Once upon a time, in a land far away, there lived the most beautiful princess. She was happy and content living with her family. But one horrible day a fierce dragon came and snatched her away. He carried her to the most wretched excuse for a castle in the most wretched of lands where it was always dark, always lonely and always undesirable.
Now, every prince in the land longed for this princess to be his wife. One by one they summoned every bit of courage they could find and stormed the castle, only to be instantly destroyed by the dragon. It seemed as though the princess would be lost forever. No one could save her from the dragon…. except for one man. He was as valiant and strong as she was beautiful. He had a deep voice and a sword as fierce as the dragon. He ran up to the castle with his heart set on saving the princess. As he approached the dragon he scoffed and ran right past it. On he ran until he reached his princess. She was more beautiful than he ever remembered. He knew he loved her. He also knew that they should leave, wasting no time and stopping for nothing.
So he grabbed her hand and they ran. They ran right out of the castle and away from the wicked land. Every few minutes he would squeeze her hand to make sure she was still with him and still safe. When he knew they were far enough away, he finally looked behind him. His heart sank and his eyes filled with tears. His princess was still there, and she was still the most beautiful being he had ever laid eyes on. But something was terribly wrong. For what he saw was his princess holding onto the dragon with her other hand. She had pulled it along the entire journey.
With tears still in his eyes and a great love for her he spoke, “I thought I saved you, but from what? You have brought the dragon with us.”
*******************************
If she wasn’t saved from the dragon, what was she saved from? Was she saved at all?
A friend of mine told me this story, and I tell it to you to illustrate what I think is one of the most important things we can understand. When we are saved, we are not just saved from Hell. Hell is not the reason we need a savior. What I’d like to submit is that Jesus saves us from sin – our sin.
Eph 2:1-5 “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins (2) in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience-- (3) among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. (4) But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, (5) even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved-- ”
Paul doesn’t speak of Hell here. He says the Ephesians were dead in sins. Then he talks about sin some more and then says that they have been saved. People when saved are saved from sin. When we paint the gospel to be a message of salvation from Hell, we miss it. We appeal to the person’s selfishness. Why go to Hell when you can have this nice Heaven? And in this way, we can easily add more jewels in our crowns. We can easily get people “saved.” But if it stops there, I would question whether they are saved. After all what were they saved from?
Sin is the dragon in the story. God wants to save us. He accomplished everything that needed to be accomplished on the Cross. But for us to be saved, we must let go of the dragon’s hand. We have to leave sin behind.
1Jn 3:6-10 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. (7) Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. (8) Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. (9) No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God. (10) By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.
February 8, 2009
The Place Your Glory Dwells
Recently, a friend and coworker of mine was planning a retreat for our staff. She approached me and asked if I would be willing to share during a devotional time. I, of course, was quick to say, “yes.” I began to get excited about a chance to teach or preach, but she kept talking. My excitement faded as she said, “it's on the glory of God.”
Now, why would a missionary like myself become less excited when asked to speak specifically on the glory of God? The answer is that I've spent a lot of time in churches, shopping in Christian bookstores, reading Christian books, watching Christian TV, and listening to Christian radio. All of those things have helped me to become what I am today, and I am so grateful for them. However, they have also at times bored me to tears with vague and unexciting references to and explanations of incredible Biblical truths and concepts. The result is that some Christian phrases have lost their meaning to me. Ideas that should excite me do quite the opposite.
The happy part of this story is that I did not say, “never mind.” I decided to give it a shot. She gave me the verse I was supposed to focus on, and I went to study the glory of God.
King David in Psalm 26 verse 8 said, “O LORD, I love the habitation of your house and the place where your glory dwells.” I did some studying to see that there were several words within the range of meanings for glory. They usually meant something like honor or splendor. But after this studying I looked back at Psalm 26:8, and it clicked. David was not being vague or mystical. He said to God that he loved His house and where His glory dwells. He loved to be in the presence of God. For David, the place where God's glory dwells (His presence) was the tabernacle, a physical place where he could go to be in the presence of God. It is very much like what the psalmist said in Psalm 84. “How lovely are Your dwelling places, O Lord of hosts! My soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the Lord...How blessed are those who dwell in Your house...For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside. I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.”
This was a very simple and clear declaration of worship. God, it is really good to be in Your presence. It is better than not being in it. Of course it is more wonderful to be with God. I agree with the psalmist. I would choose one day with Him than three years anywhere else. I'd rather stand uncomfortably close to Him than to rest comfortably anywhere else.
Today we don't have the tabernacle. So, where can I go to be in God's presence? Where can I call the place where His glory dwells? I think the answer can be here sitting on my couch. I set out to remember times that I had been in the presence of God: a church where everyone was dancing and worshiping loudly, a Catholic mass in Florida, a Congregational church in New Hampshire, a plane over the Pacific ocean, my car as I left work, a bathroom in a McDonald's in South Carolina. Then it hit me, and I said, “O LORD, I love the bathroom in McDonald's in South Carolina, the place where Your glory dwells! I love to be in those churches, the place where Your glory dwells. I love to sit on this couch, the place where Your glory dwells!”
