One thing have I asked of the LORD,
that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
and to inquire in his temple.
For he will hide me in his shelter
in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;
he will lift me high upon a rock.
And now my head shall be lifted up
above my enemies all around me,
and I will offer in his tent
sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the LORD.
Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud;
be gracious to me and answer me!
8You have said, "Seek my face."My heart says to you,
"Your face, LORD, do I seek."
Psalm 27:4-8
There is a story told by the writer Sam Storms that challenges me in my passion for Christ.
Nepal is a Hindu state of some 16 million people that lies nestled in the Himalayas between northern India and southw¬estern China. Until recently, it has been overtly antichristian. The missionaries there are courageous and few. One such person lived and ministered in Katmandu. An encounter she had one day with a Hindu woman was indelibly planted in her memory. It was a religious holy day. Schools, businesses, and other establishments were closed. It was a day of worship for those whose Hindu faith gave them the option of bowing before one of several million deities (literally!).
This missionary thought she had seen it all. Until that day. There in the middle of a busy street was a Hindu woman bowing low, chanting and prostrating herself before a pile of yak dung! In case you didn't know, a yak is a domesticated ox. I realize that doesn't diminish the mess of the image, but at least you know now what she was deal¬ing. Scattered amidst the dung were flowers, worshipfully placed there by this devotee of an obviously unusual "god." There in public for everyone to see, was a lady who was quite serious about religion, about her "god." She suffered no embarrassment. She showed no signs of hesitation. She had no fear of disrupting traffic provoking opposition or incurring the ridicule of those who might find her act of devotion a bit out of the ordinary. Think about it for a moment. Let it sink in. Better still, let it stink in! Try to grasp the quality of zeal, misguided though it is, that would prompt someone to worship yak dung. Try to get a handle on the depth and intensity of such religious commitment. I'm sorry to put it this way, but in all seriousness, this woman would have died for that pile of dung.
So what's the point of this distasteful story? I can't know what it is for you, but for me it's quite simply this: Just how serious am I about the kingdom of God? I worship the One, True, Living God, yet I probably do so with less zeal than this woman worships a pile of dung! It forces me to ask: How devoted am I to the King of kings and Lord of lords? Am I as unashamedly dedicated to the God of heaven and earth as that Hindu woman is to the droppings of a yak? How passionate is my pursuit of the living God and His will? That’s the point of the story for me. You may laugh at that woman but I feel that she shames us.
Last week I wrote about the self-authenticating and compelling beauty of Christ; why He, rather than someone or something e1se should be the object of our affection and devotion. Why should we have a passion for Jesus? What is it about Jesus that leads us to tell the world about our love for Him in word and transforms how we live our lives? What is it about Him that causes us to be satisfied in Him above every existing pleasure the world can offer us?
There was something about yak dung (don't ask me what) that attracted this Hindu woman and so captivated her heart that she was willing to pay an¬y price to praise it. Why, then, Jesus? It may seem like a silly question. Especially when one thinks of yak dung as a potential rival! Why should we believe that Jesus is sufficiently worthy of our love, passion, and devotion? It is because the beauty of God in Jesus Christ is incomparable.
Beauty is not something we would normally include in our vocabulary about God. We prefer words like sovereign, omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, gracious, merciful, loving, just, holy, etc. David thought of God in terms of beauty. He cried out to God, One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple. In view of David’s painful and distressing circumstances, one might have expected him to cry out for rest, comfort, peace, three meals a day, a good night sleep, or perhaps a permanent and safe home away from his enemies. But for David there was a higher aspiration of and desire in his heart.
Notice that in this verse that there is a future tense combined with a past tense to express a passionate desire which extends out of the past and into the future and therefore runs through his whole life. What is this passion, this desire, this longing? To dwell, to see, to gaze, and to meditate. And who or what is the focus of this passion? The Lord God, in all of His supreme beauty, His glorious majesty, His indescribable splendor, His unfathomable, ultimately incomprehensible grandeur. Is this true of you? Is this true of us? Can it be possible for us in the 21st century with all the demands and business of our lives? No matter, as Augustine said, “God thirsts to be thirsted after,” no less by you and me than David!
David’s desire, and I plea with you and pray for you that it is or will be your desire, is to dwell in the presence of God, to behold God, to meditate upon the beauty and splendor of God, to bask in the invigorating light and glory of everything that makes God an object of our affection and delight and admiration. No wonder, for there is no better way to enjoy God than to behold His beauty.
God invites us to do just what David desires. He creates the longings and satisfies the longings of our soul (Jeremiah 31:33). David goes on in verse 8 and we receive an astonishing invitation from God, You have said, "Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, LORD, do I seek.” God invites us to seek His face, to dwell, to see, to gaze, and reflect upon His beauty. How does that affect you? This is God’s desire for you: “SEEK MY FACE”!
Some of you perhaps are not accustomed to receiving an invitation to anything. You rarely get invited to lunch after church, to birthday parties, to weddings, or to share your opinion on an important topic. Also some of you are notorious for turning down invitations (like me!) but this is one you don’t want to miss. This is the greatest invitation to the greatest experience of all! God wants you and me to seek His face! We seek to behold his beauty, to be with him, to meditate on him. This is our central business for your life- to see the beauty of God. To get our heads into the heavens. To know him for whom he is. He is the main reality- not buildings, not Christians, not missions, not heaven. God himself is what we seek. And David adds in Psalm 40:16, Let all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You.’ David did not dishonor this beauty by saying, "Ho hum." How could you possibly see the beauty of God and respond that way? No. This is God’s mission and our mission: to rejoice and be glad in him. To delight yourself in the Lord! (Psalm 37:4)
The results of this passionate pursuit of God’s beauty are staggering! Not only is beholding the beauty of the Lord indescribably enjoyable, it is profoundly transforming! The apostle Paul put it this way in 2 Corinthians 3:18, and we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. Listen to how the Amplified version puts it: “And all of us, as with unveiled face, [because we] continued to behold [in the Word of God] as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are constantly being transfigured into His very own image in ever increasing splendor and from one degree of glory to another.” The point is we become like we that which we look at. We will never become transformed into the likeness of God, nor conformed to the image of Jesus Christ, nor be able to live for the glory of God until we learn to behold His beauty. To see Him is to become like Him. Look at the beauty of Christ, you become beautiful.
Jonathan Edwards wrote of this transforming beauty in his sermon The Highway of Holiness. ' Tis the highest beauty and amiableness, vastly above all other beauties; 'tis a divine beauty, makes the soul heavenly and far purer than anything here on earth-this world is like mire and filth and defilement [compared] to that soul which is sanctified-'tis of a sweet, lovely, delightful, serene, calm, and still nature. 'Tis almost too high a beauty for any creature to be adorned with; it makes the soul a little, amiable, and delightful image of the blessed Jehovah. How may angels stand with pleased, delighted, and charmed eyes, and look and look with smiles of pleasure upon that soul that is holy!
