God didn’t wait for us to clean up our lives. 
God didn’t wait for us to earn our own salvation.
Praise God, He didn’t wait.

Romans 5:1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God.  3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;  4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. 6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Father God, we can’t thank You enough for sending Your Son Jesus Christ to die on a cross for our sins… that we might be made right with You by Your grace through faith which itself is a gift from You. We praise You for the faithfulness of our Lord and Savior. We praise You for the work that He did on the cross and for the way that He prepared a place for us. And even now reaches out to us in the midst of our trials and struggles and sins.  He calls us into relationship with Him, into relationship with You, our Father in heaven. Make us mindful of the depth of human sin that required Good Friday to be necessary. We praise You, Lord, and we offer You thanks and glory now and forevermore. Amen.

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

It’s Maundy Thursday and Jesus knows He’s being betrayed.  He tells His disciples He’s going to lay His life down for them, for us, to display that He alone is the Way.  That’s how He would be our Savior.

If Jesus was going to come and be our Savior, Paul writes a rhetorical question in Galatians 3:19-20 that makes perfect sense: “Why, then, was the law given at all? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was given through angels and entrusted to a mediator.  A mediator, however, implies more than one party; but God is one.”

Jesus is the Seed to which Paul refers. He is both our Savior and our mediator, but Paul points out that oddly, there’s only one in the mediation process: God. All that is confusing on its own and this whole Father-Son-Spirit of the Triune Godhead is already confusing enough without the Crucifixion.  What do I mean? Jesus died.  The Scriptures want us to know that He didn’t faint or swoon or experience some “Beam-me-up-Scottie” moment as His going from living being in one location to same living being in another.

Nope. Jesus’ dead body was in the grave.  He was deader than a doornail and makes about as much sense as that idiom when you stop to think about how confusing this makes the Trinity.

Here’s what I mean:
When Jesus died,
did the full Godhead experience a parenthesis because the Son was gone? 
Jesus’ body and spirit were in different places. Where did Jesus’ soul go? 

Among His last words, He told His Father “Into Your hands I commit My spirit.”  That would have been the life-breathing-living-beingness of Christ.  His spirit.  His body immediately died.  But what happened to His soul?

I don’t know.  Jesus said that the criminal would be with Him in paradise (Luke 23:40-43).  In Paradise, but His body, we note, would still be on the Cross, dead, then prepared a bit, dead, and placed in a tomb, dead, dead, dead.  What did Jesus mean “with Me in paradise”? What part of “Me” was that?

On Maundy Thursday, Jesus says He’ll only be with us a little while longer, that we’d look for Him and be unable to find Him.  But wait, His body was visible even after death.  They’d find Him on a Cross.  Dead. We could not go at that time where He was going to go because He had to first return to the Father, to be proven acceptable as a sacrifice that He mediated.

So all this leads to a really deep question: At what point between Good Friday’s earthly death and Resurrection Sunday’s bodily resurrection was Jesus…fully Himself…the Second Person of the Trinity but no longer Incarnate? I tend to think it was immediately after He breathed His last upon this earth.  He just resumed a temporarily body-less existence…maybe like exactly what He had before the Incarnation. He never stopped being God, but He did stop having a human life and a human body for a time.

More than just theological curiosity, we ought to ponder the Trinity in light of the Crucifixion, burial, and resurrection of Christ.

Lord Jesus, You are amazing! Please open our eyes to the deep spiritual truths of Your existence before time began, of Your having created this world and everything in it, the amazing truth of the Incarnation and exactly how impossible all that is apart from God. You are One: Father, Son, and Spirit! So Lord help us to see in whatever ways our minds can absorb, what happened in that moment that You died on the Cross… what it means to have a body… what it means to have a soul… what it means to have a spirit, that life-breath that God gives to each one of us in the human race. May we value life because You value it. May we value the Image of God because that is what You rescued on the Cross. We praise You and thank You for Your faithfulness, for the new commandment that You give us to love one another as You have loved us! Tall order! Oh, Lord it is something that we cannot accomplish on our own apart from You but we praise You and thank You for the gift of the Holy Spirit who makes it possible for us to love one another in this amazing way! Thank You that You love us. We thank You. We praise You. We glorify You. We exalt You as holy, and as our One True God! Amen.

