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The Grace of Humility
By Linda Rex
April 13, 2025, (Palm Sunday or) Passion Sunday—One of the ways in which followers of Jesus Christ are intended to live counterculturally is through humble service. Years ago, it was common for people in the community to be actively involved in service clubs and in helping out when there were community events. Finding time to serve others and our community can be a real challenge, with the demands of work, family, and church responsibilities crying out for our full attention.
Within one of the gospel readings for this Palm or Passion Sunday, we see Jesus sitting at a last meal with his disciples before his arrest in the garden of Gethsemane. Jesus has been painfully listening to a debate between his disciples regarding who will be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. What was on Jesus’ mind, that he had tried to bring to their attention, was that there was a person at the table who was going to betray him. But they were focused on positions of power within the new kingdom. It did not occur to them at all, even with Jesus telling them, the exact price Jesus was going to have to pay for them to be a part of the kingdom of God.
Jesus reminded them that as their rabbi and teacher, he was present among them, not as an oppressive, arrogant ruler, but as a humble servant. The one who served them was the greatest, not the one who was served. This was hard for them to get their mind around. He promised the twelve disciples their place in his heavenly kingdom, but pointed out to Peter his vulnerability to Satan. Apart from Jesus’ intercession, Peter was headed for a great fall. Peter insisted on his faithfulness to Jesus, no matter what. But Jesus told him the truth—that in the moment of crisis, Peter would deny Jesus. Peter just could not see himself doing this (Luke 22:35–34). He did not have an accurate view of himself. He had not yet come to the place in his journey with Jesus that he realized his vulnerability to arrogance, pride, and self-sufficiency.
Peter had to come to a place of repentance—a turning around, a change in mind and heart. This came about as he came face to face with a humble, self-sacrificing Savior—the Lamb who went without complaint to the slaughter, on Peter’s behalf, and on behalf of the whole world. As he denied Jesus the third time, Peter caught Jesus’ eye, and the look on Jesus’ face at that moment wrecked Peter’s composure. He left the courtyard where he’d been hanging out while Jesus was being interrogated, and broke down in tears. Peter was never the same again. He had come to a true assessment of himself in the eyes of Jesus. And it hurt. But that’s what true humility is all about—seeing oneself in the eyes of Jesus, as both having missed the mark and as having been forgiven.
This is the point the apostle Paul was making in our New Testament passage, Philippians 2:5–11. As God in human flesh, Jesus had every right and every reason to live as one who was in charge, the one who others must serve and whose expectations must be met. But this is not how we see Jesus. So often, he allowed himself to be at the mercy of the humans he created and sustained by the word of his power. While on earth, he allowed himself to be insulted, rejected, and wounded by those who should have respected and venerated him. He constantly served people, creating for himself a reputation of hanging out with sinners such as tax collectors and prostitutes. He paid his taxes to the current government of his day, and he, though brutally honest about their sin, submitted himself to the human political leaders presently in power.
The humility of the Son of God involved a self-emptying, as he took on our human flesh, setting aside for a time that which made him distinctly divine, allowing it to remain hidden during his time here on earth. We find the Son of God present in human flesh in the person of Jesus Christ. He doesn’t come as a conquering warrior, but as a tiny infant in humble circumstances—a baby in a manger. We see this Son of God, as the child of Mary and stepchild of Joseph, submitting himself to his parents’ supervision and instruction. We see him sitting at the feet of the ancient Jewish leaders, allowing them to teach him, even though he knew the answers and astonished them with his responses to their questions. His entire time here on earth was spent in humble service to others. And his final act of self-offering was on behalf of all he had made.
Jesus’ assessment of himself was that he came as a humble servant, to serve others—and it was correct. He was truly human, the way every one of us was meant to be human. To have the grace of humility is to have, by his Spirit, Jesus living in and through us his own humility which was manifest in his life, death, resurrection, and ascension. May we turn our gaze towards Jesus, look into his eyes, and see ourselves with true and clear vision—both in how we miss the mark and how we are forgiven, accepted, and beloved. This is the grace of true humility.
Father, Son, and Spirit, when we look into the eyes of Jesus, we see how far short we fall from being truly human as you created us to be human. Thank you for giving us the grace of true humility, that we may serve one another in godly love. May we not only receive your forgiveness and acceptance, but also offer it to others in your name, Jesus, by your Spirit. Amen.
“Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus ‘every knee will bow,’ of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:5–11 NASB
“The way Jesus saw himself is the only valid way to see yourself! His being God’s equal in form and likeness was official; his Sonship did not steal the limelight from his Father! Neither did his humanity distract from the deity of God! His mission however, was not to prove his deity, but to embrace our humanity. Emptied of his reputation as God, he fully embraced our physical human form; born in our resemblance he identified himself as the servant of the human race. His love enslaved him to us! And so we have the drama of the cross in context: the man Jesus Christ who is fully God, becomes fully man to the extent of willingly dying humanity’s death at the hands of his own creation. He embraced the curse and shame of the lowest kind in dying a criminal’s death. From this place of utter humiliation, God exalted him to the highest rank. God graced Jesus with a Name that is far above as well as equally representative of every other name; The name of Jesus endorses his mission as fully accomplished! He is the Savior of the world! What his name unveils will persuade every creature of their redemption! Every knee in heaven and upon the earth and under the earth shall bow in spontaneous worship! Also every tongue will voice and resonate the same devotion to his unquestionable Lordship as the Redeemer of life! Jesus Christ has glorified God as the Father of creation! This is the ultimate conclusion of the Father’s intent!” Philippians 2:5–11 Mirror Bible
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Seated on a Donkey’s Colt
By Linda Rex
March 24, 2024, Palm Sunday | Preparation for Easter or Lent—This morning as I was reading one of the passages for this Palm Sunday, Mark 11:1–11, I was struck by the marvel of Jesus riding a donkey’s colt which had never been ridden before. Indeed, the more I thought about, the more astonished I became that he was even able to ride the young animal at all.
I suppose it is possible that the colt was familiar with Jesus, but even so, most animals are not thrilled about having things placed on their back such as the cloaks and coats which the disciples threw over the back of this colt. Not to mention having to bear the weight of a human being, which is normally a new and frightening experience for an untrained, full-grown donkey or horse. Perhaps these are stereotyped concepts, but what I recall about donkeys having things placed on their back which they don’t want there, is that those items or people ultimately end up back on the ground, unceremoniously dumped off by the animal.
But in this remarkable event, the disciples place their garments on the colt, and Jesus climbs on. The crowds of people are throwing clothing and tree branches on the ground in front of this animal, while shouting and singing and waving branches around. What kind of animal would take this calmly, especially when it had never been ridden before? Perhaps the only answer is what Jesus told the Jewish leaders of his day who complained about all the hubbub, that if he wasn’t praised by the people, the stones themselves would cry out.
Creation knows its Maker, and celebrates its Sustainer and Provider in each moment simply by being who and what it is—his creation. The trees and bushes, and plants praise God simply by doing what trees, bushes and plants do—raise their heads towards the sun, put on leaves and flowers, bear fruit, breathing in the carbon dioxide and breathing out oxygen as their participation in God’s provision for this planet and its inhabitants. The animals praise God simply by being what God created each of them to be—and here this donkey had the privilege of doing something special for its Creator—bearing the King of Israel into Jerusalem while the people shouted “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
It’s significant that Jesus did this entry into Jerusalem on the back of this young donkey. Jesus chose a colt of a donkey, to show his humility. He allowed the people to joyfully express their understanding of the prophetic significance of the spring festival, even though he knew that the Passover lamb that year would be something other than what anyone there expected. The Lamb of God would lay down his life and be crucified at the hands of those whom he had made.
As human beings, we so often get our focus upon our human kingdoms. We make our plans and have our expectations about how things are going to work out. We may even tell God how it’s going to be—letting God know what needs to be done when and how and why. We dress it all up in religious fervor at times, and don’t even realize that what we are dreaming of and hoping for and expecting isn’t at all what God has in mind.
In God’s economy, the path to glory is not through the palm frond laden streets of the city. The path to glory, when God is in it, is not always filled with shouts of adulation and praise. I am learning that often God’s path to glory is the path into and through death to resurrection. First must come the humiliation, service, and sacrifice. Then will come the exaltation.
