Awake, O Sleeper

“Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” ‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭5:14‬ ‭ESV‬‬

The text above also appears in the hymn by the same name (UMH 551). It is a reminder that through Christ, the dead are raised. It is true of people like Lazarus and Jairus’ daughter and all who were dead in sin and raised to eternal life through Christ. Sin condemns us to permanent death at the end of our body’s life. Christ is the source of the resurrection that God the Creator has in mind for all. Yet, resistance to God and God’s precepts separates us from the source of eternal living. Through His death and resurrection, Christ breaks down the barrier of sin if one allows it. Accepting one’s guilt before the Holy God and then accepting God’s propitiation, who is Jesus Christ, opens the floodgate of the LORD’s grace. [Sin = death. Repentance + Acceptance = Grace and eternal life]

    The followers of that pattern of salvation become Christian disciples. As such, they no longer live for flesh destined to decline, die, and decay. Instead, the disciple is focused upon Heaven and resurrection life. He/she lives now in preparation for then. Therefore, discomfort and frustration, disdain and persecution, and other discipleship consequences are viewed as temporary obstacles on the Way of Christ. The call to those who are dead in sin is a call to attend to a matter of eternal consequence. 

    The extent to which one is willing to strive for heaven-readiness is another matter of similar significance. A man or woman who says, “I have repented and accepted Christ” may still be living for the flesh because acceptance of a gift was as far as he or she was willing to go. Nevertheless, the gift of a new, eternal life comes with expectations, chiefly devotion, and loyalty to the life-giver, Jesus Christ. It is what is meant by calling Him “Lord.” Therefore, Christ calls out to his heirs, “Awake, O sleeper!” What are the signs that Christ’s disciples are sleeping? Here are a few suggestions: 

Do they pray often and sincerely?

Do they strive to obey Christ’s commands?

Here’s a useful list - LINK 

Do they meet regularly with other Christian disciples for edification and encouragement?

Do they give sacrificially of their time, talent, and treasure? 

Do they take responsibility for and risks in living and proclaiming the Gospel? 

Do they submit to false gods such as social standing, riches, toys, habits, and lusts?

Do they feel conviction when receiving the Word of the LORD? 

Do they feel the compulsion to change for the sake of the LORD?

The hymn based on the passage above reminds us in the final verse, “For us, Christ lived, for us, he died and conquered in the strife. Awake, arise, go forth in faith, and Christ shall give you life.” It is a call for us to go forth and join Christ in all that He does in and through us. It is a call to be united with other awakened sleepers in living for an eternal purpose more than for temporary flesh. 

Prone to Wander

Prone to wander, Lord I feel it; Prone to leave the God I love . . .  ~ Robert Robinson. 

Last Sunday, we used Robinson’s hymn, “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing,” in both worship gatherings. I have loved the hymn for decades and never fail to comment about its verses when we use it in worship - no doubt repeating the things I’ve said in the past. The hymn is rich with poignance and drenched in timeless truth. Robinson celebrates the glory of God’s grace and the sorrow of wandering from our home like the prodigal child. 

Robert Robinson’s faith journey started when he was very young. He was a troubled teen who brought constant frustration and embarrassment to his parents. He went to an outdoor preaching event led by George Whitefield, a contemporary John Wesley who convinced him to preach in the streets. Robinson planned to bully and disrupt the preaching but unintentionally became convicted by Whitefield’s message. Robert gave his life to Christ that same day and eventually became a minister. “Prone to wander . . . Lord, I FEEL IT AGAIN!” “Prone to leave the God I love!” “LORD, TAKE MY HEART AND SEAL IT!”  

Robert strayed from his new life and became a sad, broken man. He knew what he needed, but he could not prevent his gradual slide back into his old ways. Late in his life, Robinson found himself riding in a stagecoach with a young woman reading from her hymnal - in those days, hymn books contain no musical notation. She had just finished reading one that so moved her that she had to share it with him. It was “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing.” After unsuccessfully attempting to change the subject, Robinson finally confessed, “Madam, I am the poor man who wrote that hymn many years ago, and I would give a thousand worlds to enjoy the feelings I had then.” (Peterson and Peterson 2006, 371)

What happened to Robert Robinson? How did he quench the fire of conviction and release the fetter that once bound his heart to God’s goodness? Perhaps it was inevitable. The gospel of Christ is powerful, and when a Spirit-filled Christian Believer, presents it the power of conviction is hard to resist. However, it is essential to remember that a new life has begun at the moment of repentance and surrender. It would consider it absurd to dress a newborn baby in adult clothes and then sit him behind a desk or at the controls of heavy machinery. Yet, that is what often happens when new Christians are born. Imagine one estranged from God and the people who gather in God’s name, suddenly awakened to the joy of God’s grace and the hope of eternity with God. His or her enthusiasm is contagious and met with exuberance but, if not carefully handled in that moment of great opportunity and vulnerability will quickly fade from lack of training and discipline. 

