THURSDAY, JANUARY 10, 2013
Genesis 23:1–24:51
Matthew 8:1–17
Psalm 9:13–20
Proverbs 3:1–6
Three themes impacted me from today’s readings and dovetail with some recent reflections:
1. Trust. Today, we read about Abraham’s servant and his faithful duty to his master and the assignment of finding a wife for Isaac, a search that takes him to Abraham’s native country. In this vignette, we witness implementation of the recommendation in Proverbs 3:5,6:
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your path straight [or direct your paths.”
In order to understand the last portion of that verse, we must consider the condition of roads in the ancient Near East. Isaiah 40:3–5 employs the same language. In short, without significant effort, travel over rocky ground would prove slow, taxing, and sometimes dangerous. The king’s subjects would gather together in order to make the rough places smooth in preparation for the king’s arrival; their recompense would come through the honor of the king’s visit. In a similar fashion, the Isaiah passage foretells the coming of the Lord Jesus and John the Baptist’s work to “prepare the way.”
With Abraham’s servant and our own decision-making, we may trust in the progressive revelation that God provides. The first type of progressive revelation comes through the Scriptures, where God makes Himself known over time to His servants and in a progressively deeper way. We understand from Paul’s writings that God dictated history in order to reveal Himself most clearly through Christ.
Secondly, we must travel through life without certainty about next steps. As Jerry Bridges explains in the excellent Trusting God, “As Solomon said, ‘[We] do not know what a day may bring forth’ (Proverbs 27:1). Someone has described life as like having a thick curtain hung across one’s path, a curtain that recedes before us as we advance, but only step by step. None of us can tell what is beyond that curtain; none of us can tell what events a single day or hour may bring into our lives. Sometimes the receding curtain reveal events much as we had expected them; often it reveals events most unexpected and frequently most undesired. Such events, unfolding in ways contrary to our desires and expectations, frequently fill our hearts with anxiety, frustrations, heartache, and grief.”
Yet, as with Abraham’s servant, we may trust in the progressive revelation of each moment. Still, we cannot expect His best if we do not follow His revealed (moral) will or choose to neglect His promises. Bridges notes that the twofold objective of God’s providence involves “His own glory and the good of His people. These two objectives are never antithetical; they are always in harmony with each other. God never pursues His glory at the expense of the good of His people, nor does He ever seek our good at the expense of His glory. He has designed His eternal purpose so that His glory and our good are inextricably bound together.”
Another important tenet: God values our faithfulness above our success. In the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14–30), the king rewards his servants for reaching the potential that he already empowered them to reach: “Well done, good and faithful servant!” As with Abraham’s servant, we may discover great joy in faithfully following God and serving His people.
2. Love and faithfulness. In Proverbs 3:3,4, we read:
“Let love and faithfulness never leave you;
bind them around your neck,
write them on the tablet of your heart.
Then you will win favor and a good name
in the sight of God and man.”
This combination of love and faithfulness implies an orientation away from pride and self-seeking behavior and towards serving God and others. Imagine the tremendous blessing of being surrounded by friends marked by love and faithfulness. What a breath of fresh air! Yet, the strength of the virtuous life does not rest on the integrity or quality of an individual, but rather in His Creator. Indeed, both characteristics come from the “fruit of the Spirit,” discussed in Galatians 5:22,23.
While the world preaches that looking out for No. 1 will lead to fulfillment, the Scriptures explain that, through dying to self, we will truly live. Giving our hearts fully to the Lord Jesus, He will bless us with the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, described in John 7:37–39 as “streams of living water… flow[ing] from within him.” You may recall from January 1 and Psalm 1 that the person who delights in the law of the Lord is “like a tree planted by streams of water,/ which yields its fruit in season/ and whose leaf does not wither.” The symmetry of these promises points to the effective power of the Lord God and His Word. We need not explore complicated theories or self-help “quick fixes.”
3. Healing. The centurion trusts in Jesus’s power to heal (Matthew 8:8–12). In these verses, we see the beginning of the harvest among the Gentiles, driven by healing. Jesus included healing as part of His mission statement in Luke 4:18,19: “… to proclaim freedom for the prisoners/ and recovery of sign for the blind,/ to release the oppressed… ” This healing would involve spiritual, emotional, and physical elements (Isaiah 53:4–6).
For me, experiencing freedom in Christ (Galatians 5:1) provides one of the greatest testimonies to the reality of God and the power of the Gospel. Yet, we must be willing to surrender to King Jesus, to not cling too tightly to earthly circumstances, and to offer grace and forgiveness to those who have hurt us. As Paul demonstrated, we may experience joy and peace, even amidst struggle and trial. Lord Jesus, heal Your people!
QUESTIONS
1. In which areas of your life are you struggling to trust God?
2. In your personal context, how would you like to experience the power of healing? What type?
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