pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: restore


by Leave a comment

Breathing New Life

Reading: Ezekiel 37:1-11

Ezekiel 37:6 – “When I put breath in you, and you come to life, you will know that I am the Lord.”

Ezekiel witnessed Nebuchadnezzar’s siege and defeat of Jerusalem. He saw the leaders and then many others, himself included, taken away into Babylonian exile. Judah, like Israel to the north, was devastated. The temple was destroyed. Their relationship with God has been broken by their sin. Living in exile, hope was growing very thin and despair grew daily.

In chapters 33-36 Ezekiel begins to speak of redemption and restoration. He writes of changing their ways and of receiving a “new heart.” He leans into the image of God as the good shepherd who promises to rescue and protect the sheep. Speaking to the mountains of Israel, God through Ezekiel promises that the cities will be rebuilt and inhabited. Even with all of these hopeful words spoken, for those living in exile, the despair felt too great. Was all this even possible? Could God do it? Our passage today is God’s response to these questions.

In chapter 37 Ezekiel is taken in spirit to a valley full of very many dry bones. God asks the prophet if he thinks the bones can live. (Talk about impossible, right?) Ezekiel responds, “Lord God, only you know.” God says they can. After coming together, God adds sinew, flesh, and then skin. Then God says to the bodies, “When I put breath in you, and you come to life, you will know that I am the Lord.” Through Ezekiel’s words, new life enters the bones, “an extraordinarily large company.” They stand in the valley, as if waiting. God then tells Ezekiel (and therefore Israel), “Human One, these bones are the entire house of Israel.” God will restore and redeem not just some of God’s people. God will restore and redeem all of God’s people.

In our dry seasons of faith, in our times of sin and separation from God, in our experiences in the wilderness and in exile, God longs to redeem and restore us, to breath new life into our faith. O God, may it be so.

Prayer: Lord God, you will stop at nothing, you will do anything, you will try everything in order to bring us back into right relationship with you. This is true no matter how far we’ve run, no matter how deep we’ve fallen, no matter how long we’ve wandered. Thank you for your unconditional love and your unfailing grace. Amen.


by Leave a comment

A Good, Good Plan

Reading: Genesis 1:1, 27-28, 31

Genesis 1:31 – “God saw everything he had made; it was supremely good.”

As we consider and ponder this week’s theme of being restored and made new, we turn back to the beginning of it all. Because God is good, all that was created was good. As the creation process unfolds – water, light, land, plants, animals – God’s goodness can be seen in the order. Each next step dependant and built upon the step before. Turning to verse 27, God creates humanity. Humankind is created in the divine image of God. Connecting the dots, God’s goodness can be seen in humanity. We are born good. We have to be taught hate, prejudice, jealousy, pride…

God blesses the humans and then tasks them with caring for the creation. A good God charging good humans to care for a good creation – the plan as God designed creation. As the sixth ‘day’ of creation draws to a close, we read, “God saw everything he had made; it was supremely good.” In its original state, all of creation was simply good. One element provided for and cared for another, all in a good and healthy balance.

We turn here today because this was and is the vision for our world. One day this will again be the reality as God restored and makes all things new at the second coming of Christ. It is good to remember the plan of God, to know both the promise and the hope that we find in our good, good God. May this plan and vision ever guide our way.

Prayer: Lord God, your goodness is revealed to us in so many ways, but especially in creation. In the order and beauty and goodness of creation we see your plan for our lives. Lead and guide us to live into who and what you created us to be. Use us to begin the restoration process. Amen.


by Leave a comment

God’s Goodness and Faithfulness

Reading: Psalm 77:1-15

Psalm 77:6-7 – “I complain, and my spirit keeps searching: Will my Lord reject me forever? Will he never be pleased again?”

Today’s reading has two distinct portions. In verses 1-10 Asaph, the psalmist, pours our the complaint of a troubled heart. This is all lament. In verses 11-15 the focus shifts to a remembrance of God’s works in the past.

The Psalm begins with a crying out and searching for the Lord. The physical joins the spiritual as hands are outstretched, reaching out for God. Weariness caused by an inability to sleep adds to the lament. In verses 6-7 we read, “I complain, and my spirit keeps searching: Will my Lord reject me forever? Will he never be pleased again?” As he continues, Asaph wonders if God has forgotten the promises made to future generations.

We have all felt what Asaph is feeling. Some of us may be in the midst of trial and suffering right now. We can recall times when the illness just lingered in or when the oppression would not cease. We’ve longed for God to intervene and have wondered where God was as that season or situation drug on and on.

Beginning in verse 11 there is a shift. Asaph begins to recall who and what God has been in the past. He remembers wondrous works and demonstrations of God’s strength. He recalls when God redeemed Israel. Asaph is reminding himself of God’s might. This brings him hope. And he is also inviting God to act in these ways once again. He is reminding God of who God is. This too builds his faith.