Patient perseverance is required while learning to live with an entirely new paradigm. God will not raise leaders from the ranks of those who never knew how to follow. The Lord will bring counselors and mentors alongside the new Believer. The Ecclesia (the Body of Christ) must prayerfully and thoughtfully nurture new Christians. The Body must be willing to intentionally walk a disciple’s pathway and to urge each other onward. Spiritual maturity usually follows a similar course to moral and social adulthood. Therefore, it is vital for elder disciples of Jesus to protect the less mature from their lack of wisdom without stifling their passion. Robert Robinson probably moved too rapidly from street gang member to Christian Believer and then into professional religious life. Unfortunately, churches often destroy passionate pastors who lack humility, wisdom, and inner strength. Comfortable church attenders frequently quench the fire they so desperately need. 

The local church must embrace intentional discipleship for every member to avoid this sort of perpetual brokenness. With the Holy Spirit’s aid, wise leaders in the Ecclesia will provide for nurture and passion in the Body. Understanding and sanctified imagination suggest that Robert Robinson was allowed to build his spiritual house on sand. His discontent was indicative of a lack of humility and wisdom until it was too late. Robinson’s beautiful, insightful hymn informs us that we need to erect a stone of remembrance from time-to-time to mark our progress along the disciple’s way. We must present our hearts to the Lord daily, asking that He seal it against the trials we face. When we feel the tendency to wander, we can turn to the Ecclesia (the Body of Christ) for patient understanding and support. We can obtain contentment through humility and wisdom.  

Peterson, William J., and Ardythe Peterson. 2006. The Complete Book of Hymns. 1st ed. Vol. 1. 1 vols. Carol Stream, Illinois: Tyndale House Publishers.

The Beloved

And the Lord said, “Call his name Not My People, for you are not my people, and I am not your God.” 
Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. And in the place where it was said to them, “You are not my people,” it shall be said to them, “Children of the living God.”~Hosea 1:9-10

    I transitioned from writing about pastoral leadership amid the great hunker down of April and May 2020. I was compelled to focus more energy than ever upon caring for the flock. So, each week, I prepared a note written early on Wednesday morning and immediately delivered. That is still true to this day. The idea was that it would be fresh and relevant to the general morale of the Shiloh family. Some days are more challenging than others because I cannot sense a specific area for encouragement. That’s when I ask the LORD to reveal a Scripture passage that He would have me interpret. After all, the Spirit knows what you, dear one, need even when I don’t. 
    The prophet Hosea had a strange and challenging mission. He married a prostitute who bore children in the marriage that God gave specific names for an eternal purpose. His life was the prophetic message, and it was a hard life to live. The LORD’s unmistakable message through Hosea was, “I have a covenant relationship with Israel, and she is acting like a prostitute.” The less apparent but far more significant reality is that LORD views the covenant relationship as a marriage. The biblical interpretation of marriage leaves no escape clauses; it is a sacred, life-long covenant. Therefore, Hosea’s illustration of Israel’s unfaithfulness expresses the LORD’s deep pain and sense of betrayal and His unfailing love. 
     God’s people have never been able to maintain a perfect commitment to the relationship. It is the same in our lives too. It turns out that we were born with a sin condition - Thank you, Adam & Eve! So, what is the point of God’s message through Hosea? Perhaps the LORD is expressing more than anger with Israel’s folly. What if God wants His people to know that, despite their unfaithfulness, they will be redeemed and restored to a flourishing covenant relationship. 
     Hosea’s prophecy is about a new covenant. It is a word for future generations. It is helpful to recall that biblical prophecy is not fortune telling or future predicting as we see in the tabloids by the checkout lane. Biblical prophecy serves as signs of God’s faithfulness. The LORD uses the prophet to tell us what to look for when God’s promises are nearing fulfillment. Biblical prophecy is like a resident giving directions to an outsider; he says something like, “you will travel in that direction for three miles, and then you will see a red barn and a silver-domed silo. Then, you will know that the crossroads is just ahead.” Hosea demonstrated God’s plan to restore the marriage covenant that Adam broke by providing a new Adam, who is Jesus Christ. 
     The former Adam planted the seed of sin in each of us, but the new Adam canceled its consequence so that we can be called “Children of the living God.” We become God the Father’s children by marriage to God the Son. We are cut away from the tree of death and grafted to the tree of life. God is our Father through Jesus Christ. Nevertheless, the world and even many Christians and Jews mutter condescendingly like Hosea’s wife Gomar, “You’re a fool.” Convinced of the LORD’s folly, they sin against Him all the more. Yet, even in the depths of the most incredible agony ever known, He said, “Father forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
     Think for a moment about that inconceivable love. What if it turns out that one only needs to turn and face it? What if the daily pursuit of feelings and things (sensuality) always leaves one empty and unsatisfied? Consider our ongoing study of Ecclesiastes and the plight of Solomon. Is he not another Gomer? If you had the chance to repent of the wrongs you’d visited upon a lost loved one or desired to offer him/her forgiveness and restoration, what would it mean to you to have another opportunity?
     Christ gives us all that second chance. There is peace with our past through Him and with those with whom we shared so much pain. It starts with stopping. Stop running toward sensuality (things of the flesh; feelings, sensations, things). Stop ignoring our Lover’s voice. Stop, just stop. Then, turn and face Him. Look into His wonderful face and believe that He loves you enough to die for you. Watch Him reach toward you with an open hand. Walk slowly toward Him and feel His compassion and grace.