July 12--Why It's Ok To Be A Mixed Bag

Eating healthier, getting more exercise, having better relationships.  I've spent a lot of time trying to change myself and finally gave up, which was when changes began to happen.  Learn why from today's passages: 1 Chronicles 13-15, Romans 1:1-17, Psalm 9:13-20, and Proverbs 19:2-3. 

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Eve reads her Bible journal aloud on this episode.

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Transcript

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july twelfth Why it's okay to be a mixed bag I won't be reading the scripture references for those please check the written post Pete has been imprisoned twice now for burglary and once for killing his wife accidentally. He stabbed her leg when hallucinating thinking they were being attacked while camping, causing her to bleed out. He's been haunted by the fear that his sins have finally caught up with him since he's recently had one leg amputated below the knee and the toes of his remaining foot were taken because of diabetes. Pete's younger sister brings him little Debbie's and Reese's at the hospital where I met him. Some days I want to strangle her. He would tell you that his thirst for revenge and payback fueled his burglaries, his desire to numb himself after his parents and older sister died got him into drugs. He thought these things would give him what he wanted satisfaction and peace, but they didn't. They gave him just the opposite they only made his problems worse. It was a happy day when Pete believed that God's forgiveness covered everything, even deliberate crimes and misdemeanors, even drug induced stupidity. It was an even happier day when he understood that Jesus' goodness counts for him and he trusted Jesus to save him. Learning to live disabled will be challenging physically, but so much easier now that he's not carrying around a load of guilt. Joy is taking hold of him, his face beams it, his spirit streams it I knew Pete both before and after Jesus and he's not the same person he was. The power to turn Pete's life around didn't come from Pete, it came from the God who took Pete's sins and stamped paid across them. While God's judgments can break a hard heart so that it repents, his kindness can break one too. God does whatever it takes to bring mixed bags like Pete home to him. This is just what I found in today's passages

1 Chronicles 13-15

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The Old Testament chapters are first Chronicles thirteen to fifteen When David became king his first order of business was returning the Ark to Jerusalem because he wanted to make God's worship front and center among his people again quote Let's bring the Ark of our God back to us for we didn't inquire of it during the reign of Saul It was a great idea and it came from a happy heart that wanted to honor God and his presence among them. David asked his military leaders what they thought of the idea and then he asked the people who were gathered there what they thought of it since they'd just installed him as king over a reestablished Israel quote. The whole assembly agreed to do this because it seemed right to all the people The Ark had been at Abinadab's house ever since the Philistines returned it by cart. They'd captured it in battle against Israel, but they couldn't get rid of it fast enough afterwards. Everywhere they took it people broke out in tumors. David was excited about bringing the ark back and sent out invitations to meet up at Abinadab's house and he lined up Abinadab's boys to help guide the new cart they'd put the ark on. Somebody thought to get a marching band to make it a real shindig and David and everybody else were quote celebrating with all their might before God end quote as they paraded their way to Jerusalem. As good as David's intentions were, God let him know ASAP that they weren't good enough. When they got as far as somebody's threshing floor the oxen stumbled and Uzzah reached out to steady the ark so it didn't fall off, which was another good intention in my book, but God evidently didn't think so. Uzza got zapped and died on the spot. David got mad, the music died and the whole parade party stopped. David was afraid to mess with the ark after that so he ditched it at nearby Obed Edom's house and everybody went home and sulked. I'm only imagining the sulky part two questions come up one had the ark become bad luck? No, the Bible says that everything connected with Obed Edom was blessed for the next three months the same amount of time the Ark was holed up at his house. Two was God bipolar, one minute striking terror and the next bringing blessing? Impertinent as it sounds this isn't the first time I've wondered. Uzza was doing a good deed, even doing what the king asked. David was trying to honor God as the only God of Israel but somebody died for that? At the least God sounds unreasonable. But I can't help noticing that in all of David's planning, asking what everybody thinks, inviting his entire kingdom, lining up the music and entertainment, finding the best route, the one person he didn't ask about bringing the art back was God himself. Just three chapters earlier first Chronicles ten says that Saul was disobedient to God's word and wouldn't pray. He consulted a witch instead of asking God for help, which is why he died in battle and lost his kingdom. Like Saul on this day David didn't consult God either. He didn't bother to educate himself on how God said to move the ark. His law stated that it was to be carried by Levite men with poles and anybody who touched it was toast it wasn't a secret. Good intentions weren't enough when it came to pleasing God, especially when his word made clear what it was God wanted and evidently enthusiasm for God wasn't enough either, because David was dancing before God for all he was worth and so was everybody else but God came along and put us as lights out. Simply feeling good about God and even worshiping him with your tribe wasn't enough to please God either. It took us as death to get David's attention and remind him that how a thing was done mattered to God, particularly when it was spelled out clearly in his word, particularly when it involved something sacred like the ark of his holy presence and being ignorant was no excuse because David could have asked around and found out what God said if he wanted to he didn't think to do it. He thought his good intentions and enthusiasm were enough to please God, but they weren't It would take something more than these in the next chapter the Philistines got wind that David had united all the tribes of Israel and they raided a nearby valley to see what he was made of. David asked God what to do and God said he'd hand them over which he did twice. Sure seems like David learned his lesson about checking in with God, except that tucked in the verses above these about the Philistines are two verses about the many new wives David married when he moved into Jerusalem wives got it already forbidden. He commanded through Moses that kings weren't to have lots of wealth, horses or wives because quote, his heart would be led astray end quote. But David also took many concubines and had even more children. He followed the practices of his culture and didn't bother to ask God about planning his royal family. Worst of all David had Uriah a loyal soldier murdered in order to cover up his adultery with Uriah's wife. At best David is a mixed bag. I keep feeling surprised when I read that he's favored by God you'd think that messing up as a family man this much alone would disqualify him from being God's pick as quote the man after my own heart end quote and then there was what happened to Uzza who followed his orders and died. So why did David make the cut? One thing's for sure it wasn't because he was good enough. David made the cut because goodness isn't God's measuring rod for our being on the ins or outs with him. He doesn't look around for perfect human beings or even especially good ones. He gives us freedom to choose to obey and when we don't we suffer consequences lest we forget Jesus came to save sinners not goody goodies and bad choices don't disqualify us from being his beloved sons and daughters they didn't disqualify David. This truth surprises me every time I find it in the Bible God said eight times in first Kings alone that David did what was right in his eyes except for Uriah either God's memory was slipping or grace is deeper and wider than any of us can imagine. The secret to pleasing God isn't trying hard to be good. The secret to pleasing him is looking to him and leaning on his goodness. This is what faith and trust are all about it's saying I don't have what it takes I need help. I need a savior and just that quick you've got one. God sent Jesus to be the Savior we need and he has more restarts and do overs stacked up for you and me than we'll ever use up. Though David didn't know his name he knew he had an advocate at God's right hand. David's faith and trust wasn't in himself to be pleasing it was in this unnamed Savior, the King of Kings who'd one day pay for a sin. Throughout his life David kept coming to God he didn't let sin and shame, anger and hate, defeat and despair or friends and enemies keep him away he brought everything in his life to God, good and bad. We have his Psalms that prove it David kept connecting with the God who was always connecting with him first. But David didn't earn God's favor Jesus earned it for him and David knew that and trusted him It's okay to be a mixed bag of faith and faith fails because you have a Savior and his name is Jesus