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

Psalm 74:1 A maskil of Asaph. O God, why have you rejected us forever? Why does your anger smolder against the sheep of your pasture? 2 Remember the nation you purchased long ago, the people of your inheritance, whom you redeemed– Mount Zion, where you dwelt. 3 Turn your steps toward these everlasting ruins, all this destruction the enemy has brought on the sanctuary. 4 Your foes roared in the place where you met with us; they set up their standards as signs. 5 They behaved like men wielding axes to cut through a thicket of trees. 6 They smashed all the carved paneling with their axes and hatchets. 7 They burned your sanctuary to the ground; they defiled the dwelling place of your Name. 8 They said in their hearts, “We will crush them completely!” They burned every place where God was worshiped in the land.

 9 We are given no signs from God; no prophets are left, and none of us knows how long this will be. 10 How long will the enemy mock you, God? Will the foe revile your name forever? 11 Why do you hold back your hand, your right hand? Take it from the folds of your garment and destroy them!

12 But God is my King from long ago; He brings salvation on the earth.

13 It was you who split open the sea by your power; you broke the heads of the monster in the waters. 14 It was you who crushed the heads of Leviathan and gave it as food to the creatures of the desert. 15 It was you who opened up springs and streams; you dried up the ever-flowing rivers. 16 The day is yours, and yours also the night; you established the sun and moon. 17 It was you who set all the boundaries of the earth; you made both summer and winter.

 18 Remember how the enemy has mocked you, LORD, how foolish people have reviled your name. 19 Do not hand over the life of your dove to wild beasts; do not forget the lives of your afflicted people forever. 20 Have regard for your covenant, because haunts of violence fill the dark places of the land. 21 Do not let the oppressed retreat in disgrace; may the poor and needy praise your name.

 22 Rise up, O God, and defend your cause; remember how fools mock you all day long. 23 Do not ignore the clamor of your adversaries, the uproar of your enemies, which rises continually.

During Holy Week, Jesus pressed into His mission.  He told His disciples over and over again that He would be handed over to be crucified.  Maybe they didn’t want to believe Him in this one.  Maybe they thought He was nuts.  Maybe they didn’t want to hear it, preferring to believe the dream of Messiah.  But Jesus said it enough times that it should have been no surprise that the crescendo of evil would culminate in the death of Christ.  It would all seem very hopeless for a time. But God was still in control.

Lord Jesus, help us to remember how bleak the world must have looked to the disciples during Holy Week as You told them again and again that You were going to be handed over to the chief priests and handed over to the Gentiles and that You were going to be crucified. How depressing! But then You give the hope that You will be raised to life! Sometimes the things that give us hope seem so impossible and yet Lord, we know that with You all things are possible. Thank You for the gift of faith. Thank You for seeing us through the difficult times, the deep waters, and the nights of many tears. Help us to remain faithful so that when You return, we will be found to be hard at work… bringing glory to You. For we know Your Word is just as true now as it was before You were crucified. It teaches us that You will return and You will bring us to be where You are. Thank You, Lord Jesus, for paving the way for us, for paying the price to redeem us as Your people… from every tribe and nation and language and people to be Your own. We praise You, Lord, and we give You all glory and honor and power and praise! Amen.

===

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

Do you feel weak, powerless?  Do you ever wonder if it’s all worth it, trying to live the righteous life, and bringing glory to God?  Do you ever just get tired of pressing on?  Sometimes, the closer you get to your destination, the heavier the weight seems.

A psalmist known as Asaph knew that feeling all too well.  Read through Psalm 73.  His feet had almost slipped.  He envied those who seemed to get away with everything all while he attempted to stay right with God.  But as you read through this psalm, you’ll see he crowns his poem with praise to God Almighty.

