John P. King is an ordained Assemblies of God minister and worked as a prayer team coach at CBN's National Prayer Center in Virginia Beach. He has a Bachelor's in Bible from Valley Forge Christian College and an M.A. in Practical Theology from Regent University. John authored the devotional book, Don't Smoke the Newspaper and Other Lessons Learned by a Pastor. He and his wife, Genevieve, have two grown children.
"The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father's family, and go to the land that I will show you." Genesis 12:1
The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father's family, and go to the land that I will show you.
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As the call continues, the Lord promises Abram to make a great nation out of him - a nation that will bless the world.
Genesis 12:4
So Abram departed as the LORD had instructed, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran.
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tells us that Abram obeyed the Lord and moved his family. Obviously, the Lord led Abram to the land of Canaan, but often we neglect to delve into the true act of faith required to make that move. Imagine telling not only your immediate family but your extended family that you are moving. They all come over and help you pack up your moving camels (trucks of Abram's day) and keep asking you where you are moving to. Your only response, "I don't know." Abram had no idea where he was going, only a sense of the Lord's leading and that when Abram got there, God would tell him; "To a land which I will show you."
In His famous "Don't worry" teaching from the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6, Jesus told us not to be concerned over the affairs of life:
"That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn't life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Matthew 6:25
"That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn't life more than food, and your body more than clothing?
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"So don't worry about these things, saying, `What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?' These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need." Matthew 6:31-33
"So don't worry about these things, saying, `What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?' These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God* above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.
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"I don't know" is a legitimate answer, and often it is the answer required by those who live by faith. Where are you going? What are you going to do when you get there? How will you live? How will you pay your bills? I don't know, I DON'T KNOW, I DON'T KNOW! But I know this, God knows! The fact that God knows, in the end, is the only thing that really matters. As He leads, He provides because He is a good father.
We like to put on the false front that we have it all together and have the answers for everything. It gets uncomfortable and we feel silly telling people that we don't know the answers to their questions. Pretending that we know it all will rob us of our faith. We don't live trusting in luck, we live trusting in God. It is okay to not know. So, the next time someone asks the tough questions of faith and how things are going to work out, for which there is no definitive answer, look them straight in the eye and tell them, "I don't know, but God knows, and that's my final answer."
The power of John 11:35
Then Jesus wept.
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is often overlooked because it is so small. When we look at it in light of the larger story, we see something truly wonderful about Jesus. The incident of Jesus weeping comes in the middle of the story of how He raised Lazarus from the dead. Jesus was a good friend of Lazarus and his two sisters, Mary and Martha. Lazarus had fallen seriously ill and his sisters sent word to Jesus so Jesus would come and heal their brother. It is mentioned three times in John 11:1-46
A man named Lazarus was sick. He lived in Bethany with his sisters, Mary and Martha. This is the Mary who later poured the expensive perfume on the Lord's feet and wiped them with her hair.* Her brother, Lazarus, was sick. So the two sisters sent a message to Jesus telling him, "Lord, your dear friend is very sick." But when Jesus heard about it he said, "Lazarus's sickness will not end in death. No, it happened for the glory of God so that the Son of God will receive glory from this." So although Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, he stayed where he was for the next two days. Finally, he said to his disciples, "Let's go back to Judea." But his disciples objected. "Rabbi," they said, "only a few days ago the people* in Judea were trying to stone you. Are you going there again?" Jesus replied, "There are twelve hours of daylight every day. During the day people can walk safely. They can see because they have the light of this world. But at night there is danger of stumbling because they have no light." Then he said, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but now I will go and wake him up." The disciples said, "Lord, if he is sleeping, he will soon get better!" They thought Jesus meant Lazarus was simply sleeping, but Jesus meant Lazarus had died. So he told them plainly, "Lazarus is dead. And for your sakes, I'm glad I wasn't there, for now you will really believe. Come, let's go see him." Thomas, nicknamed the Twin,* said to his fellow disciples, "Let's go, too—and die with Jesus." When Jesus arrived at Bethany, he was told that Lazarus had already been in his grave for four days. Bethany was only a few miles* down the road from Jerusalem, and many of the people had come to console Martha and Mary in their loss. When Martha got word that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him. But Mary stayed in the house. Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask." Jesus told her, "Your brother will rise again." "Yes," Martha said, "he will rise when everyone else rises, at the last day." Jesus told her, "I am the resurrection and the life.* Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?" "Yes, Lord," she told him. "I have always believed you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who has come into the world from God." Then she returned to Mary. She called Mary aside from the mourners and told her, "The Teacher is here and wants to see you." So Mary immediately went to him. Jesus had stayed outside the village, at the place where Martha met him. When the people who were at the house consoling Mary saw her leave so hastily, they assumed she was going to Lazarus's grave to weep. So they followed her there. When Mary arrived and saw Jesus, she fell at his feet and said, "Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died." When Jesus saw her weeping and saw the other people wailing with her, a deep anger welled up within him,* and he was deeply troubled. "Where have you put him?" he asked them. They told him, "Lord, come and see." Then Jesus wept. The people who were standing nearby said, "See how much he loved him!" But some said, "This man healed a blind man. Couldn't he have kept Lazarus from dying?" Jesus was still angry as he arrived at the tomb, a cave with a stone rolled across its entrance. "Roll the stone aside," Jesus told them. But Martha, the dead man's sister, protested, "Lord, he has been dead for four days. The smell will be terrible." Jesus responded, "Didn't I tell you that you would see God's glory if you believe?" So they rolled the stone aside. Then Jesus looked up to heaven and said, "Father, thank you for hearing me. You always hear me, but I said it out loud for the sake of all these people standing here, so that they will believe you sent me." Then Jesus shouted, "Lazarus, come out!" And the dead man came out, his hands and feet bound in graveclothes, his face wrapped in a headcloth. Jesus told them, "Unwrap him and let him go!" Many of the people who were with Mary believed in Jesus when they saw this happen. But some went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.
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that Jesus loved Lazarus, Mary, and Martha. Even though none of these three were numbered among Jesus’s 12 disciples, the scripture speaks plainly of His love and affection for them.
Yet, when Jesus gets word that Lazarus is sick, He deliberately delays. Jesus doesn’t run to Lazarus’s side and heal him. Instead, Jesus spends two more days where He is and during that time Lazarus dies. Why? Why did Jesus wait and let His friend whom He loved die? Jesus let Lazarus die because He had a plan. The whole of the matter, from beginning to end, was no mystery to Jesus. The plan from the outset was to raise Lazarus from the dead.
It took another four days for Jesus to get to Bethany, the home of Mary and Martha and where their dead brother, Lazarus, had already been buried. Jesus even missed the funeral. Talk about being late. When Martha finds out Jesus is in town, she rushes out to see Him. In their conversation, we get one of the great verses of hope and promise. Jesus said in John 11:25-26
Jesus told her, "I am the resurrection and the life.* Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?"
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,
“I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”
Martha then goes and gets Mary along with all the others who had been mourning with them.
Now comes the interesting moment. When Jesus sees Mary and Martha and all the people mourning with them, He is moved deeply and weeps as well. Jesus wept. But why? He knew that He was going to raise Lazarus from the dead. He knew the story was going to have beyond a happy ending. He knew that He was about to do something truly awesome. Yet – Jesus wept. He didn’t try to shush everyone. He didn’t scold them for not having faith. He didn’t try to tell them that everything was going to be ok. He didn’t turn the processional to the tomb into a victory parade. He walked with them and He wept with them.
Jesus wept because He understood and felt their pain and sorrow. God is the God of eternity, but He is also the God of the moment. He doesn’t belittle or dismiss how we feel simply because He knows how He will work everything out. Instead, He walks with us and feels with us in the times of our deepest hurt. Mary, Martha, and the crowd might have thought Jesus was late, but how can the One who can undo anything, including death, be late?
I don’t know what you are going through, but Jesus does. I don’t know how it will work out, but Jesus does. I don’t know how you feel, but Jesus does. Whatever it is, He has a plan. He is walking with you and He feels what you feel. Jesus weeps with you. He isn’t late, and in the end you will see whatever it is that has “died” in your life, raised again. Then, Jesus will rejoice with you.
