Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"Is it possible that our Enemy, Satan, could be pulling a fast one on us while we are asleep as Christians?
Just as Jeremiah's detractors begged him with the request, "Is there any word from the Lord?" so we would love to get some direct e-mail message from Christ, some fresh, up-to-the-minute "bulletin" from Heaven's media office.
Well, we have it in Luke 21--a message as appropriate now as any could be in this cosmic Day of Atonement: "Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting [on gourmet food], and drunkenness [literal or on video games], and cares of this life [making payments on the boat or SUV], and so that day [of last opportunity to save our souls] come upon you unawares" (vs. 34).
It is phenomenal how in a time of world terror never so pervasive, our temptations to indulge in a Vanity Fair life are so insistent. The more distressing the news of widespread human misery, the more alluring are the solicitations that appeal to our native-born covetousness. Not only big cities like New York and London have their giant temple-like retail stores, but the "big box" stores like Wal-Mart have come even to our small towns. The malls are our new cathedrals of architectural grandeur and heart-worship. Whether we have Republicans or Democrats to thank, we have money to spend and time to spend window-shopping.
We have metamorphosed into that "certain rich man" whose "ground brought forth plentifully" so that he had to build a "greater barn [to] bestow all .. his goods" (12:16-18). One of America's big businesses now is these huge storage places where all the "stuff" you can't crowd into your garage, you "bestow all [your] goods" there. And we say to ourselves, "Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry" (vs. 19). That's where we are, and that's who we are.
But wait a moment: we're living in the final period of Christ's ministry in the Most Holy part of the heavenly sanctuary; all heaven is concerned that a people, a corporate body of saints, be prepared for the close of probation; yet never in 6000 years of human history has "the ground of a certain rich man [you and I] brought forth [so] plentifully." Is there a certain clever master intelligence behind this phenomenon? Maybe you can find some missionary work to do in the grand architecture of the mall; but if not, that's no place to spend hours worshipping. Not since Christ began the last phase of His heavenly ministry.
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: July 9, 2004.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.
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Monday, December 13, 2010
Day of Atonement Living
Friday, December 3, 2010
Who Takes the Initiative?
Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"Dear Mrs. ______________ :
You write that you got up early yesterday morning to spend some "quality time" with the Lord--prayer and Bible study so as to maintain your "relationship" with Him. But then you couldn't help noticing how disheveled the house was and how messy the kitchen, so you felt you had to straighten things up, and voila! the "quality time" was gone and the burdens of the day were upon you again. "So am I losing out with God?"
Let's "walk softly" here, like repentant Ahab. There are times when a wise doctor keeps a patient in a coma on intravenous feeding; but normally a healthy person eats because he's hungry, not because of stern cold duty. Your problem may not be that your 24-hour day is too short (that would be God's fault). Probably good sincere people have pounded into you a wrong idea of God (maybe even from the pulpit). God is not waiting for you to maintain a relationship with Him; He wants you to know He is maintaining a relationship with you. It all begins with His initiative, not yours. He wants you saved more than you want to be.
When Jesus came, He changed our ideas about His Father. The Good Shepherd is not waiting for His lost sheep to find Him; He is seeking the sheep (Luke 15:3-32). The text about "seek ye the Lord while He may be found, call ye upon Him while He is near" (Isa. 55:6) needs a clearer translation. The Hebrew verb there for "seek" is not the common one, looking for a lost object; it means "pay attention to Me because I am near! I'm not far away, ever!"
This idea of working hard to maintain our relationship with the Lord is a subtle Old Covenant idea that has crept in. When you begin to grasp His seeking love, His cross, you will "hunger and thirst" for His "truth of the gospel." It will expel your love for amusement; it will heal you of your Bible boredom. But we "walk softly": if you are in a spiritual coma, yes, force yourself to read your Bible and pray. But please ... believe the New Covenant.
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: September 25, 2010.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.
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