Think about this. How much money is spent, how much time is invested, how much worry, fear, and consternation, how many products must we buy, how much effort do we exert in order to enhance our outward beauty? Yet no matter how much we invest, you can’t stop the aging process and with that all that comes with it.
Oh how little time, if any, is invested in enhancing our inner beauty, the beauty of our souls. Yet in God’s world, this is true beauty! “The worth and excellency (beauty) of a soul is to be measured by the object of its love” said Henry Scougal. The good news is that God’s beauty program is free, it’s a gift of grace, and the results are guaranteed 100%. As David beheld the beauty of the Lord, as he meditated upon the glorious perfections and passions of God’s character, he became more like God. More than that, he fell more and more in love with God.
The beauty that we find in Jesus is so perfectly in Him that everything else can't help but be seen as disfigured and distorted and shameful and repulsive and unworthy of our devotion or love. That’s what happened to the disciples. That’s what happened to David. Has it happened to you? Have you just heard about His beauty? Testimonies aren’t anything like the real thing. Why be satisfied with that when Jesus offers you a direct experience of the deepest longing of the human soul: To see and enjoy the beauty and glory of God in Jesus Christ!
Would you take a journey with me to see His beauty? Has Jesus captured your heart? Remember our story of the Hindu lady? There was something about yak dung that attracted this Hindu woman and so captivated her heart that she was willing to pay an¬y price to praise it. Maybe it isn’t something as crass as yak dung that has captured your heart. But Paul says any potential rival to Jesus Christ is dung! (Philippians 3:8)
Jesus alone is the All-Satisfying Object of Beauty. Do you want to see his beauty this week? Oh dearly loved by the beautiful one, you can. He wants you to. He wants you to see it so that you will savor this beauty above every rival, threat, or substitute.
May the Holy Spirit this week lure you into joy so that you say with David and me, "One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple" (Psalm 27:4).
Pastor Bill
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
THE SELF-AUTHENTICATING BEAUTY OF JESUS CHRIST
Often times when I share with people about Jesus Christ, I speak of His self-authenticating beauty. What does that mean? It means that the display of Jesus when seen is perceived as inimitably beautiful! Therefore, real, true, and authentic.
Beauty is self authenticating when it is beheld. For example, when I go to Yosemite and stand at the lookout over viewing Bridal Veil Falls and the panorama of the entire Yosemite Valley, with Half Dome in the distance, I see self-authenticating beauty. There is something exceptional and breathtaking when this is seen.
If you have ever watched a sunset in Hanalei Bay on Kauai, with all of it’s amazing pallet of color, you’d know what I mean when I speak of self-authenticating beauty. All one can do when lingering at the sight of a Hawaiian sunset is to be amazed.
Is it not a wonderful pleasure to gaze and admire beauty? I truly believe that the human heart was made to stand in awe of beauty. Yet all of the beauty on this earth is but a pale reflection of infinite beauty. The ultimate beauty there is, is the self authenticating beauty of Jesus Christ.
The human heart was made to stand in awe of ultimate excellence. You were made to admire Jesus Christ the Son of God, King of kings and Lord of lords and God desires for us to see this beauty, (2 Corinthians 4:4); to cherish this beauty, (John 17:26, 1 Peter 2:7); and to be transformed by this beauty (2 Corinthians 3:16).
Jonathan Edwards has awakened me more to the beauty of Jesus than anyone. He is like a docent taking me on the PCT Trail guiding, describing, and pointing me to the self-authenticating beauty of Jesus in his writings and sermons. What makes Jesus Christ so admirable, so precious, so beautiful, and so glorious is what Jonathan Edwards calls “an admirable conjunction of diverse excellencies”
The beauty of Jesus Christ is not a simple thing. It is a unique coming together in one person of extremely diverse qualities. Jesus has a glory in himself that has a combing of attributes that would seem to be impossible in one person. He is unique, one of a kind. There is no one and nothing we could compare Him to.
Listen and see what he points to in Jesus. In the person of Jesus Christ, he says, meet together:
"Infinite highness and infinite condescension . . . infinite justice and infinite grace . . . infinite glory and lowest humility . . . infinite majesty and transcendent meekness . . . deepest reverence towards God and equality with God . . . infinite worthiness of good, and the greatest patience under sufferings of evil . . . an exceeding spirit of obedience, with supreme dominion over heaven and earth . . . absolute sovereignty and perfect resignation . . . self-sufficiency, and an entire trust and reliance on God."
The list could go on and on in proclaiming the excellencies of our self-authenticating Savior. Do you see what I mean when I say that the beauty that we find in Jesus is not a simple thing? It is complex. It is a coming together in one person of the perfect balance and proportion of extremely diverse qualities and that's what makes Jesus Christ so irresistibly and ultimately admirable and excellent.
What happens to us when we see Jesus self-authenticating beauty? Jonathan Edwards has so profoundly written:
“The excellency of Christ is such, that the discovery of it is exceedingly contenting and satisfying to the soul. The carnal soul imagines that earthly things are excellent-one thinks riches most excellent, another has the highest esteem of honor, and to another carnal pleasure appears the most excellent. But the soul cannot find contentment in any of these things, because it soon finds an end to their excellency. Worldly men imagine that there is true excellency and true happiness in those things which they are pursuing. They think that if they could but obtain them, they would be happy. But when they obtain them, and cannot find happiness, they look for happiness in something else, and are still upon the pursuit. But Christ Jesus has true excellency, and so great excellency, that when they come to see him they look no further, but the mind rests there. It sees a transcendent glory and an ineffable sweetness in Jesus! It sees that until now it has been pursuing shadows, but that now it has found the substance. It sees that before it had been seeking happiness in the stream, but that now it has found the ocean!”
The beauty of Jesus Christ is a spiritual beauty. It’s not something you see with the physical eyes, but with the eyes of the heart (Ephesians 1:18). that is why when Jesus was alive , most people never saw His self-authenticating beauty. They were like blind men and women in Yosemite and Kauai who at best can only hear second hand about the beauty that others see. The only way that blind men and women can see earthly beauty is to be given sight and the only way men and women can see Jesus is to be given spiritual sight.
God has a way for us to see! He has means to heal and open up our blind eyes to true beauty. We look at the way he speaks and acts and loves and dies in the Bible, and by the Holy Spirit and His grace, we see a self-authenticating, divine glory, or beauty. Paul put it like this in 2 Corinthians 4:4, 6, “The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God...God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. ” The “glory of Christ who is the image of God” is what John 1:14 calls “glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
Remember, Paul is talking to people who never saw the earthly Jesus, and John is writing his Gospel for people who never saw the earthly Jesus—people like us. The glory of John 1:14 and the glory of 2 Corinthians 4:4,6 is a glory, a self-authenticating beauty, that you see spiritually when you hear the story of Jesus.
