Handfuls of Purpose

Ruth 2:15, 16

It would do every Christian a world of good to take a closer look at the life of Ruth the Moabitess. She married a Hebrew man, while that man and his family were living in her idol-worshipping nation of Moab. When the man and his father and his brother dies, Ruth goes back to the land of Israel with her mother-in-law Naomi, where she catches the eye of a wealthy bachelor named Boaz. The Jewish law of kinsman redemption states that the closest living relative of her husband receives all of his inheritance, and along with that inheritance comes Ruth, with whom that man would have to rear a child. The nearest living relative wants no part of this, so it just so happens that the next of kin after him is the wealthy Boaz. This is a Hollywood story waiting to happen!

When Ruth came into Bethlehem, she wanted to work to prove her worth to her mother-in-law, so she requests permission to go into the fields to glean ears of corn. The reapers harvested the crops, but the gleaners went in afterwards and took what was left over. This was God’s welfare system of sorts, and Ruth was ready to take whatever she could get. Her heart was one of such openness and faith, as she already had a comprehension as to how the God of Israel worked. Look at her statement regarding which field she would work in:

“Let me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in whose sight I shall find grace.” (Ruth 2:2)

Ruth the Moabitess was looking for grace, and it was grace that she found. When Boaz notices her in his fields, he orders his reapers to accidently miss the bag that they are filling with harvest, from time to time. He wants handfuls of the crop to hit the ground so that Ruth will have more to glean.

Your heavenly Father does not deal with you on the basis of your name or your background. You may have a past that is worse than the idol-worshipping Moabites, but when you go to Him, your heavenly Boaz, looking for His grace, He will always drop handfuls on purpose so that you will have an abundance of His goodness.

Remember Rahab the harlot from Jericho? She became a key member of the genealogical family tree of Jesus. Her offspring is the handsome and wealthy Boaz, who will marry young Ruth. Ruth, though unworthy of such honor, will become the great-grandmother of a boy named David. You never know where God’s handfuls of purpose are going to lead you.

Go in the grace of God, knowing that everywhere you turn today; Jesus has dropped a handful of purpose just for you.

Sweetness Out of the Strong

Judges 14:5-14

Samson is one of my favorite Old Testament characters because if there is ever a living example of the wonders of covenant and grace it is found in this man. Covenant must be kept by God, and grace is His free gift, completely undeserved. Samson is a living, breathing example of both of these things as his life was sealed by the covenant that God had made with his parents (“Don’t cut his hair and I will use him to deliver Israel”), and Samson received all good while earning none of it.

When I heard the story of Samson as a child I always saw him as a hulk of a man, with bulging biceps and muscles on top of muscles, but as I began to understand God’s grace and favor I began to view him quite differently. I don’t believe that Samson was very big at all. In fact, I am quite sure that Samson looked rather puny. If he were a massive man, all of his exploits could be attributed to his own personal strength and size, but we see that his enemies spent much time trying to ascertain how he did what he did. His strength was God given as a token of grace and covenant.

Samson and his parents were journeying to Timnath to take a wife for Samson from among the Philistines, the sworn enemies of Israel. His parents were very disapproving of his choice in taking a Philistine for his wife, but Samson did it to gain advantage over the enemy. On the road to Timnath, while temporarily separated from his parents, Samson was confronted by a lion. He killed the beast with his bare hands and did not tell his parents about the incident.

Some days later Samson journeyed back to Timnath to meet the woman again, this time turning aside to see the carcass of the lion that he had killed. Bees were swarming all about the body of the lion and there was honey in its body. Samson reached in and took some of the honey and ate it and then gave some to his parents, not telling them where it came from. Being Jews, they would not have eaten anything that came from the carcass of a lion. By law, Samson was not supposed to eat from the lion either, but as we have seen, Samson was operating under covenant.

Honey was a sign of all things sweet and good in the Lord. It is the food that God mentioned would flow in the Promised Land when He spoke from the burning bush to Moses (Exodus 3:8). It was also the food that Jonathan ate when he had won a great battle over the Philistines, breaking his father’s order to fast (1 Samuel 14:27); and it was the choice food of John the Baptist (Matthew 3:4).

The lion is a symbol of strength and royalty, but can also be a sign of the aggressor. Jesus is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, but we also see Satan as our adversary, “as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). It is a lion that attacks the flocks of the shepherd David, and he grabs it by the beard and kills it. In the case of Samson, it is symbolic of another attack against God’s people.

