Be Still

"Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!" ESV Psalm 46:10

A few weeks ago, I completed a bicycle trip down the Natchez Trace Parkway. Completing this trip had been a personal goal of mine for some time; several years at least. Not being particularly blessed with patience, I wish I could say that the trip was measured in days, but it wasn’t. The Parkway is 444 miles in length so my journey had to be completed in sections; a day or two here and a day or two there. All total, it took seven days of pedaling. I hope to collect my thoughts from the journey and write about it soon.

But for now, suffice it to say that the world looks differently from atop a bicycle. Flowers are more plentiful than you imagine and their colors are more varied and crisp. It’s fun to silently roll up on turkey, deer and other wildlife along the way and watch as they discover you and slip away. They don’t usually leave in a panic like they do when you’re in a car.

The world feels differently from atop a bicycle as well. The same gravel that causes a slight roar in a car are absolutely numbing on a bike. I’m talking about tooth jarring vibrations here. Every bump in the road is accentuated on a bike. There are good feelings too; the wind in your face; the smell of a fresh rain; the coolness of Cypress Creek on your tired limbs (a story of its own). You miss all of these things in a car.

Things look differently here in our own back yard from a bicycle as well. Just a few miles from my house, some friends and I ride a loop that we affectionately call Psalm 19 [“The heavens declare the glory of god, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.”] because of its natural beauty. Though there is one hill on the loop that is so steep that a more intense passage seems a more fitting nickname; something from Isaiah maybe.

Why? Why does the world look and feel differently from atop a bicycle? Things look and feel differently because they’re coming at me at a different speed (much slower) and I am closer to my surroundings; a part of them sort of.

Be honest now. Aren’t most of our lives so fast paced today that we forget to smell the roses? Don’t we ignore simple pleasures because urgent things are pressing on us? Don’t we all sometimes neglect even important things like family and worship because of the hectic pace we keep?

Even in our churches we sometimes get so caught up in doing things “for” God that we forget that He is God; Creator of heaven and earth and worthy of all praise. We forget that he sets the seasons of nations and that one day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that He is Lord of all. That’s what the Psalmist is reminding us of here.

Take a tip from a bicyclist and apply it to your spiritual life. Don’t get to moving so fast that you forget that He is God and worthy of praise. Slow down, be still, enjoy his fellowship and know that He is God.

One Flesh

Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. 33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. ESV Ephesians 5:31-33

Last week Melisa and I celebrated our 22nd wedding anniversary. This anniversary marks a milestone. Now we have both been married for over half of our lives. Lot’s of things have changed in 22 years and yet some things are the same. As we look back on honeymoon pictures we wonder what happened to those two skinny kids that were just married. Our own kids look at those same pictures and laugh out loud though I’m not exactly sure what they find humor in.

We’ve got one picture in particular that sits in our study. Melisa and I are on a sky lift in Gatlinburg; it was old then but still in operation the last time we went up. Our son, Chris, can’t believe that the same sky lift is still there; being so old you know. I had on a really cool straw hat, some strange foot gear and white tube socks that came nearly to my knees complete with red rings around the top. Caution: Before you laugh too hard, go back and check out your own high school pictures. Let me just say that Melisa looked like the girl of my dreams and leave it at that.

But I digress. Since that honeymoon trip all those years ago we have started wearing different clothes. And now it’s hard to tell whether my hair has more salt or pepper. That skinny guy in the picture is in the 200lb club and hard to beat going downhill on a bicycle; hard to stop too. Melisa has changed too, but only for the better. Two children have been added and we’ve grown from being two kids with a dream to a family.

When you spend 22 years together you begin to know each other in ways that you could not have imagined at the onset. For instance, I can tell by the way Melisa answers the phone whether she is stressed, distracted or whether it’s a good time to mention an upcoming bicycling trip I’ve planned; all by the tone of her voice. And if you were to quiz her, she would likewise know me just as well. Marriage is intended to be a wonderful union and I am thankful that mine is. Our text even says that the union should function as if “one flesh.”

Paul reminds us that the relationship between Christ and His Church is similar to the institution of marriage. At least when marriage is functioning as God intended. That’s one of many reasons why we should take our local church membership seriously. When we identify with a local church, we are testifying to the community that we are members of the body of Christ; one flesh.

