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BECOMING LIKE CHILDREN

My wife and I recently attended a surprise 80th birthday party for my wife's aunt.  There were lots of cousins, great cousins, and even 3rd generation cousins present at the party, some of whom had come a good distance to attend; so, it was great to see everybody and catch up on news of their families.  My wife later commented about how one little baby who was just months old was able to pick out her mother's voice even above 40 or more other voices all talking at the same time.  Her little ears would prick up, and her head would turn toward the direction of her momma's voice.   As my wife described what she observed that day, I had to think of the relationship with our heavenly Father and how similar it is to that little one and her momma.  There are many voices around us always, some of them are good, and some of them are not so good, but in the midst of so many voices our Father's rings out true and distinct from all others. ...
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NEW COATS

"But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof" (Romans 13:14).   Scripture compares the putting off our old, carnal nature, and putting on our new nature in Christ with changing clothes.   The picture I have in my mind is like when I would come home from work and take off the dirty, smelly clothes that I had worked in all day, bathe, and put on clean, fresh clothes that were free of spots, odors, or wrinkles.   The simplicity of this picture is arresting.   God does not suggest that we try to clean, patch up, or press the old garments - He tells us to put them off altogether and discard them because He has a brand-new garment for us.   God says that "...we are all as an unclean thing , and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags" (Isaiah 64:6).   There is nothing salvageable about our old nature: it is corrupt according to the deceitful lust that rules it.   The Apostle Paul was convin...
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DESPISED AND REJECTED

"He hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him.  He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from Him; He was despised, and we esteemed Him not." (Isaiah 53:2a, 3).   We usually like to dwell on the beauty of the Lord when we talk or meditate about Christ, but I would like to shed some light on the uncomely aspect of the Lord.  During His earthly ministry, Jesus angered and offended a great number of people - people who said they were looking for His appearance.  They were waiting for a mighty king who would lead them to victory against their enemies and restore Israel to the glory that it once enjoyed.  This carpenter's son from Galilee was not what they expected, and His message was to love their enemies, not vanquish them; to turn the other cheek, not get the upper hand; and give their cloak if their coat was taken.  This di...
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