Ever been in a situation that seems just too big, too deep, too loud and basically moving way too fast that you feel it is impossible to cross or get through?   You begin to look for alternatives to get to the other side, but frankly there aren’t any. You might as well just take a seat and watch life just float on by (Metaphorically speaking of course). I’d like to share what it’s like to be at the water’s edge and have God deliver us–across.

We begin our journey in Joshua chapter 3. Brief summary of where we are on God’s timeline: Moses has brought the Israelites out of Egypt and out of slavery. They are heading for the Promise Land, their inheritance, a place to call their own. Due to MANY circumstances (which could not be contained in this article) they wander for 40 years. Following Moses’ death, Joshua, who now holds the reins of leadership, prepares the people to cross the Jordan River into the Land. Can you imagine with me what it was like for Joshua as he opened Moses’ will, “To Jeped I leave my sandals, to Eliazer my cloak, and to Joshua–THEM. The thousands, those who complain, the dusty ones. May Jehovah have mercy on your soul!” (TOTALLY kidding)

We pick the story up: Their tents pitched on the river’s edge. They could see it, after all these years, THERE it was! HOWEVER, the river stood between them and their inheritance. The river is at flood stage. They were SO close! Oh great, we get here, and this is what we find, it is bigger, wider, faster and deeper than expected.

Joshua summons the people: “Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow the LORD will do AMAZING things among you” (v.5 emphasis mine). Looking at the flooded river, yep amazing is what it is going to take! I love this amazing. We find it in another known story, Genesis 18:14, where God tells Abe and Sarah that in their old age they will have a son and remember Sarah laughs (who wouldn’t!) God says, “Is anything too hard for the LORD? I will return to you at the appointed time next year and Sarah will have a son.” Too hard, it is the same ‘amazing‘ (in Hebrew) as in Joshua. Is anything too amazing for God–too hard for HIM?

The river is RAGING. Joshua has the priests carry the ark of the covenant, God’s represented presence on their shoulders. “When you reach the edge of the Jordan’s water, go and stand in the river” (v.8). Just stand. Verse 15, “Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, the water from up-stream stopped flowing.” Go God! As they walked to the middle of the river, they stood firm on dry ground.  Twelve men were chosen to gather a stone from the middle of the river and take it to the other side, building an altar. Being symbolic of God’s deliverance–at the river. The rest of the folks entered, passed through and to the other side.

What a wonderful lesson and principle for us. Regardless of what brought the Israelites to this point, they stepped in, passed by, the priests stayed right there in the middle of the river, until all were safe. God’s presence staying in the middle of OUR circumstance until we are safely on the other side. Just as with the Israelites, we won’t experience God until the first dipped toe.

Coming to the river requires a decision. There is most often a tendency to hover near the water’s edge. Like with Israel, it also is a meeting place with God, a place of dedication, devotion and purpose. But we are NEVER to stay there. Reminder, the land has already been spied out, no need to wait for recon reports, you are GOOD to go! Our inheritance (joy, freedom, assurance, security, love), awaits us on the other side. Our options? GO or stay and just watch the water go by or turn back–into the desert, wander some more, even go back into captivity.

Us, “Too hard!” God–AMAZING! Jesus says in Luke 18:27 “What is impossible with men, is possible with God.” God takes the ‘im’ in impossible and turns it into ‘I AM’.

God crosses with us, stays with us and delivers us.

We do as the 12 leaders did, we take something from the river as a reminder and build in our heart as an altar before God, HERE and now YOU preserved me, YOU brought me through, YOUR presence stayed there in the middle of it all–to see me (not only on) but to the other side!

Delivering water needs to be crossed. God with us, God in us, God delivering us from what we deem impossible.

At the river’s edge.

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds.” – Hebrew 10:24)

(Side Note) I spoke this a few years ago at a women’s retreat, in the middle of the aisle I had a treasure chest full of stones. I felt God wanted us as women to identify our river. We, standing on one side, and NEEDING to cross over into what God wanted for us. The gals were encouraged to take a stone and write on it (pen provided) what was ‘too hard’, what they wanted–NEEDED from God. There was a boatload of crossing over that day.

In my quiet time I have been reading through the book of Galatians. I am fascinated of Pauls telling of his encounter with Jesus. Paul, zealous in the traditions of his forefathers, advancing ahead of his colleagues, and once a persecutor of the Christians. Then dramatically calls it like it is “But when God” (Galatians 1:15, NIV) —everything changed. Don’t you just love it! We all need a “but when God” in our life!  He goes on to say God called him by His grace and revealed His Son to him (v16).

