Compelling Love

As we have been reading, in John chapter 9:39 Jesus declared to the Pharisees who were objecting to his Sabbath day healing of a man born blind: “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.”

After Jesus was risen from the dead, he made Paul (a.k.a. Saul) blind for a season, to help open his eyes spiritually. Later Paul described the deep privilege and high calling of living for the Messiah who died for us and was raised again:

2 Corinthians 5 (NIV)
“14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”

In Ephesians 4, Paul urges believers “to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called”:

Ephesians 4 (NKJV)
1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, 2 with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, 3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Later in Ephesians 4, Paul describes the futility of being alienated from God and exhorts believers to put off our former conduct with its deceitful lusts and to be renewed in the spirit of our minds:

17 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; 19 who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.
20 But you have not so learned Christ, 21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: 22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, 23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.

In Colossians 1, Paul prays that believers will walk worthy of the Lord, seeking always to please Him, ever strengthened by His might and abiding in “the kingdom of the Son of His love”:

Colossians 1 (NKJV)
9 For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10 that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. 13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.

Paul reminds the Thessalonians that he exhorted and charged them, as a father does his own children, to “walk worthy of God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory”. Paul was eager for believers to grow into all that God desires for us, knowing He is jealous for us. (Exodus 34:14, 2 Cor. 11:2)

1 Thessalonians 2 (NKJV)
10 You are witnesses, and God also, how devoutly and justly and blamelessly we behaved ourselves among you who believe; 11 as you know how we exhorted, and comforted, and charged every one of you, as a father does his own children, 12 that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.

Peter urges believers to die to sins and live for righteousness, empowered by the forgiveness and grace of Yeshua who “bore our sins in His own body on the tree”:

1 Peter 2 (NKJV)
24 who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed. 25 For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

Peter declares that God has empowered us to be “partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”

2 Peter 1 (NKJV)
Greeting the Faithful
1 Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 3 as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Continuing, Peter exhorts believers to grow in the expression of our faith remembering that we were cleansed from sin, and to be diligent to make our call and election sure. If we do these things we will never stumble:

5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. 10 Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; 11 for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Paul writes about his new life in Christ, setting this example for every believer:

Galatians 2:20 (NKJV)
I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

David Krause, dhkrause@neteze.com

Yeshua is the Hebrew name for Jesus, the name by which he was actually called.  Using his actual given name can help remind us that he is Jewish.  The name Yeshua means in Hebrew, “Yehovah saves”, as the Lord told Joseph in a dream:

Matthew 1 (NKJV)
¹⁸Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. ²⁰ But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. ²¹ And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus [Yeshua], for He will save His people from their sins.”

This correlates with the gospel message contained in the first sixteen letters of the Hebrew Bible, as explained by Dr. Yonathan Fass in his book, “Creation’s Heartbeat”.  These first 16 letters contain embedded words of a recurring Biblical theme.  The Creator knew there would be a breach in relationship due to the errant decisions of those made in His image and likeness.  Therefore He purposed to restore relationship through a sacrificial covenant that includes the Son of God dying in our place and rising again.  This restoration depends upon the decision of individuals to receive this sacrifice and to enter into His offered covenant of love.

In John 15:9, Jesus, Yeshua declares, “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.”  We will have fullness of joy when we abide in his love and love one another as he has loved us:

John 15 (NKJV)
⁹ “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.
¹⁰ If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.
¹¹ “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. ¹² This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.”

Matthew also records how the birth of Jesus, Yeshua, fulfilled prophecies made by Isaiah seven centuries earlier:

Matthew 1 (NKJV)
²² So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: ²³ “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”  (Matthew 1:22-23, Isaiah 7:14)

A devout man named Simeon recognized the eight day-old Messiah in the temple and made prophecies that Mary remembered and saw fulfilled.  God indeed was with her and strengthened her through all of these events:

Luke 2 (NKJV)
²⁵ And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. ²⁶ And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. ²⁷ So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law, ²⁸ he took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said:²⁹ “Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace,
According to Your word;
³⁰ For my eyes have seen Your salvation
³¹ Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples,
³² A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles,
And the glory of Your people Israel.”
³³ And Joseph and His mother marveled at those things which were spoken of Him. ³⁴ Then Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His mother, “Behold, this Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which will be spoken against ³⁵ (yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”

As an example, Jesus revealed the thoughts of the hearts of the Pharisees after they objected to his Sabbath day healing of a man blind from birth:

John 15 (NKJV)
³⁹ And Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.”
⁴⁰ Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, “Are we blind also?”
⁴¹ Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains.

