Doesn’t it just amaze you to pray to Jesus…and know He hears us? It’s incredible, and a privilege we always remember in gratitude.
As Isaiah cried in his wonder and grief, “I am a man of unclean lips!” (Isaiah 6:5). In my case, a woman of unclean lips. Why should I be able to use these lips to pray to Jesus when I am the chief of sinners, wretched woman that I am? What is man that God should be mindful of us? (Psalm 8:4). Why should He hear us?
But He does.
Though ‘El Shama’ is not an official name of God, it refers to the fact that God hears…He listens. God told Hagar to name her soon to be born son Ishmael. Ishmael is is a combination of el and shama, “God hears” or “God listens”. The name would be a reminder to Hagar and all who knew them that He heard Hagar’s cry in the wilderness. (Genesis 16:11). He listens.
Psalm 17:6 says
I have called on you, for you will hear me, O God: incline your ear to me, and hear my speech.
Gill’s Expositions says of the Psalmist’s plea in verse 6,
“for thou wilt hear me, O God; God is a God hearing prayer; he is used to hear his people, and they have frequent experience of it, and they may be assured that whatsoever they ask according to his will, and in the name of Christ, he will hear; and such an assurance is a reason engaging the saints to a constant calling upon God, Psalm 116:2; and such confidence of being always heard Christ had, John 11:41;”
1 John 5:14 says,
And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.
Did Peter forever relive his anguish in his remaining life, when he heard the rooster crow the day awake and remembered his own perfidy? Owww, Peter, I understand your grief, the pain of betraying Jesus in word or in deed from our own sinful actions. Yet…Jesus prayed for Peter. Luke 22:32. He did not pray for Judas. Both men betrayed Jesus, but Jesus prayed for Peter.
If you’re a Christian, Jesus prays for you, too. It’s staggering to consider that the God of the Universe prays for us. He hears us, and He prays for us. We have a superlative God, One who is true and kind and loving and compassionate. Sister, no matter what you are going through, Jesus hears your prayer and He takes your cares to the Father in prayer. Be encouraged.
Some years ago, Tim Challies posted an article titled The Most Terrifying Thing God Can Do. It’s a terrifying article. It impacted me when I read it and apparently it did for many others as well. I saw this article referred to and re-posted numerous times.
EPrata photo
The most terrifying thing God can do is to turn an unsaved person over to his sin as they slide to perdition. Before that moment, He may release His restraint upon a sinner and lets him or her have the flavor of sin they want. Because, you see, we are all born wanting sin and rejecting holy God. But we are not all as depraved as we could be. We really have no day-to-day idea of how deep our sin could go. But it goes deep.
Here is a sample of the scriptural truths the article contains, here’s Challies-
We speak often of hell and eternal consequences for sin, but perhaps we give too little attention to God’s action against sin in this world and this life. God’s punishment for sin is sin. His punishment is allowing people to experience the life-stealing, soul-rotting consequences of their sin. He expresses his wrath by allowing them the very thing they want. He does this because when they get the thing they want, it only deepens their destruction.
In this way, sin is its own punishment. And in all the world I see nothing more terrifying than this: the prospect of God allowing people to experience the full impact and weight of their sinfulness. Nothing is more terrifying than God determining that he will no longer restrain the evil within them.
This is a terrifying thought.
This would be a terrifying event.
It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. (Hebrews 10:31)
Before the cross and repentance came, I’d lived for 43 years as a sinner, but I had a sin that consumed me. After some years, the Lord sunk me deeper into it and released restraint. I was choking on my sin, and by virtue of contrast, I think, thirsting for His purity and holiness. After a few mercifully short years of His loosening restraint on it, I cried to the God that I would finally acknowledge and the sin that I would finally admit.
I remember that day when I realized that the sin wasn’t so fun anymore. I realized that my sin had me, I didn’t have it. Like a rabbit in a snare, I tried to shake loose of it, and could not. This perplexed me, because I had always been able to do anything I’d set my mind to. This was different. I was trapped. (Romans 7:14).
