The secret is no longer hidden. The word is out, and today many men see beyond the symbolism to the significance of the cross. They, having been forgiven, love him, and serve him. They rightly revere the cross and the one about whom it speaks.
April 16
TO READ: Psalm 62
Waiting Quietly
I wait quietly before G.o.d, for my salvation comes from him.
Psalm 62:1
When men go shopping, they usually know what they want, they pick it up, they take it to the checkout counter, they pay for it, and they leave. Mission accomplished. When women go shopping. they are not necessarily looking for something specific. They enjoy seeing whatas available, trying it on, comparing it, buying it, taking it home, trying it on again, and then returning it. No doubt there are exceptions to these stereotypes, but not many!
Should a man find himself going shopping with his wife, he will have plenty of time to contemplate his fate as he waits for what seems an endless amount of time. But it will seem to be only a few minutes to his wife! In such scenarios, men are usually impatient. Should another hapless male come by in a similar situation, they will share their pain and commiserate with each other. Men are not very good at waiting!
But David was good at waiting. He said, aI waited quietly before G.o.d, for my salvation comes from hima (Ps. 62:1). The difference is striking. On the one hand, a man waits impatiently for his wife to do something in which he has no interest. In fact, he may even actively disapprove. On the other hand, a man waits before G.o.d to intervene in affairs that are vitally important to him.
Waiting abefore G.o.da suggests waiting in a particular place in a particular posture. It is waiting in an att.i.tude of worship and dependence rather than hanging around hoping something will happen. Waiting before G.o.d involves actively focusing upon who he is and what he is doing in the world while waiting for his answers to arrive.
Those men who are used to being in control of their own lives, and the lives of others, find waiting before G.o.d particularly difficult. They will tell you that atime is money,a and while they are supposed to be waiting they expect answers to be forthcoming. But David had come to the point of admitting that he could not fix his problema"aso many enemies against one mana (62:3). He knew that his only hope was in the Lordas intervention.
G.o.d works at his own pace and in his own way. No amount of impatience will alter the speed or the manner in which G.o.d will work out his purposes. So when the only direction you can turn is to the Lord, and the only way to look is up, remember to wait before him as you wait for him. He will act. And donat be impatient, because his clock keeps perfect time.
April 17
TO READ: Genesis 24:1-27
Right Hand Man
aO LORD, G.o.d of my master,a he prayed. aGive me success and show kindness to my master, Abraham. Help me to accomplish the purpose of my journey.a Genesis 24:12
The special a.s.sistants of great men become accustomed to being given extraordinary tasks. So they need to be fine men, too. Frequently the great men draw all the attention, and the a.s.sistants fit conveniently into the background. Yet without the man behind the scenes, the main man would often have difficulty functioning.
Abraham was a great man. And he had a truly fine a.s.sistant. There is reason to believe that the name of Abrahamas a.s.sistant was Eliezer (see Gen. 15:2). Whatever his name, Abrahamas a.s.sistant was athe man in charge of [Abrahamas] householda and ahis oldest servanta (24:2).
Abraham charged his a.s.sistant with a very difficult a.s.signment. The a.s.sistant was instructed to find a suitable wife for his bossas son. Imagine! He not only had to find a girl whom the boss would approve of, but no doubt he would want to find a girl whom the young man would be excited about, too.
It is worth noting that if the man was indeed Eliezer, the arrival of the bossas son on the scene had robbed him of the chance to inherit Abrahamas vast fortunes. Reason enough in many situations to cause deep resentment on his part toward Abrahamas son. But this man was a fine man!
His task was not made any easier by the specific instructions that he was given and the severe restrictions that were placed on his choice. He was not allowed to take the young man with him, and he could not look for a wife anywhere other than in Abrahamas family. This necessitated his traveling a considerable distance from home, back to where Abraham had lived before G.o.d called him to the Promised Land.
When he asked for help from Abraham, the a.s.sistant was told, aThe Lord, the G.o.d of heaven, . . . will send his angel ahead of you, and he will see to it that you find a young woman there to be my sonas wifea (24:7). With that a.s.surance, he began his walk of faith.
When he arrived in the vicinity of Abrahamas extended family, he realized how slim his chances of finding the right girl were. So he prayed about it, asking G.o.d to do exactly what Abraham had told him G.o.d would do. And G.o.d did. Rebekah, the Lordas beautiful choice, arrived on the scene, proved herself a fine woman, and agreed to the proposal.
The star of this story is not the big man, Abraham. No, the star is the quiet, una.s.suming, faithful, prayerful, reliable man behind the scenesa"the man who honored and served his earthly master and loved and trusted his heavenly Lord. Our world needs more like him.
April 18
TO READ: Genesis 24:59-67
Meditation
One evening . . . [Isaac] was taking a walk out in the fields, meditating.
