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Why Does God Care About Us…and You!
David asked God the question, “Lord, what is man that you take notice of him; the son of man, that you think of him?”
The scriptures give us the answer and help us understand the nature of our spiritual Father, for we have been created in his image and likeness for a great purpose. Father’s day is a good time to reflect on God our Father’s plan for all of his children and to consider the attributes that he wants his firstborn to develop in order to live in covenant with Him.
The future holds wonderful promise to those who have a knowledge of the truth, have been restored to a right relationship with God the Father, and are being perfected. Let the scripture unveil this mystery of the ages, for the Father is indeed mindful of his children. His love for them and His eternal purpose will be revealed to His family, those who bear His name. It is important to fully understand the answer to the question, “Why does God care about us?”
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Ruth and Pentecost
Traditionally the book of Ruth was read on Pentecost, Shavuoth, the Feast of Weeks. What are the lessons that God wanted us to glean from Ruth and Pentecost? The Jews reflect on the giving of the law to the people of Israel during the Shavuoth season, and Christians rehearse the giving of the Holy Spirit to the Jewish believers in Christ, the Messiah, on Pentecost.
So how does the book of Ruth fit into this picture?
This is a time to consider how to live obediently in the spirit, how to be led, yielded to God’s will, and how to put our faith into action. Living in an era, not unlike that of the book of Judges and the time of Ruth, a time when “everyone did what is right in their own sight” we would benefit from the encouragement God gives us in scripture. The book of Ruth, a great love story, speaks to us today, whether Jew or Gentile, so we can put our trust in God and be confident in His blessings as children of God. Are we, like Ruth, circumcised in heart by the spirit, willing to make God our God, and committed to living and walking as God desires?
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Pentecost/Feast of Weeks:
Pentecost celebrates the awesome power of the voice of the Eternal delivering the covenant from Mt. Sinai amidst the thunder and lightning. It also commemorates the giving of the Holy Spirit and the establishment of the Church of God, after the resurrection and ascension of Jesus, the Messiah. Pentecost, Shavuot, Feast of Weeks is an annual Sabbath rich in meaning for all those who believe in the hope of the resurrection.
And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: seven Sabbaths shall be completed. 16 Count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall offer a new grain offering to the LORD…And you shall proclaim on the same day that it is a holy convocation to you. You shall do no customary work on it. It shall be a statute forever in all your dwellings throughout your generations. Leviticus 23:15-21
Christians are called to fight an ongoing battle against a spiritual adversary. But this is only possible if we are being transformed by the Spirit of God. Peter encourages believers to stay alert and watch out, so we can successfully conquer and be victorious in our struggles. We win this spiritual warfare by becoming holy as God is holy. It is only the spirit of God that will give us the courage of our convictions, and the godly character that will set us apart from this world. How does this happen?
What kind of spirit motivates people to do what they do? To answer that question, Luke, wrote of Jesus’ journey with this disciples to Jerusalem. Along the road the weary travellers asked to stay in a Samaritan village, but they were rebuffed. Why? Because the Samaritans saw that the group was on their way to Jerusalem. Now, there had been 500 years of contention between Jews and Samaritans over where one should worship. It had begun long before in the time of Zerubbabel when the Samaritans had tried to undermine the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem. So there was a long-standing ethnic feud that prompted the Samaritan’s reaction to Jesus and his disciples. Their sin was a mere lack of hospitality to travel worn strangers. What would you have done if you walked in their sandals?
Our world has an appetite for epic stories of triumph over the forces of darkness and evil. “Endgame” is a recent example which brings to mind the question, “What is God’s endgame for his saints?” It is certainly an even greater thriller than one that can be imagined by Hollywood. And it too is a story of the triumph of light over darkness, and the truth over lies and deception. It is a tale of spiritual powers locked in battle for the cosmos, and the eventual overthrow of the great deceiver. But there is more to the story.
Confusion abounds when it comes to the nature of God’s spirit, The Holy Spirit. “Ruach” in Hebrew and “pneuma” in Greek can both be translated as Spirit, spirit, wind, or breath, depending upon the context in the scripture. Some theologians or translators would have you believe that the Spirit is a “Holy Ghost,” or the Third Person in a Trinity? But is this the truth?
What is the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Power, the Comforter, the Voice of the spirit and how does it work in the world? Why, as Christians, is it vitally important for us to understand the role of the Spirit in our walk with God? This series will answer these questions and many more. Learn what you need to know about the power of God’s Spirit in your life.
Is a better world coming? If we believe the prophesies of Isaiah, we have hope of a new world in the future. But this world will not come until God’s spirit is poured out on all people. This change will not come until the Messiah returns. It will come when the Spirit of the Lord, the spirit of knowledge and wisdom and righteousness, rules with justice and fairness. And, the Spirit of power transforms the very nature of the animal kingdom — so they will no longer hurt or destroy. A time of transformation is coming. Are you preparing for that time?
Have you ever noticed this in Luke’s account? In rehearsing the events surrounding Christ’s resurrection, the women came on the first day of the weeks. Have you wondered why the original Greek was plural, week(s). Yet many mistranslations abound, so they miss the significance of this statement. If they knew the law of Moses, they would have realized this was a reference to the beginning of the 50 day count to Pentecost. Looking back into God’s instructions in the law concerning the Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Firstfruits, we find another curious yet meaningful side-note. In the midst of the section about the holy day, there is a specific and seemingly unrelated command. It addressed the needs of the poor and the stranger, the foreigner. And it tied together the story of Ruth with Pentecost the law and the spirit.
