Amazing Love

He spoke the world into existence. Plants and animals appeared at His command. He created man in His own image. Man chose to disobey his Creator. But God made a way for fellowship to be restored. A sinless sacrifice was required. Only Jesus Christ could pay the price. He, "...made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross" (Philippians 2:7-8; KJV). Amazing love!

Over and over, throughout the Bible, God demonstrates His power and love. Only an all-powerful God could deliver the Israelites from the Egyptian ruler, Pharaoh. The children of Israel had been slaves to the Egyptians for four hundred, long years. Using His servant Moses, God freed the people and brought them to the banks of the Red Sea. All seemed hopeless, until the mighty hand of God, "...caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left" (Exodus 14:21b-22). God cared for His people

.

Remember the walls of Jericho? Only a mighty God could cause the walls of a fortified city to fall down flat, using only trumpets and the shouts of people. An amazing feat? Not so much, when you consider an amazing God who is, "long suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9b). Before Jericho's walls came tumbling down, one of the cities' residents and her family was rescued: Rahab, her dad, mom, and brethren. Rahab had chosen to believe in the God of the Israelites to the saving of her family. She was convinced of God's love and experienced His provision.

I'm sure the orphan, Esther, never dreamt of being in a beauty pageant, let alone being chosen as the queen of Persia. When she realized the role for which she had been chosen by God, she saw His mighty hand at work. In spite of King Ahasuerus' edict that called for the execution of all the Jews on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, Adar, Esther approached him, risking her life to beg for the life of her people. It wasn't that easy, though. You see, what was put into law by the King, could not be revoked under any circumstances. But the King of Kings triumphed. King Ahasuerus issued a decree that the Jews would be able to defend themselves on Adar 13th. God's plan prevailed and as a result, "many of  the people of the land became Jews; for the fear of the Jews fell upon them" (Esther 8:17).

What are you facing today? Remember that the God of the universe is all-powerful. Whatever you think He's capable of, He's capable of more! His love for you is vast and beyond measure. "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39). Praise Him today, for His amazing love!

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You that You are the all-powerful God who loves me. No matter the challenges I face, help me to turn to Your Word that I may re-discover Your greatness. Praise You, Lord, for who You are!    

Seeds of Faith

Two male spies with a plan, one woman with information. Two men on a mission. One woman with a bad reputation. Two men doing the work of the Lord. One woman labeled as a harlot. Who could imagine that their paths would cross? Yet the spies entered her city and ended up at her house.

The time? Early 1400's B.C. The place? Jericho. The woman? Rahab. The people of her city were in turmoil because of the news they had heard. When the two spies showed up at her house, Rehab was honest with them, "I know that the Lord hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you. For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you" (Joshua 2:9-11a; KJV).

Sometime between hearing the city news and the arrival of the spies, a seed of faith sprang up in Rahab's heart. She believed the stories about this God's power. She was afraid that her city would be destroyed next. The God of the Israelites was someone to be reckoned with. She acknowledged her belief that He was God (Joshua 2:11b).

When the sound of an authoritative knock came at the door, Rahab had a choice to make. Should she turn the spies in, or hide them? With heart hammering in her chest, Rahab acted on her growing seed of faith. Carefully concealed under the flax on her rooftop, the spies heard her tell the king's men that her visitors had left before the city gate had been shut. (Joshua 2:5).

A covenant was made. Since she had saved their lives, they would spare the lives of she and her family members before the Israelites destroyed her city of Jericho. The spoken oath was sealed with a sign. A scarlet cord. The spies told Rahab to bind the same scarlet cord that would allow them to escape to safety, in her window. "Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by: and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household, home unto thee" (Joshua 2:18).

The spies were true to their word. "And the young men that were spies went in, and brought out Rahab, and her father, and her mother, and her brethren, and all that she had; and thy brought out all her kindred, and left them without the camp of Israel" (Joshua 6:23). What began as a seed of faith was continuing to grow.

Rahab. The woman we're introduced to in the book of Joshua who has a bad reputation is nowhere to be found once she acknowledges her belief in the God of the Israelites. We meet up with her again in the book of Matthew. No mention is made of her past. She is recognized as the wife of Salmon, no doubt a dashingly handsome Israelite, whose son just happens to be Boaz (Matthew 1:5). That's right! The mighty kinsman redeemer of the book of Ruth.

Think about it! A former harlot ends up in the genealogy of Jesus Christ! After all, Boaz and Ruth have a son, Obed, Obed and his wife have Jesse, Jesse and his wife have David, and fourteen generations later, our Savior is born!

It never ceases to amaze me what God can do with a man or woman with a seed of faith and a spirit yielded to Him!


Are you willing to step out in faith and be used by the Lord? What step will you take today to water the seed of faith that's growing in your life?


Prayer: Heavenly Father, Thank You for the encouraging story of Rahab. Help me to put my faith in You no matter what. Use me to point others to You. In Jesus' name, Amen.

*I'm hosting over at Living by Grace today. Come join in the discussion!
























* A re-post from March 26, 2010.

Amazing Love

He spoke the world into existence. Plants and animals appeared at His command. He created man in His own image. Man chose to disobey his Creator. But God made a way for fellowship to be restored. A sinless sacrifice was required. Only Jesus Christ could pay the price. He, "...made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross" (Philippians 2:7-8; KJV). Amazing love!

