Questions 2 Day 15 Does God Need Me?

February 12, 2021 by Bri Bailey 1 Comment

Read His Words Before Ours!

Exodus 3:13-15
Psalm 50:7-15
John 15:9-17
John 17:9-13
Romans 5:6-11

Questions 2, Day 15

Tap. Tap. Tap-tap-tap.

Drops of blood struck a staccato beat as they fell into an ever-widening pool, saturating the dirt around rough-hewn beams gouged into the earth. Blood’s heavy iron scent settled in a stifling cloud over nearby onlookers.

Soldiers clustered in conversation a little distance away, raising their voices over the heartrending wail of mourners. One soldier threw a puzzled glance to the sky, wondering at the darkness shrouding the sun since midday. He shrugged in the inky darkness and turned back to his fellow servicemen. For those assigned to crucifixion duty, the agony that daily played out around them faded quickly into mundane.

But their talk halted abruptly as a figure on one of the three crosses heaved against the spikes and cried out,

“Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?”
My God, my God, why have You abandoned me?(Matthew 27:46)

Centuries later, we wonder what could possibly compel the God-man on that cross to knowingly and willingly submit to such agony?
To a death that left Him unrecognizable as human?To total and utter separation from God the Father and the Spirit?

Surely, it must have been to satisfy a desperate need.
To mend His eternity, torn by the sins of His creations.
To fill the aching loneliness left by their desertion.
To secure for Himself workers in the establishment of His kingdom on earth.

These are logical conclusions, but they’re based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the character and heart of God . . . one I’d never really considered until now. If it’s a new idea for you, too, cool! Let’s learn together in this safe space!

In essence, we ask
Did Jesus die to redeem me because God needs me in order to be happy?
To be joyful?
To be satisfied, or fulfilled, or in community?
To be effective, powerful, or present?
Does God need me . . . at all?

Absolutely not.

Stings, doesn’t it?
But let’s invite our egos to take a seat and talk it through . . .
Because it’s actually THE BEST news.

God needs nothing.

He lacks nothing; the world and everything in it are His.
He does not need our offerings, praise, or provision.(Psalm 50:7-15)

He created all, in heaven and on earth.
He owns all.
He is victorious over all, with no need of aid.
(Genesis 14:17-20, Psalm 24:1-2)

Instead of needing anything, He is the source of everything.
Including us.
He gives us life and breath.
He determines our days and our boundaries.
He, Who made us, cannot be contained by us.
Our service does not fulfill or empower Him.
He is not bound by our understanding or creations or imagination.
(Acts 17:22-29)

He. is. all.
When God revealed Himself to Moses through the burning bush, He declared, “I AM WHO I AM”. (Exodus 3:14)
No other descriptor is needed, or could be more than, God Himself.

He is fullness of joy.
While He offers to share His joy with us, His joy is NOT dependent upon us.(John 15:11)

He is fullness of community, existing as God the Father, Christ the Son, and Holy Spirit.

In Himself is shared ownership, shared pleasure, and shared knowledge of each other on the most intimate level.

He has no need of us.

But take heart; we’re coming to the best part.

If the God-man on that cross knowingly and willingly submitted to such agony to satisfy a desperate need, His sacrifice would have been one of obligation.

Instead, He embraced His suffering
Unto disfigured death and utter abandonment
to satisfy a desperate love.

Our sin broke our world, broke our eternity, broke our spirits,
But it did NOT break His love.
And so He made a way to overcome our sin.
(Romans 5:6-8, Ephesians 2:4-5)

No, He doesn’t need us.
But oh, how He wants us!
How He loves us!

In those moments when….
the enormity and ugliness and shame of our sin
punches us in the gut, stealing our breath and leaving us longing
to peel off our skin, climb out, and be someone else because we can’t stand to be this wretched mess for one more second . . .

Oh, how He wants us!
How He loves us!

For here, in the absence of need, the fullness of God’s want
astounds us with its flourishing passion.

Beholding the sobbing heap of mistakes and regret before Him,
Against all human logic, with obligation nowhere to be found,
Driven by abiding love,
He wraps us in His scarred arms and whispers,
“Beloved, I chose the cross, because I choose you.
Even here. Even now.”

