Bibledoorajar: The Man

In which time Moses was born, and was exceeding fair to God” ( Acts 7:20). 

     Meet David Brantley. David played Moses in the Ragtown Gospel Theater presentation of Paradise in Post, Texas on September 24th. As an elderly statesman in Paradise, I found him irresistible. He presented a Moses who seemed to be so happy to have served God in spite of all the difficulties--a man exceeding fair to God. How happy he was to meet with the Savior on the Mount of Transfiguration with Elijah.
     True to Acts 7: 25, Moses was able to see his role in “how that God by his hand would deliver them” long before the actual work began. He was an Israelite adopted by an Egyptian princess who called him her son. He was raised to experience wealth and position but decided at age forty to go and visit with his brethren and reject his royal mother. How God would use him was about to begin as he resolved to choose affliction with the people of God.
     True to Philippians 2, Christ, The Man,  saw His role also before the actual work began. “Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God; But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant” ( Philippians 2:6,7). He was a Son in whom the God was well pleased and who had all God's creation at hand. He had no mother but took on the poverty of the virgin who would deliver Him. The will of God would prevail through Him in spite of afflictions. The redemption and deliverance of God's people would be finished once and for all through the greatest of all God's covenants.
    Thanks David, for helping the audience have such a wonderful experience.

Bibledoorajar: The Altar of Fellowship

 

Oft We Come Together; Oft we sing and pray

Here we bring our offering on this holy day.

Help us Lord, Thy love to see, 

May we all in truth and spirit Worship Thee.

T.S. Teddlie
God had given His Law in the form of Ten Commandments. They were not the law of Moses (although Moses would include them in the moral portions of his law) that would come later and be designed to provide order and justice within the Jewish community. But after frightening the people near to death with the Ten, God immediately provided an opportunity for them to erect an altar. It was to be simple. Nothing elaborate like the infidels built and to which they gave themselves the credit. Nothing on that altar was to say my skill did this. Just an earthen altar that was built even before the tabernacle was constructed.

     It was the breaking of God's law that would rupture and hinder the people's relationship with God. But it was that simple altar that would provide a means that they could once again have fellowship with Him. That fellowship encouraged leaving behind the sins that so easily beset. Burnt offerings and peace offerings were voluntarily brought. Blood and fire proceeded. The shedding of the blood was to satisfy God and the fire was to show His acceptance of the sacrifice and the coming of His help. It was that simple altar, and it alone, that would provide a means that they could once again have fellowship with God.
     At Pentecost, Jesus, who had ascended to the Father, asked the believers to wait together. It was in that place of fellowship with its' memory of the Sacrifice, that God sent fire showing His acceptance and provision of help in the form of the Holy Spirit. This Comforter would help believers spread the good news of being able to come together with God for all the generations to come. When my believing parents were awaiting my birth in 1944, T.S. Teddlie had the above song in his heart. We sang it often in the congregation where I grew up in the deep south just before partaking of the Lord's Supper. Congregations still sing it today. As a matter of fact, my fellowship sang it yesterday. Memories of all kinds flooded in. God making a way for fellowship. Jesus meeting God's expectations in every way. My believing parents including me in the Oft We Come Together aspect of Christianity. The Holy Spirit falling afresh as God helps us remember His love and grace. This blessing of fellowship has a long history and an eternity to come. Someday the "Oft" will be forever.

Bibledoorajar: In Word Thought and Deed

      By giving Ten Commandments to His people, it is clear that God was not interested in having a careless, thoughtless people. Certainly not with Him and certainly not with others. When they heard what God said, they recognized how extensive God's rules were in countering the problem of sin. So profound was the strength of His Commanding Voice, the needy sinful people asked Moses if he would be the go between for them with God.  Their exact words were “Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us lest we die” ( Exodus 20:19). So Moses went into the darkness to speak with God because the people were afraid and kept their distance.

     God responded by making sure the people understood fully their duty to honor Him and no other. In the Law they could see how much they needed Him. But He also gave them a way to practice that duty by requiring them to build an altar. “An altar of earth shall thou make unto Me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and they peace offerings, thy sheep and thine oxen”. Legislation and spirituality would be intertwined. Men are sinners. We need the law to show us just how much and we need the altar to go before our One True God who promises to help us. As we please Him by making efforts to live holy lives and worship Him, He will shower us with blessings. God told Moses to tell the people He liked what they said about needing a Mediator. He promised He would raise One up from their people.
     That Mediator started living for His Father at an early age. The "lost" child was pursuing duty in a spiritual environment (temple). Later, He put it this way:
                            “I must work the works of Him that sent Me” ( John 9:4).

We are given grace to do those things pleasing to Him and those things that He has set in motion to have done. They are eternally decreed and must take place before man cannot work any more. In church today we sang:
 

"He wills that I should holy be, in word, in thought, in deed. Then I His Holy Face may see..."

Fred Filmore

It's going to be worth it!

Bibledoorajar: God Rules/ God's rules

Don't Give God Instructions: Just Show Up For Duty

Church Sign, Texas

     A few days ago, I had to run to the local store. As I left home, I told myself I had to hurry because it looked like rain was imminent. As I arrived at the store and got out of my vehicle, a black cloud hovered, thunder clapped, and lightning spread the sky. It was to my back and was so loud that I felt the lightning might strike me. In reality it struck a tower on top of a school about a mile away. But it was so awesome and its' magnitude so great that it produced fear in me. Afraid, I missed my step and stumbled into the storefront. Whew, I wasn't hurt, but I sure was glad the God behind that lightning loved me!

     It seems that when God spoke His Ten Commandments, He wanted to do it in a similar awesome fashion. The Word says a boundary was set at the Mount and no one dare cross. Darkness came over them and lightning spread the skies. Thunder roared. Trumpets sounded. If God wanted to make it clear that He was Superior and that His people had a duty to Him, could there have been a more dreadful way? Can you hear the words of God in that desert? Does it all scare you a bit? We would be wise to remember how God starts out reminding them that He is their Lord who loved them enough to deliver them from bondage. What follows is His desire to have a people who love and and respect Him. The Ten Commandments tell us what God thought that love and respect should entail.

     After God drew near and gave the earth His only begotten Son, the Son's disciples had a conversation with the Son as to how they should pray. How should they speak with their awesome God and Father. To this request, Jesus replied saying start it like this: 

 "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name, Thy Kingdom come on earth as it is in Heaven"

Christ was saying we can never forget God rules and God has rules. But beneath this is a foundation of love that will give us our daily bread and forgive our trespasses. Keeping rules may be hard and sometimes we may want to be in control, but having the One who rules as Father is definitely worth keeping rules. He makes it clearer and, yes, easier as the days go by.