Sequence & Pattern Ephesians 3:18

The Infinity of God.

 

Eternity. Now there’s an amazingly big word. A vast, staggering word that we, as mankind, in and of ourselves, can’t really relate to. Every human has an expiration date stamped on our lives, and God has no such limit.

Our eyes only see just so far, our ears only hear in a narrow frequency band, our breath grows thin and slips away — in this body we were never meant to last forever. Yea, we can’t hardly relate to the word’s eternity or infinity. We’ve only ever known this one small existence. We were born under this sky, standing on this earth, breathing this air, eating this food, seeing and hearing only the sights and sounds of this single world.

Any ideas or dreams further, beyond this world, are inserted by God that we would relate to Him. Why? Because we have never stood beneath a different sun, lived in a different light, or walked on the ground of a place we can’t even imagine. Without help, we would have no bridge to the One who made us. Without Jesus, we’d be left trying to reach God through the law alone… and friends, that road was never going to get us home.

But because God loved us enough to intervene… we are not left empty. We are not lost in the dark. Because of Him who intervened, we are not nowhere, having nothing, blind and lost in the dark.

The infinity of God is pointed to in scripture by sequence and pattern but i think we walk all around it and don’t give it a thought. In Ephesians 3, and more specifically Ephesians 3:18, there is a sequence of four words that points to the infinity of God, showing the Lord has decisively acted and declared His love in Christ — and that love is an ever-present, ever-expanding, never-ending reality with no boundaries. When YHWH-God speaks, His speaking doesn’t stop, He doesn’t incur lost words, extra words, or meaningless phrases. When He dreams, it is so. When He speaks, things happen and His words do not cease.

In our hearts, we secretly long to try and look past what our eyes can see. We’re driven to search for some kind of ending point — a place where it all stops. Like the sequence in Ephesians 3:18, the length, width, breadth, and height, implying there is no end point in the love of God. We strain to find the edge of it, because in the world we live, everything seems to have a limit, real or imaginary, it all comes to an end.

Yet… at that place where the sea conspires with the sky, out on the horizon where the beyond of the beyond steps into a God-place, the air itself feels alive with the sky, and there is a beyond-ness, a vastness so deep our hearts can scarcely comprehend. And that… that is just a shadow of the love of God.

Ephesians 3:19-21, “And to know the love of Christ, which passes knowledge, that you might be filled with all the fulness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.”

When Christ loves, with His four-dimensional, measureless love sequence, unlike the love of mankind, His love doesn’t stop or shrink. The grammar of Ephesians 3:18 points to divine finality and completeness, while the spatial language of Ephesians 3:18 gives us the metaphor of divine infinity. And while we’re here at vs 18, notice Paul says, “May be able to comprehend…”, “comprehend” being a Greek verb whose tense has, once again, no concern for past, present, or future which makes all this “comprehending” to be a decisive, whole act in itself — not a partial or ongoing struggle, but something only God empowers us to grasp, get that? God empowers us to lay hold of His love as a reality. We are empowered to grasp His boundless love with no edges, no end, no “side to side” or “top to bottom”, and without Jesus, without all His boundlessness, the nature and character of God ultimately escapes our grasp.

Oh, God. No edge sharp enough to cut the hem of Your robe. No number large enough to reach the hem of Your thought. You speak — and the words do not fall. It keeps traveling, aorist and perfect tense and all, all at once, finished and never finished, rolling through the dark between galaxies and the quiet between heartbeats. Breadth without border, length without horizon, height with no ceiling, depth with no floor — Your love is the room that contains every room and still has space left for more. I stretch my small hands into forever — and they do not, cannot touch the end.

Before time learned how to tick, Oh God, You were. After time forgets its own name, You will be — the same endless I AM, breathing galaxies like dust and stooping low enough to whisper eternity into even the small dust at the edge of the universe. O God, how can the finite know the Infinite? Only because the Infinite first knew us. Eternity.

Not to be repetitive, but i want us to really get the idea of sequence and pattern. Throughout the Bible there are many sequences and patterns, either in word or thematically. A sequence is an ordered list, and a pattern is like an underlying rule, or a repeatable structure that regulates. A sequence is actual data, and a pattern is the idea of rule behind it. A sequence may or may not have a pattern, whereas a pattern generates one or more sequences.

Again, take note of the sequence in Ephesians 3:18. “Breadth, Length, Height, and Depth”. Think about that. It’s a deliberate sequence that paints a rich pattern — with the pattern being: the infinite, all-encompassing nature of the love of Christ that “surpasses knowledge”. The sequence and pattern are tied to our knowing the fullness of God. Just incredible! In the book of Ephesians, Paul repeats “hope-words” over and over, “may give unto you”, “you may know”, “you may understand”, “Christ may dwell”, “you may be able”, “you may grow”, “that you may have”, “that you may serve”, “it may be well with you”, “you may be able”, “it may be given”, “i may speak”, and “that you may know”. That all speaks to God-possibilities in a future tense. They are words of hope, of becoming and overcoming.

From the infinity of God, the Breadth, Length, Height, and Depth, He calls us to enter into His fullness to comprehend the incomprehensible — the everlasting, eternal love of God. The four dimensions, length, width, height, and depth are a vivid way of saying Christ’s love has

no edges,

no up or down,

no left or right,

no front or back,

and no side to side.

We read phrases like, “God said…” and the word “said” is a type of Greek verb, as i understand it, which has no concern with past, present, or future. So where Scripture says, “God said…” as it relates to “we heard”, both “God said” and “we heard” literally means, once He has spoken, His words do not stop being said, and once we have heard God, it does not stop being heard.

In Ephesians 3, when those powerful verbs that speak of completed and continuing action are combined with words like “eternal” or “God always”, Scripture gives us language for our God whose words, works, and character are not bound by man’s created categories. Once the Infinite speaks, it does not fade, it does not “stop being said”. When He loves, it’s a well which never runs dry and remains forever inexhaustible like an ocean with no shore.

The word of the Lord runs on into eternity. We lack words to describe God, and if we find words within ourselves, God put them there. John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing”, and friends, nothing means nothing. If He did not give us words to describe Him, we would have no words.

