obedience

What If We Said No?

April 28, 2022 by Ellen 6 Comments

You’ve heard of Ananias, haven’t you? Your first thought is probably Ananias of “Ananias and Sapphira” fame. You remember: Ananias and his wife Sapphire lied and stole from God. Oh my! Their story is not easily forgotten.

But there is a different Ananias in scripture. Better, if you will. We can find his story in Acts 9.

Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias; and the Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” Acts 9:10 NASB

Ananias was a good man, a disciple of the Lord Jesus. He had a willing heart. Even before Ananias knew what Jesus was going to ask him, he made himself available. (Confession time: I like to know what I’m saying “Yes” to BEFORE I actually say yes! Amen?) We can discern that Ananais was a good and righteous man because of his willingness to serve.

Perhaps that’s why Jesus asks him to minister to Saul. You know Saul. He was the one murdering all the followers of The Way. He was the one trying to kill all the Christians. All all the men like Ananias, in fact. Jesus needed someone with a willing heart.

It seems Ananias tried to get out of this horrible assignment by reminding Jesus how bad Saul was (as if Jesus didn’t know already!).

“Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard from many people about this man, how much harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. And he has authority here from the chief priests to arrest all who call on Your name.” Acts 9:13-14 CSB

But Jesus had plans for Saul. Saul was to take the message of the gospel to the Gentiles. Jesus called Saul His “chosen instrument.”

Oh, y’all! Aren’t we all chosen instruments of Jesus Christ? Doesn’t God have a plan and a purpose for each of us? Yes! And Yes! Jesus loves us unconditionally, the same way He loved Saul, the same way He loved Ananias.

If the Lord asks us to minister to someone and we can’t even fathom being near that person, what should we do? Well now, we need to find a way to love the unlovable – the way Jesus loves them. And we need to be willing to minister to them.

Did you know there is blessing in obedience? Look at the rest of the story:

“And immediately there fell from his (Saul’s) eyes something like scales, and he regained his sight, and he got up and was baptized;” Acts 9:18 NASB

Ananias laid hands on Saul, so that Saul’s sight was restored. Then, he had the honor to baptize the Apostle Paul. What a blessing!

What if Ananias had said “No” to Jesus? What are we missing when we say no?

Grace be with you,

Do you know Jesus?

The Mercy Seat and B

April 14, 2022 by Ellen 2 Comments

Bezalel.

You’ve read his story in scripture. Like me, you may have skipped right over his name. Cause you know, the challenge of Biblical pronunciation, amen? You know what I’m talking about! I’ll bet you don’t raise your hand to read scripture aloud, until you’ve glanced over it to make sure you can say all the words. Right? So when I’m reading about Bezalel, I just call him B.

Even though B’s name is mentioned only nine times in scripture, we see that he was quite important. Why? He was called by God.

“See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah.” Exodus 31:2 NASB

Bezalel was a skillful man. However, the Lord added more skill and understanding to him. He was supernaturally equipped and enabled by God to do the job assigned to him^⁠1. And what was that?

Bezalel was called to work on constructing the sanctuary. He helped make the curtains and he built the ark of the covenant.

“Now Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; its length was two and a half cubits, and its width one and a half cubits, and its height one and a half cubits;” Exodus 37:1 NASB

Not only that, Bezalel constructed the mercy seat.

“He made a mercy seat of pure gold, two and a half cubits long and one and a half cubits wide.” Exodus 37:6 NASB

So what?

Horrors, I’m gasping here! You’re asking so what? What’s the big deal about Bezalel building the mercy seat?

An artisan from the tribe of Judah made a seat representing the mercy of the Lion of Judah.

Interesting fact: the original Hebrew word for mercy seat meant lid, or cover. It also means propitiation, which is a big word meaning to offer a gift to appease someone’s wrath. On the Day of Atonement, the high priest made atonement (or amends) for himself, the Tabernacle, and the people by a sin offering, which included sprinkling blood on this cover. It was here, above the mercy seat that God resided.

The mercy seat points forward to Christ. Jesus was the offering to appease the wrath of God because of our sins. He is the propitiation for our sins. His death was the atoning sacrifice to save us from death. He took our place on the cross. When we place our faith in Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we are covered by His blood.

What better way to commemorate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus, than by remembering the mercy He had in choosing to take our place on the cross.

Today, I’m praising God for Bezalel. I’m thankful for his obedience to use his gifts for the glory of God.

The Mercy Seat and B. What a beautiful reflection of Jesus.

Grace be with you,

Ellen

¹Ex. 36:1-2

Do you know Jesus?

¹Ex. 36:1-2