Nehemiah

Reaching the Ends of the Earth.

Dan

It was my observation while digging into Cyrus, Babylon and the clay potters that make idols that I encountered an unexpected maxim; Woe unto him that strives with his Maker (Isaiah 45:9). God is the Maker of all things, and therefore our Maker, which is a good reason to avoid becoming contentious with him and never stand against him.

Let us not align ourselves accidently with the sly oppressors who plot designs against God concerning the deliverance of his people (Nehemiah 4:8), nor think to detain them any longer when the time shall come for their release. Woe to the insulting and designing Babylonians that set God at defiance, as Pharaoh did, and will not let his people go! (Ezra 4:5).

As I drive the streets of Tucson, I can see the homeless and the poor in their oppression, in the dejection of their spirits, some are murmuring and quarreling with themselves, family, government, or God. I do not have an answer to homelessness, but I can see the despair, and passionately believe Jesus is the answer. I think that the Gospel Rescue Mission (GRM) can help with mental health, addictions, or despair. The GRM can help them get back on their feet, Goodwill can help with job skills. Then, I think that Habitat for Humanity can provide them with a home, but at the same time I know this plan is too simplistic and unsatisfactory because they also need community. Who provides community? Only the Church can deliver real community. We are part of the solution. We need to be part of the solution.

Jeremiah 18:1-10 says — This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: go down to the potter’s house and there I will give you, my message. So, I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so, the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the Lord. Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Israel. If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down, and destroyed, and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it [NIV].

One thing I know – if the homeless strive with their maker, then they will have difficulty egressing from the woeful condition they have entered. No one hardened his heart against God and prospers.

At best we are contentious people, quarrelsome brutes; but we are wise to let the potsherds strive with the potsherds and move forward as best we can. The despairing homeless, they are broken potsherds, and their trouble is magnified by their discord and friction – only God can repair them. We should encourage them to lay down the sword; but if they persist in rancor, caution them to never contend with Him that is infinitely wiser and more powerful than anything they will ever encounter.

So then, what do you say to the ones that earnestly long for change, quietly seeking their redemption from trouble and from sin. Two words — Grace abounds. I think the precepts of scripture are very clear – God is in control, he will help. He comes and He shepherds the flock. God is our strength. He can and will move in our life and their life. Then we live securely, confident of his majesty, and of his protection. His greatness reaches every corner, hidden street, culvert, everywhere. He will reach the ends of the earth to redeem anyone who calls his name (implied in Micah 5:4).

I choose Jesus.

A Drop of Water

Dan

Essay By Dan

It has been my observation that exploring God’s Wisdom tends to be accomplished by those of us who are hanging out in God’s sandbox (life in the Spirit), already yielding to the God we serve. The unbelieving mind struggles to be convinced by any proof on topics that include the wisdom of God, but those of us who play in the sandbox, walk with God, talk to God, listen to God, we need no proof. We know. We are hungry to know more.

Permit me to share some paraphrased thoughts from Blaze Pascal (a 16th century Mathematician and namesake for a programming language) about wisdom: We should expect neither truth nor consolation when men act on their own. God formed man and alone taught each of us what we are. God created man to be innocent; God filled man with light and intelligence; God communicated to him wisdom, glory, and awareness of God’s wonders. Through wisdom, the eye of man saw the majesty of God. But man has not been able to sustain the glory God gave him without falling into pride. Man wanted to make himself his own center and free himself from God’s wisdom; therefore, man withdrew himself from God’s grace; then ignored God’s wisdom and set himself equal to God.

Daniel said – Praise the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises others up. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning (paraphrased from Daniel 2:20-21).

When our feeble scribblings about God declare that God is wise, the meaning is far more powerful than what we could ever possibly place on paper. We work to make a comparatively overused word represent the incomprehensible depth of God’s cohesive analytical processing algorithms and breadth of knowledge. Unfortunately, in my weakness, even in this case I have diminished the one true living God’s absolute greatness and majesty merely by my choice of words. On my best day I will fail. Bummer. Isaiah 40:28 says “The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; His understanding is unsearchable.”

His wisdom is infinite (see Psalms 147:5). We know the word infinite describes the bandwidth, height, and depth of something. Given this is the maximum term we could use, we cannot very well put an adjective to enhance the meaning of the word. Would it be appropriate to say “more” infinite or “very” infinite? I think not. Infinite is the correct word. God sets the standard on infinite Wisdom. When I first learned Pascal (a programming language) the notion of MAXINT (the maximum integer possible) seemed immense. However, in the context of God’s wisdom, MAXINT seems like a naive vision of the world (see Proverbs 14:18).

I believe wisdom is taught to us by the Spirit of God (see Nehemiah 9:20) so that on our best day we have the capacity to yield to God’s wisdom as we address situations in a meaningful, positive, moral way. But we should never lose sight that God is infinitely wise and our use of God’s wisdom is but a slight shadow of the totality of God’s wisdom. Our understanding of God’s wisdom is like a drop of water that takes its place in the ocean of water (God’s wisdom) covering most of this globe.

Paul says – “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?” (Romans 11:33-34). There will be much more on this topic of playtime in sandboxes – a lot more from Job, Ecclesiastes, Proverbs, and Lamentations.

I choose Jesus.