Scriptural Lessons from the Natural World: All Creatures Eat (Part 2)

You’ll find an explanation of this series here, and the first part of this lesson here.

Scripture uses our knowledge that both humans and animals have food to teach us about God—or, more precisely, to remind us of what we already should know about God. We can know that God exists, and that he is good, wise, and powerful because he feed his creatures.

But there’s more. That God has revealed himself by providing food for us ought to influence what we do. I’ve found four biblical commands based on our knowledge of God's food provision. The first two apply to everyone, but the last two are especially for believers.

We Should Be Thankful
If we know God exists, and know some of his attributes, too—and his gift of food leaves us with no excuse for not knowing—then we also know that we ought to be thankful to him (Romans 1:20-21). That we owe God praise is commonsensical—or it should be. If the mother who serves supper to her family deserves praise and thanks, how much more God, who sends the sun and rain to give fruitful harvests worldwide, who satisfies our “hearts with food and gladness” (Acts 14:15-17)?

The Psalms instruct us in the proper response to God’s food gifts.

I will extol you, my God and King,
and bless your name forever and ever.
Every day I will bless you
and praise your name forever and ever.
Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,
and his greatness is unsearchable.

The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season. (Psalm 145:1-3; 15-16)

See Psalm 147:7-9, 12-14 and Psalm 104, too. Our God meets his whole creation's need for food. How can we not praise him?

We Should Repent
One of the reasons for universal condemnation is that all people naturally respond improperly to God’s providence. He has shown himself in his good gifts, but we don’t “honor him as God or give thanks to him,” but express our rebellion instead (See Romans 1:18-21).

But God continues to feed us, even in our rebellion, a grace that is an invitation to turn to God in repentance, seeking forgiveness for not acknowledging him and his provision. Speaking to idolaters, Paul uses the existence of plentiful harvest to support a call to turn to the living God (Acts 14:15-17). Then in Romans, he writes that God’s kindness is meant to lead people to repentance (Romans 2:4). We might say that our food should take us to the gospel: God keeps feeding sinners instead of destroying them because in Christ there is a way of forgiveness for those who repent (Romans 3:25).

We Should Not Worry

[D]o not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! (Luke 12:22-24)

These reassuring words of Jesus to his disciples are an argument from lesser to greater. God feeds the ravens and they’re just birds, so those who belong to him can trust him to take care of their needs, because they are much more important than birds.

This doesn’t mean that God's people will never go hungry. “Life," Jesus reminds us, "is more than food.” It does mean that God will give his own everything they really need. Believers should not worry about having enough. Our God feeds the ravens; he will certainly care for us!

We Should Love Our Enemies
God sends the sun and rain to grow food for everyone, even those who hate him. He gives blessings to his enemies, and those who belong to him will show love to their enemies, too:

I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.(Matthew 5:44-45)

Sons do what their fathers do. Those who are true sons¹ of God do what God does: They love their enemies. God blesses those who hate him, and his children pray for blessings on those who hate them, even those who treat them cruelly.

Summary
When I serve dinner, or harvest something from my garden, or spy an eagle with a rodent in it's mouth, it is—or should be—a reminder to me. God’s food blessings tells me he is there and he is good. In his wisdom and power he sustains all his creatures, including me. And in response I owe him allegiance and thanksgiving—and repentance for my failure to give him his due.

That God feeds his creatures also assures me of his care. If he can be trusted to supply their needs, he can certainly be trusted to supply mine. What’s more, his providence for all people, even those who hate him, should spur me, as his child, to love my enemies, too.

---

¹Women and girls can be sons in this sense of the word.

Lessons from Nehemiah - 1

Today, I'm beginning a series of posts that focus on the book of Nehemiah.  This is the book I just began teaching on Sunday morning with my ladies' class.  Considering the amount I talk about studying the bible here at this blog, I thought that it might be a good exercise to actually do it!

