The New vs. The Old

Matthew 9 (KJV)

(16)  No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse.

(17)  Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.

      Vss. 16 & 17 make the same point: Speaking of religious conventions, adding the new to the old will not make the old better, but make them both useless. The new covenant of grace cannot successfully be added to the old covenant of law.

 

      In John 12:24 (KJV) Jesus said,

(24)  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

      Jesus spoke of His own death, but not only that. As God's sacrificial Lamb, Jesus was condemned to die according to the law, bearing all of the world's sin-guilt(John 1:29), that the law would be perfectly fulfilled. In Jesus, God judged the world's sin, ending the law's jurisdiction.

Romans 3:19-26 (KJV)

(19)  Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

(20)  Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

(21)  But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;

(22)  Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

(23)  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

(24)  Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

(25)  Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

(26)  To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

      Jesus established a new covenant, with a new law of far greater depth and breadth than the old law: 

John 13:34-35 (KJV)

(34)  A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

(35)  By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.

      In view of vs. 34b, obeying Jesus' new commandment by our own will and strength is impossible. Only Jesus, or someone yielded to His Holy Spirit, could do that. Even following the Ten Commandments is impossible in our own strength. Hebrews 4:12-13 mandates not only their actions and restrictions, but the godly attitudes behind them as well. 

Hebrews 4:12-13 (KJV)

(12)  For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

(13)  Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.

      Apostle Paul thoroughly covered the law in relation to the new covenant of grace:

Colossians 2:8-23 (KJV)

(8)  Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

(9)  For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

(10)  And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:

(11)  In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:

(12)  Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

(13)  And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;

(14)  Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

(15)  And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

(16)  Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:

(17)  Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.

(18)  Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,

(19)  And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.

(20)  Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,

(21)  (Touch not; taste not; handle not;

(22)  Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men?

(23)  Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh.

      Just as the old garment of Matthew 9:16 and the old wineskin of Matthew 9:17 are useless when filled with the new, so the old covenant laws are useless, and even a hindrance, in the new covenant of grace.

 (If you made it this far, you probably noticed my use of the King James Version throughout. That is to accommodate our more legalistic brethren, who seem to lend more authority to the KJV than the more contemporary versions. As this study contrasts the new covenant of the spirit and love with the old covenant of the word and judgment, I thought any accommodation to the weaker brethren might help them accept the truth more easily.)

Growing Pains

Some will tell you growing up will always cause you pain.
Also they will tell you loudly, with no pain, no gain.
Seems unfair that pain must come from something you can’t help.
Trouble is, the other way, you’d stay a whining whelp.

Many pains while growing up are joints and other parts,
But the pain that hurts the most is one that strikes our hearts.
Puppy love comes first in line, we’re helpless to restrain
Falling hard and loving deep, too young, we feel the pain.

Aging is supposed to fix such immaturity,
Making us quite strong and stable, like the old oak tree.
Who, I’d like to know right now, made such a stupid rule?
Falling hard and deep in love attacks the older fool.

Worst is unrequited love, the pain goes deep and sharp
To the core, emotions’ seat, no plucking of the harp.
Growing pains will never end, it seems, until we die.
Then will come the knowledge true, and wisdom with no lie.

Do we have to wait till then to learn this lesson right?
Knowledge true and wisdom high comes from the godly light.
How can we get at this Truth so altogether sure?
He is waiting for our brokenness to make us pure.

Sure of what, and who is He that we should just believe?
Jesus, sorrow bearer, He’s the one we must receive.
Take this loving Savior’s work, give Him take your growing pains.
Then you’ll know His peace most blessed, when in you He reigns.

Sure as Hell, I Don’t Belong In Heaven

I was born a loser, like all who came before me,
Took a while to find out just how bad.
Came of age, like all my peers, then the pleasures found me.
Found in them a joy I never had.

Joy on joy assailed me, wave on wave they came,
Thought my fun would never hit the end.
“Truth,” my loins oft told me, “Truth comes in the game.
Truth you find when goodness you must bend.”