In our times of hardship and trial – future or present – may we tune into who and what God is, inviting God to walk with us as we work our way back into God’s presence through prayer and the study of God’s word.

Prayer: Lord God, the times when we feel all alone will surely come. Those seasons are a part of everyone’s life at times. When we find ourselves there, Lord, send the whispers of the Holy Spirit straight to our hearts. Guide us to turn to scripture to remind ourselves of your goodness and faithfulness to all generations. Remind us too of the times you redeemed and restored us. Thank you, God. Amen.


by Leave a comment

A Spiritual Kingdom

Readings: Ezekiel 37:22-23 and Matthew 11:2-6

Ezekiel 37:23 – “They will be my people, and I will be their God.”

Photo credit: Jon Tyson

The prophet Ezekiel speaks God’s word to those living with him in exile in Babylon. Both Israel and Judah were conquered and many people were relocated to this foreign land. It was hard to maintain their faith in this pagan place. Living in oppression in captivity, these words would spark hope in a hopeless people. God speaks of bringing them home, reuniting them as one people under one king. In this new reality the people of God will no longer pursue idols or other things that lead them into rebellion against God. They will be cleansed. God declares, “They will be my people, and I will be their God.”

In Matthew 11:2 John the Baptist is in prison, arrested for speaking out against Herod’s immoral behavior. As news of Jesus’ work spreads, John sends his disciples to Jesus. They ask him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” Jesus responds with a report about what he’s been up to. The blind see and the crippled walk. The deaf hear and the dead are raised. The poor hear the good news. These words are from Isaiah 35 and 61. These words of God spoken through the prophet Isaiah speak of a day when God would restore Israel.

The religious leaders and most of the people of Jesus’ day longed for a mighty Messiah to free them from Rome’s oppression. They read the words from Ezekiel 37 with this longing in mind. Slight problem. They forgot the context of these verses. These words follow and are connected to the vision of the dry bones – God’s vision for restoring Israel’s dry and dead faith. These words speak of a Messiah who will restore Israel’s faith, not their political might. Digging deeper, we see that Jesus’ kingdom is a spiritual kingdom, not an earthly kingdom.

Prayer: Lord God, sometimes we too want you to be what we think we need. Because of our situation or circumstance we want you to be this or that. Help us, instead, to see with eyes focused on your kingdom, on your will and way. Guide us to know your heart, for there we find out who you truly are. Knowing you intimately and personally, you are our God and we are your people. From this place of connection, use us to be your good news for the world. Amen.


by Leave a comment

Hearts Turned

Reading: Mark 9:11-13

Mark 9:13 – “Elijah has come, but they did to him whatever they wanted.”

Following the transfiguration (when Peter, James, and John saw Jesus changed into a more divine form who chatted with Moses’ and Elijah’s spirits) the “inner three” ask Jesus about the second coming of Elijah. Here they are connecting with their Jewish upbringing. In Malachi 4 the prophet writes about Elijah coming back “before the great and terrifying day of the Lord.” The understood purpose of his return? To “turn the hearts of the children to their parents” and vice versa.

Experiencing this moment on the mountaintop, hearing talk about Messiah and death and resurrection, it is natural for the disciples to try and make some sense of all of this. They do the natural thing: they try to connect this new information to what they already knew. To help do this, they ask about the second coming of Elijah. The understanding was that Elijah would return to “restore all things.” Jesus pushed back a bit. If one held to the fullest way that this could happen, he asks, then why would he have to suffer and die? This is Jesus’ question in verse 11. Clearly there is some disconnect or misunderstanding.

Answering their question, Jesus says, “Elijah has come, but they did to him whatever they wanted.” Preaching and baptizing in the wilderness, John the Baptist did change hearts. Through his baptism of repentance the children of God’s hearts were turned back to God’s heart and vice versa. John’s work of restoring all things was cut short, though, like many of the prophets who came before him. The pagan powers arrested and beheaded John. Not all Jewish hearts turned to God either. Many rejected John’s invitation and Jesus’ as well, “just as it is written.” In spite of humanity’s selfish and stubborn hearts, God’s plan will continue to unfold as Jesus walks the path to Jerusalem and to the cross.

Prayer: Lord God, we, like the people of Jesus’ day, know the scriptures, can see the signs unfolding, and still choose not to believe. We can cling to our selfish and evil ways, refusing to confess and repent. When our eyes are mostly closed and our hearts are pretty hard, once again empower your indwelling prophet, the Holy Spirit, to open our eyes, to soften our hearts. Bend us to your will and way. Amen.


by Leave a comment

Redeem, Restore, Rescue

Readings: Psalm 137:1-3 and 8, Zechariah 9:9

Zechariah 9:9 – “Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion. Sing aloud, Daughter Jerusalem. Look, your king will come to you. He is righteous and victorious. He is humble and riding on an ass.”