In the second gospel reading for this Sunday, John 12:12–16, we see that it took Jesus’ resurrection, his giving of the Spirit, and his revelation of the Scriptures before the disciples began to understand that what Jesus went through was long predicted in the prophetic Word. The One who holds all things together, to whom creation gives its praise, took the path of humility for our sakes, because of his love and grace. And even a humble colt of a donkey knew that he was safe in his Creator’s hands and did his part, for the glory and praise of his Lord, the King of all.
Creator and Sustainer of all that is, thank you for giving us life. Grant us the grace to remember who we are—those created by you to share life with you, to be loved by you and so to love others. May we learn rest in simply being those you created us to be—your beloved children—and to do as you ask in every moment, through Jesus our Lord and by your Spirit. Amen.
“As they approached Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples, and said to them, ‘Go into the village opposite you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, on which no one yet has ever sat; untie it and bring it here. If anyone says to you, “Why are you doing this?” you say, “The Lord has need of it”; and immediately he will send it back here.’ They went away and found a colt tied at the door, outside in the street; and they untied it. Some of the bystanders were saying to them, ‘What are you doing, untying the colt?’ They spoke to them just as Jesus had told them, and they gave them permission. They brought the colt to Jesus and put their coats on it; and He sat on it. And many spread their coats in the road, and others spread leafy branches which they had cut from the fields. Those who went in front and those who followed were shouting: ‘Hosanna! “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord”; Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David; Hosanna in the highest!’ Jesus entered Jerusalem and came into the temple; and after looking around at everything, He left for Bethany with the twelve, since it was already late.” Mark 11:1–11 NASB
“On the next day the large crowd who had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took the branches of the palm trees and went out to meet Him, and began to shout, ‘Hosanna! “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord”, even the King of Israel.’ Jesus, finding a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written, ‘Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.’ These things His disciples did not understand at the first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written of Him, and that they had done these things to Him.” John 12:12–16 NASB
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From Death Into Life
by Linda Rex
April 23, 2023, 3rd Sunday in Easter or Resurrection—Today I was glancing at the headlines on one of my news feeds, and was struck by the strenuous effort being put into grabbing the attention of viewers. From the potential of catastrophic world conflict, to another mass shooting, to the destruction of natural resources, and so on, the amount of negative news, of death in some form or another, was significant.
Reading or looking at the news is a lot different than actually going through a tragic or horrific experience ourselves. In the same way, knowing that death has occurred is one thing. Realizing we ourselves are the ones who brought it about is another. It takes the movement of the Spirit within for us to be pierced to the heart and realize we are just as guilty as the one who pulls the trigger. It’s so much easier to point the finger at another than it is to have the humility and honesty to confess our own resentment, bitterness, hatred, or vengeful spirit.
Coming to terms with our own participation in Jesus’ death is important—not so we can stay in a place of guilt or self-condemnation, but so we can move with Jesus through death into resurrection. In what way is death at work in you and in your life? The way to see this is to examine what doesn’t look like Jesus in his perfect relationship with his heavenly Father. Ouch! That leaves a lot which may need to be left in the tomb with Jesus, doesn’t it?
But our honesty and humility about our need for Jesus is helpful here. We want to be like those who first heard the apostle Peter stand up to preach on Pentecost after the gift of the Spirit was given. When he explained to the crowd just whom they had recently crucified, they were devastated. But then they asked the right question: “What shall we do?” What Peter called them to was a turning around, back into relationship with Father, through Jesus, in the Spirit. He told them to demonstrate their repentance and receiving of God’s grace and his Spirit, this transformational change in their lives through baptism (Acts 2:36–37).
Later, in his epistle, Peter explained the cost of this redemption. It cost everything—the Creator of all offering himself freely, as God in human flesh, as a precious, unblemished Lamb, Jesus Christ, for our sakes. God always knew this would be what it cost for us to share in his life and still, the Son of God voluntarily gave himself over to be crucified. This profound expression of God’s love is the truth of our essence as those meant to be image-bearers of the Triune God. Because” God so loved the world”, we, through Christ, with sincere and pure hearts, love others “fervently.”
Because there was a great cost to our redemption and reconciliation with God, we live accordingly—with love and reverence toward God and genuine, other-centered love for others. The things that died with Jesus have no place in our lives anymore. As the apostle Paul said, we are no longer known by them. No, in Christ, we are new creatures—reflections of the Son of God, the perfect image-bearer of the Father. Because this is what is truth about us, we live like it.