When Jesus presented Himself to Paul (remember the bright blinding light). He knocked Paul on his backside and was appealing first to His senses. He had to get Paul’s attention!  Paul was a highly educated man, a thinking man. Perhaps God was getting past his head so he could not attempt to rationalize the encounter, (thus three days of blindness).  The verse goes on to say, this revelation—all was done ultimately “so that” he might preach Him. (See Galatians 1:11-16 and Acts 9).

I appreciate that the Word of God is so practical. The phrase “so that” (used 80x in the NKJV) not only gives us a connecting clause but also is powerful and insightful—this is why.  Not that God needs a reason, but graciously and divinely, the writers included it and the Holy Spirit breathes understanding through it.  

• “Walk in the ways of the LORD your God so that you may live and prosper” (Deut. 5:33). 
•  All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16,17). 
• Paul prays “I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better” (Ephesians 1:17). 
• “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). 
• “Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes” (Ephesians 6:11).
• “Pray for us (Paul & crew) that God may open a door for our message “so that” we may proclaim the mystery of Christ (Col 4:3)

May we spot the “so that’s” in scripture, aware there is a reason, and the reason is intended to be known. May we also see the “so that” in everyday life. Being mindful of moments (i.e.) realizing perhaps a delay was divinely designed “so that” we were able to see God move, or God move through us. Or, the slow tractor on the road is a blessing, so that I may avoid an accident up the road a bit.

Noting too, like Paul, God may find the need to get our attention and knock us on our backside, (He has me a couple-three times and expect there will be more). When He does, let’s look for the reason, “So that ______________________” (you and Holy Spirit fill in the blank).

The graciousness of God, “This is why.”

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds” – Hebrews 10:24).

There is a story of a farmer that had an icehouse. During the winter he and his workers would cut ice blocks from the nearby pond and then place them on a bed of sawdust in the icehouse, covering the blocks with more sawdust. At one point the farmer noticed he lost his beloved pocket watch in all his work. He and his workers went in frantically raking through the sawdust, moving ice blocks to find the watch, but to no avail—it was not found. The farmer’s son, about age ten, heard of the situation. While the workers were out on another project, he slipped into the icehouse and after a little time he came out with the watch in hand giving it to his father. The father was so excited, he asked, “How did you find it?” The boy answered, “I laid down in the sawdust, laying there quietly. I just listened.”

What a beautiful example of purposeful positioning WITH expectation. King David penned. “In the morning, O LORD, You hear my voice; I lay my request before you and wait in expectation” (Psalm 5:3, NIV). David didn’t sit there filling the conversation. He leaned in, leaned forward in eagerness, expecting God’s response. He knew if he was quiet enough, patient and waited, like the little boy—he would hear Him.

How often do we too go looking for God, yet noisily, raking around, turning things over. Or we jet off into our day, not even waiting for a response, when indeed God wants us to hear Him. What would expectant positioning look like for us?  For you?

Maybe God is waiting for us like He was Moses. Exodus 3, Moses is out tending to the sheep when he sees a bush on fire. It wasn’t until Moses gave his full stop and attention, positioning himself at the bush that God spoke: “When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” (v 4) Moses doesn’t say anything. In his quiet, he takes his sandals off and listens.

For some of us, showing up is our first step. May we too be purposeful, attentive, full stop, eagerly waiting—quietly. 

Sawdust listening.

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds.” – Hebrews 10:24)

Remember back and for some of us WAAAAY back, when we were in the 4th or 5th grade. Out on the playground we would divide up into teams for a ball game. That had to be some of the most frustrating moments of childhood. Nervous thoughts of “Will I be picked?” Or remember when the list was posted for those making the team following tryouts? We stood a slight distance away, yet just close enough to see if our name was there, but not too close to being faced with rejection by our name’s absence.

Making the list. Go ahead admit it, we all want to be wanted, picked and deemed valuable! We all have areas of our life where we fall short, lack the skill or just can’t seem to get it right. In these, we begin to see ourselves as less valuable than others. Perhaps even become resentful, envious of those who do seem to have it all together. (They really don’t by the way).

Ever notice that we may take these perspectives, or might I say insecurities into our relationship with God?  Often, we may find our head bowed, not necessarily in reverence, but out of frustration.  Words painfully escape our whispering lips, “Will You, can You … use … ME!”  Then continue to list all our shortcomings, these becoming our excuses and before we know it, we are telling God why He shouldn’t want us.

In short, dear friends, have we ever considered the ‘list’ that God compiled? The list of Biblical proportion. These folks did stupid things, (STUPID). Made BIG mistakes, when told to do something God’s way, they chose the DIY and ran.  Some were too small, too old, too ugly and too worrisome.

