Bible

The Boomerang of Justice

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Have you ever been wronged?

A question like this opens a floodgate of memories and emotions for many of us. Scars ache as we unravel the mental note that lists our offenders. We see their faces, hear their names, and remember how they made us feel in those dark times. Sadness turns to anger. Anger to contempt.

We all share this experience. We have all been wronged, and usually, it’s not hard to recite those instances because of the deep wounds they leave behind.

But the wounds we sustain are often felt more than the wounds we inflict.

Everyone who has been wronged has also done wrong. This is common ground we aren’t as quick to discuss.

Most of us would feel a bit awkward if asked about a time we wronged someone. If we’re honest, we struggle with that notion. Many will remember somebody being hurt by something they did or said, but this recognition is handcuffed to a caveat or justification of why it was an overreaction. Perhaps we see the conceit in claiming perfect innocence, so we try and come up with something “respectable” to show that we are self-aware but far from the criminal on the news.

The fact that we are wrongdoers doesn’t invalidate or silence the call for justice for what we have suffered. The wrongs we have done do, however, issue their own cry for justice.

Thus, we are not simply plaintiffs in this life with a pile of cases against our offenders. We are also defendants for whom there is a line of people out the courthouse doors ready to make their case against us.

This realization ought to be a wake-up call. The retribution price we rightly desire from others is a boomerang that comes right back for us.

That’s not the worst of it, though. We know that there are right and wrong present in this world only because of the One who has given us a conscience to detect them. So, our crimes are not only against the created but much more so against their Creator.

It is here where the impossibly dense weight of the cost we each owe is felt. A sinner sinning against a sinner is one thing. But one sinning against the sinless creator God? Surely, there is no payment they can make to adequately level the scales of justice. What they need is atonement.

Atonement is a strong word. It washes away the cosmetic deceit from the hideous face of sin. Biblical atonement demands death. Only death and torment, of the physical body and the eternal soul, atone for something so opposed to God and His holiness as sin. These cover what true justice says is lacking when any crime against the Almighty and His creation is committed.

Atonement means somebody dies because of sin – but not the sinner. Justice will be served – but not by the guilty.

Leviticus 16 describes a process God put in place in ancient Israel to provide grace and justice simultaneously. As Aaron, the first priest, approached God in the Holy of Holies to make atonement each year, he deserved to die for his sin. The people whom he represented deserved to die for their sins. Yet, it was the blood of an unblemished bull that Aaron presented for himself and the blood of an unblemished goat that he presented for the people of Israel that satisfied God’s wrath.

In His grace, God instructed Aaron and all the other priests after him to sprinkle the blood of these spotless animals on what He called the mercy seat. But one priest was different. He needed no bull blood. He had no sin of his own to atone. It was His righteous blood that the bulls and goats pointed towards. They were merely a placeholder until He arrived.

Jesus, the great high priest, shed His spotless blood for the sins of the world. That includes both the wrongs done to you and the wrongs that you have done.

God presents Him to be received by faith, as a gift.

He offers not only a better way to live, or an example to follow. He offers Himself. And in Himself, everlasting life, the forgiveness of sins.

Your sin means you deserve death and hell. But Jesus, in His death and resurrection, delivers your atonement. Your living hope, the anchor for your soul.

Have you received Him?

Check out the texts below for more!

Leviticus 16

Hebrews 9:11-28

Romans 3

The Implications of Existence

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Inspired by Psalm 14, 139, and Romans 1

There’s a rhetorical question that upon rumination sparks peace, perspective, and wonder in my spirit.

“Did you choose to be born?”

The answer for everyone, of course, is a simple “no.” We cannot speak ourselves into existence. While we recognize that someone doesn’t choose the context to which they are born, we ought to take that logic one step further by acknowledging the obvious.

You didn’t ask to exist.

Let that sink in for a moment. It’s an incredibly simple thought with some ginormous implications. Why?

Because you do.

Questions should fill our minds. How? Why? Is there a reason? We spend so much energy trying to control lives that we never asked for in the first place. When is the last time you took a step back and contemplated the fact that you exist at all?

In his song What’s It All About, Andy Mineo candidly sings,

“What’s it all about, why are we here?
If there’s no reason why do I care?
A lot of people put they thoughts in my ear
But I gotta know for myself
So, yo, God are you really there?”

You don’t need a philosophy degree to ask these questions. You don’t even need a high school diploma. All you need is to exist.

So, what are the answers to those questions? What are those implications? Some say it depends on whom you ask. But if we didn’t even author our own lives, how canwe authoritatively answer such things for ourselves?

