Tuesday, January 16, 2018

16 January 2018 - into the heart



Not as man sees does God see,
because he sees the appearance
but the LORD looks into the heart.

We easily get lost in the externals. These things cloud our judgment and prevent us from seeing a situation as God sees it.

At this the Pharisees said to him,
"Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?"

We judge situations on criteria that are less than fully human. We look at appearances, shared in common with paintings and flowers, rather than people. We look at the letter of the law rather than the human purpose for which it exists. But the LORD looks into the heart!

Maybe we have trouble with this. After all, God made the beauty that attracts us. He gave the law which we strive to follow to the smallest jot and tittle. It often seems like ignoring beauty only results in ugliness. It seems like if we don't take the law at its literal meaning we will twist it to justify sin. And perhaps we will. There is still a solution, which has none of these risks. We must wait for the LORD to lead.

Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I myself will tell you what to do;
you are to anoint for me the one I point out to you.

As we hunger for the grains of the field we must look to Jesus for his approval and to be ready to withdraw our hands if we see his frown.

Have you never read what David did
when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry?

The LORD understands how needy we are. The law doesn't exist to help God. It exists because we need it to live happy and free lives. Beauty doesn't exist to trick us. It exists that we might appreciate and rejoice in it. But everything should be in its proper order. If these things were just abstractions they wouldn't matter to Jesus.

The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.
That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.

But they are made for us. When they are ordered according to his good pleasure we thrive and become more truly human.

I have found David, my servant;
with my holy oil I have anointed him,
That my hand may be always with him,
and that my arm may make him strong.

We find ourselves anointed with this same anointing. We find the Spirit rushes upon our hearts.



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