one thing God told them not to do.  He has gone so far as to not only provide a way back to Him, but to dwell not just among us, but within us.  To guide us.  To strengthen us.  To intercede on our behalf.  God is doing the work for us.  We cannot do it.  We don’t deserve it.  But God, in His infinite love, grace and mercy, has made a way for each and every one of us.  We would be fools to look around us with our limited capabilities and say “yes” in faith to the gift the Lord God has offered us.

“He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.” – 2 Corinthians 5:5 (ESV)

God promised to never leave us, never abandon us.  That promise, with the Holy Spirit living inside us, becomes very literal.  God in flesh (Jesus) came, dwelt amongst men, and left to take His place at the right side of the Father.  But God in Spirit (The Holy Spirit) has come, and remains, to continue the sanctification process we could never do alone.

And how do we know the Holy Spirit is at work?  Well, we know a tree by it’s fruit:

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23, ESV).

Hmm… sounds an awful lot like Jesus, doesn’t it?  This is how we recognize the Holy Spirit, how He is “proven”. He isn’t found in religious rituals, or nonsensical utterances, or anything of the sort.  The evidence of the Holy Spirit is the change He makes in a believer.  Because we are no longer our own.  We are God’s. The Father laid out the terms of the deal.  Jesus sealed the deal.  The Holy Spirit helps us keep our end of the deal.

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” – Romans 15:13 (ESV)

1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3  All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4  In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5  The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. – John 1:1-5 (ESV)

Scripture is written with an amazing economy of words.  There is not one wasted word, not one bit of filler or fluff, within its 66 books. In order to truly mine the depths of meaning in God’s Word we need to slow down a bit and think about what is being said.  And to whom.  And why.

The opening of John’s gospel is one of the richest passages in all of Scripture.  Here we discover the eternal Logos (λόγος), or “Word”. The λόγος has always existed, alongside God and as part of God.

To understand the importance of John’s choice of words is to understand just what the λόγος is.  In Greek philosophy, the λόγος is wisdom, the reason or causation of one’s argument.  The λόγος, while translated “word” does not refer to actual written words per se, but to the meaning behind them, the reasoning for one’s thoughts and actions.

This idea was important to the Greeks (Gentiles).  Stoic Greeks saw the λόγος as the force behind all of existence.  Creation is because of the λόγος.

To Jewish philosophers of Jesus’ day, the idea of the λόγος was equally important.  Philo of Alexander (a Greek-influenced Jewish philosopher who taught during Jesus’ lifetime) saw the λόγος of God as the glue that holds all of creation together and keeps it running.  In short, the λόγος is the very essence of God.

So, what exactly is John telling us in these first verses of His gospel?  Let’s look a little further down in his introduction:  “And the Word (λόγος) became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14, ESV).  Jesus is the λόγος – the very essence of God, Who took on flesh and lived with us, fully God and fully man.  Jesus lived before His earthly birth, part of the triune God.  He is the Light Who overcame darkness.

Moreover, He was active in the creation of the universe.  As John points out, all things were made through Him.  Nothing could exist without Him.  Paul puts an even finer point on the subject of Christ as the λόγος :

15  He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. – Colossians 1:15-20 (ESV)

To take it even further, the author of Hebrews opens his letter as such:

1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs – Hebrews 1:1-4 (ESV).

Jesus, the “radiance of the glory of God”, the “exact imprint of his nature”.  In other words, the λόγος of God, His very essence made flesh.  If you want to know what God “looks” like, look at Jesus.  He was not just a good man.  He was no mere teacher.  He was human, but He was/is God.  He walked this earth, offering forgiveness, performing miracles, teaching wisdom, and loving as no one else before or since.

Jesus endured all the pain and suffering of a common criminal, and did so for a people He knew would reject Him and call for His crucifixion.  This Jesus, Who died so we might live, is the very essence of God, Who was present at creation (“Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…”, Genesis 1:26, ESV, with italics added for emphasis).  And yet He took on flesh, lived as one of us, experienced sorrow and pain and suffering, and did so without sin or fault.  All so He could be the perfect, only acceptable sacrifice for our sin.  He bore our sin, removed our iniquity, and did so as a compassionate act of grace through Love.  Who else but the very λόγος of God Himself could do that?

