Tag: God

Posted in love

God is love. Love is God.

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Jamez Picard on Unsplash

In church yesterday, the pastor tackled “God is love” (1 John 4:16). It’s part of a series about the nature of God.

Afterwards, I thought about how I would approach that divine attribute. We use adjectives to describe God. God is powerful. Gracious. Just. Merciful. All-knowing. Unchanging. Eternal.

But we don’t use the word love as an adjective. It’s a feeling. I “love” something or someone. Or it’s accompanied by an action. Christ loved us and gave him for us. Or it’s a noun. God abounds in steadfast love.

So this is very different. At first I thought, “I don’t know how I would come at this.”

But then I thought, “What if I turned it around?” What if I start with “Love is God”? Like Paul’s description of love. “Love is patient. Love is kind…” (1 Corinthians 13:5-8). No one truly loves like that. No one but God.

So we learn what love is by observing God. And then we know God because we have seen his unconditional, sacrificial, and unending love.

Love is not just an attribute of God. It surrounds and permeates every other attribute. When God justly judges sin, it’s because of his love for us. He doesn’t want it to destroy us. God reveals his power because of his great love for us. We need a God who can do more than we ask or imagine. An unchanging God reveals his unchanging love for us. No matter what we do or don’t do, he doesn’t change and his love doesn’t change. God’s knowledge is complete. He knows everything about me. And yet he still loves me.

So once you grasp what love really is, you get a glimpse of God. And then you realize he is the essence of love. He is love.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

On fire

Posted on by William Douthwaite

“On the day that the tabernacle was set up, the cloud covered the tabernacle, the tent of the testimony. And at evening it was over the tabernacle like the appearance of fire until morning “(Numbers 9:15).

I love the image of the cloud that covered the tabernacle during Israel’s wilderness wanderings. I never thought of the fire that went along with it.

Imagine someone yelling, “The tabernacle’s on fire!” It could happen. Lamps and incense are constantly burning inside. Priests set fire to offerings and sacrifices day and night. Conditions are ripe for fire.

But this is different. Moses saw a bush on fire that wasn’t consumed. The people camped at the base of a mountain that looked like it was on fire. Now it’s the very expensive and painstakingly constructed tabernacle. God in the midst of his people is like fire. Sometimes it consumes. Sometimes it doesn’t.

The Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego encountered God in a fiery furnace. They were not consumed. Elijah and Elisha saw the Lord’s horses and chariots of fire. Elijah was taken away, not consumed. When two disciples had supper with Jesus after the resurrection, their hearts burned within them, but they were not consumed.

But Nadab and Abihu were consumed when they set unauthorized incense on fire. Fire from heaven consumed Elijah’s sacrifice on Mount Carmel, along with the stones and water surrounding the altar. The heat of the fire consumed the servants who three the three men into the furnace. God’s fire consumed Job’s sheep and servants. “In the fire of his jealousy, all the earth shall be consumed” (Zephaniah 1:18).

Jesus was consumed with zeal for his Father’s house. “Our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:29). So we don’t mess around with him. Yet his fire fills and purifies us, temples of his Spirit.

Just like the tabernacle.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

The Significance of Incense in Worship

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Anup Ghag on Unsplash

“Make an altar of acacia wood for burning incense” (Exodus 30:1).

“Aaron must burn fragrant incense on the altar every morning when he tends the lamps. He must burn incense again when he lights the lamps at twilight so incense will burn regularly before the Lord for the generations to come. (Exodus 30:7,8)

Why was the altar of incense and the daily burning of incense such an important part of tabernacle, and later, temple life?

My first experience with incense was at my first pastoral conference in Ashaway, Rhode Island. We gathered for evening prayer in a retreat center chapel. The chaplain for the conference leaned towards high church traditions, and had filled the chapel with thick clouds of incense. It was dense, fragrant, stifling, and intense. That night’s worship was unlike anything I had ever experienced.

Many years later, I was asked to preach at the anniversary of a colleague’s ordination. He also leaned towards high church traditions, and would walk through his church sanctuary leaving a lingering aroma of incense an hour before Sunday worship.

My only other encounter with incense was at the funeral of a good friend’s mother. She was Roman Catholic, and the priest prepared to walk around the casket with incense. To his dismay, there was nothing to light the incense. I watched with interest and amusement as various people did their best to make it happen.