(Cue the ugly cry. Every time.)

What will we do with this stunning reality?

Perhaps you’re experiencing significant lack, or feeling small and incapable . . .
His truth reminds you of the God Who needs nothing,
Who is the source of all, and is graciously, your Provider.

Perhaps you’re drowning in condemnation and shame, feeling wholly unlovable . . .
His truth resoundingly declares His incomprehensible love for you.

Perhaps He’s asking you to respond to His love by stepping out in forgiveness, obedience, or repentance . . . .
Here, in this unforced space, you are free to proclaim grateful devotion to your Father, Lover, and Helper.

Move into truth and act upon it, knowing full well the One Who loves us best is for us!

As we reflect on these questions, seek His heart, and follow the gentle nudges of His Spirit, we can walk on in partnership with the One Who loves us best.

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Redeemed Day 4 The Lord Is Against Me: Digging Deeper

June 25, 2020 by Melodye Reeves Leave a Comment

Digging Deeper Days

Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out The Lord Is Against Me!

The Questions

1) What does “at the right time” mean for the helpless? (verse 6)

2) How does God prove His love for us? (verse 8)

3) What does the apostle Paul, the author, mean by saying that we will be saved “much more” by Christ’s life? (verses 9-10)

Romans 5:6-11

6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For rarely will someone die for a just person—though for a good person perhaps someone might even dare to die. 8 But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 How much more then, since we have now been declared righteous by his blood, will we be saved through him from wrath. 10 For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, then how much more, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life. 11 And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received this reconciliation.

Original Intent

1) What does “at the right time” mean for the helpless? (verse 6)
Chapter 5 begins by recounting the gains that come with being declared righteous by God. The righteousness of Abraham has been credited to all who have his same faith in God’s promise of a Redeemer. (Romans 4:20-24) As we stand in His grace, we experience peace with God, and we rejoice in our temporary suffering because of future hope. Paul begins with the good news before describing our condition in Adam (Romans 6:12-14) as part of the human race. It is especially good news because we recognize how the world was primed for Christ’s coming. Paul writes, “God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. For while we were still helpless at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly.” Paul was always in awe of God’s love for people who didn’t deserve it. Just like himself! (1 Timothy 1:13-15) His love isn’t given to us in a trickle, it is poured out in our hearts. A broken and hopeless world was eager in every way for Christ’s appearance. Jews and Gentiles alike were spiritually, economically, linguistically, politically, philosophically, and geographically prepped and ready for a Savior they so desperately needed. (Malachi 3:1, John 6) So, Christ died exactly when we who were sinners needed a Savior. His timing was just right for all. (enduringword.com)

2) How does God prove His love for us? (verse 8)
What a difficult decision was made for the Father to send His only Son to an undeserving world! (John 3:14-17) In the Son, God was reconciling to Himself those who were vile and rebellious. (2 Corinthians 5:18-19) Paul understood the enormous sacrifice God was making. Beyond our human comprehension, God’s love is so deep that He gave Himself through Christ on the cross. Jesus’ unity with the Father is shrouded in mystery, but it is also an essential and core belief to understanding the love of God. (John 10:25-30) The finished work of Jesus’ death on the cross is the definitive proof of God’s love. He can give no greater proof.
“It would be easy to see the cross as demonstrating the indifference of God, a God who let the innocent Jesus be taken by wicked men, tortured, and crucified while He did nothing. Unless there is a sense in which the Father and Christ are one, it is not the love of God that the cross shows.” (Morris, Epistle to the Romans)

3) What does the apostle Paul, the author, mean by saying that we will be saved “much more” by Christ’s life? (verses 9-10)
Previously (verses 1-5), Paul referred to five blessings of being declared righteous (aka, justification): 1) righteousness itself (verse 1); 2) peace with God and 3) access to God (verse 2); 4) joy in the hope of God (verses 3-5); and 5) the indwelling Holy Spirit (verse 5b). Still there is “much more” the Lord gives! Paul explained how our sin separates us from God resulting in our helplessness to save ourselves. But God’s love is so great He offers us reconciliation through Jesus Christ’s death. Even greater though is our deliverance from His holy wrath. Paul refused to separate himself from this vitally important truth about salvation, while it is true we must be saved from our own unrighteousness (Romans 3:22-26), as God’s enemies we must also be rescued from His righteous wrath (verse 10). John Trapp said, “It is a greater work of God to bring men to grace, than, being in the state of grace, to bring them to glory; because sin is far more distant from grace than grace is from glory.” (studylight.org) It is mercy to us that we are reconciled to God through the death of Jesus. It is even greater mercy that we will be rescued from being eternally separated from God, and from His angry judgment