And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. – Genesis 1:31 (ESV)

Did you ever watch “How’d They Do That?”  It was a show that was originally broadcast back in the 1990’s, but you can still catch reruns of it.  They have a film crew visit a factory and show how any number of products and machinery and what-have-you were invented, how they are manufactured and how they work.  For someone who is admittedly mechanically declined, this is pretty fascinating stuff.

The subject of God as Creator is one that absolutely fascinates me.  I’m a person with a creative bent, but God’s way of creating astounds me.  In fact, human beings cannot create the way God does.  I will argue that humans do possess the ability to truly create at all.  We can invent.  We can design.  We can build.  But creation is something altogether uniquely God.

God creates ex nihilo – out of nothing.  Read Genesis 1 and you see the running motif: God spoke and it was.  God spoke and it was.  And it was good.  (Makes sense when you consider that the tiniest subatomic particles of all matter are made up of waves much like sound waves.)

Try as we might, humans cannot pull this one off.  We need material to build with, the piece together and make anything.  We need ingredients that God created.  When I paint a sunrise, I need a canvas, brushes, paints… all manufactured from base materials created by God.  When God “paints” a sunrise, He creates the real thing.  And, no matter how amazing my talents (and, trust me, my talent + painting ≠ amazing), I will never make anything that comes close to the wonder of God’s true creation.

God not only created all things.  He sustains all His creation.

5 For I know that the Lord is great, and that our Lord is above all gods. 6  Whatever the Lord pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps. 7  He it is who makes the clouds rise at the end of the earth, who makes lightnings for the rain and brings forth the wind from his storehouses. – Psalms 135:5-7 (ESV)

In the book of Job, we see the central character and his three friends going back and forth about Who God is and what He does and why.  At one point, Job – lamenting the pain and sorrow inflicted upon him that he did not deserve – cries out, “Let the Almighty answer me!” (Job 31:35, ESV).

Which is exactly what God does:

4 “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. 5 Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it?6 On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, 7 when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy? 8 “Or who shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb, 9 when I made clouds its garment and thick darkness its swaddling band, 10 and prescribed limits for it and set bars and doors, 11 and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stayed’? 12 “Have you commanded the morning since your days began, and caused the dawn to know its place, 13 that it might take hold of the skirts of the earth, and the wicked be shaken out of it? 14 It is changed like clay under the seal, and its features stand out like a garment. 15 From the wicked their light is withheld, and their uplifted arm is broken. 16 “Have you entered into the springs of the sea, or walked in the recesses of the deep? 17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you, or have you seen the gates of deep darkness? 18 Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth? Declare, if you know all this. 19 “Where is the way to the dwelling of light, and where is the place of darkness, 20 that you may take it to its territory and that you may discern the paths to its home? 21 You know, for you were born then, and the number of your days is great! 22 “Have you entered the storehouses of the snow, or have you seen the storehouses of the hail, 23 which I have reserved for the time of trouble, for the day of battle and war? 24 What is the way to the place where the light is distributed, or where the east wind is scattered upon the earth? 25 “Who has cleft a channel for the torrents of rain and a way for the thunderbolt, 26 to bring rain on a land where no man is, on the desert in which there is no man, 27 to satisfy the waste and desolate land, and to make the ground sprout with grass? 28 “Has the rain a father, or who has begotten the drops of dew? 29 From whose womb did the ice come forth, and who has given birth to the frost of heaven? 30 The waters become hard like stone, and the face of the deep is frozen. 31 “Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades or loose the cords of Orion? 32 Can you lead forth the Mazzaroth in their season, or can you guide the Bear with its children? 33 Do you know the ordinances of the heavens? Can you establish their rule on the earth? 34 “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds, that a flood of waters may cover you? 35 Can you send forth lightnings, that they may go and say to you, ‘Here we are’? 36 Who has put wisdom in the inward parts or given understanding to the mind? 37 Who can number the clouds by wisdom? Or who can tilt the waterskins of the heavens, 38 when the dust runs into a mass and the clods stick fast together? 39 “Can you hunt the prey for the lion, or satisfy the appetite of the young lions, 40 when they crouch in their dens or lie in wait in their thicket? 41 Who provides for the raven its prey, when its young ones cry to God for help, and wander about for lack of food? – Job 38:4-41 (ESV)