Traditionally the book of Ruth was read on Pentecost, Shavuoth, the Feast of Weeks. What are the lessons that God wanted us to glean from Ruth and Pentecost? The Jews reflect on the giving of the law to the people of Israel during the Shavuoth season, and Christians rehearse the giving of the Holy Spirit to the Jewish believers in Christ, the Messiah, on Pentecost.
So how does the book of Ruth fit into this picture?
As we celebrate God’s holy day we gain a deeper understanding of the path God has set before us, and the power he has given us to fulfill His purpose. Jeff Patton connects the significance of Shavu’ot in the Old Covenant with Pentecost in the new and shows us how Ruth’s dedication to God, as her God, led God to include her in “His people,” as the firstfruits of creation and co-heirs of Christ.
We are almost 2000 years from that eventful Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the disciples of Christ. In celebrating Pentecost today, we call to remembrance all the lessons of this Holy Day. Are our hearts open to God’s work in our lives so we are not worshiping in vain? Do we accept the divine authority of scripture, avoiding lawlessness and living obedient lives through the power of God’s Spirit.
Why Celebrate Pentecost?
The scriptures advise the people of God to bring out of their treasure things that are both old and new. Jeff Patton reveals the purpose for Pentecost as revealed in the Hebrew and Greek scriptures, making plain the meaning of the day for Christians. As we celebrate Pentecost we look back and reflect on events that transpired millennia ago, but we also look forward to a spiritual harvest that will take place in the not too distant future. Are we preparing to be firstfruits in God’s harvest?
Paul had decided to sail on past Ephesus, for he didn’t want to spend any more time in the province of Asia. He was hurrying to get to Jerusalem, if possible, in time for the Festival of Pentecost. Acts 20:16
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Access the Tree of Life
People are destroyed for lack of knowledge, but what kind of knowledge? In our time, when the tree of the knowledge of good and evil has filled the earth with the unintended consequences of human smarts and cunning, how can we gain access to the tree of life? The serpent in Eden having fallen from his status as an annointed guardian cherub at the throne of God through pride and violence, beguiled our first parents so that they cut themselves off from the tree of life. But this did not alter God’s plan, as he had made provision for just such an occurrence! From the very beginning the Creator, the Lord God, was prepared to sacrifice himself for his creation. He would heal the breech between God and man and restore the path to the tree of life for those who desired the knowledge of God. Where Adam brought death, Christ, the second Adam would bring renewal, restoration, and the access to the tree of life in God’s paradise for those who achieved the victory, living according to the knowledge of God
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Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil
It all began in Eden, that garden of happiness, delight, and the abundant life. Yet, free to choose between the two trees our first parents did not consider the consequences. In eating of the tree of knowledge in the hopes of being their own “gods” what was the cost? Did they gain the freedom they’d hoped for or did their pride and betrayal lead to unintended outcomes? God, from the beginning has been looking for loyalty, for his children to freely choose to love Him and the way of life that He knows will bring good fruits. Will we make the choice that will lead to life or will we be too entangled in the roots of relativism, ensnared by those who call good, evil, and evil, good, to even know we have a choice? Do we know the truth that brings liberty, or are we being deceived by the great liar who teaches a gospel of disobedience without consequences?
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Christianity’s Exclusive Truth
Are the Anglican archbishop and other church leaders correct in asserting that it is demonstrating unconditional love to refrain from telling people of other religious faiths about the gospel of Jesus Christ, so as to avoid offending their sensibilities? Is this the kind of love God wants from his disciples?
Some in the Christian community are promoting ecumenism among divergent religious traditions, but are there really many paths to God, and Christianity is just one of them? What does the bible say about this approach?
What makes the Christian gospel/message unique in the world of religion? Why does it matter what we believe about God and his Son? When we consider the testimony of the apostles and Christ what was there attitude towards preaching the good news of the gospel to the world?
Are we fulfilling our commission being invested in doing the work of God and following in the footsteps of our spiritual predecessors? Are we prepared to take up the command Christ gave to his disciples and fulfil His will in the world. Let the bible give you the vision of Christianity’s exclusive truth, and the hope that it brings to the world.
What is the Good News that Christ brought to give us hope? The Gospel Series
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God Provides Good Things
Are we trusting that God provides good things for those who love Him? Do we believe as Paul did when he wrote to the Romans that God works for the good in every circumstance of our lives? In a time of fiscal and physical uncertainties, when the wealthy privileged and protected in society trust in their riches and others on the opposite end of the financial ladder seem to suffer unduly due to the vagaries of economics, what is our security?
The stories of Abraham and Ruth give us an insight into God’s love and loyalty to his people. He is our shield and great reward, as Abraham avows. Even in difficult, life threatening circumstances God sees, He hears the prayers of His people, and He protects and delivers them. As Naomi and Ruth learned, God was the “restorer of life” who turned bitterness into peace and hope for the future.
Consider how David extols God’s goodness and care for us, His handiwork. David is confident in his assertion that God knows all the intimate details of his life; God provides good things for all those who trust Him. Be encouraged by the witness of the scriptures to God’s unfailing protection of those who are His children. He cares for you.
