A merciful and faithful High Priest is our Savior.

Hebrews 2:17 Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.

As those being redeemed out of idolatry, we have no clue of the significance of the merciful and faithful High Priest, in our redemption. The Jews of that day would have had mind's eye pictures of unfaithful high priests and unmerciful high priests; from Hophni and Phinehas to Zacharia. There were gradations of consistency in fidelity and mercy from the very poor to the very close. Even had there been one who was relatively consistent, so to speak, from the human element, there would always be time limitations that would keep him from being the eternally faithful and merciful high priest. Glory be to Jesus that He is the perfect combination of merciful fidelity and faithful mercy in the eternal presence of God on our behalf. We need not fear that He will not be on call that or this day, when our need is at its greatest. We need not fear that distemper would throw off His mercy or His faithfulness. He is eternally living "to make intercession for us." He is the once and for all sacrifice for sin and the one who argues those sacrifices to the Father. "5 bleeding wounds He bears, received on Calvary. They pour effectual prayers and they strongly plead for me." Halleluia, what a Savior!

God Moves...

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God moves in a mysterious way"Blind unbelief is sure to err, And scan His work in vain; God is His own interpreter, And He will make it plain.

John chapter 4 (thoughts) The woman of Samaria won her whole city to Jesus. Perhaps her personal laziness caused her to interact with the Savior, because she was not godly enough to get water, without the backtalk. It should be a privilege to get water for the master, to the godly woman. Her laziness caused her to interact with Him. It seems that she was saying "Are you sure you want the likes of me to touch water for one as pious as you?" Jesus surely knew her heart. He didn't need water. He doesn't need anything that we can give Him. He was piercing into her unbelief, which in her was at the surface. It bled out over the entire city. She only needed a word. Still, later on, one who had seen the miracle of the water made into wine asked a miracle of life and only really believed when he knew what time it was that his son recovered. Sometimes the close we are to Jesus the more lazy we are in our seeking Him. We will find Him, if we seek. If we believe, because He told us of our sins and cleansed us, when we were too lazy, to even get water for Him. He will meet us. If we are too holy to think that our case could be solved by Him and ask in half believing faith, He will meet us, there. The worst case is that of the pious, who seek not because of self righteousness. They know not of the thorns and thistles that have long ago choked out the Word. They sleep in the harvest of their souls and the worst case will be their lot. Grant Lord, open eyes and busy hearts, that I may seek You, while You may be found.

The Sluggard will not plow...

Proverbs 20:4 The sluggard will not plow by reason of the cold; therefore shall he beg in harvest, and have nothing.

Truly, my heart is convicted that the plowing of my garden of fruit is not plowed. More than this concern, my heart aches for many whose gardens on earth are truly tilled and straight and whose fallow hearts have not been tilled. The heart is deceitful above all things and desparately wicked and we have but this short life to till the field of our hearts and reap life eternal. Not being able to eat of the fruit of the earth is painful, and yet you still can beg, if need be. There is no begging, when heaven's door is closed shut. Sad, that as Christians, we live so long without seeking the face of our God, in His Word. Many tears will be shed, that we were so unaware of the presence of God in His Word. What could we have won, for our generation on the earth, had we not used excuses of the cold, to keep us from searching His Word for truth. Another generation may win the prize and we may be disappointed. He will wipe every tear from our eyes; but, can one be His, who has no desire to know Him, or know more of Him?

Beyond what we can think or imagine...

I am praying for the Church on earth. I am imagining Sister Geraldine, testifying to the grace of God, so faithfully, Bless her heart.
That is my imagination of God's Church awaiting and adorning herself as a bride, pure and chaste to meet the coming Lord and Savior of the Body.
I pray that God would give us, in this generation the Church would exemplify what we saw and rejoiced in of Sister Geraldine. Singing Halleluia, Anyhow, at every turn of providence; with eyes set upon the return of Her Bridegroom.
The joy that God gave us young girls to watch such a beautiful love story unfold before our eyes, seems significant and a charge of stewardship. None of us can emulate that beauty, but we can see God working through that beauty to bring the Church to the unity of the Spirit, perhaps in our generation.
Looking for the paroucia, appearing of our Savior, seems to me to be looking for the Lord's cleansing and preparing His Church to get us ready. The passive waiting is the looking for Him and the active waiting is the preparing ourselves for that great day, personally and corporately.

The Precious Comfort of Acceptance in the Beloved

I think that I suffer from a spiritual amnesia, sometimes. The devil deceives me and I think that when I get myself together, I will be fit for worship and fellowship. I can't bring myself to face my brethren in my persistent sullen state. I drag or am dragged to worship and the face of comfort encourages my soul. The Word and the Worship are there, certainly; but, the salve of the faces of beloved brethren reminds me of the love of God.
Only the Christian has this injestion of the love of God in fellowship with others. God lends a piece of Himself as we gather for worship and fellowship. He says that where two or three are gathered there He is.
His special presence is a comfort to the grieving, a rebuke to the rebellious and so much more.
This is why the devil, himself opposes the fellowship of believers and does much to stand between us and our places of worship.
Satan says, they are not all that, you are not all that and why would you want to gather with them. Or, he scares you that this love could not be pure or purified, even by grace. He is a liar. God is exalted when we gather, notwithstanding remaining sin and corruption; blessed be the tie that binds..

