Weighing the Word: John Two

This week's Weighing the Word has taken us to the second chapter of the Gospel of John.
.

I begin, remarkably, with the simplicity of setting and timing. Let's review. Jesus was baptized near Bethbara (Bethany) and within two days traveled to the region of Galilee. On His way there, he aquired some followers, Disciples. These men were Andrew, Simon Peter, Philip, Nathanael, and one unamed disciple of John, the baptizer. The close of John One finds us with Jesus and these five men in the town of Bethsaida. By this time, we have been three days with Jesus.
.

Which brings us to the second chapter's reading. The chapter begins with timing: "On the third day." It struck me that these first verses of John take us through a succession of days in the life of Jesus. This would have taken place the "third day" after Jesus was baptized. So... This was before Jesus was taken to the desert and tempted (Matthew 4, Luke 4)?

We also find that Jesus has traveled once again to Cana. There He, His mother and the five disciples attend a wedding. In verse two, we learn Jesus went for a very obvious reason - He was invited.

1. Jesus goes where He is invited.

Jesus and his family likely knew the families who were hosting the wedding. Mary's concern for the reputation of the groom's family seems to indicate a relationship. Then the dilemma. Picture Mary leaning into her son and whispering in His ear, "They have run out of wine, my Son."

And Jesus' response, "Dear woman, what does that have to do with me? It's not quite my time to shine." In essence, His response is "Not Yet."
.
But, Mary's faith in Jesus is persistent. She turns and tells the servants to do whatever He tells them to do.
.
And, just like that, God changed His mind? I don't think it really comes down to that. Jesus taught that we are to honor the authority placed before us in our lives. So, how could He preach and teach "Honor your father and mother..." If He, Himself, refused to honor His own mother. I believe her persistence and faith in Him moved His heart to have compassion on her.
.
2. The Miracle.
.
What was significant about this miracle? Here are a few things I observed:

* The persistence of faith expressed in Mary's request of Jesus prompted Him to action even though His initial response was "Not yet."
.
* The wine was not made from just any old water in any old pot. It was made, in fact, from water that was set aside and used for ceremonial cleansing. These posts held anywhere from 20-30 gallons of water each. Jesus told the servants to the fill the pots and they did - the brim. Overflowing. That is approximately 120-180 gallons of water. In the NKJV it says that water was set aside for the purification of the Jews.
.
* Water in the Bible often represents many things, but in this case - the picture is clear. Water meant to be used for Cleansing was used instead for what? For celebration, for anointing? Think about this. The miracle at Cana represents precisely what Jesus had experienced just days before in the Jordan river. A baptism of repentence in the waters of the Jordan - a cleansing. And the anointing and blessing of His Father as He came out. Then others believed in Him because of what they had witnessed.
.
How beautiful is that picture? That when we submit ourselves in obedience and persistence of faith, the result is purification (cleansing) through repentance and the anointing and blessing of the Father upon our lives.

A few other notes of interest from the wedding reading: The symblism of Jesus' first miracle being performed at this wedding in Cana - is not lost on me. This entire thing will culminate in the ultimate Wedding Feast when we all gather in heaven to spend eternity with our Father and Bridegroom. HMM! HMMM! HMMMM! Why did Jesus say His time had not yet come? As I said in the first paragraph, I believe the context of the Scripture indicates that this wedding took place before the Spirit led Him into the desert to be tempted for forty days. Why?
.
The next verse: "This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory..." (vs. 11) Jesus knew that the temptation and testing had to come before He went forth. Jesus was telling His mother that it was not yet time for His glory as God's Only Begotten Son to be revealed.
.
Jesus saved the best for last... Let's hold onto that truth. He didn't throw the best out there right at the beginning - He could change the water into wine at any moment. He could have literally changed the bad wine into better wine... good wine. But, He didn't. He waited until they had exhausted all of their resources and then gave them not just what was better, but what - indeed was best.
.
After the wedding, Jesus travels and spends a few days (NLT) in Capernaum, where His brothers join this traveling caravan of people. Why did His brothers join them? Well, because Passover was coming - that is why. The annual pilgrimage to Jerusalem was at hand. It was time for the family to make their trip to the holy city to observe the custom of Passover. Jesus' ministry begins and ends with Passover.

Upon arriving in Jerusalem, the family likely paid a visit to the temple to make the necessary sacrifices. Jesus' passion for His Father and the temple that bore His presence and His name overflowed as He watched the moneychangers and the vendors selling their wares right in the temple courts. The indignation and righteous anger rose up in Him and He made a whip and scourged those who would defile His Father's house. He drove out the corruption and the greed that sat before Him. His disciples even remembered the verse Psalm regarding the Messiah's zeal for God's House. But, is it lost on anyone else... Just days before He was obedient to His authority when His mother asked for a miracle. Then this day - He breaks the law of the Romans by interfering with the work of the money-changers. And still... Pilate would say three years later, "I find no fault in Him." HMMM!

I noted the following points:

1. Evidence requires little faith.

The Jews were asking for evidence of His identity at every turn. They wanted EVIDENCE to prove His authority. But, they did not realize that the requirement of evidence exhibits very little faith. Jesus was living and observing the traditional Jewish customs of His day, but He was also redefining the standard and the truth about what would come after Him. The Jews were so caught up in their own ideas of "God" that they missed Him. Legalism always blinds eyes, deafens ears, dulls hearts and confuses understanding.