Out of the belly of the aggressor came the sweetness of God’s grace. In the midst of great attack was a wonderful blessing. The story of the lion and Samson is a type of the enemy coming in like a flood to roar and frighten, only to have God bring a mighty miracle out of the midst of it, so that the believer can find nourishment.

Are you facing a lion today? Remember, all things work together for our good, for we are His Covenant children!

From a Harlot to a Grandma!

Joshua 2:1-24

The story of the conquest of Jericho would be incomplete without the salvation of Rahab the harlot. She lived on the town wall, strategically located to bring success in her line of work! It also provided a great stopping point for the spies that were sent in to access the strength of Jericho. We know how the story ends, with Rahab hanging a scarlet thread out of her window, and the army of Israel sparing her and her family. What we don’t think about often enough is that this woman was saved long before the thread came out the window.

Hebrews chapter 11 lists Rahab in the New Testament’s Hall of Fame of faith: “By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace” (Hebrews 11:31). Did you notice when she “perished not”? It was not when she obediently put the scarlet line in the window, but rather when she received the spies with peace. Her placement of the scarlet line was to save her physical life, and it was a testimony to all who would see that she had placed her faith in the army of God.

Rahab displayed her faith before the spies had even laid down on her roof, to hide from their pursuers: “I know that the Lord hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you…as soon as we heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the Lord your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath” (Joshua 2:9, 12).

What a profession of faith she had. Her actions afterward were the sign of an inward change (James 2:25). It was her initial faith that brought the spies to stop in her house, as they could have stopped anywhere, but the Holy Spirit had found a household of faith. Notice how our Father’s provision covers everyone. The spies found safe shelter and the harlot found a new life and a new hope.

After her rescue from Jericho, we do not know what she does from day-to-day within the camp of the Israelites, but she obviously adopts their ways and becomes a part of their society, because we do see her again, this time as one of only 4 women listed in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus (Matthew 1:5). She becomes the matriarchal head of the line that produces Boaz, king David and eventually, the Lord Jesus.

Whatever your lot in life, remember that every moment is another chance to change it all. You may have ruined many things and burned many bridges, but God is not looking for scarlet lines of obedience, just open hearts of faith. Don’t get me wrong, the obedience will come, but let us walk in the faith of Jesus Christ first, and all of us can change from who we are and become known by who we become.

Go in His peace and prosperity, with the abundant favor and blessings of God upon you in Jesus’ name.

Jesus: The Power to Get Wealth

Deuteronomy 8:17, 18

Let it be known that there is no such thing as a “prosperity gospel”. That term is tossed about by saint and sinner alike, to describe the message that God gives wealth. In truth, there is also no “health gospel” or “faith gospel”; there is only the “gospel of Jesus Christ”, for gospel means “good news” and He is the only true Good News!

With that said, there is an undeniable and beautiful part of God’s goodness that is called “the power to get wealth”. In Paul’s great description of the gospel of grace, he says that the gospel is the “power of God unto salvation” (Romans 1:16). The Greek word used for “salvation” includes all deliverance, preservation, safety and wholeness. When you enter into a relationship with God, it is no more by your own power, but by the power of Jesus Christ who has saved you. This salvation brings wholeness into every area of your life.

Within the context of our scripture God is not emphasizing the wealth, but rather the fact that all wealth and prosperity that they have will not have come by their own achievement but by His goodness. They will see their herds and flocks multiply, and their silver and gold as well (verse 13), but it will be God that does all of the providing.

For the blood-bought, covenant child of God, the blessings of heaven are just as inevitable, while the warning remains the same: you and I have the full assurance of heavens blessings, but none of them will come as a result of our own righteousness or consecration. As a son, you have all rights to the shoe, the ring and the best robe that your Father has to offer (see Luke 15 for the story of the Prodigal). It is always Him that gives the increase and then gets the glory, not because He is a glory hog, but it is so that all of your blessings will reaffirm covenant, “that he may establish his covenant” (verse 18).

Christ’s work at Calvary has entered all of us into a better covenant, with a whole new set of better promises. Jesus has taken the wrath of the Father against sin and thus we have righteousness imputed to us. We can now walk freely in His abundant grace and provision, knowing that He has given us all things freely and has done so through the finished work of Christ. Every blessing that God grants your way is His way of reminding you of His covenant of grace.

Give honor to God’s grace for every little thing that goes your way today. Even if you have a habit of thinking that these little things are coincidental; break that habit and see your loving Father behind all good things (James 1:17). As you praise Him for His abundant grace you can expect to see even more; for grace is most abundant when it is freely received (Romans 5:17).