In a world where this spiritual reality seems to be just a magical dream, we are called to lay down our lives, pick up our cross, and follow Jesus. This means death and resurrection. There is no resurrection without death coming first—death to all that was before. Then resurrection, washing away all that does not belong anymore in the new life which is ours in Christ.
So, in this world where death seems to be in control, we pray. Pray for the sick. Pray for those who cause pain and suffering for others. Pray for the bullies in this world—they come in all shapes and sizes. Pray for those held captive by greed, gluttony, addiction, power, popularity and every other chain this world offers. Pray for those who enslave others, who use others, and who destroy others. And we participate with Christ in bringing his life into these places where death seems to be reigning.
We pray and serve, because all of this death has already been swept up in Jesus’ death, and taken through the miracle of his resurrection. The stone has already been moved from the grave. Jesus has already risen. God’s Spirit is present and active in this world, and Christ is at work. We need to be about our Father’s business and join in, participating through prayer and service in what Jesus’ is doing to bring life where there is only death. Hallelujah!
Dear Father, we seem to only see and hear death anymore. We long to see and experience your triumph over death, Jesus. So, by your Spirit, move in our world, move in our lives, and do what only you can do. Transform us by your Spirit. Heal our families, our homes, our schools and universities, our governments, our society on every level. And heal us, Lord. We need you desperately. Amen.
“The cords of death encompassed me and the terrors of Sheol came upon me; I found distress and sorrow. Then I called upon the name of the LORD: ‘O LORD, I beseech You, save my life!’ What shall I render to the LORD for all His benefits toward me? I shall lift up the cup of salvation and call upon the name of the LORD.” Psalm 116:3–4, 12–13 NASB
“If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth; knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ. For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for the sake of you who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart, for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.” Peter 1:17–23 NASB
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Wisdom Has Set Her Table
By Linda Rex
August 15, 2021, Proper 15—The health and well-being of an organization as well as a nation is often directly related to its leaders’ ability to execute true justice and lead with wisdom. Many leaders today, myself included, might learn a lesson from the Word of God with regards to this. Too much of what I read or see today tells me that we as leaders are too often more concerned with the bottom line, with our popularity and our pocketbook, than we are about wisdom and true justice.
As I was growing up, my fellowship often associated wisdom with King Solomon of the Old Testament times. This son of King David was a late in life child, born of Bathsheba, with whom David had committed adultery. He wasn’t the son everyone might have expected would inherit the throne, but he was the son David chose to inherit his throne.
Solomon, at the beginning, was young enough that he felt overwhelmed by the responsibility he had been given to lead the ancient nation of Israel. So, when God came to him in a dream and said, “Ask what you wish me to give you,” Solomon asked God for an understanding heart and wisdom so that he could judge the people. God said this was a good request, and since he did not ask for riches and honor, God said he would give Solomon these as well (1 Kings 2:10–12, 3:3–14).
But there was a caveat. Solomon was to walk in God’s ways—to follow the path his father David had walked in his relationship with the covenant God of Israel. In latter years, when Solomon’s wisdom had gained him wealth and notoriety, he wandered off this path of faithful obedience, succumbing to the idolatry of his many wives. All of his apparent wisdom, his wealth and fame, were useless and worthless without a personal relationship and walk with God.
In the book of Proverbs, we find a lot of references to wisdom. Solomon, who may have written some of these pithy sayings, reminds us that true wisdom comes only as a gift from God. We need wisdom, but we must forsake folly and seek out wisdom, turning away from our foolish ways and turning towards God and his ways. He writes, “Wisdom has built her house, … She has prepared her food, she has mixed her wine; she has also set her table; … she calls …: ‘Whoever is naive, let him turn in here!’ To him who lacks understanding she says, ‘Come, eat of my food and drink of the wine I have mixed. Forsake your folly and live, and proceed in the way of understanding.’ (Proverbs 9:1–6 NASB).”