2. Faith confirms evidence.

The disciples and others who witnessed the miracles and words of Jesus during those days in Jerusalem came to believe He was the one who had been promised. They put their faith in Him.
In turn, they recognized the evidence the Jewish Leaders had been looking for but unable to see. You see, I believe that verses 24-25 speak so loudly to us today:

"But Jesus did not commit (entrust, NLT) Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man."

Jesus understood that humanity is limited. We struggle with the limitations of our flesh and a fallen existence. He did not need anyone to explain to Him why the leaders wouldn't believe Him and why common, ordinary folks in the streets would. He already knew and recognized those He came into contact with everyday.

I believe this brings clarity to us as ministers of His gospel. Jesus never got caught up in what the people expected of Him. What they thought the Messiah should look like. He was discerning and focused on one thing: The will of His Father. Jesus came to do the work of His Father in the person of the Son, the Messiah. His ministry demonstrated His anointing and His authority had come from God the Father. The miracles demonstrated His power and His Love that overflowed in Him through the Holy Spirit.
Those who experienced His presence without expectation did not question Him - they simply believed. Jesus must always be glorified.

I read these translations as I met with God this week. If you have read John Two this week, please share your insights in a blog post or comment. If you share a blog post please use MR. LINKY and link us directly to your post so we can read and learn from your insights as well! Thanks for Weighing the Word with me this week. It's been a joy!

Tuesday's In Other Words: The Joy of My Salvation

Blessed and enviably happy [with a happiness produced by the experience of God’s favor and especially conditioned by the revelation of His matchless grace] are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted!
Matthew 5:4 (AMP)

.

This week's IOW quote is from a sermon taught by Robert Morris. When he began the series "Happiness Redefined" he began by explaining just what the Amplified version of the Bible shows us, that being blessed in a Biblical sense means happy and enviable. I could relate to what he was teaching because a season of mourning had been my life for many months. But then he took the message to a new level:

“Is it possible we could experience the joy of our salvation if we mourned [over our sin] as if someone had died? We cannot experience joy without mourning.”

~Pastor Robert Morris, Gateway Church. From the Sermon: “Those who mourn are happy”~

.

Throughout this series, Pastor Robert drove home the point that the Beautitudes were about more than just a state of Blessing, but he pointed to each step in our Spiritual Journey with God from Salvation to growth through Persecution. Every level listed in the Beautitudes represented a milestone in the Christian experience and a new state of Blessing that followed. So when he got to this message and shared this insight I began to say - that is what I've experienced... Truly. Not in the grief over my son, but in the grief I had experienced over my past, my sin and the cost of Salvation paid on my behalf.

.

"Do you not know that your body is the temple (the very sanctuary) of the Holy Spirit Who lives within you, Whom you have received [as a Gift] from God? You are not your own, 20 You were bought with a price [purchased with a preciousness and paid for, made His own]. So then, honor God and bring glory to Him in your body."

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (AMP)

.

For me I had shame, regret and a deep sense of guilt over my sinful past - over the prodigal years I spent squandering my youth in wild living and contaminating the lives of my children with ungodly, unsanctified behavior. I hated the person I had become back then and spent years running from the truth of my existence. I was certain God was angry with me, and would want nothing more to do with me if I poured out all those years of painful, self-induced misery before Him.

.

And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord! the Lord! a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abundant in loving-kindness and truth, 7 Keeping mercy and loving-kindness for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but Who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children, to the third and fourth generation.

Exodus 34:6-7 (AMP)

.

I was in every way guilty of the most heinous and vile sins. I was the harlot caught in adultery waiting to be stoned, the thief waiting for them to cut off my hands, and worst of all I walked into a church as the new wife of a good, unsaved man and pretended - yes, PRETENDED to be good, too. The only problem with a past full of sin - there are skeletons from that dead life wondering around in your closet just DYING to get out. Better to get them out before God than in front of a congregation full of your "closest" friends. Get my meaning?

.

"If we say we have no sin [refusing to admit that we are sinners], we delude and lead ourselves astray, and the Truth [which the Gospel presents] is not in us [does not dwell in our hearts]. 9 If we [freely] admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises) and will forgive our sins [dismiss our lawlessness] and [continuously] cleanse us from all unrighteousness [everything not in conformity to His will in purpose, thought, and action]. 10 If we say (claim) we have not sinned, we contradict His Word and make Him out to be false and a liar, and His Word is not in us [the divine message of the Gospel is not in our hearts]. "

1 John 1:8-10 (AMP)

.

As a growing Christian I had heard many leaders in the church say that their past was covered by the Blood and they did not have to deal with that past anymore because it was forgiven. I began to claim that for my past, too. Only problem: I had never surrendered my past to God allowing Him to cover it by His Blood. I convinced myself there was no need to confess those sins because I had already said, "God I'm sorry for everything I've ever done wrong. Thank you for forgiving me in Jesus Name, AMEN."

.

But, was that enough?

.

Not according to 1 John 1:9... Confession. Naming and agreeing with God what I had knowingly done against His will and His Word to put Christ upon that cross for my personal sins. That is confession. I had more than ten years of past that I had left unconfessed. Let me tell you something about the enemy of our soul... He is waiting for us to leave some stone unturned, some sin unconfessed and uncovered - He is just chomping at the bit to get to God's throne before we do and the words he speak resound in our ears -
.

UNWORTHY, UNHOLY, SINNER, BAD, HARLOT, SHAMEFUL, UGLY, UNGRATEFUL, LOSER!
.