Though his enemies sought to kill him, Jesus declared that no one was taking his life from him, but that as the good shepherd he was laying his life down for  the sheep, and that he would be risen from the dead:

John 10 (NKJV)
¹¹ “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. ¹² But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. ¹³ The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. ¹⁴ I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. ¹⁵ As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. ¹⁶ And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.  ¹⁷ “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. ¹⁸ No one takes 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 command I have received from My Father.”  (John 10:11-18)

This is the awesome love of Yeshua in which we are called to abide, that he would lay down his life for us, taking our judgment upon himself so that whoever believes in him can have everlasting life:

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.  (Isaiah 53:6)
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  (John 3:16)

Now it is our deep privilege and high calling to live for him who died for us and rose again:

2 Corinthians 5 (NIV)
¹⁴ For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. ¹⁵ And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

David Krause, dhkrause@neteze.com

John chapter 1 describes the Son of God as the light of life, the true light which gives light to every person coming into the world.

John 1 (NKJV)
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God. ³ All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. ⁴ In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. ⁵ And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
The True Light
⁶ There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. ⁷ This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. ⁸ He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. ⁹ That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.

After going up to Jerusalem for the Feast of Dedication, also known as Hanukkah, Jesus declared in John 8:12, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

This is a brief background of the holiday of Hanukkah:

Hanukkah is one of the few Jewish holidays not mentioned in the Bible. The story of how Hanukkah came to be is contained in the books of 1 and 2 Maccabees, which are not part of the Jewish canon of the Hebrew Bible.These books tell the story of the Maccabees, a small band of Jewish fighters who liberated the Land of Israel from the Syrian Greeks who occupied it. Under the reign of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, the Syrian Greeks sought to impose their Hellenistic culture, which many Jews found attractive. By 167 B.C.E, Antiochus intensified his campaign by defiling the Temple in Jerusalem and banning Jewish practice. The Maccabees–led by the five sons of the priest Mattathias, especially Judah–waged a three-year campaign that culminated in the cleaning and rededication of the Temple.
http://www.myjewishlearning.com/holidays/Jewish_Holidays/Hanukkah/History.shtml

The Maccabees were victorious through faith in the Name of God, Yehovah, and his Word.  To live victoriously in his light and be truly free, we must abide in his Word.

John 8 (NKJV)
³¹ Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. ³² And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
³³ They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?”
³⁴ Jesus answered them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. ³⁵ And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. ³⁶ Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.

In John 9:5, Jesus declared, “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”  He then demonstrated this by healing a man that had been born blind.  Jesus later revealed himself to this man as the Son of God.  The man received spiritual sight as well as physical sight!

John 9 (NKJV)
A Man Born Blind Receives Sight
¹ Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. ² And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
³ Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him. ⁴ I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. ⁵ As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
⁶ When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. ⁷ And He said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing.⁸ Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, “Is not this he who sat and begged?”
⁹ Some said, “This is he.” Others said, “He is like him.”
He said, “I am he.”
¹⁰ Therefore they said to him, “How were your eyes opened?”
¹¹ He answered and said, “A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed, and I received sight.”
¹² Then they said to him, “Where is He?”
He said, “I do not know.”
The Pharisees Excommunicate the Healed Man
¹³ They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees. ¹⁴ Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. ¹⁵ Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight. He said to them, “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.”
¹⁶ Therefore some of the Pharisees said, “This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath.” Others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them.
¹⁷ They said to the blind man again, “What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?”
He said, “He is a prophet.”
¹⁸ But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind and received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight. ¹⁹ And they asked them, saying, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?”
²⁰ His parents answered them and said, “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; ²¹ but by what means he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know. He is of age; ask him. He will speak for himself.” ²² His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue. ²³ Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”
²⁴ So they again called the man who was blind, and said to him, “Give God the glory! We know that this Man is a sinner.”
²⁵ He answered and said, “Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see.”
²⁶ Then they said to him again, “What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?”
²⁷ He answered them, “I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?”
²⁸ Then they reviled him and said, “You are His disciple, but we are Moses’ disciples. ²⁹ We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from.”
³⁰ The man answered and said to them, “Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes! ³¹ Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him. ³² Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind. ³³ If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing.”
³⁴ They answered and said to him, “You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?” And they cast him out.
True Vision and True Blindness
³⁵ Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of God?”
³⁶ He answered and said, “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?”
³⁷ And Jesus said to him, “You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you.”
³⁸ Then he said, “Lord, I believe!” And he worshiped Him.
³⁹ And Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.”
⁴⁰ Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, “Are we blind also?”
⁴¹ Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains.

