Month: March 2019

Visualize someone’s feet for a moment. Think about a word you would use to describe them.

Did the word “beautiful” first come to mind when you pictured feet? I didn’t think so. LOL.  The words “stinky” or “ugly,” however, might have been the first descriptors to pop into your brain.

We don’t typically think of feet as beautiful. We often think of them as calloused and dirty. In Jesus’ day, the combination of dusty roads and sandals made for some especially filthy feet.

In my last post, How Did Jesus Walk?, I wrote about the pace at which Jesus walked. Whether it was deliberate, purposeful and with a sense of urgency, or whether it was labored and slow on His way to the cross, there was no getting around dirty feet.

Imagining those layers of thickly, caked-on grime makes what Jesus did even more powerful when He washed the disciple’s feet. See John 13. The King of Kings humbled Himself, almost like a foreshadowing of how He would humble Himself on the cross. Just as the water washed away the dirt on the disciple’s feet and made them clean, Jesus’ blood would wash away all of their sin forevermore and make all people who accept Him truly clean.

Jesus instructed the disciples to do for one another what He had done for them.

Isn’t it interesting that what the world sees as stinky and dirty, God sees as beautiful and useful to help spread His message? Read Isaiah 52:7 below:

“How beautiful on the mountains
    are the feet of those who bring good news,
who proclaim peace,
    who bring good tidings,
    who proclaim salvation,
who say to Zion,
    “Your God reigns!”

The feet that bring good news are so very beautiful because they are life-giving; eternal life.

In Matthew 10, Jesus called the disciples to Him and told them to go “…to the lost sheep of Israel.” He continued, “As you go, proclaim this message:  ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’  Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.” (Mt. 10:6-8).

Jesus wanted the disciples to get on their feet and walk to the lost sheep of Israel with the message that would save their lives. Jesus also told them, “If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet.” (Mt. 10:14).

Just as Jesus sent out the disciples, Paul later exhorted the Ephesians to the same mission, giving them ways to protect themselves against the enemy. He wrote, “…be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” (Eph. 6:10-11).

Paul goes on to tell them to put on the full armor of God, which includes a word about their feet:  “…and with your feet fitted with the readiness that come from the gospel of peace.” (Eph. 6:15).

Friends, are your feet clean and ready to go so that you can share the Gospel with others? Wouldn’t God love to see more and more “beautiful” feet on the mountains, in the hills, on the streets, in the neighborhoods — all bringing good news, proclaiming peace and proclaiming salvation?

As we approach Easter, let us be mindful of Jesus’ death on the cross and the cleansing power of His blood. He defeated the grave! He rose from the dead! We have the BEST NEWS EVER to share with those who desperately need to hear it.

Let’s get on our feet and share this life-changing and life-saving truth. I can think of no better way to go be radiant.

As always, I would love to see your comments.

photo credit grahamjbaird.blogspot.com

Have you ever thought about how Jesus walked? Did He walk slowly in a meandering kind of fashion? Did He walk purposefully like He was a man on a mission? Did He walk quickly, knowing the time was short?

Since Jesus literally walked almost everywhere He went (minus the times he took a boat), I kind of always envisioned Him walking slowly, steadily. I have pictures in my mind of different events during His life and ministry, such as when He and the disciples were reclining at the table or when He was up on a mountain praying.

Those times give me the impression that Jesus had a somewhat slow pace about His daily rhythm. However, as I began to read through the book of Mark, I think His walking pace, and even His life pace was a bit faster than I imagined.

He was on the move quite a bit after his baptism and temptation time in the wilderness. He started gathering His team together (a.k.a. the disciples) and went from town to town, teaching and healing people.

Sometimes when we read little bits here and there of the Gospels, we might get a sense that Jesus healed one person here, one person there. But in actuality, I believe Jesus healed far more people than we realize, thus making His pace faster than what I originally thought.

For example, Mark tells us, “That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed. The whole town gathered at the door, and Jesus healed many who had various diseases…” (Mark 1:32-34a, emphasis mine). It wasn’t just a matter of healing a sick mother-in-law here and there.

When people heard that Jesus had returned home, “They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them.” (Mark 2:2)

If you keep reading through the next several chapters of Mark, you will see how often a “large crowd” gathered around Jesus. The people were so desperate for healing that they literally ran to Him. “As soon as they got out of the boat, people recognized Jesus. They ran throughout that whole region and carried the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was.” (Mark 6:54-55, emphasis mine).

Jesus’ time was so occupied by teaching and healing, that there were occasions where He didn’t even have time to eat. “Then, because so many people were coming and going that that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, ‘Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.'” (Mark 6:20, emphasis mine). You know your life is full when you don’t even have time to eat. I feel like my life is too full at times when I don’t get to drink my coffee hot in the mornings.

I had a professor in college who said that she walked quickly everywhere she went. That didn’t mean she didn’t make time for people, but rather that she was intentional and purposeful as she headed toward her destination.

Put another way, perhaps we could say that Jesus walked deliberately and with a sense of urgency.

photo credit biblestudywithbishopmiller.blogspot.com

Jesus had a limited amount of time on this earth and He had a mission to accomplish. Understanding that likely instilled in Him a sense of urgency to complete what the Father had ordained for Him to do.