"10 Then I heard a strong (loud) voice in heaven, saying, Now it has come—the salvation and the power and the kingdom (the dominion, the reign) of our God, and the power (the sovereignty, the authority) of His Christ (the Messiah); for the accuser of our brethren, he who keeps bringing before our God charges against them day and night, has been cast out! 11 And they have overcome (conquered) him by means of the blood of the Lamb and by the utterance of their testimony, for they did not love and cling to life even when faced with death [holding their lives cheap till they had to die for their witnessing]."

Revelation 12:10-11 (AMP)

.

You name the insult and he is hurling it like a dart straight at your heart of hearts. He used all of those and more on me. I didn't want to confess my sins to God because it meant I would have to face the DEPRAVITY of MY OWN SOUL. I didn't believe I could handle facing what was hidden deep within my heart. It was not because God could not forgive it. He already had. It was because I didn't trust that promise. I believed that if confessed my sins would outweight His grace and I couldn't bear to face that possibility. .

.

But God already knew that. In 2003, He arranged six weeks to uncover that sinful heart of mine and expose my sins so we could examine them and He could cleanse me of all that mucky, messy unrighteousness I had walked in as a young woman. He had been waiting for me to trust him with the most bruised and broken places of my life. To confess to Him the most shameful and defiled moments so that He could wash them clean. Heal them. And make me new.

One night, as I lay in bed sleeping a voice startled me awake.

.

...GET UP AND WATCH THE VIDEO...

.

Believing my dinner was talking and my dreams were a bit too vivid. I glanced at the clock. 3:00 AM. I lay back down and pulled the covers up snuggly around my neck. I sighed heavily before closing my weary eyes begging for a few more hours of sleep..

.

...I said GET UP. Watch the Video...

God?

.

Watch the video.

.

I realized then I was not going to get any rest until I watched the second week's video from Beth Moore's study, "When Godly People Do Ungoldy Things." I kicked out of covers grumbling under my breath much the way a disgruntled child gets up to ready themselves for school. NOT A HAPPY CAMPER..

.

I walked in the living room, fumbled in the dimly lit room for the videos and pulled out the DVD of choice. I hastily grabbed my book off the box and sat myself down with a HRUMMPHH! in the recliner. I didn't even bother to turn on the light. .

.

Half way through my heart broke into a jillion pieces as every vile and heinous thing I had ever done began to run through my mind. My sin was overwhelming. The volumes of lies, vanity, profanity and shameless flaunting of God's standards ripped at my heart, my soul and my mind. I felt like a knife pierced my heart each time a new memory clouded my mind. One by one, I began to confess those horrific images out loud to God. I was on my knees, face to the ground weeping bitterly over my sin. I confessed my unworthiness and that it was my sin that had cost the Savior His life not just the curse of sin left to us by Adam and Eve in the garden. My choices had crucified Christ. I was broken apart, aching inside - not because of what it had cost me, but because of the precious price that had been paid in my place. I was weeping because of what my sin had cost God.
.

That's when it happened. In the midst of an exhausting, full-on ugly cry I confessed the last of the memories that had surfaced in my heart. Then I lay there weeping, struggling to find clarity when I suddenly asked, "God? What do you want me to do now?".

...Go look in the mirror....

Look in the mirror? But God, I've been crying. There's....

... I said, Look in the mirror....

Okay..

.

There in that mirror I saw the face of a broken woman. A woman who had finally come clean. A woman who had let go of everything that had been holding God at arm's length for so long and I saw the truth. .

.

Look what a mess you made, out of the beauty I created..

Not a moment of that sentence was condemning or mean-spirited. He said, I AM the beauty He created. A few week's later I came face to face with the price that was paid for me. The cross of Christ and His crucifixion described in graphic detail on May 3, 2003. That month in the Spring semester of 2003 changed my life.

.

Therefore with joy will you draw water from the wells of salvation. 4 And in that day you will say, Give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name and by means of His name [in solemn entreaty]; declare and make known His deeds among the peoples of the earth, proclaim that His name is exalted!

Isaiah 12:3-4 (AMP)

.

I ran to God with my confessions. .

If I found myself in the midst of a sin, conviction overtook my heart and I poured it to God right that moment. I still pray daily and tell on myself to Him. I tell Him everything I know I've done and I ask Him to make me aware of anything that I have left unconfessed. Oh and the beauty of it is that He does it so gently, so kindly - not accusing or angry. He just says, "See Here, Child. This is what I want to deal with." And it is done.

.

The hardest part for me was receiving that grace. But just a few months ago I stood in my bathroom with a song in my heart I didn't understand. Whitney Houston's voice rang through my heart "The Greatest Love of all is happening to me... Learning to love yourself, it is the greates love of all."

.

I turned my chin to the sky and cried out to GOD, "Why is that the song in my heart today?".

Then I saw my reflection in the mirror. His love washed over me anew. He was singing that song over me - the Greatest Love of all is God's love, and it has been happening to me over the last few years in a mighty way. He wants me to see myself through His eyes, live my life in His will and receive His forgiveness with a heart full of joy for the Salvation that I have been afforded..

.

That day as Pastor Robert taught that message on mourning resulting is us being happy, he concluded the message with this Question: "What if we really mourned over our sin as if someone had died?".

.

BECAUSE SOMEBODY DID..

.