We better make sure we’re asking the right person for those answers and unless that person is responsible for your existence, why would you listen to them? What do they know?

I hope you’re thinking,

“Well, what do YOU know Brian?”

If not, then you aren’t hearing me. We need answers. Not from anyone, but from the one responsible for our existence.

Someone may respond by claiming nobody is responsible, but they exist due to random chance and scientific processes. While this claim has scientific problems on its own, is it not also an attempt to control the implications of existence?

By eliminating a creator from the equation and attributing their life to chance, one maintains that they are not responsible for their existence, but lays claim to personal autonomy as if they had been.

If an independent creator is responsible for your life, that means you are not the boss. There’s somebody higher than you. That which rules above you is not a voiceless, inanimate reality like chance. Rather, it is an all-powerful, sovereign maker who has answered the questions of your existence.

It shouldn’t be hard to envision how each path differs in practice. One who agrees with the former will subject themselves to an external authority only when it proves advantageous and will otherwise leave final decisions up to themselves. One who believes the latter knows they ought to submit to their creator as the ultimate authority, recognizing that they are not their own but belong to another. This is not to say that the creation is always in agreement with the creator. However, humbling oneself and surrendering the inner desire for control in reverent awe is necessary and resolves the dissonance.

The naturalistic western world scoffs at the “unscientific” notion of an intelligent designer. Is it not, however, the scientific method that requires a hypothesis to be tested? In the discussion of origins and existence, it seems that this step has been thrown out. Not only are we selectively skeptical, but hypotheses are crossed out before they even have a chance to be tested. My hypothesis is that the reason for this is not a lack of empirical reasoning, but a matter of the heart.

The idea of God disturbs many. Some believe he is a ruthless, unjust, cruel dictator who suppresses man from flourishing. Others think he is indifferent to the suffering of our world and that if he really was all-powerful, he would have stopped the many tragedies we see day in and day out.

When you open the Word of God, however, you see the opposite. You see the world’s problems come from man, not God. He is the only one with the solution, and that is through the bloodshed of His own Son. It is only through Jesus that you can come back to the one who made you, and only then will you begin to discover the true implications of your existence.

Don’t settle for my words. Go open a Bible and see for yourself. Hear the voice of the One who fashioned you in His image and paid the sin price to redeem you from your rebellion.  Come back to He who alone is qualified to answer the questions that leave you staring at the ceiling in the middle of the night.

I’m confident that when you meet Him, you’ll quickly see your limitations. In seeing those, you will begin to grow in gratitude that He is the one running things, not you. Finally, you will find yourself starting to become eager to obey as His instructions prove to be good and true as your best inclinations lead only to more questions and pain.

After all, we didn’t ask to exist. He spoke us into being.

The Servant King

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Inspired by Philippians 2: 1-11

All my allegiance belongs to the servant king

Who died that death might lose its sting

Emptied and weary, He comes for the lost

My soul on His heart, my life in His thoughts

What king gets his hands dirty and leaves his throne

Living like a servant, dying for his own?

With power in His hands the world has never seen

The lame walk, the deaf hear, the leper is made clean

Obedient in agony and submissive in sorrow

King Jesus secures the sinner’s tomorrow

There has been none as humble, none more meek

Than the one who also formed the highest peaks

God then exalted Him above every name

Risen and ascended, as death lays slain

Come to Jesus and leave everything

The Lamb of God, the Servant King

Voices

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We live in a noisy world.

Billions of voices fill it.

The volume of worldviews and ideologies we encounter each day hums in our minds like voices in a packed stadium.

To hear the friend seated next to us at a game, we must stick our ears as close to their mouths as possible. Especially if you’re in Philadelphia! The same holds true when attempting to discern truth in a world filled with alternative voices.

Its easy to grow weary and become bogged down with complex questions. I’ve been there. Does the quantity of perspectives and beliefs mean there can’t be one correct one? Is it being arrogant to assert your belief as true? Is it the loudness or popularity of a voice that makes it accurate?

As the noise level rises, it doesn’t necessarily matter how disciplined your mind is or how dialed in your ears. The noise of this world will confuse, destroy, and intimidate those who call it home.

Everyone has beliefs. A belief, by definition, is something one holds to be true. It seems asserting your beliefs only becomes arrogant when someone else’s belief disagrees. Not everyone will literally come out and say this, but when we have a belief we long to convince others to accept, we say in our hearts:

“Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.”