The best explanation of incense may be from a psalm:

“May my prayer be set before you like incense” (Psalm 141:2).

As the smoke of incense rose upward, worshipers would follow the smoke’s upward ascent. Their attention would be focused upward towards the one who is worthy of all honor and praise.

How much of worship is about us? Or me? Plenty. I could use a good reminder that it’s about him, the one, God. He’s the only one worthy of praise.

How could I forget that? When I’m distracted, self-absorbed, and indulgent, the smoke of incense rising up might remind me that it’s about him.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Let’s eat

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Sweetyoga Justine on Unsplash

“From the finest wheat flour make round loaves without yeast, thick loaves without yeast and with olive oil mixed in, and thin loaves without yeast and brushed with olive oil. Put them in a basket and present them along with the bull and the two rams” (Exodus 29:2-3).

This is an excerpt from the instructions for ordaining Aaron and his sons as priests. Along with a sacrificed bull and rams, the ceremony required a few loaves of bread. Sometimes I glide over these details, but this time I realized that this is about a special meal with God. It’s a fellowship meal, just like one we would have for an ordination or installation of a pastor. A lot of negotiations, workshops, conventions, training sessions, anniversaries, and celebrations all include sitting down to eat. This is just like sitting down to eat with the Lord.

As I thought more about it, I realized that the bible begins and ends with food.

“You are free to eat from any tree in the garden” (Genesis 2:16).

“Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” (Revelation 19:9)

There are so many significant meals in the bible.

  • Abram hosts the Lord and two angels in Genesis 18.
  • Joseph ate a meal with his brothers once they were reunited in Egypt.
  • The Lord fed his people with manna and quail in the wilderness.
  • Jesus fed the 5,000 after his teaching, hosted the Passover meal, ate with two disciples on the road to Emmaus and grilled fish on the beach with the disciples after his resurrection.
  • The father hosted a lavish banquet when his prodigal son returned home.

I can’t prove it, but I’ll bet whenever something significant happens in the bible, there’s food involved in some way.

Now that’s good news. I like to cook, bake, and eat. I guess I’m just a kingdom kind of guy!

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

On eagles’ wings

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Rachel McDermott on Unsplash

This time through the bible I paused at Exodus 19:4.

‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.

I wondered, “Where did the metaphor of ‘eagles’ wings’ come from?” What did that mean to the nation of Israel? And what does it mean for us?

Another “eagle wing” reference is found in Isaiah 40:31.

Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

The imagery is also expressed in Deuteronomy 32:10-11.

In a desert land he found him,
    in a barren and howling waste.
He shielded him and cared for him;
    he guarded him as the apple of his eye,
like an eagle that stirs up its nest
    and hovers over its young,
that spreads its wings to catch them
    and carries them aloft.

From what I’ve read, the idea of eagles’ wings is an image of secure transport, lifting someone above obstacles and dangers. God displayed his power in various plagues to secure Israel’s deliverance from Egypt. As eagles seem to effortlessly ride updrafts, barely moving their wings, so God carries us through life’s challenges and difficulties. He’s our safety net, as an eagle might catch its young learning to fly.

A few weeks ago, I saw an eagle flying overhead with a fish in its talons. What a great image and reminder that we have a God who picks us up and carries us far above everything that saps our joy to abundant life!

Posted in bible

Finding Worth in God: Rescued and Redeemed

Posted on by William Douthwaite
image from bible.art

Then Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain and said, “This is what you are to say to the descendants of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.” (Exodus 19:3-6)

As Moses had encountered God at a burning bush, the nation would now encounter God at the base of a fiery mountain. They were more than a group of people. They were rescued people, brought here to be with God. They were covenant people, in a relationship with God. They were valuable to him, his “treasured possession.” They would function as priests, representing God in the world. They would also be holy, that is, set apart, redeemed, and forgiven.

And you know what’s amazing? They hadn’t done a thing. It was all God. It turns out that if you know him, then you know a whole lot about yourself, too.

That’s important. We seek significance, approval, and appreciation. We compare ourselves with others to feel better about ourselves. We skillfully conceal our shortcomings and failures.

But none of that matters to God. Rather, you do. Rescued by his own son, whose blood seals the covenant, you are valuable enough to die for, are declared righteous through faith, and are his ambassador to the world. He has granted us all those things you and I seek.