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved… (Ephesians 2:1-5)
EPrata photo
Sinking into one’s sin is terrifying. That feeling of guilt and desperation made a deep impression. Sin is a terrible thing. Thankfully God gives believers the grace of the Holy Spirit’s indwelling to resist sin. Obey the Lord. Be grateful for His grace. He saved us from a ghastly fate.
SYNOPSIS: A lawyer tested Jesus about the greatest commandment, unknowingly standing before the only One who perfectly kept the Law. Christ’s humble answer reveals His majesty and calls us to deeper love.
Let’s think about this verse today:
And when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they themselves gathered together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested Him with a question: “Teacher, which commandment is the greatest in the Law?” (Matthew 22:34-36).
This lawyer was an expert in religious law. By that time of Jesus’ incarnation, there had been added to the original ten, another 603 laws. The Jews were laboring under a heavy yoke of an expectation to keep 613 laws.
Here is a website with which I’m not familiar, but lists a simple version of all 613 laws with their scripture-
Do you ever feel like such a terrible sinner that the very words of repentance and sorrow pouring from your lips in prayer to heaven is a blot on the name of Jesus?
But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ (Luke 18:13)
I can relate to Isaiah (the lips part, not actually seeing the LORD!)
Then I said, “Woe to me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of armies.”” (Isaiah 6:5).
But then in His Day He will purify our lips and when we praise Him we will be clean! Imagine praising Him from pure lips!
“For then I will restore to the peoples pure lips, So that all of them may call on the name of the LORD, To serve Him shoulder to shoulder.” (Zephaniah 3:9)
The church is one body, formed by the Spirit, who places each believer intentionally. Like a pointillist painting, individual lives lived further afield may seem indistinct, yet from God’s perspective every placement contributes to a unified, beautiful masterpiece completed in heaven according to His sovereign design.
I was in a secular setting with some 7-year-olds. They were drawing a picture to go along with the story about pizza they had just read. When one boy finished his drawing he still had room on the page. He asked if he could draw a cross. I said sure.
Of course then the others wanted to draw a cross too. Most or all of them have been exposed to Jesus. As they drew their crosses they began to talk about Jesus. The original boy said, ‘Jesus died on the cross’. Another said, ‘Isn’t He living now’? I chimed in and said His is living now, that He walked around on earth for 40 days after His death and resurrection and talked with His friends.
I’ve mentioned before that I lived on a yacht and sailed around for two years. We sailed north. We sailed south. We sailed coastal. We sailed offshore. We sailed fast and we sailed slow. We sailed during the day and we sailed at night.
I remember one night passage in particular. We had been anchored at Nassau’s Paradise Island and had upped anchor to scoot to nearby Rose Island. Rose Island is a long, skinny palm tree-lined island with no roads and no houses. A daily excursion boat playing a steel drum version of Yellow Bird arrived every day. We’d hear Yellow Bird coming, we’d hear Yellow Bird staying, we’d hear Yellow Bird going. I liked hearing the distant calypso steel drums, their notes winding around the palm tree leaves before bouncing off to arrive at our swaying boat to serenade us. In between it was quiet. Very quiet.
When we decided to leave, we wanted to head back north to Great Abaco Island. We plotted our trip on the chart. It necessitated scooting around the western tip of Rose island we were anchored behind, turning north, making a deep water passage, and then turning west to get inside the Abaco island chain. There were no navigational aids to mariners. We’d have to sail in between dodgy narrow cliffs with shallow waters dotted with deadly coral heads. Coral is sharp, it could rip a hole in the bottom of your boat faster than a blink.
It’s easy to see coral heads if the sun is behind your back, you’re wearing polarized sunglasses, and you stand far forward on the bow or even better, higher up if you have a wheelhouse. Unfortunately, this meant that to arrive in time for the sun to be behind our back in order to navigate the coral, we’d have to get there before noon. And that meant sailing overnight to arrive at sunrise.
Our Boat
We left Rose Island at dusk, and as the sun set, turned our vessel toward Great Abaco. Our heading was 0 degrees, due north.