The Bible also says that we know what love is because God has first loved us and that we are supposed to share that love with others (1 John 4:19-20
We love each other* because he loved us first. If someone says, "I love God," but hates a Christian brother or sister,* that person is a liar; for if we don't love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see?
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). In Romans 5:8
But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.
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, the point of God’s love for even the wicked is reiterated when it says:
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (NIV)
So then, real love is about giving, not receiving. We must take that first step to reach out to that person who is our enemy, who does not love us, and show them genuine concern and compassion without expecting anything in return. Stop waiting to be loved and go out and love someone. Indeed, as the Wizard said himself, “Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!” He has no idea what he is talking about.
In looking forward to the days when Israel would ask for a king, the Lord gave instructions in Deuteronomy just for the king.
"When he sits on the throne as king, he must copy for himself this body of instruction on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. He must keep that copy with him and read it daily as long as he lives. That way he will learn to fear the Lord his God by obeying all the terms of these instructions and decrees." Deuteronomy 17:18-19
"When he sits on the throne as king, he must copy for himself this body of instruction on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. He must always keep that copy with him and read it daily as long as he lives. That way he will learn to fear the LORD his God by obeying all the terms of these instructions and decrees.
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The king needed his own copy of the law. He had to read it daily and remind himself of who he was before God and to be sure that he obeyed the Lord. Without daily reflection on the Word of God, the king would easily stray from God's path for his life and rule.
The prophet Habakkuk received one of the most famous "write it" directives. In his own frustration and brokenness, he challenged God with some very serious questions about judgment and righteousness. Habakkuk waits for God's answer and the Lord begins with this phrase:
"Write my answer plainly on tablets, so that a runner can carry the correct message to others." Habakkuk 2:2
Then the LORD said to me,"Write my answer plainly on tablets, so that a runner can carry the correct message to others.
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God wanted the answers to Habakkuk's questions to be disseminated to everyone. How do you do that? WRITE IT DOWN! Write it down in plain language so that it can be taken to everyone.
These are just a few examples of times when God told someone directly to "write it down." Of course, the Bible as a whole is God's inspired message to all mankind. Like the kings of old, we all need our own copy to read on a daily basis. The Bible shares God's plans, dreams, and directions for our lives. We need to know and have the plain message of the love of God so we can run with it. Read it. Re-read it. Re-re-read it. Fall in love with the wonderful text on those sacred pages. And as you find verses and passages that speak to you, write them down and carry them with you. Because the dullest pencil…
Yet, with this in mind, I see an interesting story in Genesis 15. This is a powerful chapter telling a key part of the story of Abram/Abraham. The chapter begins with the Lord telling Abram "Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to you; Your reward shall be very great." Again, we see the Lord's encouragement to not fear. In his heartbreak, Abram pours out his soul reminding the Lord of the promise to give Abram an heir. A promise as yet unfulfilled as Abram and his wife, Sarah, continue to grow old.
God renews His promise to Abram, telling him that his descendants will be as numerous as the stars in the sky. Genesis 15:6
And Abram believed the LORD, and the LORD counted him as righteous because of his faith.
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says, "Then he believed in the Lord; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness." Abram's simple faith and belief in the Lord is the kind of thing John was talking about: the wonderful loving relationship with the Lord that drives out fear.
The Lord goes on to instruct Abram to prepare a sacrifice. The offering on Abram's part and acceptance of the offering on God's part would be the ratifying moment of a great covenant between Abram and God. The Lord would forever be the God of Abram and his descendants, and Abram and his descendants would forever be God's people. In this powerful moment, this ratifying and recognizing of this great covenant of friendship, grace, and love, an interesting thing happens; "Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, terror and great darkness fell upon him." Genesis 15:12
As the sun was going down, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a terrifying darkness came down over him.
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God Himself showed up to validate the covenant, and with Him came … terror? It reminds me of the scene where Isaiah received his call (Isaiah 6). The wonderful, glorious, loving, living God shows up and the first thing out of Isaiah's mouth is, "Woe is me, for I am ruined." Isaiah 6:5
Then I said, "It's all over! I am doomed, for I am a sinful man. I have filthy lips, and I live among a people with filthy lips. Yet I have seen the King, the LORD of Heaven's Armies."