2 Looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus, Who is the Leader and the Source of our faith [giving the first incentive for our belief] and is also its Finisher [bringing it to maturity and perfection]. He, for the joy [of obtaining the prize] that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising and ignoring the shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God. .

.

3 Just think of Him Who endured from sinners such grievous opposition and bitter hostility against Himself [reckon up and consider it all in comparison with your trials], so that you may not grow weary or exhausted, losing heart and relaxing and fainting in your minds. .

.

4 You have not yet struggled and fought agonizingly against sin, nor have you yet resisted and withstood to the point of pouring out your [own] blood. .

5 And have you [completely] forgotten the divine word of appeal and encouragement in which you are reasoned with and addressed as sons? My son, do not think lightly or scorn to submit to the correction and discipline of the Lord, nor lose courage and give up and faint when you are reproved or corrected by Him; .

6 For the Lord corrects and disciplines everyone whom He loves, and He punishes, even scourges, every son whom He accepts and welcomes to His heart and cherishes. .

7 You must submit to and endure [correction] for discipline; God is dealing with you as with sons. For what son is there whom his father does not [thus] train and correct and discipline? .

.

9 Moreover, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we yielded [to them] and respected [them for training us]. Shall we not much more cheerfully submit to the Father of spirits and so [truly] live? .

10 For [our earthly fathers] disciplined us for only a short period of time and chastised us as seemed proper and good to them; but He disciplines us for our certain good, that we may become sharers in His own holiness.

Hebrews 12:2-7, 9-10 (AMP)

.

OH I DO LOVE HIM SO!

.

.

.

.

If you would like to share your insights about today's quote, please link up to your own post here using Mr. Linky and then leave me a comment. Thank you so much for stopping by today! I'm so blessed to have been able to share this quote with you.

For more information about Tuesday's In Other Words, please visit Loni at Writing Canvas and check it out!

This Monday Morning...

I believe it was Garfield who HATED Mondays... Well, this Monday I don't hate the day, but I am very frustrated about something. MY EMAIL! Yahoo has shut down my account for some or other reason and so I am now diverting everyone to my gmail account. SO... If you happen to be a person I regularly email please click on my profile and shoot me an email so I can save your addy to my contacts list as all my contacts went away along with my yahoo email account. Next time I will be importing before moving beyond the new account status! OH MY!

.

Other than that - this is a great Monday Morning. I have the first session of the first of four retreat segments ready to type up ... And the makings of a second session for the first segment all ready to begin hashing it out with God. I'm so excited about this. God gives me all this great Scripture then I mull it over, write it out and sit down with hubs and we walk through it all. It is so good and it is so good... Did I say that? Oh Yeah, I guess I did.

.

The greatest part is this is so outside what my natural tendancy is - normally I would slide around comparing commentaries and digging into word meanings, but God gives me the lessons, then points me to Scriptures and then the Holy Spirit just opens my eyes to see how it relates. The first segment is on Redeeming the Covenant and God took me to a passage in Galatians I've never even considered before. He then pulled it together with the passages on marriage I had already pulled out to review.

.

OH HE IS SO GOOD!

.

I wrote over at the RANCH BLOG that I won't be sharing those lessons online because I have a sense that I need to "protect" this information for the time being. I want people who experience them to receive the impartation of the experience with them... For now, Hubs and I are growing through these lessons together and then preparing to take these messages to the public setting via conference retreats once we've discovered where God is taking us with them.

.

Now I'm off... with a bank account to reconcile, a day of Bible study homework and a pile of laundry on my list of things to do... I better scoot! Here is our Bible reading that Scott and shared in our devotion this morning:

.

"BEHOLD, HOW good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! 2 It is like the precious ointment poured on the head, that ran down on the beard, even the beard of Aaron [the first high priest], that came down upon the collar and skirts of his garments [consecrating the whole body]. 3 It is like the dew of [lofty] Mount Hermon and the dew that comes on the hills of Zion; for there the Lord has commanded the blessing, even life forevermore [upon the high and the lowly]." Psalms 133:1-3 (AMP)

.

Aren't those just the sweetest Words? He is so good!

I'm Drinking from a Saucer....

.

I went into a great search the other night looking for the song whose chorus begins with that line.

.

Why?
.

'Cause someone gave me a gift and a word of exhortation related to that song once and I had never heard it. I've told many people the story of the teacup, but I had not heard the song. I'll share the song with you at the end of this post, but for now I want to talk to you about the OVERFLOW of Grace that I learned about from this little gift.

.

"... You anoint my head with oil;

my [brimming] cup runs over."
Psalms 23:5b (AMP)

.

In the Amplified version of Psalm 23:5, it says my [brimming] cup runs over. That word translated "runs over" in the Hebrew is rewāyāh. The Complete Words Study Old Testament Dictionary defines rewāyāh as a feminine noun referring to abundance; a state of overflowing. It refers to an overabundance of something. It is used figuratively of the cup of life and blessing from the Lord (Ps. 23:5). It refers to the richness, safety, and blessing of God's deliverance from enemies (Ps. 66:12).

From Vine's there is a Hebrew word translated "to fill" which also indicates this state of overflow: "Mālēʾ (also mālâ) can also mean "to fill up" in an exhaustive sense: "…And the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle" (Exod. 40:34). In this sense an appetite can be "filled up," "satiated," or "satisfied." Male is sometimes used in the sense "coming to an end" or "to be filled up," to the full extent of what is expected.

