Blog #75 December 27, 2023
1 John 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
This is a promise given to us by God through John. He is promising us that upon HIs return we will know Christ because we will be like Him. Gracious, that is an intimidating thought and a tall order I can only hope to fulfill.
When we examine Christ life, we come to realize that He came to be that promised perfect sacrifice for the rebellious nature of all mankind that they might be redeemed. Christ was to give all who would listen the knowledge of why to serve truth and righteousness and the chance to choose, but that was not the fullness of His mission here on earth. For His sacrifice to accomplish anything it had to reflect the perception of how hard it is to live in the world of man. To be a credible witness to the plight of humanity, I have to assume that Christ was subjected to the human condition in all its glory. When He set down to eat, He did so because He was hungry. When He hit His thumb with a hammer, it hurt. When He was rewarded for something He did well, He was happy, and when He was scolded it made Him sad. Not much is recorded about Christ as a child. What was written affirms that even though He was of divine lineage, He grew as any child grows.
DC 90:1g-2b
90:1g And I, John, bear record that I beheld his glory, as the glory of the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth; even the Spirit of truth which came and dwelt in the flesh, and dwelt among us.
90:2a And I, John, saw that he received not of the fullness at the first, but received grace for grace; and he received not of the fullness at first, but continued from grace to grace, until he received a fullness;
90:2b and thus he was called the Son of God, because he received not of the fullness at the first.
Luke2:52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.
Now don't get me wrong, the Christ that died on the cross at Calvary was in the eyes of God an absolute spiritual authority, on a holy mission; and I believe that with all my heart. When one of His own sought to protect Him from being captured by the soldiers both the true authority of Christ and His mission for God were revealed. He truly is a soldier of God, but the weapons He wields are humility, compassion, charity, and love.
Matthew 26:48-52
26:48 Then came they and laid hands on Jesus, and took him.
26:49 And behold, one of them which were with Jesus, stretched out his hand and drew his sword, and struck a servant of the high priest, and smote off his ear.
26:50 Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into its place; for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.
26:51 Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?
26:52 But how then shall the Scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?
Most of what we know of the life and ministry of Christ comes from the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. I believe them to be factual and reliable eyewitness accounts of Christ and His ministry. As I read, study, and grow in these descriptions of Christ, I find it hard to believe that I can even hope to become like the man they describe.
Acts 2:22 Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know;
Even God recognizes Christ as a man, and through this righteous man the blessings of God poured out to the world. As I study and grow I begin to understand that God is the true source for all that Christ did.
Isaiah 29:25 For behold, I am God; and I am a God of miracles; and I will show unto the world that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and I work not among the children of men, save it be according to their faith.
Christ sought to teach us that anyone who allows the fullness of God to school and direct them is capable of any and all of what He accomplished in His ministry.
John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
Even with all this knowledge, I was still face with the overwhelming task of becoming more like Jesus Christ. Then God in HIs mercy and wisdom brought me this:
Psalms 1:1-2
1:1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
1:2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
I know this passage well and have even preached sermons with it as my source, but the quandary I faced opened my heart to a whole new application of its words to my life. Though it dealt with what not to do instead of what to do, it became the very best description of Christ I had ever read. I would like to share with you what I learned and how I grew in the knowledge of how I can become more like Christ.
Psalms1:1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
Notice that the three postures described in the verse are postures of choice. The only natural pose of the human body is when we allow gravity to win, and we lay down. One must choose to walk, stand, or set. As I expanded the intrinsic meanings of the three postures, I discovered that David truly did understand that a righteous life does not just happen. It is a construct that requires the efforts of both God and His children working together.