Everyday Application

1) What does “at the right time” mean for the helpless? (verse 6)
It likely seemed late to those waiting for hundreds of years. But Jesus’ coming – His birth, death and resurrection – was done at the perfect time in God’s plan. (Galatians 4:4-5) We are told by Paul that God’s love is communicated through the Holy Spirit. (Romans 5:5) The Spirit, also given at the right time (Acts 2:1-4), helps us recognize and walk in God’s love every day. In the 80s, singer, Sandi Patti, sang these words, “The Father gave the Son, the Son gave the Spirit, and the Spirit gives us life so we can give the gift of love. And the gift goes on.” (The Gift Goes On) We were doomed. We were needy. And God showed up in His impeccable timing with a perfect gift! “Helpless emphasizes moral frailty rather than physical weakness. We were quite powerless to help ourselves or even to understand. In short we were up a creek without a paddle, and did not even understand our abysmal predicament.” But JUST IN TIME God’s love triumphed where human power (and understanding) failed.” (preceptaustin.org)

2) How does God prove His love for us? (verse 8)
“What wondrous love is this, O my soul, O my soul, what wondrous love is this, O my soul! What wondrous love is this that caused the Lord of bliss to bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul?” (Author Anonymous) In his book, “What Do we Believe, Why Does it Matter?”, Professor Jeff Asley said, “When we see how Jesus died, we ‘pour contempt on all our pride’. On the cross, which is the ultimate sign of man’s hatred, the love of God accepts humankind in its most extreme sinfulness and bitter enmity. God’s ideal love both motivates us and empowers us to emulate this love.” God proved His love by dying for His enemies. The apostle John said in his gospel, quoting Jesus, that no one has greater love than to willingly die for a friend. (John 15:13) Jesus went even further, however, and loved even more greatly when He died for His enemies. “Amazing love, can it be that I should gain from the Savior’s blood? Me, the one who cause His pain. The one who caused Him to pursue death. Oh, how can it be that God would die for me?!” (Charles Wesley)

3) What does the apostle Paul, the author, mean by saying that we will be saved “much more” by Christ’s life? (verses 9-10)
MUCH MORE! Sisters, it is difficult to fathom any more grace being bestowed upon us! Rebecca said, “He is not repulsed by our lack of faith, our bitter tears, our slowly plodding feet, or the misnomers with which we title our stories. He smiles, holds out His hand, wipes our tears, and invites us to take just one more step. When we pushed the Lord away angrily, He drew near and sacrificed Himself for us, spilling His blood and providing the payment for a debt to Death we owed, but could never pay.” As the redeemed ones, we are presently experiencing the ‘much more’ of our salvation as we also wait for the ‘much more’ of our salvation. It’s past, it’s present, and it’s future grace. We have experienced a pardon from God, though we were guilty if we choose to accept it. That finished work of Jesus on the cross sustains us day to day. And one day, His shed blood will eternally purify us and protect us from God’s reasonable wrath. (Hebrews 9:11-14)
“Dear dying Lamb, Thy precious blood shall never lose its power,
till all the ransomed ones of God be saved, to sin no more.
Till all the ransomed ones of God be saved to sin no more.” (by William Cowper)

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Digging Deeper is for Everyone!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!

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Why Dig Deeper?

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Study Tools

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

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Redeemed Day 3 The Lord Is Against Me

June 24, 2020 by Rebecca Leave a Comment

Read His Words Before Ours!

Ruth 1:6-14
Joel 2:18-32
Romans 5:6-11

Redeemed, Day 3

No access to food.
Out of work.
Uprooted from home.
Three family deaths.

