Seeing the World Through God’s Eyes

Can you remember a time when you were terrified? I remember once in Cordoba, Argentina, driving home by myself late at night. I had mistakenly taken a risky route that I only used during the daytime, but it was too late when I realized what I had done. I noticed some guys playing soccer in the middle of the street, so I slowed to a near- stop. Suddenly, I was overwhelmed with fear when I saw guys running toward my car with bars in their hands. I sped forward, causing several to dive out of the way. As I finally exited the danger, I felt my heart beating in my chest. I had narrowly escaped peril. 

Once David, a seventeen-year-old shepherd on a mission for his father, saw the entire Israelite army frozen in fear. A colossal of a man was challenging them to send out just one warrior to fight. No one dared to answer the challenge. That was because Goliath was almost ten feet tall! Can you imagine him trying to come through one of our doors? Even his weapons were intimidating. His spear was near fourteen feet, and its tip weighed about sixteen pounds. It was a guided missile when launched by his mighty arm. The chain mail suit that he wore weighed around 150 pounds.  David inquired why no one answered his defiant call to fight.

Once David volunteered to fight the giant, they tried to suit him with the latest armor and weapons, but he refused, preferring to use what he was used to using. They had served him well, fighting off wild animals who attacked his flock.

David wasted no time facing off with the Goliath. No one ever showed more courage than David did on that day. When Goliath came out to David, he said, “Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?” He taunted David, “Come here,” he said, “and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals!” (1 Sam 17:43-44).

David boldly responded, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.” (1 Sam 17:45-38).

As David ran toward the Philistine, he put his hand into his bag, took out a stone, and let it fly. The stone struck the Philistine right between the eyes, and down he came. Everyone was surprised, but not David; he completely expected to defeat this enemy.

What was David’s secret? Where did he get the courage to fight Goliath? How could he face an enemy with all the odds against him? The answer is that he knew how powerful his God was, and he knew God would help him. David took the first steps, but God used David’s competency and gave him boldness. The story still inspires us even today because it’s true, but beyond that, this is the way battles are won today—by trusting in God.

Meet Joseph

In the telling of the Christmas story, Joseph is the one that often gets less coverage. Luke gives us more information about the actual birth of Christ, and so it is usually to Luke we turn for the Christmas story. However, Matthew provides us with some insight into the background of what it would have been like for Joseph and Mary. Let’s begin with the scandal that Mary’s pregnancy caused.

Matthews tells us: This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly (Matt 1:18-19).

The problem for Joseph is that the girl he is going to share the rest of his life with is pregnant. Mary is pregnant, and consequently, Joseph doesn’t want to be with her. We aren’t sure how Joseph can be called Mary’s “husband” when they are not yet married and how they are not yet married, but Joseph can divorce her.

In Joseph and Mary’s culture, the couple is engaged by their parents, probably when they were young. Then they were betrothed in their synagogue, and one year later, they would be married. From the time of the betrothal, they are called man and wife, and only a divorce can separate them, although they do not live together or have sexual contact.

We are not told of any conversation Mary had with Joseph, but, you know, Mary shared with Joseph what had happened to her. She must have explained how Gabriel appeared to her and what he said. The angel informed her she would become pregnant and have a son. The Holy Spirit would make this happen. Joseph loved Mary, but you have to agree that this would be a strange story to swallow if you heard it from your pregnant wife.

Stop and think about this from Joseph’s viewpoint. How would you feel if you were in his situation? Would you be humiliated, angry, jealous, or just confused? Matthew doesn’t tell us. I can, however, tell you that he was likely flooded with a whole range of emotions. One minute he thought he could accept it, and then another minute, he knew he was being duped. What did he do? What could he do?

Joseph seems to be a thoughtful person who is not given to impulsive action. He thought seriously about the matter, and after being conflicted with this riddle of a situation, he “resolved” to do what was best for both persons:” When Joseph has considered his options so that he could stay true to his convictions and not shame Mary he chose to divorce her secretly. It was at this moment that God intervened. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit (Matt 1:20). We are not told who the angel was, but I think it was Gabriel because he has been the bearer of the Messianic birth news for 500 years; most likely, it was him.