How would you describe your relationship to the church? Is it estranged or does it grow and develop each year into something sweeter? Do you respect the authority and spiritual leadership of your local church? Do you participate within the body? Are you helping the local church to function as one flesh with Christ as its head? Relationships, whether we’re talking about physical marriage or the church, take effort. Be willing to put forth the effort to make your’s grow.

Food for thought… “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,” ESV Ephesians 5:25

The Anointed One

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." 20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 And he began to say to them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." ESV Luke 4:18-21

Last week, we looked at the question that Jesus posed to the disciples; the question of the day: “Who do you say that I am?” Then, like now, there was not a shortage of opinionated answers to the question. But Peter gave the correct answer when he said: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Peter got it.

Our text above is an excerpt of a scripture reading and short sermon that Jesus delivered in His boyhood home of Nazareth near the beginning of His public ministry. The reaction of the hearers moved quickly from astonishment at His proclamation to anger at His assertion that He was indeed the Messiah; God’s Anointed One. How quickly public opinion shifts when our hopes and expectations are bruised.

Had the Nazarenes been asked the question of the day (Who do you say that I am?) the answer would most likely have been: Joseph’s son or perhaps Mary’s little boy. The Nazarenes had heard that the local lad (Jesus) had “done good.” News of His early ministry and miracles had no doubt reached home before Jesus stood to deliver the scripture reading. They even encouraged Jesus to perform a miracle for them; a show for the home crowd if you will. But Jesus did not come to entertain. Jesus came to proclaim truth. Sadly, the Nazarenes rejected the truth.

Instead of entertaining the assembled hometown crowd, Jesus boldly and confidently announced that He was the Anointed One; the same Anointed One that the prophet Isaiah had spoken of and the one who would proclaim a season of favor from God. (If you go back and read the text in Isaiah (61:1-2) you’ll note that Jesus stopped mid sentence. The “year of the Lord’s favor” will be followed by a “day of vengeance of our God.” Perhaps Jesus stopped where he did because that day is yet to come. But this season of favor will not last forever.)

Much could be said of Jesus’ earthly commission based on this text, but let’s look at only one point. As the Anointed One, notice what Jesus came to do. He came to reconcile. Notice the language that he uses to describe His ministry: good news, liberty, sight, favor. Jesus was indeed the Anointed One who came that we might be reconciled with God the Father and again enjoy harmony and oneness with Him that was ruined when man sinned in Eden.

Jesus declared it; I am the Anointed One. Peter got it; “you are the Christ;” the Nazarenes missed it. Do you get it? Who do you say that Jesus is?

Who do you say that I am?

“Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" 14 And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." 15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" 16 Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
ESV Matthew 16:13

A few years back O.S. Hawkins preached a sermon based on this question at a conference. The question captured my attention and I don’t think I’ll ever shake it. It was a question that Jesus asked of the disciples. It was the question of the day. And it is THE question of our day. Your answer to this question has eternal consequences.

Some months back I wrote of an encounter with a man passing out religious literature downtown. I agreed to take a look at his literature if he would entertain a question or two from me. Given the opportunity, I asked him who he thought Jesus was. He responded with several descriptive terms (sacrifice, prophet, sinless man) but all of them stopped short of declaring the deity of Christ. He didn’t get it. The fact that Jesus was Immanuel (God with us) escaped him.

The answers to the question were not different in the times of the Apostles either. Some folks were declaring that Elijah had risen; others declared that he (Jesus) must be Jeremiah; still others insisted that he must be John the Baptist. Notice that that all of these terms stop short of declaring the deity of Christ.

Of course, Jesus had an answer for the question. At every turn Jesus was announcing his deity in one way or the other. John 10:30 records Jesus boldly declaring that “I and the Father are one.” John also records Jesus saying “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” In the coming weeks, we’ll look at Jesus’ claims closer.

Presently though, notice that Peter got it right. Peter answered the question of his day: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Peter’s bold declaration identified Jesus as the Messiah; Savior. There’s no denial of deity in Peter’s testimony; only affirmation. Jesus was and is the Savior.

James Montgomery Boice summarizes this text beautifully: “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. He is the sinner’s Savior. Therefore, to repent of sin and believe on him is to pass from death to life and to find salvation. To reject him is to perish forever. This is good news. Believe it, and tell others too.”

How will you answer THE question of our day? If Jesus asked: “Who do you say that I am?” How would you answer?