The people of God had already experienced much trauma leading up to their exile in Babylon. The nation had split into Israel and Judah. Both parts experienced good and bad kings – much more of the latter. Israel, and later Judah were conquered and hauled into exile. It is in this foreign land, living under a pagan oppressor, that Israel’s longing for a Messiah really begins to take shape.

Psalm 137 is a song of lament. In the first few verses the writer expresses the people’s collective sadness. Their captors are forcing them to sing songs of joy. These songs are intended to be sung as they ascend to the temple, preparing themselves to worship God. They were forced to sing these songs out of place, to a God whose home – the temple – was destroyed. It is no wonder that they long for destroyer Babylon to be paid back by the one who will come to redeem and restore Israel.

This longing for a rescuer, for a Messiah, is expressed in Zechariah 9:9. These words will be brought to life by a king riding into Jerusalem on a donkey’s colt. Psalms will be waving and shouts of “Hosanna!” will fill the air. It’s just the Romans who now oppress, who now need overthrown. This is the king that Israel still longs for. It is just not the kind of king that Jesus will prove himself to be. His rescue, redemption, and restoration is not military but personal and spiritual.

Prayer: Lord God, for many the longing for a Messiah remains very real. Today people long to be redeemed and rescued – from an abusive relationship, from addiction, from financial hardship, from illness, from oppression, from injustice… These real struggles weigh upon their hearts, upon our hearts. Lord Jesus, please ride into our hearts, enter through those gates, bringing a peace to the battles, a calm to the chaos, a strength to the weakness, a wholeness to the brokenness. Rescue, redeem, and restore. Amen.


by Leave a comment

Communion = Community

Reading: 1st Corinthians 11:23-32

1st Corinthians 11:28 – “Each individual should test himself or herself, and eat from the bread and drink from the cup in that way.”

Photo credit: Geda Zyvatkauskaite

We seek to “stay in love with God” through various means of grace. One of these is Holy Communion. This sacrament first reminds us of Christ’s loving sacrifice on our behalf. The giving of his innocent blood in place of ours made atonement for our sins, paying the price for forgiveness. We approach this gift with a deep sense of awe and reverence.

Sometimes we do something for a while and it becomes just going through the motions. Perhaps you’ve felt that before with something like the Lord’s Prayer. For the church in Corinth, the Lord’s Supper had become one of those things. It was now causing more harm than good. It was creating division in the church. At this point it was more like what we’d call a “love feast” than what we recognize as a communion with its liturgy and formality. In Corinth, it had become a “private meal” with the rich getting drunk and stuffed while the poor were left hungry and thirsty. The church has forgotten that love, sacrifice, service, and community were at the heart of the Lord’s Supper.

Paul addresses this situation by reminding the church that the Lord’s Supper is centered on and celebrates the new covenant made by Jesus Christ. He also reminds them, though, that this communal celebration begins with individual preparation: “Each individual should test himself or herself, and eat from the bread and drink from the cup in that way.” Each person must come before God, humbling confessing and repenting of their sins. This necessary step prepares each to be made “new” again as the blood of the Lamb washes away their sin. To not take this step is to hide or hold onto one’s sin. This brings judgment and condemnation instead of forgiveness and grace.

For each person to come before God, to confess and repent, it levels the playing field. It places us all equally before the table of grace, all sinners redeemed by his blood. In this way, community is restored. It brought one body to the one bread, one blood. That was Paul’s goal. It should be our goal. May it be so.

Prayer: Lord God, draw us to our knees, to the place of confessing and repenting of our sins. Open up our hands and hearts to release all that separates us from you and from one another. As we come clean, thank you for making us clean. Thank you for your great love that washes away our sins and failures. Thank you for your redeeming love. Amen.


by Leave a comment

God’s Presence, Goodness, and Love

Reading: Psalm 19

Psalm 19:8 – “The Lord’s regulations are right, gladdening the heart. The Lord’s commands are pure, giving light to the eyes.”

Psalm 19 celebrates God’s presence with us. David first recognizes God in the created world. The Psalm begins, “Heaven is declaring God’s glory.” This is evident in God’s “handiwork.” To take in the vastness of the stars, to feel that limitless power, is to sense and feel God. Yet God’s handiwork is also small and intricate, like a spider web or like a tiny seed that yields a beautiful flower. David also recognizes God in the passing of time. One day to one night, over and over again, reveals God’s good plans for our world. David acknowledges that the sun, moon, and stars do not literally speak, yet the presence of God in them reaches out “to the ends of the earth.”

