Good morning again from Crane, Missouri.
I rose this morning about 3:30am local time. The temperature is 17 degrees. Hopefully there will be no glitches in our travel plans today—returning to Oregon.
I mentioned the probability of sending a photo to show a little project I helped Nita craft from cardboard and hot glue then paint—a sea turtle box to hold valentines when she goes to school on Wednesday. The shell of the turtle hinges up as a lid to access the box.
Happy Monday! Blessings. Ray.
I looked up the phrase “signs and wonders” in the concordance and found a huge list of its occurrences through the Bible. That is a compelling indication for me as to how the Sovereign God chooses to reveal Himself to mankind. He does not hold a press conference to be questioned by arrogant journalists. He doesn’t do much detailed explaining. He has no obligation to defend himself from biased opinions or false accusations. I think there is no better way to describe Him than the way He describes Himself to Moses when Moses asks Him how to state to Israel Who was sending him to lead Israel out of Egyptian bondage—“I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you” (Exodus 3:14, KJV). (It’s extremely significant that Jesus uses the same awesome title at one point to define Himself—“’I tell you the truth,’ Jesus answered, ‘before Abraham was born, I am!’” John 8:58 NIV. Wow!) He is clearly TRUTH—but He chooses not to disclose TRUTH in clear terms that leave no room for question or argument. As methods of revelation, He loves to obscure His TRUTH with signs and wonders, symbolism, intrigue, and mystery—so that TRUTH may only be available to those who seek it with a humble HEART AFTER GOD.
I believe that’s what we have here in the account of the torn temple veil (along with the other supernatural phenomena accompanying His death)—ripped apart at the very instant Jesus dismissed His spirit. The symbolical meaning of that display can hardly be mistaken by anyone knowledgeable of the Old Testament sacrificial and Temple systems. This pivotal day marks the fulfillment and glory of the Biblical Gospel! Salvation and relationship with this Holy God are now secured and available through the sacrificial death of Christ on the Cross!
Wouldn’t it be great if we could effectively impart this fundamental TRUTH by means of a radio ad that went something like this: “Hurry! You don’t want to miss this wonderful, yet exclusive, limited-time offer!” Although that ad would speak TRUTH, many, if not most, would most likely respond with casual indifference, kind of like they respond to an ad for roof maintenance or toothpaste.