August 17th, 20

 Life Emerges from the Ashes

Today’s readings are from Jeremiah 26, 35 – 36 and John 20.  We are reading from the New Living Translation.

The living Word of God cannot be extinguished.  In Jeremiah we see the pages of God’s Word set on fire by an evil king, and burned up.   But the Word can not be extinguished.  Instead, the Word was re-written with “much more” than was written before.

The prophet wrote down, word-for-word, what he was told. He then proclaimed it before the people and the king.  The evil king dissects each passage, from the scroll ,and consigned it to the fire.  The king thought he could stand in judgement over God’s word.  He thought his little fire would put an end to what God was going to do.  But the Word comes back.  It was burned to ashes.   But out of the ashes it emerged, once again, proclaiming again what God would do. And this time, with “much more”.  

He wrote everything that had been on the scroll King Jehoiakim had burned in the fire. Only this time he added much more! (Jer 36:32 NLT)

Our reading in John these last two days tells the same story.  The evil king, Satan, the enemy of our souls,  also wants to put an end to God’s Living Word, by sentencing him to the cross.  But the cross can’t stop God from doing what he intends to do.  In fact, it is on the cross where he accomplishes what he must do, to free us from the judgement that is due us.  

Judgement was written on Jeremiah’s scroll, and consumed by the fire, but it was also resurrected. The scroll was remade, with ‘much more’. So too, with Jesus, God’s judgement was absorbed by Jesus body, the Living Word, as he was lifted upon the cross. That was for me and for you.  He offered himself to the flames of judgement for us. And He was resurrected into new life, so we could have ‘much more’.  

No evil king can stop God from what he intends to do, whether it’s the king of Jeremiah’s day or Satan, who is the god of this world (II Cor 4:4 NLT).  God has chosen to offer up his own life for ours. Jeremiah’s scroll had judgement written on it, and just as the scroll was consumed, the Living Word of God absorbed the fires of judgement, but was resurrected, so that you and I might be raised to new life.  

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (II Cor 5:21 NIV)

He’s come to offer himself, to free us, so that we can enter into his life, through the power of his name.

But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name. (Jn 20:31 NLT)

Fires cannot extinguish God’s word.  Instead, His word emerges from the ashes and brings us new life, life with ‘much more’ than before.  Live in the “much more”.  See what God and rejoice in His love, demonstrated to you each and every day.

You are loved!