You might notice in this passage the references to eating and drinking. The symbolism of eating and drinking wisdom resonates with what Jesus was saying to the crowds in his day: “He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him (John 6:54–56 NASB).” The people Jesus was talking to were well familiar with their yearly custom of eating the Passover lamb, but they would never have drunk its blood. Their scriptures taught them that the life was in the blood, and this life was something that belonged only to God. It was very hard for Jesus’ audience to get their minds around what he was saying. They needed to understand that Jesus was not speaking literally, but metaphorically and figuratively.
Jesus did not mean that people needed to become cannibalistic, but rather, that they were to internalize him or abide in him. They were to place their faith in him. There is a genuine sense of taking in Jesus and living continuously connected with him. Just as the proverb instructs us to take in wisdom, making it a part of us and allowing it to affect how we live, we partake of Christ by faith, participating in his death and resurrection, and allowing him to transform our hearts and lives. In the offering of his flesh in our place and on our behalf, Jesus became the sacrificial Lamb of God. He offered his life for our life, dying and rising again, bringing us up into new life, the zōe life of the Triune God.
It is by faith that we participate in Jesus’ life with the Father in the Spirit. The apostle Paul encourages us to live wisely, and gratefully, in this evil world, seeking God’s wisdom to discern how to live. We are not to be filled with alcohol or physical pleasure-giving substances, but to be filled with the Spirit—filled with Jesus’ presence and power—this is God’s will for each and every one of us—Jesus’ life for our life (Ephesians 5:15–20).
Just as Jesus drew his life from his heavenly Father, Jesus is the source of our life. We draw our life from him. This is why he says we are to take in Christ, abide in him as he abides in us. This is a relationship of trust and obedience, of walking and talking with him, of living all of life in his presence by his power according to his will and ways. We seek wisdom for living and find it in the divine Wisdom, Jesus Christ in us by the Holy Spirit.
When it comes to having wisdom for living and leading, we need to go to the source of all wisdom—God himself. God gives us himself in Jesus Christ, in his self-offering in our place and on our behalf. And God gives us himself in the gift of the Spirit, Christ in us, the hope of glory. The gift of divine Wisdom, God himself, is available to you and to me by faith as we trust in Jesus Christ, in his life, death, resurrection and ascension, for he stands ever ready, by his Spirit, to give us the ability to live and lead wisely, justly and with compassion in the way in which he himself leads. As the suffering servant who laid down his life for all of us, he pours out all of his divine wisdom, calling us to eat and drink, to take in the life which is now ours in and through Jesus Christ.
Heavenly Father, Source of all life, we give you thanks. We gratefully receive your divine Wisdom, your very life given to us in your Son and by your Spirit. May we live wisely and gratefully, ever filled with your presence and power, through Jesus our Lord. Amen.
“He has given food to those who fear Him; He will remember His covenant forever.” Psalm 111:5 NASB
“The young lions do lack and suffer hunger; but they who seek the LORD shall not be in want of any good thing.” Psalm 34:10 NASB
“‘I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.’… So Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. … he who eats this bread will live forever.’” John 6:51–58 NASB
Trusting the God Who Provides
By Linda Rex
June 28, 2020, PROPER 8—Reading stories from the Old Testament is a good reminder that human beings really haven’t changed that much over the millennia. People still make decisions that hurt themselves and others, and they behave in ways which can be loving, kind, and sacrificial, but also selfish, sinful and at times even grossly evil. Families still for generations pass on traits they have learned from their forefathers—generosity, compassion and creativity, hate and anger, abusive language and behavior, among many others.
These stories from the past tell us, when we look at them closely, of how we as humans so often turn away from God to seek our own ways, inviting the consequence of sin—death—both physical and spiritual. When God meets us in the midst of our broken ways of thinking, believing, and acting, we find we are faced with the reality that apart from his intervention and healing, we will never be truly whole.
We also learn from these stories, if we are attentive, of the love and grace of God. Even in our wrong-headedness, God meets us, draws us to himself, and offers us forgiveness and fellowship, as well as instruction on what it looks like to live in loving relationship with him and others. He allows us to participate in what he’s doing in the world, calling us up into new ways of thinking, believing, and living.
One of the stories in Genesis is that of God encountering Abraham as Abram, drawing him into relationship with himself, and making a covenant with him. He promised him a son in his old age, and after many years of waiting, Abraham and Sarah were blessed with a son whom they named Isaac. No doubt, all those years of waiting seemed as nothing as they reveled in the blessing God had given them of an heir—the child of promise, a gift of laughter in their old age.