When you lay in your bed, in that place between awake and asleep…

in that “gray” place between awake and asleep — I believe,

more often than we admit, every soul, in its own quiet way,

becomes suddenly, sharply aware of their own mortality —

how fragile our breath, how brief our flame — and at the same time,

how undeniably, how certainly, eternity exists.

It presses in. It whispers through the dark.

It refuses to be ignored.

Looking at the Bible and God from the platform of Ephesians 3:18, the page i write on seems to get wider and longer, as if infinity and eternity have taken over my vision. The closer the Lord gets to all things, the more all things become like Him. Our God is a consuming fire. i realize there is no format, other than the cross, resurrection, ascension, and Holy Spirit by which there is enough space or time, wisdom and knowledge to sufficiently cast a vision of the Love of God. Knowing Jesus is the only Way to begin to comprehend the incomprehensible. Paul says it all and captures the hope in Ephesians 3:18-19, that we “May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passes knowledge, that you might be filled with all the fulness of God.”

Again, our greatest strength against darkness is to come into the likeness of the Son. Character, character, character. It’s not rules to keep, but someone to be. Be the people.

i’m Social Porter for Living In His Name Ministries

Sequence and Pattern 2 Corinthians 12:10

The following is a definition and short explanation of which i’m going to use in the opening of each of the Sequence and Pattern series. Throughout the Bible there are many sequences and patterns, either in word or thematically. Let it be understood that a sequence is an ordered list, and a pattern is like an underlying rule, or a repeatable structure that regulates. A sequence is actual data, and a pattern is the idea of rule behind it. A sequence may or may not have a pattern, whereas a pattern generates one or more sequences.

In light of that, let’s think about *why* it’s important to do more than merely read a verse or chapter, go to church and call all things good. i believe that in the industrial American church complex, generally speaking, most people don’t want to read their Bible, don’t want to pray, give a little money, and mostly want to be told what to do, and it appears they’re good with that. i’m not. That’s not enough for me. The goal is to know God, to study God, and to understand Him. i want to be God-fluent, God-loving, God-lighted, and God-life-giving, tuned into the Holy Spirit more than the world. The Lord our God WANTS to be known. From the beginning His mission was to be known, that we would know Him and He would know us. It’s a relationship. He is Father, Son, Holy Spirit, God who is the sovereign Creator who made everything good and purposeful.

Seeing and studying the theme of God opens the Bible in Genesis and repetitively underscores that the world and humanity have inherent value and design. Jesus said that you are worth dying for. Think about that.

In our lifelong pursuit of Jesus, among the themes and narratives of the Bible there are sequences and patterns, and we really need to know the Lord intentionally put them together. God NEVER sits and stares, doing nothing, for all He does has a point and purpose. If we’ll look for Him, He will find us. He, Himself is a pattern for us to model ourselves after. Jesus is about more than rules to keep but that we should be like Him. The following is one among many sequences with a pattern in the Bible, and honestly, i just picked one i liked.

2 Corinthians 12:10, “For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, with insults, with hardships, with persecutions, and with calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” Do you see the sequence of five? Weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecution and calamities. That sounds awful, but what’s it about? Why would God put that sequence on Paul’s heart to write in a book that will last forever for everyone to see? “C’mon Paul, you’re always such a downer!” No, he’s not. i see it as a sequence which covers an all-inclusive range of trials — from inward struggles to outward hostility. Paul experienced all of these repeatedly and he points out his struggles that we would be encouraged to trust God and know our earthly struggles can be endured and overcome in Christ. God wants us to see His power that is perfected in weakness, when we are stripped of self-reliance, and that we learn to be content, “for the sake of Jesus”. Take a good look at the sequence: weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. It is important. Everything Jesus said is important and there are no extra or wasted words. John 16:33, Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Paul is purposely painting a dramatic picture of his life as a testimony of God’s faithfulness. He suffered Weaknesses, Greek word “asthenia”, a lack of strength, general weakness and debility, with debility generally pointing to fatigue and loss of energy. The same Greek word is linked to our English word, neurasthenia as in nervous exhaustion and mental fatigue. He endured insults that were forced upon him, but it’s worse than snide comments from the sidelines. Insults is Greek “hybris”, where we get our English word “hubris”, in this case meaning outrage, arrogant speaking, and insolent words filled with “wanton violence”.

He suffered hardships, the Greek word, “ananke”, for anguish, like being squeezed into a narrow place, choked and pressed tight. Another word is “diogmos” or what we would translate as persecutions. Paul is saying he was chased, hunted like prey with the intent to harm him combined with “stenochōria” or calamities denoting, while he was pursued like an animal he felt suffocated by his circumstances, again, as being stuck in a narrow alley with no room to maneuver.

2 Corinthians 12:9, “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

2 Corinthians 12, among other themes, is probably one of the most profound statements in the New Testament on how God works through our weakness and is about “the way we go our way while on the Way” to experiencing God’s strength and living in Christ, even though we are weak and have no strength of our own.

The sequence has much more substance than a basic summary. 2 Corinthians 12:10 goes far beyond a mere catalog or random list of bad stuff that can happen to you. The literary style (which is something new to me) is called a “rhetorical crescendo” or a structured, escalating sequence of sufferings that move from internal to external, and from milder to more intense forms of hardship, and the pattern is the dramatic build-up, the theological purpose showing we are weak and Christ alone is strong, and it subtly reflects the suffering Savior pattern of humiliation, persecution and anguish. Do you see it?

His love unfolds from grace to grace, ever widening, ever deepening,

until we know at last, as we ourselves are known.”

