Works of Whose Hands? Acts 7

However the Most High doesn't live in temples made by human hands, as the prophet says, 'HEAVEN IS MY THRONE, AND EARTH IS MY FOOTSTOOL OF MY FEET; WHAT KIND OF HOUSE WILL YOU BUILD FOR ME?' says the Lord, 'OR WHAT PLACE IS THERE FOR MY REPOSE? WAS IT NOT MY HAND WHICH MADE ALL THESE THINGS?' Acts 7:48-50

I love quilt shows, and even quilt guild meetings. My favorite part, aside from learning anything new in the quilting world, is show and tell. The part where I get to marvel (or try not to grimace) at the workmanship of the creative ladies around me. The patterns, the fabrics, the workmanship...all together, they can delight the eye. There has been more than once that petty theft has entered my mind. I WANT THAT ONE! It is perfect in every way. I couldn't do better.

One of the great things about living in Iowa at this time is that AQS (the American Quilting Society, in case you didn't know) is coming to Des Moines annually. It is an exhibit of the best quilts of people who enter their offerings. People exhibit from all over the world (and locally) and those chosen for the exhibit marvel the eye. In conjunction with it the AQS show is the Des Moines Quilt Guild Show. They have a featured quilter exhibit. And one year I stood, and stared, and cried. This woman made quilts that moved me. They were exquisite. They were marvelous. The pattern...the detail in design, quilting, color...the whole enchilada, as they say. The white glove gal came over as I stood there in total awe. She had the honor of spending hours with the quilts, guarding them from people who would venture a touch with bare, soiled hands. We talked of their beauty and craftsmanship. We marveled at how many of these time-consuming pieces she had created over the years.

Now I could describe them to you. I could relate the colors, patterns, tell of the quilting lines, but it would do you little good. YOU would have to see them for yourself to experience them. I cannot create in you the awe and wonder that I experienced that day. You need to be in their presence, understand the difficulty in doing what she did, understand color and design a little to appreciate them to the point of tears. And yet, as magnificent as they were, they are nothing compared with the God whose creativity they reflect. They are but cloth. Set a match to them and they would be reduced to a pile of ash.

Now take the master designer...the Lord God Himself. He gave instructions for the tabernacle to the inch. He describe the size and shape of every wall, curtain, vessel, and alter and lampstand in the place. It was FANTASTIC, and yet God reminded them that even at that, it was nothing compared to the things God created Himself. No silk flower will ever rival the flowers He created. No hybrid we cross will ever come to being without His original design. We can do NOTHING on our own. We have to take His design, His template, learn about it and how it works, and then and only then can we attempt to manipulate it to make something else, and usually that something else will lack a key ingredient that is necessary for our well-being. I was just told of an area in the desert southwest were people were breaking out in sores and getting really sick. They ate a diet rich in corn for generations, but suddenly, bang, there is a problem. It ended up that the process they used to mill the corn to make it store longer (an advantage in human eyes) removed the niacin from it, and the people were suffering from niacin deficiency! Adding niacin to their diets restored their health.

So here God says that no works of our hands can match His, even those works which He gives us to do! That is humbling. That is, well, admit it, frustrating to the human heart. We WANT to be like God. We wish we were in charge, that we could speak what is in our minds into fruition. Some of us really want to please God with our lives, with the gifts and talents He has given us, and yet our efforts end up woefully inadequate. And HE KNOWS THAT. He just asks us to obey. He asks us to worship, to honor, and to love Him.

The sad part of this passage isn't really our inadequacy. It is the fact that Stephen was scolding the religious leadership for their stiff-necked, closed-eared, resistant spirited response to the God they claimed to worship. He was pointing out that though they dwelt in the temple and bragged about it, they failed to recognize the God who designed it, placed it there to draw people to Himself, and led others astray with their false worship. He continue on calling them betrayers and murderers and persecutors of the prophets of God (and this would soon include himself, as they would stone him to death immediately). The fact that they did not see God in His own temple, did not recognize the Messiah preaching in their presence, did not yield to the Word of God or recognize their own hardness of heart when Christ healed people and all they could think about was that is was the Sabbath and somehow by doing good things He was breaking the law...they took their works and exalted them over the greater Works of God.

