Stepping in the Light

“Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.” John 16:7-11

Jesus told His disciples that it would be a good thing for them if He went away. Of course, He was speaking of the fact that He was going to die on the cross, be buried, rise from the dead, and ascend into heaven. After He did this, they would not see Him anymore. They would not have the advantage of hearing Him teach and asking Him questions. Their loss would certainly be great, but Jesus taught them that what they would gain would be greater than what they would lose. When Jesus said that He would send a Comforter to them, He was speaking of the Holy Spirit. The disciples spent time with Jesus most every day, but they were not able to be with Him every moment of every day. Sometimes Jesus left them alone or sent them away to run an errand or even to travel and preach the message of the kingdom. Even when they were with Jesus, not every disciple could ask Jesus a question at that same time; but after Jesus ascended to heaven, the Holy Spirit came to dwell within each believer. He is with us every second of every day. He is there to empower us and guide us as we serve God today!

“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” John 15:4-5

The Bible is clear that we belong to God. By virtue of the fact that He created us, He owns us. When we are saved by putting our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, a transaction is completed whereby God redeems us (buys us back). God gives us the ability to think, to walk, and to talk. The Bible says that He gives us the power to get wealth. So, physically speaking, God enables us to do all that we do. In the passage above, Jesus takes our total dependence upon God into the spiritual realm. Christ likened Himself to a vine and each of us to branches. He said, “Without me ye can do nothing.” Some people, especially folks who have never trusted in Christ, struggle with the idea of their physical abilities coming from God. They think that they have achieved everything in life by their own strength. We know from scripture that this is nothing more than pride. This is understandable in the case of an unsaved person thinking about physical accomplishments, but it should be obvious to Christians that we have no spiritual abilities on our own. Jesus said that we must abide in Him in order to receive the spiritual strength that we need to accomplish the spiritual works that He has for us to do. As Christians, we need to constantly remind ourselves to rely on the Lord to enable us to bear spiritual fruit.

“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” John 13:34-35

Perhaps you have heard people say, “We’re supposed to love everybody,” or, “I love everyone.” These statements are virtually meaningless without a little bit of additional information. What do we mean when we use the word love, and who is everybody? By saying that we love people, we generally mean that we are willing to treat others as we wish to be treated. We are most willing to apply this level of care to people that we don’t know, as long as they are not doing anything particularly annoying at the moment.

Jesus gave us a rather specific set of instructions here and warned us that the whole world would be watching us to see how closely we would follow them. As Christians, Jesus has commanded us to love other Christians in the same way that He loved us. Jesus’ love for us went much further than kindness and deferential treatment. His love includes self-denial, personal sacrifice, and eternally gracious longsuffering. Our Lord desires that our love for one another as Christians to be our trademark. He wants people to recognize us as His followers by the way that we love each other. We have an opportunity to demonstrate our Christianity to a watching world if we are willing to love others as Christ loved us.

“And his heart was lifted up in the ways of the LORD: moreover he took away the high places and groves out of Judah. Also in the third year of his reign he sent to his princes, even to Benhail, and to Obadiah, and to Zechariah, and to Nethaneel, and to Michaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah. And with them he sent Levites, even Shemaiah, and Nethaniah, and Zebadiah, and Asahel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehonathan, and Adonijah, and Tobijah, and Tobadonijah, Levites; and with them Elishama and Jehoram, priests. And they taught in Judah, and had the book of the law of the LORD with them, and went about throughout all the cities of Judah, and taught the people.” II Chronicles 17:6-9

When Jehoshaphat became the king of the southern kingdom of Judah, he decided that he wanted to follow God wholeheartedly and that he wanted his subjects to do so as well. In the third year of his reign, he gathered some of his most powerful leaders and gave them the task of teaching the people the law of God. He also enlisted a group of Levites to go with them. These teams were to travel throughout all of the cities of Judah teaching God’s commandments to the people. As a result, there was a resurgence of obedience to God’s law throughout the kingdom. The success of Jehoshaphat’s method is a great example for Christians today. Most people in our society are aware that the Bible exists, but they are largely ignorant of what it says. If we want to see people obeying God’s Word, we must be constantly and consistently teaching its message to the people around us.

“And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” John 12:32

Jesus spoke in descriptive terms of the death that He would die. The people who were listening understood that Jesus was referring to crucifixion when He used the phrase, “lifted up from the earth.” The Romans commonly crucified people as a means of execution, and the Israelites believed that the Messiah would rise up and cast off the Roman occupation, so Jesus’ statement must have been more than a little confusing for them. Though the repulsive specter of a crucifixion may have normally drawn a crowd of onlookers, Jesus was not referring to this base sort of curiosity and fear. He was not talking about the crowd that would gather around His cross and mock Him on the day that He was crucified. Jesus was speaking of a phenomenon that would affect all people everywhere. Jesus said His cross would “draw all men” unto Him. The cross of Calvary possesses a universal appeal. Everyone who hears of the cross is drawn to Christ; not because of the gruesomeness of His death, but because of the greatness of His sacrifice. Jesus left His rightful place on the right hand of God the Father in heaven to come to this earth and live as a man for thirty-three years. He willingly took the sins of the world upon Himself and died on the cross as the sacrifice for those sins. His love for us compels us to His cross. Once we have partaken of His great forgiveness, we must lift Him up in our lives so that others will be drawn to Him as well.