Eve listened to the Devil *Rahab was a prostitute *Adam blame shifted *Jeremiah and Timothy were too young *David had an affair and was a murderer *Abraham was too old *Elijah was suicidal *Isaac was a daydreamer *Isaiah preached naked (oops) *Jacob was a liar *Jonah ran from God *Leah was ugly *Naomi was a widow *Joseph was abused *Job went bankrupt *Moses stuttered *John the Baptist ate bugs *Aaron watched the idol-making *Peter denied Christ *Gideon was afraid *The Disciples fell asleep while praying *Sampson had long hair and was a womanizer *Martha worried about everything *The Samaritan woman was divorced, (more than once) *Zacchaeus was too small *Paul was too religious AND Lazarus was dead!  DEAD I tell you!

Here it comes … (Wait for it) … HOWEVER. God used ALL these people! They were part of His plan. They all had weaknesses of some sort. Do you find yourself among this list?  Do you worry, then beat yourself up for lack of faith? Do you fall asleep when you pray, then believe the lie you don’t love God enough?

God moved in and through these people’s lives. Aren’t you glad God didn’t hide the background history from these folks?  God is the Redeemer of our soul, life and YES mistakes, failures, and shortcomings. Have you been divorced, afraid, abused, bankrupted or drunk or eat weird things.  And let’s face it, said things before your brain was engaged? (Yay Peter). God is God. He compiles the List!  YOU made the list, the list of redeemed mankind. (Group hug!)

Because of Jesus, YOU are sons & daughters of the Most High God! YOU are valuable! YOU are loved! YOU made the List!  HIS list!  Regardless.

Big plans for YOU!

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds” – Hebrews 10:24)

Recently I had the honor of speaking from the pulpit at my church. We have been in a series called “Strong in Faith” and going through the Nicene Creed* (See defined below). It is impactful to slow down and take a fresh look at “What you believe—and why.”

Last week I wrote about the three points (I call) Mission, Majesty and Man, explaining the line from the creed: “Who for us and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary and was made man.” Please read part one What You Believe and Why? (Part One) | Inspired Fountain

WHY did Jesus HAVE to come down from heaven and become man under divine circumstances? (Sorry, this is long, but good to know!)

Going back to the very beginning. When Adam (and Eve) disobeyed God, sin entered the world. Adam being the 1st man, now set the condition for all mankind (the sin nature).

Adam’s sin and guilt are imputed to us and becomes our guilt. Meaning, the guilt and penalty of their disobedience was now credited to all humanity. (Thanks guys!)  We are born with sinful nature. In God’s gracious move, He sent Adam and Eve out of the Garden, barring them from re-entry. If He had allowed them to stay and they ate from the Tree of Life, they would FOREVER live (stuck) in their broken state with God.

God established a sacrificial system to temporarily cover man’s sin and atone for wrongdoing, highlighting a life must be given for sin. Satisfying the sin-filled offense to God. “For the life of the body is in its blood. I have given you the blood on the altar to purify you, making you right with the LORD. It is the blood given in exchange for a life, that makes purification possible” (Levitus 17:11, NLT). The Bible is very clear that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin.  We may not understand it, but it is God’s way!

God spares NO detail. Track with me, this is good!  In Exodus 25, God gives the instructions for building the Tabernacle, where God’s presence would dwell.  “Make the atonement cover (Also known as the MERCY SEAT) of pure gold… Make two cherubim’s out of hammered gold at the ends of the cover. Make one cherub on one end and the second at the other end” (v18). It was to be placed on the other side of the veil, in the Holy of Holies: Priests, once a year would place the blood sacrifice on the lid between the two cherubim (Leviticus 16). Forgiveness of sin was made here between the two cherubim.

Fast forward to John 20:On the 3^rd day after Jesus’ death, Mary’s at the tomb, she looks in “She saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been, one at the head and one at the feet.” (v12) Forgiveness of sin was made here between the two angels. The (final) blood sacrifice had indeed been placed! Nothing more needed on our part, except… see below.

Why Jesus?

Since something was broken between God and man, a fix was needed that represented both God and man. In any mediation, themediator must be acceptable to both parties. Jesus being FULLY man and FULLY God could represent both sides. Jesus came to mediate between man and God.

That is why the redemptive plan needed Jesus to come from a virgin woman. A human + human could not work; the representation would be only one sided. Genesis 3:15 God speaking to the serpent right after the fall: (I summarize) “I will put hostility between you and the woman, Her SEED “he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”  This is the 1^st Messianic prophecy in scripture. They aren’t even out of the Garden and God is unfolding the plan.