Other than a testimony, why would Paul layout this “rhetorical crescendo” of suffering in 2 Corinthians 12:10? i suppose, it is just like Paul to take the boasting of strength by the Corinthians and then carefully show an ordered list of weaknesses instead. He was defending his apostolic calling. i have read that there were, at the time, “self-proclaimed super-apostles” in Corinth boasting about their strength, visions, and credentials, much like today in the American church. We should take the example from Paul, rather than sell ourselves for money and recognition. Let us practice our humility, and instead of competing on their terms, we boast in our weakness and the strength of Christ alone, giving glory to the one true God and not ourselves. 1Corinthians 1:31, “so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.

i believe another reason was that he was modeling, for us, how to view suffering, and instead of seeing it as affliction and proof of failure, see your trials as proof of authentic kingdom service. Paul laid it out this way in order to, probably, invert worldly values, turning the local church’s desire for power, comfort and success upside down, basically saying, (my interpretation), “the real power of this life we live in Christ, is found precisely where the world sees only defeat.” Stop being ashamed of your flaws and turn them into testimonies.

Isaiah 40:26, “Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name; by the greatness of his might and because he is strong in power, not one is missing.”

Romans 8:26, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”

i’m Social Porter for Living In His Name Ministries

Sequence and Pattern Ephesians 2:19

Throughout the Bible there are many sequences and patterns, either in word or thematically. A sequence is an ordered list, and a pattern is like an underlying rule, or a repeatable structure that regulates. A sequence is actual data, and a pattern is the idea of rule behind it. A sequence may or may not have a pattern, whereas a pattern generates one or more sequences.

i think it necessary to give an example. A sequence with a pattern would mirror the powerful triplet from the Love Chapter, “faith, hope, love”, as taken from 1 Corinthians 13:13, which is three that belong together, though not a pure pattern but definitely a sequence with a pattern. Meaning they form a natural progression in our lives: We believe (faith) → We look forward to God’s promises (hope) → We live in self-giving love (the greatest). The triplet is both an ordered list, a sequence, with love being the ultimate goal and also the underlying rule of who we are in Christ, who is the personification of the pattern. “Faith, hope, and love”. Think of the three as travelling companions — if you find faith, rest assured hope and love are probably somewhere nearby — they go together. Do you get it?

i love the sequences found in the Bible and i’m absolutely persuaded that the Lord intentionally put them together. God didn’t put them together for nothing. In fact, many people say, “If God would simply tell me what to do, plainly, i would do it.” Well, there are a multitude of patterns and sequences God has given us to fashion ourselves after if we will search, and even pointed out some we should NOT reflect, like Ahab or Absalom. These righteous patterns were/are created from the heart of God Himself and hold an overarching importance to which we really need to give our attention.

It’s more than just a descriptive list, and many scholars, one of which i am not, call it “dimensionally symbolic” of a love which cannot be measured or contained. It’s about the four dimensions of the cross — left, right, top, bottom, His love is infinitely beyond the beyond and has no left, right, up, down, front, back, or no side-to-side.

So today I have a wonderful sequence to which i hope you can relate. It’s an example of how we were “far” and then God brought us “near”, going from exclusion to intimate belonging. Sort of like, thematically speaking, the parable of the prodigal son who was “far” and came “near”.

Ephesians 2:19, “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.” Do you see it? We were once strangers and aliens, and have become, by the blood and sacrifice of Jesus Christ, citizens and saints. Stranger, Alien, Citizen, Saint. Do you see the progression from death to life in it? Ephesians 2:15, “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” When we were strangers we had very limited rights, acting as complete outsiders or temporary visitors. No legal protection, no standing in the community, and were often viewed with suspicion. As aliens, things got a little better in that we had some ability to do business and settle down, but still lacked any rights, lacked full protection under the law, and were not members of the community. As aliens we often paid some form of fees for the right to live there, but had no political voice.

Ahhh, but now, now you’ve met Jesus, purchased with His blood, and BOOM! just like that, suddenly we find ourselves in a new, never lived in place of family reality. Suddenly we have standing, not as outsiders, but now have the status of “Citizen” and all the broad landscape of God-possibilities open before us in a great sweep of the Fathers hand called “salvation”. Now, as citizens we are also saints.

Being a citizen is represented as a vertical relationship with God, and being a saint is a horizontal relationship with the family, the household of God. Citizens and saints get full rights, protection, privileges, and can fully participate in the community (including responsibilities like taxes). It’s a strong legal and social status God has given us! As citizens and saints, we belong to the entire Body of Christ. These wonderful titles point to our shared fellowship and reminds us that we are intimately connected to every believer in God’s house as blood relatives, joined together by the blood, sacrifice, and resurrection of Jesus and are given the privileged status of firstborn in His family. Get that? Firstborn, no aunts, no uncles, but first born brothers and sisters in Christ

Take note of the entire idea which starts in Ephesians 2:11 and continues through to vs. 22. Paul is purposely painting a dramatic before-and-after picture. Before: No rights, no protection, no real belonging. We were outsiders. After: Full citizenship in God’s kingdom plus intimate family membership in God’s household as saints. Paul is making all efforts for us, the believers, to see the social reality behind the words. Paul probably stacks the sequence in Ephesians 2:19 for emotional impact so we can “comprehend the incomprehensible”.

Do you see it in the sequence and/or pattern? Through Christ, we are transformed: From strangers and aliens to citizens and saints as the family members in God’s household, living stones being built together into a holy temple supported by the seven pillars of heavenly wisdom. Proverbs 9:1. What are those seven pillars? Maybe James 3:17 spells it out specifically. You should go see! Herein is the support structure of the temple, who is us: Wisdom builds her house with seven pillars (Proverbs 9:1), God builds His temple (us) with the seven qualities of heavenly wisdom. When you combine Proverbs 9:1 with James 3:17 we get a pattern, an underlying rule of character: pure, peace loving, gentle/considerate, reasonable or willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, and sincere. See it: not just what we are, but how we are: it’s not rules to keep but someone to be.

Friends, this is not just about individual improvement. It is about God creating a beautiful, stable, unified dwelling place for Himself — where His presence lives by the Spirit. It’s about family and being a team. The seven pillars are the internal character structure that holds this temple strong and allows us to grow.

