journey onWord with us

Recently, my husband was on a business trip in a rural part of northern Florida. Now, that part of the state’s geography could actually be included in the southern “Bible Belt” because there are so many churches in the area. Mike was travelling through a very small town on a back road, and he couldn’t help but notice the words on the sign of one small church. It read, “There are 3 things you need to know about eternity – location, location, location.” We both chuckled over that statement, but I have not been able to get it out of my mind. A statement that we have all used in some fashion, a simple, and humorous thought, yet truly profound…

When it is time for us to step into eternity, what will be our new location?

We all understand the concept behind the importance of location. McDonald’s spends millions on the study and selection of their next new store – and you know Wendy’s will be building nearby soon. Lowe’s conducts extensive demographic studies in order to choose their next spot – and you know Home Depot will be breaking ground soon nearby. Location is everything in the business world. What about to us? I taught a Bible study a while back based on the book by John McArthur entitled Twelve Ordinary Men; it was all about the twelve disciples. In the account about Thomas, there’s an incident where Jesus is trying to explain to the twelve that He will be leaving them soon. He, of course, was referencing His crucifixion, resurrection and ascension to Heaven, but the twelve did not understand at all. Thomas asks a question in John 14:5-6…

Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way? Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

And there it is – the simple, yet truly profound truth. The Way to choose our location for eternity is not through giving money, it’s not through volunteering, and it’s not through being a “good person.” It is through Jesus Christ, God’s son! I recently heard a now-famous TV preacher being interviewed; the newsman asked him point-blank, “how does a person get to Heaven?” I was thrilled. I thought God had given this preacher a golden opportunity to tell millions of people the Way, through Christ. Instead the preacher talked in broad generalizations, never answering directly. I was so disappointed in him. So often in this day and age, we are afraid of offending someone or making them feel bad.  This is a person’s permanent location we are talking about! Let’s keep it simple, direct and profound.

The way to get to Heaven is through Jesus Christ God’s Son. Location, Location, Location

Last Wednesday morning, I had what felt to be a divine encounter. Just writing those words sounds so hyper-spiritual that it makes me uneasy. When someone conveys a divine encounter to me, it’s easy to either feel a little jealous of God’s work in their lives, or discount the so-called spiritual event. Sometimes I even have the skeptical response of “yeah right,” when someone talks about a direct encounter with the Divine.  But I believe in divine encounters, I believe they happen often, I believe that I have missed sensing them, and I believe that you may feel exactly as I do. There is noise in my life and there is noise in yours, and if we are not careful, we just may miss the significance of moments that are designed by God for our good.  As you read about the small divine encounter that penetrated me last week, will you simply have the faith of a child to believe that God still speaks, and He has a lot to say to you?

A couple of weeks ago my reading took me to a passage of Scripture that is very familiar. You have probably heard and read of mountain-moving faith. The problem for me, and presumably for you, is that I often look at my mountains as more powerful than my faith. Therefore, there are too few mountains in my life that are cast into the sea! As I read over Mark 11:22-24 and considered it in my prayer time, something penetrated me. There is a particular area of weakness in my life I had never really looked at in light of that passage. But on that specific day, I determined that it was right for me to apply the passage to the specific issue of struggle that I sensed God wanted me to overcome. The context of saying to the mountain, “Go throw yourself into the sea,” became personal.  It became for me a burning bush kind of moment.

Mark 11:22-24
Then Jesus said to the disciples, “Have faith in God. I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.

This passage is contained within the broader context of the withered fig tree that Jesus cursed.  In a seemingly abrupt turn, He speaks of mountain-moving faith.  Obviously there is a purpose in how God designed this passage with a fig tree, the concept of faith, mountains cast into the sea, believing and not doubting… all contained in a few verses.  A mountain being removed has affected me deeply over the last couple of weeks.  My view of this passage had always been … the big “out there” sort of mountain, not my personal internal mountain.  So I determined to pray believing that God’s will was for the mountain to be removed.  The passage came to mind again last Wednesday morning and I reviewed it … then my divine encounter!