You hold me by my right hand. You guide me with Your counsel, and afterward You will take me into glory.  Whom have I in heaven but You? And earth has nothing I desire besides You.  My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Those who are far from You will perish; You destroy all who are unfaithful to You. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all Your deeds. (Psalm 73:23-28)

Father God please be with me and strengthen me during these days when everything seems so oppressive, so gloomy!  And yet this is such a holy season during which we celebrate.  But we also grieve…Oh, we grieve what we have done to You, we grieve that Jesus had to die because of what mankind has done through the ages.  We repent of any wrongdoing that we know brings pain to You and wounded our Lord Jesus.  We ask, Father, that You would forgive us our iniquities and that You would make us mindful during this Holy Week the high cost of forgiveness.  May we never take forgiveness lightly. May we never withhold it from those who seek forgiveness from us.  May we be quick to ask forgiveness from those we have harmed.  We ask, Lord, that we would keep short accounts with You and that we would draw closer to You, this season most of all.  For our heart and our flesh may fail but praise God! You are our strength and portion forever. Amen.

===

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

The march from Triumphal Entry to Easter is so routine that it’s way too easy to forget the reason why Jesus had to come to die. (Human sin.) And that for Jesus, this coming week was anything but celebratory. It was a death march.

The psalmist remembered the fate of mankind
apart from a Savior who paved the way for
the redemption God has planned.

Psalm 49:1 For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm. Hear this, all you peoples; listen, all who live in this world, 2 both low and high, rich and poor alike: 3 My mouth will speak words of wisdom; the meditation of my heart will give you understanding.  4 I will turn my ear to a proverb; with the harp I will expound my riddle: 5 Why should I fear when evil days come, when wicked deceivers surround me– 6 those who trust in their wealth and boast of their great riches? 7 No one can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for them– 8 the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough– 9 so that they should live on forever and not see decay. 10 For all can see that the wise die, that the foolish and the senseless also perish, leaving their wealth to others. 11 Their tombs will remain their houses forever, their dwellings for endless generations, though they had named lands after themselves. 12 People, despite their wealth, do not endure; they are like the beasts that perish. 13 This is the fate of those who trust in themselves, and of their followers, who approve their sayings. 14 They are like sheep and are destined to die; death will be their shepherd (but the upright will prevail over them in the morning). Their forms will decay in the grave, far from their princely mansions. 15 But God will redeem me from the realm of the dead; he will surely take me to himself. 16 Do not be overawed when others grow rich, when the splendor of their houses increases; 17 for they will take nothing with them when they die, their splendor will not descend with them. 18 Though while they live they count themselves blessed– and people praise you when you prosper– 19 they will join those who have gone before them, who will never again see the light of life. 20 People who have wealth but lack understanding are like the beasts that perish.

Lord God, You have prepared us for the day of destruction.  You have given every opportunity for receiving Your grace, mercy, and forgiveness.  Jesus died for me and all who hear my voice.  But the lure of worldly things easily seduces us away from the simple trust in You, our loving Father, and keeps us from hearing the humble invitation of Jesus Christ, our Good Shepherd.   When we feel like the end is surely near, Lord Jesus, give us confidence to remain in You, to abide in Your peace, and to know the magnitude of Your love.  Thank You, Lord Jesus.  We praise You.  Amen.

===

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

The Triumphal Entry is an event on the church calendar that churches around the globe look forward to celebrating.  Waving palm branches, shouting Hosannas and singing powerful songs to our coming King…what’s not to love? 

For Jesus, I wonder if it was something else.  For Him, it was an inauguration to priestly duties and offering the ultimate sacrifice, suffering in His flesh for the sins of mankind.  His view of that celebratory day must have been flavored by seeing people cheer who He knew would turn on Him by the week’s end.  How strange it must have felt.  Sad, too.  The fickleness and hypocrisy of mankind.  The very people He was sent to save, celebrate now, but would reject Him before long.

