Pastor Buddy’s Blog

Journal,

Some people wonder how God in heaven can truly understand the struggles we humans have on earth. What can He possibly know about temptations, about failures, about heartaches, about loneliness, about dying? How can a God that is far off know anything about our brokenheartednesses and struggles in life?  

Actually God knows far more about all these things than we realize. Not only does He know about then, He has experienced them. Yet because of His great love for us, He doesn’t cringe in the least at getting His hands dirty in order to save the fallen race of Adam.

God getting His hands dirty is the  story of the cross…

Seven hundred and fifty years before Jesus was born, the prophet Isaiah wrote about Him:

“Surely our griefs He Himself bore, and our sorrows He carried; yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed.” (Isa53:3-5)

Interestingly enough God has been getting His hands dirty ever since the very beginning. When He created Adam, it says,

“Then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.” (Gen2:7)

And throughout the ages we see God in the background of the redemption story. He has always been there. And He never lost His love for mankind.

This brings us to the greatest story ever told.

Do you remember the song, ‘Tell me the story of Jesus’ …

Why not listen to it before reading any further:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Cclh18f3Fc4 

Did you know that Jesus is God Almighty incarnate in the Son? The Bible speaks of this as the sacred mystery that was hidden from the ages.

And so we have the story of Jesus. How many times do we see Jesus getting His hands dirty, both symbolically and in actuality as He touches the lives of the down-trodden. In one case the very one who created Adam from the dirt, used clay from the ground to create new eyes for a blind man. Listen:

“While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world. When He had said this, He spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and applied the clay to his eyes, and said to him, ‘Go, wash in the pool of Siloam’ (which is translated, Sent). So he went away and washed, and came back seeing.” (John 9:5-7)

But my heart is always drawn to another story where Jesus uses the dirt to deal with a situation. It was the case of the lady caught in adultery. The religious leaders wanted to use this instance to trick Jesus. Listen to the story, it is well worth your time:

“The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the center of the court, they said to Him, ‘Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?’

“They were saying this, testing Him, so that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground.

“But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, ‘He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.’

“Again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the center of the court.

“Straightening up, Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?’ She said, ‘No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said, ‘I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on sin no more.’” (John 8:3-11)

Did you know that Jesus Christ is the same today as He has been in all eternity…

God’s love has never changed. This brings us back to the struggles we humans have on earth.

Did not the prophet say,

“All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.” (Isa53:6)

What can we say to these things? I can speak for no other but myself.

Yes, I am one of those that the Lord had to reach into the dirt of life to redeem.

With every person born of God there is an act of creation…

This is at the very heart of the sacred mystery of the cross. There are no accidental births in God’s kingdom. In fact, part of the divine mystery is that every person who is ever going to be saved, their name was recorded in God’s book from the foundation of the world.

Could it be that God knew beforehand all who would receive Jesus Christ as their own Lord and Savior?

This is also part of the divine mystery. The apostle said,

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will.” (Eph1:3-5)

Is God still getting His hands dirty…

Oh yes. Jesus continues to get His hands dirty through His people in the earth. He does it anywhere you find the children of the kingdom. After all, He said, “I am with you always, even to the end of age.”

In another place Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who receives whomever I send receives Me; and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.” (John 13:20)

Nothing left to say other than, ‘Ok folks, let’s get our hands dirty for Jesus!’ 

Think about it.

Blessings,

Buddy