Naked Before a Holy God

Naked Before a Holy God

And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed. (Genesis 2:25 – AKJV)

Nakedness before God was not a shameful thing before the Fall. Adam and Eve’s innocence saved them from taking something beautiful, and distorting it into lust and impurity.

After the Fall, the sinful state of humanity dictated we must be clothed. God slew animals (the first indication that blood had to be shed in order to deal with humanity’s sinful state) to cover the nakedness of our first parents. Henceforth it became a shamed to expose our nakedness, except in the holy bond of marriage.

I take this to be a figure, or parable of God’s purpose for us spiritually. Can we come to a place spiritually, like Adam and Eve were spiritually – naked, yet unashamed?

In fact we are all naked before God anyway, since He sees all and nothing can be hidden from His sight. In our natural state, however, whenever we discover some sin of debilitating habit in ourselves, we feel shame. We have even invented a phrase to describe someone who feels no shame at their own sinful behaviour – we call them “shameless.”

And yet we can, through God’s Grace, come to a place where we can consciously stand naked before our Holy God, and yet feel no shame.

How can this be? Is it not required that we should feel shame for our sinful condition?

We can be naked before a Holy God simply because  Jesus carried our shame to the Cross, and shed His blood to cleanse us from all sin. That is why confession is required in order to become right with God.

Confession is the act of becoming naked before God and hiding nothing from Him. And what happens when we do this?

This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. ⁶ If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; ⁷ but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. ⁸ If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. ⁹ If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:5-9 – NASB)

The act of true confession renders us naked before our Holy God, prompting Him to grant us forgiveness and cleansing. Having been cleansed from all sin I can stand naked before God and feel no shame, simply because he has removed the cause of that shame. Only when we try to hide are sin can a sense of shame overwhelm us.

Nothing to Hide*

(© 23rd April 1992 – by Christopher Shennan)

Then she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, “You are a God who sees”; for she said, “Have I even [c]remained alive here after seeing Him?”  (Genesis 16:13 – NASB)

Lord, You are the God

Who sees me through and through;

My motives and ambitions,

Not only what I do.

You have a perfect record

Of the Secret plans I make:

What I think when I am sleeping,

And when I am awake.

You are the God Who sees me

Just as I really am;

What I think I will accomplish,

And What I really can.

You see the secret longings —

The hungers of the heart —

When I’m being foolish,

And when I’m being smart.

There is no point in hiding

From the God Who knows my all,

When I’m up and running swiftly

And when I take a fall.

It’s safer to take refuge

In God’s vast, Undying Love,

And know what e’er betides me

He’s watching from above.

These thoughts may be disturbing

To the men and woman who

Have something to conceal from

The point of Heaven’s view.

But to me it is great comfort

As I journey on my way:

‘Snot men, but God in Heaven,

Who has the final say.

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“Adam and Eve” by Hendrik Goltzius. Copyright. Used under the CC BY 2.0 license. This image is a cameo from the original work.

Wanted: Dead and Alive!

Wanted: Dead and Alive!

Colossians 3:1-11

For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. (Colossians 3:3 – NASB)

Those old Western movies were quite exciting. There was a lot of shooting, fighting and chases on horseback. There were robberies of stagecoaches, land barons evicting poor farmers from their land, Indian attacks, and the usual romance thrown in.

Something else was common in those movies – wanted posters posted on the Sherriff’s office wall; they usually read:

WANTED:

Dead or Alive

Reward: $5,000

            A picture of the wanted man was also prominently displayed on the poster.

God also has His wanted posters. Instead of using the phrase DEAD or ALIVE, I thought what God wants His people to be are those who are both dead and alive.

Imagine a poster like the following:

WANTED:

Men and women both

Dead AND Alive

Reward:

ETERNAL LIFE

            Only people who are both dead and alive can truly accomplish God’s will for their lives. We must be dead to sin, but alive to God through the life of Christ dwelling in us.

Now, if you have no idea what I am talking about, let me explain.