Sure as hell, I don’t belong in heaven,
It’s the place that God made just for saints.
Justice says I’ll never glimpse of heaven.
Hell’s the place for me and all the ain’ts.


Life gave more than its fair share of turning,
Left and right, up and o’er the hill.
Fast track vanished, left me with its yearning.
Wants left vacant—oh yes, and the bill.

Not a hint of what was on that joy-tab,
Figured I could pay it with good works.
Never counted on a greater Truth-jab
From a two-edged sword designed for jerks.


Sure as hell, I don’t belong in heaven,
It’s the place that God made just for saints.
Justice says I’ll never glimpse of heaven.
Hell’s the place for me and all the ain’ts.


God was always some humongous white-beard,
Watching for my blunders, book in hand.
Thinking of His love for me seemed just too weird.
Pie-in-the-sky, by-and-by, strike up the band.

God’s love changes even bogus viewpoints,
He just had to break my hardened heart.
Jesus bore God’s love though Roman spear-point
First bore drink, then pierced His loving heart.


In my flesh I don’t belong in heaven, but
It’s the place that God made just for me.
Jesus says I’ll live with Him in heaven.
Hell’s the place for all who will not see.

Certainly, I’m not a great and good guy,
He well knows that my old ways die hard.
Loving God, in Christ, forgave my wrong way.
Now such awesome love I can’t ignore.

He gave all to wash away sin’s leaven,
Purifies my mind from all its harms
Now, in Christ, this new man’s bound for heaven
Where I’ll rest in Jesus’ loving arms. 

Video: I Have Never Loved Someone

Shara Worden nailed pure, godly love in this live performance, self-accompanied by her ukulele. Listen, and you'll see no further comment is necessary.

Our Daily Bread response for 120706

Resting is hard work.

I'm retired, which means I should have lots of time to spend resting with my Lord. Right?

Wrong! I spend my days doing “stuff” of little eternal consequence, like tinkering with my computer, my trike, my apartment, even my writing. All of it seems important at the moment the need appears to me, but by day’s end I look back and wonder what happened. Each of those things has its place in my life, but time spent with my Lord is a need so easily back-burnered. But He understands.

Yes, He does understand, but His understanding does not exempt me from the consequences of pushing aside my relationship with Him.

Gal 6:7-8 ESV

(7)  Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.

(8)  For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.

And what about the person working hard to earn a living wage? Obviously she will spend each moment not committed to her employment, profitably engaged in spirit-building endeavors.

If only that were true; urgent peripheral jobs, many of which are indeed important, can still crowd her Best Friend out of the picture. So, how can we “Git’er done,” without compromising our #1 priority?

Git’er done!

God frequently uses the analogy of a competition for our life in Christ. In any competition, our focus falls simultaneously on two priorities: First, our goal. And second, our process for reaching it. Hebrews 12:1-2 presents the idea of keeping our priorities straight, even in a hectic race. Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses(men and women of faith throughout history), let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. And Philippians 3:14 reinforces the idea of keeping the ultimate goal in sight: I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

But one piece of this puzzle is still missing: How can you and I keep God in mind while pursuing life’s urgencies? The Psalmist raised, and answered, the same question.

Psa 119:9-12 ESV How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.  (10)  With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments!  (11)  I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.  (12)  Blessed are you, O LORD; teach me your statutes!

Seems odd that the competitive process should figure so essentially in keeping our relationship with the Eternal One ever vital, but the world does compete with that intimate relationship, and life is a dirty competitor. We must not allow our busyness to elbow our Savior out of His position as Priority Number One.

To Sanctify a Love Song

I marveled at the following lyrics from
Love Will Find a Way, by Yes. At the end I'll tell you why.

