Higher and Deeper with God through Worship

Moses went up on Mount Sinai and received both the Ten Commandments and the blueprints for the tabernacle. In so doing God gave both the law for man's obedience and grace for man's failure, for the tabernacle is a type of Jesus. The tabernacle, layed out in the shape of a cross, is how one draws near to God for forgiveness and restoration.

The first item the worshipper saw was the multi-colored gate. Blue is the color of heaven, purple is the color of royalty, and red is the color of blood. This of course showing that Jesus is a king who came from heaven and shed His blood for us. 

Jesus said, "I am the door." The only way into the tabernacle was to pass through this entrance. Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life, no one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6).

One of the truly great worshippers in the Bible King David explains how to pass through this doorway. "Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name" (Psalm 100:4).

Now in a very practical way, if you want to go deeper with God, begin in this manner. Observe these three acts of worship. 

  1. BE THANKFUL TO HIM. Look around and identify your many blessings. Don't just be thankful for the gifts, but be thankful to God for those gifts.
  2. PRAISE HIM. Thankfulness is primarily for visible things, yet praise is for the invisible traits of God grasped by faith. Take a few moments to tell God how marvelous He is, enumerate His many wonderful qualities (true, kind, merciful, faithful, holy, forgiving, unchanging, faithful, good, almighty, etc).
  3. BLESS HIS NAME. In the Bible, names do more than identify, names express quality and nature. Thus, the names of God tell us about the essence of God. He is Father, Savior, Shepherd, King, Ancient of Days, Master, Emmanuel, Wonderful Counselor, Man of Sorrows, Captain of our salvation, Jehovah-Jireh (the Lord who provides), Comforter, Prince of Peace, I AM, etc.

Get started today in your journey toward God with thanksgiving and praise.

Our Great High Priest

Here are three reasons that Jesus is the great high priest.

  1. Jesus is perfect. All other high priests were sinful, frail human beings. They had to be cleansed from their own sins before they could intercede for the people. But since Jesus never had a bad thought, word, or deed, He doesn't need to confess His sins like all the other high priests. 
  2. Jesus is immortal. The other high priests eventually would die and a new priest would have to be trained. Because Jesus is eternal, He is still on the job, where He "ever lives to make intercession for us." 
  3. Jesus is the final sacrifice. In the Old Testament animals had to be offered regularly, but at Calvary Jesus became a perfect once-and-for-all sacrifice. In a remarkable twist, Jesus is both priest and offering. In an amazing act of love the Priest offered Himself. What the blood of bulls and goats could not do, Jesus accomplished by shedding His own life blood.

What a Savior!

Dealing with Religious Liars

Today I need to go visit a church, but I'm sort of nervous. There is a person associated with this congregation who has said some hateful and dishonest things about me.

The Lord graciously showed me this morning how Jesus dealt with dishonest people. Following Jesus's example, I must do the following:

  1. I must be loving. This is how Jesus responded to the rich young ruler, who may have been a ruler of a synagogue or member of the Sanhedrin. This man falsely claimed to have kept all the commandments. Despite his bogus claim, Jesus looked on him with love (Mark 10:20-21).
  2. I will try to find some agreement. This is how Jesus dealt with two of His disciples who thought they could keep up with Jesus. He knew the sons of Zebedee could never endure the cross, but they would be martyred. James would be beheaded and John would be exiled to the Island of Patmos. Following our Lord's example I will seek agreement not argument (Mark 10:38-40).
  3. I have to guard my integrity. When the chief priests, scribes, and elders claimed ignorance about John's baptism, Jesus did not respond in kind. It would have been easy for Jesus to say, "Well I don't either." We must not stoop to their level. In spite of how others act, I want to do my best to behave with character and honor (Mark 11:33).
  4. I will never speak of their false accusations. This is what Jesus did when false witnesses accused Him before the high priest and the Sanhedrin. Mark 14:61 says, "[Jesus] kept silent and said nothing."

We are not surprised to see falsehoods in business or politics, but it is sad to see it in the church. Jesus dealt with dishonest religious people, we will too. But by God's grace, let us respond with love, harmony, and integrity. 

After Faith Has Come

Four results of faith in Christ, based on Galatians 3:24-27:

  1. We are free from the law (Gal. 3:24-25). The function of the law is to show us our sin and need for a Savior. Once a person comes to Christ through faith, the law is no longer necessary.
  2. We are adopted into God's family (Gal. 3:26). Christians are sons, not slaves, and thus have a sense of belonging and access to all of God's incredible riches (Gal. 4:6-7).
  3. We identify wtih Christ (Gal. 3:27). The believer is placed into Christ and enjoys the benefits of Christ's accomplishments and privileges.
  4. We are made righteousness (Gal. 3:24). The repentant sinner who places their faith in Christ is justified. This means being declared legally righteous in the eyes of God.