What a friend we have in Jesus,
All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer!
Oh, what peace we often forfeit,
Oh, what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer!

What a Friend We Have in Jesus
By: Joseph M. Scriven, 1819-1886 (1855)

Listen to this simple piano version as you read, or watch the video complete with lyrics then read.  Please make certain to enjoy the video below.

Below is content always available to Subscribers, often to Free Members, and sometimes everyone.  Want to learn more about accessing all the additional material in the Subscriber Content Library, click here, or the Free Member Content Library with some examples of the complete Subscribers content, click here.

Everyone enjoy this video, and the transcript below.

Transcript may be found below, at the end of the blog.

We begin our journey through another great hymn today.  If we were too boil it all down to a phrase, I suppose we might say “We must regularly take advantage of the opportunity to talk to Jesus about everything because He is our friend”.   But we are instead going to spend four weeks to let these stanzas speak deeply to us their powerful truths.  Let’s tune our hearts.

Self-Assessment

So as we begin this journey I want you to take a few moments to get a sense of how often you take advantage of the access you have to Jesus?  I am not talking about devotions or quiet time, I mean regular conversations with Him.  Have you talked to Him today?  When was the last time?  Do you truly take ALL your sins and griefs to Him?  Do you have the peace He affords, or are you carrying needless pain?

Take a few moments and talk to Jesus right now.  Ask Him to help you grow in this from where you are right now, to a better place  where you take everything to Him.  Seriously, ask Him right now.

Jesus

When you think of Jesus what is the first word that comes to mind?  That is a bit of unfair question because He is so much, but really, what is that first word or first words.  For me, I don’t think it is generally “friend”, but it should absolutely be in the mix if I am to have a complete understanding and experience of Who He really is.

Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.  John 15:13 ESV

• That is exactly what Jesus did…laid down His life
• That is exactly what Jesus showed..greater love
• That is what it makes Jesus to us…our friend

A friend like no other.  A friend who died to bear all our sins AND griefs.  That also makes Him our Savior, but He is more than that.  Why is that so hard to believe?

Oh, you believe it do you?  Have you been acting like you believe it?  Do you take everything to Him, or are you like me, taking the things that seem worthy of His attention and leaving many other things unmentioned?

This really is a mindset more than anything else, but it must begin in the heart.  We must believe that we can take everything to Him, or we simply never will.

Are there reasons you do not bring everything to God?  What are they?  Are you willing to lay them down so that you may instead grab hold of the better reality of bringing it all?

Everything

But I get it. Everything?  Really?  Yes!

So what are those reasons we do not bring everything to God.  I think they all come down to two.

1. Our concept of Jesus is too small
2. Our concept of ourselves is too big

We start with Jesus.  If our concept of Him is too small, then we will not take everything to Him because we are not convinced He can handle it.  Now before you dismiss this really consider why you do not bring Him everything.  Is it because at some level you think He can not handle it, or does not care, or is unaware of you and your need?  Ask the Holy Spirit to make Jesus bigger to you.

We end with ourselves.  If our concept of self is too big, then we will not take everything to Him because we are convinced we can handle it.  The remedy for this way of thinking is simple, well at least saying the word is…humility.

 

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God…casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.  1 Peter 5:6-7 (ESV)

It still starts with Jesus though.  When we are convinced that Jesus cares for us we are willing to cast all our anxieties on Him.  When we cast all our anxieties on Him, we are humbling ourselves acknowledging we need His help.  When we acknowledge we need His help, we see just how mighty His hand is.  

Jesus is your friend.  Embrace that reality today!  Enjoy the privileges it affords.

Jesus, thank You for being my friend.  I embrace the reality today.  I want to enjoy all the privileges it affords.  Take me deeper in my understanding and experience of that.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen!

Prayerful Tuning!

Keep coming back and we will work to help you remove the things that may hinder your longing for His return by cultivating an awareness of God’s presence.   We will help you tune your heart to live out your worship by providing resources like this to help you acknowledge the greatness of God as you become more Resonant, 7 days a week.

