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My father. He’s a hard man. We didn’t part on the best terms. I said some things I shouldn’t have said; awful words thrown at him like poison darts. I intended to hurt him.
“What does this Jesus know,” I grumbled to myself. “My father would never take me back. He would never forgive me.”
I rolled over on my mat and tried to forget standing in the crowd listening to this Jesus teach with stories. The afternoon was hot and I laid down to rest a bit to get out of the heat. People in my village told me I should at least go and listen to him. They were right. I had never heard anyone talk like that.
I tried to clear my mind, but his words replayed in my head:“I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”
Repent. How could that even happen to a serial sinner like me? The Pharisees told me I was too far gone, that there were not enough sacrifices to cover my sin. Could my father really care that much about a nobody like me, the lost sheep, the black sheep of the family
How could he be so joyous over a totally lost person like me repenting from sin? I get it, I mean in the sense that Jesus talked about in that story about the lost coin. If I found that coin I lost last month I’d be filled with joy. But I hardly think I have that much value, certainly not the value of a silver coin. I don’t think my father would waste time searching for me, someone with such little value.
I rolled on my back and stared at the ceiling. All I could think about was how I squandered so much of my life, my time and my resources on worthless things. I felt like that son in the story Jesus told, the son who took all his father’s inheritance and spent it on wild living. I too would willingly be a slave in my father’s house just to share in his abundance, just to have a small portion of his wealth.
Unable to sleep, I left my mat and walked to the front door. The rotted wood door creaked when I opened it and flakes of plaster fell from the wall. I stepped outside then sat on the front step and watched the people milling about the neighborhood. I looked down the street and noticed the shadows of people moving on the walls of the buildings. A dusty haze lingered, stirred up from the movement of people and animals. I imagined what it would be like to see my father on the street spot me sitting here, then run arms open to hug me. No one was ever that excited to see me. Could it be possible?
#WednesdayWalk Through the Bible — an exploration of what unknown people might have seen or felt when they witnessed the events in the Bible. This post is from the perspective of a person who heard Jesus tell the parables in Luke 15.
© 2019 CGThelen
I have been reading through the book of Ezekiel. It always amazes how when God sends a prophet to warn the Israelites of coming judgement for their disobedience, they do not heed the Word of the Lord and mock the prophets. My focus on these books of prophesy has usually been on the evil people who have abandoned God’s law for vile acts. But Ezekiel 9:4 caught my attention as I read: “…Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it (NIV).”
Throughout the history of humanity, there has been no shortage of “detestable things that are done.”The same is true today. But I wonder how many of us followers of Jesus “grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done” in the world today. Do we have a heart for God that runs so deep in our soul that we mourn for those who deny God, who reject Jesus. I confess that I often get annoyed or even angry at people who ridicule my faith in Christ or publicly mock God.
To grieve and lament is to feel sorrow, to mourn the impending loss of these souls. It is not just about being saved, about being marked as righteous by God, but also about a desire to bring that salvation to those who are facing destruction. As believers in Christ Jesus, God has anointed us, just as he anointed Ezekiel, to bring the Word of the Lord to the lost. He has placed specific people in our life who need to hear the gospel message. May our heart reflect the love of God; may our prayers be filled with lament and grief for those who reject God as well as a deep desire for them to know the joy of the Lord.
© 2019 CGThelen
#ThrowbackThursday — This post originally published December 6, 2016.
Sometimes no matter how much I plead with God to transform the life of a person with Christ, it seems nothing changes. The struggles remain and I feel helpless to show the way to Christ. I feel helpless to bring about any change and it feels like my prayers fall on deaf ears.
At times like this I am caught in the tension between God’s sovereignty and the free will of people to reject or embrace Christ. Romans 9:18 tells us, “Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden (NIV).” Within this tension I am forced to trust God’s sovereignty; forced to deepen my pursuit of Christ; forced to let the tension hold me close to God.