There it is.  Straight from the mouth of the Almighty Himself.  Can you imagine how terrified Job must have felt receiving this dressing down from God?  When the Lord begins with words like, “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me” (Job 38:2-3, ESV), you know its not going to be fun.

But what God is saying is this:  He is the Creator.  He is the Sustainer.  He is the Giver of all good things.  We can take no credit for any of it.  We weren’t even here yet.  As Augustine observed, ” Let us therefore believe that God works constantly, so that all created things would perish, if his working were withdrawn.”

The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works. – Psalms 145:17 (KJV)

Take a saucepan and fill it with water.  Put the water on a stove and heat until the water is warm – not hot, but bathwater warm.  Place a frog in the water and slowly begin turning up the heat.  No need to put a lid on the pot.  The frog is warm and comfy – he won’t be jumping out.  Before he realizes it, he will be thoroughly boiled.

OK… first, let me assure everyone that I am not some sadistic frog killer.  I have never actually boiled a frog.  And I hope you don’t either!

But the analogy shows us how sneaky sin works.  If you throw the frog in boiling water, he’ll jump right out.  But… let him stew in the warmth for a while and slowly crank up the heat and he’ll never know he’s being cooked.  At least not until he is medium rare.

That, friends, is our problem.  We get comfortable in the warmth of our own sinful stew and don’t realize when the simmer becomes a slow boil.  We need someone who can / will reach into the boiling pot and pluck us out of our sin.  But that somebody must be pure – without sin, entirely righteous and holy.  Otherwise we’ll just end up in another pot of warming water.

“The wages of sin is death…” (Romans 6:23a [KJV]).  In the garden of Eden, there was no death.  Only life – eternal, pure existence with God.  Then the fall of man, the entrance of sin, and the rot of impurity.  Sin is the absolute antithesis of God.  It opposes everything God is.  It takes all that God created beautiful and pollutes it.  The problem for us is that, sin is so prevalent, we don’t always notice it.  We desperately need saving from the employment of sin.

“…but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23b [KJV]).  The Hebrew word ‏צַדִּיק‎ (ṣaddîq) is translated as “righteous”.  It means that, in all His thoughts, in all His ways, God is just.  He is the righteous judge.  It is the reason we are instructed to not judge others.  That is His job, and way out of our pay grade.  We simply do not possess the necessary qualifications to judge others.  Why?  We are sinful, and sin turns out thoughts and motives inward.  God is love.  We are self serving.  Our judgments are not pure.

Add to God’s righteousness the fact that He is holy.  He is filled with pure goodness and love (because, as we have learned, He is love).  The ESV Bible renders the Hebrew word ‏ ‏חָסִיד‎ (ḥāsîd) as “kind”.  Indeed, holiness is truly kindness.  God does not need us, but we need Him.  He does not treat us like we are the mere creation of a distant deity.  He is our Father.  And He is righteous, holy, kind, love…

It is why He sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross.  In doing so, good (holiness, life) overcame evil (sin, death).  We cannot jump out of the pot ourselves.  We need someone qualified – just and pure – to save us, once and for all.  And Jesus did just that.  We frogs should all be eternally grateful – a grand understatement if ever there was one.