Over and over, throughout the Bible, God demonstrates His power and love. Only an all-powerful God could deliver the Israelites from the Egyptian ruler, Pharaoh. The children of Israel had been slaves to the Egyptians for four hundred, long years. Using His servant Moses, God freed the people and brought them to the banks of the Red Sea. All seemed hopeless, until the mighty hand of God, "...caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left" (Exodus 14:21b-22). God cared for His people.

Remember the walls of Jericho? Only a mighty God could cause the walls of a fortified city to fall down flat, using only trumpets and the shouts of people. An amazing feat? Not so much, when you consider an amazing God who is, "long suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9b). Before Jericho's walls came tumbling down, one of the cities' residents and her family was rescued: Rahab, her dad, mom, and brethren. Rahab had chosen to believe in the God of the Israelites to the saving of her family. She was convinced of God's love and experienced His provision.

I'm sure the orphan, Esther, never dreamt of being in a beauty pageant, let alone being chosen as the queen of Persia. When she realized the role for which she had been chosen by God, she saw His mighty hand at work. In spite of King Ahasuerus' edict that called for the execution of all the Jews on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, Adar, Esther approached him, risking her life to beg for the life of her people. It wasn't that easy, though. You see, what was put into law by the King, could not be revoked under any circumstance. But the King of Kings triumphed. King Ahasuerus issued a decree that the Jews would be able to defend themselves on Adar 13th. God's plan prevailed and as a result, "many of the people of the land became Jews; for the fear of the Jews fell upon them" (Esther 8:17).

What are you facing today? Remember that the God of the universe is all-powerful. Whatever you think He's capable of, He's capable of more! His love for you is vast and beyond measure. "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39). Praise Him today, for His amazing love!

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You that You are the all-powerful God who loves me. No matter the challenges I face, help me to turn to Your Word that I may re-discover Your greatness. Praise You Lord for who You are!

The Hallway: Accurate Examples - Part 2

I can imagine myself walking down the long hallway. A spotlight shines brightly on each picture, highlighting the portrait in each ornate frame. These are true heroes. No, not athletes, musicians, or scientists. Heroes of faith as described by God in the book of Hebrews. Men and women whose lives are noteworthy. Servants of the Lord. Their lives beckon me to take a closer look.

As I peer at the nameplate on one of the picture frames, recognition brings a smile to my face. This is Abraham. One of the patriarchs. Known as the father of the nation of Israel. When I think of Abraham, I think of his spirit of obedience. He was called by God to leave his country and to go to an unidentified land. By faith, he willingly obeyed, although he didn't know where the Lord would lead him. He chose to believe the promise of God, "And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed" (Genesis 12:2-3; KJV).

Years later, Abraham is continuing to walk the path of obedience. He cannot fathom God's instructions to sacrifice his promised son, Isaac, yet once again, he willingly obeys. His great faith in God's ability to raise his son from the dead if necessary is seen in his parting words to his servants, "Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you" (Genesis 22:5b). In a miraculous series of events, Abraham prepares to slay his son, when he hears from heaven, "Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me" (Genesis 22:12). Wow! Abraham is one hero of the faith whose life provides the perfect example of a believer with an excellent spirit. He chose obedience to God's will rather than rebellion. A great example to follow.

Down the hall and to the right, I notice one of my favorite men of the Bible: Joseph. He begins life as his father's favorite. This doesn't sit too well with his other half-brothers. Add to the mix Joseph's dream that he will one day rule over his brothers and they will bow down to him, and you have a recipe for disaster! The brothers' jealousy eventually lead them to sell Joseph to a band of passing merchantmen.

Miles away in Egypt, Joseph becomes Potiphar's servant. But the Lord is still with him. Beyond that, Potiphar, "...saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand" (Genesis 39:3). Potiphar's wife also noticed Joseph. And boy, was he handsome. When he refused to commit adultery with her, Joseph found himself in prison. He had every right to be upset. After all, he was unjustly accused. He had done the right thing, and look where it had gotten him! But through it all, no complaints are recorded. Joseph trusted God. Apparently God had a plan even in this situation.

Years later, Joseph is elevated to second in command in the land of Egypt. Because of a grievous famine throughout the land, people from far and near are coming to buy grain from Joseph who was wise enough to store up food during previous years of plenty. You guessed it! Joseph's brothers come to town in search of food, and find themselves bowing before him in order to make their request. Seems kind of like a scene I remember from a dream! Anyway, the bottom line is that Joseph forgives his brothers for what they did to him. Think about it! He was in a position to make their lives miserable, but instead, he chose to forgive. Let Joseph's words soak into your soul, "...Fear not: for am I in the place of God? But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive" (Genesis 50:19-20). What an example of faith! Faith in the goodness of God in spite of the circumstances! How I desire to have such a testimony!

As I finish my tour down the long hallway, I notice that not much press is given to the lady in today's final portrait. Her name is Rahab. The book of Hebrews refers to her as a harlot (Hebrews 11:31). Not the kind of person you'd expect to see in the hall of faith, is she? Obviously not one who could be linked with purity...or is she? Following her encounter with the living God, this woman's life was radically changed. She displayed faith in Him by hiding His servants, the two Israelite spies, and was saved from the destruction of Jericho as a result. We come across her name once again linked with that of Boaz. This former prostitute raised a son that any mother would love for her daughter to marry. A tender-hearted man, full of compassion, wise in business, upright and respected. A man devoted to God. We find that Rahab has been redeemed from her life of sin and is placed in the lineage of Christ. Purified. The perfect example of purity.

Three portraits. Three heroes. Three characteristics: spirit, faith, and purity. Things to weave into the tapestry of our lives as believers. Our goal? To point others to our wonderful Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!