Please know that I am first and foremost a student myself. I am not a seminary graduate, and other than three semesters of Koine Greek over twenty-two years ago, I do not have facility with the original languages. I can assure you, however, that I do use commentaries and other study tools.  To guide my study, I am using Kathleen Nielson's book, Nehemiah: Rebuilt and Rebuilding. So, without further adieu, let's see what Nehemiah is all about.

The book of Nehemiah is historical narrative.  That means it's about some people who really lived.  We want to know about these people. In the opening three verses of Nehemiah, we're introduced to the subjects of this account:

1 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah. Now it happened in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Susa the citadel,² that Hanani, one of my brothers, came with certain men from Judah. And I asked them concerning the Jews who escaped, who had survived the exile, and concerning Jerusalem.³ And they said to me, “The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.”

Who were these Jews who escaped?  Who are these people who were in exile, and are called a "remnant?" These people are God's covenant people, the ones promised to Abraham.  In Genesis 12:1-3, God makes a covenant with Abraham. God tells Abram in verse 3: "in you all of the families of the earth shall be blessed." We can take note of that promise to Abraham, because we'll see it again later.

The covenant made with Abraham is also re-iterated with Moses and his descendants, and is promised to be continued in the lineage of David.  Second Samuel 7:16 says that David's house will be a kingdom that is secured forever.

Why have the Jews been in exile? They have "breached the faith" according to I Chronicles 9:1. Does this sound familiar? Does this sound like something not unlike what went on in the desert after Israel was freed from the Egyptians? It does. This unfaithfulness comes with a consequence, and that is why they will be taken to Babylon and kept captive for seventy years. This is not a surprise to God.  In fact, it was prophesied through Jeremiah (Jeremiah 25:1-14).  Even though they were disobedient and unfaithful, God shows mercy not only by promising them they will return, but by warning them in the first place.

Enter King Cyrus in 539 BC. He overthrows the Babylonian King and in 538 BC decrees that the exiles may begin to return home, something which was prophesied by Isaiah long before it happened.  In Isaiah 45:4, we learn that Cyrus is going to be used by God's, even though Cyrus does not know God's name.  That, to me, is incredible! God's mercy ministered by one who doesn't even know His name.

These covenant people have returned to Jerusalem, and are going to rebuild the walls of the city. That is the content of this book.

How is this our story? These people lived in a world so far removed from us. What connects us to them? Aside from the fact that we, like Israel, breach the faith, and receive acts of mercy, and still continue to disobey, it is our story because we are part of the covenant people of God.  Remember the promise to Abraham that all of the families of the earth would be blessed through him?  This is referred to again in Galatians 3:7-9, which quotes that passage. We are included in that blessing. The covenant  made to Abraham is a covenant for us, through Christ.

God's dealings with his covenant people have not changed. He is a God who keeps all of his promises. He promised to free the Jews from Egypt and it happened. He promised to get them into the promised land, and he did it. He said he would release them from exile, and he did it. He promised a Messiah, and he sent one. He has said he's coming again. Don't you think he'll do it? I do.

This is our story because this is our God, a God who keeps his covenants.

The Problem and the Cure

This post originally appeared on my personal blog in 2011.

When I was growing up, way back in the dark ages before cell phones, my father had short-wave radios in the vehicles of his employees. We also had two units in our house: one in the living room, and one in my parents’ room. They looked a little like telephones (not a telephone that any of my children would recognize, but like telephones of that era). Talking on them required the use of all sorts of fancy code-talk like “Car One to Base Two.”

They were kind of scary.

Then one day my cousins were playing at my house. One of them decided it would be quite hilarious if I would get on the radio and call for my daddy. I wasn’t convinced it would be that hilarious, and I thought it might get me in trouble, but he was very encouraging.

I was gullible. I was the youngest. It was part of my job to be gullible.

I was probably four. I remember being concerned about the whether I needed to say “Base Two to Car One” first, but he assured me that if I got on there and said, “Daddy! Hi Daddy!” (over and over) it would be just great.