The Bible Knowledge Commentary gives us this for Psalm 23:5:

23:5. In this verse the scene changes to a banquet hall where a gracious host provides lavish hospitality. Under this imagery the psalmist rejoiced in the Lord’s provision. What was comforting to David was that this was in the presence of his enemies. Despite impending danger, the Lord spread out a table for him, that is, God provided for him.

The image of anointing the head with oil, which was refreshing and soothing, harmonizes with the concept of a gracious host welcoming someone into his home. In view of the table and the oil David knew that his lot in life (his cup) was abundant blessing from the Lord. (emphasis added)

In the Greek, this word found in Vine's dictionary gives me insight into this idea of superabundance.

Strong's Number: Original Word: περισσεία, perisseia
Usage Notes: is translated "overflowing" in Jas. 1:21, RV. See ABUNDANCE, A, No. 2. (Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words)

Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. ~ James 1:21 (NKJV)

**In this instance it is indicative of the overflow - exceedingly great nature - of wickedness and man's amoral condition rendering him in need of salvation.

Strong's Number: Original Word: ὑπερπερισσεύω, hyperperisseuō
Usage Notes: "to abound more exceedingly," Rom. 5:20, is used in the Middle Voice in 2 Cor. 7:4, RV, "I overflow (with joy)," AV, "I am exceeding (joyful)." See ABUNDANCE, B, No. 2. (Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words)

Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, ~ Romans 5:20 (NKJV)

** Now I want you to see this. In this passage of Scripture - the word translated abound or abounded three times is two different Greek words. The highlighted word abounded, "But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more," is the Greek Strong's 5248, hyperperisseuō. But the other two words rendered "abound, abounded" are Greek Strong's 4121, pleonazō: defined in Strong's as "from (pleion); to do, make or be more, i.e. increase (transitive or intransitive); by extension to superabound :- abound, abundant, make to increase, have over."

So we can read this Romans 5:20 to say: "Moreover the law entered that the offense might increase, to be made or done more, to superabound or have over (it's way). But where sin increased, was made to be or done more, superabounded or had it's way, grace [increased, was made to be or done more, superabounded or had its way] exceedingly more." (Bold lettering indicates translation taken from definitions provided, emphasis added is mine).

I just have to sit here a minute and take that in!

And if I got back to the Bible Knowledge Commentary to reconcile what I have just stated:

5:20-21. A remaining question in this discussion is, Where does the Mosaic Law fit into all this and why? Paul explained, The Law was added so that the trespass (paraptōma, cf. vv. 15-19) might increase (“abound”). The word “added” should be rendered “came in beside,” for it translates the verb pareisēlthen. Two similar verbs, eisēlthen and diēlthen, were used in verse 12. Galatians 2:4 is the only other place in the New Testament that uses the Greek verb for “came in beside.”

Is the statement in Romans 5:20a a purpose or a result clause? The coming of the Mosaic Law (clearly meant here in light of vv. 13-14) did result in the abounding of “the trespass” (the consequence of any law), but (also in the light of vv. 13-14 and 4:15) the Mosaic Law came in “so that” (purpose) abounding sin might be recognized as abounding trespass.

The result was that where sin increased (lit., “abounded”; cf. 5:20) grace increased all the more (“overflowed superlatively”; cf. “overflow” in v. 15). What a contrast! No matter how great human sin becomes, God’s grace overflows beyond it and abundantly exceeds it. No wonder Paul wrote that God’s grace “is sufficient” (2 Cor. 12:9). God’s goal (hina, so, introduces a purpose clause) is that His grace might reign through righteousness (the righteousness of Christ provided for people) to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Once again Paul spoke of reigning in connection with life. In verse 17 those who received God’s gift “reign in life” through Christ. Here God’s grace is personified as reigning and bringing eternal life.

By the time the Apostle Paul had reached this point he had not only described how God’s provided righteousness is revealed in justification but he also was anticipating how it is to be revealed through regeneration and sanctification.

DID YOU GET THAT? The Law came not just as a set of rules to live by, but to exemplify the overflow of sinfulness in the HUMAN condition. Thus, making us realize our need for God's OVERFLOWING, SUPERABUNDANT and EXCEEDINGLY MORE Grace! Whereever sin has increased or is increasing in the World, God's Grace always increases more!

OH MY THAT IS A REVELATION to build our lives on.

I'm overwhelmed. I mean... Really. I need to get on my knees and type this from the floor because it is so what I have been living out of for the last two or three years, but unable to fully explain until just now.

You see, God's grace is all we need. We don't have to work and earn it. His Word tells us so much about this - David realized that God was all He needed, not just the provider but the Provision Himself. Just as I wrote in the study of the Hebrew name Jehovah Jireh. Living every day totally dependent on God and the power and guidance of His Holy Spirit we have all we need to do all He requires of us through Christ who paid it all. Not some, not on time, but all was paid by grace and receive it by faith.

Living in superabundance is so beautifully expressed in the song from which the title of this post comes... I've included it at the end of this post.

Where sin abounds in my life, grace has the opportunity to abound even more. That is why Jesus said of the woman who anointed His feet with oil that those who have been forgiven much love much - because we give back out of the overflow of the grace that we have received.

"I'm drinkin' from a saucer, 'cause my cup has overflowed." ~ From "Drinking from a Saucer" written by Jimmy Dean

Much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving, may God's blessings truly abound in your life this Holiday Season as you sip from your saucer and may your cup always run over.