You don’t have to see him physically. Jesus said in John 20:29, “Blessed are they who have not seen and yet have believed.” You meet Him in the writings of the Bible, and when you meet him, through these inspired stories of his words and deeds, His beauty shines through, the self-authenticating beauty of that "admirable conjunction of diverse excellencies."
Edwards wrote of this transforming beauty in his sermon The Highway of Holiness.
'Tis the highest beauty and amiableness, vastly above all other beauties; 'tis a divine beauty, makes the soul heavenly and far purer than anything here on earth-this world is like mire and filth and defilement [compared] to that soul which is sanctified-'tis of a sweet, lovely, delightful, serene, calm, and still nature. 'Tis almost too high a beauty for any creature to be adorned with; it makes the soul a little, amiable, and delightful image of the blessed Jehovah. How may angels stand with pleased, delighted, and charmed eyes, and look and look with smiles of pleasure upon that soul that is holy!
Oh pray for eyes to see, savor ,and glory in ultimate beauty, the self authenticating beauty of Christ. When you see His beauty, you will have a joy that "is inexpressible and full of glory" ( 1 Peter 1:8).
Living to see, savor, and tell others of the self-authenticating beauty of Christ,
Pastor Bill
Beauty is self authenticating when it is beheld. For example, when I go to Yosemite and stand at the lookout over viewing Bridal Veil Falls and the panorama of the entire Yosemite Valley, with Half Dome in the distance, I see self-authenticating beauty. There is something exceptional and breathtaking when this is seen.
If you have ever watched a sunset in Hanalei Bay on Kauai, with all of it’s amazing pallet of color, you’d know what I mean when I speak of self-authenticating beauty. All one can do when lingering at the sight of a Hawaiian sunset is to be amazed.
Is it not a wonderful pleasure to gaze and admire beauty? I truly believe that the human heart was made to stand in awe of beauty. Yet all of the beauty on this earth is but a pale reflection of infinite beauty. The ultimate beauty there is, is the self authenticating beauty of Jesus Christ.
The human heart was made to stand in awe of ultimate excellence. You were made to admire Jesus Christ the Son of God, King of kings and Lord of lords and God desires for us to see this beauty, (2 Corinthians 4:4); to cherish this beauty, (John 17:26, 1 Peter 2:7); and to be transformed by this beauty (2 Corinthians 3:16).
Jonathan Edwards has awakened me more to the beauty of Jesus than anyone. He is like a docent taking me on the PCT Trail guiding, describing, and pointing me to the self-authenticating beauty of Jesus in his writings and sermons. What makes Jesus Christ so admirable, so precious, so beautiful, and so glorious is what Jonathan Edwards calls “an admirable conjunction of diverse excellencies”
The beauty of Jesus Christ is not a simple thing. It is a unique coming together in one person of extremely diverse qualities. Jesus has a glory in himself that has a combing of attributes that would seem to be impossible in one person. He is unique, one of a kind. There is no one and nothing we could compare Him to.
Listen and see what he points to in Jesus. In the person of Jesus Christ, he says, meet together:
"Infinite highness and infinite condescension . . . infinite justice and infinite grace . . . infinite glory and lowest humility . . . infinite majesty and transcendent meekness . . . deepest reverence towards God and equality with God . . . infinite worthiness of good, and the greatest patience under sufferings of evil . . . an exceeding spirit of obedience, with supreme dominion over heaven and earth . . . absolute sovereignty and perfect resignation . . . self-sufficiency, and an entire trust and reliance on God."
The list could go on and on in proclaiming the excellencies of our self-authenticating Savior. Do you see what I mean when I say that the beauty that we find in Jesus is not a simple thing? It is complex. It is a coming together in one person of the perfect balance and proportion of extremely diverse qualities and that's what makes Jesus Christ so irresistibly and ultimately admirable and excellent.
What happens to us when we see Jesus self-authenticating beauty? Jonathan Edwards has so profoundly written:
“The excellency of Christ is such, that the discovery of it is exceedingly contenting and satisfying to the soul. The carnal soul imagines that earthly things are excellent-one thinks riches most excellent, another has the highest esteem of honor, and to another carnal pleasure appears the most excellent. But the soul cannot find contentment in any of these things, because it soon finds an end to their excellency. Worldly men imagine that there is true excellency and true happiness in those things which they are pursuing. They think that if they could but obtain them, they would be happy. But when they obtain them, and cannot find happiness, they look for happiness in something else, and are still upon the pursuit. But Christ Jesus has true excellency, and so great excellency, that when they come to see him they look no further, but the mind rests there. It sees a transcendent glory and an ineffable sweetness in Jesus! It sees that until now it has been pursuing shadows, but that now it has found the substance. It sees that before it had been seeking happiness in the stream, but that now it has found the ocean!”
The beauty of Jesus Christ is a spiritual beauty. It’s not something you see with the physical eyes, but with the eyes of the heart (Ephesians 1:18). that is why when Jesus was alive , most people never saw His self-authenticating beauty. They were like blind men and women in Yosemite and Kauai who at best can only hear second hand about the beauty that others see. The only way that blind men and women can see earthly beauty is to be given sight and the only way men and women can see Jesus is to be given spiritual sight.
God has a way for us to see! He has means to heal and open up our blind eyes to true beauty. We look at the way he speaks and acts and loves and dies in the Bible, and by the Holy Spirit and His grace, we see a self-authenticating, divine glory, or beauty. Paul put it like this in 2 Corinthians 4:4, 6, “The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God...God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. ” The “glory of Christ who is the image of God” is what John 1:14 calls “glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
Remember, Paul is talking to people who never saw the earthly Jesus, and John is writing his Gospel for people who never saw the earthly Jesus—people like us. The glory of John 1:14 and the glory of 2 Corinthians 4:4,6 is a glory, a self-authenticating beauty, that you see spiritually when you hear the story of Jesus.
You don’t have to see him physically. Jesus said in John 20:29, “Blessed are they who have not seen and yet have believed.” You meet Him in the writings of the Bible, and when you meet him, through these inspired stories of his words and deeds, His beauty shines through, the self-authenticating beauty of that "admirable conjunction of diverse excellencies."
Edwards wrote of this transforming beauty in his sermon The Highway of Holiness.
'Tis the highest beauty and amiableness, vastly above all other beauties; 'tis a divine beauty, makes the soul heavenly and far purer than anything here on earth-this world is like mire and filth and defilement [compared] to that soul which is sanctified-'tis of a sweet, lovely, delightful, serene, calm, and still nature. 'Tis almost too high a beauty for any creature to be adorned with; it makes the soul a little, amiable, and delightful image of the blessed Jehovah. How may angels stand with pleased, delighted, and charmed eyes, and look and look with smiles of pleasure upon that soul that is holy!
