He set his face.

Yesterday millions of Christians observed Palm Sunday, our traditional remembrance of the day Jesus entered Jerusalem. It was a uniquely different service this year as most American believers worshiped virtually, our on-line experience. Still, the date is one of significance as our hearts are prepared to remember Christ's suffering, death, and glorious resurrection next Sunday, Easter. Christ's journey to Jerusalem evidenced his passion for fulfilling what he understood as his mission--- "My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work" (John 4: 34, NIV). His passion began long before his arrival in the Holy City. He went to Jerusalem with great intention and purpose. You know, genuine passion.

Luke's orderly account of Christ's life annotates this journey with clarity and precision. On several occasions Jesus had announced his eventual death and resurrection to the disciples. One day, on the Mount of Transfiguration, Moses and Elijah appeared and riveted the disciples attention to Jerusalem---

And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory

and spoke of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.

Luke 9: 30-31, ESV

Just a few verses later Luke wrote---

When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.

Luke 9: 51, ESV

He set his face to go to Jerusalem. Many of the Bible versions translate the "set his face" phrase to other, more modern, descriptive words---resolutely, steadfastly, determined, made up his mind, intently, prepared himself, fixed purpose, and others. Each was a demonstration of our Lord's intentional purpose to journey to the city of his death. Jesus was totally determined to fulfill his vicarious death there. He set his face to go there! Once again, passion superintended and guided the arduous travel.

Yes, we can rationalize such resolve in our belief that Jesus is fully God. You know, all things are possible with God (see Luke 1: 37). We must remember, however, that he was fully man as well. He knew the human realities of opposition, pain, suffering, and death. While the crowds waved palm fronds to celebrate the arrival of their Messiah, Jesus knew that the vast majority of citizens would criticize and ostracize him, that the Roman and Jewish officials would demand his trial and horrible crucifixion. Yet, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. Nothing would keep him from his appointed hour of death.

This week is remembered as his week of passion. His passion to do the will of his Father and finish his work began long before he entered Jerusalem, however. Luke's Gospel tracks his journey to Jerusalem with that same sense of determination and resolve. As he journeyed there he taught, healed, and ministered to the people in the towns and villages along the way. But, each stop was portrayed by Dr. Luke as an brief interlude. In every occasion Luke reminds his readers that Jesus was going to Jerusalem. He had set his face to go there, passionately aiming his life and earthly ministry to that pivotal moment in the history of mankind.

Today, we're more than a little off-course in our routines and lifestyles. Covid-19 has altered many of our life norms. If Jesus is to be our example, should we not display the same "set-our face" spiritual determination to remember his passion, and somehow demonstrate it in our responses to the people in our circles of influence? Most churches didn't physically gather yesterday, Palm Sunday, and most won't Next Sunday, Easter. Still, we should have the passion and resolve as his followers, to mark this season and prepare to celebrate the greatest miracle in history.

He set his face. Determined, resolved, purposeful, passionate. I'm praying for that kind of spiritual passion in my own life. And, you?

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God is working.

BE CERTAIN OF THIS

My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.

John 5: 17, NIV

OK, so memory is an issue these days. There are, however, a few remembrances that are still desipherable in those dusty mind catalogs. One is the day Dr. Henry Blackaby taught from John 5: 17, the above listed Scripture. A small group of pastors were being trained to implement Experiencing God: Knowing and Doing the Will of God in South Carolina churches. By that time I had been a pastor for more than 10 years, had completed two seminary degrees, and had preached through the Gospel of John on several occasions. Dr. Blackaby's lesson that morning ignited a new sense of awareness in me. I had never considered the implications of what Jesus had said to that group of angry religious people. That God was always working was a confessional truth long acknowledged by me and most every other believer I knew at the time. It was, however, a teachable moment. That lesson became a life-changing theme for me. I've preached, taught, and written from John 5: 17 and the accompanying verses more than any other Bible passages. If you read this space regularly you can recite these points. They are five of the most assuring certainties that have guided me through some hard times, even the senseless and tragic murder of our son Brian in 2011. So, make note---

1. God is always working (reference John 5: 17, above).

2. God's is always working his pleasure and not mine.

...for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Philippians 2: 13, ESV

3. God is always working for my good.

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, NIV

4. God will complete the work he has started in me.

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion

at the day of Jesus Christ.