John describes the abiding fellowship of those who walk in the light of God.

1 John 1 (NKJV)
Fellowship with Him and One Another
⁵ This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. ⁶ If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. ⁷ But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

David Krause, dhkrause@neteze.com      

The Thanksgiving season reminds us to be focused upon the Lord. In order to give thanks in a meaningful way, the Bible encourages us to magnify the Lord, as David does in Psalm 34:

Psalm 34 (NKJV) 1 I will bless the Lord at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2 My soul shall make its boast in the Lord;
The humble shall hear of it and be glad.
3 Oh, magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt His name together.
4 I sought the Lord, and He heard me,
And delivered me from all my fears.
5 They looked to Him and were radiant,
And their faces were not ashamed.
6 This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him,
And saved him out of all his troubles.
7 The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him,
And delivers them.
8 Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good;
Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!

Mary (Miriam) magnified the Lord in her song of praise at the house of her cousin Elizabeth (Elishiva), for the honor of bearing the promised Messiah.

Luke 1 (KJV)
46 And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,
47 And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
48 For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
49 For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.

Psalm 100 exhorts God’s people to enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise.

Psalm 100 (NKJV)
1 Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!
2 Serve the Lord with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing.
3 Know that the Lord, He is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
5 For the Lord is good;
His mercy is everlasting,
And His truth endures to all generations.

In Romans 1, Paul describes how people who forget to be thankful to God enter into a downward cycle into spiritual darkness.

Romans 1 (NKJV)
20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.

Psalm 33 contrasts the destinies of nations who are thankful with those who are not.

Psalm 33 (NKJV)
10 The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.
11 The counsel of the Lord stands forever,
The plans of His heart to all generations.
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.

In Philippians 1, Paul gives thanks for his brothers and sisters in Christ:

Philippians 1 (NKJV)
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, 5 for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;

In Colossians 3, Paul describes how to express thankfulness in action:

Colossians 3 (NKJV)
15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

In Psalm 17, David exemplifies praying with thankfulness that the Lord will uphold our steps in His paths, protect us and change us to be more like Him.

Psalm 17 (NKJV)
3 You have tested my heart; You have visited me in the night;
You have tried me and have found nothing;
I have purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.
5 Uphold my steps in Your paths,
That my footsteps may not slip.
6 I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God;
Incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech.
7 Show Your marvelous lovingkindness by Your right hand,
O You who save those who trust in You
From those who rise up against them.
8 Keep me as the apple of Your eye;
Hide me under the shadow of Your wings,
9 From the wicked who oppress me,
From my deadly enemies who surround me.
15 As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness;
I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness.

David Krause, dhkrause@neteze.com, 11/25/2012

Paul declares in Ephesians 3 that with the coming of the Messiah, Christ Jesus, Gentiles are now to be fellow heirs with Israel, “of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel”:

Ephesians 3 (NKJV)
1 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles— 2 if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you, 3 how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already, 4 by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), 5 which in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets: 6 that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel, 7 of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective working of His power.

Paul then explains that he has been given the grace to preach this gospel among the Gentiles, a mystery hidden in God through the ages until the coming of Jesus Christ through whom all things were created:

8 To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; 10 to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, 11 according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him. 13 Therefore I ask that you do not lose heart at my tribulations for you, which is your glory.

The Hebrew scriptures gave hints of this wondrous news of the Gentiles becoming fellow heirs with Israel, partaking of the God’s promise through the Messiah. For example, Isaiah 60 speaks about Gentiles coming to the light shining forth from Israel:

Isaiah 60 (NKJV)
1 Arise, shine;
For your light has come!
And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.
2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,
And deep darkness the people;
But the Lord will arise over you,
And His glory will be seen upon you.
3 The Gentiles shall come to your light,
And kings to the brightness of your rising.