Ironically, the same can be said of the belief that holds there is no absolute truth because everything is equally true. That belief is self-defeating because it relies upon the very thing it says doesn’t exist to survive and be accepted. Centuries of history show how popular opinion shifts and something held as true for centuries, such as the a geocentric view of the universe, can be proven false by a quiet minority.

So why is it when Jesus of Nazareth says,

“Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.”

we respond like Pilate, who asked,

“What is truth?”

In one breath we fight for truth and hold unswervingly to our definition of what is true. In another, we ignore the highly veracious accounts of Jesus’ life and join Pilate in asking,

“What is truth?”

In the book of John, Jesus describes Himself as the “good shepherd” who cares for His sheep. He does so by tending to their needs, even to the point of laying His life down for them. Despite such beautiful statements of His love for sinners, another central focus of the text is seen through repeated mentions of the shepherd’s voice. The sheep hear the shepherd’s voice and follow it because they know His voice. Others come and try to speak to the sheep but they don’t know those voices, so they don’t follow them.

In our noisy world, the voice of Jesus should be the one we lean in to hear like we do with our friends at an Eagles game. The one who claims doing so would be arrogant or narrow-minded should evaluate their treatment of what they believe.

We often long for the audible voice of God to come thunder to us and eliminate all need for faith; the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. God’s voice has graced human ears before as recorded by the Apostle Peter:

“For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,’ we heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain.”

2 Peter 1:16-18

God the Father only speaks audibly to humans three times in the accounts of Jesus’ life. Two of the three times, He tells man that Jesus is his Son as Peter describes above. Jesus, as the Son, came to die in your place for the offenses stemming from your heart and committed against God. It’s this heart condition that alienates us from God and it’s faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus alone that brings us near and into the Good Shepherd’s fold.

You’ll hear many voices that say otherwise. The deceitfulness of that rebellion will sound enticing. Unbelief might sound more practical. Rejection might sound liberating.

However, if you take the time to open His word and listen to His voice, you just might find yourself to be “of the truth.”

Everyone is listening to someone.

Who better to then the King of the universe?

Scripture References:

John 10 – I am the Good Shepherd

John 18:37-38 – Jesus and Pilate’s exchange about truth

Matthew 3:17 & Matthew 17:5 – God speaks about Jesus

1 Corinthians 15:3 – Christ came to die for your sins

Matthew 15:18-20 – Sin comes from a mans heart and separates us from God

Ephesians 2:13 – Faith in Christ’s blood atonement brings you near to God

Ancient Of Days

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A poem inspired by Daniel 7

The Ancient of days takes his seat on the throne

Elevated above all that can and cannot be known

America, Babylon, Persia, yes, even Rome

No nation nor tribe outlasts His own

His light through the darkness has gloriously shown

His immaculate power will never be loaned

A servant king who brings sinners home

The Son of Man sits to the right of His throne

His enemies were real, and their rise like foam

Raging for a moment yet now crushed bone by bone

Arrogance persisted in creation’s defiant tone

Unaware of the reaping which rebellion had sown

Once were the saints weighed down by hearts of stone

Now they ascend and are free of their groans

Sons and daughters to Abba have flown

The Ancient of Days, the king on the throne

Winning By Losing

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How do you know when you’ve won?

In sports, it’s easy. The final buzzer sounds, and you check the scoreboard. Arguments can be won in the courtroom based upon the ruling of a jury. A promotion at your job might even be won by your performance.

But how about in life and death? Can you “win” at life?

I’m not suggesting that life is a game, but I do get the sense that many of us believe it is. We are told to “play with the cards you are dealt” and a variety of other idioms exposing this undertow of philosophy. Since this perspective prevails, we must have some sort of definition for what constitutes winning.

It’s an interesting activity to consider what one would need to happen or accomplish to consider life a “win.” I imagine having healthy, enjoyable relationships with our loved ones would be on the list. Being financially literate and creating generational wealth may also cross our minds. Perhaps there’s even a list we have started that literally states all the things we want to do before we die. The thought of a life with many of those things left unchecked may bring on a panicky depression, motivating us to “live life to the fullest” while we still can. A life with unfulfilled aspirations is not typically chalked up as a win.

This question has been on my mind as I’ve been challenged by what has recently transpired in Afghanistan. I think about what certain members of the Taliban consider a winning life. Or, how members of Al-Qaeda or ISIS would answer such a question. These three groups can undoubtedly differ in their belief systems and complexity is richly interwoven within their history, but it’s well documented that many would declare their life a “win” if it brings many other lives to an end.

