Healing in Christ

⁴ Surely he took up our infirmities
and carried our sorrows,
yet we considered him stricken by God,
smitten by him, and afflicted.
⁵ But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
⁶ We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

¹⁰ Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand.
¹¹ After the suffering of his soul,
he will see the light of life and be satisfied;
by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many,
and he will bear their iniquities.
¹² Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,
and he will divide the spoils with the strong,
because he poured out his life unto death,
and was numbered with the transgressors.
For he bore the sin of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors.

-Isaiah 53:4-6, 10-12

These words speak life to my soul. Jesus Christ offers so much more than legal forgiveness of wrongdoing and sin. He offers complete healing, restoration and resurrection to new life!

He took up our infirmities.

He bore our sin.

He was pierced for our transgressions.

He was crushed for our iniquities.

He carried our sorrows.

By His wounds we are healed.

Sin—sin committed by us and against us—is the root of all our wounds. To think Jesus died a gruesome death on the cross to heal us of the very things which crucified Him is inconceivable!

How many of us still carry sorrows! How many of us still live in shame, regret and guilt! How many of us have yet to experience forgiveness and how many of us have yet to allow Christ to anoint our wounds!

Jesus is calling to us, "Give Me your pain, shame, and sin. Allow Me to carry your sorrow. Allow Me to take up your infirmity. Allow Me to bear your iniquity."

"For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" (Hebrews 4:15-16). Jesus knows all. We do not need to hide from Him. We can enter His presence and acknowledge every sorrow, wound, sin, fear and doubt to Him. In return we can receive His healing Word and new life.

Let us thus approach the throne of grace.

Lead Us Back to You

Oh Jesus we are harassed and helpless
like sheep without a shepherd
Our wills weak
Our love small

Oh Jesus we are wandering
chasing after other lovers
but You Jesus
—You Jesus we have forgot

I am the good shepherd
the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep
I am the good shepherd
I know my sheep and my sheep know me—
just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—
and I lay down My life for the sheep!

Oh Jesus, You bore our sins
in Your body on the cross
so that we might die to sins
and live for righteousness
By Your wounds we have been healed
for we were like sheep going astray
but now we have returned—
returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls

Oh Jesus take upon Yourself our adulterous love
and give us love anew
Oh Jesus lead us back
—lead us back to You

The Bittersweet Will of God

There is a huge difference between God's will and asking for God's blessing upon man-made plans: We unearth God's will only when we submit our will to Christ's. This is a horribly painful process, for it requires us to die. We must die to every dream, hope and ambition of our making. In adoration and praise we must break our alabaster jar of perfume at the feet of Jesus. We must surrender all to Him.

This is so much easier said than done. My pursuit of Christ is often conditional. I will follow You, Jesus, if...

Do I, however, want the gifts or do I want the Giver? What truly is my treasure?

Surrender is so intimately connected with trust. We can only give Jesus our lives if we believe He is faithful. We can only give Jesus our lives if we believe He works for our good in all things.

When I reflect on the times in my life when I was not walking in surrender—when I was not submitting my will to Christ's—I can blatantly see a root of distrust. I did not believe Christ would work for my good. I did not believe His will and timing were better than my own. Consequently, I took life into my own hands, and without fail this always led to brokenness and heartache.

Though I remain faithless Jesus remains faithful, and slowly He is teaching me the joy and beauty of surrender. He is showing me I can trust Him with my heart. He is showing me His plans are always better than anything I could plan for myself.

Jesus knows my heart better than I know my heart. He knows what makes it break. He knows what makes it come alive. He knows my fears. He knows my doubts. I can enter into His presence and freely acknowledge all to Him. With tears I can tell Him how little faith I have. With tears I can give Him my heart and offer Him my life. With tears I can submit my will to His.

You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart
you, God, will not despise.
-Psalm 51:16-17

A Poem of Surrender

Oh Jesus I come with clenched fists
With many tears I kneel at the cross
With great resistance I pry open my hands
With great resistance I offer You my heart

Oh Jesus I come with clenched fists
With many tears I kneel at the cross
Slowly my hand opens to You
Slowly I offer You my heart

Oh Jesus I come with clenched fists
With many tears I kneel at the cross
Again I pry open my hands
Again I offer You my heart

Oh Jesus I come with clenched fists
With many tears I kneel at the cross
This time my palm opens more easily
This time I offer You my heart

Oh Jesus tonight I come with unclenched fists
With many tears I kneel at the cross
Freely I offer You my heart
—You sweet Jesus have earned my trust

