I Needed an Earthworm

(and found one!)
There are some interesting, little referred to, verses about the worm in scripture.

I love that God is a God of infinite detail in all truth. That makes Him past finding out, every layer of detail leading but to a deeper layer.

When God says that we can learn things about Him and His ways by studying the things He created... He meant just that. So there is really nothing in our earth that does not hold some kind of lesson for us to learn if we just take the time to look and consider.

Take for example the earthworm.
Who as a child has not been fascinated with the earthworm? What little country boy has not looked for them to put them on his fishing hook?
But most of us never consider that this little wiggly thing might have something to teach us.

I recently read about the earthworm... not on purpose... but I stumbled upon the information by accident.

I was interested - immediately seeing the lesson.

Though it is hardly a comparison we are attracted to ... man to a worm... it is a fact in scripture that the comparison is made.
Job 25:6 "How much less ... a son of man , who is a worm."
Psalm 22;6 "But I am a worm, and no man...."
Isaiah 41:14 "Fear not, you worm Jacob.."

Why would God choose to compare man to a worm?

Perhaps for the following reasons.
The earthworm has no eyes and no ears, yet it has an inherent attraction to the darkness. Put an earthworm in the light and it is not long before it disappears into the darkness of the earth. It has a love for the darkness even though it is blind to the light.

The carnal man is not so very different , is he ?

The natural man, is spiritually blind to the light, and yet has an inherent desire for the darkness. He seeks the darkness that hides his deeds, to hide who he really is. John 3:19 "And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."

How natural this tendency is - we see it in our young children, who go hide when they have done something forbidden. Just as children think they can hide from their parents, man thinks he can hide from God.
The 'darkness' is a false security - a lie from the enemy. Of course God can see everywhere and 'will bring to light the hidden things of darkness' (I Cor. 4:5)

Does this 'bent' toward the darkness disappear when our 'spiritual eyes' have been opened and we have been "delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the kingdom of his love" and have been "made partakers of the inheritance of the saints of light"?

We have been delivered from the 'power' of darkness and yet our flesh still tempts us to draw back into it. The kingdom of light is governed by 'love' ... the 'darkness' is governed by 'hate'. How easily we think less than 'loving' thoughts toward someone who has slighted or wronged us. Yet the scripture warns.....
I John 2:11 "He who hates his brother is in darkness and walks and walks in darkness and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes."

There was one other thing I learned about the earthworm . His brain is so small that if it is removed, he doesn't notice -- he simply carries on.

This reminded me of what God says about people who deny His existence. "The fool has said in his heart, there is no God." (Ps. 14:1)
A fool is someone who does not use his mental ability, but prefers to just carry on with what comes naturally.
He is someone "lacking in common powers of understanding" , according to Webster.

Who would have thought that we could learn something from the simple earthworm.
But his example is an example to be avoided.
Someone once wisely said... "We do not learn best from our own mistakes, we learn best from other's mistakes".
Maybe we could rephrase that to say ... "The wise man avoids the 'teaching' of the earthworm"

"A wise man will hear and increase learning, and a man of understanding will attain wise council." (Prov. 1:5)

The Shroud of Turin

It is again that time of year when we think of the event that changed the world.
A death.... but not just any death. The death of the perfect Lamb of God. Put to death, not for His own sins, but for yours and mine.
He was laid in a tomb, but the tomb could not hold Him. Angels rolled away the stone so that those who came to the tomb could see that the tomb was empty.
Jesus had risen from the dead.

Some time around 1353-1357 historical records show that there began to be talk about a Shroud , a Shroud that bore an imprint of a crucified man. Whether this was the Shroud of Turin is debated but without controversy The Shroud of Turin can be traced back to the middle of the 16th century.
It has been said that it is the most important religious artifact and the fascination with it has not died down over the centuries.
That it is mysterious and unexplainable by science, even with today's technology and advanced knowledge, is undeniable.

Christians have long been intrigued with the idea that Jesus' burial cloth could supernaturally hold His image, created by the power of His resurrected body.
Books, films, documentaries have been written and distributed. Even You Tube offers visual proof of the enhanced image using new techniques.
The History Channel showed a new documentary this week ... "The Face of Jesus" , keeping the interest of people in the Shroud alive --- whether they are Christian or not.

But, I ask the question ... is it or is it not the burial cloth of Jesus? Can we know?

Really the answer is amazingly simple. A very obvious detail is overlooked by those who argue that the Shroud of Turin does indeed bear the image of Jesus and was His burial cloth.