In short: We are becoming the house that Wisdom builds — a people who reflect the character of Christ so that God can dwell among us in fullness, having gone from far to near, or death to life by the sacrifice of Jesus. We were strangers and aliens, and now are citizens and saints. Again, our greatest strength against darkness is to come into the likeness of the Son.

i’m going to be repeating the following throughout this series: It’s not rules to keep, but someone to be. Be the people.

i’m Social Porter for Living In His Name Ministries

210 Persoonlik en Verhoudingsgerig

Daar is nie een oorbodige woord in die Bybel nie. Elke woord het ‘n doel en dra betekenis. Daar is geen onbelangrike woorde en geen onnodige besonderhede nie. Van Genesis tot Openbaring is elke woord met die res verweef en vorm dit saam die verhaal van die Vader se liefde, die Seun se bloed en die krag van die Heilige Gees. Die Bybel is van begin tot einde persoonlik en verhoudingsgerig, want God self is persoonlik en verlang na ‘n verhouding met mense. Selfs wanneer Hy van die duiwel en die magte van die hel praat, verwys Hy nooit na hulle as “dit” nie, maar as “hulle”. Dit beklemtoon dat God met persone en wesens omgaan, nie met onpersoonlike kragte nie.

Die waarheid dat God, Yahweh, die Koning van die heelal, persoonlik is en ‘n verhouding met mense wil hê, is nie net die kern van God se Woord nie, maar ook iets wat die Christelike geloof uniek maak onder die godsdienste van die wêreld. Ons God is nie ‘n onpersoonlike krag of ‘n abstrakte beginsel nie. Hy is ‘n persoonlike God met eienskappe soos liefde, hoop, vrede, bewussyn, ‘n wil en emosies. Juis daarom kan ons ‘n lewende en dinamiese verhouding met Hom hê. ‘n Dinamiese verhouding beteken alles dit wat tussen ons en God plaasvind omdat, ons in ‘n verhouding met Hom leef. Die Here verlang daarna om Homself op ‘n doelbewuste en persoonlike manier aan die mens bekend te maak. Hy nooi ons uit tot ‘n verhouding met Hom—’n verhouding wat ons identiteit vorm en ons doel in die lewe bepaal. Dink net ‘n oomblik daaroor. Besef jy hoe ongelooflik groot hierdie waarheid is?

Maar hoe kan ons, wat so beperk en verganklik is, die oneindige God werklik leer ken? Die belangrikste manier waarop ons Hom leer ken, is deur Sy persoonlike aard wat dwarsdeur die Bybel openbaar word. Dit sien ons nie net in die woorde en paragrawe nie, maar ook in die temas, verhale, getuienisse en selfs die poësie van die Skrif. Bladsy ná bladsy openbaar God Sy hart deur die geskiedenis van Sy volk—deur oorloë en ballingskap, deur goeie en slegte konings, deur profete en predikers, en uiteindelik deur die koms van die Messias. Die Bybel beeld God uit as Een wat spreek, liefhet en doelbewus handel.

Trouens, die Bybel begin met God as die eerste Een wat in die heelal spreek. Moses teken in Genesis alleen die woorde “God het gesê” 29 keer op. Dit beklemtoon dat God van die begin af ‘n God is wat Homself bekend maak en met Sy skepping kommunikeer. God het die mens na Sy beeld en gelykenis geskep. Dit verwys nie net na hoe Hy lyk nie, maar veral na wie Hy is. Daarom het die mens, soos God, die vermoë om in verhouding te leef, lief te hê, te skep en doelbewus op te tree. Die verhaal van God wat saam met Adam en Eva in die Tuin van Eden wandel, openbaar ‘n God wat na gemeenskap met Sy skepping verlang. En daar hou dit nie op nie. Hierdie tema loop soos ‘n goue draad deur die hele Skrif. Ons sien dit in God se verbond met Abraham, Moses en Dawid—elkeen ‘n persoonlike belofte dat Hy Sy volk sal lei, bewaar en onderhou. En dan kom die hoogtepunt van alles: Jesus Christus, God wat mens geword het en tussen ons kom woon het. Vir die eerste keer in die geskiedenis staan God letterlik oog tot oog met die mens. As dit nie persoonlik en verhoudingsgerig is nie, wat is dan?

In wie word God se sending die duidelikste openbaar? In die persoon van Jesus Christus!  God se wese is verhoudingsgerig, en nêrens word dit dieper of duideliker sigbaar as in Sy Seun nie. In die teologie—die studie van God—is Jesus, God wat mens geword het. Hy openbaar die Vader se ewige liefde en oorbrug die skeiding tussen God en die mens. Dit is die grootste bewys dat God persoonlik is en ‘n verhouding met mense verlang. Deur Sy lewe, Sy lering en Sy offer aan die kruis wys Jesus God se begeerte om mense met Homself te versoen en hulle in ‘n intieme verhouding met Hom te bring. Soos ons lees in Johannes 3:16:

“Want so lief het God die wêreld gehad, dat Hy sy eniggebore Seun gegee het, sodat elkeen wat in Hom glo, nie verlore sal gaan nie maar die ewige lewe sal hê.”

Hierdie waarheid loop soos ‘n goue draad deur die hele Nuwe Testament. In Johannes 15:15 sê Jesus vir Sy dissipels:

“Ek noem julle nie meer diensknegte nie… maar Ek het julle vriende genoem.”

Hiermee wys Jesus dat ons verhouding met God nie gebou is op die blote nakoming van reëls nie, maar op ‘n lewe van geloof, gehoorsaamheid en gemeenskap met Hom. God nooi ons om nie net anders op te tree nie, maar om anders te leef—in voortdurende gemeenskap met Hom en in liefdevolle gemeenskap met mekaar.

Verder speel die Heilige Gees ‘n onmisbare rol om hierdie persoonlike verhouding met God te onderhou. Jesus beskryf die Heilige Gees in Johannes 14:16 as ons Trooster en in Johannes 16:13 as die Een wat ons in die hele waarheid lei. Die Heilige Gees woon in elke gelowige (1 Timoteus 1:14) en maak voortdurende gemeenskap met God moontlik. Soos Romeine 8:26 ons leer, tree die Gees ook vir ons in wanneer ons nie weet hoe om te bid nie. Hierdie inwonende teenwoordigheid van die Heilige Gees kweek en verdiep ‘n lewe van gebed en aanbidding. Dit herinner ons voortdurend daaraan dat God altyd by ons is en versterk die lewende verhouding wat ons met Hom het. Ek huiwer effens om die woord “dinamies” te gebruik, omdat dit nie ‘n woord is wat ons elke dag gebruik nie. Tog beskryf dit hierdie verhouding baie goed. Ons verhouding met God is nie staties of vêr nie; dit is lewend, groeiend en voortdurend aan die werk in ons lewens.