So I did it. It didn’t take long before my dad responded with, “Somebody get her off of that thing.” It might as well have been the voice of God.

It’s ironic to think that this particular cousin is now an airline pilot, because I have a feeling that messing around with the communication devices is frowned upon in his line of work. But I digress.

That was probably the most embarrassed I had ever been. I’ve been much more embarrassed since then, mind you, but at the time it was bad. Now, I don’t want you to read too much into this. I recovered quickly. I played with my cousins for the rest of the afternoon, and I’m sure when my dad got home from work I ran up and hugged him just like always. I don’t want to paint this as a traumatic incident from my past, because it’s not.

I didn’t even think about it much until I got a job with The Drugstore Chain That Shall Not Be Named. On my first day, a coworker asked me to page someone over the store intercom, and I was terrified. Page someone? Over the store intercom? Can’t I do something less scary, like stand in the parking lot and sing a solo?

For the first couple of days I went to ridiculous lengths to avoid using the intercom. Finally I just couldn’t avoid it, so I bucked up and did it. No one was particularly impressed at the sacrifice this required, but I was pleased with myself. By the time I left the company, I could announce prescriptions and call for change with the best of them.

For the past couple of weeks, I’ve taken a break (mostly) from reading my beloved dead Puritans to read a couple of the Christian “self-help” books. Both of them contain some insight into why we do what we do, and both of them spend an inordinate amount of time discussing how childhood traumas and disappointments can shape us. It seems that all of us were paying attention in Psych 101.

But I wonder at the format. The authors seem to say: It’s all their fault that you are the way you are (“they” being your parents or the men in your life, usually). The implication is that if you can dredge up all the causes, you’ll be cured.

I’m not trying to minimize the impact of family dysfunction and childhood traumas, nor am I suggesting that the victim is to blame. I do think, however, these books skip a step. My opening example is overly simplistic and a little silly, and purposely so. But even if I take one of my bigger issues and substitute it, I’m still back at the beginning. You see, just as I knew why I didn’t like intercoms, I know why I have a fear of people dying in car wrecks and children being snatched from their homes. Maybe I’ll tell you about it sometime. But none of those things created the problem, they just uprooted something that was already there.

I didn’t like intercoms because I don’t like looking foolish, and once an intercom had made me feel that way. I was eventually able to see that people shopping in your local chain drugstore have better things to do than mock the person on the intercom, so I moved on. The bigger problems may be harder to get past, but the roots are the same as any other problem we’ve had from the beginning: fear, pride, unbelief, distrust, covetousness.

At best, discovering the role the mistakes or sins of others played in your current problems will offer some insight, but they won’t give you the solution. At worst you will go on blaming that person, growing in bitterness, and never get around to dealing with your own stuff. Scripture does contain stern warnings for those who cause others to sin (Matthew 18:6, Romans 14:20-22), but whenever it speaks directly to a person about their own sin, it doesn’t allow any wiggle room. The direct advice is always the same: repent and stop. Trust God and follow him.

Are you fearful? That’s unbelief and lack of trust in God. Fear of failure? That’s pride. We can’t change our past, but with the help of the Holy Spirit, we can put off the old self and put on the new (Ephesians 4:22-24). And that requires more than looking for someone else to blame.

Hope that purifies

One evening after a revival service at our church, I sat in front of the window in my room, looked out across the darkness of our backyard, and begged Jesus not to return. At least not any time soon. I don't remember anything at all about that particular revival service: not who preached nor his text nor even any of his pertinent points. Evidently it had something to do with the end of the world as we knew it. I was a young girl, 11 or 12, maybe older, maybe younger, and I was terrified (terrified!) that Jesus would indeed come back as warned, soon and very soon, robbing me of a boyfriend and prom and all of the other childish dreams and aspirations that were close to my young girl's heart.