Oh pray for eyes to see, savor ,and glory in ultimate beauty, the self authenticating beauty of Christ. When you see His beauty, you will have a joy that "is inexpressible and full of glory" ( 1 Peter 1:8).
Living to see, savor, and tell others of the self-authenticating beauty of Christ,
Pastor Bill
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
I AM WHO I AM!
“Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. The angel of the LORD appeared to him in a blazing fire from the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, yet the bush was not consumed. So Moses said, "I must turn aside now and see this marvelous sight, why the bush is not burned up." When the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am." Then He said, "Do not come near here; remove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground."” (Exodus 3:1-5)
The scene is the Sinai Desert. Into this hot, arid region comes Moses. He is a fugitive from Egypt, having escaped from the consequences of a past murder. He has found refuge in the tents of a wealthy sheik named Jethro. Over the years, he has taken a wife from among the daughters of Jethro and he has settled down to become a simple shepherd. 40 years pass by until one day when Moses comes upon a strange sight. At this low point in Moses life he is surprised by the presence of God in a place where he’d least expect it. It is a bush burning on the slopes of a mountain. The strange thing is not the bush or the fact that it is burning, but that it continues to burn without burning up the bush.
His curiosity aroused, Moses moves closer to investigate. As he does, God speaks to him from the midst of the bush. God first instructs Moses to show proper reverence for the ground upon which he stands. He is to do this by removing his sandals. Forever afterward, the priests would enter the Temple of God barefoot in order to show the same reverence. Next the Lord identifies Himself to Moses: "He said also, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." Then Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. (Exodus 3:6).
Moses had come out of Egypt. The land of Egypt was filled with gods. There was a god of the harvest and a god for the rain and a god for the sun and a god for the river and a god for the cattle. There was a god for everything in Egypt. But God identifies Himself as the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. He is the God of Moses’ ancestors. Hundreds of years earlier, God had appeared to Abraham and had promised Him certain things. The entire history of the Israelite people had been laid out in a detailed prophecy in Genesis 15:13-16. Now God tells Moses that He is the same God who made the covenant with Abraham. He is the same God who repeated the same promises to Isaac and to Jacob. He is the God of Israel, even though they have become enslaved in Egypt.
He is known as the God who promises. He has not forgotten His promises. He is now going to bring them to fulfillment. The brightness of the glory of God in the fire causes Moses to shield his eyes and shrink back in stupefied horror quacking in terror before the spectacular bush of fire. God continues to speak to Moses about what He is going for His covenant people. “And the LORD said, "I have surely seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt, and have given heed to their cry because of their taskmasters, for I am aware of their sufferings. So I have come down to deliver them from the power of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite. (Exodus 3:7-8).
These are the same words that the Lord had spoken to Abraham. He now says that He is going to keep the promise that He had made to Abraham. The terms of that covenant will be fulfilled. What God had promised so many hundreds of years earlier would now come to pass. God is going to deliver the Israelites from their bondage in Egypt. He is going to lead them through the wilderness. He is going to bring them to the land of promise. Moses is called to return to Egypt with this message. Up to this point, Moses has been nodding his head and thinking to himself, "This is quite a good thing." But then God says that the way He was going to accomplish His plan would be through Moses. “And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt" (verses 9-10)
Moses discovered that God had not stopped by for a casual conversation and a cup of tea. An intrusion by God like this always signifies a call to a weighty mission. God got right to the point and told Moses that he was to liberate the entire Jewish populace from the yoke of Egyptian bondage. God was calling him to lead the most spectacular liberation movement in the history of the world. But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?" He said, "But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain." Then Moses said to God, "If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?" (Verses 11-13)
At this point the humbled and astonished Moses pressed God to at least tell him His name. This was a significant question. In the ancient world, the name of a person or a city or a deity was not without meaning. The name of a person would often describe an attribute of that person. Likewise, the name of a deity would usually indicate some specific attribute of that deity. "And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’"And God, furthermore, said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is My name forever, and this is My memorial-name to all generations." (Exodus 3:14-15).
This seemed to be a strange answer to Moses' simple question. God says His name three times, first, in verse 14 God says, "I AM WHO I AM." Second, in verse 14 God says, "I AM has sent me to you." Third, in verse 15 God says, "The LORD . . . has sent me to you . . . this is my name forever." Is that even an answer? What does it mean? It almost sounds as if God was saying, "Never mind what My name is. My name is none of your business. I am who I am and that's all you need to know. Moses, you can see that I am a very powerful force. But I came here to ask you questions, not to answer yours!" But such an interpretation doesn't make sense for God goes on to say that this name is to be His memorial. It is to be the name by which He is to be known by all future generations.
No, God is not evading Moses' question. He has revealed His name. This is God’s own chosen forever name. It is a strange-sounding name, indeed, but it is His real name. I AM WHO I AM, I AM, JEHOVAH, YAWEH, THE LORD. The importance of this name it can be seen in the sheer frequency of its use. It occurs 6,828 times in the Old Testament. What this shows is that God aims to be known not as a generic deity, but as a specific Person with a name that carries his unique character and mission.
What does it mean when you ask your God, Who are you? He answers, I AM WHO I AM? I hope you can begin to feel how important these words are. There aren't any words more important than these. The more you ponder them, the more awesome they become. I know I can't do them justice, but perhaps the Holy Spirit might take my stammering attempt to think of a few and open some view for you.
Because God’s name is “I am”, this means that…
God Does Not Change
In Malachi 3:6 God says, "I Yahweh do not change..." If who God is not determined by any forces outside himself, then he is not subject to the changes we are. God has always been I AM and will always be the I AM. People change their mind because of unforeseen circumstances or weak resolution. God foresees all circumstances and has no weaknesses. Nothing in all creation takes him off guard and backs him into a corner where he might have to act out of character or compromise his integrity. He is who he is, and therefore, as James says, "With him there is no variation or shadow due to change" (James 1:17). He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He cannot change for the better, He is already perfect; and being perfect, He cannot change for the worse. He needs no improvement and deterioration is impossible. He utterly uninfluenced by the passing of time. His power can never diminish nor can His glory ever fade. He is I AM WHO I AM. His nature never changes, His character doesn't change, His truth doesn't change, His purposes don't change, His promises never change, and His love for His people never changes. His absolute name is the granite foundation of our confidence in his ongoing faithfulness.
