God was pleased to reveal his Son...

        ...in ME! In his letter to the Galatians, the apostle Paul makes a number of astounding comments about how the world may learn of Jesus. This is from chapter 1, verse 16, and it tells us that somehow, by looking at Paul, we can see Jesus. Once we see Jesus in him, he can start to tell us more. In 2:20, Paul tells us that, “Christ lives in me.” The thought is that Paul can’t just do what he likes because now Christ animates his body, much as the dead bones of Ezekiel 37 were re-animated by the breath of God.

        In Chapter three, verse 27, Paul brings his whole argument home—“all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.” The previous picture was our body with Christ living in us. Now the image is our body clothed with Christ. When someone looks at us, the vast majority of what they see should be Christ. Romans 13:14 is in the same vein: “Clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.”

        But our “self” is not completely gone when we are clothed with Christ; our face and our hands, at least, still show. God doesn’t take away or overwhelm our individual personalities. David was once a shepherd, whose shepherd-heart, as in Psalm 23, stills shines through. Luke was a physician who cares for the health of the lame beggar at the temple gate (Acts 3:2).

        Finally, in 4:14, we see the effect of the indwelling Christ—the Galatians welcomed Paul “as if [he] were Christ Jesus himself.” If they could have done so, they would have torn out their eyes and given them to him! (4:15) What a challenge to us! Would anybody ever dream of giving us an eye because we need it and are so much like Christ?  

The Upper Room (John 13-17)

 

Man overboard!

        In the May, 2011, issue of this Newsletter, we reviewed Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s poem, Cowper’s Grave. Browning shows the completeness of the sacrifice made at Calvary, and how William Cowper had no need ever to feel forsaken.

        I was reading the story of Jonah and how he brought grief on his sailor friends. Their only hope was to deliberately throw Jonah overboard. The Bible gives us no details of his moments just after hitting the water, but I think Cowper’s poem is appropriate and graphic. Here are a few verses:

 

               THE CASTAWAY

               (four stanzas out of eleven)

               Obscurest night involved the sky,

                   The Atlantic billows roared,
               With such a destined wretch as I,
                   Washed headlong from on board,
               Of friends, of hope, of all bereft,
               His floating home for ever left.

               Not long beneath the whelming brine,

                   Expert to swim, he lay;
               Nor soon he felt his strength decline,
                   Or courage die away;
               But waged with death a lasting strife,
               Supported by despair of life.
               - - - -

               Nor, cruel as it seemed, could he

                   Their haste himself condemn,
               Aware that flight, in such a sea,
                   Alone could rescue them;
               Yet bitter felt it still to die
               Deserted, and his friends so nigh.
               ----

               No voice divine the storm allayed,

                   No light propitious shone,
               When, snatched from all effectual aid,
                   We perished, each alone:
               But I beneath a rougher sea,
               And whelmed in deeper gulfs than he.
                                                             William Cowper

         The castaway was washed overboard by accident; his friends threw out boards and casks but couldn’t come about to rescue him. He swam strongly for a while but grew weaker and weaker till he gulped the water and sank.

     Cowper then takes the image from the physical to the spiritual— his castaway friend sank and drowned—he, on the other hand, feared a deeper, eternal, spiritual loss.

        From the hymns and poems that Cowper wrote, we know that he was a true believer, but he had little or no assurance of his salvation. Returning to Browning’s poem about Cowper, she shows how he had every reason to bless the Lord after death, when he...

                Felt the new immortal throb of soul     

                       from body parted,
               But felt those eyes alone, and knew,  
                      “My Saviour! not deserted!”                                                           Ì

River Liffey, Dublin

A few thoughts on prayer and the will of God

        Recently I’ve had several conversations about knowing the will of God. The individuals involved—true Christians—were looking for signs and not really looking for God’s guidelines for choosing “the best”. Later I was amused to read a quotation about Andrew Bonar, about a man looking for signs: “When a man told Bonar he had felt an angel touch him during an illness, Bonar said, “Have you a cat in the house? Don’t you think it may have been the cat?”