Besef ons werklik hoe diep die implikasies daarvan is dat God persoonlik is en ‘n verhouding met ons wil hê? Dit beteken dat ons nie alleen is in ‘n onverskillige heelal nie. Ons word geken, geliefd en waardeer deur ‘n God wat verlang dat ons heel, verlos, genees en geestelik gesond sal wees—volgens Sy maatstaf en nie volgens ons eie lae standaarde of die maklike uitweg wat ons so dikwels kies nie. Hierdie verhouding nooi elke mens uit tot ‘n lewende geloof, waar ons God se liefde, vergifnis en doel vir ons lewe persoonlik kan ervaar. Só word teologie nie bloot ‘n versameling leerstellings nie, maar ‘n daaglikse werklikheid waarin ons met God wandel en Sy liefde die grondslag word van ons hoop, ons identiteit en ons verhouding met ander. Die Here, ons God, is en bly altyd persoonlik en verhoudingsgerig.

Veertig jaar gelede het my seun met ‘n meisie uitgegaan. Ek het hom gevra of die verhouding ernstig was. Hy het geantwoord: “Nee, Pa, dis net ‘n ‘hookup’. Niks persoonlik nie, niks ernstigs nie.” Destyds het ek nie heeltemal verstaan wat hy bedoel het nie, maar iets in my hart was diep ontstel. Hoe meer ek daaroor nagedink het, hoe minder kon ek verstaan waarom sy woorde my so ontstel het. Eers onlangs, veertig jaar later, het ek besef waarom. By ‘n byeenkoms het ek voor ‘n jong man gesit wat ‘n Bybel en ‘n boek by hom gehad het. Die titel van die boek het iets met beginsels te doen gehad. Omdat ek nuuskierig was, het ek hom gevra wat die beginsels behels. Hy het gesê: “Die eerste beginsel is: Moenie dinge persoonlik opneem nie.” Ek het hom gevra wat hy daarmee bedoel. Hy antwoord toe: “Soos met Jesus se kruisiging—moenie dat dit jou ontstel nie. Moenie dit persoonlik opneem nie.” Ek was innerlik geskok. En skielik het ek verstaan waarom my seun se woorde destyds, en nou hierdie jong man s’n, my so diep ontstel het. Seks is iets uiters persoonlik. Om dit af te maak as bloot ‘n seksuele ontmoeting sonder enige persoonlike betekenis, is absurd. In vandag se losbandige ‘hookup’-kultuur word een van die mees intieme dinge wat twee mense saam kan deel, gereduseer tot iets tydeliks en weggooibaar, waar mense mekaar as bloot ‘n middel tot ‘n doel gebruik. Nog meer as dit: die kruisiging van Jesus Christus is die mees persoonlike en verhoudingsgerigte gebeurtenis wat die wêreld nog ooit beleef het. Ek het vir die jong man gesê: “‘n Klap in Jesus se gesig was persoonlik (Matteus 26:67). Die spies wat Sy sy deurboor het, was persoonlik. Elke hou van die hamer waarmee die spykers deur die Verlosser se hande en voete gedryf is, was onmiskenbaar persoonlik. Hy het Homself verneder en gehoorsaam geword tot die dood toe—ja, die dood aan die kruis (Filippense 2:8). Van Genesis tot Openbaring vertel die Bybel God se verhaal en wys dit hoe ons inpas in Sy Koninkryk. Van begin tot einde is dit ‘n verhaal van ‘n God wat persoonlik is en ‘n verhouding met mense wil hê.”

Altyd.

Matteus 22:37–39 is persoonlik en verhoudingsgerig. Die oproep in 1 Tessalonisense 4 en 5 om mekaar aan te moedig en op te bou, is persoonlik en verhoudingsgerig. En dit is maar net ‘n paar voorbeelde. God is altyd persoonlik en verhoudingsgerig, en ons behoort ook so te leef. Selfs wanneer ons sê: “Dis niks persoonlik nie; dis net besigheid,” bly dit persoonlik. Dit is nooit bloot net besigheid nie. Laat ons die Bybel lees soos geliefdes wat met verlange na mekaar soek. Van vóór die begin af was God persoonlik en verhoudingsgerig, en selfs ná die einde van hierdie wêreld sal Hy steeds persoonlik en verhoudingsgerig wees. Dink daaroor.

Ek is die Social Porter van Living In His Name Ministries.

Vertaal deur Chané de Clercq Walke

Quiet

Here, of late i’ve enjoyed a great invention by God called “quiet”. Honestly, i should have been learning to enjoy God’s creation of “quiet” long ago, but i think my internal self was far too noisy to even think about it. No, i don’t just think i was noisy, i KNOW i was noisy. There was nothing quiet about me, and when i thought i was being quiet, internally i was very noisy.

The idea of “quiet” is part of God’s sound design for the universe. In His design there are so many “rooms”, so to speak. Here’s a little context maybe: In sound design (audio production, game audio, film post, or virtual acoustics, etc), “defining a room” means specifying the acoustic properties of a space to realistically simulate or process how sound behaves within it. Some rooms are very “alive” like a music hall, and some rooms are very quiet like your bedroom at 3 a.m.. i realize that’s probably more information than most would want, but let us think about that. The goal of sound design is to assist the listener to be in the space which they are occupying. The visual and audible make for an almost complete immersive experience. If we are seeing the forest yet there is no sound of wind, birds, or any of the other sounds which accompany being in the forest, we feel disconnected somehow. So, God went to work to not only give us a visual but also the sounds of what we see in order that we would more fully engage with the world around us and other people.