“And Asa cried unto the LORD his God, and said, LORD, it is nothing with thee to help, whether with many, or with them that have no power: help us, O LORD our God; for we rest on thee, and in thy name we go against this multitude. O LORD, thou art our God; let not man prevail against thee.” II Chronicles 14:11

Asa was a good king who loved the Lord with all his heart. When he became king, he took away the altars to false gods, broke the images, and cut down the groves. The king of Ethiopia came against him with an army of one million soldiers and three hundred chariots. This was a severe test of Asa’s faith in God. The invading force was roughly double the size of Asa’s entire army, but Asa did not consider surrender an option. Asa mustered his army and went out against the Ethiopians. As they went forth to battle, Asa prayed to God. In his prayer and in his actions, we can see a great deal of faith. Asa told the Lord that it would be nothing to Him to deliver them. He prayed, “Help us, O Lord our God; for we rest on thee.”

Are you resting on God today? Asa was not speaking of resting in terms of sitting on a sofa doing nothing. Asa and his army were going forth to battle, but he told the Lord that he was resting on Him. We can take that same approach to the battles we face in life. We can face the foe and fight the fight while we are resting completely on the power and might of our God.

“Now when Solomon had made an end of praying, the fire came down from heaven, and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the LORD filled the house. And the priests could not enter into the house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD had filled the LORD’S house. And when all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of the LORD upon the house, they bowed themselves with their faces to the ground upon the pavement, and worshipped, and praised the LORD, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.” II Chronicles 7:1-3

Many years after the temple dedication, Elijah stood on Mount Carmel and prayed for fire to fall from heaven and consume the sacrifice that he had prepared. Elijah’s life and the spiritual condition of the people of Israel depended upon the answer to that prayer. At the dedication of the temple, fire falling from heaven was not part of the script. Solomon prayed that God would honor and bless this new temple. He prayed that God would hear and answer the prayers of the people who prayed in the temple and toward the temple. He prayed that God’s name would be honored because of the temple and that people around the world would know that it was the temple to the one true God. Solomon prayed for many things, but he never asked for fire to fall from heaven to consume the sacrifice. God sent the fire to let His people know that He was pleased with the way that they had turned their hearts toward Him. How long has it been since you have felt the fire of God in your heart?

“It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD; So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.” II Chronicles 5:13-14

The dedication of the temple was a spectacular occasion. The temple itself was ornate, and much of it was overlaid with gold. Hundreds of priests and Levites were prepared to begin the sacrificial offerings and ceremonial cleansings required in the Old Testament law. A large choir began to sing praises to God accompanied by an orchestra that included one hundred twenty trumpets. As the choir sang and the orchestra played, the glory of the Lord filled the temple. When God’s glory filled the house, all of the money and time that had been invested in the building of the temple and all of the preparations that had been made for the dedication service were made worthwhile. The purpose of the temple was to provide a place where the people could worship God, and His presence was what validated the building. The king had procured the materials, the workmen had followed the plans, the priests had prepared the sacrifices, and the musicians sang praises to God; but all of this would have been in vain if the glory of God had not filled the house.

“I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.” John 10:14-18

Jesus likened himself unto a shepherd and his followers to sheep. Jesus is the Good Shepherd. He knows His sheep and they know Him. Jesus gave His life for the sheep. Sheep need a shepherd. The shepherd protects them, feeds them, and cares for their every need. Not every shepherd is a good shepherd. Jesus said that the hireling (someone who is hired to watch the sheep) sees the wolf coming and runs away. The wolf then comes and catches the sheep. Down through the ages, many spiritual leaders have arisen and drawn followers to themselves. They made beautiful speeches, drew great crowds, and built impressive buildings. They became the founders of religions with thousands of followers spreading around the globe. Statues were erected in their honor and books were written about them, but they could not protect their followers from the devil. Jesus gave His life for us. How thankful we should be that He was willing to suffer in our place!

“And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever. Take heed now; for the LORD hath chosen thee to build an house for the sanctuary: be strong, and do it.” I Chronicles 28:9-10

David charged his son Solomon to serve the Lord with a perfect heart and a willing mind. The word perfect has come to be used in the sense of sinless perfection, but in this passage it conveys the idea of being complete. When David told Solomon to serve the Lord with a perfect heart, he was saying that Solomon should serve God with his whole heart. This would require Solomon to remain focused on the Lord and put His law first in his life. But David did not stop there. He said that Solomon needed to have a willing mind. In other words, Solomon should be pleased to serve the Lord.

Solomon was facing a task that none of us will ever face. He was to build the temple, the place where the Ark of the Covenant would be housed and where God’s glory would reside. Though we live in a different age and we have different responsibilities, we would do well to take King David’s advice. We ought to serve the Lord with our whole hearts and a willing mind. Are you happily following God’s Word in your life?