It seems silly and almost a little sad to scare a little girl half out of her wits to the extent that she could hardly sleep at night for fear of never having a first date. I will say this in defense of my younger self: I believed Jesus' promise to return. Not only that but I realized I much preferred the world according to Seventeen magazine, a realization that I'd like to think scared me as much as life without ever having a pedicure.

Today I still believe Jesus' promise to return and I pretend to be ready but the reality is sometimes I still prefer He would wait.

In 1 John chapter 3 John makes the startling statement that all who hope in Jesus' appearing purify themselves (1 John 3:3). Hoping, eagerly expecting, Christ's return is a means of purification, how? Doesn't this seem contradictory to our usual warning against being so heavenly minded to be of no earthly good?

As I consider the relationship between hoping in Christ and in His appearance and my purification, I draw a couple of conclusions. First, living in the reality of His return makes a difference in how I live. I gain eternal perspective. I understand this world is fleeting and the true treasure in not found here below but above, where Christ is. These truths are reinforced as I wait eagerly for His appearing.

Not only does this eager expectation for the return of my Savior affect the way I live, but its effect is one of purification from sin. Consider Titus 2:11-13 where Paul speaks of renouncing ungodliness and worldly passions by waiting for the blessed hope, the appearing of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. My ESV Study Bible tells me that "Certainty about the future enables constancy in the present." Certainty motivates constancy. I will see Him so I want to be like Him. These troubles are light and momentary compared to the weight of glory that is to come thus I can persevere in my fight with sin and flesh and world. Jesus will return. This hope purifies me.

I think of me as a young girl sitting in front of her window and crying and it makes me sad. I thought at the time that Jesus' imminent return would rob me of something precious that, despite me going to heaven, I would lose out. As I weighed the options in the balance I figured my earthly future of greater worth; thus I cried.

I no longer weep at the thought of Jesus' second coming but I operate under the same set of assumptions when I count the pleasures of this world as greater and more important. In this way, what I think about Jesus' return reveals what I love and what I think important. As it exposes the true nature of my heart and my heart's affections, I am purified.

Jesus' return is not a source of hope for all. He will come in judgment and where then will hope lie? Only in His finished work on the cross where He died to secure forgiveness for all who would believe. Is your hope in Him? Do you rest secure knowing He will return? Has this truth purified you? Does it affect the way you live? 1 Thess. 5:23 promises that those who belong to Christ will be kept blameless at His appearing--blameless because He paid the penalty for your sin, granting you eternal life in Him. 

May our heavenly mindedness make us of earthly good as we watch and work and wait. May our confidence in the end of this world as we know it propel us to hope, not fear, as we proclaim the truth in love. May we know our true Treasure awaits--yes and amen--and may our passion be thus directed.

Jesus is our only hope. He will return. Wait for it. Watch for it. Hope in it. By it you will be purified.

Welcome Home

It's hard to walk on eggshells - tiptoeing around certain people for fear of how they will react. It could be the irritable boss or coworker, the customer who can't be pleased, or the neighbor who is upset because you trimmed your hedge too low. At the end of the day, you can leave these people behind when you go home and lock the door.

But eggshell-walking takes on a whole new dimension when it is someone you love. You would do anything to please him/her, but somehow it is never enough. So you brace yourself not knowing whether you will receive commendation or a reprimand, affection or rejection.

Do we act this way towards God? Walking on eggshells because we're afraid we might do something to jeopardize our relationship with Him?