In light of all that, I’ve come to greatly appreciate the idea of quiet. Quiet in my head, quiet in my heart which tends to make God easier to hear. Afterall, our goal above all things is hearing the Lord, with both ears. And let me point out quiet is not the same as silence.

We are absolutely slammed with noise these days, but our world is radically noisier than we think — street noise, the chaos of internet noise, music noise, the constant roar of all things entertainment, and just the ambient noise of all the people breathing in a large department store can be very intense. The volume is maddening and i haven’t even gotten to the noise in our heads. Even in the quietest part of where we live, there’s ambient noise like air exchange running, and the sound of the fans on the computer, etc. Most people almost never sit in quiet, and even when they do it is still not actually quiet.

On a side note, most people truly cannot stand complete and utter quiet — the noise within our own ears is suddenly too loud. it’s almost as if even the smallest things inside our mind is unnerving, so in a way, we seem to need some sort of environmental feedback which maybe lets us know we even exist and where we are. We get most of our balance from seeing the horizon and hearing our surroundings. The quietest place on Earth is the anechoic chamber at Orfield Laboratories in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The room absorbs 99.99% of sound and is so silent that visitors can hear their own internal organs functioning. And, because there are no echoing sound waves to provide the brain with spatial orientation, most people inside this chamber quickly become disoriented. When all external sounds are stripped away, the silence itself feels deafening, allowing you to hear sounds you would never normally notice. In fact, with the lights off, the record for sitting in the ultimate quiet room is around 45 minutes, but most people are slowly driven insane for lack of ambient room noise or spacial orientation.

But more than just external quiet, in the Bible, God’s idea of “quiet” centers on stillness, silence, restful trust, and attentive waiting in His presence — and i believe practicing His idea of quietness is a pathway to knowing Him, finding strength, peace, and salvation amid chaos or turmoil.

Quiet is not mere inactivity or empty silence, but a deliberate ceasing of striving, anxiety, and self-reliance so that we can recognize God’s sovereignty, hear Him, and rest in His control. God’s idea of quietness pairs with trust, hope, and praise. “Be still” in Psalm 46:10 more accurately means, stop what you’re doing, let go in quiet trust, release control which leads to deeper knowledge of who Jesus is. One author wrote that when we are quiet before the Lord, “Panic and self-effort give way to expectant stillness.” Isaiah 30:15, “For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, ‘In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength…’”

I think we can conclude that quietness (quiet or calm) combined with trust brings salvation and strength, contrasting, what i call frantic human plans.

Karl Barth wrote that, “God’s vision of quiet is relational and empowering: it counters fear and self-reliance, fosters trust, allows Him to fight/work on our behalf, and opens us to His peace and voice.” i believe God’s idea of quiet counters the noise of anxiety, busyness, mindless chatter that seems to surround us, and striving.

In a noisy world, the Bible repeatedly calls believers to cultivate this stillness—not as escape, but as the posture for knowing and experiencing God more deeply. Many find it through prayer, contemplating Scripture, solitude, or simply pausing to remember His presence.

So here … sit down. Be still a moment or two. Stop your worry for a few minutes. You know, you need rest. Aren’t you tired of church noise, entitled people noise, the roar of church conflict, complaining noise, accusing noise? Sit with Jesus, just be still and let it go, it’ll all be right where you left everything, all your worries and grieving concerns. Just stop the Lord says. He says to come sit with Him a while and He’ll share and you share, like two friends walking together.

In Psalm 46:10, the primary term for being still or being quiet, is the Hebrew word, “Raphah” and means to slacken, relax, let go, sink down, and cease. It implies, this is good so pay attention, dropping one’s grip on efforts, anxieties, or self-reliance — going limp or withdrawing from frantic activity, grow mute and stand motionless. That’s quite a vision isn’t it? Please note, this is not passive laziness but active trust: stop opposing or striving. It connects to ideas of respite and waiting. There are a few other important words used elsewhere, one in particular means quietness, or cessation of noise and motion as in the calm after a storm. Psalm 4:4 literally is a picture of the Lord saying to stop your agitation and shaking, again, stop your agitated worrying unchecked obsession with your circumstances, and literally speak to your circumstances to “be still”, or be quiet and quiet the inner storm, trust God and rest in the Lord. Friend, find your quiet place and live there.

i think we should also see what God’s vision of quiet looks like, see thematically to understand the Lord takes quiet as a necessity for us. Consider the theme of Psalm 23. It’s a picture of quietness as God sees it. “The Lord is my shepherd”, not task master but shepherd. “i shall not want”, as in, in His presence i don’t need the endorsement of men, nor titles, nor being known. Jesus is enough for me. “He makes me lie down”, to cease from my labors and trust God has got me. “He leads me besides THE still waters”, not just any still place in the river, but THE still water. “He restores my soul”, when i was overcome with the cares of this life Jesus sets me upright and heals all my wounds and afflictions that He would be known as God who heals me, Exodus 15.26. And it continues in the words of God’s kind heart for His people. Go read it. Do you see it?

i love to walk in the light of a full moon after midnight on a warm summer evening. God’s quiet is phenomenal. i want that. i need that. Come let’s go quietly together and learn to create space to hear and encounter the Lord, whom we so desperately need. We will easily find God in the still places, the quiet places, the places we cease from our striving. Stand still and listen. He is there. Don’t you know being quiet creates space for trusting God. Live full of grace, softly and quietly. It’s beyond the beyond of the noise of this world.

i’m Social Porter for Living In His Name Ministries.

160 Tres

Tres. Después de cero, uno y dos, el tres es el cuarto número importante en el esquema de las cosas de Dios. ¿Alguna vez has reflexionado sobre el número tres desde la perspectiva del Señor? Mi madre solía decir que las cosas pasan en los “tres”. No sé si eso es cierto, pero puedo entender cómo podría ser posible.