Our Bridegroom, Our Husband - Ish

I am having some particular difficulty getting my computer to operate at an optimum level today! Please forgive me but I would not like to push this post into this afternoon and then be stressed out and rushing for my class tonight!
.
I will return tomorrow afternoon and make the post good... Until then, be blessed!

Tuesday's In Other Words: Credited as Righteousness

Miriam (Mipa) at Miriam Pauline's Monologue is hosting this week's IOW. If you would like to participate, just copy the quote above and write your own post In "Other"
Words about this week's quote.

------------------------------------------------------

Even the demons believe that God exists and shudder. Belief in the existence of God is not enough to be called by the name of His Son. Belief in the existence of God does not guarantee us the promise of heaven and eternal life with the God in whom we believe. The kind of faith that is credited as righteousness is the faith that declares Jesus as Lord and Savior, the God who redeems that which is lost and restores brokenness and overcame the grave. The One and Only Son of God who came to seek and save that which was lost.

When I read this quote I think of Abraham. Abraham who sent one son off to the desert with his wife's handmaid, Hagar, and entrusted his life to the Lord and His promise for Ishmael. Only to be given an even more difficult task.

I think of how God called him to give up the promise to see if Abraham's faith was in God or in the child God had given him. However, as we read in Genesis 22, Abraham acted faithfully entrusting His son's life to God and believing that if God called him to sacrifice the child of promise, that God would indeed bring Him back from the death and that is exactly what God did.

.
My favorite part of the retelling in Genesis 22 is when Isaac asks his father on the way up the mountain, "I see the altar. I see the knife. But, Father, who will provide the lamb?"
.
Abraham's Answer: "The Lord will provide the Lamb."
.
How Abraham's heart and love for his son must have raged against his willingness to be obedient to the Lord even in death.

.
I have never questioned God on the death of my son, Justin. I know there is a better purpose and plan in it all. I have experienced deep comfort and peace in the arms of my Savior over this issue. I had to trust God to be as good as His Word and that He would not let me stumble or fall even in the most devastating circumstances. I could have raged against Him and cried out about the injustice... I could have renounced my faith in Him because life had not worked out the way I had planned and the answers to my prayers for my son were often the situation growing much worse rather than better. Anytime we experienced a moment of reprieve in his life, it would seem it was only the calm before a much more violent storm. Yet, in it all, I never stopped praying, believing, asking or hoping that God would deliver on the words spoken over my son all his life.

And what about Ishmael? What happened to Abraham's other son? Hagar ran from the harshness of her mistress while pregnant with Ishmael, she ran to the desert where she encountered the Lord and received a promise. Had she not believed God for that promise, she could not have returned to the harsh treatment of her mistress and endured for the sake of her child. She returned to her mistress and endured the harshness with the promise that the Lord saw her agony and would take care of Hagar and her unborn child. She went back only to return to the desert once more. Only to watch as her son almost die... And the God who sees, El Roi, He saw Hagar and Ishmael and had mercy on them - just as He did with Isaac and Abraham on the mountain. Sometimes, receiving the promise means believing God while returning to places you had once thought the door would be closed forever.

This Psalm comforts me when I find myself revisited by haunting moments of my past - places and things that have been long done but have not been dealt with between the Lord and I. Things I'd just asoon never revisist. However, God in His mercy would not allow me to be pushed back to those places unless He intended to help me and bless me through them so that those circumstances could never make me fall again.

When I find myself in the grips of self-defeating life patterns, going back again and again to what has wrought havoc and destruction in my life, I am learning to ask God why I keep going back and how this works in His plan for my life. He is ever faithful. He restores my heart, my mind and my soul in those moments and always provides a way out for me. He then cleanses me of it and redeems the memory to show me where He was and what He was doing during those dark and painful times. It is truly for Freedom that Christ has set us Free. Going back does not mean revisiting and reclaiming the shame and destruction of a particular period of my life, going back means believing by faith that if I entrust my past to God and allow Him to redeem it - it will be used to reveal His good and glory in the life of another and in turn bring restoration and healing to me. He is faithful. He never forsakes us. He asks only that we would believe.

"What does the Scripture say? 'Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.'" ~ Romans 4:3 (NIV)

God gave Abraham credit for trusting His word. He gave Abraham credit for believing in Him through much adversity - and He will give you credit, too. Not for how you failed Him, but for how you trusted in Him when the times were hard, the memories painful and so difficult to understand. Trust Him completely let Him redeem your past as He delivers you into a glorious future. He truly is making all things new.

------------------------------------------------------------

For more info about In "Other Words", check out Loni's blog at Writing Canvas.

Melek - Our King

This week we study the Hebrew word Melek. Melek is translated King. Throughout the Psalms, God is called Israel's King and not only Israel's King, but they believed that He was King to all nations and that all kings were subject to Him. "He changes times and seasons; he sets up kings and deposes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning." Dan 2:21 (NIV)

.

Today we are going to look at how God's plan was to be Israel's King from the beginning and how He established His Son, Jesus as King of Kings. In Psalm 72:1-3 we see a Messianic prophecy predicting the establishment of Jesus, the Christ, as the Lord's righteous and just Millenial King.

.

First of all if we go back to Genesis, we will find that Abraham and his descendants were led not by King, but by God. God was their King. Abraham and his family and servants did battle with the kings of the earth and God provided victory. Let's look at the Hebrew word and its definition from Strong's Hebrew and Greek Dictionary before we go any further:

.