We have in the gospel of John the account of Jesus' burial.

Joh 19:38-42
After this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took the body of Jesus.
And Nicodemus, who at first came to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds.
Then they took the body of Jesus, and bound it in strips of linen with the spices, as the custom of the Jews is to bury.
Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid.
So there they laid Jesus, because of the Jews' Preparation Day, for the tomb was nearby.

We see from this account that Jesus was not buried in a one-piece-Shroud. Jesus' body was bound with STRIPS of linen.

We also know that Jesus' had a separate cloth for His head...

Joh 20:7 and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself.

It is noted in our John passage that Jesus was buried according to the Jewish customs. I did a bit of research to see what the customs were.

A body was wrapped with alternate layers of spices and strips of cloth. To use 100 pounds of spices meant many layers of wrapping . The head was not 'embalmed' with these strips of cloth and spices but the head was wrapped separately, and the face was usually left uncovered.

Our conclusions can be none other but that the Shroud of Turin is not the burial cloth of Jesus and therefore the image is of another crucified man.

Does it matter to our faith if the Shroud would or would not be Jesus' burial clothes? No, because we have scripture that we base our faith on.

What concerns me is how easily we are taken in by myths or speculation or deception. It is soo tempting to reach for the offered physical proof of our faith.

I have seen another circulating e-mail that claims a secret message was left by Jesus in the folding of His burial head napkin. The message is based on Jewish table customs at the time... that a folded napkin meant the person was coming back to the table - and the servant boy knew not to clear away his plate.

So when Jesus folded His napkin , He was leaving a secret message to His followers.. He was coming back. The secret message idea appeals to our love of intrigue and delights our senses. But here again , those who accept this speculative story as true ignore a very obvious fact.

Table napkins were not used until the middle ages... There was no ancient Jewish table custom that involved personal napkins - they used water.

I did find one article that described modern napkin etiquette. If a person wishes to leave the table and is coming back, he leaves his napkin on his chair. If he is finished eating and will not be returning he folds it loosely beside his plate. Perhaps this custom inspired the e-mail version .

This is a sobering/joyous week for us Christians. Jesus, our Messiah, the perfect God/Man came to earth to be The Way , The Truth and The Life. He was buried and He rose again to offer us eternal life in Him. We do not need His burial cloths, we do not need a secret message that indicates He is coming back.

We have the record... the angels said...

Act 1:11 who also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven."

and Jesus said so in His own words...

Rev 22:20 He who testifies to these things says, "Surely I am coming quickly." Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

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The Perfectionist

When we hear someone described as a 'perfectionist', we all have an image of someone dedicated to details.

If the perfectionist is working FOR us ... we are delighted at the quality we can count on ... but if we are being compared to a perfectionist we quickly feel inferior and defensive, knowing we do not measure up.

While we love the idea of 'perfect', there is a tension in us... the longing for it yet the reality that it is always beyond our grasp.

Only God is truly Perfect and Jesus the God/Man is the only true Perfectionist who ever walked our earthly soil. He came dedicated to fulfilling every detail of the Old Testament. Every detail ? yes... in His own words every jot and tittle. (Matt.5:28)

We are familiar with the obvious prophecies that speak of Him....and are aware that some of the OT characters are types foreshadowing Him, but what about the details that fall into 'jot and tittle' category - the ones that maybe you have to look for; the ones that only a Perfectionist would fulfill.

I found one of these today tucked into the following Old Testament story. (found in I Sam.21:1-7)

David, and the men with him, were fleeing from the wrath of Saul. Being on the move, any food they had with them was quickly consumed .

Three days had passed and the men were hungry.

The men were under David's command; he felt responsible for their needs. What could he do? An idea came to him.... he must have dismissed it at first because it was something against the law. But his men were hungry. He put them first.

David slipped into the temple and said to the priest named Abimelech, "Now therefore what is under your hand? Give me five loaves of bread in mine hand or what there is present."

Overturning the law, the priest gave the hallowed loaves to David... bread that had been dedicated to God. It cost him his life.

Fast forward a thousand years.... and we have two similar stories

One is in Matt. 6.

Jesus, and the people with Him, had consumed the food they had brought with them. Time passed and the people were hungry. Jesus had been meeting all their needs, were they not also looking to Him to feed them?

Jesus asked, "what do you have?" The answer was 5 loaves and two fishes.

He looked up to His Father (Abimelech means "Father of the King") , 'hallowed' the bread to Him.... and passed it out. The 'hallowed' bread fed the multitude.