This horrific reality has once again been pushed to our frontal lobe. While one celebrates victory by blasting an AK-47 into the sky, another mourns as they hide for their lives. There is no simple way to neatly package such a situation and I don’t intend to speak on behalf of anyone. I simply look to call to attention that “winning at life” certainly isn’t relative like we often claim it to be.

If winning isn’t relative in sports, court, or the workplace, then why would it be in matters of life and death? It’s here that I am comforted in the renewing power of God’s word to reveal to us the truth of this world. He shows us that life is won not through acquiring, building, or even enjoying. Rather, it is won by losing.

God’s son, Jesus, tells us that the one who loses his life for Christ’s sake will find it. He tells us that the greatest among men is actually the one who serves the most. He showed us that a winning life doesn’t look like we often think. Moreover, Jesus didn’t live as some detached religious figure who merely espoused things He didn’t actually do. His words always point to His own actions.

It was the worst moment in human history that God chose to also be the greatest. As the Roman soldiers laughingly mocked Him, the religious leaders looked on in pleasure as Jesus’ righteous blood flowed onto the  Golgotha soil.

Jesus let out His last breath, and victory was far from His disciples’ minds. They scattered, afraid for their lives. Yet it was in this moment, that their victory – and the victory of all those who place their belief and hope in Jesus – was secured. Jesus rose from the dead three days later in triumphal procession.

Many more have made the decision to follow Jesus and suffer with their Lord. Yet they not only consider their persecution a win, but actually rejoice that it is happening to them and pray for the souls of those who plan their slaughter. Their eternal hope in Christ’s atoning work for their sin is a victory no bullet can rip through, or knife can decapitate.

For my brothers, sisters, and I, we know our lives have already been won for us. The closest thing to winning in this life we now know, is if in our death, many are pointed to the one who also offers them true victory. Especially those who commit such acts and think they’re pleasing God.

In the coming weeks, as reports continue to surface, my hope is that you reflect upon your own understanding of a winning life and then run to the only One who offers true victory.

 

Scripture References:

Luke 9:24 – Lose your life for Christ’s sake and find it.

Luke 22:26 – The greatest is the one who serves.

Philippians 3:8-10 – All is counted loss compared to knowing Christ Jesus

Acts 5:41 – Rejoicing to be counted worthy of suffering for Christ

Matthew 5:44 – Pray for those who persecute you

Jehovah Tsidkenu

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Standing outside courthouses across the globe is a lady as old as time. Her appearance differs depending on the cultural context, but her name is the same on every continent. Justice.

“Lady Justice” has personified judicial law for millennia, dating back to Roman mythology. In most architectural renderings she stands tall, blindfolded, and wielding a sword in one hand with a scale set in the other. Stoic and beautiful, she welcomes people into her courthouses where, theoretically, they will be met with justice as balanced as the scales she holds.

It takes one look past those magnificent statues to see that Lady Justice is only a figment of man’s imagination. Justice is perverted as the guilty are set free and the innocent prosecuted. We bicker over policy in an effort to rectify the system but fail to see the injustice in our own proposals. While our best attempts at justice do sometimes bring a temporal satisfaction and give us a glimpse of the real thing, everyone can agree that the scales Lady Justice holds, and the scales of the real world are two different things.

We rightly lament over this disparity and how it affects us, but we must place ourselves on the scale to see that amidst our own efforts, we also maintain an egregiously unbalanced scale.

This is the case even if we place our “own” moral code and rules to live by on the other side of the scale. We can’t live up even to that, so we begin to place “worse” people on the other side. Think the scum of society, be it a criminal or member of an opposing political party. If we can’t balance the scale, might as well come out on top, right? What we miss is the fact that the other side of the scale isn’t something we determine, but as evidenced by the conscience and a universal assent to moral responsibility, is a reality grander than human intuition.

Righteousness, or conformity with what is ethically and morally acceptable or “right” sits on the other side of the scale. We’re all aware we must one day step on the platform to see if the scales slowly bob up and down only to come to rest in perfect equilibrium. Why else would we care about justice in the here and now? If there is no scale of justice we must face, why attempt to do justly to others? Without the presence of moral obligation, there is no logical place for justice and order in society. Only chaotic depravity.

Recognizing this, we seek to build a resume of righteousness. We start with all those years we didn’t murder, rape, or rob somebody. Then, we bullet out the things we did for our community and those in need. Next, we include our spotless legal record. Finally, we place the cherry on top by pointing to the years we have spent with our families. Surely an unrighteous person couldn’t sacrifice what we did for loved ones, right? We submit our resume confident the scales will balance even if we had some slip ups along the way, which we don’t mind minimizing. What meets us, however, is the horrifying reality that the other side of the scale is far weightier than we ever perceived.

