In the Eye of the Beholder.

In the Eye of the Beholder

Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NKJV)
 “To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven.”


    I know that to many it is a nuisance, that burst of yellow that suddenly appears in Spring’s manicured lawn.  Yet, it pleases the eye and dashes winter’s chill.  Its blades nourish, and its stems while away childish hours becoming necklaces and baubles that delight the heart of a would-be princess.  A child’s purity of vision sees its beauty, treasures it and gathers it into bouquets that wilt in smudged fingers.
    As it is in the natural, so it is in the spiritual. No matter what our situation; no matter what exasperation we cause others, God sees our beauty.  He fashions us into jewels and gathers us unto Himself so we can serve in nurturing others.  We are His “dandy lions.” 

Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NKJV)
“He has made everything beautiful in its time.”


                                                     DANDELION    
    Dandelion,
    Often peeping through the snow--
    Crystals frosting saffron bloom and verdant blade,
    Your song bursts forth.
    Sing, Flower of Spring, sing.

Worshiping in the Beauty of Holiness

Worshiping in the Beauty of Holiness

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

           

"Then the Lord spoke to Moses saying, 'Speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, you shall be holy because I am holy.’" (Leviticus 19: 1-2)

            We are to be holy because God is holy.  What is holiness?  We have seen the artistic renditions of holiness:  saints, serenely enveloped in halos of purity and light.  But somehow, we cannot put ourselves and our daily lives into that framework.  God knows our frailties, our inability to be holy within ourselves.  Therefore, He has made provision for us so that we may be holy as He is holy.  God is spiritually whole.  He is perfect.  He is complete.   Because in these earthly bodies, we cannot become spiritually whole, God has become our wholeness.  Because on earth, we cannot attain perfection, He has become our perfection. He is not only our example of holiness, He is our pathway to holiness. 

            The psalmist encourages us, to “worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him all the earth.” (Psalm 96:9 NKJV)  When, through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, we stand in His spiritual wholeness, in His perfection, in beauty of His holiness, we can truly worship Him. 

            God is holy.  Through the sanctifying work of the Cross, He has set us apart to worship Him in holiness.   To worship the holiness of God is to understand the nature of God.  To understand the nature of God is to obey His commandments, the greatest of which is to love Him with all our heart, soul and mind. (Matthew 22:37) It is in our love for Him that we worship in the beauty of holiness. 

  

            Lord, we lift our hands in temple of our hearts and worship You. You are holy God, worthy of adoration, and yet desirous of fellowship with Your children.  Anoint us, empower us that we may walk in obedience and love and holiness. Father God, we receive Your wholeness within ourselves.  Though we are imperfect, we stand in your perfection so that we may worship You in the beauty of holiness. Amen.

Shavuot/Pentecost--Growing in the Lord

Shavuot/Pentecost--Growing in the Lord

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

            Shavuot or Pentecost is the third of the Levitical Feasts which required all Jewish men to bring an offering to the Temple in Jerusalem.  As we continue to look more closely at the Feast Days, we gain an understanding of the importance of the days that God has designated as His appointed times. 

Shavuot is the Hebrew word for weeks. There are seven weeks between Passover and Shavuot.  The Feast takes place exactly 50 days after Passover. The Greek word for the holiday is Pentecost, which means 50.  50 is the number of Jubilee, symbolizing restoration and newness of life.  In ancient Israel, every 50^th year was a Year of Jubilee.  Debts were canceled and land was returned to its original owner.  It was a time of celebrating freedom in the Kingdom of God.  It is always jubilee for Christians because Jesus has paid our sin debt and set us free.  

Shavuot celebrates the first fruit of the wheat harvest.  Passover is the celebration of the first fruit of the barley harvest.  The Feast of Tabernacles celebrates the harvest of the fruit of the land.  God’s plan is all about harvest. On Shavuot, the first fruits, Bikkurim, were brought into the temple in decorated baskets.

As we study the historical events that occurred on Shavuot, we discern a pattern of growing in our relationship with the Lord.  It was on that day, 1500 years before Christ, that God gave Moses the law on Mount Sinai. The Ten Commandments are God’s directives to an abundant life in Him.  When we are obedient, life is less stressful, we are more victorious and more open to all the blessings that God has in store for us.  In synagogues all over the world, Shavuot is celebrated by reading the 10 Commandments.

It was also on that day, fifty days after the crucifixion of Jesus, that God sent His Holy Spirit to fall upon 120 disciples who were praying in Jerusalem.  Acts 2:1-4 (NKJV)
¹ When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. ² And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. ⁴ And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. 

            Notice the pattern.  The disciples were in Jerusalem because Jesus had told them to stay there until they had received the gift of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:1-5)  They were obedient.  They were in one accord and in one place.  They were in unity.  Then they received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. First comes obedience to the Lord and unity within the body. Then the power of the Holy Spirit comes.

The same God that appeared to His people on Mount Sinai in fire and glory (Exodus 19:18), appeared to those waiting in the upper room, manifested His power once again in fire and then filled them with His Spirit.

Messianic Rabbi K.A. Schneider of the television ministry Discovering the Jewish Jesus writes, “At Pentecost/Shavuot God went from reaching us through tablets of stone, to touching us by His Spirit in our hearts. God’s relationship with man has moved from the outer to the inner, and because of this we are eternally empowered to move forward in our relationship with Him.”