Matthew 21:1 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.” 4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: 5 “Say to Daughter Zion, ‘See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.'” 6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. 8 A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Hosanna in the highest heaven!” 10 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?” 11 The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Today’s meditation focus:
What the Triumphal Entry meant to Jesus.

This year’s Lent Devotional Series “But God…” resumes tomorrow after today’s Sabbath rest to meditate and worship.

What if God anchored His blessing to something that He knew would be abolished?  Would that not be the same thing as a broken promise, a bait-and-switch?  I love that God anchors His promises and His blessings in something so powerful that it can never be broken:  grace.

The Apostle Paul says it this way, Galatians 3:14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit. 15 Brothers and sisters, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case.  16 The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,” meaning one person, who is Christ.  17 What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise.  18 For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on the promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.

If the Jewish Law was what God had anchored His promise in, then Gentiles would first have to become Jews in order to be redeemed.  But God gave His promise through the same grace that was present in the Law (which Paul points out didn’t even come until more than 400 years after the promise), the same grace in Christ so that all would enter into faith and eternal life by the same means: Ephesians 2:8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith– and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God–9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

Thank You, Lord Jesus, that Your grace was at work in the Law and in Your Scriptures long before it was ever displayed on the Cross.  As we continue looking at how to live as citizens of the Kingdom of God in spirit while residing in the City of Man, let us be watchful for Your grace in our lives, in large ways and small, and in ways both subtle and unmistakable.  We praise You for Your grace.  Amen.

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

Way too many people have a hard time with God as our Father.  On one hand, it’s understandable if they had dads who were always gone or always drunk. Maybe their dads were not involved in their upbringing or education.  There are some who were separated from their fathers due to death, military service, or divorce.  In any of these cases, the hurdle to see God’s discipline as anything good is doubly difficult because the first barrier is God as Father.

For those who know God as the loving Father He is, we make that hurdle because we know that God would never leave us to be feral children, growing up with neither standards nor boundaries.  God disciplines us for our good so that we will be able to stand strong as men and women of God, fully confident of His love, and fully desirous of our being holy to be a joy to Him and joyful in ourselves.

Hebrews 12:7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father?…10 They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.

Discipline done well is a powerful parenting tool.  It reinforces behavior that elevates and brings no shame.  It crafts the person to know why boundaries exist and when they can be safely stretched for growth and creativity.  We learn the rules of the game so there may be order and goodness. Training makes us strive for excellence in all we do. 

But just like weight training or distance running or physical therapy, it involves pain as we grow, stretching our spiritual muscles, learning self-denial and self-control, as well as developing character and perseverance to prepare us for the journey of adulthood and the challenges ahead.

Hebrews 12:11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. 12 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.  13 “Make level paths for your feet,” so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.  14 Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.  15 See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.

Too many people want the glory without the preparation
or the prize without running the race. 
Let’s be those who value the boundaries and instruction that discipline teaches.

Father God, we praise You that You are a loving God, One who cares about us as Your children, One who is gentle and merciful, yet holy.  Make it clear to us why we are enduring discipline so we might ask the proper question of what we are to learn through the process.  Give us discerning minds to know conviction of sin which is loving discipline versus condemnation which brings only shame and fear of punishment.  Help us to know discipline’s goodness so we might bring glory to You through our actions.  Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

As we approach the final days of our devotional series “But God…” and come to know the peace of God even as Kingdom citizens of a foreign land called the City of Man, we can experience gratitude that God didn’t leave us with the Law.  God didn’t leave us with earning impossible social credits required to prove our worth.  Instead, God gave us grace in the form of our Savior and a New Covenant in Jesus’ blood.

Jesus is the One who earned this covenant.  He’s the one to mediate it.  Hebrews 8:6 But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.