Our so-called “righteous” acts lay on the scale as the density of true righteousness suspends them high in the air, a laughable sight akin to a toddler’s best attempt at drawing a self-portrait. That’s really what we came up with? That’s what we consider to be righteous?

The righteousness on the other side is ethereal, a law of the universe only the Creator can fully behold. For it is His very identity, that which He shaped His creation after, that sits upon the scale. Holiness, justice, and righteousness are here defined. These are not merely characteristics of Almighty God; He is the essence of their being.

Only a righteousness of equal weight will balance the scales, and only a balanced scale will deliver the subject from the cost of true justice. This justice requires two deaths, first one’s body and secondly one’s soul. Just one broken statute or failure to mirror our divine Creator in holiness results in the same punishment as the one who’s record is stained with iniquity. His law is too perfect for sinners to comply satisfactorily.

Any deviation from the scales in His deliberation mirror our broken justice systems, and simultaneously corrupt not only true justice, but the Lord from whom it derives its life. It is an impossibility.

What then, is mortal man to do? All are guilty in this courthouse. Nobody can balance their scale. An eternal sentence awaits our dead souls with torment and wrath, our just reward.

It is here where another individual stands. The crumbles of our earthly Lady Justice lie scattered in the shadow of another, but He is no Roman mythological creature. He is not an idea personified. He is not made of marble and clay but of flesh and blood.

His name is Jehovah Tsidkenu.

It’s in His days that true justice meets full mercy. As tears pour down our faces and we cry out in agony while the scales sway lopsided, He cuts in front of us. He casts Himself into the pit as our verdict is announced by the Judge. He dies our death and puts His own righteousness on the scales.

It balances.

Both the punishment earned by our crimes against the Creator and the hope of personal righteousness are fulfilled in His kingship. As we stand naked before God crying out to Him, He rises from the depths and places His royal robes onto our backs. The case has been closed and our sentence fully served.

His name is an unfamiliar one to us in later generations, but it was clear to those who He first chose to reveal Himself. He made clear to His prophets that this name is not simply a title, but a promise. A promise to all who recognize their righteousness is equivalent to rags in the sight of our perfect Creator and ask Him to balance the scales for them. Its meaning is not trenched in mystery but beautifully simple.

“The LORD our righteousness.”

Only the God man offers you the righteousness needed to balance the scales and be acceptable to God Almighty. Toss your resume of righteousness in the trash, for that’s all it is in the LORD’s sight. Trust in such a resume will leave your scales unbalanced and notarize your death sentence.

Jehovah Tsidkenu offers to impart to you righteousness. His own. He has already served your sentence; you need only cry out to Him in trusting dependence. Then you’ll call Him, “The LORD my righteousness.”

Scripture references:

Jeremiah 23:6 & Jeremiah 33:14-16 – Jehovah Tsidkenu, The LORD our righteousness

1 Corinthians 1:30 – Christ Jesus became for us righteousness, sanctification, and redemption

Philippians 3:8b-9 – A righteousness extended to us through faith in Christ

2 Corinthians 5:21 – In Christ, we become the righteousness of God

The Empty Cup

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There stands a cup

Brimming with wrath

A bitter, foaming wine

Fills the glass

A concoction so strong

One sip is deadly

Yet down to the dregs

Will the wicked drink this medley

We pour the cup

Swirling it under our noses

When we worship ourselves

And reject the God of Moses

“Wake up! Wake up!”

God’s servant Isaiah cried

“This drunkenness is not of wine

But judgement of the Divine”

“Hear the Word of the LORD,”

Jeremiah wept

“To drink is not a choice

It is your very debt”

These warnings to Israel

Extend to all mankind

For there are none righteous

All must drink this wine

Yahweh Almighty,

Perfect, holy, and true

No sin will He leave unpunished

All receive rebuke

He is the God of justice

alone defining its terms

All who reject Him

He will also spurn

This is the cup of staggering

Of fire, sulfur, and wind

No man can drink and live

Unless He be without sin

This leaves only one

Jesus, the Son of Man

Who lived a blameless life

And became our spotless lamb

The Father handed Him the cup

The one that stood before each of us

The weight of the world’s sin

Upon Messiah thrust

In agony he prayed

That the cup be taken from Him

Yet surrendered to His Father’s will

As He was beaten limb from limb

The one who raised the dead

The one who healed the blind

The one who freed the possessed

Was mocked and criminally maligned

He heard every word

And read every thought

Still, He pleaded their case

“Forgive them! What they do, they know not”