Like what you finding here?  Fill out the form to the right to get an email with each fresh post and updates of new tools to help you be Resonant.

Please comment below and share if you have found this helpful in your journey of being more resonant.

Video 13.1 Transcript

Welcome to Tuesday Tunings at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s tune our hearts.

What a friend we have in Jesus,
All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer!
Oh, what peace we often forfeit,
Oh, what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer!

No one else could have borne our sins, or would bear our griefs but Jesus.  He is the friend we could have never deserved, yet is the truest friend we would ever find.  Jesus taught us that there is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for your friends, then he did it. Thank Him!

We all need a friend who will accept us as we are. A friend to whom we can bring everything, not just the better, shinier parts but the worse, dirtier ones as well.  Jesus is such a friend. You may know that, but I failed to practice it. What do you need to bring to Jesus today?

In these two lines we see the positive we fail to lay hold of and the negative we needlessly cling to, peace forfeited and pain borne, all for lack of accessing our friendship with Jesus. What pain do you need to take to Jesus?  What peace do you need to receive? Do it right now. Your friend is waiting.

This horizontal worship reminds us to take everything vertical.  We do not need to keep carrying the things that have long weighed us down, and likely slowed our progress in our faith journey.  Just carry them to Jesus in prayer …and then leave them there. 

Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has surfaced in your heart, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then we will sing once more.

Sing

Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond.  Until next time, be Resonant.

The post Can I Really Pray About Everything? appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image Attributions
Jesus, Friend – https://pixabay.com/photos/jesus-god-holy-spirit-christian-3469896/
Everything to God in Prayer – https://pixabay.com/photos/prayer-hands-church-light-2544994/

All creation, join in praising
God, the Father, Spirit, Son,
Evermore your voices raising
To th’eternal Three in One.
Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn King.

Angels, from the Realms of Glory
By: James Montgomery, 1771-1854 (1816)

Listen to this simple piano version as you read, or watch the video complete with lyrics then read.  Please make certain to enjoy the video log below.

Below is content always available to Subscribers, often to Free Members, and sometimes everyone.  Want to learn more about accessing all the additional material in the Subscriber Content Library, click here, or the Free Member Content Library with some examples of the complete Subscribers content, click here.

Everyone enjoy this video, and the transcript below.

Transcript may be found below, at the end of the blog.

We conclude our journey this week beyond Christmas and the celebration of the birth of our Savior.  Throughout the carol, we have repeated the refrain which offers the invitation to come and worship.  It culminates here with the consummation of the ages and a look into our worship around the throne.  Let’s tune our hearts.

All Creation Praising

Though we are going to end up around the throne, both at the end of the age and later in this post, that is not generally where my thoughts go first when I think of “all creation”.  I love the world that God has put together to display His glory. I enjoy walks through it, marveling at His creativity.  I am often thrilled at the colors of a sunrise or sunset, or a brilliant hillside in autumn.

What is your favorite vista in creation?

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. Psalm 19:1-2 ESV

The heavens themselves are an invitation to worship, but are not the object of that worship.  They instead pour forth speech and knowledge of the handiwork of our God.  Allow your last recollection of His glory in creation to inform your praise right now.  Can’t recall it? Consider the image at the top.

What about invisible things?

The creation is not only made up of visible things like the heavens and the earth, but of many invisible things as well.  The invitation to worship issues to them as well, because they, too, were created through him and for him.

For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. Colossians 1:16 ESV

What about things we just can not see yet?

And there are created things that are yet to come, at least as far as our perspective is concerned.  We can not see them, for we are bound my time and they are eternal. Even these things are called to come and worship Christ.

And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, 

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”  Revelation 5:13 ESV 

Not just the created world, but all the creatures which teem upon it.  What an incredible glimpse into the heavens Revelation 4-5 gives us! These words from John in his heavenly vision tell us all the creatures across all creation will be praising.   They will lift their voices to Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb!