The Christian faith is not like other religions; it is supernatural in origin, and supernatural in its working. So, we are talking of a miracle based on the finished work of Jesus Christ. In that light nothing can be impossible – even being dead and alive at the same time. Even living a holy life.

Living a Christ-like life is not impossible, or loving God with all our hearts, minds and souls and strength – and our neighbours as ourselves.

By the power of the Gospel our old lives are dead. By faith we live a hidden life, dead to sin, and alive to God through Jesus Christ.

There is no other way.

Alive to God

(© 12^th May 2015 – by Christopher Shennan)

For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. (Colossians 3:3 – NASB)

The person you were is now dead.

If Jesus has redeemed your soul,

He has hidden your life in God,

And your spirit He has made whole.

Both dead and alive we both are;

Dead to sin and alive to God –

We’re born again of the Spirit –

We’re not on the path we once trod.

The blood of our Lord has cleansed us.

He paid for our sins on the Cross;

All that we thought was great gain,

We count now as nothing but loss.

I remember, praying out loud,

“Lord, please don’t let me go back there,

Where my life was burdened with sin.”

Now I find His love everywhere.

So I’m dead, and also alive;

My life is now hidden in God –

The things I regretted are past –

The path of forgiveness I’ve trod.

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Image is in the public domain.

Getting Dirt from Your Neighbours

Getting Dirt from Your Neighbours

We have a large fenced-in yard at the back of our house, perfect for grandchildren to play in, with a patio for entertaining friends and family. The only problem is that it slopes toward the house and becomes a lake when it rains. Water leaked under the house and seeped through the floorboards.

The only real solution was to get a lot of dirt to fill it in and level it off. The cost of trucking it in was just too much for a “retired” couple to afford, till a miracle happened. A friend had the opposite problem in their back yard. They had to get rid of tons of dirt. When we realised we each had the solution to the other’s problem it was some relief.

When the man brought over the first load and saw how large our problem was, he said, “When I first heard you needed our dirt I worried we had too much, and you would not be able to take all we have to give. I think, however, you may be able to take it all.”

I said, “I’ll take all the dirt you can give me.”

I am sure a lesson of neighbourliness can be drawn from this, but I thought it could give us insight of how to deal with a much more serious issue in our lives.

What if our neighbours are throwing a different kind of dirt at us? What if someone is trying to destroy your reputation? What if a neighbour has a dispute with you and is refusing to reconcile your differences? I don’t need to list all of issues that could arise in our contact with people, both at work and at home.

The question is, “How much dirt can you take before you blow up and react in kind? How much capacity do you have to keep letting someone keep throwing dirt at you, without throwing it back at them with just as much venom as they are giving you.”

This is where the rubber meets the road.  We can talk about following our Lord, but how are we going to learn how to follow in His footsteps? How can we follow His example and take all the dirt people can throw at us, and not throw it back?

For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, ²² who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; ²³ and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously…” (1 Peter 2:21-23 – NASB)

The secret of learning to do what Jesus did is right before us. How did Jesus do it? He kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously.

What to do with the Dirt

(© Sunday 12^th April 2015 – by Christopher Shennan)

[Jesus]…while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously…” (1 Peter 2:23 – NASB)

So much dirt of the nasty kind

Just kept on coming my way;

Neighbours and friends and folks at work.

Always had things nasty to say.

Sometimes they liked to criticize,

At others, just and unkind word;

At other times a word of blame

Seemed to cut me – just like a sword.

This load of dirt kept piling up,

And crushing me under its power;

I felt like hurling it back at them,

And cause their spirits to cower.

Then I thought of my risen Lord;

When reviled he reviled not again.

He uttered no threats, bur trusted

His Father in Heaven – no blame.

I thought I would try His method,

And take all the dirt they could give,

Then pass it along to my Saviour;

Found it’s the only way to live.

I just keep on trusting my Lord

To take all the dirt they throw;

He knows where to put it, and I

Just praise Him wherever I go.

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Dirt Pile by Ichor202. Copyright. Used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; please note the Disclaimer at this link. We have made no changes to this photograph.