I was driving to work and turned on a new Sirius satellite station my wife shared with me on vacation.  I heard only the end of a song. The words went like this – “Wait for the mountain to be removed!” The lyrics were spoken twice and the song was over.  You may be skeptical, but to me it was a divine encounter. To top it off, Thursday night late I was preparing for a meeting, and I looked at a book on prayer — wouldn’t you know, I turned to pages that quoted the Matthew passage relating to the same issue.  Then Friday morning on the way to work (this is truthful), I was listening to a song on my new favorite station and the song said words like this – “The Lord will move mountains if you’ll only ask.”  I had to pull over and write those words down. You may think I am just looking for something to validate what I believe God is doing in me (that’s okay), but He has got my attention … and I believe in divine encounters.  And I believe that through faith, He can remove my mountain.

I guess the best challenge from my experiences to your heart is this … Do you have any mountains that need moving? Do you believe that the mountain can be moved?  If so, would you stop right now, and with a yielded heart to His will, turn the mountain over to Him. I can’t tell you His answer, but I can tell you, He will honor a yielded heart … and I know He is bigger than any mountain … and divine encounters do happen.

He had been privileged since birth, living in the lap of luxury.  He attended only the best schools and had excelled in science, literature, mathematics, military tactics and hieroglyphics, the most difficult language ever written.  He commanded his own company of soldiers, never losing a battle.  Everyone knew his name, as he was most assuredly in line to be the next king.  But at the age of forty, that life of privilege and fame was gone in a moment’s action.  It started out as a day just like any other, except on that day, Moses lost his temper and murdered a man in cold blood.

You remember the story – Moses saw an Egyptian beating a Jewish slave and he killed the Egyptian, burying him in the sand.  Through the constant winds and shifting sands, the body was discovered.

Acts 7:29-30
When Moses heard this, he fled to Midian, where he settled as a foreigner and had two sons.

Moses was forty years old, and I bet that on many days he wondered, “How did this happen?  How did I end up like this?  God can never use me now.”  The difficult life in Midian became his; the riches of his life in Egypt were gone forever.  He lived in the home of his father-in-law and tended his flocks.  He owned no home, no livestock, no land…nothing.  He had become . . . well, a nobody.

There is no record of God communicating with Moses for the next forty years.  But at the age of 80, God speaks …

Exodus 3: 2
There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush.

… continuing in verse 4
When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!”  And Moses said, “Here I am.”

The time had come and Moses answered the call.  I believe it is so obvious in Scripture that God can use anyone, of any age, of any position, at any time for His glory, even those, like Moses, who have “blown it” in the past.  Not convinced?  Let’s look at these names you may recognize. . .

• Abraham was a liar, yet he was called “the friend of God.”

• Jacob was a cheater, yet he received the new name, Israel.

• Rahab was a prostitute, yet her name is in the Hebrews Hall of Faith. . . and her lineage is traced to Jesus Christ.

• Peter denied Christ 3 times, yet he preached to 3000 in Acts.

• Paul ordered the persecution of many Christians, yet was specifically chosen to take the Gospel to many parts of the known world.

We share something in common with Moses and the rest of these pillars of the faith. . . FAILURE!  Yet we also share the common thread of usability.  I think Charles Swindoll wrote it best when he said, “Any bush will do – you just have to be burnable.”

I’m sure you’ve had an experience like the one that captured my full attention.  You had prepared for it, dreaded it, and now the time was almost at hand.  It may have even been an event that you were sure was the will of God.  But somehow there were very real feelings of, “I am not sure I want to go through this,” taxing your emotions.  For me, the year was 1990. I had to have jaw surgery because of a tendency for my jaw to lock. In a moment of insanity, I scheduled the surgery the day after Christmas. What a way to ruin the holidays!  The surgery had to be done, and I was confident that it would help, but just thinking about that kind of surgery was unsettling.  The actual event made “unsettling” seem like a gross underestimation!  I knew the doctor would saw  through both jaws and reset them, but he didn’t tell me (or my wife) that he was also going to saw through the upper palate between my two front teeth.  The procedure was needed and brought the desired result, but the anticipation was miserable and it was difficult to endure.  Have you had an event that captured your attention in a similar fashion?  I’m sure you have.