From God's Word:

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!”  So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God. Galatians 4:4-7

For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry,“Abba! Father!” Romans 8:15

From Grudem's Systematic Theology:

God could have given us justification without the privilege of adoption into his family, for he could have forgiven our sins and given us right legal standing before him without making us his children. It is important to realize this because it helps us recognize how great are our privileges in adoption. Regeneration has to do with our spiritual life within. Justification has to do with our standing before God's law. But adoption has to do with our relationship with God as our Father, and in adoption we are given many of the greatest blessings that we will know for all eternity. When we begin to realize the excellence of these blessings, and when we appreciate that God has no obligation to give us any of them, then we will be able to exclaim with the apostle John, "See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God, and so we are." (1 John 3:1).¹

The doctrine of adoption is something I've been wrestling with. I know it in my head, but I've been reluctant to embrace it with my heart. Perhaps it's because past rejection has made me afraid to receive love in case it will be taken away. Perhaps it's because I see my unworthiness and wonder whether God will think I'm worth keeping in the long run. But doubts and experience, however painful, aren't the arbiter of what is true. God's Word determines that, and verse after verse confirms that He is my Father. Not because Ive earned it or deserved it. Not because I'm securing it's continuance with my good behavior but because He chose to set His love upon me and make me His child.

This is something worth remembering. This is comfort for the lonely soul. God isn't just a kind benefactor to a group of refugees. He did not open an orphanage. Because of the cross, God opens His arms and says, "Welcome home."

What is indisputable is that when the Spirit comes to make His home in us, He comes with grace in both hands. He comes to point to the Son and the extravagance of what has been accomplished for us. He introduces us to the Father in heaven and says: "Meet the Father. He is your Father, too."  

How do you view your present relationship to God? Do you see it as one of slavery, a never-ending attempt to win some favor from an otherwise reluctant Father, or one in which you are a son, knowing that your Father in heaven has always loved you and always will?²  

                                                                                                                                          

1. Systematic Theology, Wayne Grudem, Zondervan, 2000, pg. 739.
2.  How the Gospel Brings Us All the Way Home, Derek W. H. Thomas, Reformation Trust Publishing, 2011, pg. 61.

Fighting for Your Girl's Modesty: Part III

Note: This post is part of the Fight Like a Girl Series. The previous posts in the series are found under Melissa's tag. 

Unfortunately, we don't often let the Cross shape our thinking. We don't stare at it long enough. When the question of modesty comes up, we toss reservation in the trash. We forget the cost of sin. We forget how serious our offenses are to a holy God. By moving on from the Cross, we belittle the opinion of God. We let the world gain a foothold in our lives.

~Hannah Farver,Uncompromising (pp. 112-113)

Modesty is becoming obsolete in our society. In fact, our culture seems to pride itself on its complete lack of modesty. Television shows and advertisements are saturated with innuendo. Magazine covers parade scantily clad women surrounded by copy that should make us blush. Even office conversations are filled with double entendres. We flaunt our sexuality, consider no topic as taboo. How can we instruct our children to be discreet when we have no understanding of discretion ourselves?

Girls are having conversations in front of boys that they should never have. They discuss things with boys that, just a few generations ago, weren't even talked about among girls. They brag about their escapades in hopes of drawing attention to themselves. Oftentimes, they're learning it from their parents.  How can we expect our children to be discreet when we are not discreet ourselves?

And our children's lack of discretion doesn't just play out in their small corner of the world. Often, it's put on the world wide web through social media, for everyone to see. Take a look at your daughter's Facebook feed and you're likely to find her friends have posted photos and status reports that belie claims of innocence and being a "good" girl. The lure of creating a different "on screen" persona can be powerful. Text messaging and social media gives a false sense of freedom to post or write anything, which can be toxic to a teenager who already has a limited capability to understand consequences.

Discretion isn't just about avoiding explicit or suggestive content. Being modest means calling attention to Christ rather than ourselves. Mothers, are we modeling this for our daughters? Are we teaching them to point others to Christ in their speech, actions, and in their online presence? I know I have not been the example that I should be in this regard. I also know I cannot expect my daughter to meet standards of thought, speech and deed that I have not reached myself. The truth is, our daughters are learning from us. If we're troubled by her lack of modesty, perhaps we need look no further than the mirror.

Further Reading:
~Desiring Virtue recently hosted a series on modesty, that can be found here.
~Today at my blog, I'm sharing the guidelines I've established for modesty in social media.