This God Has Drawn Near to Us in Jesus Christ
One other implication of this magnificent name, I AM WHO I AM, is that this infinite, absolute, self-determining God has drawn near to us in Jesus Christ. In John 8:56–58 Jesus is answering the criticism of the Jewish leaders. He says, "Your father Abraham rejoiced that he was to see my day; he saw it and was glad." The Jews then said to him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?" Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly! I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." Could Jesus have taken any more exalted words upon his lips? When Jesus said, "Before Abraham was, I AM," he took up Himself all the majestic truth of the name of God, wrapped it in the humility of servanthood, offered himself to atone for all our rebellion, and made a way for us to see the glory of God without fear. 2 Corinthians 4:6, “God, (who always was, is, and ever shall be I AM) who (before creation) said, "Let light shine out of darkness (and brought all things into existence)," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” ‘
Jesus is the image of the invisible God. —Colossians 1:15. Jesus put flesh on God's bare-boned answer to Moses' question, "Who are You?" In Jesus Christ we who are born of God have the unspeakable privilege of knowing Yahweh as our Father—I AM WHO I AM—Paul says in Ephesians 3:14-15,“For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.” Our family name is I AM WHO I AM. Whatever last name or family name I once had before must now have an addition that is stronger and more significant-I AM. I must understand that my name is now Bill Robison I AM as a member of His family.
Oh what a privilege, oh what grace, oh what mercy to be called one of I AM’s kids! What’s in a name? I AM, the God who exists whose personality and power owes solely to Himself; who never changes from whom all power and energy in the universe flows to whom all creation should conform its life. This is the name of God: I AM WHO I AM! And may this name be the desire of our hearts and may those who know the name of God put their trust in him.
Pastor Bill
The scene is the Sinai Desert. Into this hot, arid region comes Moses. He is a fugitive from Egypt, having escaped from the consequences of a past murder. He has found refuge in the tents of a wealthy sheik named Jethro. Over the years, he has taken a wife from among the daughters of Jethro and he has settled down to become a simple shepherd. 40 years pass by until one day when Moses comes upon a strange sight. At this low point in Moses life he is surprised by the presence of God in a place where he’d least expect it. It is a bush burning on the slopes of a mountain. The strange thing is not the bush or the fact that it is burning, but that it continues to burn without burning up the bush.
His curiosity aroused, Moses moves closer to investigate. As he does, God speaks to him from the midst of the bush. God first instructs Moses to show proper reverence for the ground upon which he stands. He is to do this by removing his sandals. Forever afterward, the priests would enter the Temple of God barefoot in order to show the same reverence. Next the Lord identifies Himself to Moses: "He said also, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." Then Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. (Exodus 3:6).
Moses had come out of Egypt. The land of Egypt was filled with gods. There was a god of the harvest and a god for the rain and a god for the sun and a god for the river and a god for the cattle. There was a god for everything in Egypt. But God identifies Himself as the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. He is the God of Moses’ ancestors. Hundreds of years earlier, God had appeared to Abraham and had promised Him certain things. The entire history of the Israelite people had been laid out in a detailed prophecy in Genesis 15:13-16. Now God tells Moses that He is the same God who made the covenant with Abraham. He is the same God who repeated the same promises to Isaac and to Jacob. He is the God of Israel, even though they have become enslaved in Egypt.
He is known as the God who promises. He has not forgotten His promises. He is now going to bring them to fulfillment. The brightness of the glory of God in the fire causes Moses to shield his eyes and shrink back in stupefied horror quacking in terror before the spectacular bush of fire. God continues to speak to Moses about what He is going for His covenant people. “And the LORD said, "I have surely seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt, and have given heed to their cry because of their taskmasters, for I am aware of their sufferings. So I have come down to deliver them from the power of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite. (Exodus 3:7-8).
These are the same words that the Lord had spoken to Abraham. He now says that He is going to keep the promise that He had made to Abraham. The terms of that covenant will be fulfilled. What God had promised so many hundreds of years earlier would now come to pass. God is going to deliver the Israelites from their bondage in Egypt. He is going to lead them through the wilderness. He is going to bring them to the land of promise. Moses is called to return to Egypt with this message. Up to this point, Moses has been nodding his head and thinking to himself, "This is quite a good thing." But then God says that the way He was going to accomplish His plan would be through Moses. “And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt" (verses 9-10)
Moses discovered that God had not stopped by for a casual conversation and a cup of tea. An intrusion by God like this always signifies a call to a weighty mission. God got right to the point and told Moses that he was to liberate the entire Jewish populace from the yoke of Egyptian bondage. God was calling him to lead the most spectacular liberation movement in the history of the world. But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?" He said, "But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain." Then Moses said to God, "If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?" (Verses 11-13)
At this point the humbled and astonished Moses pressed God to at least tell him His name. This was a significant question. In the ancient world, the name of a person or a city or a deity was not without meaning. The name of a person would often describe an attribute of that person. Likewise, the name of a deity would usually indicate some specific attribute of that deity. "And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’"And God, furthermore, said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is My name forever, and this is My memorial-name to all generations." (Exodus 3:14-15).
This seemed to be a strange answer to Moses' simple question. God says His name three times, first, in verse 14 God says, "I AM WHO I AM." Second, in verse 14 God says, "I AM has sent me to you." Third, in verse 15 God says, "The LORD . . . has sent me to you . . . this is my name forever." Is that even an answer? What does it mean? It almost sounds as if God was saying, "Never mind what My name is. My name is none of your business. I am who I am and that's all you need to know. Moses, you can see that I am a very powerful force. But I came here to ask you questions, not to answer yours!" But such an interpretation doesn't make sense for God goes on to say that this name is to be His memorial. It is to be the name by which He is to be known by all future generations.
No, God is not evading Moses' question. He has revealed His name. This is God’s own chosen forever name. It is a strange-sounding name, indeed, but it is His real name. I AM WHO I AM, I AM, JEHOVAH, YAWEH, THE LORD. The importance of this name it can be seen in the sheer frequency of its use. It occurs 6,828 times in the Old Testament. What this shows is that God aims to be known not as a generic deity, but as a specific Person with a name that carries his unique character and mission.
What does it mean when you ask your God, Who are you? He answers, I AM WHO I AM? I hope you can begin to feel how important these words are. There aren't any words more important than these. The more you ponder them, the more awesome they become. I know I can't do them justice, but perhaps the Holy Spirit might take my stammering attempt to think of a few and open some view for you.
Because God’s name is “I am”, this means that…
God Does Not Change
In Malachi 3:6 God says, "I Yahweh do not change..." If who God is not determined by any forces outside himself, then he is not subject to the changes we are. God has always been I AM and will always be the I AM. People change their mind because of unforeseen circumstances or weak resolution. God foresees all circumstances and has no weaknesses. Nothing in all creation takes him off guard and backs him into a corner where he might have to act out of character or compromise his integrity. He is who he is, and therefore, as James says, "With him there is no variation or shadow due to change" (James 1:17). He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He cannot change for the better, He is already perfect; and being perfect, He cannot change for the worse. He needs no improvement and deterioration is impossible. He utterly uninfluenced by the passing of time. His power can never diminish nor can His glory ever fade. He is I AM WHO I AM. His nature never changes, His character doesn't change, His truth doesn't change, His purposes don't change, His promises never change, and His love for His people never changes. His absolute name is the granite foundation of our confidence in his ongoing faithfulness.