That means you can bring to the world all those things you seek. You can show appreciation. You can be grateful. You can speak words that help others feel better about themselves. You can be honest and open, both apologizing and showing grace.

Knowing who I am begins with knowing God. He’s revealed so much about himself to me, and that changes everything.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

The Lord is my strength

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

After safely crossing the Red Sea and watching God decimate the Egyptian chariots and troops, Moses and the Israelites sang, “The Lord is my strength” (Exodus 15:2).

Even before the fall into sin, people were not all-powerful. Only God is omnipotent. We were designed to be connected to his strength. “He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak” (Isaiah 40:29).

Having said that, most of us work on being strong, capable, and independent. I’ve done this my whole life. So have you. With great pride we learn to feed and get dressed by ourselves. We walk, run, and drive anywhere we want to go. If we work at it, we can become stronger and smarter.

There’s nothing wrong with any of that. And there’s nothing wrong with asking God for strength.

But that’s not just what God does. It’s who he is. He is our strength. The strength he gives is meant to bring us closer to him, not enable us to live apart from him.

When Moses asked God, “What’s your name?” God replied, “I am.” He is God. There is no other. Yes, God loves. But he’s more than that. He is love. It’s a dangerous world. But he is a refuge. He is creator, father, provider, light, and life. Along with a whole lot of other things.

Much of daily renewing my mind is remembering who God is. With that in place, I remember who I am. I’m his child, I’m loved, I’m alive, and I’m strong.

Because he is my strength.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Will this be on the test?

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Nguyen Dang Hoang Nhu on Unsplash

Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days.” (Exodus 16:4-5)

A teacher can’t test on everything that’s in the book. No test will cover everything in the lecture. With that truth in mind, students ask, “Will this be on the test?”

I’ve watched classmates attempt to write down everything spoken in a lecture. I’ve seen highlighter stain every line of a textbook page. How is that helpful? Is everything important? Will everything be on the test?

God tests his people. Will they trust him? Will they follow his instructions? God’s faithful provision is on the test. Did you write that blessing down? Did you highlight that abundance?

Will that moment be on the test?

Whenever you feel like grumbling, it’s a test. Whenever you want to have a heart-to-heart with God, it’s a test. When you desire a come-to-Jesus moment with Jesus, it’s a test.

Is he faithful? Do you trust him? Can you lean on him? Is he dependable?

Those are the test questions. It’s not about what you know about God. It’s not about your performance. It’s not about your potential.

It’s just one question.

Do you trust him?

Posted in worship

How was church today?

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by City Church CA on Unsplash

“How was church today?”

I’ve asked that question. Others have asked me that question. Just as we review a product or business, we evaluate worship experiences.

  • “I enjoyed the music.”
  • “It was too hot/too cold in the sanctuary.”
  • “The sermon was long.”
  • “Why so many announcements? They’re printed right here.”
  • “I love those banners.”
  • “I love/hate it when people bring babies to church.”
  • “Not many/lots of people attended today.”

News alert: God isn’t trolling for a five-star review. His feelings are not hurt if you weren’t inspired, challenged, or fed during the worship service. He will be the same tomorrow as he was yesterday whether you praised or criticized Sunday morning experience.

All God wanted was to be with you. If you were there, it was a five-star moment for him. If you heard his life-giving word, it was a win. If you believed the good news, it was a good day.

If I wouldn’t give Sunday morning worship five-stars, who needs to improve? The preacher? The musicians? The custodians? Late arrivers? Ushers?

Or is it me? What’s going on with me that made worship seem blah, so-so, and forgettable? Why was I distracted, unenthusiastic, non-responsive, preoccupied, comatose, uninterested, and critical?

Instead of reviewing worship after the fact, perhaps I should ask myself a few questions in advance.

  • Do I believe God will speak to me today? Am I ready and prepared to listen?
  • Will I be amazed by God’s grace today? Why would I ever take that for granted?
  • What will I learn about God today? What new thing will he reveal to me?

Someone suggested praying these petitions before any private or collective encounter with God:

  • Give me knowledge, wisdom, and understanding.
  • Teach me something new about you.
  • Direct my steps according to your word.

Maybe worship will be convicting, eye-opening, and instructive. Maybe it will reinforce truths you’ve always known. Maybe it will bring you to tears. Or put a smile on your face.