2019-11-22
Good Morning Dear Ones,
At the behest of the Holy Spirit, I continue providing and discussing support Scriptures for the book of Colossians. In the course of doing this, we continue examining our vertical relationship with God and our horizontal relationship with others, giving the sign of the cross. As a reminder of what separates Jews and Christians from other belief systems, I will repeat DT 6: 4-5. “Here, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One. Love the Lord our God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your might.” This is followed by a command never to forget the laws God gives you today, a direct reference to the Ten Commandments [EX 20: 1-17]. The longer version of the citation that is repeated often in Jewish synagogues and which is on a piece of parchment rolled and inserted into mezuzahs tacked on doorposts, reminds believers to teach these commandments to their children and to spend time contemplating them. PS 78: 1-4, [God speaking] “Listen, My people, to My teaching, and pay attention to what I say. I am going to use wise sayings and explain mysteries from the past, things we have heard and known, things that our ancestors told us. We will not keep them from our children; we will tell the next generation about the Lord’s power and His great deeds and the wonderful things He has done.” DT 6: 9, “Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”
God is very purposeful in giving the Ten Commandments, knowing full well that obeying them is the pathway to stronger faith and eventually gaining eternal life. While the name, Jesus Christ, is not used until the NT, Jesus is very present and active throughout the OT. So, we need to have these reminders of just how important these Commandments and the principle of monotheism (belief in one God) is to our eternal wellbeing. In addition, we must understand the Trinitarian nature of God, which is only found in the NT. Our one God has three personalities: the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit. What we are seeing here is God’s tremendous task of gradually civilizing mankind, and we haven’t made it easy for Him. The Ten Commandments are fundamental to the conduct of our lives. God loves us so much that He wants to see all His human creation come to faith and obey these commands. Sadly, there is a certain fraction of people who simply refuse and disobey God, even to the point of serial disrespect. This is a terrible disappointment to God, because He loves us so very much. Yes, God has feelings and is a sentient Being!
Passing on what God teaches to our children matters to God, as it should to us. We profess to love children, but there are people who have what in polite terms are “one-night stands.” The women in many of these uncommitted liaisons become pregnant with the child unwanted. She either has the child and gives it up for adoption, or this unprincipled lady tries to raise it on her own. Many of the fathers abandon such children, or they end up in the overtaxed foster care system going from home to home. And then, there is the hot button topic of abortions, which are getting harder to get safely. Sometimes the father and mother, who are not really in love with each other, get married, and raise their child in an either abusive or neglectful home. The only emotionally balanced way to raise a child is in a home where God’s laws are taken seriously and a loving, committed couple are presenting a united effort to parent. Through no fault of their own, tragedy can come to a loving couple, and one of them passes away, leaving the other to raise their child(ren) alone. Lack of emotional maturity and faith can cause this couple’s child to strike back in anger and grief. I admit that the picture that I draw here is negative, but it’s necessary to examine how these difficult circumstances can impact our society. My daughter was an ER nurse, a good one. She reported to me that there is a huge difference between the reaction to the death of a loved one in a believing family in Christ and a family which is not. The former family sees this as a temporary loss of daily fellowship, death being a natural part of life. They believe there will be a reunion in heaven between all believers. The latter family is frightened, feels hopeless, and grieves with the pain that this situation brings. They are worried, unhappy, and their grief can even sometimes turn to violence. Each family has its own way of reacting. Sadly, some families don’t care, forcing their relatives to die alone.
My own experience with belief in Christ has changed my life much for the better. It’s my observation of others at church that they have also had the same experience. I would never force my beliefs on others, but I pray that the example that I’m setting speaks for itself. My skill set hasn’t been doing foreign missions but leads me into being a missionary “where I’m planted.” That’s church-speak for being obediently faithful, knowledgeable about God’s commands, serving others, and demonstrating my love for my Creator by doing tasks for Him. All the while, I have serious trouble with approaching my faith-walk in a legalistic way. There are people who do this, both Christians and Jews. It’s not my right to judge others, as I have learned in MT 7: 1-2. So, I leave that matter to God. And yes, I prayerfully request that my readers give belief in the Lord Jesus a try, so that they can experience the joy, peace, and wisdom of this way of life for themselves.
PRAYER: O Lord, Your mighty throne matters to us. We acknowledge Your right to choose who will come to faith and who won’t. Your heart is so loving that You allow us to see the consequences ahead of time of the choices we make. You prepare us for eternal life, but only allow us to know about some of it. That is to grow our faith in You and to give us time to mature spiritually to where You deem, we should be glorified. In the meanwhile, Dearest Lord, Your patience with our efforts to be Christ-like is admirable. Your love is forever evident in the teaching You do and in the blessings You provide. We thank and praise You. We acknowledge Your superiority and kindness, in the holy/mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
NEXT WEEK: We’ll discuss raising children in a Messianic Jewish or Christian home. PR 15: 20-22 applies to rearing children and the behavior God wants from them. There is a list of points for consideration in doing this, which is the toughest and most important task God entrusts us to do. It will be revealing to see what God’s ideal parent does and how His ideal children react to it. I have friends whose childhood was happy and unfettered with difficult emotional issues. They are happy, well-adjusted adults. They have long-term marriages and have found ways over time to rear normally difficult children successfully. Some of them had parents who were serving their country and thus, had to move frequently. They had to adjust to learning to make new friends while retaining their old ones. Many of my friends believe in Christ, but I also have others that come from different cultures or don’t agree with all my beliefs. There is room in my heart for people from all walks of life and many denominations. I praise and thank God for the wonderful friendships He has forged in my life!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn
JS 24: 15
© Lynn Johnson 2019. All Rights Reserved.
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