Where can we call the place where His glory dwells? The answer is anywhere that we are. So, what brings the change? I don't think that God is constantly manifesting His presence to everyone who walks into that bathroom in South Carolina. I think we all believe that God is present everywhere in some fashion, but those who have experienced God's presence will tell you that there are times that things are different. Sometimes God shows up, and it is very clear. It is almost as though the air gets thicker, and He will often speak to us in those times or bring greater understanding of His character and love for us.
A change occurs, but what brings the change? I think it is simple. God shows up when He is invited. Regardless of our theology on how it all happens, whether or not God planned our invitations or only knew they would come, the simple truth is that He manifests His presence when we invite Him.
I read some verses that mention this order. James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you...” In Jeremiah 29:12-14 God says to the people of Judah, “Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find {Me} when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you...”
When does God become near to us? When do we find Him? It's when we draw near to Him – when we seek Him and search for Him with all our heart! And so, my challenge or encouragement to you who have read this far is to invite God to be near to you. Invite God into your life. Make a blanket sweep invitation like the prophets in the Old Testament. Make sure that God knows that you want Him near. Tell Him He can show up and take over ANY time He wants. He can speak ANY time. He can interrupt you at ANY time. Now, I don't give blanket sweep invitations like this to anyone. But God can be trusted. He has shown Himself to be upright, loving and wise.
This time they are not David's words. They are mine. God, I love the habitation of Your house and the place where Your glory dwells! A day with You is better than a thousand anywhere else! Make these words yours.
Now, why would a missionary like myself become less excited when asked to speak specifically on the glory of God? The answer is that I've spent a lot of time in churches, shopping in Christian bookstores, reading Christian books, watching Christian TV, and listening to Christian radio. All of those things have helped me to become what I am today, and I am so grateful for them. However, they have also at times bored me to tears with vague and unexciting references to and explanations of incredible Biblical truths and concepts. The result is that some Christian phrases have lost their meaning to me. Ideas that should excite me do quite the opposite.
The happy part of this story is that I did not say, “never mind.” I decided to give it a shot. She gave me the verse I was supposed to focus on, and I went to study the glory of God.
King David in Psalm 26 verse 8 said, “O LORD, I love the habitation of your house and the place where your glory dwells.” I did some studying to see that there were several words within the range of meanings for glory. They usually meant something like honor or splendor. But after this studying I looked back at Psalm 26:8, and it clicked. David was not being vague or mystical. He said to God that he loved His house and where His glory dwells. He loved to be in the presence of God. For David, the place where God's glory dwells (His presence) was the tabernacle, a physical place where he could go to be in the presence of God. It is very much like what the psalmist said in Psalm 84. “How lovely are Your dwelling places, O Lord of hosts! My soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the Lord...How blessed are those who dwell in Your house...For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside. I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.”
This was a very simple and clear declaration of worship. God, it is really good to be in Your presence. It is better than not being in it. Of course it is more wonderful to be with God. I agree with the psalmist. I would choose one day with Him than three years anywhere else. I'd rather stand uncomfortably close to Him than to rest comfortably anywhere else.
Today we don't have the tabernacle. So, where can I go to be in God's presence? Where can I call the place where His glory dwells? I think the answer can be here sitting on my couch. I set out to remember times that I had been in the presence of God: a church where everyone was dancing and worshiping loudly, a Catholic mass in Florida, a Congregational church in New Hampshire, a plane over the Pacific ocean, my car as I left work, a bathroom in a McDonald's in South Carolina. Then it hit me, and I said, “O LORD, I love the bathroom in McDonald's in South Carolina, the place where Your glory dwells! I love to be in those churches, the place where Your glory dwells. I love to sit on this couch, the place where Your glory dwells!”
Where can we call the place where His glory dwells? The answer is anywhere that we are. So, what brings the change? I don't think that God is constantly manifesting His presence to everyone who walks into that bathroom in South Carolina. I think we all believe that God is present everywhere in some fashion, but those who have experienced God's presence will tell you that there are times that things are different. Sometimes God shows up, and it is very clear. It is almost as though the air gets thicker, and He will often speak to us in those times or bring greater understanding of His character and love for us.
A change occurs, but what brings the change? I think it is simple. God shows up when He is invited. Regardless of our theology on how it all happens, whether or not God planned our invitations or only knew they would come, the simple truth is that He manifests His presence when we invite Him.
I read some verses that mention this order. James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you...” In Jeremiah 29:12-14 God says to the people of Judah, “Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find {Me} when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you...”
When does God become near to us? When do we find Him? It's when we draw near to Him – when we seek Him and search for Him with all our heart! And so, my challenge or encouragement to you who have read this far is to invite God to be near to you. Invite God into your life. Make a blanket sweep invitation like the prophets in the Old Testament. Make sure that God knows that you want Him near. Tell Him He can show up and take over ANY time He wants. He can speak ANY time. He can interrupt you at ANY time. Now, I don't give blanket sweep invitations like this to anyone. But God can be trusted. He has shown Himself to be upright, loving and wise.
This time they are not David's words. They are mine. God, I love the habitation of Your house and the place where Your glory dwells! A day with You is better than a thousand anywhere else! Make these words yours.
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