Job 22-24
Acts 11
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” —Galatians 2:20
A life of worship consists of learning to let go and let God: to let go of our desire for control and let God lead us; to let go of our ways and to discover His ways; to let go of our agenda and accept His agenda; to let go of our understanding as to how the world ought to work, and let God teach us how He designed it to work; to let go of our identity and discover His.
To let go and let God is not a one-time lesson in the Scripture. The call to let go and let God is echoed throughout the Bible. We see it in the life of Moses; He was called to let go of everything he knew and return to Egypt. As Moses let go and went back to Egypt, he discovered God’s power at work to deliver because God is faithful to His Word.
We see it in the life of Salmon, a descendent of Judah who noticed the faith of Rahab, a Canaanite prostitute. Salmon had to let go of human categories as he chose to marry Rahab, who became a part of the Messianic line. Because Salmon let go of categories that we place people in, he saw that worship can come from any tribe, nation, people or language.
We see it in the life of Elijah—he had to let go of his own presuppositions and discover faith at the fringes of society. God helped him understand that a life of worship existed outside of the people of Israel. As Elijah let go, he saw that the kingdom of heaven would be composed of every nation, tribe, people and language.
In the New Testament, God stepped down from heaven and clothed Himself with humanity in the personhood of Jesus Christ. At a time when social structures and whether one was in or out of the kingdom were hard-drawn lines, Jesus befriended the stranger, welcomed the foreigner and healed those outside of the covenant.
Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:28-29). All who are weary of a world of categories, of a world of divisions, of a world of brokenness and sin, everyone is welcomed to Jesus and He will help them let go and discover His way, His strength, His power and His ability. Through Jesus, we are brought into a new kingdom, a new nation, a new family and a new identity.
Dear Jesus, thank You for breaking down the categories, the division, the brokenness and sin, and for welcoming me into Your kingdom. Open my heart to know that You desire people from every tribe, nation, people and language to worship You.
Acts 11
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” —Galatians 2:20
A life of worship consists of learning to let go and let God: to let go of our desire for control and let God lead us; to let go of our ways and to discover His ways; to let go of our agenda and accept His agenda; to let go of our understanding as to how the world ought to work, and let God teach us how He designed it to work; to let go of our identity and discover His.
To let go and let God is not a one-time lesson in the Scripture. The call to let go and let God is echoed throughout the Bible. We see it in the life of Moses; He was called to let go of everything he knew and return to Egypt. As Moses let go and went back to Egypt, he discovered God’s power at work to deliver because God is faithful to His Word.
We see it in the life of Salmon, a descendent of Judah who noticed the faith of Rahab, a Canaanite prostitute. Salmon had to let go of human categories as he chose to marry Rahab, who became a part of the Messianic line. Because Salmon let go of categories that we place people in, he saw that worship can come from any tribe, nation, people or language.
We see it in the life of Elijah—he had to let go of his own presuppositions and discover faith at the fringes of society. God helped him understand that a life of worship existed outside of the people of Israel. As Elijah let go, he saw that the kingdom of heaven would be composed of every nation, tribe, people and language.
In the New Testament, God stepped down from heaven and clothed Himself with humanity in the personhood of Jesus Christ. At a time when social structures and whether one was in or out of the kingdom were hard-drawn lines, Jesus befriended the stranger, welcomed the foreigner and healed those outside of the covenant.
Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:28-29). All who are weary of a world of categories, of a world of divisions, of a world of brokenness and sin, everyone is welcomed to Jesus and He will help them let go and discover His way, His strength, His power and His ability. Through Jesus, we are brought into a new kingdom, a new nation, a new family and a new identity.
Dear Jesus, thank You for breaking down the categories, the division, the brokenness and sin, and for welcoming me into Your kingdom. Open my heart to know that You desire people from every tribe, nation, people and language to worship You.
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