One of my favorite aspects of God is that He is completely dependable. I don’t have to worry about Him deciding to spend less time with me or granting me salvation. I don’t have to worry that He’ll lose interest and move on to someone more holy.

This passage from Isaiah gets the idea across as He was making this very point to the Israelites:

“Listen to Me, O house of Jacob,
And all the remnant of the house of Israel,
Who have been upheld by Me from birth,
Who have been carried from the womb:
Even to your old age, I am He,
And even to gray hairs I will carry you!
I have made, and I will bear;
Even I will carry, and will deliver you.” Isaiah 46:3-4

God is not a flake. He’s been around since your beginning and He’ll be with you to the very end and beyond.

For example, the chapters and verses are a later addition by scholars to help divide and reference the content. As a result, they didn’t always place the divisions in the best possible location. We expect the end of a chapter to wrap up a thought and the beginning of a chapter to start a new one. Sometimes, that chapter split comes precisely in the middle of a thought.

I ran into that yesterday after reading through the faith Hall of Fame in Hebrews 11:

“And all these, having obtained good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.” Hebrews 11:39-40

The author makes the point that we have more information and a clear declaration of the promise of salvation in Christ, so faith should be an easier conclusion for us than for the great saints of the Old Testament who lived by the faith of a promise fulfilled that they never saw in their time on earth.

Then the next chapter starts thusly:

“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,” Hebrews 12:1

This passage starts with “Therefore”. This is the conclusion to the long argument laid out in the previous chapter. This is not a new, separate thought.

As a result, this passage carries even more weight! The author describes all of the saints that have gone before as a cloud of witnesses. He’s challenging the reader to take into account that all of these men and women lived by faith and we have their example along with the acts of Jesus as our evidence. So, let us let go of those things that would drag us down and get on with the only race that matters!

Don’t let our Western formatting and ideas of literature prevent you from experiencing the power of the Word. Do what you can to read Scripture as it was meant to be read.

Daniel was annoyed with this process because he didn’t see how it related to learning a martial art. Later, of course, he realized what was happening and saw the value of learning a simpler form of the movements to depend upon later.

I like that analogy to understand the Old Covenant and the New Covenant and why God gave us both.

“For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect.

[...]

then He said, ‘Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.’ He takes away the first that He may establish the second. By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” Hebrews 10:1,9-10

The Law was given precisely to act as an oversimplified outline of what the New Covenant would mean. It etched into the hearts and minds the need for a perfect blood sacrifice to enable the forgiveness of sin. The debt had to be paid by a perfect offering. The old sacrificial system was a daily reminder of the chasm between Man and God and what was required to bridge it.

Then, Christ came to fulfill all that the Law had pointed to. He was the perfect and final sacrifice. He closed the deal and paid the price. Now, we can see all of the parallels with the old system and how it pointed us towards the acts of Jesus and how those met all the requirements of justice and righteousness.

The Israelites were trained to repeat these rituals and ceremonies to give them spiritual muscle memory regarding their relationship with God and how to serve Him. Apart from the cultural resistance to change, the life of Jesus should have been very recognizable to all of Israel as the fulfillment of what they’d been playacting for centuries.

It was training for the big show.

Wax on, wax off.

I admit to being biased, but I honestly don’t see it the way they describe it. The only conclusion I can come to is that our confidence is upsetting because, deep down, they don’t have the same strength of conviction about the ideas they defend. Or, even when they act like it, they know they are doing too much hand-waving to feel good about it.

Does that mean we should act timid or unsure? No. Does that mean we should just be quiet and stop bothering them? No. Those are both directly opposite what the New Testament teaches us.

I think all we can do is bathe it all in love and grace.

“that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness and deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—” Ephesians 4:14-15

Paul is saying that God has given spiritual gifts to the body so we can help each other and work together as we become more mature in our faith. The whole purpose is to cut down on weak-kneed faith that gets pushed around and replace it by building up strong, confident Christians who can be useful servants of Christ.

“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;” 1 Peter 3:15

Don’t be afraid to be confident. Just use lots of love.

I was impressed with how one team handled a war game they ran where they were to assault an enemy outpost in the bush and extract an enemy agent. At one point, the bulk of the group was pinned down and the attack was slowing down. The instructor started telling the viewers what was going wrong and what needed to happen. At that moment, the leader of the assault saw the problem, initiated action to get the team moving again, and grabbed the momentum. They went on to succeed in their mission.

I was struck by how movement meant life. Staying stationary or trying to hunker down just made them easier targets. Maintaining motion and momentum put the enemy on the defensive and kept the team alert and effective.

I am beginning to challenge myself to see my relationship with Jesus like this. I cannot become spiritually sedentary. I cannot stop and decide that I want to defend the ground I’m on and not gain any more. I cannot give up and tell Him to go on without me.

My relationship is about movement and growth and achievement and accomplishment as led by my Lord.

