Invasion of Light

Discovering God's Glory Through Creation: A Daily Devotion
May 25, 2012

The Tension Between Male and Female – Day 155

Without marriage and covenant, the image of God in human beings collapse. A person is only fully whole when he or she has the input of both a father and mother. In the same way, the church is not a true testimony to God unless both males and females are active in life-giving relationship together. To silence the female is to silence God. On the other hand, a predominantly female church in which the males have more “manly” things to do also falls short of God’s glory. Male and female in relationship, covenant, marriage and mutual respect, reveals God’s reality.

Yet there is a catch. For male and female to dwell together in harmony is almost impossible. Each sex is wired different with unique desires, aspirations and perspectives. The tension between male and female have been experienced throughout history. Is there any solution?

The world has proposed that through learning one another’s differences and practicing communication (as well as getting counselling!) we can live in harmony. But is this the full story? Never before has there been so much marriage counselling and never before has there been so much divorce. Though the world’s proposals may have some validity, marriage is bound to fail, or at least be incomplete, without the cross. It is only the death and resurrection of Christ that can make us one. It is only as we die to ourselves with Christ and participate in the Spirit’s resurrection life that we can live in community. God has given us a daily witness of community through the family. Our communities and churches cannot dwell together in unity without the death of the male as well as the female preferences.

It is through marriage that we learn to live in covenant and it is impossible to live in covenant without Christ and the cross. In covenant we die daily. Family life is meant to be a reflection on the eternal Family of God. It is a relationship of giving and receiving, serving and sacrificing, enjoying and celebrating. It is a relationship that requires us to be like the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. At times we are giving, at other times we are receiving and sometimes we are aiding. Sometimes we sacrifice, at other times we are sacrificed, and still at times we are doing both.

Prayer: Father, help me to live in covenant relationship with you and my spouse. Help me to die to myself so that you can live through me, in Jesus’ name.

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May 23, 2012

Do Males Have a Monopoly on God? – Day 154

“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created him” (Gen. 1:27, NIV). In this verse we see something more about being created in the image of God. We learn that males do not have a monopoly on God’s image, neither do females. Rather only male and female together, in covenant relationship, manifest God’s image.

This has great implications for society and community. The male dominated society is not a true reflection of God’s likeness. But on the other hand, feminism falls short too. Only the humility of both male and female dwelling together in sacrificial love reveals God’s heart.

Based on the above verse the Rabbis taught (and still do teach) that man is incomplete without woman. Only in marriage is a male complete. Though much rabbinic teaching is male-oriented, the Rabbis were definitely going in the right direction with this line of thought. Malehood alone does not mean completeness.

The age-old question is whether God is male or female. The Bible refers to God almost exclusively with male-terminology. However, feminists have argued that this is chauvinistic and that our view of God should be the divine mother. There has even been discussion about changing the Lord’s Prayer to “Our Father and Mother.” How do we respond to this?

God is neither male nor female. As God he is above sexual orientation: he is the creator of the sexes. So then why do we use the pronoun “he” to describe God? It is because that is the Biblical example. Why does the Bible put emphasis on God as a Father rather than a Mother? The answer to this question is complex, but most importantly we need to see that the image of God does not just contain male qualities but what we would also consider female qualities. In Scripture God is compared to a woman in motherly compassion. Even wisdom is referred to in the feminine form.

The image of God can only be reflected in both male and female together as one.

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May 20, 2012

Diffusing Eden’s Fragrance – Day 153

Once we understand the Holy Spirit, and how he restores us to intimacy with the Father through the Son, our lives will be revolutionized. Through the Holy Spirit we receive every blessing the Father has for us––we receive the very nature of the Father and Son. Through the Holy Spirit we are also liberated from fear because we are brought into God’s eternal love. Just as Christ was raised from the dead by the Holy Spirit, we receive new life from the Spirit and are raised up with Christ to sit with him in the heavenly realms. The Holy Spirit makes us one with God and allows us to participate in God’s benevolent rule over earth.

When Christ rose from the dead he declared to his disciples: “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you” (John 20:21).  He then breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit…” We are instantly reminded of man’s creation in the garden when God breathed into Adam’s nostrils the breathe of life and he became a living soul. I believe it was God’s breath that enabled man to be made in the image and likeness of God. It was out of this experience with the Spirit that man was sent to fill the earth and subdue it. It is the Spirit that empowers us to be sent out, to be in intimate knowledge with God and spread the fragrance of Christ everywhere we go. The Spirit enables us to bring the fragrance of Eden out into all creation. The Spirit is God’s own living breath given to the Son. And it is given to us because we are in the Son. Without the Spirit we cannot be sent and we shouldn’t go. Therefore we must continually cry, “Come, Holy Spirit!”

Prayer: Father, breathe on me your Spirit and let me diffuse the fragrance of heaven wherever I go today, in Jesus’ name.

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May 18, 2012

The Most Intimate Place in the World – Day 152

When we read the words “image” and “likeness” we should be reminded of Jesus Christ himself. The New Testament teaches that he is the very image and likeness of God. “The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation…For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him” (Col. 1:15, 19). In these verses, as well as others, there is a definite connection between being in the “image” of God and being God’s “Son.” Therefore we can deduce that in the beginning God made human beings to be his sons and daughters. He made us to be one with the eternal Son. This is a place of full acceptance, affinity and affection. This image was marred when we fell, but it was restored to us through the Son. God has again lifted us up into oneness with himself.

This is why the apostle Paul was adamant about salvation being in Christ. We are saved because we have been brought back into the Father’s image through the Son. There is no other salvation outside of that image. All the love the Father has for the Son is ours because we are in Christ. To say we are “in Christ” means we are in a position of intimacy with God. Moreover, we are in the Father’s eternal life––Jesus. We are in the very revelation of the Father himself. Nothing is held back from us, all is ours in Christ.