We are all in danger of that as humans. And humility is the only route out. When we get so full of ourselves or admire others to a fault and take their word and works over the Word and Works of God, we are in danger of getting Stephen's sermon preached to us. We need to look up, as Stephen did, and see God for Who He really IS. And “the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.” (Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus, hymn)

Weaving evil Micah 7

The godly person has perished from the land, and there is no upright person among men. All of them lie in wait for bloodshed; Each of them hunts the other with a net. Concerning evil, both hands do it well. The prince asks, also the judge, for a bribe. And a great man speaks the desire of his soul; So they weave it together. Micah 7:3

I live in Iowa, land of the perpetual election. Not that we have elections any more often than anyone else, but we have politicians here ALL THE TIME. The phone rings and it is a candidate, a political pollster, and plea for money for one party or another. The second one election ends, the candidates for the next one start in. There is no getting away from the commercials, the phone calls, and the faces of Democrats and Republicans plastered everywhere.

If you are intrigued with politics, move to Iowa. You will have your fill, but it will become like manna...good stuff, but when it is all you get, it gets tiresome to we mere mortals. You can actually meet these people, see and hear them for yourself, and have a somewhat educated guess at what you are voting for.

The sad part is that few are not influenced by the power and the mighty buck. Simple, humble (or as humble as you can be promoting yourself all the time and surrounding yourself by people who tell you how wonderful you are) men and women become power-hungry, money-grubbing fools who sell out. And when the people in power are out for themselves, the common man takes the same approach. They are left feeling unshepharded, unprotected...and start taking matters into their own hands. Chaos ensues. And we see it taking over our culture.

There are good people, and there are these folks. They have money and power and they want to not only keep it, but destroy any who would threaten it. The politicians, the judges, and the money-bags who influence them, they are these that Micah condemns. The politicians promise votes for those who would put money in their coffers, the judges get bought off letting powerful men break the law with a little more than a slap on the wrist, and the rich man just states what he wants to happen and those with the “power” come running to make it happen. Micah says that they weave it together, they conspire together. If any of those strings do not cross, the fabric is weakened. They support each other. The adage, “Oh what a tangled web we weave...” can apply here. It refers to deception, and they do deceive innocent minds into thinking that they are “working for you” when they are doing little more than becoming rich and boosting their own egos.

I know of a few honest politicians. They are called every name in the book by those who are weaving. They want them to weave, too, and when they don't play the threading game, they are burnt big time. But God sees it all. He sees the intent of the heart. He sees those who use their influence just to enrich themselves and those who truly try to shepherd the wandering sheep. Just about anyone can fall into the trap of believing what politicians say instead of evaluating what they do. They sad thing is that we continue to let these evil and don't vote them out.

Even sadder is the fact that in Micah's day, these were religious positions. The judges, the rulers, the priests, they were all representatives of God to all of Israel, and they betrayed their God-given positions. And when the people did not know the Word themselves, they were unable to discern good and evil, godly from ungodly. And the whole nation was judged. I have Directv, and there are MANY church channels. It is wonderful to hear the preaching of God's Word, and distressing that there are so many of those programs that will not lead people to God, but astray. The health and wealth gospel was never preached by Jesus or Paul, Peter or James. The gospel of not having to turn from sin, of God loving everyone regardless of their religious beliefs, and of strange doctrines contrary to Scripture abound. Just because a church is big does not mean it is being blessed. It means that the Devil has tickled their ears as Jesus said he would. Anything that doesn't lead men to draw near to God in humbleness, brokenness, and gratefulness for the gift of Jesus, our Savior from our SINS is a lie, a deception, and a ploy. These preachers are like the unrighteous politicians. They are in it for the money. They are in it for the power. I appreciate the Chuck Swindolls and the David Jeremiahs that tell you to search the scriptures to find out if they are preaching truth. They exalt Jesus, God, and the Scriptures as authority and not themselves. They study, they have compassion, and they only want to feed you and not fleece you. They preach God's love, and also God's righteous judgment. Jesus isn't some holy wimp, but the truth who will drive out all falsehood. The book of John exalts Jesus' love because John experienced that (he was a son of thunder, so he probably had foot-in-mouth disease like Peter), and he preached Jesus' warnings to the church leadership, but look at Mark and Luke and you see Him preaching warning after warning to the common man. No one escapes the eye of the Lord. But His warnings are given so that we can change our minds about the awfulness of our sins. We don't see our sins as that awful, but they are. They separate us from a Holy God. He came to draw us to Himself...sometimes with wooing words, and sometimes with serious warnings. All are meant to cleanse us and bring us to Him.

No amount of power, influence, or money can make us happy, let alone right with God. Even if they leadership of church or country fails us, we are so blessed to have the Word in our language, in our own hands, and in our own hearts. If you want to know what you should support or cry out against in the political world, you need to get your nose in the scriptures. It just might break your heart, open your eyes, and give you new direction and hope, not it any politician, but in the God who someday will make it all right again.

