November 10, 2009

• Letter 25 on assurance and fighting for joy (a strong craving ≠ His joy)

  Continuing on with my series of letters on assurance and fighting for joy...

  
  

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  Dear child of our Father,

  O, you have known His joy! I have as well! Is He not wonderful to us!

  I have been thinking about the Israelites since I've been continuing to read in Numbers. Would you open your Bible to Numbers 11...no, first go back to Numbers 10. The presence of the Lord, the cloud is getting ready to move. They're finally going to be leaving Sinai. Remember: they've been here over a year now. They've got all the instructions. They're anticipating getting into the promised land. You can sense the excitement they must have had at this point. They've celebrated the second passover; they've remembered the great deliverance from Egypt. Everything is looking so wonderful, is it not?

  What happens in Numbers 11? I think you know the story, not only in terms of the Israelites but in terms of your own life. The nation of Israel has received all from the hand of God. He chose them and delivered them out of Egypt with His strong arm. They received this free gift of His deliverance. He'd remembered the covenant He'd made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He set His love on them because He loved them. God had heard their groaning and His grace abounded. Their four hundred plus years of bondage were ended with His provision of the lamb's blood. Now they were free to walk with the Lord, to enter the promised land, to enjoy Him. (Sound familiar?...)

  Numbers 11, yes, where was I? Sorry, you know how I can so relate to this. The Bible is so in our face about our sin, is it not? Verse 1 smacks us on the side of the head:

  And the people complained in the hearing of the LORD about their misfortunes...

  What did they have to complain about? (What do we?)

  Let's look at the complaining first, then we'll get to God's righteous response to their complaining...

  Verse 4: a strong craving, or in the NKJV: they yielded to intense craving. Ok, let's not mince words here. Let's go to the King James: they fell a lusting.

  What was happening here?

  The end of verse 4: Oh that we had meat to eat!

  Oh, my! Didn't they already have meat to eat?

  Yes, of course they did! Manna straight from heaven. God's perfect provision.

  What were they looking at instead? Starting at verse 5, we read:

  We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. 6 But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.

  How brutish, foolish and ignorant of them (Psalm 73:22):

  We remember...
  

  
  They had meat to eat. They had the meat that came from heaven. Heavenly manna. Bread rained down from heaven to sustain them. Yet, what are they looking for? The meat they had in Egypt! How do they see this angels' food:

  there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.

  How pitiful their response is to the free gift of God: nothing at all but this manna to look at...

  Were they enjoying God at this point? No. How could they enjoy Him? They weren't satisfied with His provision, they weren't enjoying the food He'd given them?...How could they enjoy Him. nothing at all but this manna to look at. And how often do we do the same thing? (Oh, how much are we like them. See Psalms 78 and 95; Hebrews 3:7-4:10; I Cor. 10. They're an example to us all. We know it, do we not? Ouch! The sword pierces...)

  First with Christ Himself, we begin to twist up His Gospel, either add to or subtract from it...You know how I have continued to be distraught over that. I just wrote about that here and here. We are not satisfied with Christ alone; we're craving other gospels, different gospels...

  But what I want to really look at right now is this craving regarding our personal walk with God: How can we enjoy God as He has intended if we do not receive His gifts to us with thankfulness. Philippians 4. You know I've written on that regarding joy.

  4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

  There's that thankfulness. Another aspect of our rejoicing. My friend Norm is big into thankfulness. He wrote about it again recently here. I need those reminders! We all do! "I'm forever grateful." Sorry, I'm not forever grateful even though I have every reason to be! Our God has given us everlasting life, life with Him forever. Every reason to be grateful...forever...no matter the circumstances.

  Trusting God's provision. Giving thanks in all things. Let's finish the verse, why don't we: give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. I Thes. 5:18. It's God's will for us to give thanks. We have to be told to give thanks! We are too much like those nine lepers, aren't we? How can we give thanks if we are craving something else besides Him? He gives us Himself. Is that not all we need? Can we love Him even if all we have is stripped away, or do we only love Him only for His gifts to us? In all circumstances, in plenty or in want, in good times or bad, in prosperity or depression, can we also worship God along with Job (Job 1):

  20 Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped.
  21 And he said, Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.