It is by the Spirit that we are brought into this dynamic relationship. Without the Spirit we are dead because the Spirit is the life of the Father and Son’s love. If we do not have the Spirit we do not have Christ because Christ as Son is the eternal recipient of the Spirit. The Spirit is like the woman who searched for the lost coin. We were that lost treasure and when the Spirit found us he brought us back into our original home: the Son who is the house of God, the eternal dwelling of the fullness of the Father. Because of the Holy Spirit we are not orphans; we are sons and daughters of the Father (John 14:18). The Spirit enables us to call the Father, “Our Father.” The very same relationship that Jesus has with his Father we have because of the Holy Spirit and Christ’s blood (Eph. 2:16-18).

Prayer: Father, I thank you because when I was born again I was made again into your image and likeness. I have been created to be in the most intimate place in the world––in Jesus. Through Jesus I am a son/daughter of God. And through Jesus I have been given the Holy Spirit. Nothing has been held back from me. Let me see and walk in that truth today, in Jesus’ name.

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May 17, 2012

You Were Created for Intimacy – Day 151

Being created in the image of God means we were made in the image of community. Furthermore, we all have the capacity for intimate fellowship with God. Every creature made has some relationship with God, but human beings have access to the ultimate relationship with God. Because we have been created in God’s image we can be enveloped in the triune fellowship of God himself. We have the ability to know and understand God. God is not unknowable to us; we can know him. The beasts of the fields may be blessed by God’s presence, but only we can have unprecedented communion with God.

I cannot fully understand the birds of the air because I am not like them. The ants communicate, but their communication is a mystery to me, I am only an outsider looking in. But with God I am no outsider. I am created in his image and likeness. I can know his thoughts and emotions. I can know his ways and his plans. I can know his language. I have been created to sit with him in the heavenly realms. It is only because we are made in the image and likeness of God that we are called to rule over God’s creation. If we are not intimate with God then our rule is the reign of a usurper. This rule is only the privilege of those in fellowship with God.

To be made in the image and likeness of God means we are partakers in God’s eternal life. Eternal life is not first and foremost about longevity (that is, living forever). It is about being in the eternal exchange of God’s fellowship. The Father communicates life to the Son by the Spirit and the Son communicates life to the Father by the same Spirit. Because we have been made in the image of God we are in the centre of this divine exchange of life. Therefore being created in God’s image is completely the grace, mercy and favour of God. Who can ask for anything more? Since this is how we were created our hearts are restless until they find rest in God alone.

Prayer: God, let we walk in intimacy with you today. Let me have that deep fellowship with you that I was created for, in Jesus’ name.

 

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May 16, 2012

The Religion of Control or The Life of the Spirit – Day 150

False religions have a few common characteristics. One is that they disengage the world. God’s community is different, it lives to engage the world without becoming like it. Another distinction of false religions is uniformity, but God’s Kingdom thrives on unity in diversity––that is, community instead of uniformity. Fabricated religions are like franchises producing cookie cutter believers, but true churches are like healthy families––they may have issues and tensions because of their diversity, but they work through them. Dead religion dominates through control; God’s community thrives on the liberty and life of the Spirit.

Karl Barth taught that the word “church” should rather be translated “community” (Evangelical Theology). The word “church” often has baggage and preconceived notions attached to it, but if we see the “church” as God’s community then we will be able to redeem the word. Peter said, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy” (2 Peter 2:9-10).

Of course no church can become the fullness of this apostolic community overnight. The call to be an apostolic community is in the DNA of the church like the DNA of a mustard tree is found in the seed itself. It takes take for that DNA to mature. And just like no city can thrive by itself, so each church needs one another. Like a city we need to both import and export to prosper; we must constantly be receiving and giving to flourish.

Prayer: Father, make us into the community that you destined from the beginning for us to be, in Jesus’ name.

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May 15, 2012

Apostolic Jealousy – Day 149

When seen in the light of the Biblical meta-narrative, Jesus’ call for the eleven to “go and make disciples” was a call to “be fruitful and multiply.” Baptizing disciples in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit is immersing believers into the image and likeness of God. It is bringing people through the symbolic waters of God’s womb in order to give birth to a new creation. The call is not merely to build a church but to extend God’s Kingdom.

Apostles are passionate about God’s Kingdom. They are called to restore what has been lost. Their vision is grand, extending beyond their four walls. They are fathers like Adam, Abraham and Israel. They have nations in them even though their company of disciples may be small.

This is why apostles plant churches and are jealous for God’s people. Individual believers without fellowship cannot bear the image of God. God’s image is in community and we only reflect that in fellowship with one another. Apostles long to see apostolic communities throughout the earth––communities that look beyond themselves in order to be a blessing. These communities are called to “rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations” (Isa. 61:4).

These communities are meant to be the true cities and nations on the earth, though they may not be recognised by the ruling powers. They help, serve and protect one another. They administer justice and bring salvation. They import grace and export life. They honour one another. They are the opposite of Babylon whose origins are seen in Genesis 11. Babylon was found so that men may make a name for themselves and not be scattered over the face of the earth. Conversely, God’s city is established on earth to exalt the name of Jesus (Yahweh saves) and spread the Kingdom of God to every corner of the world. Every community is merely a base to export God’s glory on earth. It helps and supports those who sacrifice their lives, losing their name to make his name known. The very foundation of this city is Jesus with his apostles and prophets––characterised by sacrifice and worship.

Prayer: Father, give me an apostolic heart and may the apostles’ pure jealousy be my own, in Jesus’ name.

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