How were these promises better?  Well, the Law could only lead us to recognize sin.  Jesus can forgive it.  The Law required effort on the part of imperfect people.  Jesus required only His own perfect effort.  In the end, the Law could never save because that wasn’t its purpose.  Jesus saves because that’s why He came. 

Hebrews 8:7 For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another. 8 But God found fault with the people and said: “The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. 9 It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my covenant, and I turned away from them, declares the Lord. 10 This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 11 No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. 12 For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” 13 By calling this covenant “new,” he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and outdated will soon disappear. 

The Law was a placeholder until God sent a Savior who would perfectly embody and keep the Law.  Even better, the Law never disappeared, though it will happen “soon” which Matthew 5:18 lists as the point when heaven and earth disappear and “everything is accomplished.”

When Jesus returns, we will no longer need the Law.
Jesus will be enough.
If you ever worry God has left us alone,
consider how blessed we are to be in this moment of history.
Would God who brought us all the way from Eden, through a flood,
through exile and slavery, through occupation,
only to send His Son Jesus to die on a Cross
at the hands of the ruling Jews and Gentiles alike,
then raise Him from the dead leaving nothing but an empty tomb…
seriously would He suddenly decide to call it quits?  After all that?
No, He’ll see us all the way to His Return! Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!

Thank You Lord for this new covenant!  Thank You that it can never be taken away!  Thank You that covenants that You make are certain and trustworthy and that with You, a promise made is a promise kept.  In a world of false promises, a world in which people will say anything to get what they want, I praise You and thank You that this new covenant in the blood of Your Son Jesus Christ is certain and eternally good!  He shed His blood at the Cross for our benefit.  But not just ours because, Lord, You redeemed Your Image in fallen humanity.  We have already been rescued as Image-bearers from the spiritual dark forces arrayed against mankind.  Thank You Lord for this blessed time, this holy time, of Easter.  Remind us that Good Friday was when Jesus purchased our forgiveness at an infinite and horrible cost.  May we never take forgiveness lightly.  We give You eternal thanks in the Name of Your Son Jesus Christ.  Amen. 

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.

Few things are harder to accept than trying to play by the rules, live righteous and holy lives, do good to others, loving them even if they’re enemies, and yet to see your life fall apart.  Adding insult to injury, one wonders about God when one is suffering but evildoers still seem to flourish. 

I don’t know if you’ve ever experienced a season when God dealt you blow after blow, deaths, losses of all kinds, all while you were trying to do what’s right, but having experienced that in my own life, I’ve learned some things.  God knows you’re confused.  God sees you wrestling with it.  God sees the pain and the frustration.  God understands how circumstances can create doubt.  But God honors our perseverance in trusting Him.

Job knew better than most how confusing it is when only God sees the full picture and we only see a part. 

Job cried out, Job 23:2 “Even today my complaint is bitter; his hand is heavy in spite of my groaning.  3 If only I knew where to find him; if only I could go to his dwelling!  … 13 “But he stands alone, and who can oppose him? He does whatever he pleases. 14 He carries out his decree against me, and many such plans he still has in store. 15 That is why I am terrified before him; when I think of all this, I fear him. 16 God has made my heart faint; the Almighty has terrified me.  17 Yet I am not silenced by the darkness, by the thick darkness that covers my face.  Job 24:1 “Why does the Almighty not set times for judgment? Why must those who know him look in vain for such days?

Do you feel like there’s no justice in this world?  Just hold on…

Lord, when we’re confused and don’t know where to turn, we ask that by Your mercy, You will be everywhere we look.  May we see evidence of Your loving care in every moment.  Help us to know it in our core as part of the very fabric of our lives and character.  Helps us not to give up hoping, never to give up trusting You, and desiring nothing more than wanting to know You more, and wanting to see righteousness prevail.  Help us to know You will make all things right and give us confidence to persevere even though we are afraid.  Help us not to question the Almighty or quarrel with our Maker.  Rather, give us rest and peace in knowing You.  Oh, that we would know the pure essence of trust.  For Your glory, Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
• The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.