  22 In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.

  We can't worship God rightly if we keep looking back at our past blessings and let them consume us. (Let's add here that the Israelites were now looking back at their time in Egypt as desirable. They wanted to go back there. Certainly the father of lies had been at work, had he not? Time in bondage a blessing? Puh-leese...)

  Can we honestly say with Paul (from Philippians 4):

  11 Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. 12 I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

  The rubber meets the road in our faith walk when the rug is pulled out from under us. Here's the bottom line: in and any all circumstances can we continue to rejoice in the Lord? Even in our disappointments, can we continue to rejoice in the Lord? Even when no fruit comes, can we continue to rejoice in the Lord? When hardship comes, do we respond the way Paul did in II Corinthians 4? When affliction comes, can we say we are not crushed? When perplexed can we avoid being driven to despair? When we are persecuted will we remember we are never forsaken? When we are struck down can we take heart that no one can destroy us for we are safe in the arms of God's love? All these things will come our way at one time or another. How we respond shows how much we are resting In His sure love for us. Are we rejoicing in God regardless of our circumstances? Again, this joy is not intended for only certain people, but for all God's children. It is our birthright as sons and daughters of God. Who are we not to come and rejoice in Him at the feast He is throwing for us? He's happy, He's rejoicing over us, should we not be rejoicing in Him and in our sonship? I am more convinced than ever that Satan despises a joyful Christian, a Christian who is praising God in spite of everything! There is nothing that can bring down the kingdom of darkness quicker than the joy of the Lord resonating throughout Babylon!

  Psalm 137:4 How shall we sing the LORD's song
  in a foreign land?
  5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
  let my right hand forget its skill!
  6 Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth,
  if I do not remember you,
  if I do not set Jerusalem
  above my highest joy!

  The weapons of our warfare include joy and praise! Let's not neglect them!

  The other day I wrote about rejoicing in our Father's discipline. A bit more on that. I was craving something (yes, and not unlike the Israelites, it came right on the heels of remembering His grace to me, keeping the passover...), but then the Lord showed me I was putting my own desires ahead of His Kingdom...Satan loves us to continue to demand of God (yes, there's a fine line here between the importunate praying we find in Luke 18 and demanding...but there comes to a point when we know whether we are asking according to God's will...then we here Him saying, as He did to Moses re: his request to go into the promised land, "Stop asking Me this," or we may hear, "I've heard you. Rest in Me now. Wait for My answer and don't be surprised when it comes differently than you expect..."). So often we remake God in our own image. We make Him out to be "the God who will give me everything in the world I want when I want it so I will be happy." Well, God is not here to give us what I want, He's not a cosmic vending machine. Yes, knowing Him will make us happy. But if all we're after is our convenience and comfort, if that's our motive in prayer, then it's more than likely we're not asking according to His will. God's here to give us Himself. Is He not all we should ever want? Is He not all I should ever need? Is not all we should be craving for, panting for? How often do we seek earthly things but put aside heavenly ones? We sing on Sunday about how He is "our all in all." Is He really? Is He? Are we truly happy with Christ and Christ alone? These times test us to see if He truly is our all in all. Are our words only mere profession or are they are very life...is He our life, truly our first and only Love? Or do we love our own loves more than Him?

  I scribbled some things down at the time I was struggling (and am fleshing it out a bit more here):

  Are you going to give up your rights for the Kingdom?

  I Peter 2: Jesus committed Himself to Him who judges righteously...did not revile, did not threaten, went dumb as a lamb before her shearers, gave up His right to be heard...

  Philippians 2: Jesus did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, became a servant, obedient unto death, even the ignominious death on the cross...

  John 13: Jesus took up the towel and basin and washed feet...(He was fully secure in His sonship. He knew the love of the Father. He trusted His Father...see the verses at the beginning of the chapter.) He came to serve and not to be served.

  I Peter 3: Sarah trusted in God...obeyed Abraham...I'm to do good and not fear anything that is frightening. (This is a verse I should always remember: once I do it usually sets me straight. Remember! For more on that see here and here re: the time I heard Piper speak on that verse.)

  Nehemiah: Could have taken $ to be governor, but refused it.

  Paul: I Cor. 9: He willingly chose to use none of these things...His desire was Christ and His Gospel. "Woe is me if I do not preach the Gospel..."

