A Cautionary Tale of Unbelief

  • November 8, 2017
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  • Jon Polk

Scripture: Hebrews 3.12
See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.

Reflection: A Cautionary Tale of Unbelief
By Jon Polk

From the ancient history of the Israelite people comes a familiar story, a warning from the Holy Spirit. We recall those whose rebellion against God resulted in forty years of punishment in the wilderness, those whose hearts wandered away from faith, despite what God had done for them.

And it is here we discover that the heart is, in fact, the heart of the matter. In Hebrew thought, the heart was the core of a person’s being. The heart was the locus of emotional, intellectual, and moral activity and the center of physical activity. Thus, the heart controls motivations and produces actions. A clean heart produces faithful living. A corrupt heart leads to the opposite.

The Israelites who had followed Moses out of Egyptian captivity were given the opportunity to return home, back to the Promised Land that God had provided for their ancestors. But the Israelites’ unbelief, their lack of faith, determined their action. They walked away from God’s plan and his desires for them.

The English words belief and faith are both translated from the same Greek root word. We tend to think of belief as a set of propositions to which we give intellectual assent, but it is much more than that. To believe is to have faith. To have faith is to trust. To trust results in action.

An unbelieving heart does not trust in God’s ability to provide and lead and consequently results in decision-making and action that turn away from the good nature and grace of God. And such was the demise of an entire generation of Israelites, who walked away from the Promised Land because of their unbelief and perished after forty years of wandering in the desert. Moses brought God’s salvation to the ancient Israelites, but their hearts of unbelief charted a course of disobedient action.

Let the warning of the Holy Spirit be heard by those who are followers of Christ, do not harden your hearts towards God. May our souls sing with conviction these words from the great hymn, Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing:

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let that grace now like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

The Request for Presence
Be glad, you righteous, and rejoice in the Lord; shout for joy, all who are true of heart. — Psalm 32.12

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Full prayer available online and in print.

Today’s Readings
2 Kings 21 (Listen – 4:06)
Hebrews 3 (Listen – 2:25)

Fully Human, Fully Saved

  • November 7, 2017
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  • Jon Polk

Scripture: Hebrews 2.14-15
Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.

This week and next, Jon Polk is taking us on a deep dive through the book of Hebrews. Check out the first one if you missed it. I’m looking forward to this journey. — John

Reflection: Fully Human, Fully Saved
By Jon Polk

For most believers of the Christian faith, accepting the divinity of Jesus is a given. This one who is called the Christ, the Son of God, is the fullest representation of the character and being of God. Jesus is fully divine.

But what are we to make of Jesus’ humanity? This is often where we struggle. How can Jesus be both fully divine and fully human?

When we read the gospels, we find that at times…

Jesus became hungry.

Jesus was thirsty.

Jesus became tired.

Jesus was sleepy.

The scriptures tell us that Jesus was born, he grew physically, he died, and he had a human body after the resurrection.

Was this all absolutely necessary?

Given the number of eye-witnesses to Jesus’ earthly life, it may seem odd that one of the earliest heresies to plague the early Christian church was Docetism, the belief that Jesus’ physical body was merely an illusion, that he was actually pure spirit and only appeared to have a human body. John addresses this issue in his letters, stating first that “those who acknowledge that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh” are from God and second, that “those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh are deceivers.”

In the case of Jesus, neither fully divine nor fully human was sufficient on its own. This is one of the great mysteries of the incarnation. Why did God, through his Son, come to earth in human flesh?

He did so for our very salvation.

It was not the angels in the heavenly realms that Jesus set out to rescue, but flesh and blood human beings who were held in slavery by the great deceiver. Jesus became fully human so that he could serve as our high priest to not only administer the atoning sacrifice for our sins, but also to become that sacrifice himself.

For a God who only appeared to be human, could only appear to have saved us. But our God, who became fully human, did so in order that he might fully save us. And therefore, we should not ignore so great a salvation, because we recognize that we are fully indebted to him.

The Request for Presence
Be glad, you righteous, and rejoice in the Lord; shout for joy, all who are true of heart. — Psalm 32.12

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Full prayer available online and in print.

Today’s Readings
2 Kings 20 (Listen – 3:39)
Hebrews 2 (Listen – 2:47)

Solus Christus

  • November 6, 2017
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  • Jon Polk

Scripture: Hebrews 1.1-2a
In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son….

I am excited for the next two weeks as Jon Polk takes us on a deep dive through the book of Hebrews starting with this expansion of its beautiful opening passage. Hebrews is rich ground and I’m looking forward to what Jon has for us. — John

Reflection: Solus Christus
By Jon Polk

Abraham, by faith, left his home and set off with his family on a journey to an unknown promised land, but he was not called the Son of God.

The deliverer, Moses, by the power of God, led the children of Israel out of captivity in Egypt and became their spiritual leader. He was used by God to reveal the law and the commandments, yet he was not called the Son of God.

The great king, David, indeed, the greatest of all the kings of Israel, was known as a man after God’s own heart, but he was not called the Son of God.

Isaiah, Micah, Jeremiah, Joel, Hosea and all the other prophets were the very mouthpiece of God, proclaiming truth to the people of Israel, yet not one of them was called the Son of God.

There is only one through whom God created the universe.

There is only one who is the radiance and majesty of God’s glory.

Only one who upholds all things by his mighty, powerful word.

Only one who, through his sacrifice, provided cleansing for sin.

And only one who sits at the right hand of God in heaven.

This is the one who is called the Son of God. The one through whom God has spoken to us in these final days. He is God’s Final Word.