Like Jesus, we also have a limited amount of time we’ve been given on this earth. One thing that has brought that truth home recently is the study I’ve been doing with my small group in the book of Joel.

Joel is a prophetic book in the Old Testament that focuses on the Day of the Lord, mentioned five times in the brief three-chapter book. Further study on the Day of the Lord throughout the Old and New Testaments reveals that it is going to be a time of reckoning, a time of judgment and those who have not repented will face undeniable doom and destruction.

I have to admit that studying that reminded me rather strongly that I need to be walking and living with a sense of urgency. Who knows how many days, weeks, months or years I have left on this earth? I need to be telling people and showing them through my radiance (reflecting God’s glory) about the saving Truth of Jesus Christ.

If part of our maturation process as Believers is to be more like Christ, I think it would behoove us to walk as He did. Let’s not meander or wander through our day-to-day lives. Let us go be radiant as we are mindful of the lost souls around us, and walk toward them with a sense of urgency.

What happens when we don’t see or feel the Holy Spirit working in our lives? How does it impact our walk with God when we hear disturbingly loud silence from the Holy Spirit?

Some might begin to feel discouraged. Some might feel like they aren’t “spiritual enough” and therefore they can’t sense the Holy Spirit’s presence. Others might begin to doubt or question their faith.

Even if we cognitively know the Holy Spirit, if our experience doesn’t align with that knowledge, our confidence in our understanding can unravel a bit if we let it.

Whenever I wrestle with a theological issue like this, I always find it helpful to go back to the fundamentals. By going back to the basics, I confirm the foundations upon which my spiritual house is built.

If you study the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament, you’ll find that He is present at specific times for specific purposes. Here is an example from Numbers 11:24-26:

²⁴ So Moses went out and told the people what the Lord had said. He brought together seventy of their elders and had them stand around the tent. ²⁵ Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke with him, and he took some of the power of the Spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders. When the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied—but did not do so again.

²⁶ However, two men, whose names were Eldad and Medad, had remained in the camp. They were listed among the elders, but did not go out to the tent. Yet the Spirit also rested on them, and they prophesied in the camp.

The elders were able to prophesy when “the Spirit rested on them.” You’ll notice that it’s not an indwelling of the Spirit, but a resting on. The use of the power of the Holy Spirit seems more temporary in the Old Testament than it does in the New Testament.

In the New Testament, we see a beautiful image of the Holy Spirit descending on Jesus like a dove at His baptism (see Mark 1:10).

In Acts, we read that “what seemed to be tongues of fire” came and “rested on” the apostles. So we see the Old Testament terminology carry through to the New Testament, but it goes on to say in Acts 2:4 that “All of them were FILLED with the Holy Spirit…” (emphasis mine). They “began to speak in other tongues (languages) as the Spirit enabled them.”

I think the key phrase here is “as the Spirit enabled them.” The Holy Spirit is like an empowering agent of the Trinity. He is the One who enables and even compels us to do things.

One time I was on a plane from Costa Rica to Los Angeles and I was chatting away with the passenger next to me. For some reason, I was reluctant to tell him what I did for a living. Normally I told people quite readily.

Before long it was as if the Holy Spirit came up behind me and admonished me with a hearty clap on the back as if to make me spit out the words, “I’m a missionary.”

Now, I don’t have experiences like that all the time. I have maybe a handful or two of stories in my whole life where I firmly believe the Holy Spirit was behind (in) something I did or said. It was so clear that the idea I had, or the words I said, or the actions I took did not come from me, but from the Holy Spirit.

When I think about each of those instances, the common denominator was God’s will being accomplished. It was something He wanted to say to me or through me. It was something He wanted to teach me and/or someone else around me.

In a similar way, God used the Holy Spirit to send a life and culture-changing message through Peter to Cornelius in the book of Acts. Peter had just seen a vision and was wondering what it meant. God sent the Holy Spirit to help him understand:

¹⁷ While Peter was wondering about the meaning of the vision, the men sent by Cornelius found out where Simon’s house was and stopped at the gate. ¹⁸ They called out, asking if Simon who was known as Peter was staying there.

¹⁹ While Peter was still thinking about the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Simon, three^[a] men are looking for you. ²⁰ So get up and go downstairs. Do not hesitate to go with them, for I have sent them.” (Acts 10:17-20)

If you continue reading in chapter 10, it goes on to say, “While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The Circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles.” (Acts 10:41-45)

The Holy Spirit continues to be active in the lives of believers today, even if at times, you only hear silence.

Silence does not mean absence.

Silence does not mean idleness.

Our ability to see or feel the Holy Spirit at work isn’t necessarily about us being “spiritual enough,” but there is an element of us remaining faithful. When we are faithful to be in God’s Word, and faithful to live out God’s will for our lives, at some point along the way, we are going to see the Holy Spirit in action.

He works in us and through us, even in spite of us.

If you are longing to see and feel the Holy Spirit’s work in your life, ask Him. Ask Him to show Himself. Ask Him to open your eyes to see. And if it doesn’t happen right away, wait. Be faithful. Allow God to work in His timing and in His way for His glory.

I would love to hear your thoughts on the power and work of the Holy Spirit. Please comment below.

In the meantime, as we remain faithful, possibly in the midst of silence, let us go be radiant this week.