        As far as what we should pray for, there are things God has told us—pray for the peace of Jerusalem, pray for kings and rulers, pray for the salvation of friends and neighbours (and even enemies). We can pray about specifics like a job or a home or a spouse or health. Paul prayed to have his “thorn in the flesh” removed.

        But we can’t make unconditional claims on God or it becomes what I call the eleventh commandment—“You shall not put the Lord your God to the test!” (Deut.6:16) There is a “Christian” book on the market right now that I feel breaks this commandment: The Circle Maker. The blurb says, “When his land was in the grip of a drought in ancient times, Honi Ha’Magel drew a circle in the sand, stepped inside it, and declared that he wouldn’t budge until God sent rain.” It’s less daring than “throwing himself down from the pinnacle of the temple” but it is equally “putting God to the test.” (Mat.4:5-7)

        I’m sure God did send rain eventually but the Scripture quotation that may apply is, God “gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul.” (Psa.106:15) Something I greatly fear. Even Jesus said, “Not my will but Thine.” We can’t demand things of God or boss Him around. Would we do that to a friend? Would we do that to Jesus? The thought is absurd!     

        Scripture says that the Israelites prayed, but then “didn’t wait for God’s plan to unfold.” (Psa.106:13)  We have to be patient. Here is a suggestion: The next time a difficulty comes up in your life, start journaling it. Record the date and the problem; as events take place, record their dates and details. Follow through until you can say without a doubt, “This is how God’s plan unfolded for me.” Watching God in action, so-to-speak, I’m sure you will be blessed, however it unfolds!   Ì

Michelangelo's Pieta

   Think of the tools necessary to get the body off the cross—a ladder, and a heavy crowbar and spacers, at least, to pull the nails. And loving hands to help hold the body as each nail came out. If you know Michelangelo’s Pieta in the Vatican, it is one of the most heart wrenching scenes imaginable.

Where were the women?

        And where were they not? In the spirit of the name of this publication, this article is a “view”, and we certainly won’t hang any doctrine on it, but it may be interesting to consider the subject. For instance, as the Lord travelled to Jerusalem for that last Passover, Matthew (20:20) tells us that, “the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus.” From there until 26:6, there is no mention of women talking with Jesus unless they were included in the term “disciples”. At this point we read of Mary of Bethany who came with her perfume. Now comes the preparation and eating of the Passover, the last supper, and the institution of the Lord’s Supper—we read in John 13:2 that “the evening meal was being served” (was it by the women?) No women are specifically mentioned and, from Jesus’ actions, it seems very unlikely that any were present. (Maybe the women were in the lower rooms preparing the meal and cleaning up?)

        The time in Gethsemane and the arrest had no women present, and only unbelieving servant girls show up in the courtyard when Jesus is tried by the chief priests. (26:69,71)

        Pilate’s wife is now mentioned (27:19) but Pilate ignores her and gives Jesus over to crucifixion. In the procession to Golgotha we read about “women who mourned and wailed for him.” (Lk.23:27) At the cross Jesus gives his mother into John’s care (John 19:25-27) Finally, at the death of the Lord, we are told that “many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from

Galilee to care for his needs. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.” (27:55-56) Somehow they had found out where he was (did they have contact with the disciples who ran?) and were at the cross to help and comfort if they could.

        The women must have stayed at the cross long after Jesus gave up his spirit, because when Joseph of Arimathea finally got permission from Pilate and showed up as evening approached, to take down the body, they were there to follow him to the tomb. When Joseph put the body in his new tomb (27:57) we are told, “Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.” (27:61)

      “When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb...He has risen! He is not here. Mark 16:2-6.

        We might wonder where Mary, the mother of the Lord, was all this time. It seems she may have been overcome with grief and had to leave everything to the younger women. Was Peter’s wife among these women too? In 1 Cor.9:5, Paul implies that (at least in later years) she travelled about with him.

        After all this discussion, we realize that a whole book could be written on this subject. Suffice if for now to say that although men such as Peter or Paul or Timothy might be the face of the gospel, it was women such as Lois and Eunice and Dorcas and Lydia who kept the faith alive in their families through dark decades and centuries.       Ì