The Size of a Forgiving Heart

Heart by nevit. Used under the Attribution 3.0 Unported license. Please note the disclaimer at this last link. No changes were made to the image.

The Size of a Forgiving Heart

Then Peter came and said to Him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” ²² Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. (Matthew 18:21-22 – NASB)

Lest we get the idea forgiving others is a small operation, launched for the sake of avoiding conflict, Jesus throws us a curve-ball. He tells us in effect to think BIG when it comes to forgiveness. Not seven, but seventy times that number.

And I don’t think Jesus meant us to stop forgiving when we have forgiven someone 490 times. I think what he was talking about was developing a disposition from which forgiveness simply flows.

As I’ve mentioned before, this does not imply we should approve their actions, or that we should not hold them accountable. It does mean that all resentment has been expunged from our hearts, and that we have learned the meaning of mercy rather than sacrifice in dealing with others.

Peter thought seven times was quite enough to forgive someone’s trespass against him.

“No, no, Peter! Not seven times. Get real. Think big. Start with seventy times seven.”

How Many Times?

(© Friday 19^th December 2014 – by Christopher Shennan)

Then Peter came and said to Him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” ²² Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. (Matthew 18:21-22 – NASB)

It was quite enough, was my thought,

To forgive my brother just once,

Or at the outside two or three.

To forgive more, I’d be a dunce.

But then I heard my Lord ask me,

“How much have I forgiven you?

How many times when you asked Me

Did I cancel your debt? A few?”

“I have no idea,” I replied,”

“Just how many times that is;

A thousand times or more, I think.

If I tried to decide – I’d miss.”

“So, how many times, do you think

You should forgive your brother’s sin?

Would a thousand times be enough?

Or would you just then begin?

I felt quite ashamed after that,

That my forgiving was so mean;

I needed my heart to expand –

To allow more forgiveness in.

Now my heart is growing in size,

As I think of how often He,

My Lord and Master, has been kind,

And has freely forgiven me.

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The Poison of Unforgiveness

(This image is in the public domain.)

The Poison of Unforgiveness

So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses. (Matthew 18:35 – AKJV)

The story of the unforgiving servant in Matthew 18 is a stunning example of the consequences of an unforgiving disposition.

Briefly it is the story of a man who owed an impossible amount of money he had no hope of paying. In spite of this he received mercy; his debt was entirely wiped out because of the compassion of his master.

But this “wicked servant,” as his Master calls him later, goes out and demands payment of a small debt owed him by one of his fellow servants. He has deaf ears to the man’s pleas for time to pay. He goes so far as to have the man arrested for not paying his debt immediately.

So his Master pays him in kind, withdraws the forgiveness of his debt, and delivers him to the torturers till his debt is paid.

Now this is the point Jesus was trying to make when He said: So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses. (Matthew 18:35 – AKJV) If you do not forgive you are not forgiven. And it has to be from the heart that you forgive or it doesn’t count.

I saw this on a poster: “Unforgiveness is like taking poison and hoping the other guy dies.”

Holding on to the hurts others have done to us may be the stupidest thing you and I have ever done. Don’t do it.

A Bottle of Poison

(© Thursday 18^th December 2014 – by Christopher Shennan)

So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses. (Matthew 18:35 – AKJV)

I took a bottle of poison:

The label, it said: “Don’t forgive!”

But I knew if I ever drink it,

I would give up my right to live.

So I took, another bottle,

It said, “Forgive –You Will be Blessed!”

I drank it all and discovered

The Peace of my Lord and soul’s rest.

I’ve cast the first bottle away;

There’s no place in this heart of mine

For poisonous Unforgiveness.

To keep it would be a vile crime.

So friend, if you are still hurting,

And find that the pain is too deep,

Drink to the dregs “True Forgiveness”

And you’ll taste God’s Heavenly peace.

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Pre-forgiveness

The Return of the Prodigal Son. This work is in the public domain.

Pre-forgiveness

But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”  (Luke 23:34 – NASB)

I think we all struggle, with forgiveness to one degree or another. Forgiving others, I mean.