Hebrew Strong's Number: 4428
Hebrew Word: ‏מֶלֶךְ‎
Transliteration: melek
Phonetic Pronunciation:meh'-lek
Root: from , Greek
Cross Reference: TWOT - 1199a
Part of Speech: n m
Vine's Words: Kingdom

Usage Notes:

English Words used in KJV:
king 2518 royal 2 Hammelech 1 Malcham 1 Moloch 1 [Total Count: 2523]

from (malak); a king :- king, royal.
.

In the book of Genesis we find a curious king. He is the King of Salem (Salem is translated Peace), and he is also a priest. His name is Melchizedek and he came to the aid of Abraham after he had battled many other kings and was facing yet another king, the King of Sodom. Melchizedek provided bread and wine for Abraham in his time of need. Communion, reprieve, redemption are all exhibited in the three short verses of Melchizedek's story.

.

However, Hebrews 7 gives a bird's eye view of this king and why his appearance in those early chapters of Genesis is so important.

.

1 This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him, 2 and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, his name means "king of righteousness"; then also, "king of Salem" means "king of peace." 3 Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, like the Son of God he remains a priest forever. 4 Just think how great he was: Even the patriarch Abraham gave him a tenth of the plunder! 5 Now the law requires the descendants of Levi who become priests to collect a tenth from the people--that is, their brothers--even though their brothers are descended from Abraham. 6 This man, however, did not trace his descent from Levi, yet he collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. 7 And without doubt the lesser person is blessed by the greater. 8 In the one case, the tenth is collected by men who die; but in the other case, by him who is declared to be living. 9 One might even say that Levi, who collects the tenth, paid the tenth through Abraham, 10 because when Melchizedek met Abraham, Levi was still in the body of his ancestor.
.

Hebrews 7:1-10 (NIV)

.

Hebrews 7 establishes Melchizedek as a priest of the highest order. Not as a priest of the tribe of Levi ordained hundreds of years later after the exodus from Egypt, but a priest to whom even Levi paid a tithe to through his ancestor, Abraham. A king and a priest offering bread and wine. Sound like anyone you know?

.

We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.
Heb 6:19-20 (NIV)

.

Christ was a priest - not in the order of Levi who was of the priestly lineage and served in the temple. Instead, He was a priest in the order of Melchizedek. A King of Peace who was also a priest. A King who came out and served the chosen man of God bread and wine and collected a tenth offering of all the plunder Abraham had amassed during his battles with foreign kings.
.

In Christ we not only have a King to whom we are to submit ourselves to, but also a King who has a heart to care for His subjects, His people. He hears our pleas from His throne and He is the source of our hope and the anchor for our souls (Hebrews 6).
Again we see in Psalm 10 a picture of a King who not only rules and has dominion over every other kingdom and king, but also has a deep and loving concern for the plight of his people. A king who listens, encourages, defends and aleves our fears. A call to pay attention from the city gates all the way to the inner sanctuary of Jerusalem to lift up their heads and take notice of the triumphal entry of their eternal King. The King of Glory who is strong and mighty, the Lord Almighty - Yahweh, El Shadday.
The Lord who sits enthroned over the flood. Think of that, pointing back to the flood of Genesis - God's sovereignty was at work even in the calamity of that great flood. From that flood He raised up a people, the Semites. From the Semites He raised up a nation that would make a name for Him - a nation to present His glory in all the earth. The Israelites through the Abrahamic Covenant. He is never off of His throne, but remains enthroned forever. He strengthens and blesses His people with peace. He is King.

In the Gospels, Christ comes as the Anointed One of God in the form of a man - Jesus of Nazareth. During His three years of ministry He explains the mystery of the Kingdoms in Parables. He says, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like..." And then He reveals the mystery in terms which the people can understand. God manifested, God with us - He brought the Kingdom to us and made it accessible to us through Salvation and understandable to us through His Holy Spirit.

He even answered in this way when the Pharisees questioned Him about His Kingdom:

"20Asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He replied to them by saying, The kingdom of God does not come with signs to be observed or with visible display, 21Nor will people say, Look! Here [it is]! or, See, [it is] there! For behold, the kingdom of God is within you [in your hearts] and among you [surrounding you]." ~ Luke 17:20-22 (AMP)

The Kingdom over which God reigns is not only an eternal future Kingdom with real property, but it is a right now, at hand Kingdom that exists not only in our hearts, but in the hearts of those around us who love Him, too. The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. Does Christ have rule in your heart? His Kingdom is there.

We serve a King who is immortal, invisible, the ONLY GOD, and who is worthy of all HONOR and GLORY forever and ever. Can You SAY! YES, LORD! Oh Glory, I don't think I can cover it any better than that. We are also co-heirs with our King... what does that look like in your economy? It looks like Heaven in mine.
When the nations of this world rage against the King of Glory, the Lamb of God, He will overcome because He is the LORD OF LORDS and KING OF KINGS AND with Him will be His called, chosen and faithful followers. Think of that... We are part of the Victory of the Lamb over the dark spiritual forces and principalities and the ungodly nations of this world. We are His crown.

As you read this week's Chapter for reflection on Melek - Our King. Try to capture in your mind's eye this description of your great and mighty King:

The Rider on the White Horse

11 I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. 13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. 14 The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. 15 Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron scepter." He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND Lord OF Lords.

Revelation 19:11-16 (NIV)

Stand amazed before Him friends, worship Him, He is the King.