El número tres en la Biblia suele representar cosas cumplidas. A veces de bien y a veces de mal. Tres como Dios: Padre, Hijo y Espíritu Santo. El triángulo del mal: el dragón, el anticristo y el falso profeta. Están los tres impíos revelados en Judas 1:11: la codicia de Caín por ganancia, el fraude de Balaám y la rebelión de Coré. En mi búsqueda, encontré la trinidad de la bendición que son gracia, misericordia y paz, y la trinidad de la maldad: el mundo, la carne y el diablo. Pero sí va más allá, como, 3er planeta del sol, protón, neutrón, electrón, pasado, presente, futuro, hombre, mujer, niño, líquido, sólido, gas y, por supuesto, piedra, papel o tijeras.

En tres están el Cielo, la tierra y el infierno, el principio, el medio y el final. El evangelio nos llega con poder, el Espíritu Santo y la convicción. De 1 Tesalonicenses 2, el llamado de Pablo no surgió de error, engaño ni impureza. El testimonio de los apóstoles fue santo, justo e intachable, y 1 Tesalonicenses 2:12, donde Pablo escribe, exhortaron, animaron y encargaron a todos a caminar de manera digna de Dios, quien llama a todos los que quisieran a venir a su reino y gloria.

Tres, un número asombroso en la recta numérica de Dios. Fíjate en la trinidad de las Escrituras: la ley, los profetas y los escritos de la historia, los acontecimientos y el avance de la destrucción: iniquidad, transgresión y pecado. Jesús resucitó al tercer día, y gracias a Su sacrificio, prosperamos gracias a Aquel que nos liberó de una muerte tan grande. Confiamos en Su liberación, es decir, liberó, libera y liberará. En Romanos 8:24 fuimos salvos, 1 Corintios 1:18 estamos salvos, y Romanos 5:9 seremos salvos. El hombre es cuerpo, alma y espíritu. El tiempo es pasado, presente y futuro, como los tiempos verbales, que son necesarios para transmitir quién, cuándo y qué.

Consideramos el espacio en tres dimensiones: longitud, anchura y altura, aunque debo añadir que, desde una perspectiva hebrea, el espacio era una cosa dividida en cinco. El universo es espacio, tiempo y materia.

Tres están asociados con sacrificios, que según Génesis 15:9 debían tener tres años, y en Levítico 19:23, el fruto no debía cosecharse hasta tres años después de que el árbol fuera plantado. Creo que es importante notar que tres es común para designar periodos significativos, como tres días, tres semanas, tres meses o tres años. He leído que los sabios hebreos consideraban que hay tres divisiones del tiempo para que la justicia siga su curso cuando se modera con gracia. Como resultado, José encarceló a sus hermanos tres días, Jonás estuvo tres días en el vientre de la ballena, el arca permaneció con Obed-Edom durante tres meses, la madre de Moisés ocultó al bebé durante tres meses, María visitó a Isabel durante tres meses, Pablo permaneció tres meses en Éfeso y naufragó en tres oportunidades. 2 Samuel 13 dice que Absalón huyó y se fue a Gesur, donde permaneció tres años, y que Israel sufrió una hambruna de tres años en 2 Samuel 21. Realmente tiene algo de especial.

Sofonías 3:17, “El SEÑOR, tu Dios, está entre vosotros, un poderoso que salvará; se alegrará de ti con alegría; Te apañará con su amor; Girará y bailará sobre ti con un canto fuerte.” ¿Lo has captado? Dios se alegrará de ti con alegría, te silenciará, girará y bailará sobre ti con un canto fuerte. Los tres primeros frutos del Espíritu son el amor, la alegría y la paz, y los tres primeros de los dones del Espíritu, según Efesios 4, son apóstoles, profetas y evangelistas, aunque la lista es de cinco: apóstoles, profetas, evangelistas, pastores y maestros, no necesariamente en ese orden, porque funcionan como una sola persona, Instantáneo en tiempo y fuera de tiempo. En Efesios 4, nuestro llamado al que hemos sido llamados es con toda humildad, ternura y paciencia, soportarnos mutuamente en amor.

El tres no es dual como el dos, sino plural y en realidad es el menor número de pluralidad. También se utiliza en el sentido de tres veces. Elías se acostó sobre el niño muerto tres veces, y Jesús resucitó al tercer día. Así como de los treinta poderosos hombres de valor de David hubo tres que fueron los más selectos, de los doce discípulos, parece que también hubo tres que fueron elegidos.

En la visión de Isaías en el capítulo 6, el Serafín declararon Santo, Santo, Santo es el Señor, y muchos, muchos años después, en la visión de Juan en Apocalipsis 4, el Serafín volvió a declarar Santo, Santo, Santo es el Señor. Declarado sagrado tres veces por los Serafínes es suficiente para establecer un asunto según Deuteronomio 19, donde dice que un asunto se resolverá con el relato de dos o tres testigos.

En la sabiduría antigua, tres se consideraba el número perfecto del círculo de amigos más íntimos. Como los tres de Daniel 3:23, Sadrac, Mesác y Abednego, que fueron arrojados al horno ardiente y fueron entregados por el Señor, saliendo ilesos sin siquiera oler el humo en ellos. En Daniel 6, los altos funcionarios resentían tanto a Daniel que solicitaron una orden judicial contra él. Daniel ayunó 21 días, que es un múltiplo de tres, y también oró tres veces al día para que Dios lo liberara. El Arca de la Alianza contenía tres objetos sagrados: la jarra de maná, el bastón de Aarón y las tablas de piedra del pacto. En Mateo 4, Satanás tentó a Jesús tres veces, y tres veces Jesús respondió con las Escrituras.

La vida en general parece desarrollarse en estaciones de jóvenes, mediana edad y vieja, y creo que estoy mucho más hacia el final de esas temporadas que hacia el principio. Esto podría seguir y continuar, así que lo dejo aquí y espero que te inspires a considerar que, incluso en tus sueños, todos los números que usa el Señor son importantes. ¿Qué opinas?

Soy Portero Social para el Ministerio Viviendo en Su Nombre.

Traducción por Alfredo Magni Sozzi

159 Dos

Dos. Después de cero y uno, dos es el tercer número importante en el esquema de las cosas de Dios.

