Posts Tagged ‘the word’

How Low Can You Go?

Saturday, February 14th, 2009

How low can you go?  Some people seem to have to go all the way to the bottom before they are willing to look up.  That sure seems to be the case with Jonah.  He ran from God and headed down, down, down.  Eventually he found himself at the lowest point possible.  At this point he began to cry to the Lord for help.  One thing we learn for sure from Jonah is that you are never too low or never in too deep for God to hear you call.

As Jonah was sinking to the bottom, he cried out to the Lord.  Scripture records, “From the depth of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry” (Jonah 2:2).  Jonah literally felt like he was a dead man.  His life was flashing before his eyes, and he felt no hope.  The word grave can also be translated as “hell.”  He felt like he was in a living hell – separated from God and left for dead.  Have you ever felt that way?  Have you ever been in such a place of hopelessness?

Jonah also said of God, “You hurled me into the deep, into the very heart of the seas, and the currents swirled about me… I have said, ‘ I have been banished from your sight.’” (Jonah 2:3,4).  Jonah not only feels like he is dying in hell, but he feels it is a hell he can never return from.  The picture of the waves and currents swirling about him are a picture of Jonah being overwhelmed by his circumstances.  He had sunk so low that he felt God could no longer see him or save him.

It was from the depths of the grave that Jonah called for help and God listened to his cry.  In other words, he is saying, “at the place where I felt completely cut off from God with nothing to give, and nothing to contribute, I cried out to the Lord and he heard me.  At the place where I thought I was beyond help, I cried out to God and he saved me.

This may be an encouraging word for some of you.  Some of you may feel like you are in your own personal hell.  Perhaps you think God cannot help you or save you.  Maybe you feel like your marriage is in the grave, or you are living in the hell of addiction, or the depths of depression, or the pit of financial bondage.

Jonah cried to God from the depths of the grave.  And God heard his cry.  When he had no place to turn, He called upon God and the Lord answered him from the deepest and darkest place.  When Jonah needed God the most, but deserved it the least, God answered him.  He was there for Jonah, and He will be there for you.

Finally Jonah brought himself to look to the Lord again: “Yet I will look again toward your holy temple… but you brought my life up from the pit, O Lord my God.  When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you Lord and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple.”

Jonah had gone as low as he could go.  Now as He calls on the Lord, he is headed back up.  It is God who brings him up out of the pit.  Jonah’s story tells us that no matter how low you go, that God can lift you up when you look up.  God can make a way there seems to be no way.  Are you tired of being down?  Look up.  Cry out, and let God lift you up.  And that’s the Word.

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Have You Ever Run Away from God?

Saturday, January 10th, 2009

Have you ever run away from God? You know those times where God tells you to do one thing, and go one way – and you decide to go the other way. Maybe you can relate to the prophet Jonah. The book of Jonah begins with the word of the Lord coming to Jonah. He is told to go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it because of their wickedness.

Now Jonah was a prophet. You would think he would have no problem going into a city and telling a bunch of wicked people to “Turn or burn. Get right, or get left.” That’s all in a days work for an Old Testament prophet.

Jonah didn’t want to go though. His problem was with Nineveh. The Ninevites were a very cruel group of people. Nineveh was the capital of the Assyrian Empire. They attacked many cities and treated their captives very cruelly. They pillaged, plundered, raped and tortured the people they conquered.

You might think Jonah did not want to go to Nineveh because he was scared to death. In the story, however, we find out that Jonah didn’t want to go for other reasons. His problem was that he didn’t want Nineveh to have a chance to repent. He was afraid that if he preached about God’s impending judgment upon them that they would repent and turn to God. Then God would forgive them and show them grace. Jonah didn’t want to risk it. He wanted nothing but judgment for Nineveh. They were too cruel for God to forgive in his eyes. He thought Nineveh shouldn’t get a shot at grace, but only get judgment.

So Jonah “ran away from the Lord and headed to Tarshish” (Jonah 1:3). Basically Jonah said, I don’t like your way God. I don’t want to do what you want me to do. So he ran and went as far away from God’s will as possible. Tarshish was actually in the exact opposite direction of Nineveh. God said go west to Nineveh, and Jonah went due east to Tarshish.