  Abraham: Gave Lot the choice of the best land (we know how that ended up!)

  We can insist on our own rights and not necessarily be sinning. But the one who is wholly devoted to Christ will give up anything for the Kingdom...anything!

  I must weigh personal gain vs. Kingdom glory! When I see it that way there is no choice...

  I tell you that I was so stuck in what I wanted.

  

  I kept insisting I must have it. I was like that child pouting and screaming at the grocery store checkout. "I want my candy and I want it now!"

  And even then when I came to knew I wasn't right, I still couldn't get out of it. I kept thinking about that Newsboys' song "Landslide of Love":

  Opening salvo
  Didn't help solve anything
  Every time we shout our rights out
  We get all grouchy and gray
  

  
  Satan had laid a trap, a snare for me, he all but had me bound. I was miserable. There was no joy there. I knew the joy was to be had, but I was stuck in the mire of my own wants, my own selfishness. As the Psalmist said, my feet had almost stumbled, my steps had nearly slipped....BUT GOD! In His graciousness, the Lord showed me His Kingdom is far greater than my earthly wants, far more wonderful. In Him is fullness of joy and at His right had are pleasures forevermore (Psalm 16). Fullness of joy! How can we have fullness of joy if we keep lusting and craving for what He is not choosing to give us today? How can we have fullness of joy if we are not satisfied in Christ alone? There is no joy or peace so long as we insist on our own way. Once I had that greater vision of His Kingdom...(Thanks be to God that He set me straight, set my feet upon the Rock once more!)...Once I could see His heavenly manna was all I needed...Once I could see His love is better than life...Once I could see a day in His house is better than a thousand elsewhere...Once I began to remember the feast my Father had prepared for me at His house, now my home...How could I keep insisting on anything but HIM...but I was! My vision was clouded!

  I was brutish and foolish like the Israelites. I had yielded to that intense and strong craving. But God was drawing me back with His cords of love. Giving me a craving and love for Him and His Kingdom. He will do that for us. But we need to listen for His still small voice. Satan continues to insinuate thoughts into our heads. We need to remember God and His blessings, not Egypt. We've got to gird up the loins of our mind and be sure we have on that belt of truth and wear that helmet of salvation to protect our thoughts. (That's why we've got to add to remain in His Word always. His Spirit will bring His truth to mind when we need it. I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. Psalm 119:11. I can't tell you that enough, though I know you know it. We are His disciples if we continue in His Word.)

  Right now I am living in Psalm 73 and Psalm 16...

  The devil keeps us from getting to the sanctuary (Psalm 73:17), to the place where we see God rightly again. Remember he is a liar. He keeps us from truth. He wants us to think God is against us, that God is a spoilsport. Satan wants us to go ahead and crave that fruit that's not ours to have. Satan wants us to crave any and all things but God. We've got to fight to get back to the sanctuary for it is there we can remember God's great love for us that sent His Son to die for us at Calvary. What else could He have done to show His love for us. God's great love that will freely give us all things. His love that treats us no longer as slaves but sons. He is Abba Father! O, to remember He is our Father who wants to give us good things. He is the God who will not withhold anything good from those who walk uprightly. We are His children. No, we do not always walk uprightly but Christ's righteousness has been credited to us. We can say without a doubt that in any and all circumstances, good and bad, are all ordained by God for our good. Let us remember that God is for us. Let us never be found in the sorry state of the Israelites who were murmuring against God. In fact, look at Numbers 11:20: they despised the Lord. Despised Him! When we despise His gifts to us, we despise Him! Moses writes about this incident (and others) in Deuteronomy 9. He says that Israel provoked the Lord to wrath. Do we want to be known for provoking the Lord to wrath? Does He not have every right to be angry with us when we do not continue to see Him as our chief joy and source of rejoicing? In Numbers 11 we read that His anger was kindled (v. 1) and the anger of the LORD blazed hotly (v. 10). Why not? These were His people. He had done all for Him and want was their response? Complaining, murmuring, provoking Him! O, may He give us grace to continue to bless His Name at all time and have His spirit of contentment. Jeremiah Burroughs wrote:
  

  "Contentment is the inward, quiet, gracious frame of spirit, freely submitting to and taking pleasure in God's disposal in every condition."