Walketh: H3212 Halak {haw-lak'}
1. To go, walk, come, depart, proceed, move, go away to die, live, manner of life
2. To lead, bring, lead away, carry, cause to walk
I am convinced that "who" we are in the world is by far the most powerful testimony we can offer. In past blogs we have discussed the testimony we offer the world by the way we live. This passive testimony speaks loudly so we must be sure that the source of this testimony is full of truth and virtue according to God. Think of how many times each day we face this "council of the ungodly". Each day we are face with a growing number of diversions that the world tries to convince us are completely benign and acceptable. We have many paths we can walk. Consider alcohol, gourmet foods, gambling, vanity, media both song and film, not to mention the electronically fueled gossip center we call social media. Consider the many paths we can walk and realize that all of them can and will lead us away from God.
Job 16:11 God hath delivered me to the ungodly, and turned me over into the hands of the wicked.
If we seek to be as Christ, we cannot "live" (walk) in the counsel of the ungodly" because it will "lead others away" and "cause them to walk" on a path that leads to death.
Psalms1:1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
Standeth: H5975 āmad {aw-mad'} to stand, take one's stand, be in a standing attitude, stand forth, take a stand, present oneself, attend upon, be or become servant of.
This one seems to be an extension of "walketh in the ways of the ungodly", except for one thing. Living in the ways of sin accepts the ways of the world, but standing up or promoting sin sanctifies the sin and actively endorses it as a way of life. Probably the single biggest ungodly tool we face is credit. Among our youngsters, a good credit rating is our greatest single indicator of financial success, despite the fact that all it indicates is the world's willingness to give us what we can't afford in exchange for an income we have yet to earn. God offers us something much more in-line with growth we pursue and the security we seek
Alma 9:35-41
9:39 And now I would that ye should be humble, and be submissive, and gentle; easy to be entreated; full of patience and long suffering; being temperate in all things; being diligent in keeping the commandments of God at all times;
9:40 Asking for whatsoever things ye stand in need, both spiritual and temporal; always returning thanks unto God for whatsoever things ye do receive,
9:41 And see that ye have faith, hope, and charity, and then ye will always abound in good works;
Psalms1:1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
Sitteth: Strong's H3427 yāšaḇ {yaw-shab'} To dwell, remain, sit, abide
To sitteth is to rest, in the fullness of all understanding with no need to seek further knowledge. Humanity is ever burdened with the pride that tells them to cease growing because there is no more to learn, but in God this is mistake so devastating that it can destroy our faith and continually hide from our hearts the true unity of oneness with God we seek.
2 Nephi 12:36-38
12:36 For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little:
12:37 And blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom;
12:38 For unto him that receiveth, I will give more: and from them that shall say, We have enough, shall be taken away even that which they have.
This continual rollercoaster of incomplete growth has a created so many different perceptions of God and what He can bring humanity, that an ever-growing number of people just give up on God, the ways of God, and any kind of concept that would give us hope for a life beyond this one.
Psalms 1:1-2
1:1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
1:2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
The fullness of this passage opens my heart to that which I can do while I am filling my life with not walking, nor standing, nor sitting in the ways of the world. Instead, I can fill my life with God and His ways.
John 13:34-35
13:34 A new commandment I give unto you. That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
13:35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
As we walk forward in this path God will guide us to people who seek what we seek and want to gain it in a way that is acceptable to God. As a people we can grow to be one in Christ by reaching out to be one in God.
John 17:20-23
17:20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
17:21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us; that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
17:22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one;
17:23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
If these last few passages of scripture confuse you, don't feel alone. For me I had to read them several times slowly to grasp their full meaning. God brought these words to us in this manner that we might understand what He seeks to achieve. Look to the shirt you are wearing and single out one strand of the material and slowly trace it around the shirt to its individual finish. I myself couldn't do it and I finally realized that that is exactly what God is trying to achieve. Without sacrificing our individuality God wants us to be so much a part of the whole that we can recognize other individuals even Christ because of our likeness to them in the fullness of the body. In that we can be like Christ because He is like us.
1 Corinthians 13:12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face; now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
Open yourself to the fullness of God's way.
Live in His image and rejoice.
FRED
Create With me Our Testimony of God at Work in the World of Man.