How Do You See Yourself?

Numbers 13:26-33

The twelve spies that reported back to Moses regarding the land of Canaan gave a mixed report. All twelve were awed by the fruits of the land (verse 23) and by the milk and honey (verse 27), but ten of the spies felt that the inhabitants of the land were far too strong, and the walls, much too fortified for Israel to take it.

Based upon what they could see, their fears were certainly justified. Inhabiting the land were giants, and their size and strength intimidated the spies into changing the way they viewed their own selves. With giants in their sights, they saw themselves as “grasshoppers” and this attitude caused the giants to view them that way as well (verse 33).

You may view yourself as hopeless and helpless in the face of the giants of life. If that be the case, then you should know that your enemy will exploit this area of your thinking and keep you from hope, strength, and goodness and will perpetuate defeat on a daily basis. The reason for this is that in those moments, we have taken our eyes off of the provision of Christ and put them on our own ability to do the right thing. What Jesus did at the cross was for us! This work was a finished work and His great love for us has made us “more than conquerors” (Romans 8:37). We are complete in Him (Colossians 2:10), and we have been made “the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). If this is who we are in Christ, then why would we view ourselves as anything less?

The ten spies that doubted spoke their own fate into existence, “Would God we had died in this wilderness!” and so they do (Numbers 14:2). How sad that they had forgotten of God’s remarkable power to deliver in the face of overwhelming odds. We are often not much different; forgetting where we came from when Jesus saved us to where we are now. Though life gets rough, we should be careful about speaking our defeat when our victory was paid for at such a high cost.

Caleb and Joshua view the giants of the land as “bread for us” (14:9), having learned that God was able to deliver the largest of foes into the hands of Israel. We are either bread for our enemy or they are bread for us. Each believer must decide and then live accordingly.

Make your own decision today, to face the often overwhelming cares of this life in light of the finished work of the cross. You can both dwell on the size of the giants and begin to fear, or think of the size of the grapes and begin to rejoice! Be the grasshopper that can’t win or the warrior that cannot lose, and not due to your strength, but because of your Savior. This world can be “bread for us” (Numbers 14:9)

The Blood of Bulls and Goats

Leviticus 1:3-5

A priest in Israel had many important duties during the course of a day while working in the tabernacle. One of the most significant tasks was the pouring of the sacrificial blood onto the brazen altar, which sat near the door of the tabernacle. The blood was a foreshadowing of the blood of Christ, which would be shed at Calvary for the removal of our sin debt. The door is Christ, the only way to get to the Father (John 10:7).

The role of the one who had sinned was quite simple, but very important as well. If you sinned, you were to take a male from among your cattle and offer it of your own free will as a sacrifice. The priest inspected it to make sure that it was spotless and without blemish and then you laid your hand on its head as a type of the transference of your sin onto the body of this animal. Only then did you kill it, for it was now a sacrificial animal, bearing your sins in its body.

Notice that the priest did not inspect the sinner, but rather the sacrifice. The man was the one who had done wrong, not the animal, yet it was the animal that went through the full inspection to see if it qualified as a sacrifice. It was not that God did not recognize sin in the man, but the whole point of the sacrificial system was that God could be appeased while His prized creation could live. God thoroughly inspected His Son’s life and found Him to be spotless (2 Corinthians 5:21) which qualified Him to bear in Himself the sin of the entire human race; past, present and future. When the man symbolically transferred his sins onto the animal, it could then die. When Jesus bore our sins at the cross, He was ready to cry “It is finished” (John 19:30).

Not until Jesus cried “It is finished”, could He die! In that moment, He had fully made the payment for our sins, “once for all” (Hebrews 10:10). When you accept Him, you are accepting the one who did what bulls and goats could never do (Hebrews 10:4), for they could only cover up sin. These animals brought God no pleasure (10:6) while He was constantly pleased with His beloved Son (Luke 3:22).

The death of Jesus on the cross satisfied the wrath of God and now you can face this day with a clean conscience (Hebrews 9:14), knowing that you need not bring an animal into Him, for He has taken care of this once and for all. There is no longer a need for bulls and goats for we have our redeemer!

Be at peace today in the knowledge that since God has thoroughly inspected Jesus, He is not thoroughly inspecting you. When He sees into your life, He sees the finished work of His Son and that satisfies God. Fear not, this won’t lead you to a life of sin and shame. You are born-again, and your heart and desires have changed accordingly. You have been made righteous because your Lamb was made to be sin.