Tuesday's In Other Words: Wrestling With God

THIS WEEK'S IN "OTHER" WORDS IS BEING HOSTED BY LONI AT WRITING CANVAS....Hop on over and check out what others are saying "in other words.

-------------------------------------------------------

Is it awful that I was so excited to read this quote? I often hear people express their anger with God and their inability to resolve that anger over something in their lives. Parents who have lost children can find this one element of grief to be the most challenging to overcome. I often site the experience of Job when I address these types of concerns. Job started out praising God, but throughout the book bearing his name Job wrestles with his identity, God's sovereignty, and even the purpose for which God intended all the suffering that Job was enduring.

.
For some forty chapters we see Job sorting, venting, and lamenting his dire circumstances before the Lord. But, one thing God establishes for us from the beginning is this:
.

"In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing." Whew! I want that to be said of me when the annals of history are reviewed. That I never held God to account for some wrong that happened in my life. So how did Job manage to maintain his "integrity" as his wife put it while sorting out the messiness of anger and grief with God. I believe it is because to men Job defended God, but when he was in anguish - he sought out the Lord and made his complaint known only to God. Was Job putting on a brave face or was his heart sincerely holding onto something that he believed and hoped to be true in spite of all the evidence to the contrary? In my reading of Job, I found that he held onto what he believed to be true of God, what he hoped for... And, he knew that if he questioned God, God would answer him.
.
And how is it that we can be sure that all this wrestling it out with God is okay? In Job 42, light dawns in Job's life. His suffering is about to end as Job admits that nothing and no one can stop the plans of God. Read on and see what God did in response to Job's acknowledgment:

.
"1 Then Job replied to the LORD :

.
2 'I know that you can do all things;
no plan of yours can be thwarted.
.
3 You asked, 'Who is this that obscures
my counsel without knowledge?'
.
Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me to know.

.
4 'You said, 'Listen now, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you shall answer me.'

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

.
6 Therefore I despise myself
and repent in dust and ashes.'

.
10 After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before. 11 All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the LORD had brought upon him, and each one gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring. 12 The LORD blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first." ~ Job 42: 1-6, 10-12 (NIV)
.
Job's plight forced him to come face-to-face with the truth about his heart, his beliefs and ultimately his God. When Job realized that his anguish had caused him to doubt God - Job repented and confessed the truth before the Lord. And if Job had stopped there, perhaps that would have been enough. Yet, he fulfilled the glory of his revelation by also praying for those who had not only accused him of being responsible for the tragedy taht had befallen his family, but they had also prompted the further questioning of God's judgment in those sovereign acts.

Job's suffering accomplished many things, but for Job it established that his initial response was correct. That the Lord may indeed give and He may also take away, but in all things His name is to BE PRAISED. By putting on this attitude of praise in his deep anguish, Job established a hopeful pattern that would be repeated throughout his discourse with God. The identification with a God who is inately good and true. By trusting God even with the messy, angry feeling he suffered in the wake of his loss, Job proved God faithful and true to His Word. God is a God who keeps His promises. He promises that no matter what He works all things for our good and His glory, that He can take what Satan intends for evil and turn it to good, that He always has a plan that prospers us and gives us a future and a hope, and that He will never leave nor forsake us no matter how bad it gets.

I want to conclude by reminding you of the story of Jacob in Genesis 32. Jacob was running from many things in his life. Not the least of these things was the deception that had pit him an enemy against his own brother. However, God caught up with Jacob one night and wrestled with Jacob throughout that night even injuring him. When God had enough of the struggle and was about to take His leave, Jacob caught a hold of Him and said, "I will not let you go until you bless me."

In spite of his past failures, in spite of the agonizing pain of the struggle, Jacob was not willing to give up. He knew that God could bless Him, change the outcome and deliver the victory and He was not leaving without it. God indeed blessed Jacob. He left that injury that Jacob suffered in the struggle to remind him of the reason for the pain. But, he gave Jacob a new identity, a better heritage and an eternal purpose to fulfill that far outweighed anything that Jacob had faced in his past. Israel's destiny was to make a name for God - and they did... His name is Jesus and He provided redemption and salvation from this fallen existence for us all.

In my own life, I have found this passage from James to be so true. When we allow suffering to have its perfect work in our lives. When we allow God to deal with our anger, our anguish and even out pain it builds in us a complete, sure and tested faith that brings us to maturity in Christ. When we suffer and face those sufferings as Christ did - "for the joy set before us" - we fellowship with Him in those bitter moments. That prepares us for the great joy that we have in our salvation, His promises of a better inheritance and the promises of eternity with Him. Suffering - even the kind that makes us angry with God - can produce a faith that lacks nothing if we will work it out with God.

Sorting out our anger with God is honest, it is necessary and it allows God to tend to our hurts and our wounds in ways that nothing on this earth will ever accomplish. God administers healing to those wounded, angry places within us so that the Holy Spirit can do its work in our lives. Trusting God with even the ugliest of our feelings toward Him opens our lives up for not only reconciliation, but also peace, joy, and hope that overflows into and out of our lives.

The sovereign goodness of God means that He can be trusted to act mercifully with us - even if we are angry with Him. His love and His nature will not allow Him to hold His anger against us if we confess it before Him in truth and with a heart that desires to be reconciled to Him in spite of our pain. He is good, His mercy endures forever... He is ever worthy of our praise.

------------------------------------------------------------

Check out Loni's website each week as we write about the quote for the week In "other" Words.