All these are invited to praise. Can you find yourself in that description?  Have you determined that you will absolutely be among those who will offer praise to God now, and then?  Commit to worship today!  Then never stop!!

God, the Father, Spirit, Son

As we prepare to leave the Christmas season behind, we take a last look at one of the most often quoted prophecies regarding the first coming of Jesus.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 ESV

Here in this oft-quoted Christmas prophecy, we see different representations of our Triune God: Son, Counselor (Spirit), and Everlasting Father.  God is Father, Spirit, Son, and we are invited to come and worship Him. The Father sent His Son, and the Spirit revealed Him to us.  With that revelation came to opportunity to worship Christ the newborn King, who has become the Risen King and our Savior.

One day all creation will worship Him.  The greatest treasure belongs to those who gladly choose to worship Him now.  Will you offer your life in praise to our Triune God?  Will you worship Father, Spirit, and Son? Come and worship!

 

Jesus, thank You for issuing the call to all creation to come and worship.  I have heard that call and have gladly chosen to join with all those who worship You.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen!

Worshipful Tuning!

Keep coming back and we will work to help you remove the things that may hinder your longing for His return by cultivating an awareness of God’s presence.   We will help you tune your heart to live out your worship by providing resources like this to help you acknowledge the greatness of God as you become more Resonant, 7 days a week.

Like what you finding here?  Fill out the form to the right to get an email with each fresh post and updates of new tools to help you be Resonant.

Please comment below and share if you have found this helpful in your journey of being more resonant.

Video 12.6 Transcript

Welcome to Tuesday Tunings at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s tune our hearts.

All creation, join in praising
God, the Father, Spirit, Son,
Evermore your voices raising
To th’eternal Three in One.
Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn King.

The carol culminates with one great final call to worship issued to all creation.  “Come and worship Christ, the newborn King!” As we turn the page to a New Year will you continue to issue that call even as you respond to it.  Pray to see the Christ clearly in 2020.

And not only the Son, but the Father and Spirit as well.  John 1:12 says “to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”  The Spirit enables faith in Jesus which makes us the Father’s children. Thank Him for faith in His name.

As one year rounds into another we are mindful of the constant movement of time.  Commit to worship God in the New Year and in every moment He gives you here, until you commence your eternal praise in your new home.

He was the newborn King.  Then the risen King. He will be our returning King. He is ever our eternal King.  Worship Him now. Worship Him then. Worship Him forevermore.

Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has surfaced in your heart, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then we will sing once more.

Sing

Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond.  Until next time, be Resonant.

The post Will You Join the Creation-Encompassing Worship? appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image Attributions
All creation – https://pixabay.com/illustrations/fantasy-artwork-digital-art-181304/
Throneroom Worship – https://www.pinterest.com/emc2csc3559/revelation-4-5-7-seals-opening-vision-gods-throne-/

 

Though an Infant now we view Him,
He shall fill His Father’s throne,
Gather all the nations to Him;
Every knee shall then bow down:
Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn King.

Angels, from the Realms of Glory
By: James Montgomery, 1771-1854 (1816)

Listen to this simple piano version as you read, or watch the video complete with lyrics then read.  Please make certain to enjoy the video log below.

We continue our journey beyond Christmas and the celebration of the birth of our Savior.  This week we consider our response to the King in the Manger, the Lamb on the Throne. We are His people between His two advents, and certain pursuits should mark our lives.  Let’s tune our hearts.

First Advent

Advent simply means “coming”.  Jesus came that first time as the King in the manger.  God with us, Emmanuel, the One who would save us from our sins.

And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.  Luke 2:7 ESV

We become so familiar with this greatest of stories that I fear the significance of it gets lost on us.  Let me ask a simple series of questions.  How did you celebrate this most excellent of arrivals this past season?  What things did you do individually or with others that put the focus squarely on Jesus?  Now compare how much time and effort you spent preparing for and engaging in those, as opposed to all the other holiday festivities.  Ouch!  Were they even, or maybe, possibly overshadowed a bit by the general busyness of the season that had little to do with Jesus?