Philippians 1: 6, ESV

5. God works so that people will be in awe of him.

I know that all God does will last forever; there is no adding to it or taking from it. God

works so that people will be in awe of Him.

Ecclesiastes 3: 14, HCSB

Scripture also notes the many times God's people either failed to perceive God's working or somehow forgot it. Israels failure to teach their children the remarkable work of God following their 430 years in Egypt and 40 subsequent years in the wilderness is a prime example. The historian wrote---

And all that generation also were gathered to their fathers. And there arose another

generation after them who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for

Israel. And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord...

Judges 2: 10-11, ESV

Another reminder is Isaiah 43: 19, another favorite Scripture. God said---

Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?

I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

Humans can be so self-contained and focused on the exigencies of life that they do not comprehend what God is doing. It's a hard fact of life right now. Last evening I read many warnings and dangers of Covid-19, expert medical advice about how this virus is transmitted, and dozens of subsidiary questions. Can our government abridge our constitutional freedoms? Can our economy rebound when the virus has run its course? One says one thing, and many others affirm something else. It's the basic truth that we humans can't know everything. Some life realities are hidden in the mystery of God's ways. This pandemic might be one of them. Speculate, theorize, hypothesize, and give it your best shot. In the end, we still may never know.

With so many questions and angles we're scrambling for some answers and meaning. There are certainties, however. One of them is that God is always working and the four addenda to that biblical truth listed above. There are, of course, others. The truth of God's working is a certainty that prayerfully will be clear to us as this thing develops. That is, if we're paying attention!

His working is a powerful exclamation point in a universe of question marks.

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Standing on the promises.

Inquiring minds want to know: how many Bible promises are there? Well, like most questions it depends on who you ask. The actual number is debated. While one calculator says there are 3, 573, another boosts the number to 5,467, still another has counted 7,487, and another 8,810. Really , the number of them isn't such a big deal anyway. Obviously there's a sufficient number to cover just about every area of human experience. The really significant thing, beyond how many there are, is the sanctity and reliability of every last one. God's many promises bring strong foundations of certainty into the flux of life. Right now, with all of the unanswered questions about Covid-19, there are promises to steady the quaking path we're traveling. They guide and assure us when the question marks are prevailing.

Several Scriptural affirmations guarantee our reliance on God's promises at every juncture of this journey. Understand that my personal worldview acknowledges and accepts the authority and absolute truthfulness of Scripture---

Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel

had failed; all came to pass.

Joshua 21: 45, ESV

For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we

utter our Amen to God for his glory.

2 Corinthians 1: 20, ESV

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through

the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has

granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may

become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in

the world because of sinful desire.

2 Peter 1: 3-4, ESV

By way of personal testimony, of the many promises in the Bible five have been particularly meaningful during my most challenging and trying life experiences. They are offered here with the Bible verse giving me that assurance, without comment---

1. The promise that he is always with me.

If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.

Psalm 139: 9-10, ESV

2. The promise that he hears my prayers.

And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.

1 John 5: 14-15, ESV

3. The promise that God will provide for me.

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4: 19, ESV

4. The promise that God knows my heart.

I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds

Jeremiah 17: 10, ESV

5. The promise that he will give me peace.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4: 7, ESV

The heading for these thoughts is the title of a favorite hymn. It may sound a little old hat but it does reflect the certainty of God's promises. Standing on the Promises, was written by Russell Kelso Carter in 1886. The lyrics are powerful and affirming. If you'd like to review them, click here.

It's true. Life can knock us down or blow us away. God's powerful promises give us courage and strength when we're worn thin by doubt and fear. Discover the certainty of God's promises so that when those times come, which they will, you will be standing on them. They are certainty in a universe of questions.

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