Coffee With The Lord

There is something incredibly satisfying about completing a challenging task successfully!

Jesus expressed that sense of satisfaction regarding His redemptive mission… His Divine task was to leave heaven, take on humanity, overcome temptation, teach Divine truth, model a righteous life, and offer Himself as the redemptive sacrifice for our sin! Quite a challenging mission I must say!

So as He approaches the end of His task, He reflects on His earthly life and offers a sincere prayer to His Father as our “Great High Priest.” (I read it this morning during my time of “Coffee with the Lord.) Here is a key phrase in His prayer…

“I glorified You on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now Father, glorify me in Your own presence with the glory that I had with You before the world existed!” (from John 17:4-5) And then, hanging from the cross as He died for our sin, he added the exclamation mark: “After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished… cried ‘It is finished!’ and He bowed his head and gave up His Spirit!” (from John 19:28-30)

What a way to finish – what an expression of “mission accomplished!”

Reminds me of my “life verse” … “I do not account my life of any value now as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I have received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God!” (Acts 20:24)

Listen! With God’s help I want to finish strong! “Mission accomplished!” How about you?

Good things happen to kind and generous people! Go ahead and do what is right and good and let the Lord surprise you with His blessing!!

Those were the thoughts that entered my mind as I read the full story of the Shunammite woman and Elisha the prophet this week… (You’ve got to read it… it’s amazing! (2 Kings 4.8-37 and 8.1-6)

This wonderful lady opened her home to the prophet. She periodically prepared and provided a wonderful meal for him whenever He and his servant would stop by her home. She even, in a wonderful expression of generosity and kindness, appealed to her husband to prepare a “prophet’s chamber” for them (a hotel-like room for him and his servant to stay and refresh themselves for a few days).

Her generosity and kindness did not go unnoticed! One day Elisha had his servant approach her and ask this question, “You have gone to all this trouble for us. Now what can be done for you?” He offered to do several things on her behalf but she deferred from asking for anything in return (which is just the way this kind of person acts).

The prophet’s servant reminded the prophet she had not been able to have a child. The prophet prophesied she would have a son in about a year. And to her and her husband’s delight it came to pass! But one day, out in the fields, the son fell sick and died. She was devastated and sent and called for the prophet. In bitter grief she told the prophet what had happened. Elisha hurried to their home, went up into the room where the dead child was and miraculously, the child was raised from the dead.

Story not over… Elisha warned the family of a coming famine and urged them to go away for a while so they would be able to survive. They went away to the land of the Philistines for seven years. Afterward they returned to Israel and made an appointment to appeal to the king to get their land back. Just as they arrived, Gehazi, the servant of the prophet happened to be meeting with the king and at his request just happened to be reporting some of the wonderful things God had done through the ministry of the prophet. Just as he was telling the king about the very occurrence of raising the Shunammite’s son back to life, who should appear for her appointment with the king but the Shunammite!! Gehazi exclaimed, “This is the woman, my king, and this is her son Elisha brought back to life!” The king’s response? He said, “Give back everything that belonged to her, including all the income from her land from the day she left the country until now!”

Wow!! God causes good things to happen to kind and generous people! Reminds me of a well-known and quoted Biblical principle: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28) Lesson one more time… Good things happen to kind and generous people! Go ahead and do what is right and good and let the Lord surprise you with His blessing!!

There are some things you just can’t do for yourself (or things that aren’t advisable for you to try).  These are things for which you need a qualified person … someone who is appropriately certified, someone who knows what they’re doing.  For example, “do it yourself heart surgery” is NOT recommended!  It is usually not recommended that you serve as your own attorney is difficult court cases.

When it comes to you or I standing before God as guilty sinners we need a Divinely qualified priest!  Jesus is that priest according to the writer of Hebrews in your Bible!  You cannot deal with your own sin!  You can’t forgive yourself at the Heavenly tribunal!  You can’t take the divine pen and write “aquitted” (the Bible word is “justified”) over the official record of your transgressions!  Jesus can!!  He’s qualified as our “Great High Priest”!

I read the following words in my Bible this morning and had a bit of a personal praise and thanksgiving spell!!  I’m so grateful that Jesus is Divinely qualified to deal with my past – present – and future failures and sin!! 

“He is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.  Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens.  Unlike other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself!  For the Law appointed as high priests men in all their weakness; but the oath (God’s oath), which came after the Law, appointed the Son (Jesus), who has been made perfect forever!”  (Hebrews 7:25–28)