Any Old Bush Will Do

Exodus 3:1-4

Everyone has feelings of inadequacy once in a while, regardless of what one might do, or how well that they do it. These feelings, if not harnessed, can cause you to sit on your talents, instead of using them for God.

When God chose to speak to Moses on the backside of the desert to equip him to lead the Children of Israel out of Egypt, He spoke to him from a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. As a veteran of many nights sleeping under the stars, Moses had no doubt seen many brush fires, but this one caught his eye as there was no smoke accompanying the flame. Smoke denotes consumption, and this bush burned with fire, “and was not consumed” (verse 2).

God could have used anything to get Moses’ attention, but He chose an ordinary old bush to place His fire in. There is nothing special or unusual about His selection, but His touch on that selection turns it into a legendary story. You may see nothing special about you or your talents, but God is not looking for the spectacular, only the willing!

Paul wrote, “God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty” (1 Corinthians 1:27). I can think of few things more foolish than speaking from a burning bush, or few things weaker than a desert shrub, but God uses them so that, “no flesh should glory in his presence” (1:29).

Let your life be a bush used by God. Where the world burns us up and discards us when the fire isn’t as bright or as beautiful, the Master just keeps burning through us with His righteousness and true holiness. If you burn with the flames of condemnation and guilt then you burn up and you harm those who come to your light. However, when you light up your world with His love and kindness, it causes men to turn aside to see and believe, just as Moses did.

I fear that so many in the world have stopped turning to see the church, for they have been duped before by the same old wildfires of the past: fire and flash that lead to religious exhaustion. When God burns the bush, He gets the glory, because your fruit speaks continually of Him.

“You are the light of the world…Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14, 16)

Don’t wait for perfect knowledge or powerful revelation to go and light your world. Be a beacon of hope in a darkened society for someone who is looking for God’s love. Any old bush will do, for it is God that works in you (Philippians 2:13). You simply work out of you what He has worked in you and shine on!

It's A Brand New Day

Genesis 1:1,2

Both Genesis and John start with, “in the beginning”. Genesis tells of God creating, while John tells us that the Word (Jesus) was present in that creation. Whatever the beginning might be, Christ is there. He said as much of himself, “I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending” (Revelation 1:8); and again, “…the first and the last” (Rev. 1:11).

As you begin a brand new year, let The Beginning have all of your heart. If you have never accepted Christ as the price paid for your sins, there is no better way to start this year, than to place your confidence in Jesus and His finished work at the cross. Just accept Him as Savior and believe He will save you.

In this New Year, many shallow resolutions will be made by people hoping to drop those extra holiday pounds, or write their first novel, etc. Nearly just as many of those resolutions will be broken in short order. People often have good intentions, but very little resolve to see these things through.

When Jesus walked the earth, He was the Word that “dwelt among us” (John 1:14). When our beginning is set and established in Christ, it causes us to behold His glory, “as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth”. Allow Christ, who is grace and truth to establish you and to lead you into paths of righteousness all throughout this year.

Let your sorrows and cares of the previous year vanish with the turn of the calendar. Easier said than done, right? Notice that when Genesis 1:1 ends, the earth is in a chaotic state, but God is not satisfied to leave it there. The earth does not reform itself, but rather it sits and allows the Spirit of God to move on the face of the waters (vs. 2). The Hebrew word for “moved” in that verse is better translated “hovered”. His Holy Spirit loves to hover over your life and bring beauty out of chaos.

It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom (Luke 12:32), and it is His New Year’s Resolution to you to provide the gift of righteousness and the abundance of grace.

Go in that knowledge, and abundant grace is yours today!

Spiritual Heartburn

Luke 24:32

On the day of Christ’s resurrection, He appeared to two disciples while they walked the 7 miles from Jerusalem to Emmaus. Their eyes were withheld by God from knowing who Jesus was (Luke 24:16), so they spoke to Him as if He were any ordinary stranger making the journey. As they told Him of the events of the past three days, they revealed their doubts about the rumors of resurrection that they had heard and they appeared as if they were ready to abandon all hope. Christ speaks to them, and in doing so, shows each of us how we too can see Him now that He is alive forevermore.

Jesus could have simply revealed themselves to Him by speaking to them as old friends and by showing them His hands and His feet, but this gives you and me no help in having our own personal revelation of Jesus Christ. To reveal Himself, He begins at Moses and all the prophets and “He expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself” (Luke 24:27). This means that Jesus opened the Old Testament up to them as a way of finding Christ. Hidden in the codes of the Law and the symbolism of the Tabernacle and the prose of the Psalms was the Savior of the world.