Starting in verse 7 David turns to God’s “instruction.” He is speaking of the Torah, the collection of laws and commands that governed his life. Following these, David gains wisdom. They gladden his heart and give light to his eyes. The Law is true, worth more than gold, “sweeter than honey.” David finds great reward in keeping God’s will and way. This too is evidence that there is a God, one who ordered not only creation, but life itself. As a follower of Jesus, we also find joy in keeping God’s will and way. We find that doing so, we have a relationship with our God. Within this relationship we experience peace and hope, assurance and contentment, comfort and guidance. Loving God and loving neighbor yields a life centered outside of self, a life that truly reflects God’s goodness and love.

In the closing verses, David shares another way that he experiences God. Fallible and sinful as we are, God is overflowing in forgiveness, redemption, and restoration. This is because God created us to be in relationship – with God and with one another. Again and again God cleansed and restored David to right relationship. Our rock and redeemer will do the same for you and for me. Thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for your presence in the world – yes, in the heavens but also in the tides, in the spring growth, in the gentle snowfall. Thank you for pursuing us, for seeking us out, for desiring to be in relationship with us, and for being willing to do whatever it takes to keep us there, loving us unconditionally. This day may we honor you by reflecting your love and goodness into the world. Amen.


by Leave a comment

Sincere Love

Reading: 1st Peter 3-5

1st Peter 4:7-8 – “Be self-controlled and clearheaded so you can pray. Above all, show sincere love to each other, because love brings about the forgiveness of many sins.”

1st Peter 3-5 is mostly about the ways to conduct ourselves as followers of Jesus Christ. In chapter 3 Peter writes about having an inner beauty that can win over non-believers and also about honoring those who are weaker. He encourages all believers to be of one mind (Christ’s), to be compassionate, and to be modest. When someone asks about our hope, be ready to speak with “respectful humility.”

Peter also addresses suffering. He begins with a reminder that Jesus Christ “suffered on account of sins, once for all.” This was so a believer can enter into the presence of God. Peter encourages us to “arm yourself with his way of thinking.” He invites us to rejoice when we share in Christ’s suffering because then one day we will rejoice when his glory is revealed. If we suffer in Christ’s name, Peter declares we are blessed because “the Spirit of God rests on you.”

Christian behavior receives much attention in these chapters. Don’t pay back evil or insults with evil or insults – give blessings. Don’t waste time doing what unbelievers do. Instead, “Be self-controlled and clearheaded so you can pray. Above all, show sincere love to each other, because love brings about the forgiveness of many sins.” Open your homes and serve one another using the gifts God has given. Humble yourselves. Throw your anxiety on God. (He cares about you.) Keep alert – the devil is on the prowl. Resist and stand firm in the faith, knowing that others are also enduring suffering. And in the end, “the God of all grace will himself restore, empower, strengthen, and establish you.” Thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, build up in each of us obedience, compassion, and a humble servant’s heart. Walk with us, bringing strength and encouragement during the trials and suffering. In those moments, remind us of the way of Christ, he who suffered for each and every one of us. Daily help us to model a genuine faith, standing firm in your love and grace. Thank you, Lord. Amen.


by Leave a comment

Rescued, Cleansed, Eager

Reading: Titus 1-3

Titus 2:14 – “He gave himself for us in order to rescue us from every kind of lawless behavior, and cleanse a special people for himself who are eager to do good actions.”

Paul’s letter to Titus is very similar to his letters to Timothy, another young, promising pastor and friend. Titus is instructed on how to establish a faith community, on how to counter false teachings, and on how to be a good leader. Paul reminds Titus of his original task: to organize things and to appoint elders in each city. Paul lists the qualifications for elders. They must be faithful and faultless. They must offer sound teaching and set a great example for others.

Paul then turns to correcting the “rebellious loudmouths,” some of whom are Jewish believers. He instructs Titus to “silence” them by correcting them firmly. Their minds are corrupt and they do things that deny God. Likely coming back to these men, Paul tells Titus to correct twice and then to disassociate from them.

Attention is then turned to the community of faith. These relationships and rules are based on what was assumed in Roman households. Older men and women are to be mature and faithful. Paul uses words like sober, dignified, reverent, and patient to describe their character. The older women are to teach the younger women to be sensible and morally pure and to work at home, being kind and submissive to their husbands. Paul’s words about slaves and masters also crosses a line for today’s readers.

Paul closes with the grace of God that came to “rescue” believers from all kinds of “lawless behaviors.” Christ saves the faithful because of his mercy, not because of anything they can do. Made righteous by grace, “cleansed as a special people,” believers inherit hope for eternal life. Paul instructs Titus, “insist on these things” because then the faithful will “give careful attention to doing good.” Following sound teaching, may we too be people who seek to do good.

Prayer: Lord God, help us to be people who are faithful and faultless. Well, as much as we can be. Build up in us the character laid out by Paul. Redeem and restore us by your grace when we fall short and when we fail. Lead us to be people eager to be and do good. Amen.