  In every condition...Rejoice in the Lord always!

  Sorry, I had meant to quote the last portion of Psalm 73. In verse 1 the Psalmist makes a bold declaration about God, Truly God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart, but then he's trying to fit his experience in the world into the absolute truth He knows about God. So he ends up in a tizzy, He's in a major lament, he's distraught, despairing, trying to make sense of things. Nothing is going right for him and everything is going right for his enemies. There seems to be no justice. There's cognitive dissonance here big time. He's saying, "God, I know You are good, but things are not adding up here. Where are you anyhow?" Then we read the turning point...

  But when I thought how to understand this,
  it seemed to me a wearisome task,
  17 until I went into the sanctuary of God;
  then I discerned their end.
  18 Truly you set them in slippery places;
  you make them fall to ruin.
  19 How they are destroyed in a moment,
  swept away utterly by terrors!
  20 Like a dream when one awakes,
  O Lord, when you rouse yourself, you despise them as phantoms.
  21 When my soul was embittered,
  when I was pricked in heart,
  22 I was brutish and ignorant;
  I was like a beast toward you.
  23 Nevertheless, I am continually with you;
  you hold my right hand.
  24 You guide me with your counsel,
  and afterward you will receive me to glory.
  25 Whom have I in heaven but you?
  And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.
  26 My flesh and my heart may fail,
  but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
  27 For behold, those who are far from you shall perish;
  you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you.
  28 But for me it is good to be near God;
  I have made the Lord GOD my refuge,
  that I may tell of all your works.
  
  

  until I went into the sanctuary of God...So, my friend, when you begin lamenting like the Psalmist, when you begin whining or complaining or murmuring, I'm going to tell you to go back to the sanctuary and stay there until God gives you that renewed vision of Him and His Kingdom, that His love is better than life. Go and read through Psalm 16. (I may write more about that in my next letter. I would not do it justice here...) And I hope you will tell me to to the same thing!!! That is the way we love one another, by helping each other back to the sanctuary, back to God Himself, when our hands are drooping down and our knees are weak...When we're having trouble running the race set before us. You know the book of Hebrews is full of encouragements for us in that...

  So let us go, go, go to the sanctuary! Go nowhere else! And keep going there? Whom else have we but Him? He alone has the words of life! He is our life! He is the true bread from heaven. He is the living water. O, let us no longer crave or lust after earthly things. May He teach us how to be satisfied in Him and to joy in Him. He is our life, our breath, our peace, our joy, our love. He is our everything! O, how He loves us! May we know that love so we might be constrained by it and love Him wholeheartedly and no longer be subject to brutish and foolish cravings. Whom have we in heaven but Him? Is He not wonderful enough for us! Let's crave Him and Him alone! No other will satisfy us! We've experienced the fullness of joy, the pleasures forevermore. Let's not be foolish and brutish and trade Him for anything else...O, let us rejoice in Him always! Craving nothing else but Him alone.

  Rejoicing and basking in His love, held by His cords of love, loving Him and His love for me that chases me down even when I yield to strong cravings, even when I am foolish and brutish, all so He might draw me back to feast once again in house, to eat His bread and drink His cup! Fullness of joy, pleasures forevermore are ours, my friend! Let's enjoy Him together and exhort our brothers and sisters to do the same!

  Karen

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  Related posts:
  

  • Happy Mother's Day: Mary's "Kingdom Availability" and "Kingdom Vision"
  • Chorizos and Coffee in the Cold: More on Christian Contentment
  • Bible Reading-Isaiah: When We Think the LORD Has Forsaken and Forgotten Us
  • Postcards from God at Vail: The LORD alone shall be exalted in that day
  • My posts tagged "Contentment"
  • My posts tagged "Who is your Master?"
  • My posts from Thanksgiving 2007 and 2008
  • some reflections about prayer
  • Whitefield's Prayers: more reminders about God's sovereign grace & care

  Scripture quotations unless otherwise indicated are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

  Lyrics are subject to US Copyright Laws and are the property of their respective authors, artists and labels. Commercial use prohibited. "Landslide of Love" by Steve Taylor & Peter Furler/Music by Peter Furler & Jeff Frankenstein/©2004 Artose Music.

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