What a tender representation of unity between brothers was my reading, this morning.

I can imagine the departure, as being so very caustic as it was would engender a terror that the reunion could have been warfare between two people groups. Jacob and Esau had parted, the one having stolen the other's birthright and blessing.
Many times, I have imagined the thoughts of Jacob and the preparation that it took to attempt to quell the possible wrath of a highly inflamatory brother.
This morning the spotlight seemed to fall on Esau. The longing and missing of his brother outweighed any upsetment that he may have felt justified in harboring.
My mind, immediately, jumped to the scene in the movie the King and I. I wished and hoped in retrospect that the answer of God to bring the gospel to Siam may have been in direct answer to the penitential prayers of Esau to his father, at the loss of the blessing.
How wondrous a thought, that God might have woven, even that penitence into the New Testament redemption. I see Esau seeing his earthly blessing as having been comparable to his brother's and saying to himself, there must have been more that my father was blessing him with than goats and wives. I see him passing the tradition of greeting dignitaries with a procession, as his brother did, all the way until...Anna. Each Father would pass down the story of the wonderful reunion of brothers: One blessed on earth and one in heaven.
The pursuit of God's truth was not passed on, but the pursuit of reconcilation to the brother in offence was passed on, perhaps.
Redemption is the gift of God, but what a day it will be when we are able to see the weaving of, even our forfather's ungodly longings into the pouring of God's grace upon us. Christ has become for us redemption and restitution for every injustice and seemed injustice. Esau, reconciled with his brother and if Siam's redemption was related to the repentance of the hated brother, it was redemption, unearned, but pleaded for.
God's presence is won, when pleaded for in our churches, on the other hand and let us not, like Esau miss the Heavenly blessing for the earthly.

I find a sort of Resurrection eclipse every year.

Some years the flashlight that I take into the cave of my remorse is the "Stations of the Cross".
I have little difficulty remembering the sacrifice of Christ, any other time of the year except Easter. What an irony of that!
My God is so merciful to be patient with my peculiar season of unbelief coinciding with the celebration of the Resurrection by the Church. Some years, I want to miss church altogether, on that day. I feel like going up to the once a year Saints and telling them off. It is the "butinsky, West Indian" woman in my soul that gives vent in this season. Castigating sinners for their one use of the means of grace is a worse shame. My angry grief puts a hand on my mouth.
The Holy Spirit has reproved me, so gently, through the birth of my nephew, Stoney: The most recent grandbaby. 8 years after my baby Ezra was born. I have had a hard time prying myself out of my path of grief. Occasionally, one of these situations will come up, where I cannot find my bearings, in the celebration that my sins are forgiven as a result of the resurrection.
My baby's death on Easter Sunday, seems to dredge up the very putridest of sores in my soul. Every year, there is some cleaning of the wound that has become a habit.

This year,there is a greater season of hard thoughts of God. I must silence my words of unbelief and thank God! My salvation is not in question, but God's mercy, seems compromised to my soul. I trust the eternal payment for my sins, but there is a blinder, that questions the goodness of God to me, personally.

I usually shed this dead skin some time after Easter, in the meantime; I miss a wonderful opportunity to love God and enjoy His Resurrection celebration.

My sins, Oh the bliss of this glorious thought.
My sins, not in part, but the whole. Is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more!
Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord, Oh my soul!

I lay my sins on Jesus,
The spotless Lamb of God;
He bears them all and frees us
From the accursed load.
I bring my guilt to Jesus,
To wash my crimson stains
White in His blood most precious,
Till not a spot remains.

I lay my wants on Jesus,
All fulness dwells in Him;
He heals all my diseases,
He doth my soul redeem.
I lay my griefs on Jesus,
My burdens and my cares;
He from them all releases,
He all my sorrow shares.

I rest my soul on Jesus,
This weary soul of mine;
His right hand me embraces,
I on His breast recline.
I love the name of Jesus,
Immanuel, Christ, the Lord;
Like fragrance on the breezes
His Name abroad is poured.

I long to be like Jesus,
Meek, loving, lowly, mild;
I long to be like Jesus,
The Father's Holy Child.
I long to be with Jesus,
Amid the heav'nly throng,
To sing with saints His praises,
To learn the angels' song.

The Explanation of the basics of Christ's work reminds me and takes me back to basics.Unbelief cries "why me?" The Stations take me to the place where I say-WHY HIM? HE FIRST LOVED ME?

A Kiss from My Savior

When I was at the very darkest hour of my life. I couldn't see God. I couldn't read God's Word. My friend picked up Spurgeon, on just this day and read this to me. It was a kiss from my Savior and I was helped!