Who Let the Dogs Out?

It’s an important question, though not as we pondered it in the 90s. The scripture reading from this week’s sermon begins with Paul’s warning to the church at Philippi, “Watch out for those dogs…”, (Phil. 3:2).

Have you ever taken someone’s word about who they are, only to be disappointed when you discover their actions or words aren’t consistent with who they claim to be? 

One day, this will be the reality for all of us who follow Jesus. We will worship in the fulness of God’s presence, not just free from sin and despair, but also more alive than we have ever been before.

Humanity lives in God’s perfect community until they rebel and are forced to leave; and God immediately makes promises and plans to rescue humanity. The cost would be severe, but Jesus would come and die on the cross to redeem and rescue us from our sin. All of this so that God can adopt us back into his family and his community.

Have you ever heard the grandiose stories of God performing miracles through missionaries and felt like those powerful moments were out of reach for you; or heard the incredible testimonies of people who were saved from radical scenarios and thought that you couldn’t be used by God because your story wasn’t good enough?

Every parent and educator will tell you that the most effective lessons that occur between a teacher and student are usually “caught”, not “taught”. That is the power of example. We learn by seeing how others respond, act and behave.

We have not yet seen the completion of God’s redemptive plan come to its full fruition, but we do not live as those who have no hope.

“He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.” These words from Hebrews 1:3 display the beauty of Christ in the fullness of His glory as he sits at the right hand of God and upholds the universe by the word of his power.

Leviticus 16 paints a grim picture of life without the eternally atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. With these God-given instructions for animal sacrifices also came much sadness. Blood would be shed, and innocent life would be lost so that mankind could seek the forgiveness of sins and the removal of guilt.

“You will not surely die.” The craftiest of serpents whispered in the ear of Eve who took the fruit of the forbidden tree and shared it with her husband. This one act of sin broke mankind’s ability to dwell in the presence of the Lord, for no unrighteousness will coexist with the holiness of a perfect God.

When the Redeemed look at the cross, we see our past sins forgiven, our present given purpose today and our future is filled with the Hope that comes with knowing that the best is yet to come.

A mediator is one who stands between two sides and works toward reconciliation. When Christ hung on the Cross of Calvary, He was acting as a Mediator.

Sadly, many do not experience the full joy of living in the freedom that Christ provides. Too often, we return to the bondage of sins forgiven. We allow the Accuser to tell us we must do more. We fail to enjoy the new life we have where we can plan for our heavenly future because the penalty and burden of our sins has been removed.

The nativity scene with baby Jesus in the manger can tempt us to believe that this was His beginning.

When the serpent questioned God’s command to abstain from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the garden, he was subtlety enticing the first couple to a life of upward mobility. According to the serpent, God was holding back knowledge and position.

My daughter sitting in a chair with a book, like her dad, even though she could not read. My son playing a guitar, like his dad, even though it was made out of cardboard. By nature, children look like their parents, and, by nature, children want to be like their parents. Adopted children do not share their parents’ genetics, but they do share the inclination to imitate their parents…

As Christians, we are grafted into the family of God through the rootstock of Christ. He is our foundation and source of peace with God. Just as a branch grafted into a tree shares all the tree's nutrients, we are one in Christ and able to enjoy the blessings and benefits therein, not because of anything that we did but because He loves us and invited us into his family.

Remember watching The Sixth Sense? Nobody saw the ending coming and it changed the entire frame of reference for the rest of the movie. If you watched it a second time, then with the understanding that the main character is a ghost, you see everything in a different light. The scenes look different. The characters aren’t interacting as you’d thought. The dialogue has new meaning. It isn’t the same story at all because the ending changes everything.