You wanna get close to me

The feeling so clear

But I need some time to see

Vision through my tear

You wanna get next to me

I need your intrusion

I don't need to be

Blinded by confusion

Here is my heart

Waiting for you

Here is my soul

I eat at chez nous

Love will find a way

If you want it to

Love will find a way

Love will find a way for me and you

Love will find a way

Love will find a way

Love will find a way

Love will find a way

So you want to get over me

And that's how you feel

Everything you want to be

Seems so unreal

I want to be all of you

And that's the confusion

It's so hard for me

To draw a conclusion

Here is my heart

Waiting for you

Here is my soul

I eat at chez nous

Love will find a way

If you want it to

Love will find a way

Love will find a way

Love will find a way

If you want it to

Love will find a way

Love will find a way

Love will find a way

I believe that there's a way

If you want it to

Love find a way

Love will find a way

Love find a way

Love will find a way

     If you didn't already see the reason for my reaction, try thinking of most of the lyrics in terms of a loving relationship with Father God.
     Love did find a way, in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, the incarnate(flesh-bearing), eternal Word of God. His love carried the entire world's sin-guilt to the Roman cross, where He became our substitute, bearing the curse of sin—yours and mine—because He was the only one who could, without suffering eternal death.
     "Well then," one might say, "since Jesus couldn't die permanently, what's the big deal?"
     The big deal is, He voluntarily subjected himself to the worst torture Rome had to dish out, but that was the least of His ordeal, and certainly wasn't the reason that, "being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground." The real torture He dreaded was bearing the curse of the world's sin-guilt, as He was the only one, then or now, who didn't deserve it.
     Jesus already did the hard part, the suffering part, the humiliating part, the degrading part. To ignore that is to add one personal sin to the mix, the only sin He couldn't take to the cross: That sin is rejecting His love and grace.
     The song's only stanza that doesn't lend itself to my love song to my Savior is smack in the middle. But even it contains some truth:

Seems so unreal

I want to be all of you

And that's the confusion

     His love does seem so unreal, as it transcends all human ideas of what love can be. And I do want to be—or at least be like—all of Jesus. "And that's the confusion," because no matter how badly I want it, I can never be just like Him; I can only obey Him, and let Him take care of the rest.
     Jesus loves you so much. If you don't know that by experience, you're missing out on the most profound, most beautiful experience life has to offer. Open your heart to Him today.

Here's one that deals with sin in greater depth than I typically find in Our Daily Bread.

Ignorance & Innocence

June 30, 2012 — by Julie Ackerman Link

Some people avoid going to the doctor because they don’t want to find out that anything is wrong with them. Some people avoid going to church for the same reason. But ignorance of our sickness doesn’t make us healthy, and ignorance of our sin doesn’t make us innocent

Roman law is considered to be the source of the idea that ignorance of the law excuses no one. But the concept originated much earlier. When God gave the law to Israel, He established that even unintentional sin required a sacrifice for forgiveness (Lev. 4; Ezek. 45:18-20).

In his letter to Christians living in Rome, the apostle Paul addressed the issue of ignorance or lack of understanding. When people were ignorant of God’s righteousness, they made up their own (Rom. 10:3). When we live according to our own standards of right and wrong, we might feel good about ourselves, but that doesn’t make us spiritually healthy. Only when we are measured by God’s standard of righteousness (Jesus) do we know the condition of our spiritual health.

None of us can achieve the righteousness of Christ, but thankfully we don’t have to. He shares His righteousness with us (5:21). The good news about finding out what’s wrong with us is that the Great Physician can make us well.

Great Physician, You know my heart. I bow
before You now and ask that You show me
any attitude or action that doesn’t please You.
Make me clean; make me well.

God is the Measurer and Healer of our spiritual health.

Even Christ-followers tend to dismiss inadvertently missing the mark with a casual, mental wave toward God, and a, "Oops." The wave and "Oops" usually serve as a time-pressured substitute for confession and repentance. Then we forget about it. 

