1. Red Dirt In SD
2. Green Grass in PA
3. Overalls are a common thing in stores in SD.
4. A good majority of guys between 20-30 have beards/goatees in SD
5. You stop for Buffalo on the road in SD
6. You stop for red lights on the road in PA
7. Beautiful farmland and cornfields in PA
8. Rolling hills for miles on end in SD
9. Comfy bed and my own room in PA
10. Fun co-workers in PA
11. Great college classes in SD
12. 1/4 mile long lane in PA
13. Old-fashioned sing-a-longs in SD
14. Church choir in PA
15. Family and boyfriend in PA
16. Good friends and fellowship in SD and PA
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Friday, August 27, 2010
Undeserved yet Unreserved. Not Achieved but still Received.
Recently in one of the classes here at school we were discussing a time in Israel's history. It was the time when Israel had been complaining to God and thus judgment had been sent upon them. Fiery serpents went among the people, biting them with their deadly poison and causing many Israelites to die. The people came to Moses and asked him to pray unto the Lord to take away the serpents from them. Moses did this, interceding on their behalf, and the Lord told him to make a "fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole and it shall come to pass that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live." (Numbers 21) I've heard this truth many times and have often heard that it was given to the people as a sign of what Christ would do for us and of what our response should be, but somehow it just seemed so incredible to me this time.
The people only needed to look on the Serpent raised on a pole and they would be healed! If they failed to do so, they perished. It was as simple as that.
I thought about this and wondered to myself "Who would be so stupid as to not look at it?" It was just a simple matter of looking. Yes, it would take a little faith to look and they might feel a bit unsure, wondering if they really would be healed and what it would be like, but still! All they had to do was look! It was so easy!
That's when the real application of the illustration hit me.
Salvation.
God offers it so freely and all we have to do is accept it! It's that simple!
We have a serious sin problem that can't be healed on our own. Yet, because Christ is interceding on our behalf, God chose to provide a way to escape the wrath we deserve. Accept it and you'll be healed. Fail to accept it and you perish. It's that simple. It's that easy.
So my next question was…"Why do we as humans fail to see it?" Looking at the serpent on the pole seemed to obviously be the right choice for the Israelites, but why does salvation seem to be so much harder to choose when our own death sentence is so much worse?
And better yet, once we have seen it and accepted it, why do we fail to remember it, to live victoriously and to praise God for the work He has done in our lives? Paul knew this forgetfulness was our natural tendency for he said in 2 Cor. 11:3 "But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the SIMPLICITY that is in Christ." Paul knew that we can easily be led astray or accept things that are not true (Vrs. 4), even after salvation, and that's why he was "jealous over you with a godly jealousy." Don't try to "magnify His strictness with a zeal He does not own!"
I've been reading in Psalms for devotions recently and in chapter 116 David too seemed overwhelmed by the simplicity of salvation. "The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me; I found trouble and sorrow. Then called I upon the name of the Lord; 'O Lord, I beseech Thee, deliver my soul.' Gracious is the Lord, and Righteous; yea our God is merciful. The Lord preserveth the simple; I was brought low, and He helped me. Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee! 'For Thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling….I believed, therefore have I spoken…."
Wow! All David did was call upon the name of the Lord and immediately the Lord stepped in and proved HImself faithful!
(Ok, the next two verses are my favorite parts)
"What shall I render to the Lord for all His benefits toward me?" ---'Lord! How can I ever hope to possibly pay you back? There must be something You expect me to do in order to receive all these blessings! I certainly don't deserve them, so what do I have to do?'----This question of Davids doesn't get answered audibly but I think the silence says it all, (Nothing!) for in the very next verse David stops his questioning and boldly states "I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord!"
So, how can we pay the Lord back for the love He's shown through His death, burial and resurrection?
We can't.
Just accept the free gift.
It's that simple.
The people only needed to look on the Serpent raised on a pole and they would be healed! If they failed to do so, they perished. It was as simple as that.
I thought about this and wondered to myself "Who would be so stupid as to not look at it?" It was just a simple matter of looking. Yes, it would take a little faith to look and they might feel a bit unsure, wondering if they really would be healed and what it would be like, but still! All they had to do was look! It was so easy!
That's when the real application of the illustration hit me.
Salvation.
God offers it so freely and all we have to do is accept it! It's that simple!
We have a serious sin problem that can't be healed on our own. Yet, because Christ is interceding on our behalf, God chose to provide a way to escape the wrath we deserve. Accept it and you'll be healed. Fail to accept it and you perish. It's that simple. It's that easy.
So my next question was…"Why do we as humans fail to see it?" Looking at the serpent on the pole seemed to obviously be the right choice for the Israelites, but why does salvation seem to be so much harder to choose when our own death sentence is so much worse?
And better yet, once we have seen it and accepted it, why do we fail to remember it, to live victoriously and to praise God for the work He has done in our lives? Paul knew this forgetfulness was our natural tendency for he said in 2 Cor. 11:3 "But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the SIMPLICITY that is in Christ." Paul knew that we can easily be led astray or accept things that are not true (Vrs. 4), even after salvation, and that's why he was "jealous over you with a godly jealousy." Don't try to "magnify His strictness with a zeal He does not own!"
I've been reading in Psalms for devotions recently and in chapter 116 David too seemed overwhelmed by the simplicity of salvation. "The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me; I found trouble and sorrow. Then called I upon the name of the Lord; 'O Lord, I beseech Thee, deliver my soul.' Gracious is the Lord, and Righteous; yea our God is merciful. The Lord preserveth the simple; I was brought low, and He helped me. Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee! 'For Thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling….I believed, therefore have I spoken…."
Wow! All David did was call upon the name of the Lord and immediately the Lord stepped in and proved HImself faithful!
(Ok, the next two verses are my favorite parts)
"What shall I render to the Lord for all His benefits toward me?" ---'Lord! How can I ever hope to possibly pay you back? There must be something You expect me to do in order to receive all these blessings! I certainly don't deserve them, so what do I have to do?'----This question of Davids doesn't get answered audibly but I think the silence says it all, (Nothing!) for in the very next verse David stops his questioning and boldly states "I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord!"
So, how can we pay the Lord back for the love He's shown through His death, burial and resurrection?
We can't.
Just accept the free gift.
It's that simple.
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