This God Has Drawn Near to Us in Jesus Christ
One other implication of this magnificent name, I AM WHO I AM, is that this infinite, absolute, self-determining God has drawn near to us in Jesus Christ. In John 8:56–58 Jesus is answering the criticism of the Jewish leaders. He says, "Your father Abraham rejoiced that he was to see my day; he saw it and was glad." The Jews then said to him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?" Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly! I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." Could Jesus have taken any more exalted words upon his lips? When Jesus said, "Before Abraham was, I AM," he took up Himself all the majestic truth of the name of God, wrapped it in the humility of servanthood, offered himself to atone for all our rebellion, and made a way for us to see the glory of God without fear. 2 Corinthians 4:6, “God, (who always was, is, and ever shall be I AM) who (before creation) said, "Let light shine out of darkness (and brought all things into existence)," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” ‘
Jesus is the image of the invisible God. —Colossians 1:15. Jesus put flesh on God's bare-boned answer to Moses' question, "Who are You?" In Jesus Christ we who are born of God have the unspeakable privilege of knowing Yahweh as our Father—I AM WHO I AM—Paul says in Ephesians 3:14-15,“For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.” Our family name is I AM WHO I AM. Whatever last name or family name I once had before must now have an addition that is stronger and more significant-I AM. I must understand that my name is now Bill Robison I AM as a member of His family.
Oh what a privilege, oh what grace, oh what mercy to be called one of I AM’s kids! What’s in a name? I AM, the God who exists whose personality and power owes solely to Himself; who never changes from whom all power and energy in the universe flows to whom all creation should conform its life. This is the name of God: I AM WHO I AM! And may this name be the desire of our hearts and may those who know the name of God put their trust in him.
Pastor Bill
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
LESSONS ON FAITH AND PRAYER FROM HUDSON TAYLOR
Do you ever have days or seasons where you struggle in prayer, faith, and perseverance? I confess that I do. What do you do when they arrive at the doorstep of your soul? I am so thankful for the means of grace that God has provided to strengthen me, gain perspective, and rise above my trials. Whenever I am battling with my faith I pull my bible and Christian biographies out of my arsenal to fan my faith back into flame. I encourage you to do the same.
I call these biographies my friends because they come alongside of me and urge me to fight, run, pray, and persevere (Hebrews 12:1; 13:7). I make it a habit to regularly pay my dear friends a visit. One of my favorite friends to visit is Hudson Taylor (Born at Barnsley (18 miles south. of Leeds), Yorkshire, England, May 21, 1832; died at Changsha (340 miles north of Canton), China, June 3, 1905) the first missionary to the interior of China and founder of the China Inland Mission (Called today OMF).
Taylor challenges me more than anything than in the areas faith and prayer. His philosophy was that "He must move men through God -- by prayer’. That he did so successfully and miraculously makes for some of the most exciting reading in church history.
One of the great stories of his life is that after his call Taylor first moved from the comforts of his home with his parents and two sisters in beautiful Barnsley of Yorkshire to Drainside, Hull, a poverty-stricken, depressing area named after and notarized by its foul ditch. Taylor had gone there purposely to work for a doctor and accumulate a little medical knowledge, and also to accustom himself to something of the loneliness and dangers of living in a strange land where his only companion would be God.
It was at Drainside Taylor learned one can trust God with his last cent. He had been called out late one night to witness to and pray over a sick woman with starving children. As he tried to pray, his words choked in his mouth because he had in his possession a silver coin that would answer his prayer and alleviate their sufferings somewhat. He did not want to let go of that coin! So he tried to rationalize and justify holding on to it. Meanwhile he was praying for God to provide for the poor family (I love this. It sounds so much like me at times). "Hypocrite!" he heard his heart condemn him. "Telling people about a kind and loving Father in Heaven -- and not prepared to trust Him yourself, without your money!" Taylor experienced a time of inner conflict that he had never known before but still would not let go of the coin to help this family. The husband of the woman asked Taylor after he fumbled through his prayer: “If you can help us, for God’s sake do it.” Just then a word flashed through Taylor’s mind, “Give to Him who asks of you.” He gave them his last coin, only one bowl of porridge between him and poverty! As he ate that last meal he remembered the Scripture, "He that gives to the poor lends to the Lord" (Proverbs 19:17).
The next day he received a package. In it was a gold coin worth ten times the silver coin. Taylor cried out triumphantly, "That's good interest! Ha! Ha! Invested in God's bank for twelve hours and it brings me this! That's the bank for me!" Taylor’s life was radically impacted by the lessons he learned. “I cannot tell you how often my mind has recurred to this incident, or all the help that it has been to me in circumstances of difficulty in my life. If we are faithful to God in the little things, we shall gain experience and strength that will be helpful to us in the more serious trials of life.”
So at nineteen years of age, Taylor learned he could trust and obey God in every area of his life. “It is always helpful to us to fix attention on the Godward aspect of Christian work; to realize that the work of God does not mean so much man’s work for God, as God’s work through man.”
Taylor reminds me that God is the decisive worker in the Christian life!
1 Corinthians 15:10, “I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.”
1 Peter 4:10-11, “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies- in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.”
Another great lesson he learned was how a man can simply take God at His Word. At fifteen years of age Taylor had become disappointed, disillusioned, and bored with his life. He found the religious life of his parents very dull, although he attended church very dutifully with them. He really desired horses, hunting, and luxuries. Alone at home one day he looked for something to read in his father’s library. He picked up a gospel tract and began to read it. At the very same moment seventy miles away his mother was earnestly praying for her son's salvation (His sister had been praying for him a s well). At the very same time and on that same day Taylor prayed his first prayer and it was answered. He was converted to Christ!
Praying to God and God answering prayer; became the passion of his life. He learned to move men alone through God by prayer. He asked no man for any material thing. Like George Mueller, he laid all needs before his Lord.
There was a doctor he had worked for at Drainside that sometimes forgot when it was pay day for his assistant. Because of that, he himself had suggested to his young assistant, "Taylor, please do remind me when it is time to pay your salary. I'm so busy, you know, I'm quite likely to forget." And forget he did. But Taylor remembered that in China he would have no one to ask anything of, only God, so he simply asked God to remind the doctor.
Three weeks later the doctor remembered and came by to visit. Taylor was elated that his bills would be paid (I cannot tell you how many times I have experienced similar putting my hopes in man!), But when the doctor came by and told Taylor he remembered, he also told Taylor that he remembered only after he had banked his money. Taylor was devastated! He was broke. It was Saturday. He had no money to pay his rent. He had no money for food. As soon as the doctor left He began tearfully and anxiously pouring his heart out to God for some time until peace, calmness, thankfulness, and joy were restored by prayer and communion with the God of comfort (2 Corinthians 1:1). He believed that God was not going to fail him. Taylor felt that , “God had had His own way…and now was going to work for me in some other way.”
