"Picture Perfect"

"From the end of the earth will I cry unto Thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the Rock that is higher than I;" (Psalms 61:2) God surely has His own way of doing things, and even though we cannot figure out what it is, and why, He allows us the privilege of knowing that He loves us. Whether you realize it or not, we are beyond blessed; for the God of all creation knows our name, and He has let us know that He knows us! Yesterday I heard a message given by Pastor Jon; when he actually have recorded it, I do not really know, but the timing could not have been better. The message was about when Moses struck the Rock instead of speaking to it, as God had commanded him to do (Numbers 20:7-10). The Rock was an illustration of Jesus, the Word of God, who not only is the Word, but is the One through which all of our blessings flow. I find it rather interesting that the Rock did what God intended it to do, even though Moses smote it instead of just speaking to it; it still brought forth water, enough for everyone and all the animals. The way Jon was describing it, Jesus upon the cross was smote for our transgressions; and even though He was stricken, He still brought forth the love that He was sent to represent. Not only did His sacrifice provide for us the forgiveness of sin, but His manner of dealing with being smote provided us with an example of taking something bad and making into something good. Jesus took a really bad day, and He made something good come from it; besides His redeeming sacrifice, which is a given, He used the last moments of His life on that cross to show forth love, the kind of love that makes a difference in people's lives. Isn't that what we are meant to be about? They will know we are His children by our love! Not by the way that we judge, or by the way that we pray, or even by the way that we proclaim God's word; it is by the love of God that flows forth from our lives, even in the midst of being stricken! The first example that Jon gave was about the forgiveness, as Jesus proclaimed, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34). It is one of the most important things that we need to do, is to forgive those that might harm us or come against us; to pray for those that spitefully use us or try to harm us. It is the gateway to the love of God! In other words; that is where it starts, by praying for those that you should otherwise by angry at, and giving over to God; only then, when you can actually feel God's love flowing through your heart, is when you feel the compassion upon those that do not know the truth, or that have lost their way...
"So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world's brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish. Since God in His wisdom saw to it that the world would never know Him through human wisdom, He has use our foolish preaching to save those who believe. It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended, and the Gentiles say it's all nonsense. But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God's weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength." (1 Corinthians 1:20-25)