The power of Pentecost, the baptism of the Holy Spirit, is available today in the same measure as it was in the Upper Room.  God has empowered us for victory.

Deborah: A Mother in Israel

Deborah:  A Mother in Israel

By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

            Keeping in mind that women in the Old Testament often picture the Church, the Bride Of Christ, we find in the Old Testament heroine, Deborah, a woman who was a judge, a prophet, a warrior and a mother in Israel.  Hers is not the stereotypical picture of motherhood.  Her story is, however, a realistic picture of what it takes to nurture life in both the home and in a nation. Her story is told in Judges 4.  Her accomplishments are celebrated in Judges 5.

“Judges 5:1-7 (NKJV)
¹  Then Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam sang on that day, saying:
²  "When leaders lead in Israel, When the people willingly offer themselves, Bless the LORD!
³  "Hear, O kings! Give ear, O princes! I, even I, will sing to the LORD; I will sing praise to the LORD God of Israel.
⁴  "LORD, when You went out from Seir, When You marched from the field of Edom, The earth trembled and the heavens poured, The clouds also poured water;
⁵  The mountains gushed before the LORD, This Sinai, before the LORD God of Israel.
⁶  "In the days of Shamgar, son of Anath, In the days of Jael, The highways were deserted, And the travelers walked along the byways.
⁷  Village life ceased, it ceased in Israel, Until I, Deborah, arose, Arose a mother in Israel.”

In times of crisis, the Church must arise as Deborah, arise as a mother in the Kingdom of God, in our families and in our nations.

         We gain deeper insight into the story of Deborah when we realize the meanings of the names of the characters:

Judges 4:1-3 (NKJV)
^“1  When Ehud was dead, the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD.
²  So the LORD sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his army was Sisera, who dwelt in Harosheth Hagoyim.
³  And the children of Israel cried out to the LORD; for Jabin had nine hundred chariots of iron, and for twenty years he harshly oppressed the children of Israel.”

Eduh:  unity

Israel:  those who have power or favor with God

Jabin:  worldly philosophy

Canaan:  humiliation; shame

Sisera:  servant of Ra (Ra is a false god.)

When we translate the names, the passage reads as:

Judges 4:1-3

^“1When UNITY was dead, the children of THOSE WHO HAD FAVOR WITH GOD again did evil in the sight of the Lord. ²So the Lord sold them into the hand of WORLDLY PHILOSOPHY, king of SHAME, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his army was THE SERVANT OF RA (FALSE RELIGION), who dwelt in Harosheth Hagoyim. ³And the children of Israel cried out to the Lord; for Jabin had nine hundred chariots of iron, and for twenty years he had harshly oppressed the children of Israel.”

We learn that disunity can cause even the children of God to turn to the evil of thinking as the world thinks.  Worldly thinking  brings shame into our lives.  Worldly thinking and worldly values are a false religion that places man above God, that places instant gratification above lasting value.  We need leaders with the courage of Deborah to stand for truth in a culture that glorifies falsehood. 

Judges 4:4-5 (NKJV)
^“4  Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, was judging Israel at that time.
⁵  And she would sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the mountains of Ephraim. And the children of Israel came up to her for judgment.”.

Deborah:  means bee.  To more fully understand her character, we must look to the bee who is known for her industry.  A bee is busy doing what she has been called to do.  Insects in the bee family are the only creatures who enable life even as they retrieve the nectar to sustain themselves.  They bring forth a double portion of life:  reproductive life to the plants from which they have extracted nectar and life to themselves as they produce honey.  Their life-giving product is sweet, nourishing, healing and non-perishable.  The Bride of Christ as been called to do the same.  

Again, by looking at the meanings of all the names in the above passage, we can learn how we, the Bride of Christ, can be Deborahs. 

Lapidoth:  torches; fiery

Ramah:  a lofty place (a higher purpose)

Bethel:  the house of God

Ephraim:  double fruitfulness

When we once more translate the passage with the meaning of the names in place of the names, we learn:

Judges 4:4-5

⁴Now the ONE WHO BUSILY BRINGS FORTH A DOUBLE PORTION OF LIFE, a prophetess, the wife of FIRE AND LIGHT, was judging Israel at that time. ⁵And she would sit under the palm tree of Deborah between a HIGHER SENSE OF PURPOSE and the HOUSE OF GOD in the mountains of DOUBLE FRUITFULNESS. And the children of Israel came up to her for judgment. 

            Deborah was busily doing what she had been called to do.  She is in an intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit who is exemplified as fire and light.  Her wise judgment came from that relationship.  She positioned herself with a higher sense of purpose and remained close to the House of God where she could maintain double fruitfulness in her life.  Notice that she didn’t go to the people with her wisdom; they came to her.  God has placed great wisdom and judgment in His people.  We must conduct ourselves in such a manner that people will come to us for His wisdom.

Just as a bee stings to protect its own, a Christian walking in the anointing of Deborah is not only a nurturer, but also a warrior.  Read the rest of Judges 4 and 5 to see the victory.  We have so romanticized motherhood, we often forget the mother-spirit that goes to battle for her loved ones.  Deborah, a mother in Israel, led the armies against the enemy.  It is the call of the Church to lead the battle against those things that seek to steal our freedom and to destroy our souls.