He prayed as he worked until ten o'clock, glad he would not have to face his landlady. As he prepared to leave, the doctor surprised him, "What do you think? One of my patients has just come to pay his bill! He's one of my richest patients and he could have paid me by check anytime. Yet, there he is, bringing in the money at ten o'clock on Saturday night." Then he added, "By the way, Taylor, you might as well take these notes. I have no change, but I can give you the balance of your salary next week ... Good night!"
Taylor's prayers were answered. He could not only pay his rent, he had money in hand for weeks ahead -- but more than that, he had proven again: God answers prayer and moves men. He wanted to prove in his life the willingness of God to answer prayers of spiritual blessing under the most unpromising circumstances and “thus to gain an increased acquaintance with the prayer answering God as one mighty to save”.
Taylor went on to live this testimony of faith in China. There were storms at sea and miraculous deliverance's in that five-and-one-half months' journey to China. When he landed God encouraged him to bring every variety of need to Him in prayer, and to expect that "He would honor the name of Jesus Christ and give the help that each emergency required.”
There was civil war when he landed at Shanghai, rebels holding the city. Fires, famine, fearsome circumstances were fought by the young missionary on his knees and God delivered him. His faith was rock solidly grounded in the scriptures and the absolute sovereign purposes of God. Oh what lessons we can learn from him in how we face adversity, disappointments, and suffering. He writes,
“the great enemy is always ready with his often repeated suggestion, all these things are against me, but oh how false the word. The cold, the hunger, the watching’s, the sleeplessness, the nights of danger, the feelings at times of utter isolation and helplessness were well and wisely chosen, and lovingly and tenderly meted out. What circumstances could have rendered the Word of God sweeter, and the presence of God so real, and the help of God so precious?”
I love reading how consistent Taylor was in depending upon God in prayer and then seeing answers. One time he prayed about provision and writes, “I looked to my Father as able to supply all of my need God and received another token of His ceaseless love.’
Taylor can encourage us in how to face our darkest times of trial. When faced with grave circumstances his attitude was “I know not how the God I served would help me but that I had no doubt that He would do so, and that my business now was to serve Him where I am.”
He struggled with faith as a man just like we all do. “My faith has often failed, and I was sorry and ashamed that I failed to trust such a father.” But Hudson Taylor was encouraged that even in weakness of unbelief, “When we fail to trust Him fully. He still remains unchangeably faithful. He is wholly true whether we trust Him or not…Oh how we dishonor our Lord when we fail to trust Him, and what peace, blessing, and triumph we loose in sinning against the truthful One! May we never presume to doubt Him” at such revelation of the Father’s faithfulness.”
He reminds us why we have difficulties and problems in our lives as Christians:
“Not infrequently our God brings His people into difficulties on purpose that they may come to know him as they could not otherwise do . Then He reveals Himself as a very present help in trouble and makes the heart glad indeed.”
Taylor ministered in the river towns, married a wife and saw many miracles in converted Chinese. But on June 25, 1865, he made his move to minister to the millions of China "West of the Mountains, South of the Clouds, North of the Lake"--Inland China. At Brighton, England, on furlough, he opened a bank account: "Ten pounds" (Fifty dollars) in the name of "The China Inland Mission." His initial goal was twenty-four workers. The next May the twenty-four sailed. Then there were seventy more. And another hundred. And finally more than eight hundred missionaries ministered across the far-flung miles of China's interior. Truly this man of faith and fortitude had mastered in the ministry of moving men through God by prayer.
J. Hudson Taylor died in 1905, before the communist takeover of his beloved China. His days were days of extensive and effective evangelism. Multitudes of converted Chinese will rise up in Heaven and call him blessed and many Christian workers whose lives were challenged and changed by the contagious Christian character of Taylor will follow in their train.
I long in my life for the simple, bible-centered, God trusting, childlike faith of this dear man. “Has not God said that whatever we ask in the Name of the Lord Jesus shall be done? And are we not told to seek first the kingdom of God, not the means to advance it (I.e. money), and that all of these things shall be added to us? Such promises are surely sufficient.” “In the study of that divine Word of God I learned that, to obtain successful laborers, not elaborate appeals for help, but first, earnest prayers to God to thrust forth such laborers…I have no doubt , that, if I prayed fr workers in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, they would be given to me. I had no doubt that in answer to such prayer that the means for our going forth would be provided, and that doors would be opened.”
Praying for the grace to consider and imitate the faith of Hudson Taylor,
Pastor Bill
I call these biographies my friends because they come alongside of me and urge me to fight, run, pray, and persevere (Hebrews 12:1; 13:7). I make it a habit to regularly pay my dear friends a visit. One of my favorite friends to visit is Hudson Taylor (Born at Barnsley (18 miles south. of Leeds), Yorkshire, England, May 21, 1832; died at Changsha (340 miles north of Canton), China, June 3, 1905) the first missionary to the interior of China and founder of the China Inland Mission (Called today OMF).
Taylor challenges me more than anything than in the areas faith and prayer. His philosophy was that "He must move men through God -- by prayer’. That he did so successfully and miraculously makes for some of the most exciting reading in church history.
One of the great stories of his life is that after his call Taylor first moved from the comforts of his home with his parents and two sisters in beautiful Barnsley of Yorkshire to Drainside, Hull, a poverty-stricken, depressing area named after and notarized by its foul ditch. Taylor had gone there purposely to work for a doctor and accumulate a little medical knowledge, and also to accustom himself to something of the loneliness and dangers of living in a strange land where his only companion would be God.
It was at Drainside Taylor learned one can trust God with his last cent. He had been called out late one night to witness to and pray over a sick woman with starving children. As he tried to pray, his words choked in his mouth because he had in his possession a silver coin that would answer his prayer and alleviate their sufferings somewhat. He did not want to let go of that coin! So he tried to rationalize and justify holding on to it. Meanwhile he was praying for God to provide for the poor family (I love this. It sounds so much like me at times). "Hypocrite!" he heard his heart condemn him. "Telling people about a kind and loving Father in Heaven -- and not prepared to trust Him yourself, without your money!" Taylor experienced a time of inner conflict that he had never known before but still would not let go of the coin to help this family. The husband of the woman asked Taylor after he fumbled through his prayer: “If you can help us, for God’s sake do it.” Just then a word flashed through Taylor’s mind, “Give to Him who asks of you.” He gave them his last coin, only one bowl of porridge between him and poverty! As he ate that last meal he remembered the Scripture, "He that gives to the poor lends to the Lord" (Proverbs 19:17).