As Christians we do finally end up forgiving those who have injured us in some way, but it is often not an easy process. It seems that each new hurt suffered causes us to go through the same struggle to forgive as the one before it. We do finally forgive those who have despitefully used  or despised us, but we seem locked into a repetitive cycle.

Is this really necessary?

I think not.

Now I do not mean to imply that I am somehow on a higher plane than the rest of you. I am not. I have, however, tested and tried a way of forgiveness that has worked for me, and I pray it may even work for you. I call it pre-forgiveness.

About thirty years ago I bowed before the Lord and made a life commitment

“Dear Lord,” I prayed, “right here in this place I commit myself to forgive everyone who has done me harm in the past, anyone who is doing me harm in the present, and whoever may do me harm in the future.”

A simple enough prayer, but somehow the memory of that prayer has sustained me over the years. I think the Holy Spirit must have said “Amen!” to that prayer, for over the years I have had few struggles to forgive.

Doubtless, I will be tested on this in the future. None of us can be absolutely sure of our reaction to future ills, but I pass this on to you in the hope that God may gift you a forgiving heart.

Perhaps someone may come to you and ask forgiveness for some hurt you have sustained at their hand. You turn to them and say, “Too late. I forgave long ago – before you even thought to harm me.

Pre-forgiveness

(© Thursday 11^th December 2014 – by Christopher Shennan)

But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”  (Luke 23:34 – NASB)

I don’t want to go through endless struggles,

To forgive someone when they do me harm.

Lord please save me from repeated battles;

Make my heart loving, forgiving and warm.

I long to put the past all behind me,

As well as all the present ills arrayed,

And in the future for all who hate me,

I plead forgiveness just as I have prayed.

Few who hurt me know quite what they’ve done;

Their eyes are blinded by old Satan’s lies.

They know not the truth of the Holy One,

Or perceive what the law of love requires.

So forgive them, Lord, is my humble prayer;

That’s all I can say for the lost out there.

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Difficulties in Developing a Forgiving Heart

Martyrdom of St Stephen by Giorgio Vasari (during the 1560’s.) In the public domain

Difficulties in Developing a Forgiving Heart

Matthew 18:21-35

For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions. (Matthew 6:14-15 – NASB)

If I were asked to write a book on the five most essential teachings on the Christian life, one I could never allow myself to omit would be the Bible’s teaching on forgiveness.  I am not speaking here of God’s forgiveness, for no one can even enter the Christian life without that.  No, I would include a chapter, a very long chapter, on the necessity of forgiving others for the trespasses they have committed against us.

At some point I would focus on the difficulties in developing a forgiving heart.

1. The feeling that if I forgive someone for what they have done, I am somehow condoning their actions.  This is to confuse the meaning of forgiveness.  Both Jesus and Stephen prayed for the forgiveness of their persecutors, without condoning their actions.  Indeed, Stephen had previously accused them of always resisting the Holy Spirit.

2. The mistaken idea that the onus is on the other person to change before I can forgive them.  True, they must first repent before they can fully enjoy the forgiveness of God, but that is between them and God.  The command of Christ to us is: But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. (Matthew 5:44-45)

The motivation for forgiveness is a desire to be like the Father, not to use forgiveness as a lever to force change in another.  Changing the other person is God’s business – forgiving them is ours.

An Example to Follow

(© Monday 15^th December – by Christopher Shennan)

Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!” Having said this, he fell asleep. (Acts 7:60 – NASB)

“Do not hold this sin against them!”

Stephen the brave martyr cried out;

Stones thrown with hate rained upon him –

Forgiveness was all he could shout.

He did not approve their actions,

Or utter a curse or demand;

He called on God to forgive them,

As his blood dripped down in the sand.

Such an example to follow,

Should set our cold hearts aflame;

It should make us once more desire

To love our dear Saviour again.

Forgiveness is not just an option,

Or a fashion, passing away;

It’s a fire that burns in you

Demanding forgiveness today.

Walk in the footsteps of Jesus,

And some of His followers, too;

Don’t make excuses and falter –

The loss will be too much for you.

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