One day Abraham believed he heard God tell him to take his son Isaac to a mountain to sacrifice him, to prove his devotion to the God who had given them this precious child. Abraham left immediately the next morning and took Isaac, some servants, and all he needed for the sacrifice and headed toward the mountain.
After three days, they came to foot of the mountain where Abraham believed God said the offering was to be made. Abraham told the servants to wait there, loaded up everything he needed, and he and his son took off up the mountain. Now Isaac was a smart child and knew there was something a little odd about this burnt offering. Up to this point, every burnt offering had involved the sacrifice of a lamb or some animal. But they hadn’t brought any animals with them, and this bothered him.
Isaac pondered the question for a while, and finally ventured to ask his father about this. “We’ve got the wood and the fire, but where’s the sheep for the offering?” he asked. Abraham replied in an almost prophetic manner: “God will provide a sheep for the burnt offering, my son.” Even though at this point he did not tell Isaac what was going on, Abraham trusted God had a reason for what he thought the Lord was asking him to do. He was obeying God in the only way he knew how and was trusting that no matter what happened, the Lord would make it right. The author of Hebrews wrote that Abraham did what he did by faith, trusting that “God is able to raise people even from the dead” (Heb. 11:19 NASB).
As the story continues, we find that Abraham laid Isaac on the altar and lifted the knife to make the horrific sacrifice—the kind of sacrifice forbidden in later years to God’s people—the sacrifice of a human child. This was not how God wanted to be worshiped—it was never in God’s plan for human beings to kill one another or to offer their children to him as a bloody sacrifice, even though many people did this as part of their rituals in the worship of idols.
The intervention of an angel stopped the deadly blade as he let Abraham know that God knew he loved and feared him and that he did not need to make this extreme sacrifice to prove it. The ram Abraham saw caught in a thicket was proof that God had provided an animal in Isaac’s place to be the burnt offering. There Abraham gave God the name YHWH-Jireh, The Lord Will Provide. He learned an important lesson that day about faith, and the love and grace of God.
In many ways, just this experience was a gift to Abraham and to the many generations of his descendants which followed. Abraham was to be the father of descendants more than the number of stars in the sky or the sand on the seashore. There would come a time when a child of one of these descendants would offer himself up as a sacrifice on the behalf of all people. This would be the Son of God in human flesh, Jesus Christ. God himself would provide the sacrifice which was needed for all of us to be redeemed and restored.
In the apocalyptic letter to John, the apostle writes about Jesus entering after his death and resurrection into the presence of the Father in the Spirit and how all the holy angels bowed before him. They worshipped him, saying, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing” (Rev. 5:12 NASB). This Lamb of God who was the Son of God, humbly laid himself on the altar of sacrifice for all of humanity and allowed himself to be crucified so that all of us could be adopted as the children of God, sharing in his own loving relationship with his Father in the Spirit.
We as human beings have striven to make ourselves right with God, to prove to him that we love and fear him. We have struggled to be good people—so often choosing ways which have turned us away from God’s love rather than bringing us nearer. So often our efforts cause harm to those around us rather than helping or blessing them. Our best efforts, even our most noble sacrifices—the offering of our children, whether real or metaphorical—for the sake of proving our faithfulness and love to God, have always and ever been in vain.
The Lord Who Provides has already, in Christ, done all that is needed for everyone of us to live in right relationship with the Father in the Spirit. We need to trust, as Abraham did, that in the end God is going to make everything right—that he has already provided the Lamb which was needed and that the offering that this Lamb made was acceptable and perfect in God’s sight. Our role in all this is that which we can learn from Abraham—simply, faith—trusting in the finished work of Christ who stands in our place and on our behalf.
This story teaches us much about the miracle of God’s grace and his provision for all humanity in the person of Jesus Christ. When we take the time to read these stories and look for Jesus in them, we will find that he is there—always at work in this world, from before the beginning of time even till today—providing all that is needed for life and godliness. May we trust our Lord to finish what he has begun, believing that he will make all things right in the end, so we can be with him in glory forever as God’s beloved adopted children.