As torturous as my jaw surgery and your own experience(s) were, they pale in comparison to the anticipation of an event that happened two-thousand years ago.  Jesus was moving toward an event that was, in my mind, the very hinge point of human history.  He was on a divine mission to the cross. There is no way that Christ would be thwarted from fulfilling the mission, but the will of God for his Son was something that would involve pain beyond anything you and I can imagine.  Still, as painful as the cross would be, the Bible is also clear that the anticipation was equally, if not more painful for Christ.  In the last couple of weeks, I have thought a lot about a verse that speaks to the dread Christ felt for the impending event.

John 12:27
Now my soul is deeply troubled. Should I pray, ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But this is the very reason I came!

Make no mistake, Christ would not be deterred from the reason He came. But His soul was still deeply troubled about where the will of God was leading Him. The New Living Translation Chronological Bible gives great insight into the verse above.  It states…

“Jesus knew his crucifixion lay ahead, and because He was human, he dreaded it. He knew he would have to take the sins of the world on himself, and he knew this would separate him from his Father.  He wanted to be delivered from this horrible death, but he knew that God sent him into the world to die for our sins, in our place.  Jesus said no to his human desires in order to obey his Father and glorify him.”

Two emotions/thoughts penetrate me when I look at the profound words of John 12:27. First, I am thankful for the willingness of Christ to endure the cross for my salvation and yours.  If you are a Christ-follower, I am sure you have the same feelings. If you have never accepted Christ, please accept His free gift of salvation.  Second, I am struck by the fact that obedience to the will of God is always the best option for me (and you), regardless of the pain or difficulty we may be asked to endure.  Unless we accept His sovereignty in our lives, following His will when the journey causes pain will be rare.

For the last twenty-three years, I’ve had the blessing of no jaw pain and great teeth alignment. My short-term pain was well worth it. Of infinitely greater worth was the pain that Christ endured for you and me.

God knew what was best for His Son, and what was best for mankind.  And He also knows what is best for you and me—-even when it may cause us a bit of dread (and pain).  His will is perfect!

With what you are facing right now — Can you accept that God knows what’s best for you?  And will you be obedient to the purpose He has for you?

I live in a home with no dishwasher or microwave oven; a fact that, to this day, still confounds my colleagues at work. During our occasional discussions on technological topics, it’s only a matter of time before someone discounts or disqualifies my opinion with the declarative, “Yeah, but you don’t even own a microwave. And, oh yeah, that’s right, a dishwasher either!” To which I love to respond, “But at least it only took me two years to get rid of the rotary dial phone after we bought our house!” (That’s actually true, by the way. There was something about the little finger flick when dialing and the trademark motion and noise of the dial face as it returned to its rest position.)

My wife was putting the final rinse on a few plates and bowls a few days ago.  I snuck behind her and picked up a towel to dry. As she pulled the stopper on the wash side of the sink, drained the water and rinsed the remaining bubbles, I dried the remnants and returned them to their rightful place in the cupboard. As I looked out the window and waited for her to finish wiping down the counter, I caught a rogue unwashed pan in my periphery. Rather than announcing it, I kept quiet and waited for my wife to leave the kitchen. I brought the pan over to the sink, rinsed it with some hot water and reached down below the sink for the dishwashing liquid. After squeezing a small amount onto my dish cloth, I made a motion to close the top on the bottle and place it back underneath the sink. As I did, I must have slightly squeezed the bottle, and instantly a cluster of miniature bubbles burst out of the spout.

For whatever reason, bubbles fascinate me, and in an instant I was awestruck. I stood and stared for what seemed like minutes, as the miniature bubbles rode on the invisible currents of air in the kitchen. The bubbles seemed to hover together for a minute and then began to float off in every conceivable direction. Some simply fell. Others would rise, then float horizontally, and then fall, and then rise again, changing directions at the whim of the unseen current. I knew a pan was waiting for me, but I could not take my eyes off the bubbles.