Army on its Knees

I stand in a war-torn valley
—before my eyes I see bones
Bones that are very dry
Can these bones live?
Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord!
This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones:
I will make breath enter you,
and you will come to life
I will attach tendons to you
and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin;
I will put breath in you,
and you will come to life!
A rattling sound echos forth
the bones come together, bone to bone
the tendons and flesh appear on them and skin covers them
—but there is no breath!
This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
Come from the four winds, O breath,
and breath into the slain, that they may live!
Immediately before my eyes breath enters the slain!
They come to life and stand up on their feet
—a vast army!
Oh army, hear the word of the Lord Almighty:
Not by might nor by power,
but by my Spirit
Oh army, hear the word of the Lord Almighty:
The Lord will fight for you;
you need only to be still
Oh army, hear the word of the Lord Almighty:
They will fight against you but will not overcome you,
for I am with you to rescue and save you
Oh army, hear the word of the Lord Almighty:
For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you
to fight for you against your enemies
—to give you victory!
Oh army, heed to wisdom of the wise:
It was not by their sword that they won the land,
nor did their arm bring them victory;
it was Your right hand, Your arm
Oh army, heed the wisdom of the wise:
Through You we push back our enemies;
through Your name we trample our foes
I put no trust in my bow,
my sword does not bring me victory;
but You give us victory over our enemies,
You put our adversaries to shame
Oh army move forth
—move forth army on your knees
If My people, who are called by My name,
will humble themselves
and pray and seek My face
and turn from their wicked ways,
then I will hear from heaven,
and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land
Oh army humble yourself
Lament and mourn
Pray and seek His face
His power is made perfect in weakness
He crowns the humble with victory
He is the vine
—you are the branches
apart from Him you can do nothing!
Humble yourself, oh army, humble yourself!
—move forth army on your knees
Oh army move forth
—move forth army on your knees!

Arise Oh God!

I see the children of God

—before my eyes I see an army

And looking forth I weep

Countless are spewed upon the cold earth

Wounded and bleeding

—their wounds festering from infection

And looking over to the enemy’s side

I see a hundredfold held prisoner—

The chains are so heavy upon them!

Oh how my heart hurts!

This is not an army in victory—

It is an army in complete and utter defeat

Arise oh God!

We need your power!

We need your strength!

Come oh Healer and anoint our wounds

Come oh Liberator and set us free

Come oh Holy One and make us holy

Oh Jesus we are dying

We need living water

Quench our parched lips with the water of life

Oh Jesus we are dying

Bury us with You through baptism into death

In order that just as You were raised from the dead

Through the glory of the Father

We too may live a new life!

Oh Spirit crucify the old self

That our decaying bodies of sin might be done away with

That we should no longer be slaves to sin

—because anyone who has died has been freed

Oh Triune God from the soil of defeat bring victory!

Oh Triune God from the soil of death bring life!

Oh Triune God from the soil of brokenness be glorified!

Christian Dating

Within Christian community I believe an area of significant confusion and gray area is dating. How can one honor Christ in dating? What does a godly dating relationship look like?

I have been contemplating relationships recently. When it comes to Christian dating I am just as clueless as the rest. In the past I looked to other couples for wisdom and guidance, but a few days ago the Lord spoke to me saying, "Why do you always look to others for wisdom? You know more about relationships than you think, because I have given you wisdom."

I want to share the vision the Lord has impressed upon my heart:

In past dating relationships I completely froze up once a title was assigned. I felt bound to the other person. I felt as if I had to forsake all ties with other men because if I maintained these relationships I was being unfaithful. I also felt extremely unfree. I am a very deep person, and I love knowing others well. Within dating, however, I felt restricted by boundaries of what I could and could not say. Ultimatley, this left me feeling like I was being untrue to myself and in response I completely shut down.

I have been reflecting on the later, working through my response to dating. What I have realized is that dating is in essence a quasi-marriage. A marriage is two people sharing all of themselves with one another. A marriage is two people becoming one, forsaking all others. Within dating I made a commitment which felt like a marriage commitment, but I had not yet arrived at a place where I could forsake all others. Moreover, dating had the form of oneness, but I could not yet be one with the other person. It is no surprise I felt bound and unfree!

The more and more I seek the Lord, the more and more I am convinced that God designed romance for so, so much more!

When I was a child I had an innocent, romantic heart. My heart was deeply moved by romance, but as I got older and experienced heartbreak and failed relationships I became disillusioned. I honestly stopped believing in true love. My romantic heart died, but recently the Lord has been reviving it, showing me true romance does exist. I know true romance exists because I have seen it in the way the Lord pursues my heart and wins my trust.