Three problems plague that casual attitude toward sin: First, both the attitude and the sin tend to become habitual. Second, like a brick wall going up, each time we sin, and dismiss it as "Oops," we add another brick to the barrier standing between us and intimacy with Christ. Little wonder, that today's church is so spiritually impotent. And third, the enemy will eventually use that barrier to either harden our hearts to our loving Savior, or as an opportunity to heap condemnation on us so we'll feel unworthy of His grace. Either way, the father of lies has won!

Praise Is Busting Out All Over

My, but haven’t I been tearful of late? Seems I’m always awash with one of two emotions: Either conviction for falling short of God's glory, or gratitude for deliverance from those shortfalls. By rights, I should generalize “gratitude” to cover His zillions of blessings, blessings I can’t begin to count, or even be aware of. Each heartbeat and breath, for a start. Each coordinated body movement. Each coherent thought. Each physical sensation, whether pleasant or painful. Each cell’s birth, and death. Each rod or cone in my eyes, and my brain’s essential function of making sense of those billions of photon-stimulations.

Father, I thank You for all of these unimaginable blessings that make us who You intended us to be. I feel as if I could read through an anatomy textbook and flood each page with grateful tears. But gratitude for that knowledge hardly scratches the surface of things for which I must thank You, my Lord. Even greater is the eternal wisdom and infinite knowledge You hold out to me in Your Word.

And thanks to the group Third Day for the following worshipful words:

Your love, oh Lord, reaches to the heavens
Your faithfulness stretches to the skies
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, yeah
Your justice flows like the ocean's tide
I will lift my voice to worship You, my King
I will find my strength in the shadow of Your wings

He is most worthy of praise!

One of my neighbors likes to expound on his idea of “openness” to the cosmos, or whatever, but he misses God’s point completely. When I find myself overwhelmed by the majesty of God’s creation, I must unreservedly look, with gratitude and praise, to my loving and gracious Creator God. When I open my arms to the heavens as an expression of that love and gratitude, His love washes over me in the form of the Lord Christ’s heart-cleansing, life’s blood … and the praise-cycle begins anew. When, as one with the redeemed throng, I bow before God’s eternal Word, whether in speechless adoration or raucous praise, heart-bursting gratitude will gush forth to His declaration of, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” (Matthew 25:34 ESV)

ODB: Cornered

This Our Daily Bread touched me powerfully.

Cornered

June 26, 2012 — by Jennifer Benson Schuldt

One Sunday morning, D. L. Moody entered a house in Chicago to escort some children to Sunday school. During his visit, three men backed him into a corner and threatened him. “Look here,” Moody said. “Give a fellow a chance to say his prayers, won’t you?” The men actually allowed him to call out to God, and Moody prayed for them so earnestly that they left the room.

Had I been in Moody’s situation, I might have called for help or looked for the back door. I’m not sure I would have acted on Jesus’ command to His followers: “Pray for those who mistreat you” (Luke 6:28 NIV).

Praying for the people who treat us with contempt is one way to “do good to those who hate [us]” (v.27). Jesus explained that Christians get no credit for swapping acts of kindness with other “nice” people. He said, “Even sinners do the same” (v.33). However, blessing our persecutors (Rom. 12:14) sets us apart from them and aligns us with the Most High, because God is kind even to wicked people (Luke 6:35).

Today, if you feel “cornered” by someone, seek safety if the situation calls for it, and follow Jesus’ teaching: Pray for that person (Luke 23:34). Prayer is your best defense.

We want to know Your heart, Lord, and have Your
wisdom to know how to handle opposition.
Give us patience to show kindness.
Guide us, we pray.

Returning good for good is human; returning good for evil is divine.

As I read this, a curious mixture of grief and gratitude overwhelmed me (not easy, typing through a veil of tears). I felt grief, because I was God's enemy, and my sin nailed Jesus to the cross. And I felt gratitude, because Luke 6:28 shows how He responded to my blatant sin.