Some garments and a funeral Acts 9

When he (Peter) arrived, they brought him into the upper room, and all the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing all the tunics and garments that Dorcas used to make while she was with them. Acts 9:39

There are some people who touch the world, and Dorcas was one of them. She was a seamstress. She loved cloth and she saw needs. And that combination, along with the fact that she was a disciple of Christ, made her a loved woman.

For those who don't know the story, this passage is written concerning Tabitha, Dorcas, whichever name you want to use...one is the Greek and the other the translation, both meaning gazelle. She sewed clothing for the widows and their families in the area. She spent her life comforting and possibly keeping people alive with her gifts of coats and other garments. If you saw someone in need, just tell Dorcas and she will get at it, meeting the need of school clothes, winter wraps, whatever someone in the community lacked. And she was so well known for such gifts of love and mercy that here at her funeral all the people gathered around with those gifts in hand! Look at the one she made for my Joey, my Mariam, my Peter...! Isn't it lovely? Wasn't she the best friend a widow could have. I couldn't afford school clothes, so she made them for us! My coat was falling apart and I couldn't afford to replace it, but look at this! It is better than anything I could have purchased! How will we ever get along without such a kind soul in our community???

This is the story of a life well lived. And because of her love for the Lord, He chose to use her for more than making a few clothes (ok, more than a few!). He chose her to come alive again to show His power and glory! He saved her from death once not only so she could get back to work, but to make her life a work of His power and glory. Like Lazarus, she could be pointed to as one Jesus loved. And like him, she could recount the Lord's goodness, power over death and the grave, and be a symbol of the new life that could come to any who would walk with Him. I can guarantee you that she did go back to work after she was raised from the dead, but those gifts would be a daily reminder of the power of God in her life to those who would continue to receive from her handiwork.

But like Lazarus, someday she would die again, and be mourned again, because when people die, there are people who will miss them. These widows were not mourning the fact that they would no longer receive clothing...they mourned the LOVE that they would miss, the heart that was no longer there to reach out to them. Even if she hadn't sewn a stitch, these people knew that Dorcas loved them and wanted to help, to make their lives better in the best way she knew how. Some people give in cloth, some in cash, some in helps like house repairs or paying bills. She knew how to sew, and sew she did. She was burdened in her heart for the widows of the day. There was no social security benefit, no life insurance policy. Only their savings and the charity of the church and friends and family. These women and their children faced hard times, and the second-hand clothing store probably did not exist. These coats acted as blankets, sunscreen, and modest public covering. It was fairly obvious who was wealthy and who was poor. And she wished that stigma on no family. As a member of the church of Christ, she took the command to meet one-another's needs to heart. It was her act of love, her tender mercy given from a heart of compassion, and all were grateful. I can see them crying and doing show-and-tell with the gifts she gave them, and marveling over how much she did. It is one thing to receive and know what someone has done for us, and then multiply that over and over, seeing through physical gifts just how much love one woman had for Christ, His church, and the least among them. And they praised God for her life and grieved her passing from them.

It was another gift to them to have her back, telling of God's favor and mercy and kindness to all of them and to her. Wanting someone back is normal for us on this side, though selfish, really. They are with the Lord, and then get called back here to do it over again? If we were in the Lord's presence, would we want to come back? Life is a good thing in so many ways, but eternal life with God is so much better. Dying is hard enough once, but twice? And yet she must have agreed with God that this plan to send her back was good, and she cooperated. She was willing to do it all again for His sake and the sake of all of those who read her story, as well as all of those who had gathered to pay tribute to such a beautiful soul.

When we die, will people mourn our passing, bringing before the people of God our gifts? Not for our glory, but as a reflection of the love that God gave us for those hurting around us? Will they wonder at the God who could create such love and comfort through pieces of cloth, inanimate objects that reflect His goodness, provision at the time of need, and beauty and comfort? I still marvel that a piece of cloth can do much for the soul...the color, the texture, the weave, the cut...and all of that reflects on a God who is the creator of a soul that can appreciate such things. Our humanness is a miracle in and of itself, and shows that we are created in His image for the good works that He created in advance for us to do. And Dorcas is one of the greatest models of that to us. You go, girl!