A woman's heart is designed to be pursued. She longs to be cherished, loved and valued. A man's heart, by contrast, is designed to pursue. He is designed to arise to the challenge of offering his strength and winning a woman's heart over time.

Forsaking ties with all others and being fully committed to one person is what a marriage is intended for, not dating. Dating instead should be a time of pursuit. It should be a time of a man winning a woman's affections over time, earning her trust and proving himself worthy of the treasure of her heart. It should be a time of intentionality. A time of a man and a woman spending intentional time getting to know one another.

Defined relationships bring with them expectations. When care is expressed because it is expected it loses its power and beauty. Defined relationships also often lose the intentionality of a man pursuing a woman's heart. Because a commitment has already been secured, a man no longer feels the need to arise to the challenge of winning a woman's heart. Consequently a couple's time together becomes shallow. The couple spends time together, yes, but watching a movie together and spending time in the same room does not equate true relationship.

I truly believe all of life is meant to reflect the Gospel, and romance and relationships are no exception: Christ pursues the hearts of the disobedient and wayward. He initiates. He gradually wins a nonbeliever's trust and affections over time. This represents the season of pursuit, the season of a man winning a woman's heart over time. (Note that it is the man, not the woman, who initiates and pursues, for in Ephesians 5 we are told husbands represent Christ and wives represent the Church, or the bride of Christ.) Eventually a nonbeliever comes to a point of decision, a point when he or she finally says 'Yes' to Christ. This point represents engagement, a time when a woman finally agrees to be married to the man pursuing her heart. During the season of engagement the man and woman are not yet married—not yet fully one. They await with joyful anticipation the day they will be united as one in marriage. In the same way, we, the bride of Christ, await with great anticipation the day when we will be united with our husband Christ:

⁶ Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting:

“Hallelujah!
For our Lord God Almighty reigns.
⁷ Let us rejoice and be glad
and give him glory!
For the wedding of the Lamb has come,
and his bride has made herself ready.
⁸ Fine linen, bright and clean,
was given her to wear.”

-Revelation 19:6-8

I do not in any way claim Christian couples should not enter into committed relationships. I know many couples who have done so with great success, but I think we should also not assume this is the only way. If anything, I hope this post causes you to think about your own opinions about dating, thereby compelling you to personally seek the Lord for wisdom and guidance.

With love,
Roberta

Who is Jesus to you?

I love to prayer journal, and tonight as I was journaling I realized my entry was entirely focused on myself, lacking even a hint of adoration or praise. I was taken aback as I realized my relationship with Christ had waned from a vibrant love relationship to a bland business transaction.

By all means we should come to Jesus with our requests and burdens. We should confess our sin and ask Him to transform our hearts. If, however, our communion with Christ ends here we are completely missing the point of the Gospel.

Jesus died a gruesome death on the cross not simply to make people with better morals, but to restore a broken relationship!

¹⁹ For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him [Christ], ²⁰ and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. ²¹ Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. ²² But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— ²³ if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. -Colossians 1:19-23

Isaiah 59:2 says: "But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear." Because of our sin we were alienated—separated—from a holy God, but in Christ every sin has been erased, making us holy in God's sight. As Colossians 1:19-23 says we have been reconciled to God the Father!

Thus, by the blood of Jesus we can intimately and personally know our Creator. We can experience His love, and we can learn to hear His voice. Jesus wants to free us from our sin. He wants to empower us to advance His Kingdom and glorify Him. But above all else He wants to be with us.

Though we are faithless He remains faithful. He never stops pursuing us. He never stops showering us in His relentless love and beauty. We simply need to be still and abide.

³⁸ As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. ³⁹ She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. ⁴⁰ But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” ⁴¹ “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, ⁴² but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” -Luke 10:38-42

Our Purpose is Worship

In John 9 Jesus heals a blind man, and later Jesus and the man have the following dialogue:

³⁵ Jesus heard that they [the Pharisees] had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said,“Do you believe in the Son of Man?”
³⁶ “Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.”
³⁷ Jesus said, “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.”
³⁸Then the man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him.

The man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. In this simple verse we find the entire essence of Christianity summarized.

When we accept Christ’s gift of forgiveness our life is hidden with Christ’s. Jesus takes upon Himself our sin and He gives us His perfect, spotless record of righteousness. From the moment of true, saving faith we are justified in God’s sight. We stand before the throne of God without blemish and free of accusation. We are holy in God’s sight not because of our holiness but wholly because of Christ’s.

How quickly we base our standing before God on our holiness. How readily we base our justification on legalistic obedience to the law. How quickly we move from the hope held out in the Gospel!