Dearest Abba, thank you for providing us exactly what we need to live in loving relationship with you and one another. Thank you for the most precious gift of your Son and your Spirit. Grant us the grace to always trust in your perfect love, through Jesus our Lord. Amen.
“Therefore what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death. But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:21-23 NASB
See also Genesis 22:1–14.
When Angels Marveled
by Linda Rex
Sometimes I wonder what angels think about and talk about. Just imagine the conversations that went on in heaven when the Word announced that he would be joined with an embryo in a baby here on earth! No doubt the reverence and awe of the angels was tinged a bit by amazement and incredulity. The apostle Paul tells the believers of his day that the working out of God’s mystery hidden through the ages was for the edification of the angels. How fascinating!
The prophets over the millennia sought to know and understand what God was doing and would do to save his people by sending a messiah. Yet even with their best efforts, the people of Jesus’ day did not recognize him for who he was as God in the flesh, the Messiah, who would suffer and die and then be glorified, uniting himself with humanity forever.
No doubt this is why Jesus took such pains to explain the fulfillment of scriptures and prophecy to his disciples, especially after his resurrection. This awesome miracle of the incarnation and the subsequent work of Christ for us is a marvelous mystery that was unveiled at the perfect time in history and in the perfect way. Praise God for his faithfulness in keeping his Word to us and also for faithfully revealing his Word to all his creation when the time and situation were just right.
We are to faithfully search these things out, but the Holy Spirit gives us revelation and understanding. We seek not to gain more information but to deepen a relationship with the living God as revealed in Jesus Christ. We need to grab hold of this privilege of knowing what so many sought to know and seek out these marvelous mysteries of the kingdom that are revealed in Jesus Christ. He is the revelation of all that the prophets and angels sought to understand and know. As we come to know him more fully and completely, we will come to know God and ourselves more fully and completely, for in Jesus Christ, the perfect God/man, they are each revealed.
Lord, thank you for revealing to us the mystery of the ages which is Christ in us the hope of glory. Thank you for not hiding yourself from us, but by your Spirit, revealing yourself in Jesus Christ in your perfect time and in your perfect way. Please grant us the desire and ability know you more fully and more perfectly each and every day. For this is eternal life, to know you and to be known by you. Thank you for this precious gift given to us in Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray. Amen.
“It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even the angels long to look into these things.” –1 Peter 1:12
Poor Little Lost Lamb
by Linda Rex
I recall a day many years ago when I was out in a small pasture on my mother-in-law’s farm, trying to find a missing lamb. One of our ewes had given birth to twins, and it was necessary for us to bottle-feed them. Their mother could not supply them enough milk.
That day on the farm, at feeding time, one of the twins was nowhere to be found. This particular twin had a fondness for the greener grass on the other side of the fence. Sure enough, it had squeezed through the fence to the other side. Sad to say, it was not in very good condition when I found it.
That particular lamb did not survive because it would not do the one thing that would have kept it safe and strong—it would not stay near its mother. It insisted on going its own way, seeking adventure outside the safety net of the pasture fence.
Often we as human beings are much like that poor little lamb. In fact, that lamb’s story brings to mind how we as humans, from the beginning, have so often declared to God we would go our own way and choose to find our own “greener grass.” We find ourselves harried by the wolves and coyotes of life, not realizing that if we stayed within our pasture, we would be safe and secure.
The good news is that God took care of that problem many years ago in the Person and work of Jesus Christ. Unlike the poor little lamb that lost its way and lost its life, we have the blessing of a Savior who joined us in our humanity and brought us up into his eternal life and love, healing us of our brokenness and our need to live out on our own. Jesus calls himself the “good shepherd” who cares for his sheep.
Our good shepherd was willing to join us in our human mess, and meet us in the midst of our search for the “greener grass.” He has reconciled us with our heavenly Father and sent his Spirit to be with us. He draws us to himself, calling to us to leave our frantic search for something more and to be content in the life and love of the Father, Son and Spirit. When we fall or suffer or struggle, when we make a wrong turn or wander off too far, he is faithful to bring us back home. We need only believe, to trust in his love and faithfulness, to trust in our loving, good shepherd, Jesus Christ.
“For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them.” Ezekiel 34:11
Our Life in the Trinity 