The Heart Of The Human Problem
This morning I found myself reading the latter chapters of the book of Exodus. This post is the result of meditating on God's desire to dwell with His people. The last few chapters of Exodus is a description of Moses receiving instructions from the Lord for the Tabernacle.
The Tabernacle was a large tent, a portable temple, where the presence of the Lord lived among the Children of Israel while they wondered through the wilderness. The instructions go into great detail for the design and construction of the Tabernacle as well as the furniture to be used in worship to the Lord Almighty.
This morning my mind wondered down a meandering path, not of the design of the Tabernacle, but the fact that the Lord desires not just a relationship with us, He wants to live in us. Here is how my meditation journey took place this morning. As I contemplated how God chose to abide with His people, the Children of Israel, I thought of how they camped around the Tabernacle. The Presence of God was at the heart of the encampment. When the Cloud/Pillar lifted above the Tabernacle the people pulled up stakes and moved.
Just like the the Children of Israel, you and I need to have the Lord at the center of our lives. When the Lord moves, we need to move. Where the Lord stays, we need to stay. Our lives need not be merely aimlessly wondering through life or driven by our own passions and desires for materialistic things, power, or prestige. God said He would give us the desires of our hearts (Psalm 37:4). If God is dwelling in the middle of the camp He will be placing the desires in your heart. Those are the desires He loves to fulfill. The Lord's desires become your desires.
Then I started thinking how the Israelites camped around the Tabernacle. If you add up the numbers of each tribe and where they camped (Numbers 2) you will see that they camped in the shape of a cross with the bottom pointing to the east. I then stood up and held my arms out so that I was in the shape of a cross (Okay, a fat cross) and the Tabernacle would have been right where my here is. Try it.
Again, God was telling me that He needs to be at the center of our lives. Over and over again the Lord tells us of His desire to live life with us.
Isaiah 7:14 (NASB95) “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel." (Immanuel or Emmanuel = God with us)
Matthew 1:22–25 (NASB95) "Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “'Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.'” And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus."
Jesus goes on to tell His disciples John 14:16–18 (NASB95) “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans."
I am writing this post just a few days after the movie theater massacre where a young man with several weapons went into a movie theater and shot 71 people, killing 12 and wounding 59. We ask ourselves how someone can do something like that.
The news is reporting about a football coach from Penn State University was convicted of being a serial rapist of young boys and the university was fined and sanctions were handed down for their part in covering up the crimes so as not to reflect poorly on the university. We ask ourselves how could they do that.
I have heard it said, "The heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart." I think that sums up the situation pretty well. The problem of evil and wickedness is that Jesus has been excluded from the middle of the camp of people's live. We live in a fallen world where Jesus is not at the center of people's hearts and lives and as a result people have to fill that spot with something. Some fill it with themselves. Some fill it with a false god who commands them to prove their devotion by running planes into buildings, killing as many people as possible.
Enough despair! God has called me and you to show people there is a better way. He has called us to help people put Christ in the center of the camp. Tell them there is a better way than being self-centered, being Christ-centered. It's called Christocentric. Everything was created by Christ, through Christ, and for Christ. Putting Jesus back in the center of the camp realigns everything to the way things were created to be.
To fix the problem of the human heart, one must first put Jesus back in His rightful place.
Then I started thinking how the Israelites camped around the Tabernacle. If you add up the numbers of each tribe and where they camped (Numbers 2) you will see that they camped in the shape of a cross with the bottom pointing to the east. I then stood up and held my arms out so that I was in the shape of a cross (Okay, a fat cross) and the Tabernacle would have been right where my here is. Try it.
Again, God was telling me that He needs to be at the center of our lives. Over and over again the Lord tells us of His desire to live life with us.
Isaiah 7:14 (NASB95) “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel." (Immanuel or Emmanuel = God with us)
Matthew 1:22–25 (NASB95) "Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “'Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.'” And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus."
Jesus goes on to tell His disciples John 14:16–18 (NASB95) “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans."
I am writing this post just a few days after the movie theater massacre where a young man with several weapons went into a movie theater and shot 71 people, killing 12 and wounding 59. We ask ourselves how someone can do something like that.
The news is reporting about a football coach from Penn State University was convicted of being a serial rapist of young boys and the university was fined and sanctions were handed down for their part in covering up the crimes so as not to reflect poorly on the university. We ask ourselves how could they do that.
I have heard it said, "The heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart." I think that sums up the situation pretty well. The problem of evil and wickedness is that Jesus has been excluded from the middle of the camp of people's live. We live in a fallen world where Jesus is not at the center of people's hearts and lives and as a result people have to fill that spot with something. Some fill it with themselves. Some fill it with a false god who commands them to prove their devotion by running planes into buildings, killing as many people as possible.
Enough despair! God has called me and you to show people there is a better way. He has called us to help people put Christ in the center of the camp. Tell them there is a better way than being self-centered, being Christ-centered. It's called Christocentric. Everything was created by Christ, through Christ, and for Christ. Putting Jesus back in the center of the camp realigns everything to the way things were created to be.
To fix the problem of the human heart, one must first put Jesus back in His rightful place.
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