5  Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. 7  Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. 8 It will be healing to your fleshand refreshment to your bones. – Proverbs 3:5-8 (ESV)

Say we had never met before.  And, honestly, there is a pretty good chance – if you are reading this blog – that we haven’t.  I would suggest we meet at a neutral, public place (most likely a Caribou Coffee or Dunn Brothers) where we could sit down, grab some java and talk.  (For those of you who know me already, I’d love to sit at the ‘Bou for some coffee and conversation as well.  E-mail me or message me on FB.)

As our conversation went on, we would share little facts and details of our lives – work, family, interests, faith, etc…  Nothing too deep or personal (after all, we just met).  And we would most likely trust that what the other is saying is truth.  Unless, of course, one of us goes off on some tangent about being the first man to open a Burger Chef restaurant on Mars only to have to close it down when you discover the Martian atmosphere has too little oxygen to support the flame for your burger grills, so you relocate to Mattoon Illinois where you discover your true life’s ambition is politics, so you move to Europe and run for King of Belgium, only to abdicate after scandal breaks because you make some ill-conceived slanderous comment Belgian waffles, and so on and so on…

We have to enter into the conversation with some level of cautious trust.  As time goes on, and we get to know one another better, that trust level grows.  Over time we build a relationship on that shared trust.

Today seems like a good day to discuss faith.  The subject was broached yesterday as we discussed the Bible because, frankly, if you do not trust Scripture – God’s written revelation of Himself to His people – you will never trust God.  And if you never trust God, you will never have a meaningful relationship with Him.

As we continue seeking God through Advent (and beyond), faith will become more and more helpful in our understanding of the Lord.  The reason is that we humans, quite simply, are not God.  We are flawed and imperfect.  We cannot understand the past or discern the present with 100% clarity and understanding.  In fact, whether due to misunderstanding or bias or any of a number of reasons, we often (maybe even usually) get our perceptions wrong.  Add to that the fact that we do not know the future, and you see why it is far better to trust God and His Word, instead of relying on ourselves.

Faith is far stronger than “fact”.  Our idea of fact is based on what we (think we) know for sure.  However, faith – believing what is unseen – brings amazing results.  This is where God works; it is His milieu.  God’s thoughts and reasoning are far above those of limited man, so the only way we are going to comprehend the Lord with any depth is through faith.

That does not mean that reason does not apply.  It most certainly does.  And, my prayer is that, as we go along, your faith is deepened and each of us sees just how reasonable following Jesus Christ really is.  You see, God is so often the God of the Unexpected.  To Him, what we consider “miraculous” is mundane (as if anything to do with God could ever be mundane).

Take a moment and read Matthew 14:22-33.  The apostles are in a boat, out on the sea of Galilee, very late at night.  The time of night should have been no concern to the fisherman among them.  These guys worked the night shift, fishing when it was cooler and the catch would be better.  But, on this particular night, the waters were rough.  And out walking on the waves they see… an apparition?  A ghost?  No – it’s Jesus!

And when Jesus tells them Who He is and not to fear, Peter – who loved and was devoted to Jesus in his own very flawed, very human way – wanted so badly for it to be Christ on the water that he cried out, “If it’s really you, call out for me to come to you!”

And He did.

And Peter did.

Peter walked on the water.  Not by his own power, but the power of God working through faith.

And everything was going great, until…

Until Peter took His eyes off Jesus.  He turned away from faith to face the “facts”: he was standing atop crashing wavs in the middle of a storm.  He was human.  He can’t walk on water!

He panicked.  But, Jesus saved him.

Oh ye of little faith.

Oh we of little faith.

Faith is what it takes to understand the life and death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Faith is what we need to know God better.  Because, left to our feeble comprehension, God and His will and His ways are impossible to understand.  We start with a little faith.  We crack open the Bible and begin reading, and seeking Him in His Word.  We pray and begin looking for Him in the everyday of our lives.  We seek Him diligently, trusting that He is here and, in His time, will reveal Himself to us.  And, one of the most remarkable a-ha moments is when eyes are open and we see that He has been with us all along, every step of the way.  Through every trial and every hardship, every celebration and every mournful day.

7  “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then,who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! _ Matthew 7:7-11 (ESV)