Genesis 24:63
Busy men live at a fast pace. Their time is precious, their tasks are numerous, and the demands on them are unrelenting. There are not enough hours in the day, and they suspect there may not be enough years in their lives to accomplish all that needs to be done. So business, productivity, time management, meeting deadlines, and akeeping all the b.a.l.l.s in the aira serve to define the lifestyle of such a man. Health is neglected, marriage suffers from lack of attention, children become strangers, and spiritual life gets lost in the shuffle. Such a man is not unaware of the situation, and he is not unconcerned about it. In fact, he promises himself that he will make the necessary changes to make his life more meaningful and to restore some semblance of balance to his days. Such promises are, sadly, often unfulfilled. A heart attack, enforced retirement, or marital breakdown may thrust him into a position of contemplation and rumination. Better late than never, certainly. But how much better it would have been if he had seen the value of contemplation and meditation earlier in life.
Isaac knew the value of contemplation. Being the son of Abraham obviously had its advantages, and presumably being heir apparent had its responsibilities. With his fatheras advancing years and his motheras recent decease, Isaac could not avoid contemplating his future. Added to that was his impending marriage to a woman he had never met! No wonder ahe was taking a walk out in the fields, meditatinga (Gen. 24:63)!
No doubt Isaac had many things competing for his attention, and undoubtedly there were numerous things requiring careful thought and wise decisions. But unless he took the time to clear his mind, escape distractions, and concentrate his attention, there was a real possibility that his life would go the way of the busy, unthoughtful mana"the way of inevitable confusion and ultimate disappointment.
Isaac needed to think through the significance of the covenant G.o.d had made with his fathera"a covenant that included him. He could profitably ponder the way his father had handled the difficult problem with Lot. And Lotas bad decisions and his hair-raising escape from the consequences certainly merited a degree of meditation.
Modern men should copy Isaac, factoring time into their lives for thoughtfulness and disciplining their thought-lives to concentrate on issues other than those dictated by immediacy. Urgent and pressing matters will demand attention and get it. But it takes times of meditation to deal with ultimate, eternal, spiritual, and moral issues. Strident and spectacular communications will arrest the attention. But it is in the quiet fields that meditation on matters of moment takes place.
April 19
TO READ: Ezekiel 2:1-10
Mission: Impossible
aSon of man,a he said, aI am sending you to the nation of Israel, a nation that is rebelling against me. Their ancestors have rebelled against me from the beginning, and they are still in revolt to this very day.a Ezekiel 2:3
Mission: Impossible holds a special place in the annals of television drama. Mysterious a.s.signments were handed out at the beginning of each program. and that which was billed as impossible became possible, however improbable, before the weekly installment ended.
Ezekielas a.s.signment came to him in a much more dramatic fashion than the way Mission: Impossibleas operators received theirs. He was given a vision of G.o.das glory that was so overwhelming that he afell face down in the dusta (Ezek. 1:28). In this undignified but perfectly understandable position, Ezekiel was ideally situated to hear from the Lord. It was there, in the posture of awestruck submission, that he was told, aStand up, son of man. . . . I want to speak with youa (2:1). The voice, of course, was the voice of G.o.d. This was no ordinary voice, and the words spoken were no ordinary words. These words contained the very power necessary for obedience to them. Ezekiel testified, aThe Spirit came into me as he spoke and set me on my feeta (2:2).
Men today rarely find themselves flat on their faces in reaction to hearing the voice of G.o.d. But they do have available to them the written word of G.o.d, which, when read, marked, learned, and inwardly digested, not only commands but empowers for obedience. The word heeded releases the power needed.
Ezekiel soon discovered he needed the unique empowering of the Spirit working through the word. Ezekiel was instructed, aI am sending you to the nation of Israel, a nation that is rebelling against me. . . . They are a hard-hearted and stubborn people. . . . They wonat listen, for they are completely rebelliousa (2:3-4, 7). The nature of Ezekielas mission was essentially that he was to talk to people who would not listen and who, even if they listened, would not do what they were told. Mission impossible!
It might reasonably be asked, aWhat, then, was the point of sending Ezekiel to them?a G.o.das rationale for sending him was that awhether they listen or not . . . at least they will know they have had a prophet among thema (2:5). The point of them knowing they had been listening to a prophet would not be immediately obvious. But later on when the things he had said came about, they would realize that what they were experiencing was no accidenta"it was what G.o.d had promised. It was exactly what he had determined should come to pa.s.s. In other words, they would learn that even when things go wrong, G.o.d is still in control.
Ezekielas mission was impossible, but essentially practical. And his message was unmistakable: G.o.d is in control, he knows what he is doing, and he will bring it to pa.s.s. Just watch!