The least, and the best, I can do in the face of personal injustice or persecution is to respond as Jesus directed in Luke 6:27-36. I must do unto others as He did for me. (When you click on the Luke 6:28 link, go to the "PARALLEL" tab and enjoy the blessing of reading it in ten different translations.)

I Hate Being Needy

A Universal Prejudice

Everyone hates the thought of being needy in this society that idealizes self-sufficiency. But who are we fooling? Skeptics defiantly state they don’t need a crutch; they stand on their own two feet. Yet, they lean on “Science” to sort through all the confusing sensations assailing them in this almost infinitely varied world.

Though my pride would love to deny my need for anything outside of myself, I must admit needing a stabilizing factor. Dairy farmers know a two-legged milking stool is inherently unstable—though hand milking is an oddity today. Bicyclists know you have to keep moving to stay upright for very long—no rest for the biker. Architects know a simple planar triangle won’t stand; any structure needs support on another plane.

So, what do I lean on for stability? Near forty years ago I swallowed my pride and accepted Jesus as my Lord, Savior, and Solid Rock. In Him I don’t need riches, power, sex, alcohol, or any other god to keep me upright.

I Am needy

The same pride I swallowed back then, however, is still alive and loading me down(rather like too much meatloaf). It also tries to convince me that I don’t need any person outside of myself. Trouble is, I am needy; I need a woman, or should I say “the” woman, to balance my maleness with her feminineness. God created man and woman to complement one another. As He said, “It is not good that the man should be alone. I will make him a helper corresponding to him.” (Genesis 2:18-25)

We've all heard the overworked, romantic movie declaration, "You complete me." God created mankind—both sexes—for fellowship, both with Him, and with each other. He created woman because the male sex is incomplete without her(Now that's a complete understatement.), and by inference, the female sex is incomplete without the male, for whom she was made. So much for feminism.

God’s eternal Word incarnate, the anointed Lord Jesus, became the necessary sacrifice to reconcile mankind to the Father. Those of us who hear His good news, believe it, accept His Holy Spirit as surety of the new covenant, allow Him to turn us around and change our life’s destination, and walk in that new way until God calls us home, He corporately calls the bride of Christ.

Does our eternal Husband intend to meet every need that He placed in us for the opposite sex(celibacy)? For single Christ-followers, it be wonderful if that were the case. Are we to be content in our current state? Of course(Philippians 4:11-13; 1 Timothy 6:6-8; Hebrews 13:4-5).

God’s Provision

According to the New Testament, is marriage discouraged or recommended among Christ-followers? Let's examine the evidence: Jesus performed His first miracle at Cana, in Galilee, showing His approval of the marital covenant(John 2:1-11). Apostle Paul told the church that local leaders in the body must, among other criteria, be the husband of one wife(1 Timothy 3:1-13). The apostle instructed Timothy to restrict the list of widows(those who were allowed to serve in the church and take support from the church) to those who were older than sixty years-of-age(1 Timothy 5:9). But he instructed younger widows to get married, “to give the enemy no occasion for reproach”(1 Timothy 5:14). ("Younger widows" were less than sixty? Apparently, sixty years old wasn't all that aged for first century women.) Dealing with the moral issues evident in the Corinthian church, and defending his prerogatives as a minister of Christ, Paul claimed for himself the right to take along a believing wife(1 Corinthians 9:5). Finally, the author of Hebrews commanded that the marriage bed be held in honor, discouraging fornication and adultery(Hebrews 13:4).

Does God recommend marriage only as a last resort for relieving sexual tension? Though sex is one small part of the marriage covenant and relationship, God’s word assigns far more significance to marriage than just that; a godly marriage relationship gives stability to both the man and woman by meeting their multitude of unique needs, and fulfilling His purpose for mankind.

There is no need to hate being needy. Just allow God to fill that needy void in His way, and in His time.