Interesting it speaks of the seed of a woman rather than the seed of a man. This unusual wording indicates that the woman’s offspring would not have an earthly father (pointing to the virgin birth, Matthew 1:20–23, fulfilling Isaiah 7:14).  When in context to the human reproductive system, “seed” is generally attributed to whom? The man. There is NO human seed involved—ONLY divine agent. The Holy Spirit acts as the divine agent who causes the conception of Jesus in the virgin Mary.

All other men bore Adam’s image/likeness, stained with sin, but Jesus—by virtue of the conception by the Holy Spirit—did not.  FULLY God in human form. This allowed Jesus to be the sinless mediator necessary for humanity’s salvation, breaking the inherited cycle of sin from Adam.

Here’s where you and I come in.

God created man in His image and likeness (Genesis 1:26). Image = appearance/ Likeness = function. Fast forward (after the fall) Adam and Eve have children.  Genesis chapter 5 specifically says Adam’s son was in his (Adam’s) likeness, and his image (v3). And so goes mankind (in Adam’s fallen nature).

Then Jesus…

John 3, remember Jesus talking to Nicodemus. Stating man cannot see the Kingdom of Heaven unless he is “born again.” Man, is 1^st born with Adam’s sinful nature—needs to be born again, born of the Spirit (From darkness to light). Jesus continues to explain it, running right into the well-known John 3:16.

Remember when we are born (of the human race) we are born with the inherited offense of Adam. When we are spiritually born-again, accepting Jesus’ sacrifice, His Lordship, His grace, we get the full Jesus package, His blood sacrifice covers US! God credits Jesus to our account.

The gospel is simply-complex. God knows what’s required for access to Him, the eternal Son of God stepped into our world. He lived, died and rose again so that we—could be brought back to Him.

It’s not our “good”, our skill, title, talents, achievements, not even our great “try”—NOT one. It’s only Jesus.

This takes us right up to Easter! Oh, be mindfully aware of this season.  It’s all about Him!

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds.” – Hebrews 10:24)

(Above is an excerpt from my Sunday Service teaching, I got to be geeky and talk theology! Yes, I know there are so many verses I could bring in, I tried to keep this simple to understand, “what and why” Jesus did for YOU!)

*The Nicene Creed is a foundational statement of Christian faith, founded solely on scripture: Due to circulating false teaching, church leaders (in 325 AD, Nicaea) and updated in 381 AD (Constantinople) worked to define core doctrines. It declares belief in the Trinity (Father, Son, Holy Spirit), the divinity of Jesus Christ, His incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection and the Church.

This last weekend I had the honor of speaking from the pulpit at my church. We have been in a series called “Strong in Faith” and going through the Nicene Creed* (See defined below). It is impacting to slow down and take a fresh look at “What you believe—and why.”

A.W. Tozer wrote, “What first comes to mind when you think about God is the most important thing about you.” [“Knowledge of the Holy.”]  Our understanding of God frames our life compass.  If our view of God is one of anger and punishment, we may live trying to be good, as to not make Him mad, we become a works performance follower. Or if we feel He is uninterested (with a shrug of the shoulder) we too are uninterested. If our view of God, is He is holy and FULL of mercy, He is King of all! We are grace recipients—our life looks much different.

Our thoughts and beliefs dictate the way we live. We live what we believe about God. We all have known folks (or have been one) who are living a reckless life (poor decisions, willful disobedience) living out their belief system.

What do we believe?

“Who for us and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary and was made man.” [My portion of the Creed]

This beautifully summarizes the coming of Jesus Christ into our world. In just a few phrases it tells us: Why He came. Where He came from. How He came to us.  Reminding us that the birth of Jesus was not just an event or another name listed in history, “There once was a man named Jesus.” It was rather the unfolding of God’s gracious great plan to rescue humanity.

We can understand these phrases, with three simple words: Mission, Majesty and Man.

First: The Mission: “Who for us and for our salvation.” He came to save. He came with a clear and deliberate mission. The prior lines in the creed declare the Person of Christ (begotten and equal with the Father) now we look at the work of Christ.

Jesus said, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10).  Paul writes “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15). THAT was Jesus’ mission. Every miracle, every teaching, every step toward the cross, His wonder-filled resurrection and beyond was part of that mission.

Second: The Majesty – “Came Down from Heaven.”  These words remind us that Jesus did not begin His existence in Bethlehem, as a lil baby in the manger. Before He was born of Mary, He already existed with the Father.  John 1:1: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Jesus said, “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me” (John 6:38).

Think about what this means. The One who walked the dusty roads of Galilee was the same One who shared the glory of heaven. The King of Heaven stepped down into our broken world.