Magic Clothing Ezekiel 13:17-23

Now you, son of man, set your face against the daughters of your people who are prophesying from the own inspiration. Prophesy against them and say, Thus says the Lord God,"Woe to the women who sew magic bands on all wrists and make veils for the heads of persons of every stature to hunt down lives. Will you hunt down the lives of My people, but preserve the lives of others for yourselves? For handfuls of barley and fragments of bread, you have profaned Me to My people to put to death some who should not die and to keep others alive who should not live, by your lying to My people who listen to lies.
Therefore, thus says the Lord God, "Behold, I am against your magic bands by which you hunt lives there as birds and I will tear them from your arms; I will let them go, even those lives whom you out as birds. I will also tear off your veils and deliver My people from your hands, and they will not longer be in your hands to be hunted, and you will know that I am the Lord. Because you disheartened the righteous with falsehood who I did not cause him grief, but have encouraged the wicked not to turn from his wicked way and preserve his life, therefore, you women will no longer see false visions or practice divination, and I will deliver My people out of your hand. Thus you will know that I am the Lord."  Ezekiel 13:17-23

I usually try to keep the verses short, but this passage is full of riches. It speaks to women in particular about their use of cloth in deceiving the people. There is so much false teaching out there. There is so much we will buy into to solve a problem in our lives. There are many who will fall for anything that people say will help them medically, emotionally, and spiritually. These gals promised that if you would wear their magic bracelets and cover themselves with veils of some sort (made for all age groups...individually tailored to your height...that these things would take the place of righteous worship. They were making up their own rules and telling the people that God wanted them to do these things, to wear these things. It ensnared the people, made the righteous wail in their hearts over the deceit that had been foisted on the people, and changed their thoughts about those who God stood against. False prophets were to be stoned, and instead, these gals were looked to for spiritual guidance, when in fact they were leading the people into a trap. God promises to take these gals down and to free his people from their snare. But they have to let God tear away those clothes, these false promises, to get there.

It is sooo easy for women to be deceived. Here I sit, and when I think I have some never-been-thought-about insight into scripture, I immediately put a check on my heart and pray. Pride is an evil enemy. The desire to hear from God is real, and the desire to think that if God does speak to us, even the truth of His Word, we are somehow really something, we are in danger of becoming one of these women. That is a seriously dangerous place to be. I write these blog posts mostly for me, to ponder the Words of God in a more serious way rather than to glance over them. I write them because I marvel at the unity of scripture. I write to warn myself and others that God is serious about our lives and worship and lack thereof. He is great and merciful and powerful and to be greatly feared. John walked with Jesus on earth with a boasting heart, but on Patmos, when he saw Him in His glory, he fell flat on His face. This was the disciple that Jesus loved. And John loved him. But the reality of who Christ is, who God is, is more than we as humans can handle. One by one those who saw the Lord in scripture fell flat on their faces. They saw their unworthiness. And if we don't approach scripture that way, we become Pharisees and put burdens on people that they should not have to bear. And they were the most harshly treated by Jesus. He called them snakes to their faces! This Christ was no wimp. And He was not cruel. He knew their hateful, prideful hearts and warned them about the judgment heading their way. And they did not repent. Woe to us who do not heed the Word of God, taking all of it and making it our meditation. There are many things in scripture that I fight with, but God has to win because He is right and He gets to make the rules, not me! And not you, either.

So the cloth aspect of this...the magic bracelets and veils. What do we put into peoples' lives to make them feel better about their sin? If we aren't fulfilling God's Word and choose to do something else to make ourselves acceptable, we are being like these women. We can sew and give, think everyone needs what we have to offer to make themselves good enough or better. Not to say that we shouldn't give those quilts, pillowcases, weighted blankets, toys, and other comforts, but we cannot neglect the soul. The weighted blankets may be a substitute for a hug, for human contact. Let us not give one to the neglect of the other. Reaching out with cloth is a wonderful thing, but we can isolate ourselves from the very ones we are "helping." I am guilty of this. I like to "do my thing" and give with cloth. I like to keep myself busy feeling like I have something to contribute that others will not take the time to do. I hear people criticize those who sew and do NOT donate their time or fabrics or knowledge of the craft to some cause. They justify themselves while condemning others. That is not a right heart attitude. If someone turns down the offer to give, let it go. If God lays on YOUR heart to do something, it doesn't mean that everyone has to do it or they aren't listening to God. It means God has spoken to you about this and not them. You (and I) should me humble and realize that God has uniquely gifted us with that talent and passion for that cause at that time. To judge others by what we do is not gracious, but rather makes us bitter and pompous. And that ruins the whole thing. We are not to weary in well-doing. Even joyful giving of our sewing time and resources can grow old after a while. God may change your direction and focus, but never let any of it change the point that you are doing what He calls you to do. If you aren't doing it for Him, but for yourself, it's time to take a heart-check. There may be a hardening of the arteries...and attitude toward God, those around us, or the causes we support.