Isaiah 64 goes on to speak of God meeting those who rejoice in Him and do righteously, whether Jew or Gentile:

Isaiah 64 (NKJV)
4 For since the beginning of the world
Men have not heard nor perceived by the ear,
Nor has the eye seen any God besides You,
Who acts for the one who waits for Him.
5a You meet him who rejoices and does righteousness,
Who remembers You in Your ways.

Psalm 33 calls those walking in righteousness with the Lord (YHVH) to rejoice in Him and praise Him for all His wondrous works in Creation and history. The nation whose God is YHVH is blessed; they are the people He has chosen as His own inheritance:

Psalm 33 (NKJV)
1 Rejoice in the Lord (YHVH), O you righteous!
For praise from the upright is beautiful.

4 For the word of YHVH is right,
And all His work is done in truth.
5 He loves righteousness and justice;
The earth is full of the goodness of YHVH.
6 By the word of YHVH the heavens were made,
And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.
7 He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap;
He lays up the deep in storehouses.
8 Let all the earth fear YHVH;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.

12 Blessed is the nation whose God is YHVH,
The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.

In Ephesians 2 Paul teaches that the Messiah, Jesus Christ, has broken down the wall of separation between Jew and Gentile, to create in Himself “one new man from the two”:

Ephesians 2 (NKJV)
14 For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, 16 and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. 17 And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. 18 For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.

Ephesians 3 concludes with Paul’s powerful prayer that those who partake of God’s promise would be deeply strengthened by God’s Spirit, that they would comprehend and know the love of Christ, and be filled “with all the fullness of God”, giving glory to Him through all generations:

Ephesians 3 (NKJV)
14 For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, 17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— 19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, 21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

David Krause, dhkrause@neteze.com, 10/14/12

God’s incomparable love is revealed in its purest form in the most famous verse in the Bible:

John 3:16 (NKJV)
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

This sacrifice of His love is the fulfillment of numerous prophecies, most notably this passage in Isaiah 53:

Isaiah 53 (NKJV)
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray;
We have turned, every one, to his own way;
And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

In John 15, Jesus describes the relationship he offers to those who receive this redemption, remaining in his love and keeping his commands.

John 15 (NKJV)
9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other.

Hebrews 2 describes how Jesus laid down his life for everyone, so that he could bring many sons and daughters to glory, and explains why he is not ashamed to call us brothers and sisters.

Hebrews 2 (NIV)
9 But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
10 In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered. 11 Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters. 12 He says,
“I will declare your name to my brothers and sisters;
in the assembly I will sing your praises.” (Psalm 22:22)

Peter declares that God is patient and long suffering with us, to give us every opportunity to come to repentance and turn our hearts completely to Him:

2 Peter 3:9 (NIV)
9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

God has mercy upon those who truly repent of their sins and pray to be transformed. David exemplifies this type of repentance in Psalm 51.

Psalm 51 (NKJV)
A Psalm of David
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me away from Your presence,
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,
And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.
13 Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners shall be converted to You.
17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit,
A broken and a contrite heart—
These, O God, You will not despise.

Romans 12 describes how when we give ourselves completely to God our lives become transformed by the renewing of our minds.

Romans 12 (AMP)
1 I appeal to you therefore, brethren, and beg of you in view of [all] the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies [presenting all your members and faculties] as a living sacrifice, holy (devoted, consecrated) and well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable (rational, intelligent) service and spiritual worship.
2 Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].

Hebrews 12 describes the process of being transformed by staying focused on Jesus, encouraged by his example and by the promise of what he has done for us. The end of the chapter reminds us of the everlasting kingdom God has in store for his sons and daughters who love, obey and worship Him with reverence and awe.

Hebrews 12 (NIV)
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, 29 for our “God is a consuming fire.”

David Krause, dhkrause@neteze.com
09/30/12

In John 15:9, Jesus declares, “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. ”  There is no greater fulfillment in life than to abide each day in God’s love.  The second greatest fulfillment is to help others to also abide in the presence of His love.  In John 15, Jesus describes the blessings of those who abide in him.

