TerryLema

The author of Hebrews 12 tells us to “strength [our] feeble arms and weak knees.”  Our spiritual knees are connected to our spiritual hearts.  The word of the Lord came to the prophet Ezekiel regarding the final fall of Judah into the hands of Babylon.  He described the coming disaster and the reaction of the people as panic and moaning, faces covered with shame, hands that go limp, and knees becoming as water.  [Ezekiel 7]

In Romans 14, Paul describes a time when all men will appear before the judgment seat of God, and when that happens “’as surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.’”

The condition of our spiritual knees reflects the condition of our hearts.  Our knees become weak when faced with the trials and disasters of life.  Our knees grow weak when our hearts grow fearful.  Our knees grow weak when our sins come back to roost, when our failings are seen, when we come face to face with the consequences and with the discipline.

One of the primary ways to strengthen these feeble knees is to bend them, first of all, willingly before our God.  There is coming a time when every knee will bow, every knee in heaven, on earth and under the earth will bow at the name of Jesus.  [Philippians 2:10]

That bending of the knee will come one of two ways, either it will be a voluntary bending of the knee at the name of Jesus, or it will be a forced bending of the knee, but make no mistake, every knee of every man and woman of every age will bow.

We have been granted the glorious privilege now to know the name of Jesus, to accept his Lordship in our lives.  This means bending our knees to His will now.  No matter what life hands us, no matter what trial we face, no matter how tough the battle, or how fierce the fighting, we bow to His will, we bend the knee, and we become stronger in the process.

My knees are getting older, that’s fair, so is the rest of me.  They don’t bend like they used to years ago and they are often achy and stiff after I walk. Life has not been easy on my knees.

The Book of Hebrews talks about hardship and discipline and about our knees.   Hebrews reminds us to throw off everything that hinders us, the sins that easily entangle us, and to endure hardship as discipline because “discipline produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”  [12:1-11]   Then in verse12, it gets to the part about our knees, we are to “strengthen [our] feeble arms and weak knees.”   

How do our physical knees get weakened?  They can be weakened through lack of use, through injury, through just the aging process.  How do our spiritual knees get weakened?  They too can be weakened through lack of use, and they can be injured when we fail to face the adversities of life in the proper way.  Discouragement, complaining, growing weary and losing heart makes our spiritual knees feeble.  [12:3]

How do we go about strengthening our knees?  Just as physical knees need to be exercised appropriately so that the muscles and sinews can be built up, spiritual knees need to be exercised also.  The first way is by becoming resolute in putting away discouragement and complaining in the face of adversity.  Let’s face it Christian, the life of faith is not easy, nor does it become easier.

Spiritual life exercised amid worldly opposition is a tough battle.  Jesus never promised it would be otherwise.  Just read church history and you’ll know that true believers down through the ages have faced trials and hardships.  Why do we think we will be any different?

How quickly our lives can turn around!  Circumstances can change in an instant.  A car turns wrong in front of us, and suddenly we are dealing with life and death issues, when only moments before we were thinking about mundane errands, or our bills, or our vacations.

We can be stuck in a dead-end job, or thinking we will forever follow this career path or live in this place, when suddenly an opportunity presents itself through a word, a phone call or an email and we are off on something new and different.

The eternal will often thrust itself into the immediate as well.  One day some men were fishing.  It was what they did almost every day.  It was their occupation.  It was how they earned their living in this life.  They watched the weather.  They went to their boats.  They put out from shore.  They cast their net into the sea . . . “for they were fishermen.”  [Matthew 4:18-22]

This day would be different, however, because the Eternal was walking by and was about to thrust Himself into their immediate.   “Come, follow me . . . and I will make you fishers of men,” and Scripture reports, “at once they left their nets and followed him.” 

In a moment’s notice, life was completely different for these men.  Peter, Andrew, James, and John left their nets, their boats, their life-long occupations and followed this man who called to them by the Sea of Galilee.