Each sip brought more misery

God’s just punishment of iniquity

And with one big swig

Cried “my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

His lips trembled

As they released from the cup

He said “It is finished”

Every last drop

Darkness covered the land

Rocks split and crumbled

The temple curtain tore in two

As the city rumbled

His lifeless body hung

From the bloody splintered wood

Those watching beat their chests

And departed from where they stood

Some followers buried His corpse

And tightly wrapped it in linen

But then after three days

Heard reports that He had risen

The Marys and Salome

Visited the tomb

And the words of an angel

Made joy out of their gloom

“Why do you look for the living

The living among the dead?

For your LORD has risen

He’s risen just as He said!”

Christ appeared to many

Even those who doubted

“See my hands, touch my side”

He mercifully propounded

He explained the cup of wrath

Had been consumed once for all

When He died and rose again

And answered His Father’s call

Now a cup of blessing replaces

That which brought condemnation

For those who believe in Him

And come to Jesus for salvation

For their new cup is His blood

His body, their bread

Christ is now the very life

Of those who believe what He’s said

Judgement replaced with blessing

Guilt replaced with peace

Grace instead of wrath

Alive instead of deceased

Come to Jesus Christ

Who drank the cup for you

Repent and receive

The one who makes you new

Your heart is His prize

The soul He Himself made

The price of His blood

Was one for you He paid

Rebel from your rebellion

Lift your cross, take it up

Come and worship the one

Who emptied your cup

Scripture References:

Thus the LORD, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it.” Jeremiah 25:15

“And if they refuse to accept the cup from your hand to drink, then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts: You must drink!” Jeremiah 25:28

For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup with foaming wine, well mixed, and he pours out from it, and all the wicked of the earth shall drain it down to the dregs. Psalm 75:8

Let him rain coals on the wicked; fire and sulfur and a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup. Psalm 11:6


Wake yourself, wake yourself, stand up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD the cup of his wrath, who have drunk to the dregs the bowl, the cup of staggering. Isaiah 51:17

Thus says your Lord, the LORD, your God who pleads the cause of his people: “Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering; the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more; and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors, who have said to you, ‘Bow down, that we may pass over’; and you have made your back like the ground and like the street for them to pass over.” Isaiah 51:22-23

For as you have drunk on my holy mountain, so all the nations shall drink continually; they shall drink and swallow, and shall be as though they had never been. Obadiah 16

Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” Matthew 20:22-23

And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” Matthew 26:39

Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” Matthew 26:42

Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” Mark 10:38-40

And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” Mark 14:36

And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. And he said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” Mark 14:23-25

“Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. Luke 22:42-44

So Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword into its sheath; shall I not drink the cup that the Father has given me?” John 18:11

The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?” 1 Corinthians 10:16

You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. 1 Corinthians 10:21

If, Then

/ brianhilton9 / Leave a comment

I’ve written before that math has never been my thing.

That’s why I was shocked when I was sitting in a college math class and it dawned on me that I was actually enjoying what I was learning.

It was a feeling I never experienced in my 12-year academic career. I was well acquainted with dread, confusion, apathy, and frustration. Joy? It felt…wrong.

But that’s exactly what I felt sitting in that lecture hall in late October one fall semester. I’m pretty sure it was called “Introduction to Mathematics” or something. It was probably the lowest level course I was allowed to take. All I know is as a communication major, I only was required to take one math course. One! It was bliss. So, I chose the most basic course hoping it would be a glorified curriculum of addition and subtraction.

Somehow, someway the little old man professor who boasted a sub 1-star RateMyProfessor score won my attention and for the first time in my life, math made sense. I remember thinking “if I had only taken this class in kindergarten…”

Rather than math itself, we discussed the why of math. Logic. It was super interesting and something I realized wasn’t just observable in a textbook or on a whiteboard, but in my life. Perhaps more astonishingly, I began to see math in the Bible.

Conditional statements, or “if, then” statements aren’t something on which we spend a whole lot of time. It’s one of the building of logic. Effects have a cause, and a cause has effects. We understand this every time we make decisions. Our decisions are causes that have effects, some intentional and others unintentional. It’s a simple truth of our existence.

It should be no surprise then that the Bible, authored by supreme Creator God, is chock full of “if, then” statements. One of my favorite questions when reading the Bible is to ask, “what’s the ‘therefore’ there for?’ It’s a great question because there are a LOT of uses of the word “therefore” or it’s variations in scripture. It also aims to go deeper and gain a whole picture of the causal relationship being described.