No es plural sino dual, no en el sentido de que el plural de 1 sea 1, sino 1+1. Jesús más tú son dos, así que considerando que Él es la suma de todas las cosas espirituales, Él lo es todo, y eso incluye a ti y a mí. Dos también es un número de unidad, como cuando decimos que un hombre y una mujer son pareja, o una pareja, están juntos como uno solo. Dos, como en entrada y salida. Pero cuando una señal de audio entra en un dispositivo en un nivel y sale de ese dispositivo al mismo nivel, se dice que está en ganancia de unidad, lo cual es perfecto considerando que todo en este mundo tiene pérdida acumulada debido al pecado. Pero Dios es el único que es verdaderamente, la única persona capaz de ganancia de unidad, y de ser uno, o dos, o tres en uno, como uno, en completa unidad. 1 Juan 5:7, “Porque hay tres que llevan registro en el cielo: el Padre, el Verbo y el Espíritu Santo: y estos tres son uno.”, o unidad. Dos no es plural, sino dual. ¡Selah! — O piénsalo.

Antes de Cristo en tu vida, eras todos los números negativos. De alguna manera, Él representa todos los números positivos, así que si sumas todos los números negativos y todos los positivos, la suma es cero, un fundamento de humildad y un lugar de arrepentimiento y nuevos comienzos.

Dos es el valor de la segunda letra en el hebreo aleph-beit, que representa a la familia y a la casa. Es la primera letra del inicio de Génesis 1:1, aunque no se pronuncia. Al principio es sobredimensionada y se sostiene comúnmente que sirve para establecer que, de principio a fin, está la historia de la casa de Dios y de todo lo que compone.

Dos representa dualidad como arriba, abajo, o izquierda, derecha, o adelante, atrás, dos lados de una materia, dos ojos, dos orejas, dos brazos, dos piernas, como decir que hay diversidad en toda la creación. Dos, como en cielo y tierra, principio y fin, luz y oscuridad, mañana y noche, vida y muerte, la ley y la gracia. Los cielos dan luz y lluvia, la tierra recibe y da fruto. Por pares, podríamos decir que el fruto y la raíz están directamente conectados con el rendimiento del campo. Creo que es verdad que todo en el mundo físico en el que vivimos está impregnado de dualidad y pluralidad, pero la Unidad absoluta solo reside en el Señor nuestro Dios.

En el Antiguo Testamento se necesitaba el testimonio de dos o más personas para condenar a alguien por un delito o pecado; en consecuencia, la doctrina sólida se construye mediante dos o más escrituras que lo respaldan. Cuando Dios le dio a Moisés los diez mandamientos, estaban escritos en dos tablas de piedra, en cada una cinco mandamientos y eran iguales en tamaño y peso, ambos juntos compuestos como una cosa en dos partes. En Génesis 6:19 Dios le dice a Noé que traiga dos de cada ser vivo, hombre y mujer. Supongo que eso incluía a la sanguijuela, que, según Proverbios 30:15, tiene dos hijas, dame y dame más.

Dos son un hombre y una mujer, aunque son dos que se hacen uno en el pacto del matrimonio, son las dos partes de una sola persona, como la autoridad y la influencia van juntas. El testimonio del Señor está dividido en testimonios Viejos y Nuevos, y su pacto con toda la humanidad está dividido en dos, como Antiguo y Nuevo Pacto. Dos se usa para representar la división, como en lo que era uno se divide y se convierte en dos. Por la elección del pecado entre ambos, Adán y Eva, la muerte y la destrucción se desataron en el universo. Pero por la única muerte del único Hijo de Dios, fueron dos que fueron liberados del Cielo sobre toda la humanidad: la vida y la resurrección. 1 Corintios 15:21-22, “Porque así como por un hombre y una mujer vino la muerte y la destrucción, por un hombre también vino la vida y la resurrección de los muertos. Porque así como mueren todos en Adán y Eva, así también en Cristo todos serán hechos vivos.”

En Mateo 4, Jesús llamó primero a los dos hermanos Pedro y Andrés, y luego llamó a otros dos hermanos, Santiago y Juan. Dijo que si alguien te obliga a recorrer una milla, ve con él dos. Hay dos amos en Mateo 5, uno al que amas y otro al que odias, y nadie puede servir a ambos o morirá, dedicado a uno y despreciando al otro. Hay otros dos amos que no pueden servirse juntos: Dios y el dinero. Al dividir una visión tenemos di-visión, dualidad de visión, o visión dividida, que causa caos y confusión. Había dos ladrones que fueron crucificados junto a Jesús en el Calvario, y cuando Jesús entregó el espíritu, el telón del templo se partió en dos, de arriba abajo. María fue testigo de dos ángeles sentados en la tumba donde había yacido el cuerpo de Jesús, uno en la cabeza y otro en los pies, y tras su resurrección, caminó con dos discípulos por el camino a Emaus y explicó las escrituras como nunca habían oído.

Solo hay dos libros en la Biblia en los que no se usa la palabra “Dios”, Ester y Cantar de los Cantares, y la escritura más corta está en Juan 11, “Jesús lloró“, con solo dos palabras.

Esta siguiente parte es buenísima. Dos en hebreo no es simplemente un número, sino más bien una palabra usada para representar contraste y oposición, no solo el número dos, sino la dualidad, como en 1 Reyes 18:21, donde Elías se acercó a donde estaba el pueblo y les preguntó: “¿Cuánto tiempo vas a estar bailando, cojeando entre dos opiniones diferentes??”, planteando contraste y oposición. Escuchar dos veces, otra vez dos como dualidad, significa escuchar y realmente oír de nuevo. En Deuteronomio 21:17, un padre debía dar al primogénito, amado o no, una doble porción, dual, es decir, una porción y una porción. En Rom5:20, donde abunda el pecado, la gracia abunda, es decir, abunda como en dualidad, es decir, abunda la gracia, y luego abunda en la abundancia. El dos es el tercer número importante en la recta numérica de Dios.

¿Qué opinas?

Soy Social Porter para el Ministerio Viviendo en Su Nombre.

Traducción por Alfredo Magni Sozzi