In a post-COVID-19 world, these descriptions are more easily relatable for all of us.
As we watched our entire globe shut down from a virus we couldn’t stop, stealing away commonplace freedoms, our jobs, our toilet paper (!!), and threatening the lives of those we love most, our world was upended. The life we’d enjoyed before phrases like “shelter-at-home”, “quarantine”, and “shortage” became everyday idioms seemed to quickly fade away and we wondered when, or if, “normal” would ever return.

For those who lost precious loved ones, nothing would ever be the same.

Ache.
Loss.
Broken.
Empty.
Bitter.

These words filled the pages of Naomi’s story.
Her tagline had become, “My life is too bitter for others to share.” (Ruth 1:13)
She was alone, and had resigned herself to seek out her existence in the lowest position possible of loss and defeat.

“The Lord Is Against Me!” her heart screamed.

One day, Naomi would dandle grandbabies on her knee. (Ruth 4:16)
One day, hope would shine brilliantly where her tears now flowed without end.
One day, Naomi would witness the unimaginable happen before her eyes as her daughter-in-law remarried and restoration was reborn. (Ruth 4:10-13)
One day, Naomi’s great-great grandson would be King David, the man after God’s own heart, through whose line would one day come the King of Kings, Jesus Christ. (Matthew 1:5-6)
One day, happiness would dance in all the places where brokenness now resided. (Ruth 4:17)

But for now, all her heart could feel was empty, bitter, and broken.
Though she frequently repeated what she felt to be true to others, “the Lord is against me”, it wasn’t true.

The Lord God hadn’t left her.
He was, and always had been, infinitely closer than she imagined. (Isaiah 41:9-10)

The Lord God saw every loss she’d experienced.
And He carried her tears in His own bottle. (Psalm 56:8-9)

The Lord God had not glossed over her emptiness with the callous heart of an all-powerful Being.
He was intent on her restoration and her filling. (Joel 2:25-27)

Despite the true reality of the Lord’s ceaseless presence, His purposeful call on her life, and His tender-loving compassion as He carried and guided her,
all Naomi could voice was, “The Lord Is Against Me.”

Oh my heart, I am right there with you, Naomi!
It’s so much easier to allow the immense weight of feelings and circumstance wrap around us like a heavy knitted blanket, than to shirk the comforter, pick up the armor of God, and sink our fingers into the tightly woven rope of God’s truth.

With gritted teeth and streaming tears, we CAN cry aloud….
You ARE near to the brokenhearted, God! (Psalm 34:18)
You DO see my painful circumstances! (2 Chronicles 16:9)
You are NOT oblivious to the widespread devastation I feel in my heart (Psalm139:1-5)
You have wiped my tears before, and I KNOW You will do it again. (Psalm 56:8-9)
You are a God of FULLNESS. (Ephesians 3:19)
You are LOVE! (1 John 4:16)
You hold all HOPE, and You, You cannot lie. (Titus 1:2)

So, here, in the shadows of my heart’s jagged edges, I will choose to cling to truth over deception. I will lift a tongue to praise You, one slow word at a time. As tears continue to streak my face, I will repeat, “You are my God, and there is no other!” (1 Chronicles 17:20)

We stand generations far removed, and deeply benefited, from Naomi’s story, easily tracing the handiwork of the Lord over her remarkable life. We can quickly point out the flag of redemption wildly waving amidst the rubble of her seeming defeat.

But Naomi could not.
And God still walked beside her.

Sister, friend, ME, hello!
How deeply the Lord God loves the journey of walking with us!

He is not repulsed by our lack of faith, our bitter tears, our slowly plodding feet, or the misnomers with which we title our stories. He smiles, holds out His hand, wipes our tears, and invites us to take just one more step. “Trust Me.”

The Almighty is not offended at our painful, angry jabs back at Him, nor is He threatened by our dismal decision to wrap ourselves in emotion rather than truth.

But He does want to move us forward,
into truth,
into fullness,
and into redemption.