The apostle Paul knew logic well. The content in his letters compound like interest. His premise leads to an implication which then points to another truth which then reveals a deep fact of life to his audience. The identity of God is almost always his cause.

The same goes for the Old Testament. I’ve been particularly struck by the book of Ezekiel when God uses the phrase “that they may know that I am the LORD” almost every single chapter. The word “that” naturally points to a cause as knowing God to be the LORD or, YAHWEH – the name of God Most High.

Tragically, the context of Ezekiel and this discovery of who God is comes through an outpouring of punishment of sin. Israel had been entrenched in wicked behavior for centuries and continued to rebel against God’s gracious calls to return to Him, their first love, their bride. Yet the people continued in wickedness, choosing to construct material alternatives to the unseen God who revealed Himself to them daily in creation, provision, and protection.

So, where God previously announced that His chosen people would know who He was through blessing and miraculous displays of His power on their behalf – like parting the Red Sea- He now spoke through Ezekiel, and others, that the people would know who He was because of their destruction. They were to discover who really holds the power when their semblance of control was stripped from them and their world fell apart.

And that’s exactly what happened. Famine broke out and the people starved. Swords were unsheathed as God rose up nations like Assyria and Babylon to destroy Israel. Pestilence filled the land and drove a desperate people to long for death to bring a release.

As I continue to read through the prophets, I sense God asking His people – “What’s it gonna take? What’s it gonna take for you to wake up and smell the roses – or should I say decaying bodies? When are you stubborn people going to realize who I am and come back to me?” Thankfully, God is much more gentle and more gracious than I.

So often, the misplaced questions we present to God could be effortlessly flipped back on us. We say to Him “if only you did this, then I would believe.” A simple cause, effect relationship, right? Wrong. Turns out logic can be observed in nature, but our arrogance leads us down a dangerously illogical path.

One of my favorite examples of this is when a group of people who likely had just witnessed Jesus feed thousands of people with two fish and five loaves of bread have the audacity to ask Jesus, “what sign do you do that we may see and believe you?” It’s ludicrous when reading through in context. I mean, what is it going to take if they see that happen and still don’t believe?

There are signs a plenty for us to know God. He has revealed Himself in creation, His Word, and His people just to name a few things. As we see in Ezekiel, God does things that we may know that He is who He says He is.

Perhaps the ultimate example of this is the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ. Jesus was the only sinless one to ever live yet was crushed on the cross with the weight of the sins of the world. After being dead three days, He walked out of His grave and appeared to His disciples and hundreds of others. He then ascended into Heaven, and His angels explained He would return in the same way that he left.  

Prior to these events, Jesus gave us the most important “if, then” statement. He says that the one who believes in Him will live, even though they die. What does this mean? He again says that he who believes in Him, has eternal life. That is, the required payment for our sin is death, yet Christ paid that debt. So, when one believes in Jesus, they agree with Him about their sin and need for Him. They accept what He did on the cross for them, and they’ll be with Him for all eternity because of what He did.

To know who God is because of mercy and not judgement is a gift of grace open to all who read this today! May the hard-heartedness of previous generations not continue in us. May we know that He is the LORD and place all our trust in Jesus!

Scripture References:

Ezekiel 6:7 – One of many examples of  “and you shall know that I am the LORD.”

Exodus 14 – The parting of the Red Sea

John 6:30 – “What sign do you do, that we may see and believe you?”

Matthew 27 & 28 – The crucifixion & resurrection of Jesus

Acts 1:11 – “Jesus…will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

No More, No Less

/ brianhilton9 / Leave a comment

I had a bad habit as a kid of embellishing things.

My parents would graciously respond to all of my exaggerated hyperboles the same way.

“Okay. What really happened?”

Part of it might be because I’ve always loved a good story. Or maybe it’s because I wanted to influence their view on something rather than just present the facts. Either way, my family quickly learned to take what I said with a grain of salt.

Even today when I recount something, I have to fight the strong urge to add in or enlarge certain details. It’s quite easy to do and (sometimes) hard for the listener to detect. After all, can they really disprove the size of the fish I caught last summer? Or can they see my bank account to verify I make as much as I said I did? We perceive an easy benefit without a likely cost. This is not reality.

This simple equation is the principle behind lying or manipulating the truth. We place a premium value on a fabrication while setting the truth aside as if it were an old orange peel. Of course, such a scenario manifests in a variety of ways. Perhaps the most staggering is in the dissemination of God’s words.