Compass set for 0 degrees captain. Easy enough. The sky darkened, turned blue, then purple, then black. The stars came out. Absent any competing light, they were bright. However, one star stood out. It hung off our left spreader. The spreader is the cross-spar halfway up the mast. Our mast was unusual for a modern boat, it was wooden.
If I pointed the left spreader with the star just at the end of it, I could maintain my true north, 0 degree course. That is because the star was the North Star, and the north star never moves. All the other stars rotate around it, but Polaris never moves.
A long exposure photo of Polaris & neighbouring stars (exposure time 45 min),taken in Ehrenbürg (Walberla) in 2001. Source
The North Star is a pole star, and it’s called Polaris. There is only one, the North Star. Wiki says, “While other stars’ apparent positions in the sky change throughout the night, as they appear to rotate around the celestial poles, pole stars’ apparent positions remain virtually fixed. This makes them especially useful in celestial navigation: they are a dependable indicator of the direction toward the respective geographic pole although not exact; they are virtually fixed, and their angle of elevation can also be used to determine latitude. … The North Star has historically been used for navigation since Late Antiquity, both to find the direction of north and to determine latitude.“
We did not sail by celestial navigation, even though we had a sextant. We didn’t have a GPS either but we used the compass and the charts and eyeball and Loran. (Yes, that’s how old we are). We loved using the North Star as our navigational aid. It made us feel like sailors of antiquity, brave and adventurous, casting off to parts unknown and getting there using only what was set in the heavens.
Little did I know that in truth, that ten years later I’d come to know the real God who set the stars in the heavens. (Genesis 1:16). Now my adventures are more biblical, casting off for spiritual parts unknown, and following my North Star, who never moves from His position, and is always bright.
My New Year wish for you is that you follow the North Star. Always, always keep your heading to true north. Always check for drift and for undersea hazards that can rip your keel off and sink you in a blink. It is Jesus who never moves, never changes, and all other beings, planets, and stars rotate around HIM. You cannot go wrong with a compass heading as true as that. Follow Him, whether it is night or day, or whether there are rough or smooth waters. Navigate by His brightness, and the course that is set will see you there safely.
“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” (Revelation 22:16)
This section of verses that show Jesus’ life are focused on His attributes. In His earthly ministry we’ve seen Him as servant, teacher, shepherd, intercessor, and healer. We then looked at His attributes of omniscience, His authority, and now His sinlessness.
He came from glory where righteousness reigns. He descended to an earth that’s cursed where every single human is depraved, thoroughly drenched with a sin nature. He lived among us, sinlessly and perfectly fulfilling the Father’s commands for righteous living. He did this at every moment in every way. Not one blot, not one thought, not one act of anything less than perfection.
For this, He was reviled, mocked, hated, and killed.
In what sense did Jesus become “sin on our behalf”? Does that phrase mean that Jesus literally became a sinner on the cross? …
Based on the above passages, we can safely determine what 2 Corinthians 5:21 does not mean. It cannot mean that Jesus became unrighteous, or that He became a sinner, or that He took on a sin nature, or that He literally embodied sin. … So, then what does it mean? This brings us to our third point. … 3. The best way to understand Paul’s statement (that Jesus became sin on our behalf) is in terms of imputation. Our sin was imputed to Christ, such that He became a substitutionary sacrifice or sin offering for all who would believe in Him.
On the cross, Jesus took our sin upon Himself and purchased our salvation. We have “been justified by his blood” (Romans 5:9), and part of that justification is an imputation of His own righteousness. Paul puts it this way: “For our sake [God] made [Jesus] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus is righteous by virtue of His very nature—He is the Son of God. By God’s grace, “through faith in Jesus Christ,” that righteousness is given “to all who believe” (Romans 3:22). That’s imputation: the giving of Christ’s righteousness to sinners.