I know there is science behind the formation and behavior of bubbles. There are truths and natural laws that explain and govern them. But in that moment, I was quite literally awestruck in the presence of those simple little spheres.

I believe our “advanced,” modern world (you know, the one with dishwashers and microwaves) distracts us from moments like I had this morning. Too often the pace and the noise in our lives, tempts or causes us to focus on the “to be done” at the expense of the “to be seen.” We stand at the sink constrained by the thought of finishing that last dish and turn our backs on the opportunity to stop and watch the bubbles. And this observation is not just about slowing down so we can enjoy life more, it’s about seeing and experiencing God … knowing Him.

There is truth in the natural world, and there is Truth in scripture. But what is the purpose of those lowercase and capital “T” truths? Do they exist to explain, or are they there to amaze? Are we in this here and now to understand and steward or to love and glorify?

When was the last time you were left breathless? When was the last time you stopped dead in your tracks to stare at “miniature bubbles?” When was the last time you read your Bible and were overcome with wonder? The pan will still be there when you get around to washing it. Don’t miss the bubbles!

I went to visit a friend and colleague recently to ask him a few questions.  I knocked on his office door, he motioned me in, and I sat quietly for a moment as he finished an email.  As he raised his head after clicking “Send,” I was ready to get right to the point.  I opened my mouth to speak, but he beat me to the punch.  “Do you happen to know the most repeated command in the Bible?”  The question caught me off guard, something I’ve become accustomed to with this particular friend and colleague.  He has a delightful habit of using a witty comment or deep question as a conversational welcome.  I settled back in my chair and began to think.

“I should know this,” I thought.  I admit I was a bit embarrassed as I sat for what seemed like forever in silent consideration.  It didn’t seem to faze him as he patiently and graciously waited for my response.  In the end I had to admit, “I honestly don’t know.”  “Fear not,” he answered quickly.  He went on to share that it occurs more than 200 times in scripture.  In my own investigation, I found there to be varying totals, but complete agreement that a variation of “Fear Not” or “Do not be afraid” was the most repeated command in the Bible.  We discussed it only briefly that day, but the thought is still with me over a week later.

That thought resurfaced yesterday morning as I read the last several verses of Mark 11.  The chief priests, teachers of the law, and the elders come to Jesus as he is walking through the temple and “boldly” challenge Him.  “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you authority to do this?” (Mark 11:28)

I can see the scene in my mind, and I can see Jesus not at all caught off guard, as I was in my friend’s office.  I love his response back to them … a single question with the answer they were seeking held out as a prize for the “right answer” to His own.

The leaders huddle and begin to discuss their response.  Jesus has thrown them what they have judged to be a curve ball question.  In the short narrative on their discussion, their second option is interrupted with a sentence within a set of parenthesis.  That sentence describes the tension that existed in coming up with the “right answer,” and it was where the thought resurfaced for me.

(They feared the people…

In the midst of this huddle, there were highly learned men.  But rather than collaborating in the pursuit of truth, they succumbed to fear.  These learned leaders became crippled by the fear of saying the wrong thing.

We can be quick to judge the group harshly, but as I read and re-read those few words, I wondered how different I really am from them.  I wonder if you’d be with me in feeling convicted that this is too many times my response in the shadow of a bold question that demands a simple and truthful answer.  In pursuing the answer do I pursue the truth, or does the fear of what others will think, say or do, cripple me?   And if I pursue the truth and find it, do I speak it in love, or does the fear of what others will think, say or do, cause me to say, “I don’t know?”

In answer to all of this, I hear the Spirit whispering the command into my heart just as God breathed it into the pages of scripture … “fear not.”