Ok, I am done preaching. I see so much of the human heart. Mine is corrupt and so is yours. But God acts through us anyway. If we are righteous, wanting Him more than anything, He will pull us out of the snares we get entangled in. He is just that kind of kind God. Let us serve with grateful hearts. And make sure that we are not playing the trapper...or God will deal with us and release those who we have ensnared from our grasp. God forbid that we ensnare others. Love is the only answer to the common heart. His Love.

Fireproof clothing Daniel 3

Then these men were tied up in their trousers, their coats, their caps and their other clothes, and were cast into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire. Daniel 3:21

Welcome to Babylon...land of Nebuchadnezzar. This guy has issues. Real issues. The king he was, and God had already spoken to him through Daniel through a dream. Not only did he ask that the dream be interpreted by his staff, he said they had to tell him what the dream was! He was no fool. He knew if he told them the dream that they could make up something and he would not necessarily get the truth. God enabled Daniel, who saved the rest of the staff from being killed. So they return the favor by tattling on Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, the Hebrew names of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego. The king had built an image and called the rulers and wise men from all over the kingdom to come to town for the “christening” of the image. They were the first to get to bow to it, and then, I assume, lead their people in worship when they got back home. This was a test of their faithfulness to the king. So this was not just the town folk who were being assembled here. Every big-wig from the kingdom was there, dressed in all their fancy clothes. There was to be music, and when they struck up the band, everyone was to fall and worship this thing. And they stood. The 3 Jews stood.

Well, this did not go over well. At first the king asked if they would worship his gods or this image. He challenged their God, who oddly he himself had acknowledged as God to Daniel right before. So, your God can make dreams known, fine! But can He save you from a raging fire? Hmmm? Let's see Him do that! And when they said they didn't need to defend their God who could, but not necessarily would, save them, he went ballistic! He ordered the oven 7 times hotter (how much more burned up can a person get?), had them bound in all their royal regalia, and sacrificed the men who carried them to the furnace. The king later approached the door when he saw them untied and walking around. We have to see why their clothes were mentioned...

The (other rulers) gathered around and saw in regard to these men that the fire had no effect on the bodies of these men nor was the hair of their head singed, nor were their trousers damaged, not had the smell of the fire even come upon them. Daniel 3: 27

The fact was that God, the consuming fire that He is (Deut. 4:24 and Hebrew 12:29), doe N them, no damage to their bodies or their clothes. He stood with them in the midst of their worst trial, and they not only came out unscathed, God was again honored by the king and the worship of the image was abandoned for the worship of the God of these fine boys. Not that Nebuchadnezzar would not play the fool again (he acted like an animal for 7 years because of his pride), but he could not deny the power of the Almighty. He knew that this God could do anything, and even judged Him righteous for the whole animal thing.

So here I sit. My government has played the fool and denied the power of God, and has started persecuting Christians in minor ways in this country. Will we stand or bow? There are Christians in Iraq being behead and dying in the hills for not bowing to Allah. There are Christians being threatened all over the world. Some give in a say the words forced on them, but a few brave souls stand. It is easy to pity them, and it is easy to blame God for not pulling a Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego for all of them. Not all are rescued, not all exhalted and given more power and riches like them. So what is God doing wrong?

Then we come to Calvary. God didn't rescue His own Son from the tortures of this world. His was tested with power, riches, and worship of Satan for His own short-term gain. We will all die of something...and to die as a martyr for the sake of the Name would be the greatest way to die. This is not unsympathetic. Please don't take me wrong. The suffering, the pressure, the fear, it is all real. But to die a traitor to the cause of Christ would be far worse. Relatively few are called to be “thrown in the fire,” but with the Spirit of God with them, in life or in death, it can result in others coming to Christ, to spend eternity rejoicing with the Lord. The fire of the 3 friends would have been a very temporary one. They would have died and gone into the presence of the God they served. The fire that they would have faced later had they bowed the knee would have been eternal. They had to pick one, I guess, in the moment. And they chose wisely.

Even the secular world is looking at the way things are going and seeing the world seemingly spinning our of control. The scriptures are being fulfilled before our eyes...

We are told to look up for our salvation is drawing near. It may be soon that we have some physical and spiritual decisions to make. Pray for the strength, the hope, and the wisdom to choose wisely. Your eternal destiny and God's favor may rest on that one decision. Remember the Lord is there to stand with you if you choose the hard way. But the results...ah...they are worth it. To have the Lord stand with you in the fire...