Civil Parish

“In the divine Scriptures, there are shallows and there are deeps; shallows where the lamb may wade, and deeps where the elephant may swim.”- John Owen

 Reading through Ephesians I’ve had an awesome time studying the way Paul wrote. It’s so good to see how all of his foundation is based in the Gospel. He wrote of the gospel being the Food and water the “body” needs in order to perform the work of God. As Colossians 2:7 says “being rooted and built up in the faith as you were taught.” We are to be continuously going back to the origin of our faith and remember how great God has been to us the lowly sinner.

This is a problem I have seen more recently in some people and in the people of God all throughout scripture. We forget. We forget that we have been saved out of our depravity. I know for me when I look at my current struggles and my past sin I see how good Jesus is, I see the beauty and grace of God because I see that the blood of the son was the plan of the father. I see that grace working in me richly today.

That grace working in me today is what I have been “Saved into”. Being rooted in the Gospel im free to be built up in Jesus! Trust me it’s a constant struggle to put off the old self and put on the new. However it begins to make sense that we would strive for holiness once we’ve seen the beauty in the gospel. Its just like a Kid wanting to be like his loving father, If his dad loves him and tells him to do something it must be for the good of the son. If God knows that we were made to live like Christ then I trust that though its difficult for me to live a holy life Ill give it all I got cause my dad says its good for me.

That’s what I see in Pauls writing, He is rooted in the love that God has for him as a father, and he wants to be like his dad. That is the heart of his discipline. Discipline does not bring about love, love brings about discipline!!

“Be immatators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”- Eph 5:1-2

-Jon

Do not be afraid Abram I am your shield, your very great reward. (Genesis 15)

It’s an increasingly difficult thing in my life to realize that I’m not in control. I am constantly battling what it means to surrender. I try and surrender control over the band, over my finances, over my relationships. All I know is that I’m not very good at it. What does it look like for me to see that God is my shield and my very great reward? I have no idea but these are things that I’m going through and trying to figure out today.

I realize that there is little I know or understand about the vastness of who god is, but one thing I can slightly comprehend is that he protects me. He protects me with a love that glows of Glory and perfect commitment. He protects me with a love that is not afraid to hurt me if it is for his Glory and my growth. This love is immutable, it will never change. That is a shield I would like to be protected by, a shield of infinite glory.

I see this immutable protection in the way Jesus dealt with them disciple boys, If we’re honest with ourselves as we read the scriptures there comes a point that we kind of want to shake the disciples and maybe smack ‘em up a bit and yell “DONT YOU GET IT!” but Jesus never did that, He dealt with them kindly and softly. He let them stumble around on their feet for a while before they were able to stand. But one thing is certain; He didn’t give up on them. If Jesus is the image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15) then we see that no matter how long we’re stumbling around trying to figure out which way we should go or how we should get there God isn’t giving up on us.

There is such comfort in the fact that later In Genesis 15 we see that Abram “fell into a deep sleep” and then the God appeared in the form of a blazing torch. Then God alone passed through the sacrificed animals that Abram had previously cut in two. Abram had no action in the actual acceptance of the covenant meaning one thing; God will see to it that his plan comes to be! He is in sovereign over all that happens including the coming of his kingdom. Here’s what the New Testament has to say about it.

Being confident of this,

That he who began a good work in you

Will carry it on to completion

Until the day of Christ Jesus.

Philippians 1:6

The beautiful (and often confusing) part about it is that this huge God that said he would complete everything without need of us, has invited us to take part in the coming of his kingdom, and he will lead us!

We know we are part of this kingdom and are secure in the family of God because of the Blood of Jesus. Jesus blood was the cosmic shift that made it possible for us to come to the throne of God with freedom and confidence (Eph 3:12). That blood, the precious blood of Jesus, protects us. That’s how we know Gods commitment to us in the covenant he made with Abram. Jesus was the final sacrifice; Jesus is the very great reward. We can trust that this reward will satisfy our souls.

This is where I’m at right now; learning that Jesus will always keep me and also that he will lead me. I’m learning that there is no need to worry, there’s no need to worry because Jesus is my very great reward! Why should I worry if I have been placed in the hallow of the palm of an infinitely powerful creator? Why should I worry if I’ve been placed in the hallow of the palm of an infinitely loving father? Even if I walk outside the door and fail at all of the things I try and accomplish in this life the lord of all creation still holds me and wants me. I don’t need money, I don’t need success, I don’t need power, I want love, I want gentleness, I want love, I need Jesus, I need grace, I need mercy, I need Jesus. 

Ill fist pump to that 

-Jon