“If I only had more faith.”  Is this a thought that has crossed your mind?  Have you ever tried to work up enough faith energy to make sure God would answer a specific prayer (the way you wanted Him to, of course)?  Maybe you have seen someone else’s dramatic answer to prayer and began to question, “what is wrong with my faith?” You may be facing some faith mountains right now, and spiritual weariness is overwhelming you. Do you need more faith, better faith or just a good dose of, “I will trust my Father” faith? Our family has several faith issues in front of us right now, as I am sure your family does. You may be feeling a bit like the disciples on the day they said the following.

Luke 17:5
The apostles said to the Lord. “Increase our faith!”

After hearing Jesus instruct them on forgiveness, the apostles’ immediate response was, “Increase our faith!”  To which Jesus replied, “if you have faith as small as a mustard seed.” It’s interesting that He challenged them with the power of even a small amount of faith, and I don’t believe that Jesus was chastising the disciple’s response.  In Paul’s letters, we find repeated references to growing in faith.  Great potency is found in even the smallest traces of sincere faith, but still greater power is found in faith’s increase.

Before we discuss how to grow in faith, let’s pause to look at an occasion of God blessing some weak-kneed prayer. You may be familiar with the story in Acts chapter 12, of Peter being put in prison by Herod. The church did what churches do to this day (in difficult times) – they prayed.  I can imagine the intensity of the group praying for Peter’s life.  God dramatically releases Peter, and he goes to the house of the prayer partners, and knocks at the door. A servant girl answers, sees him, and runs with joy to tell the others (leaving Peter at the door).  Note their response:

Acts 12:15-17
“You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.” But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. Peter motioned with his hand for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. “Tell James and the brothers about this,” he said, and then he left for another place.

Have you ever been astonished when God came through?  We all have!  But there is another important point for us to see in the passage. Although there were doubt issues going on at the prayer meeting, I believe there was also sincere faith. God knows our weakness, and He knows how Satan attacks us. In His choosing, He can take our weak “mustard seed” faith and move mountains. Even when you don’t feel like it, and your emotions fly against you … pray.  And by a choice of the will, have the faith to believe He can take even your weak-kneed prayer and answer it.

You probably already knew about the disciples wanting increased faith, and the praying church having doubts. And you also know if you are faith weary and are wanting God to just fix everything. Whatever the size of your faith today (and it may be small), God wants to increase it, and He still does miracles. His prescription is His Word, and prayer, and trusting Him for each moment…. but you already knew that!  Now let the seed grow!

Are you confident that God is really interested in your biggest issue of faith?

It’s probably been at least ten years since I have spoken to Matt.  Over the years, our paths crossed due to the efforts of a mutual friend.  Matt was one of those people you always looked up to; he was successful in business, and just seemed to have things together.  Actually, the last time I remember speaking to him, he was managing over one billion dollars for his clients!  But the fact that he managed lots of money and was successful, has nothing to do with my positive remembrances of him.  For a period of years, we would speak sporadically—most of the time with me just getting his insight on financial matters.  When we would speak (mostly on the telephone), there was something that always affected me.  He was absolutely never in a hurry, and you would have thought that Matt had all the time in the world just to chat back and forth with me.  His company manages a billion dollars, and he has all the time in the world to speak to someone for their benefit.  It’s easy to sense when someone is anxious to end a telephone conversation, but Matt never seemed to be in a hurry.

You’re probably reading this article as you start another week.  It may be that you are already feeling the internal pressure to move quick, finish a specific task, and you may be wondering why your life never seems to slow down.  There are people who you’ll have to correspond with today, and you many not have the time to really listen to them.  Maybe you envy a person like Matt who is successful, caring and seemingly has all the time in the world when speaking with someone.  It may be that Matt concluded that living in a hurry never helped him get ahead, so he shaped his priorities well.  But a greater example than Matt lived the principles of an unhurried life to perfection.  W.F. Adams, (a mentor for C.S. Lewis) stated that:  “to walk with Jesus is to walk with a slow, unhurried pace. Hurry is the death of prayer and only impedes and spoils our work. It never advances it.”  As you start a new week, are you feeling relaxed and focused on meeting the needs of others, or stressed and fighting internal and external hurry?