God spoke through the Son in the same way God spoke through the prophets. The message was clear, significant and punctuated by illustrations of power. However, with Jesus, the difference was that his message was ultimate, final and complete.

Jesus, the Son of God, the Christ, the Messiah, the Liberating King, is the exact representation of God’s being. In Jesus, we see the fullness of God’s character. There has never been and will never be a clearer portrait of God than the person of Jesus himself.

If you want to know the nature of God, if you want to witness the work of God, if you want to understand the love and compassion of God, look no further than Jesus the Christ.

For nothing can ever replace Jesus, nothing can ever exceed Jesus, and nothing is ever needed in addition to Jesus.

Jesus alone is the Son of God.

The Request for Presence
You are the star of the morn

You are the day newly born

You are the light of our night

You are the Savior by your might

— by David Adam

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Full prayer available online and in print.

Today’s Readings
2 Kings 19 (Listen – 6:11)
Hebrews 1 (Listen – 2:15)

Persistence in Prayer

  • October 20, 2017
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  • Jon Polk

Scripture: 2 Thessalonians 1.3
We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing.

Reflection: Persistence in Prayer
by Jon Polk

“I’ll pray for you.”

We’ve all done it. With complete sincerity, we’ve told a friend that we’d remember them in prayer, only to have the prayer request slip out of our memory not long after we’ve left their company.

We meant what we said; we intended to pray, but the request was forgotten once we got back to the office, or got home from our Bible study, or arrived at the restaurant for lunch after Sunday worship. There is a danger when we don’t follow through with our honest intentions to pray; eventually those words “I’ll pray for you” become a hollow and empty promise.

In the opening passage of 2 Thessalonians, we find Paul’s usual greetings and salutations. We may be tempted to rush past these opening verses in Paul’s epistles, thinking they are nothing more than, “Hi, how you doin’?”

However, in these opening remarks, Paul mentions two specific characteristics of the believers in Thessalonica that cause him to give thanks to God: their faith and love. He commends them for growth and maturation of both.

In Paul’s first correspondence with the Thessalonians, he tells them that “night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith.” (1 Thess. 3:10) He also prays for them, asking that “the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you.” (1 Thess. 3:12)

Paul had announced his intention to pray for their faith, in areas where it was lacking, and for an increase in their love towards one another.

Presumably, a significant amount of time passed between Paul’s first and second letters to the Thessalonian believers, but nonetheless, as he pens the opening lines of his second letter, he thanks God for their growth in both faith and in love, the same issues upon which he had focused his prayers for them.

Later in this opening chapter of 2 Thessalonians, he reminds them, “we constantly pray for you.” Apparently when Paul says, “I’ll pray for you,” he actually follows through.

May we share that same sense of commitment the next time we utter those simple words, “I’ll pray for you.”

The Greeting
O Lord, I cry to you for help; in the morning my prayer comes before you. — Psalm 88:14

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Full prayer available online and in print.

Today’s Readings
2 Kings 1 (Listen – 3:13)
2 Thessalonians 1 (Listen – 1:52)

This Weekend’s Readings
2 Kings 2 (Listen – 4:26) 2 Thessalonians 2 (Listen – 2:32)
2 Kings 3 (Listen – 4:29) 2 Thessalonians 3 (Listen – 2:16)

Escaping Discontent

  • October 10, 2017
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  • Jon Polk

Scripture: Philippians 4:12
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.

Reflection: Escaping Discontent
By Jon Polk

A commercial pilot flying over the Tennessee mountains pointed out a lake to his co-pilot. “See that lake down there? When I was a boy, I used to sit in a rowboat and fish for hours. Whenever a plane flew overhead, I pretended I was piloting the jet.”

The co-pilot responded, “You must be proud that you have achieved your boyhood dreams.” The pilot replied, “Not exactly. Now when I fly over that lake, I wish I was down there fishing.”

Contentment is an elusive pursuit. We want to believe there is something out there that we can find or achieve or buy that will finally make us happy.

It is difficult to find contentment in a culture that works hard to foster discontent. Consumer economies are designed to ensure we are never satisfied, in essence, monetizing our discontent. Businesses do their best to keep us constantly longing for the latest and greatest “Shiny Objects.” Enough is never enough.

If we are never satisfied, we are not fully able to enjoy the life that God has given us.

Notice that Paul didn’t write, “I’m so glad that it is easy to be content in every situation.” No, he says, “I had to learn to be content whatever the circumstances.”

First, Paul learned we should rejoice in the Lord. Even in the midst of difficulty we can rejoice that God sustains and cares for us. Second, be known for gentleness, not insisting on our own rights, but instead striving for the welfare of others. Third, don’t be anxious about anything. Recall the words of Jesus, “Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” Finally, pray with thanksgiving. When we give thanks to God, we acknowledge that everything we have is a gift, a result of His goodness and generosity.

If we are pursuing these things, what are we not doing?

We’re not congratulating ourselves for how great we are. We’re not being proud or selfish or stingy with our resources. We’re not complaining or comparing ourselves to others. We’re not consumed by the insatiable quest for more.

Instead, we are free to focus on the only one who can provide for us, God himself, and when we find joy in the Lord, we can let go of our discontent and find contentment in his love and grace.

The Call to Prayer
Sing praise to the Lord who dwells in Zion; proclaim to the peoples the things he has done. — Psalm 9:11

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Full prayer available online and in print.

Today’s Readings
1 Kings 13 (Listen – 5:14)
Philippians 4 (Listen – 3:20)