Christ has already fulfilled the law. Why do we so adamantly seek to add works to Christ’s finished work on the cross?

“You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.” -Galatians 5:4

Let us not be alienated from Christ any longer! Let us return to the Gospel. Let us abandon our works at the foot of the cross and meditate on His completed work. Let us believe and worship. Let us fix our eyes ever on Jesus, and may the Spirit stir our affections for Him.

Blessed

What does it mean to be blessed?

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit [those who are not spiritually proud and self-sufficient],
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
⁴ Blessed are those who mourn [over both personal and corporate sins],
for they will be comforted.
⁵ Blessed are the meek [those who walk humbly before God],
for they will inherit the earth.
⁶ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness [those who hunger and thirst for personal righteousness and justice for the oppressed],
for they will be filled.
⁷ Blessed are the merciful [those who extend the mercy they have freely received],
for they will be shown mercy.
⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart [those who are pure in mind, will and emotions],
for they will see God.
⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers [those who promote peace],
for they will be called children of God.
¹⁰ Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness [those who are persecuted for righteous living],
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

-Matthew 5:3-10

The Christian might not be blessed according to the world’s standards, but the Christian is deeply blessed according to God’s. We share in the eternal joy of salvation. We are co-heirs with Christ, and ours is not a temporary kingdom but an everlasting one: “Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him” (Daniel 7:27). Great is our reward in heaven (Matthew 5:12), and our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all (2 Corinthians 4:17).

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our ‘God is a consuming fire’ (Hebrews 12:28-29).

Contentment

It is so challenging to be content and rest in the season of life the Lord has me in. It seems—regardless of my circumstances—that I am always longing for another season of life. Perhaps you can relate.

Discontentment robs me of all joy. In focusing on the blessings I do not have I ultimately fail to appreciate the blessings I do have. Discontentment, moreover, reveals where I am finding my joy.

“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
-Hebrews 13:5

Circumstances vary and change. Life inevitably lets us down. But Jesus never changes. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. He never will leave or forsake us.

True contentment is found in the unchanging Christ, and true contentment is learned. The Apostle Paul says: “I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:11-13). The secret to which he refers is an abiding relationship with Christ. The nonbeliever depends on the things of the world for joy, but the Christian must learn to find his or her joy in the Lord.The Christian must learn to fix his or her eyes not on temporary circumstances but upward on Jesus—moment by moment and day by day.

May we find enduring contentment as we fix our eyes on Christ, the true treasure.

Truth

“Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” -2 Timothy 4:2-4

We live in a culture that caters to the individual. A culture that wants everyone to feel accepted and validated. Our culture frequently—and might I add tragically—spills over into the Church.

What is truth? To many truth is relative. Your truth is your truth and my truth is my truth. Truth depends on one’s subjective opinion and perspective. I refute this view. I am wholeheartedly persuaded there is one absolute truth—a truth that is independent of one’s opinions and perspectives.

As Christians we enter into very dangerous waters when we begin to think like our culture—when we view truth as relative rather than absolute. All Scripture is God-breathed (2 Timothy 3:16). Inspired by God Himself, the Word of God is not open to personal interpretation. Scripture contains one truth—and that is the truth determined by God not man.

We must not shape Christianity to man, but man to Christianity. We must, moreover, be weary of man-made religion disguised as ‘Christianity’; religion rooted not in Biblical truth but human philosophy. Salvation is not relative depending on one’s personal understanding. Salvation is absolute and the only salvation that is truly saving is the salvation rooted wholly and completely in the Word of God.

Faith

“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” -Hebrews 11:1

“For we live by faith, not by sight.” -2 Corinthians 5:7

Faith is confidence in what we hope for. It is assurance of what we do not see.

“Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.’ Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.” -Romans 4:18-21

Faith is unwavering trust in the promises of God. It is the full persuasion that God has the power to do what He has promised.

How can we, however, be confident in hope and assured of what we do not see? How can we have unwavering trust in the promises of God?

“But as surely as God is faithful, our message to you is not ‘Yes’ and ‘No.’ For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us—by me and Silas and Timothy—was not ‘Yes’ and ‘No,’ but in him it has always been ‘Yes.’ For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ.” -2 Corinthians 1:18-20

Every promise of God is ‘Yes’ in Christ. Every promise. In this knowledge comes confidence and assurance.

May we walk by faith not by sight. May we hold unswervingly to the promises of God, being confident and assured every promise is ‘Yes’ in Christ. May we transfer our will to Christ’s, and may we walk in wholehearted surrender knowing that God’s promises are not baseless but a guarantee.