We are told of another time in Matt.15:32, when Jesus fed the multitude ... this time three days has passed and again the people were hungry. Once again Jesus hallowed the bread and God provided from heaven the provision needed. Jesus overturned natural law, Jesus fulfilled heavenly law.

To provide living bread cost Him His life.

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You might ask, why is it important that we have this parallel of stories?

Perhaps at first glance, it is not important at all as it supplies no new information, nor does it add to any understanding of either the OT or NT stories.

But this is what it does do ; it gives to us the confirmation that God's Word is always true in every detail . We have the assurance that we can trust it.

God's Word is so tightly woven that its intrinsically connected details make it impossible for anyone other than God to have written the bible over a period of 4000 years.

The scriptures are indeed wondrously spoken forth. With what awe should we guard it, and obey its Words.

**

I Had a Dream

A few nights ago I had a dream.

I was moving among and interacting with a crowd of people: talking sharing and observing. The crowd faded into the background as suddenly I saw before me, three men standing at attention dressed in uniforms. They looked identical.

There was a word attached to each man which I understood.

The dream ended and I awoke, but to my dismay I could not remember the three words. Try as I might, I could not bring them back.

I prayed asking the Lord to let me remember the words and what they meant.

I fell back asleep and dreamed again. Once more, I heard the words and what they meant.

When I awoke the second time, I remembered.

The words were 'whole-hearted', 'half-hearted' and 'hard-hearted'.

The three men who outwardly look identical in their uniforms, hid within them three different heart conditions.

We could look at the example of three kings in scripture. Three kings , who were loved and admired and followed but with three very different hearts.

King David was whole-hearted toward God. He had the love of his people but the important praise was God's.

Act 13:22 He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, 'I HAVE FOUND DAVID THE SON OF JESSE, A MAN AFTER MY OWN HEART, WHO WILL DO ALL MY WILL.'

King Saul was half-hearted. He, more than any other king, excited the emotion and admiration of the people. He was their first king, chosen by God. He was regally handsome. standing head and shoulders above the people.

But his half-heartedness was his downfall.... He turned away from following the Lord and ultimately became guilty of the unforgivable - consulting a medium.

Saul in his own words reveals his half-heartedness.
1Sa 15:24 Then Saul said to Samuel, "I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice.

Is that not where all half-heartedness begins? When we fear man? or love the things of this world and what it offers?

God will not share His temple, and we have record of God's judgment of half-hearted Saul.
1Sa 16:14 But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and a distressing spirit from the LORD troubled him.

Then we have Rehoboam, the hard-hearted king. He looked so promising. All the people wanted to crown Rehoboam , the son of Solomon, as their king. They expected great things.

But it was not to be. Rehoboam never sought the wisdom of God, he sought the wisdom of his peers, the young men he grew up with.

He outrightly rejected the counsel of godly men.
2Ch 10:8 But he rejected the advice which the elders had given him, and consulted the young men who had grown up with him, who stood before him.

Rohoboam went down but he did not go down alone. He took Israel with him.

2Ch 12:1 Now it came to pass, when Rehoboam had established the kingdom and had strengthened himself, that he forsook the law of the LORD, and all Israel along with him.

God's final word on Rohoboam's hard heartedness in found recorded for us in II Chron. 12:14. " And he did evil, because he did not prepare his heart to seek the LORD."

We have an incredible advantage looking at these three examples --it is called hindsight. With that hindsight we have God's recorded judgment of them.

When we observe the people in our lives that we look up to as leaders, guides, examples, heroes we do not have the advantage of hindsight, and often their true heart condition is not visible to us. From our outward observations they may all look alike. We have another disadvantage today in that many of the people we look up too are far removed from us..... our high tech media allows us to see 'the outward' uniform of many people on TV, on videos, in print. But we do not have the advantage of watching their daily walk, as we are told to do in this passage...

Heb 13:7 Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.

Because we cannot always recognize a person's heart from the outside, we need to be careful and discerning . The best way to see some one's heart is not to look at the 'uniform' outside of their life or ministry but to watch how they do their daily life - their 'conversation'.

The ones who are the most deceiving are the half-hearted ones... which is why Jesus said to the Laodiceans in Rev. 3:16 "...because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of My mouth."

Let us be discerning believers, watching and judging with a righteous judgement... discerning the heart and not the uniform. But most of all let us guard our own heart that we follow Jesus whole heartedly which is the first commandment ...

Deu 6:5 "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength."

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