“Your word is a lamp to my feet
And a light to my path.” Psalm 119:105

“Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.’” Matthew 16:24

“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run the race that is set before us,” Hebrews 12:1

Don’t stop. Don’t dig in. Keep on moving. Keep on growing. Keep on following Jesus.

One of the particular wrinkles I had thrown at me was the issue of dealing with vague or non-existent requirements. The interviewer wanted to know if I could deal with being asked to do something very open-ended and unspecified. Some people freeze with a blank canvas. Some people are lost without some kind of structure.

This is a more difficult kind of problem, but you have to come at it from two directions. First, can you infer what the client wants from other sources of information or by extrapolating from the rest of the specification? Second, only do what you’ve been asked. Don’t let your mind run wild trying to figure out the next three steps.

This is a similar problem for some of us when we have clearly heard God’s voice, but we have no clue what He has in mind. Some of us will dig our heels in until we have a better idea of where the road leads. Heck, some of us just want to be able to see the road!

“Now the LORD had said to Abram:

‘Get out of your country,
From your family
And from you father’s house,
To a land I will show you.

[...]

So Abram departed as the LORD has spoken to him,[...]” Genesis 12:1,4a

God said, “Leave where you are. I’ll tell you your destination later,” and Abram just went. That was the ultimate in open-ended journeys. He didn’t know where he was headed, what he should take with him, or how long he’d be gone. He was prepared to take everything and never return precisely because he didn’t know what the final destination was.

Be ready to deal with a step into the unknown. That’s exactly the kind of confident faith we are called to have.

It’s as if I have a new set of glasses that lets me glimpse the true value of things. While I’m still excited about the latest gadgets or new computers, I don’t have the nearly irresistible urge to own them. And, if I never own them, I’ll be okay.

The only truly valuable thing I can attain now is knowledge of the Word and stronger relationship with Jesus.

“Let not mercy and truth forsake you;
Bind them around your neck,
Write them on the tablet of your heart,” Proverbs 3:3

“What you have heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus. Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.” 2 Timothy 1:13-14

The Word is what we should cherish and hold to tightly. We should guard it closely so that it influences our thoughts and prayers.

What do you cherish? Will it last?

This is not meant to be morbid, because I’m looking forward to my life after death. But, I know that my time here is a preparation for then. With this realization that the clock has been ticking, I start to think clearly about what is worth my time and what isn’t.

I’m beginning to realize that as much as I love what I do for a living, I can’t let that block out my study of the Word and my relationship with Jesus. I find myself wanting to make time in my schedule to learn more about Scripture and what it can teach me. I find myself considering time as a valuable currency that I want to spend wisely. I can’t hoard it or spend it in bunches, so I had better be sure that it’s being used well.

“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” Ephesians 5:15-17

I used to spend time like it was never-ending. Now, I’m spending it like real cash. The day will come when time seems like gold bars and I’ll want to spend it very wisely and get the most out of it.

Redeem your time!

Sure, the homeless guy got a coat in all three situations. That’s good! The poor were helped. But, is this a net benefit morally? You could argue that, ultimately, it was still a sacrificial gift on the part of my friend in the second scenario. I don’t believe there is any act of love in the last one.

We cannot measure a series of actions based solely on the outcome.

“Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.” Romans 12:9

Remember that our relationship with Christ is very personal. When He says, “give,” He’s pointing a finger at you and one at me saying, “You give.” When He says, “care for the poor,” He’s again pointing at you and me as individuals. These are tasks for us to take upon ourselves personally or by directly supporting organizations that do so.

I believe it is hypocritical and evil to interpret this commandment as authority for us to either verbally or physically force others to obey it. Remember that Jesus is a gentlemen. He has explained what a better life looks like, but He never grabbed anyone by the collar and dragged him to it.

Love sacrificially, but don’t be hypocritical or justify evil in an effort to cause others to join you.

I recently had an evening with very little sleep and even that bit was at an unusual hour. By the time I had passed the forty hour mark (with only about three hours of sleep in the middle), I was in desperate need of some rest. However, the hour was such that resting earlier would have meant missing my normal working hours. It would have meant missing a chance to get tasks done and move my projects forward. It turns out that it even may have meant missing a new opportunity as it germinated. I wanted rest, but it wasn’t time, yet.

Hebrews speaks of the rest God has promised:

“Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.” Hebrews 4:1-2

Just because you know of the promise, doesn’t mean you are a beneficiary. You must have made the decision to live by faith in Christ.

“For if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day. There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His.” Hebrews 4:8-10

The rest God promises has not been granted, yet. It is still to come. So, don’t get complacent and comfortable with a cheap substitute now. And, since we have not entered God’s rest, yet, then our work is not done, yet.

The good news is that real rest is promised and will come to those who believe. Don’t settle for something less.

It’s not time to rest, yet.