My Move

"'...The Lord is not restrained to save by many or by few.'"
-1Sam.14:6

Jonathan, speaking to the young man who was carrying his armor, as they were about to approach a large Philistine camp, has a pretty intense faith in God's power to deliver. It's such a powerful reminder of what God is capable of. When He presses us to move forward in any direction, we must go with the faith Jonathan voices here. It doesn't matter how far we must must go, or the task in front of us, God himself will do what He wants done. So simple, yet incredibly motivating and faith-strengthening. Do yourself a favor; meditate on the story in 1 Sam. 14:1-15 keeping this particular statement in mind.

Fixin' my frisson.

Frisson in grace is not only good, but expected of all Christians who even partially understand the grandeur of God's grace. Mine, however, seem to be backwards. Recently my frissons have come in the relatively small, peripheral graces, but have woefully waned in the monumental, life saving, eternally significant graces.
I hate flying. I'd rather take a few bullets to the chest, or have my face deep fried. Today, I had to fly from Redding in northern California down to Ontario. It was only an hour flight, but I was still dreading it. Once our wheels hit the ground in Ontario, I breathed a deep sigh of relief and immediately started thanking God for the grace of continued physical life, and had a moment of great frisson. Obviously, this is a good thing.
Since then, my mind has been mulling over the greater graces I've been given. I definitely have my moments of frisson when my mind's eye has been focused on our Redeemer's propitiating work, but they are too few and far between for my comfort. True, I may never be satisfied with my emotional reactions to the redemptive work of Christ on this side of heaven, but I think there is still a massive amount of room for improvement. For, all things considered, what is a safe landing compared to eternal bliss? My frissons should reflect the difference.


P.s. I learned a new word today. Can you guess what it is?

I can no longueur see

"...His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him..."
-2 Peter1:3 NASB

One of the things my mental skirmishes with the Dispensational vs. Covenental Theology debate has really exemplified is this very truth.
When you start to understand the progressive nature of God's revelation, and the proper hermeneutics of such a revelation, the continuities and discontinuities that appear through-out are both fascinating and enlightening. They reveal so much about our Lord and Creator, and His dealings with man, and purposes in history, that when the Spirit lays these things upon our hearts and minds, we find ourselves more than adequately prepared to live life in godliness.

So much of Scripture seemed foreign and useless to me in the past. However, the more I apply my mind to the acquisition of "the true knowledge of Him," I find that there is much to be learned about life and godliness outside of purely prescriptive passages. I get how the law and moral teachings fit me for life and godliness, but those alone do not constitute the "true knowledge of Him" through which the "everything" is granted. Christian, the entire word is extremely profitable for you, in the living out of a satisfying, and God-pleasing life this side of heaven.

Deep, complicated, thought provoking theology that requires assiduous study should be the object of even the simplest of Christian minds. This truth is made clear by two simple maxims. First, in Scripture God is presented as incomprehensibly massive and transcendent, and secondly, as stated in our Scripture above, "...His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him."