Have you ever thought about the role of the Spirit in the conception of Christ? We cannot describe the biological process the Spirit worked in the virgin’s womb. Still, we know that the Holy Spirit made the preexistent second person of the Trinity into a human being.  This is the moment of the creation of Jesus’ body. Christ has always existed as the second person in the Trinity, but the Holy Spirit now conceived his body in Mary’s womb.

I think the Christmas story is so incredible because it is our story—a story God gave us. Mary is a willing servant that God uses, and Joseph is a man God could use even with all his struggle. God used them to be part of the greatest story ever told.

We, too, are part of God’s story—one that goes on right now. We are unaware of God’s existence, but we can be sure he knows what he is doing. Mary and Joseph didn’t know they would wind up in Bethlehem and Jesus would be born in a stable, but God did. They didn’t know they would have to flee to Egypt for two years, but God did. Christmas reminds us that God is in control, and he wants us to be part of the story if we are willing.

 

 

The Bill Has Been Paid

 

A few weeks ago, my wife and I and Marilyn’s mother had a great lunch at a Mexican restaurant in California. When I asked for the bill, the waitress said someone had paid for your bill. That was a shock because we had no idea who could have done that. It turns out that we were picked at random by a generous person. That is precisely what God said to his people through the prophet Isaiah.“Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her sin has been paid for” (Isa 40:2).

God paid for our bill of sin, but it was not at random; instead, it was because he specifically picked us. We cannot pay this debt, but God has paid it for us by sending his Son to this earth. He came that first Christmas and entered the human experience. Isaiah, in his prophecy, predicted he would become a savior that transforms lives, “Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain” (Isa 40:4-5).

Isaiah is not talking about changes to the landscape’s topography but to messed up human lives.

Isaiah is describing how much Jesus would change the spiritual landscape. Christ would raise up the oppressed and lift up the despondent. The savior would level out the pompous person nobody can stand. Christ would change that man and woman who has made a mountain of heartache with addictions and bad choices.

We have evidence of a perverse world all around us—broken hearts and lives—families separated—addictions and dysfunctional living patterns that have produced shattered lives. We can’t straighten our paths, we can’t level our mountains, and we can’t make the rough places smooth, but there is one who can. He is the same one who came on that Christmas night—born in a stable in Bethlehem. As the angel told Joseph, “you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” (Matt 1:21). He is still doing it even today!

 

 

 

Reasons to be Thankful

 

Gratitude is being thankful with a willingness to show appreciation for what you have received. I want to list five reasons to be
grateful.

First, gratitude opens our eyes to what we have received. It says, look around—these things came to you from God and others. Gratitude gives us a perspective that helps us live in the now and not in the next anticipated stage of life. Some people so long for the future to come they don’t live in the present. Gratitude says, “This is my life, and these are the people in my life, and I am going to enjoy them.”

Second, gratitude helps me focus on the good and not the bad, on what I have and not on what I don’t have. It is not hard to see the bad in our world and even the bad in people, but we will be discouraged if that is all we see. When we focus on the good—even the good that can come out of people’s lives we feel better. That is pretty much how God looks at us. He sees what we can become with his help. He doesn’t dismiss us because we don’t measure up. He extends his grace to us even though we don’t deserve it.

Third, gratitude focuses on my life and helps me differentiate between essential and unimportant. The urgent often disguises itself as the important. The pressing will keep knocking on our door, call us and demand our attention while the essential quietly waits. Gratitude slows us down and helps us say no to the unimportant even though it calls itself urgent and say yes to the important things in life.

Fourth, gratitude helps me appreciate my family and assign them the significance they deserve. The sooner we learn to see the priority of our family, the happier we will be. It takes years for some people to realize that their family matters more than money, things, and even success.

Fifth, gratitude helps me look to God as the giver of all I have. It helps me appreciate the faithfulness and mercy he has poured out over my life. This is the best of all. When we see the beauty in the setting sun or the brightness of the stars, we know it’s the creator’s work. We look around and see how good he has been to us, and we are grateful. We treasure his love for us, and we are overwhelmed with his grace.

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