Matthew 5:17-18
“Don’t suppose for a minute that I
have come to demolish the Scriptures—either God’s Law or the Prophets.
I’m not here to demolish but to complete. I am going to put it all
together, pull it all together in a vast panorama. God’s Law is more
real and lasting than the stars in the sky and the ground at your feet.
Long after stars burn out and earth wears out, God’s Law will be alive
and working.
Scripture
quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002
by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs,
CO. All rights reserved.
Yesterday, I attended the
funeral of a man named Jerry - one of my parents’ lifelong friends. His
children have been MY friends since childhood, and Jerry was even a
pallbearer at my dad’s funeral nearly 16 years ago. During the service,
the pastor read from Ecclesiastes 3, where King Solomon talks about
“seasons” of life – and a purpose for each one. He made the comment that
sometimes things happen in life that seem perfectly horrible…terrible,
painful, gut-wrenching things occur that we cannot fully understand.
But we see later that they were a “set-up” of sorts to prepare us to
handle something else. Had we not experienced the first situation, we
would not have been adequately equipped to handle what happened next –
or we might have missed out on understanding the joy and blessings of
the latter event.
I have found this to be so true in my own
life. And if a specific experience did not help me directly…I was able
to use it to help someone else at a later point. As I read this
scripture passage and Jesus’ claim that He did not come to negate what
God had already said and done – but rather to enhance it – I thought of
the words from yesterday’s service. If we don’t understand the rituals
and “living sacrifices” of the Old Testament…we cannot fully appreciate
how Jesus’ death on the cross settled that for us – once and for all.
If we don’t grasp how God guided and cared for those who loved Him in
the time before Jesus came to earth, we cannot begin to comprehend
Jesus’ love and care for people He had never even met…like you and me!
There
is something profound that happens in the life of a Christian when
he/she begins to realize how completely God orchestrates everything…from
the first day of our lives to the last – and beyond. When we start to
really understand how He “pulls it all together” – how today’s
challenges and heartaches prepare us for tomorrow’s successes and joys –
we begin to experience the fullness of God in a new way. His constant
presence becomes more real to us…and we are far more cognizant of how
truly alive Jesus is…here…now…today…and always!
Yesterday, I sat
between my mother and a dear “other mother figure”…and I considered the
pastor’s words about our life experiences and “seasons”. I thought of
Jerry and these ladies…and other dear souls who were in attendance…and I
was reminded of how this has “played out” in their lives over and
again. The same God who has guided and tended to these dear people of
faith is doing these things in your life and mine. Do you recognize His
work? Do you feel His presence? Don’t you want to?
Spend
some time today talking to God about this. Think over the events of
your life and see if you don’t recognize some distinct circumstances
where He has knit together the bigger picture for a blessed outcome.
Recognize God’s constant presence in your heart and mind…and trust Him
to orchestrate each “season” perfectly.
©2015 Debbie Robus
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