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(NASB) When John, yes the "There is no fear in love ..." John, sees Jesus in Revelation 1, he confesses, as he writes, that he fell at Jesus' feet "like a dead man." Revelation 1:17
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as if I were dead. But he laid his right hand on me and said, "Don't be afraid! I am the First and the Last.
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(NASB). What does Jesus do? He reaches out to the one who was known as the "one who Jesus loved," touches him on the shoulder and says, "Do not be afraid." Revelation 1:17
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as if I were dead. But he laid his right hand on me and said, "Don't be afraid! I am the First and the Last.
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So what can we make of all this? Certainly, God does not want us to be "afraid" of Him. He does not want us to cower as if any moment He could squash us into jelly. However, we should never take for granted His Godhood. He is powerful. He is mighty. Stars fall from His fingertips. He creates worlds with the words from His mouth. He alone holds all of life in His hands. Should we not respect that? Should we not expect that if He shows up, we will react the same way these three wonderful men of God did? It makes me reflect on the phrase "a good scare." I think I would like to have one after all. A Good Scare, and all that it implies.
More than anything, David wanted to be with the Lord. Verses 8 and 9 continue the thought:
“When you said, ‘Seek my face,’ my heart said to You, ‘Your face, O Lord, I shall seek.’ Do not hide your face from me, Do not turn Your servant away in anger; You have been my help; Do not abandon me nor forsake me, O God of my salvation!” Psalms 27:8-9
My heart has heard you say, "Come and talk with me." And my heart responds, "LORD, I am coming." Do not turn your back on me. Do not reject your servant in anger. You have always been my helper.Don't leave me now; don't abandon me, O God of my salvation!
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The Lord had given David the challenge – “Seek my face.” David understood the challenge and knew that sometimes, seeking God’s face is easier said than done. Why? Because as was mentioned earlier, our plans and dreams don’t always turn out as we expected. Sometimes, it appears God plays a game of hide and seek. Finding Him is not as simple as it may seem. It takes work to find God.
David closes the Psalm with a great encouragement.
“I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.” Psalms 27:13
Yet I am confident I will see the LORD's goodness while I am here in the land of the living.
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There was a firmly rooted conviction in David’s heart – no matter how tough, bizarre, or long the days seemed, he knew he was going to see the goodness of God in his life. Holding fast to this truth allowed him to endure and, quite literally, changed the rules of the game from “hide and seek” to “wait and seek.” David goes on to say in Verse 14 (NASB),
“Wait for the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the Lord.”
If we believe that God has good things for us, we will be willing to wait for them. Courage will give us the strength to wait for God while we seek him. Sounds like a contradiction, doesn’t it? Just like in the real game of hide and seek, everyone wants to be found. Those in the best hiding places will eventually reveal themselves if the seeker is patient. If by faith we seek God by waiting for Him, He will inevitably come to us.
"... and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (NASB)
Hebrews 13:5
Don't love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said,"I will never fail you. I will never abandon you."*
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b-6 echoes that truth when it says,
"... for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,” so that we confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?” (NASB)
Our Father will always be with us and can come to our aid when we need Him to. However, I also believe that there are those times when He will simply do nothing and say nothing. How else will we learn? How else will we grow? That's why James 1:2-4
Dear brothers and sisters,* when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
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says,
"Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." (NASB)
We have no money to pay the bills. We hate our jobs, or worse, can't find one. Our relationships at home more resemble a battle zone than a family. Persecution breaks out all over the place, and the devil hits our weak spots so hard we can hardly think straight let alone live straight. It feels like our lives are "wobbling" out of control. If we didn't know better we might say that the Father has abandoned us, but we know He promised he would never do that. He's simply doing nothing and saying nothing so that we can learn and grow. Our faith is being "road tested." If things get too out of hand, He can, and will, take the wheel. But in the meantime, we need to find that joy that James wrote about because, in the end, we will be those people "lacking in nothing."