Scriptural Lessons from the Natural World: All Creatures Eat (Part 1)

You'll find an explanation of this series here. 

Here where I live, we need to lock the lids tight on our garbage cans or the packaging from our food waste will be spread all over the neighbourhood by trash-picking ravens. Once I saw a raven fly off with a whole package of cheddar cheese from a bag of groceries left in the back of a pickup truck in the supermarket parking lot. Ravens are successful scavengers; they eat what they find and they do well.

What's more, in the middle of winter, there are waxwings who eat the berries from my May Day tree. And the lynx I saw on my street in March hunts and eats snowshoe hare. In the fall, squirrels run across my yard carrying big mushrooms in their mouths. Even from my window, I can see that the wild creatures have food to eat.

While I grow a few vegetables in my garden, it's farmers and ranchers farther south who produce most of my food. But whether by grocery store or garden, like the animals, I have food.

All animals and humans eat. There is, generally, enough food to sustain life. Scripture teaches many lessons from this truth, so many that I've put them two posts, starting today with a look at what scripture says we should know about God because we know that creatures and people have food to eat.

God Exists
To the Gentiles at Lystra who worshipped many false gods, Paul said,

"[The one, living, creator God] did not leave himself without witness, for he did good by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness” (see Acts 14:15-17).

The food the Lystrans ate was harvested because God sent them rainstorms and sustained their regular seasons. Their food was a witness to God's existence. The food I eat sends the same message: There is a God—one God—who is giving me "rains from heaven and fruitful seasons" to feed me.

Not only can we know God exists because we eat, we can see some of his character, too. To quote Romans 1:20, a few of God's "invisible attributes . . . have been clearly perceived" in his provision of food for his creatures.

God Is Good
The text from Acts 14 above tells us that in giving us food, God is doing good. In Matthew 5:44, Jesus says something similar:

But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

That God sends sun and rain, two important factors in the production of the food we eat, is a manifestation of his love. Some call this benevolent provision for all people everywhere "common grace." Whatever we call it, that God feeds us shows us that he is not stingy and evil, but generously good, even to those who oppose him.

God Is Wise
That God's creatures are fed shows his wisdom, too. Quoting Psalm 104:

You cause the grass to grow for the livestock
and plants for man to cultivate,
that he may bring forth food from the earth
and wine to gladden the heart of man,
oil to make his face shine
and bread to strengthen man's heart. . . .

The young lions roar for their prey,
seeking their food from God.

O Lord, how manifold are your works!
In wisdom have you made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures. (Psalm 104: 14-15, 21, 24) 

God's work supplying food, including the prey for a lion, and the grass for the livestock that in turn feed us, reveal the perfection of his understanding. (See also Psalm 147:5, 8-9; Job 38:41, read in context.) The food chain (as some call it) is a complex system; the best scientists can't explain it completely. But God knows it inside and out because he planned every detail of it and is always working to to sustain the links of causes and effects.

God Is Powerful
The Bible also associates God's provision of food with his power.

Great is our Lord, and abundant in power . . . .

He covers the heavens with clouds;
he prepares rain for the earth;
he makes grass grow on the hills.
He gives to the beasts their food,
and to the young ravens that cry. (Psalm 147:5a, 8b-9)

Directing the storm clouds that bring rain to water the crops worldwide is a demonstration of God's great power. So is sustaining the revolution of the earth so the sun shines on crops everywhere. There are other ways God's power can be seen in the ways he supplies food for people and wildlife, but these two are specifically mentioned.

Summary
That God gives creatures their food is evidence of his existence, and it reveals some of his attributes, too. We can know that God is good, wise and powerful—and probably more—because he feeds us. (If you can think of verses or attributes to add to the list, please tell me in the comments.)

Two weeks from now I hope to post a few of ways we ought to respond to God's revelation of himself in his provision of food for all of his creatures.