There are times we run from God as well. God speaks into our lives and reveals his will to us. He tells us what we are to do. And maybe you think, “Okay God, I understand what you say to do. I understand what your word says on this matter, but I do not want to do it. “ We can relate to this in so many different ways. We all have a Tarshish that we tend to run to and run away from God.

Perhaps someone has wronged you and hurt you. And God says forgive. You think, “I know I should forgive, but I do not want to. They don’t deserve my forgiveness. I don’t feel like it.”

Or maybe the word of the Lord has come to you concerning your finances and giving. You know what God has called you to do. You say, “I don’t want to. I don’t feel like it. It doesn’t make sense. And I like my things more than I want to obey God.” So you run from the Lord.

Or maybe you are dating someone. You think he or she is so cute and smells so nice. You know what God has to say about waiting until marriage before you have sex. But you think, “I don’t want to wait. I love him/her. I don’t think I have should have to wait.”

There are so many different ways that we can tend to run from God and go the other direction. We will look at this more in the weeks to come. Answer this though: What is your Nineveh – the thing God has told you to do. And what is the Tarshish that you are tempted to run to. Are you running now? If so, maybe it is time to turn around. And that’s the Word.

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If You Are the Son

Saturday, November 22nd, 2008

Do you ever have a problem with temptation? Hopefully you are not like one man who answered that question. He said, “I never have a problem with temptation. I am tempted. I sin. No problem.” Temptation is a battleground that we all find ourselves in at times. Even Jesus himself faced temptation. He came face to face with the devil and won.

Jesus’ temptation scene is found in the fourth chapter of Luke. Right before this scene, however, is the story of Jesus’ baptism. Jesus came to John the Baptist and asked John to baptize him. When Jesus came up out of the water, there was a voice from heaven. God the Father spoke and said, “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased” (Luke 3:22). Here at his baptism, Jesus was announced and proclaimed as the Son of God. God spoke over His Son, and then confirmed the word by anointing Jesus with the Holy Spirit. This was the Father’s validation for His Son. He gave Jesus his full love and acceptance even before Jesus did one act of ministry. These words were meant to encourage, empower, and edify Jesus as God’s beloved Son.

This is really important to remember because Jesus went right from this place of love and validation and was thrown into the fire of temptation. He was led into the wilderness where he fasted for 40 days. At the end of that time, when he was hungry and tired, and Satan tempted him, it would have been easy to wonder where his Father was. Had God the Father forgotten him? Is he still loved?

Jesus heard the Father speak to Him. There was no need to doubt God’s love even in the midst of his struggles and temptation. Jesus’ baptism would have been a real spiritual high for Jesus. His heart would have been full of the Father’s love. The Spirit of God was alive in his heart. Immediately following this spiritual high, however, Jesus found himself in a battle for his very soul. It was a battle over his very identity.

When Satan came and tempted Jesus, he said to him, “If you are the Son of God…” He repeated this phrase three times during each of the temptations Jesus faced. God the Father had just said, “You are my son.” Now Satan had come to test that very word. It was as if he was saying to Jesus, “Okay, lets’ see some action. Prove that you are really God’s Son. Do something.”

It can be just like that for us. We can have a spiritually high moment. We feel like God speaks to us, and then we turn around and feel like we are losing it. All of a sudden we get filled with doubt, discouragement, and questions. Two days earlier we seemed so full of faith and peace. We knew what God said. We were confident, and then we turn around and face nothing but doubts: “Is that really true? Can I really trust God? Can I really believe God?” I have discovered that our greatest temptations often seem to come on the heels of some of our greatest victories. Right after the spiritual high is over, Satan seeks to bring us to a new low.

Has this ever happened to you? Watch out! Temptation is real, and the enemy’s schemes are deceptive. And yet God allows these tests to happen to see if we will be faithful to Him. God wants to know and to see if we will hold on and trust Him. Temptation becomes a true test of our belief in God. When we are tired, hungry, alone, and discouraged, will we still remember what God has said? Will we hold on to God’s Word even when we are face to face with temptation? And that’s the Word.

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