Majesty indeed!

“Who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (NKJV). That is the majesty of Christ’s coming—the eternal Son of God humbled Himself for our sake.

Make no mistake, this was NOT an exchange of deity for humanity. Jesus is both Creator and Savior. He is not one or the other, He is both. Was He God or was He man? Yes.

Third: The Man: Jesus was “incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary and was made man.”  Incarnate, simply is Latin for “in the flesh.” He Became one of us. This is the great mystery of the Christian faith; God was now flesh.

The angel told Joseph: “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.”  All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:  “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”–which means, “God with us” (Matthew 1:20–23, quoting and fulfilling Isaiah 7:14)

Jesus remained what He was and took up what He was not. Fully human and yet fully God united in one person. “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). “For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body”(Colossian 2:9).  He experienced human life—hunger, sorrow, temptation, fatigue (Naps! Jesus took naps). He was even angry—yet without sin.

The Mission. The Majesty. The Man.  Sounds like a good movie. But the Book is much better. He came down from heaven, becoming one of us—for us, for our salvation.

NEXT WEEK: WHY did Jesus HAVE to come down from heaven and become man under divine circumstances?

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we make spur one another on toward love & good deeds” – Hebrews 10:24)

(Above is an excerpt from my Sunday Service teaching, I got to be geeky and talk theology!)

*The Nicene Creed is a foundational statement of Christian faith based solely on scripture: Due to circulating false teaching, church leaders (in 325 AD, Nicaea) and updated in 381 AD (Constantinople) worked to define core doctrines. It declares belief in the Trinity (Father, Son, Holy Spirit), the divinity of Jesus Christ, His incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection and the Church.

I have been asked as a Bible teacher, “What does the Word of God do for you, YOU personally?”  Oh my, where do I start. Besides the Bible being a sturdy textbook in my hand. A book that is true. When I read God’s inspired Word, first it confirms. Confirms that I too am a fallible person just as the characters in the Bible are—real broken people peppered throughout the story of God. When I read about Peter, I can relate to his ambitious outbursts, his swinging the sword and getting the guy’s ear. Yep, that would be me. Plus, with all good intention, I too would ask Jesus if we can build forts for the visitors (See Mark 9).  Yes, God’s word confirms.

God’s Word also gives me courage. I read King David’s story; I see the longing of his heart. He ran at full speed toward his God. Yet, I also see stupid mistakes. I so appreciate God not covering up the faults of His heroes. Repeatedly, in each person’s experience, unmistakenly, we see the character of God moving. His serious response. His care. THIS gives me courage. In the same breath, it encourages me. Taking those experiences, observing, and learning from them, folding them into my own and giving me courage to walk in the same direction.

Confronts.  Oh, His Word confronts and thankfully so. If when reading His Word and we feel no discomfort at times, then we are reading it wrong. We are guarded and unyielding. Professor D.A. Carson* insightfully stated, “We read the Bible, not to be a master of it, but to be mastered by it.”  THAT is my desire. Do I heed and yield every time? No. Regretfully, painfully, remorsefully—no.  But. I know the sweet moment of repentance followed by the glorious insertion of God’s forgiveness and grace.

Additionally, for me, God’s Word calls. Not like some creepy native Jumanji drumming sound coming from the corner of the room. But knowing what God’s Word contains—it beckons. It beckons with the fullness of God, His promises, His guidance, His correction, His character wrapped in His love and yes, His comfort.  Life can be stressful and assuredly messy and overwhelming, scary and painful but His Word waits for us to reach for it and when we do, His Spirit uses it—to calm us.  “They (God’s commandments, words, and instruction) are more desirable than gold, even the finest gold. They are sweeter than honey, even honey dripping from the comb.” (Psalm 19:10, NLT, emphasis mine).

God’s Word confirms, gives courage, confronts, calls and comforts, but most of all—it CAPTIVATES me.  I am fascinated with the stories; the triumphs, war cries, the bush a flame, mud in the eyes, violent storms and the unrestrained and abandoned “My Lord and my God!” declaration. (John 20:28).  And all those words in red: “It is written… Get up… Take courage it is I… Quiet, be still… Come forth…Who do you say I am… Then neither do I condemn you…” and “It is finished.”  (Just to highlight a few).

Now, I present the question to YOU.  “What does God’s Word do for you?”  If your response is a shrug of the shoulder, ask God to grow your passion. Ask Him to show you things unnoticed, to color the stories vibrantly, and challenge you beyond comfort. He will.

HIS word.

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds.” – Hebrews 10:24)

*Professor D.A. Carson is retired Professor of the New Testament at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.