Recently, I have been reading through the book of the Biblical prophet Jeremiah. The ancient nation of Judah, God’s chosen people, rebelled against their God in pursuit of false gods which resulted in all kinds of appalling behavior – such as sacrificing their own children. God speaks through His anointed prophet Jeremiah announcing the land He gave Israel will be invaded by Babylon as He judges the land for its sin. The people had many chances to return to God and receive mercy, but at the time of much of Jeremiah’s writing, the Babylonian exile is set in stone after numerous rejections of His merciful offers.

Jeremiah is tasked with bringing this terrible news to his fellow countrymen. So much so, that I’ve started to think that the phrase “don’t shoot the messenger” comes from this account. There are many attempts on his life, even by his own family. Everybody hated this dude.

Why? He spoke just what God told him to say. Words of defeat, death, and desolation. He urged the people to relent of their wicked ways and return to the God who made them to avoid the impending destruction. They didn’t like that message. So, they tried to silence him. Rather, they tried to silence God.

Alternatives to Jeremiah’s words began to sprout up like weeds in a garden. The first was by a guy named Hananiah. Jeremiah had prophesied that the Israelites would be in exile 70 years, Judah’s old king named Jeconiah would die in Babylon, and that those who brought their necks under the “yoke” of Babylon would survive. Hananiah announces later that same year that the exile would only last two years as the yoke of Babylon was broken and that Jeconiah would be brought back into Judah. Hananiah’s prophesy contradicted Jeremiah’s at every point. Obviously, Hananiah’s message was a little more palatable than Jeremiah’s and required no remediation of behavior.

While Jeremiah ironically hoped Hananiah’s message was true, he wisely reminded the people to examine a true prophet by seeing which actually happens. After 37 years of Babylonian captivity, Jeconiah aka Jehoiachin was freed – but he did not return to Judah. He lived in Babylon till his death, well cared for by Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar’s son and successor, Evil-merodach. Hananiah didn’t see the end of that same year he made the false prophecy. He died because he turned the people from God and made them trust in a lie he created.

Even after, more weeds arose. Two men named Ahab and Zedekiah (not to be confused with the kings of Judah with the same names) spoke lies claiming to be from God while sleeping with their neighbors’ wives. In judgement, God consigns them to be “roasted in the fire” by Nebuchadnezzar. A so-called prophet named Shemaiah rebukes the priest Zephaniah for not chiding Jeremiah with stocks and neck irons for telling the people that their exile will be long, and they should settle in Babylon by building houses and planting gardens. Just like Hananiah, Ahab, and Zedekiah, God judges Shemaiah for making His people trust in a lie. Shemaiah’s family line is ended, and he is forbidden from seeing the redemption of the land that comes after the exile.

We see many here with a position of religious standing and influence proclaim something different than what God has actually spoken. The result is that people are ALWAYS driven AWAY from God. Had they listened to God’s words through Jeremiah, they would have repented of their sin, returned to God, and been saved from God’s wrath imposed through Babylon.

While those reading aren’t citizens of Judah and the nation of Babylon no longer exists, God’s words still do. He tells us that though all things will pass away, His words never will. His true word ALWAYS leads us TOWARDS Him. To change His words or claim He said something he hasn’t may not always be obvious, but it always results in death. Yours and those listening to you.

So, this begs the question– what is God’s word? What does it say?

The central message is one of His glory and our salvation through belief in the death, resurrection, and ascension of His Son Jesus Christ. Open it up to see true justice, amazing grace, and eternal hope. Sin is not justified. Instead it is explained in great detail and always exposed as leading to death. Judgement is promised, yet so is a way out for those who humble themselves before the Lord.

God’s word. It always points us to Jesus Christ. It always points us to our desperate need and His gracious supplication. It’s my prayer that you hear and see it in every post, action, and word I speak. No more, no less.

Scripture References:

Jeremiah 22:24-27 – Jeconiah won’t return to Judah but will die in Babylon

Jeremiah 25:12 – Babylonian exile will be for 70 years

Jeremiah 27 – Yoke of Babylon, death for those who rebel, life for those who submit and obey God

Jeremiah 28 & 29 – Hananiah, Ahab, Zedekiah, and Shemaiah’s false prophecies

2 Kings 25:27-30 – Jehoiachin dies in Babylon, but thrives under Babylonian captivity after surrender

Isaiah 13:9, Jeremiah 51 – Babylon destroyed (539 B.C.)

Matthew 24:35 – All will pass away, except for God’s words