Romans 1:1-17

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The New Testament passage is Romans one to seventeen Paul agrees it's the power of God in Jesus that brings quote salvation to everyone who believes in quote not the power in oneself. It's the one who trusts in Jesus' goodness who gets saved, not the goody goody. When I'm trying to be good enough to earn heaven I see that I'm trying to prove I don't need God to get there because I can be good enough without his help. I can even be my own Jesus but this is what the Pharisees believed who were condemned by him. Our goodness in the Christian life doesn't come by bootstrap pulling or trying harder to do better. It comes by faith in Jesus. Paul said obedience comes by faith end quote and that's how the righteous live and the righteousness begun in faith continues by faith until the end. It's a goodness quote by faith from first to last end quote it's not about beginning our Christian lives by trusting in Jesus and then taking over in our own strength and making good for God, sanctifying ourselves who could do that anyway I don't know about you, but knowing that the burden is on Jesus to make me like himself takes the pressure off I don't have to sift through my sin and fix myself or make myself obey. Strangely it's then when I want to obey him and even do this truth made Pete weep. It's okay to be a mixed bag of faith and failure because you don't have to earn your way to heaven

Psalm 9:13-20, Prayer, Proverbs 19:2-3

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from Psalm nine thirteen twenty The Psalmist is suffering at the hand of the wicked he knows God can relieve him but as of yet he hasn't What does he do? He doesn't give up hope. He reminds himself that quote the Lord is known by his justice end quote he reviews the way God works with the wicked, how he ensnares them in their own traps, how their feet get tangled in their own nets, how they return to the grave and he's also confident that the needy won't be forgotten, the poor won't remain nameless, he won't be disappointed. All of this is well and good, but my favorite part of this psalm is at the end when the writer finally says God get the heck out Well okay not really. Quite politely the NIV says quote arise O Lord, end quote a tad more urgently the message says quote up God however it's translated the psalmist is calling God to hurry up, get a move on, get the let out, and take these guys out It's okay to be a mixed bag of faith and hurry the heck up, because you can count on your God to save you no matter what from Proverbs nineteen two to three mindless enthusiasm doesn't count for much a fool ruins his life yet blames God for it. By the way Pete's name was changed for this true story about him passages in first chronicles Romans Psalms and Proverbs are selected for today in the yearly Bible. This is Eve de Bartleban Roebuck