One of my driving principles this year has been to reduce the hurry that I feel.  Progress has been slower than I would like, but I am sensing God validating my determination.  In sharing my own challenges with hurry, and search for God’s design for a less hurried life, I’d challenge you also to examine if the pace of your life to see if it needs re-calibrating.  Being busy is not an excuse to be hurried. My friend Matt taught me that, and Jesus certainly could claim to be busy … yet He wasn’t hurried.

An Unhurried Life, by Alan Fadling is my source on the quote mentioned above and also the words that follow.  Take these words in the context of today, and for this week.  Test your hurry!

“Anger is soul hurry. Patience is soul unhurry.  Fretting is soul hurry. Peace is a soul unhurried and at rest.  I hurry when I believe deep down that God is not watching over and caring for me.  I rush to do for myself what I somewhere, deep down, believe God is failing to do for me.”

Could it be that the real reason we tend to be impatient, rushed and internally stressed is that we are unwilling to trust God to help us accomplish our goals? I would never say I feel that way, but my actions often speak that it’s all about me and my ability … therefore I’m hurried! What about you?

I am convinced that if I called my friend Matt today, he would take all the time I needed.  I know without a doubt that Jesus gave full focus to those that needed Him at that moment.  If you and I have that rushed feeling today, those around will know it, and we may miss the opportunity to love them as we should.  Determine that unhurried is the best way, and trust God for the results of your work and your life.

Last week I was in Tennessee, and was reminded of one of my funniest business trip appointments ever. It was a couple of years ago, and one of those, “I can’t believe what I just saw” moments. The moment came as I was meeting with a great couple in their beautiful home, nestled against a small mountain. We were working at their dining room table, when the husband motioned out the window and his wife bolted to action. This normally calm, respectful wife grabbed a 22-caliber gun, threw in a bullet clip and was instantly ready to kill the squirrel that had appeared outside the window. I was speechless as the action unfolded, and even thought to myself, “at least open the window!” She didn’t shoot, but the moment was priceless.

It should be noted that the couple was passionate about eliminating the critters that were eating their vegetation. Their determination and passion challenged my thinking … and left me speechless! I wonder if you experience many speechless moments in your relationship with God?

With relative certainty, I would surmise that you prayed sometime last week. After all, isn’t that what good Christians do? It may have been a quick plea for help, an obligatory meal prayer, or in some cases a desperate cry for God’s intervention. As the words left your lips, did you really believe they would make any difference? As a fellow journey struggler, I must confess that my prayers are too often littered with unbelief. But even in my weaker times, I’ve seen dramatic answers to heartfelt cries.

Books have been written about model prayers, mountain moving faith, praying without ceasing etc… My purpose is not to answer all of your questions about prayer, but rather to turn your heart back to the simplicity of seeking God through prayer, and seeing Him move on your behalf. If you are new to faith in Christ, please trust me when I say that prayer works, and God does move mountains. If you’ve journeyed with Christ for many years, trust me when I say God still wants to move mountains for you … and maybe He will even leave you speechless.

For just a moment, be honest with yourself. Do you really live with a confidence that prayer is going to work for you? I bet you can list several requests on your heart right now that you hope God will answer.  However, your hope is more the kind that is surrounded by quotation marks, rather than ending with a period. It may not sound spiritual to say, but that’s the way we live. With childlike simplicity and a passionate prayer life, you and I just might find ourselves in the middle of some speechless moments. God wouldn’t challenge us so much about prayer, if He didn’t want it to be a fundamental part of our relationship with Him. But our lives get so cluttered that we pray amiss, and miss some speechless moments.

Lest my words be misconstrued, I am not advocating that God responds in proportion to my faith, or that He always moves dramatically. He doesn’t heal our loved ones every time, or remove every problem. In His wisdom, He will allow difficulties in our lives. Remember, God is Eternal and Holy. He will choose to move in our lives according to His design, and in His time, which is always good. But the truth remains, that He wants us to pray with faith. History, Scripture, and my own life experiences have taught me that God will intervene when faith is present. And He does move mountains!