For the next three years they would walk with Him, listen to His words, and view His life.  Their hearts would be exalted to the highest heights; and for a moment as they viewed the cross, their hopes would be crushed to the deepest depths.  They would become preachers and martyrs.  They would know persecution and great triumphs.  They would see the salvation of God taken to the world.

In one brief moment of time, they would become consumed with the Eternal.  “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.”  [John 10:27-28]

The Eternal is walking by and wants to thrust Himself into our immediate, “Come, follow me.”  Let’s drop those nets, walk away from our boats, and never turn back.

I was watching Wintley Phipps the other night before going to bed. He performed the most poignant rendition of “Amazing Grace” I have ever heard. It was on a Gaither video recorded at Carnegie Hall shortly after 9/11. Before he sang, he made the comment that “black or white, slave or free, we are all connected by God’s Amazing Grace.”

I went to sleep pondering that thought. There are many people in my life with whom I would have no natural affinity except for the connecting of God’s Amazing Grace.

Paul reminds us of that fact, once in Colossians 3:10 that “there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all,” and again in Galatians 3:28 that “there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” [NKJV]

It matters not what we are when we approach the cross. Our backgrounds, our social status, our ethnicity, our education – nothing counts one iota in our favor. We all come exactly the same, a desperate soul in search of a Savior.

And when we rise from there, we are all exactly the same, a child of God filled with His amazing grace

Yes, we truly are “all connected by God’s Amazing Grace” given us in Christ Jesus. PTL

I was reading in 1 Timothy yesterday, in Chapter 4 where Paul reminded Timothy that our only hope rests in our Savior, Christ Jesus, “for our hope is in the living God who is the Savior of all people and particularly of all believers.” [1Timothy 4:10b NLT]

That promise is found at the end of a passage where Paul wrote to Timothy about the qualities of a “worthy servant of Christ Jesus.”

 He first told Timothy that a worthy servant is “one who is nourished by the message of faith and the good teaching you have followed.” [vs 6]

He also said the worthy servant doesn’t waste time arguing over “godless ideas and old wives’ tales.”  [vs 7]

And he added, “’Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come’ This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it. This is why we work hard and continue to struggle, for our hope is in the living God….” [vs 8-10]

Paul spoke to Timothy about being a “worthy servant,” and God speaks to us through that passage. As children, people would often ask us what we wanted to be when we grew up. Our responses became clearer as we matured.

As children of God, if someone should ask us what we want to be … I pray our response is “a worthy servant.”

If you have spent any time watching the news lately, two things are prominent—the weather and politics.  I am not sure which is irritating me more?  (I hate the 100+temps, and I am not too fond of politicians either.)

Even with the recent assassination attempt and calls to turn down the vitriolic rhetoric, I still heard one politician talking about the presidential race saying that his side must win! He said it is all about winning and that his side is our only hope.

Is that really what it is all about—winning? I thought it was about “serving the people.”

Certainly, we must pay attention to the politics of our nation; we are called to be responsible citizens. But, when I think of serving and hope, I seldom think of a politician. It seems their only goal is to do everything in their power to get reelected.

No, when I think of serving and hope, I think of our Savior. Jesus said that “the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” [Matthew 20:28 NLT]

And despite what is being proclaimed on the political stage, our only hope does not rest in a political party or a specific politician, our only hope rests in our Savior, Christ Jesus, “for our hope is in the living God who is the Savior of all people and particularly of all believers.” [1Timothy 4:10b NLT]

Jesus, Servant, Savior, Living Hope. Amen!

Proverbs 4:23: “Above all else, guard your heart, for it affects everything you do.” [NLT]

Proverbs 4:23: “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” [NKJV]

No matter how you say it, good advice.