John 15 (NKJV)
The True Vine
¹“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. ² Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. ³ You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. ⁴ Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
⁵ “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. ⁶ If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. ⁷ If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you willask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. ⁸ By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.

Love and joy perfected
⁹ “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. ¹⁰ If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.
¹¹ “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. ¹² This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. ¹⁴ You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. ¹⁵ No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶ You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. ¹⁷ These things I command you, that you love one another.

Paul gives three keys to abiding in God’s presence: rejoice, pray and give thanks, always without ceasing in everything:

1 Thessalonians 5 (NKJV)
¹⁶ Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray without ceasing, ¹⁸ in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

In a similar vein in Psalm 86, David prays for an undivided heart to revere, praise and glorify God’s name forever:

Psalm 86 (NIV)
¹¹ Teach me your way, Lord,
that I may rely on your faithfulness;
give me an undivided heart,
that I may fear your name.
¹² I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart;
I will glorify your name forever.

In Psalm 77, Asaph urges us to remember that our God is a God who performs miracles, redeeming His people by His mighty arm:

Psalm 77 (NIV)
¹³ Your ways, God, are holy.
What god is as great as our God?
¹⁴ You are the God who performs miracles;
you display your power among the peoples.
¹⁵ With your mighty arm you redeemed your people,
the descendants of Jacob and Joseph.

God is both high and lifted up, yet intimately concerned with the challenges facing His people, as David describes in Psalm 68:

Psalm 68 (NKJV)
⁴ Sing to God, sing praises to His name;
Extol Him who rides on the clouds,
By His name YAH,
And rejoice before Him.
⁵ A father of the fatherless, a defender of widows,
Is God in His holy habitation.
⁶ God sets the solitary in families;
He brings out those who are bound into prosperity;
But the rebellious dwell in a dry land.

In Psalm 16, David describes his abiding relationship with God through the Messiah who was yet to be born.  The Holy One who did not see corruption is Jesus Christ, who died for us and rose from the dead.

Psalm 16 (NKJV)
⁷ I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel;
My heart also instructs me in the night seasons.
⁸ I have set the Lord always before me;
Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.
⁹ Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will rest in hope.
¹⁰ For You will not leave my soul in Sheol,
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.
¹¹ You will show me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

In John 3:16, the keynote verse of the New Testament, Jesus describes the sacrificial love of God for people of all nations:

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

To those who abide in him, Jesus, Yeshua reveals himself as our light and our salvation, and the strength of our life, as David describes:

Psalm 27 (NKJV)
¹The Lord is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?

¹⁴ Wait on the Lord;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the Lord!

David Krause, dhkrause@neteze.com, 9/16/2012

Returned September 8 from eight days in Israel. It was a blessing to be in Israel at this time, with members of the Jerusalem Prayer Team. Our guide was a native of Jerusalem who fought in the Yom Kippur War of 1973. He was both knowledgeable and reverent with a heart for the Land and its people. There were some very fine devotionals at various sites which brought out the deeper meaning of the historical events. Meeting Holocaust survivors at the restored bomb shelter was inspiring, as was the dedication of the Jerusalem World Center. Best of all was standing in the Biblical sites where Jesus taught and ministered, acknowledging, “Lord, you did this for us, and you did it right here!” Being baptized in the Jordan River was another highlight. Experiencing a bond of friendship with people from many diverse locations was another blessing long to be remembered.

What does the poetic phrase, “tears from the fire” suggest to you? This is what it calls to mind for me.

The third word in the Hebrew Bible, and first name given for God, is “Elohim”, which according to Dr. Yonathan Fass in his book, “Creation’s Heartbeat” means “The God who laments”.

In this book Dr. Fass also explains how the first 16 letters of the Hebrew Bible contain embedded words conveying a recurring Biblical theme, namely that the Creator, knowing there would be a breach in relationship due to the errant decisions of those made in His image and likeness, aims to restore relationship through a sacrificial covenant that includes the Son of God dying in our place and rising again.  This restoration depends upon the decision of individuals to receive this sacrifice and to enter into His offered covenant of love.

One of the words embedded in these first sixteen letters is the Hebrew word for “fire”, speaking of passion and sacrifice, and hinting at the later explicit declaration, “Our God is a consuming fire.”

In short, Elohim weeps tears from the fire for those who have not yet received the redemption paid for by His Blood.