April 20
TO READ: Genesis 25:28-34
Accepting Responsibility
Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew. Esau ate and drank and went on about his business, indifferent to the fact that he had given up his birthright.
Genesis 25:34
The t.i.tle aPrince of Walesa is traditionally given to the eldest son of the United Kingdomas reigning monarch. This prince is born to privilege. From birth he is prepared for the crown, while his brothers and sisters are merely prepared for life as royalty. On the death of his reigning parent, the crown prince will become King and enjoy all the trappings of majestya"and a.s.sume its responsibilities.
When George V died, his son, the Prince of Wales, became Edward VII. But he had fallen in love with a divorced American lady whom he wished to marrya"a marriage which the British government would not permit. So the King had to decide between the throne or the lady, duty or desire. He chose the latter, abdicated, and married Mrs. Wallis Simpson. Together they lived out their lives in Paris as the Duke and d.u.c.h.ess of Windsor.
The ancient Hebrews had a system called aprimogeniture.a In some ways similar to the laws governing British royal succession, it guaranteed the special rights of the firstborn son and also stipulated his corresponding responsibilities. Esau was Isaacas firstborn; Jacob was Esauas twin brother. The younger brother was, in fact, aborn with his hand grasping Esauas heela (Gen. 25:26). Esau, in light of his birth-order position, was given the privilege of maintaining and sustaining the remarkable spiritual heritage that G.o.d had granted first to his grandfather, Abraham, and later to his father, Isaac. He was also eligible, on his fatheras death, to receive a double portion of his fatheras considerable estate.
But Esau had little interest either in the privileges or the responsibilities of his favored position in the family. Jacob had considerable interest in both. Knowing Esauas limited sense of calling or vision and his truncated sense of privilege and responsibility, Jacob set about accomplishing the amazingly simple task of taking the firstborn rights away from his older brother. One day, when Esau returned hungry from the hunt, he smelled Jacobas stew, and a deal was struck. Jacob ended up with the birthright and Esau with a plate of stew! So much for appreciating privilege and embracing responsibility. It was Esauas att.i.tude, as well as his lack of priorities, which was so disconcerting. aEsau ate and drank and went on about his business, indifferent to the fact that he had given up his birthrighta (25:34).
When a manas sensual appet.i.tes dominate him, he will trade eternal values to fulfill them. He will prefer the satisfying of the those appet.i.tes to the fulfilling of his responsibility before G.o.d. Such a man is like Esaua"aimmorala and aG.o.dless.a One day that man will weep abitter tearsa (Heb. 12:16). Thatas troubling.
April 21
TO READ: Ezekiel 34:1-16
When Leadership Is Lacking
You drink the milk, wear the wool, and butcher the best animals, but you let your flocks starve.
Ezekiel 34:3
It is a well-known fact that, during World War II, the n.a.z.i leaders of the Third Reich, particularly Hermann Gring, aDie nummer Zweiaa"number two man to Hitlera"were busy robbing the occupied countries of their art treasures and storing them in secret hiding places for their personal collections. And it has been well-doc.u.mented that more recent dictators have ama.s.sed great treasures for themselves in the vaults of Swiss banks, at the expense of their own people. In fact, many of them, as they have seen their own power and popularity diminishing, have turned their attention away from affairs of state to concentrate on securing their own position and providing for their own well-being.
There is nothing new about this abuse of power. Ezekiel complained, on behalf of the Lord, about the athe shepherds, the leaders of Israela (Ezek. 34:2). In those days leaders were often called ashepherds,a and in graphic language, Ezekiel detailed the Lordas objections to their behavior: aYou shepherds . . . feed yourselves instead of your flocks. Shouldnat shepherds feed their sheep? You drink the milk, wear the wool, and butcher the best animals, but you let your flocks starvea (34:3). Concentrating on their own interests, Israelas leaders had neglected to go alooking for those who have wandered away and are lost. . . . No one has gone to search for thema (34:4, 6). The Lordas displeasure with the failed leadership was clear. He told them, aI now consider these shepherds my enemies, and I will hold them responsible for what has happened to my flocka (34:10).
If G.o.d places men in positions of leadership, he expects them to take their roles seriously and to perform them with integrity and grace. For them to show more interest in their own affairs than in those of their aflock,a and to become so absorbed with their own lives that they fail to serve the needs and interests of those placed in their care, will merit divine displeasure.
Every man who has married a wife has been invested with a shepherding role in her life by G.o.d. The man who uses his wife for his own purposes, demanding of her s.e.xual favors, expecting from her menial service, insisting that she meet his every whim and satisfy his every desire with little or no thought for her own well-being, should answer the question, aShouldnat shepherds feed their sheep?a If he does not answer it nowa"he will answer for it later!
April 22
TO READ: Ezekiel 34:11-31
Sheep and Goats