As we move forward with Him, He faithfully provides in the most unlikely ways, at the most unlikely times, but that is just like the Lord our God to take our impossible and draw out God’s glory! (Matthew 19:26)

As Naomi, bitter, hurt, angry, and grieving, determined to return to her homeland because “she had heard the Lord had paid attention to His people’s need by providing them food” (Ruth 1:6), the Lord provided by giving Naomi the gift of Ruth.

Ruth would be a physical reminder to Naomi that God had not abandoned her.
Ruth would live out loyalty and love that mirrored God’s heart to her.
Ruth would wrap her arms around Naomi’s, weep with Naomi, and walk every step beside her, loving Naomi as God loved her.

And herein we see the beauty of the Lord’s provision to us in the middle of our gutsy, rash decree that “The Lord Is Against Me.”

No, Sister, He isn’t.
He never has been.

When we pushed the Lord away angrily, He drew near and sacrificed Himself for us, spilling His blood and providing the payment for a debt to Death we owed, but could never pay. He provided then, and He provides for us now. (Romans 5:6-11)

Hope.
Forgiveness.
Renewal.
Redemption.
Give Him your pen, Sister; let Him finish your story.

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The GT Weekend! ~ Sketched VII Week 3

March 28, 2020 by Rebecca Leave a Comment

The GT Weekend!

At Gracefully Truthful, weekends aren’t for “checking out”.
Use this time to invite the Almighty’s fullness into you life in a deeper way!
Saturdays and Sundays are a chance to
reflect, rest, and re-center our lives onto Christ.
Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with other women in prayer,
rest your soul in reflective journaling,
and spend time worshiping the Creator who
longs for intimacy with each of us!

Worship Through Journaling

1) Adam, a youth pastor who had been heavily influenced by his own youth pastor, sat across from another impressionable youth at a local coffee shop. Adam didn’t expect this moment, but is willing to sit in the uncomfortable while the boy across from him wrestles with the big questions about God raging in his heart. Here is discipleship lived out. Here is missional living, right in the heart of everyday life! Adam was willing to engage in another’s life, get messy, and face the uncomfortable right alongside him. Are you? Who has God already strategically placed in your life, waiting for you to get messy and live missionally alongside? Are you willing to sit still and allow the Holy Spirit to enter into another’s wrestling to bring about life change? Start praying for God-sized engagement in the life of someone around you!

2) When you think of “missionary” or “evangelism” or “sharing the gospel”, what happens inside your heart? What images come to mind? Do you find yourself pulling back with fear or breathlessly leaning in with anticipation? The missionary who shared her story on Wednesday admitted that her story likely met none of your expectations for what a missionary looked like. What if this statement was more of the “norm” for missional living? Just suppose our fears for sharing Jesus and being a missionary are unfounded? What if we are anchoring our visual concepts and heart fears of missions on a base of deception planted by the enemy to deter us from living out what God has richly called us into as He builds His eternal kingdom through us? What if?!

3) Nikki began her story by stating she didn’t know what God was calling her into in the long run, but it all began with one step of obedience because she saw a desperate need. Often, this simple beginning is how the Lord motivates our feet to run towards Him and into His mission for us. He begins by stirring our hearts with a need we can visibly see and increasingly long to meet. This passion is not a mediocre passing thought, but a need that persists and chases. Where do you see this in your life? Or maybe that need was once a fiery burn in your chest, but you chased it away with other things. Just suppose the Lord God Almighty was calling you into something bigger than you can imagine, and all He asks right now is one step of obedience as you see a need?

Praying Scripture back to the One who wrote it in the first place is a great way to jump start our prayer-life! Pray this passage from Isaiah 6:8-9 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.” And he said, “Go, and say to this people: ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’

Prayer Journal
Whom will You send, Abba? Will You send me? What of my fears? Do I know you well enough? Is there even an “enough” requirement to be sent? Where will I go? To the lost, Lord, You always send to the Lost, to the Broken, to those stuck in their sin. Oh Lord, remind me moment by moment, that “those” are “me” without You. We are the same! Lord, You are sending me out to people just like me. You are sending me to my people. Whoever “my” people are in different seasons whether months from now or decades, break my heart for them. Stir my heart with passion for them to know you deeply and intimately as You stir their hearts to reject their sin and love You most and best. Here I am, Lord, send me!

Worship Through Community

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