Let’s be aware that we are never going to get to that place where we outgrow temptation. We won’t become so “spiritually mature” that the devil gives up on us and doesn’t tempt us ever again. Jesus was the most spiritually mature and perfect person that ever walked this earth, and the devil was constantly on His heels.  After the temptation in the wilderness (Matt 4, Luke 4), Luke ends with this comment: “When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.” [Luke 4:13]

The devil was always looking for opportunities to tempt Jesus. He’s always looking for opportunities to tempt us. So, we must guard our hearts. Temptation, remember, is an inside job. The devil cannot COMPEL us to sin … no such thing as “the devil made me do it!”

But the devil can LURE us, appeal to our hearts if they are left unguarded, and we then make the decision to grab on to that temptation.

If we allow the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life to take root in our hearts, we are going to welcome temptation. If, however, we fill our hearts with the Word of God, with the desire to be more like our Savior, with the power of the Holy Spirit, then our hearts will reject the enemy’s enticements.

Above all else … keep your heart with all diligence. It’s going to affect everything you do, every choice you make!

When Moses knew that he would be not be allowed to enter the Promised Land because of his disobedience in not honoring the LORD before the people, He asked God to appoint a successor so that the people would not be like “sheep without a shepherd.” The Lord’s choice for Moses’ successor was the younger man, Joshua.

Numbers 27:18-21: “So the LORD said to Moses, ‘Take Joshua son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay your hand on him. Have him stand before Eleazar the priest and the entire assembly and commission him in their presence. Give him some of your authority so the whole Israelite community will obey him….At his command he and the entire community of the Israelites will go out, and at his command they will come in.’” [NIV]

Joshua had been at Moses’ side from the very beginning. He had been the commander during their various military engagements. He had been on the mountain with Moses, but the thing I like most about Joshua is found in a statement about him in Exodus 33.

Moses pitched a tent in the wilderness called the “tent of meeting.” When he would go out to the tent, the people would watch as the cloud of the Lord’s Presence would descend upon that tent and Moses and the Lord would talk.  Joshua would accompany Moses into the tent, and we are told that when Moses would depart, his young aide, “Joshua son of Nun, would remain behind in the Tent of Meeting.” [v11 NLT]

That simple statement speaks to me of the piousness of the young man Joshua. It tells me he had a heart for God. Joshua remained behind to soak up as much of the glory of the Lord as he could. He would need every bit of it because, while he didn’t know it at the time, he would be the one to take Israel into the Promised Land.

What Joshua learned from Moses and from the LORD God would carry him through. Toward the end of his life he would challenge the people to remain faithful to God – “Choose this day whom you will serve…but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord.” [Joshua 24:14-15]

Joshua’s challenge is still relevant – choose this day.

I love this man, Moses. He is right beside the Promised Land, but not able to enter it because of his act of disobedience. He had failed to honor God before the people, instead reacting in anger and frustration. Forty years in the wilderness with that bunch of murmurers and complainers would more than likely make any of us angry enough to whack a rock!

But even though Moses will not be allowed to lead the people into the Promised Land, his heart is still burdened with them. Despite all the times they complained and rebelled, Moses still loved them. He interceded for them constantly in the wilderness and he does it here, on the border of the Promised Land, one more time.

Numbers 27:15-17: “Then Moses said to the Lord, ‘O Lord, you are the God who gives breath to all creatures. Please appoint a new man as leader for the community. Give them someone who will guide them wherever they go and will lead them into battle, so the community of the Lord will not be like sheep without a shepherd.’” [NLT]

I’m not sure my heart is as big as Moses’. I’m pretty sure I’d be thinking, “well, just go it alone without me and see how well you do!” Instead, Moses asks God to appoint a new leader, one to take his place and lead God’s people. He asked God for another Shepherd … knowing how helpless sheep are without one.

God gave His people a new shepherd to lead them into the Promised Land … his name was Joshua (Jehovah Saves).  And one day, in the fullness of times, God gave His people an eternal Shepherd to lead them into His Presence forever … His name is Jesus (Greek), Joshua/Yeshua (Jehovah Saves).

Thank you, Father, for our Shepherd, Jesus the Christ.