I must trust that God has a purpose for delineating between mercy and wrath and that only he is qualified to judge between the two. I must admit I am severely unqualified to judge why some graciously receive Christ and others reject him.
The only answer to this tension is to continue to liberally apply the Word of God, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, to all people who God places in our life. We must continue to trust God to handle the response people give to the message of salvation.
© 2016 CGThelen
Editor’s note: This post originally published March 31, 2018.
After Jesus died on the cross and was buried, before Jesus rose from the dead, the disciples were hiding out of fear they might meet the same fate. All they knew was that Jesus was gone. They had yet to experience his resurrection. This was a period of fear and doubt, the time between Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
To live without salvation through Christ is to be caught between Good Friday and Easter morning. It is an eternal darkness without the hope offered by the resurrection of Christ. It is a place of constant night with only the fading light of a man-made lamp to illuminate the way. It is a state of hopelessness without any chance of salvation from sin. Yet because of God’s love for us we do not have to remain trapped between Good Friday and Easter.
Salvation is ours through faith in Christ. This Easter embrace the hope of the resurrection. Leave behind doubt and disbelief and run with Peter to see the strips of linen lying in the empty tomb (Luke 24:12). Share the joy of the women who saw the risen Lord and ran to tell the disciples (Matt. 28:8). 1 Peter 1:8-9 tells us, “Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls (NIV).”
My prayer is that the dawn of this Easter morning will dissipate the darkness of night with the radiant light of the risen Lord. May we express the joy of our salvation with the proclamation, “He has risen!”
© 2018 CGThelen
I stepped into the attic of our house and was amazed at how much stuff had accumulated in this small space. As I went through boxes and crates filled with things from my past, I kept telling myself, “It’s time to get rid of some of these things.” Suddenly I was struck by the discovery of an old Bible buried deep inside one box. It was a reminder to me of how clutter can sometimes conceal God’s word in our life.
James 1:21 encourages us to “get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your soul (NLT).” Like that attic full of stuff, we can fill our lives with things that are not good for us. That in turn can hinder our ability to accept God’s word inside of us and our ability to live our lives according to God’s will.
It’s an imagery that Paul presents in 2 Timothy 2:20-21 where he describes the different utensils and their use in a household. “If you keep yourself pure, you will be a special utensil for honorable use. Your life will be clean, and you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work.”
If that Bible buried in a box had been the only thing in the attic, it would have been easy to find God’s word and his purposes for my life. It’s a vivid reminder to remove the clutter from our life and to focus on God.
#ThrowbackThursday — This post originally published July 8, 2011.
© 2011 CGThelen
#ThrowbackThursday — This post originally published May 22, 2010.
In today’s world, there’s no shortage of words. A recent article in Wired cites a University of California at San Diego study that reports Americans consume about 100,500 written words each day. Then there are the thousands of words we hear each day. Add to that the thousands of words we speak on a daily basis and it quickly becomes apparent that we are surrounded by a hurricane of information.
So what exactly are we saying to each other with all those words? What are you saying? Is the Gospel of Jesus Christ getting through or is it getting lost in the massive number of conversations swirling around us? If you are not careful, you’ll get caught up in trivial
Does Jesus dominate your daily conversation?debates that leave Jesus in the background. Paul cautioned Timothy about getting caught up in worldly discussions. “Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels.” (2 Timothy 2:23)
Jesus cautioned his disciples in Mark 13:5 “Watch out so no one deceives you.” He goes on to warn them of many who will come to try to deceive with their words. When we focus on the Word of God each day – immersed in prayer and conversation with Him — we are filled with words that endure and stand up to the test of time. “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.” (Mark 13:31 NIV).
Just as important as what you are saying, consider the words you are consuming each day. Are they nourishing your soul or are they distracting you from Christ? ”For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world.” (1 John 2:16)
When we fill our lives with the Gospel, we anchor our lives in God’s wisdom. That makes it easier to displace the trivial words of this world with the enduring Words of God.
© 2010 CGThelen