Matthew 17:19-20
Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”  He replied, “Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

This dialogue between Jesus and his disciples gives us powerful insight. We can come with faith as small as a mustard seed, and still see Him move mountains. Do you really believe those words for yourself?! Is your faith simple and passionate, or tired and cluttered? Faith and prayer go hand in hand. I believe our Eternal, Loving God wants to move mountains for you. Will you simply trust Him for the mountain in front of you today?

I was speechless in the mountains watching my friend’s passion and determination.  I trust you will be as speechless when God moves a mountain for you!

Take a few minutes with me to consider the immeasurable value of our humanness.

But before we start, how does that statement sit with you?  Are you unaffected and ready to simply read past it?  Are you generally agreeable, or curious and eager to read on?  Or does that statement cause you to stop and think, “did I read that right?”  I think for some, and maybe even many, that statement will fall somewhere along the sliding scale from unsettling to blasphemous.  Growing up in the church, I don’t remember many Sunday School lessons or sermons on the immeasurable value of our humanness.  But if you’ll allow me a few paragraphs and minutes of your time, I believe there is biblical evidence that supports this consideration.

Consider first, that in the story of creation, and the specific account of God creating man, He says, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us.” Genesis 1:26 (NLT)

I believe this is a bold statement in defense of the immeasurable value of our humanness.  In creating us, God did not photocopy Himself.  We were not born into divinity, but were purposefully made human.  What’s more, being human does not carry with it inherent flaw; that was not a product of creation, that was a product of original sin.  Our humanity distinguishes us, but it does not condemn us.  That again, is the product of sin.  That God created us human; this could stand alone in defense of immeasurable value, but there’s more.

A second consideration is God’s redemptive plan.  In making a way of salvation and restoration, God chose for the divine to take on full humanity.  Jesus Christ entered our fallen world fully God and fully man.  He delivered us, and made a way for us, but He also became one of us, and lived among us.  This was far from necessary understanding God’s omnipotence, but it was His choice … fully human to be acquainted with our grief (Isaiah 53:3), and fully human to be the one and only Passover Lamb for the sins of all for all time.  This could stand alone, but I believe there’s more.

A third consideration is the temptation of Christ in the desert.  At the onset of Jesus’ earthly ministry, He is baptized and immediately led by the Spirit to the desert to be tempted by Satan himself.  What does Satan attack and desire for Jesus to deny?  It’s not His divinity, it’s his humanness … it’s the desires of the flesh, it’s pride, and it’s the lust for power.  In his attempts to tempt Jesus to sin, Satan attacks Jesus’ humanity and offers His divinity as the “way out.”  In response, Jesus empties himself and points to the Father.  He answers each temptation as we should.  He is fully one of us.  “Man shall not live by bread alone…” (Matthew 4:4), He says, not “I” or “I and man” … just “Man.”  This could stand alone, but there is more.

For final consideration are the words of Paul in Philippians 2:6…

…who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,  (ESV)

There is perhaps no better definitive declarative of the immeasurable value of our humanness than those words appearing in the midst of Paul’s description of the humility of Christ.  Jesus Christ became fully human, and in that “form of God,” was purely and perfectly content.

Why is this important?  What is the point of “proving” the immeasurable value of our humanness?  My simple and direct answer would be found in backing up to the words at the beginning of Philippians 2:6 and that directly precede those noted above…

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,

Do the words “equality with God,” stir any thoughts in you?  When I read them I was immediately transported to the scene of original sin.  Equality with God as a thing to be grasped … this was the desire that Satan, in the form of a serpent, threw fuel on the flames of, in the hearts and minds of the first man and woman.  We know their response, and in contrast, we know Christ’s.  “Have this mind among yourselves” … this is why it is important to consider the immeasurable value of our humanness.

We are God’s sacred creation … fully human.  Christ was purely and perfectly content in that.  Let’s have this mind among ourselves.