Oswald Chambers (one of my favorites, if you’ve never noticed before) asks a question in his My Utmost for His Highest devotionals. Without conjecture or even set-up, here is what he asks: “Have you ever been pierced by the Lord?”
Now ponder that for a moment. Take a good journey down memory lane.
Have you?
It’s not: Have you been challenged by the Lord? Nor is it: Have you been pushed by the Lord? He can certainly do those alone or in conjunction with other actions. But the question is: Have you ever been pierced by the Lord?
I have multiple times in life, and quite frankly, there is absolutely nothing like it. You can’t deny it, you can hardly explain it, and you can’t get around it. His piercing is both deeply soul-wrenching and incredibly freeing, when it happens. There is no wondering what it is, what it was, or why it happened. It comes with crystal clear clarity and purpose. Truth here: Our Lord pierces us to accomplish His purpose; to better us for His glory and so that we might accomplish His work.
In the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 6, there is a rich litany of teaching expelled and given by Jesus. I often think of how challenging it must have been for the writers of the Gospels to listen, to soul-search, to capture, and to write the words of the Lord. Surely the Holy Spirit was their true guide in capturing the depth and proclaiming the truth. Starting in Matthew 6, at v.19, Jesus is expounding on the theme of storing up things for ourselves. It had to speak exceptionally loudly and a bit uncomfortably to the disciples and followers. After all, most of them had very little in the way of “earthly value” and “assets.”
But Jesus goes deep, and after driving home the point of “storing up treasures in Heaven,” He hits the real nerve (I feel) that He wanted to tackle in v.21: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will also be.”
Let’s go ahead and say it together: “Ouch!” It’s o.k., we are all people and we are all familiar with treasures.
I run into different people with different treasures every week. Here is a short-list of what could be a treasure: addictions; athletics; family; money; title/position; power; school; leisure time; work-out plans; and just work itself. There are more, no doubt. Even in my past, there were things that became, and were, treasures. The thing is, no matter what the treasure is (which can be/become a form of idolatry, if not careful), our heart is also right there with it.
People put there “treasures” ahead of everything, including God.
We hold onto them, with a grip that is unrelenting.
And most often, it is denied that it really has control over us.
When Chambers asks: “Have you ever been pierced by the Lord?” – I feel he is going head on into this very subject matter. Sure, it could be other things and relate to entirely different circumstances in our life journey. But I come back to the reality that when the Lord pierces us, it is often with the intention to get our attention and to get us back to what is most important in our lives…His presence and lordship.
Never allow your own will to eradicate or undermine the Lord’s purpose in your life. If our treasure is in Him…if we place our life in His hands…if we see ourselves as a people after His own heart…our treasures will reflect and represent where our heart truly is. So let’s allow Him to pierce us, so that our treasure is truly in the Lord Jesus Christ – once and for all. Then, we will be better equipped and positioned to be a blessing to His Kingdom and to others.
In His grace,
Porter
PastorPG's Blog 