Ligonier: Jesus’ Sinless Life Jesus lived a representative life. Jesus lived a sinless life, and it was, therefore, a life of representative sinlessness. Our Lord’s obedience stands in the place of His people’s sin. His law-keeping is counted as the law-keeping of those who have faith in Him.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thirty Days of Jesus Series-
Introduction/Background
Prophecies:
Day 1: The Virgin shall conceive Day 2: A shoot from Jesse Day 3: God sent His Son in the fullness of time Day 4: Marry her, she will bear a Son
Birth & Early Life-
Day 5: The Babe has arrived! Day 6: The Glory of Jesus Day 7: Magi seek the Child Day 8: The Magi Offer gifts & worship Day 9: The Child Grew Day 10- the Boy Jesus at the Temple Day 11: He was Obedient
The Second Person of the Trinity-
Day 12: The Son! Day 13: God is pleased with His Son Day 14: Propitiation Day 15: The Gift of Eternal Life Day 16: Kingdom of Darkness to Light Day 17: Jesus’ Preeminence Day 18: The Highest King Day 19: He emptied Himself Day 20: Jesus as The Teacher Day 21: The Good Shepherd Day 22: The Intercessor Day 23: The Compassionate Healer
Attributes
Day 24: Jesus’ Omniscience Day 25: Jesus’ Authority
We have been through a section of verses that show Jesus’ life in His earthly ministry. We’ve seen Him as servant, teacher, shepherd, intercessor, and healer.
Now we look at His attributes. Today- Omniscience.
CARM.org: The sovereignty of God: His omniscience, omnipresence, omnipotence Omniscience is an attribute of God alone. It is the quality of having all knowledge (Isaiah 40:14). God knows all things possible as well as actual because He has ordained whatsoever will come to pass according to the counsel of His will (Eph. 1:11). He does not need to experience something to know about it completely.
Ligonier: Scripture and the Two Natures of Christ The historic Christian understanding of the person of Christ is that He is one person who possesses two natures: a divine nature and a human nature. Each nature retains its unique properties, and the two natures remain distinct, though inseparably united in Christ’s person. Thus, according to His divine nature, as the second person of the Trinity, the Son of God is omniscient, omnipotent, and so forth. According to His human nature, the incarnate Christ needs to eat food to survive, grows in knowledge, and so forth.
GotQuestions: What does it mean that Jesus is omniscient? Despite the condescension of the Son of God to empty Himself and make Himself nothing (Philippians 2:7), His omniscience is clearly seen in the New Testament writings. The first prayer of the apostles in Acts 1:24, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart,” implies Jesus’ omniscience, which is necessary if He is to be able to receive petitions and intercede at God’s right hand.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thirty Days of Jesus Series-
Introduction/Background
Prophecies:
Day 1: The Virgin shall conceive Day 2: A shoot from Jesse Day 3: God sent His Son in the fullness of time Day 4: Marry her, she will bear a Son
Birth & Early Life-
Day 5: The Babe has arrived! Day 6: The Glory of Jesus Day 7: Magi seek the Child Day 8: The Magi Offer gifts & worship Day 9: The Child Grew Day 10- the Boy Jesus at the Temple Day 11: He was Obedient Day 12: The Son! Day 13: God is pleased with His Son
The Second Person of the Trinity-
Day 14: Propitiation Day 15: The Gift of Eternal Life Day 16: Kingdom of Darkness to Light Day 17: Jesus’ Preeminence Day 18: The Highest King Day 19: He emptied Himself Day 20: Jesus as The Teacher Day 21: The Good Shepherd Day 22: The Intercessor Day 23: The Compassionate Healer
We are in the section of my Advent thirty day flow where we examine PROPHECY, ARRIVAL, and EARLY LIFE of Jesus.
In this section I chose verses that reflect the prophecies that predict His coming. Prophecy warns of coming judgment but it also comforts in that it foretells the holy and wonderful resolution of all things for the believer. This resolution didn’t begin with Jesus’ incarnation as a babe in the manger, it didn’t even begin in the Garden when Adam and Eve sinned.
It began before the foundation of the world when the God-head held an intra-council discussion and Jesus voluntarily chose to become the sacrificial Lamb. When humans were created and Adam and Eve talked with God after the Fall, He proclaimed the Good News, partially veiled and not fully explained (Genesis 3:15), and continued gradually revealing His prophetic assurances throughout the Old Testament- until the day the savior took on flesh and was born! This one child, finite babe and infinite God, changed the world. His birth is a pivot point in human history.
the-end-time.org 