The next day he received a package. In it was a gold coin worth ten times the silver coin. Taylor cried out triumphantly, "That's good interest! Ha! Ha! Invested in God's bank for twelve hours and it brings me this! That's the bank for me!" Taylor’s life was radically impacted by the lessons he learned. “I cannot tell you how often my mind has recurred to this incident, or all the help that it has been to me in circumstances of difficulty in my life. If we are faithful to God in the little things, we shall gain experience and strength that will be helpful to us in the more serious trials of life.”
So at nineteen years of age, Taylor learned he could trust and obey God in every area of his life. “It is always helpful to us to fix attention on the Godward aspect of Christian work; to realize that the work of God does not mean so much man’s work for God, as God’s work through man.”
Taylor reminds me that God is the decisive worker in the Christian life!
1 Corinthians 15:10, “I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.”
1 Peter 4:10-11, “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies- in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.”
Another great lesson he learned was how a man can simply take God at His Word. At fifteen years of age Taylor had become disappointed, disillusioned, and bored with his life. He found the religious life of his parents very dull, although he attended church very dutifully with them. He really desired horses, hunting, and luxuries. Alone at home one day he looked for something to read in his father’s library. He picked up a gospel tract and began to read it. At the very same moment seventy miles away his mother was earnestly praying for her son's salvation (His sister had been praying for him a s well). At the very same time and on that same day Taylor prayed his first prayer and it was answered. He was converted to Christ!
Praying to God and God answering prayer; became the passion of his life. He learned to move men alone through God by prayer. He asked no man for any material thing. Like George Mueller, he laid all needs before his Lord.
There was a doctor he had worked for at Drainside that sometimes forgot when it was pay day for his assistant. Because of that, he himself had suggested to his young assistant, "Taylor, please do remind me when it is time to pay your salary. I'm so busy, you know, I'm quite likely to forget." And forget he did. But Taylor remembered that in China he would have no one to ask anything of, only God, so he simply asked God to remind the doctor.
Three weeks later the doctor remembered and came by to visit. Taylor was elated that his bills would be paid (I cannot tell you how many times I have experienced similar putting my hopes in man!), But when the doctor came by and told Taylor he remembered, he also told Taylor that he remembered only after he had banked his money. Taylor was devastated! He was broke. It was Saturday. He had no money to pay his rent. He had no money for food. As soon as the doctor left He began tearfully and anxiously pouring his heart out to God for some time until peace, calmness, thankfulness, and joy were restored by prayer and communion with the God of comfort (2 Corinthians 1:1). He believed that God was not going to fail him. Taylor felt that , “God had had His own way…and now was going to work for me in some other way.”
He prayed as he worked until ten o'clock, glad he would not have to face his landlady. As he prepared to leave, the doctor surprised him, "What do you think? One of my patients has just come to pay his bill! He's one of my richest patients and he could have paid me by check anytime. Yet, there he is, bringing in the money at ten o'clock on Saturday night." Then he added, "By the way, Taylor, you might as well take these notes. I have no change, but I can give you the balance of your salary next week ... Good night!"
Taylor's prayers were answered. He could not only pay his rent, he had money in hand for weeks ahead -- but more than that, he had proven again: God answers prayer and moves men. He wanted to prove in his life the willingness of God to answer prayers of spiritual blessing under the most unpromising circumstances and “thus to gain an increased acquaintance with the prayer answering God as one mighty to save”.
Taylor went on to live this testimony of faith in China. There were storms at sea and miraculous deliverance's in that five-and-one-half months' journey to China. When he landed God encouraged him to bring every variety of need to Him in prayer, and to expect that "He would honor the name of Jesus Christ and give the help that each emergency required.”
There was civil war when he landed at Shanghai, rebels holding the city. Fires, famine, fearsome circumstances were fought by the young missionary on his knees and God delivered him. His faith was rock solidly grounded in the scriptures and the absolute sovereign purposes of God. Oh what lessons we can learn from him in how we face adversity, disappointments, and suffering. He writes,
“the great enemy is always ready with his often repeated suggestion, all these things are against me, but oh how false the word. The cold, the hunger, the watching’s, the sleeplessness, the nights of danger, the feelings at times of utter isolation and helplessness were well and wisely chosen, and lovingly and tenderly meted out. What circumstances could have rendered the Word of God sweeter, and the presence of God so real, and the help of God so precious?”
I love reading how consistent Taylor was in depending upon God in prayer and then seeing answers. One time he prayed about provision and writes, “I looked to my Father as able to supply all of my need God and received another token of His ceaseless love.’
Taylor can encourage us in how to face our darkest times of trial. When faced with grave circumstances his attitude was “I know not how the God I served would help me but that I had no doubt that He would do so, and that my business now was to serve Him where I am.”
He struggled with faith as a man just like we all do. “My faith has often failed, and I was sorry and ashamed that I failed to trust such a father.” But Hudson Taylor was encouraged that even in weakness of unbelief, “When we fail to trust Him fully. He still remains unchangeably faithful. He is wholly true whether we trust Him or not…Oh how we dishonor our Lord when we fail to trust Him, and what peace, blessing, and triumph we loose in sinning against the truthful One! May we never presume to doubt Him” at such revelation of the Father’s faithfulness.”
He reminds us why we have difficulties and problems in our lives as Christians:
“Not infrequently our God brings His people into difficulties on purpose that they may come to know him as they could not otherwise do . Then He reveals Himself as a very present help in trouble and makes the heart glad indeed.”
Taylor ministered in the river towns, married a wife and saw many miracles in converted Chinese. But on June 25, 1865, he made his move to minister to the millions of China "West of the Mountains, South of the Clouds, North of the Lake"--Inland China. At Brighton, England, on furlough, he opened a bank account: "Ten pounds" (Fifty dollars) in the name of "The China Inland Mission." His initial goal was twenty-four workers. The next May the twenty-four sailed. Then there were seventy more. And another hundred. And finally more than eight hundred missionaries ministered across the far-flung miles of China's interior. Truly this man of faith and fortitude had mastered in the ministry of moving men through God by prayer.
J. Hudson Taylor died in 1905, before the communist takeover of his beloved China. His days were days of extensive and effective evangelism. Multitudes of converted Chinese will rise up in Heaven and call him blessed and many Christian workers whose lives were challenged and changed by the contagious Christian character of Taylor will follow in their train.
I long in my life for the simple, bible-centered, God trusting, childlike faith of this dear man. “Has not God said that whatever we ask in the Name of the Lord Jesus shall be done? And are we not told to seek first the kingdom of God, not the means to advance it (I.e. money), and that all of these things shall be added to us? Such promises are surely sufficient.” “In the study of that divine Word of God I learned that, to obtain successful laborers, not elaborate appeals for help, but first, earnest prayers to God to thrust forth such laborers…I have no doubt , that, if I prayed fr workers in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, they would be given to me. I had no doubt that in answer to such prayer that the means for our going forth would be provided, and that doors would be opened.”
Praying for the grace to consider and imitate the faith of Hudson Taylor,
Pastor Bill
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