If this is how Jesus preached in a post-resurrection world, perhaps we should take note! He ministered of Himself in all of the Old Testament, giving us a preaching template. We should shine the light on the hidden mysteries of the Bible, finding Jesus in every possible place. This journey from Jerusalem to Emmaus would have taken several hours by foot, so one can imagine all of the fascinating things that Jesus brought out of the scriptures in this amount of time.

Still blind to the fact that they were walking and talking with Jesus Himself, the two disciples beg Him to abide with them for dinner. They do not ask because they think He is Jesus; they are not yet aware of this, but they desire to be around Him because He has revealed Christ to them through the scriptures. This method of winning men still works. Show men Jesus in the Bible and they will want to be around you; saints and sinners alike. People love to have Christ revealed to them when He is “altogether lovely” (Song of Solomon 5:16).

As soon as Jesus breaks bread with them “their eyes were opened, and they knew Him” (Luke 24:31). When Jesus body is broken before our spiritual eyes, they are opened to great revelations of His love and grace. As we present a crucified Jesus; broken for the sins and sicknesses of man, we provide people with the opportunity for powerful revelations of Jesus Christ. When we feast on this type of bread (revelation) we too will say as these disciples, “Did not our heart burn within us, while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to us the scriptures?” (Luke 24:32)

Spiritual heartburn is the only kind of heartburn that you never want to get rid of! When you eat of His grace and glory, your heart burns with the warmth of His love for you. As you feast on the crucified Lamb, your spirit man longs for more and more of His saving knowledge. This is a longing that is the ultimate paradox in the universe: it provides you with absolute satisfaction while never leaving you satisfied.

As you feast on His goodness today, see Jesus in every little corner of your life. Notice the burn down in your heart as you have fresh revelations of His love and favor. Savor this moment, for Jesus paid a great price for that burn.

The Thorn in the Flesh

2 Corinthians 12:1-11

I have counseled many believers who claim that God has given them a thorn in the flesh. They speak of their chronic back pain or their various disabilities of body or mind as God’s way of keeping them humble. Through these testimonies, it appears that God is always switching sides; one minute fighting for us while the next minute, fighting against us. Rest assured your Father is better than that!

Paul states that he was given “a thorn in the flesh”, but does not tell us what that thorn is (2 Corinthians 12:7). While he never gives details about this thorn, he does however tell us more than is usually preached from this passage. He specifically describes his thorn in the flesh as being “the messenger of Satan to buffet me”. Messengers deliver messages which should be obvious. This takes away the possibility that Paul’s thorn was bodily weakness or repulsive appearance or poor vision as many commentators have claimed.

A messenger of Satan came against Paul “lest I should be exalted above measure”, which indicates that Paul viewed what the enemy was saying against him as a way to remain humble in spite of all of his previous revelations (verses 1-6). Paul does not blame the thorn on God, but gives God glory, seeing that God can teach us valuable lessons even when Satan is the one delivering the message.

After having sought God for deliverance from the stinging words of this messenger, Christ says to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). God’s promise is that for every message that the enemy delivers to Paul to weaken him, God will offer an abundance of grace to counter it. The more that Paul is attacked; the more that God pours in His grace. This causes Paul to “gladly therefore…glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (verse 9).

Once Paul has seen how powerful that God’s grace is in his weakest hour, he welcomes the weak hour! He is so excited about persecutions and distresses that he says, “I am become a fool in glorying” (verse 11). In other words, “It is ridiculous how much grace and favor is coming my way whenever the enemy attacks. Because of this, I welcome the attacks and people think I’m crazy!”

Do you have a thorn in the flesh? It is quite possible, but let’s identify it correctly instead of slapping that label onto something that it is not. Your sicknesses and diseases have been paid for in the body of Jesus Christ (Matthew 8:17), so God CANNOT take sicknesses off of Jesus and put them onto you to teach you a lesson. He loves you more than you love your own children, and even in their worst moments, would you wish cancers and tumors onto them?

Perhaps there are attacks that continue to be leveled against you causing you to cling ever tighter to God’s grace. This may very well be a thorn in the flesh, sent by the enemy to torment you, but God is turning it into a beautiful opportunity to both teach and prosper. As soon as you see it for what it is, the door to taking pleasure in the moment is opened to you and you are ready to say, “when I am weak, then am I strong” (verse 10).

There is no need to ask for a thorn in the flesh, Satan will find you eventually. When it arrives, be prepared for God’s abundant grace to be even more evident in your life as the power of Christ rests upon you.