Now is the time to determine what changes you will make next Christmas so that your celebration of His first advent points to the hope that He will indeed come again, at His second, when He comes not as the King in the manger but the Lamb on the Throne.

But before you get upset with me, let me remind you both are important. Focus on His arrival and the joy of the season that revolves around it.  We simply must be diligent in our revelry so as not to loose Jesus while we are celebrating His coming.

So where can we draw inspiration for the celebration of His first advent?  Dare I say from the fact that He is coming again.  We who are His people between His advents must be faithful to declare His second coming even as we celebrate His first.

 

Second Advent

So let us begin with the simple fact that His second advent will reveal the victory He accomplished when He laid down His life near the end of the first.  John’s revelation speaks of a Lamb on the throne that appeared as if sacrificed.  This serves to remind us of what Jesus accomplished when He died on the cross.

He began to set all the wrong things right in the laying down of His life, even as it simultaneously fulfilled centuries-old prophecies.  He will return to complete that process, seated on His Father’s throne, ruling His eternal kingdom.  But what does that have to do with us now?

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.”  Matthew 25:31 ESV

We must live in such a way as to alert the world to His kingdom.  It will be completed in that age, but He has already begun to reign. We are not waiting for the kingdom to begin, but to be fulfilled.  This means that we must live daily as people who are fully aware that a kingdom exists now that will also exist eternally.  We must invite people to walk in the reality of it, first by doing so ourselves, and then by explaining to them how they can join us, as we have opportunity.

That is how we live as His people between His advents.  We esteem Him as the King in the Manger, and exalt Him as the Lamb on the Throne, now and evermore.

 

How can you do that today?  First, embrace the reality and wonder of it.  You are a part of an eternal Kingdom.  You are a child of the King.  You have a glorious inheritance.  Not will have.  You have it now.  That changes things.  Maybe it needs to change some things for you.  Can you think of any?  Second, you need to let everyone who will listen know that they,  too, can have this inheritance.  It is already made available to them, if they will simply accept the invitation to be a child of God through faith in Jesus. 

Jesus, thank You for coming once, and Your promise to come again.  Thank You for making us Your people between Your Advents.  Help us to live for You and Your glory today and every day as we actively await Your return.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen!

Expectant Tuning!

Keep coming back and we will work help you remove the things that may hinder your longing for His return by cultivating an awareness of God’s presence.   We will help you tune your heart to live out your worship by providing resources like this to help you acknowledge the greatness of God as you become more Resonant, 7 days a week.

Like what you finding here?  Fill out the form to the right to get an email with each fresh post and updates of new tools to help you be Resonant.

Please comment below and share if you have found this helpful in your journey of being more resonant.

Below is content always available to Subscribers, often to Free Members, and sometimes everyone.  Want to learn more about accessing all the additional material in the Subscriber Content Library, click here, or the Free Member Content Library with some examples of the complete Subscribers content, click here.

Everyone enjoy this video, and the transcript below.

Video 12.5 Transcript

Welcome to Tuesday Tunings at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s tune our hearts.

 

Though an Infant now we view Him,
He shall fill His Father’s throne,
Gather all the nations to Him;
Every knee shall then bow down:
Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn King.

 

Many look at the baby in the hay and forget this was only the beginning of the story.  It started at the manger, but it lead to the cross. He had to become like us so His payment there could satisfy the laws just demands.  See the infant sleeping, but welcome the Incarnate Savior.

After becoming sin for us, He was resurrected from the dead.  He is now exalted on high, at the right hand of the throne of God the Father and has been given that name that is above every name.  See Him in all His royal splendor and give glory to Jesus.

He will gather together His people, some from every tribe and tongue and language.  From the four corners of the earth He will call the nations to come and worship. Every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  Confess it now.

At the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven, and on earth and under the earth.  He will take His rightful place of worship as King of kings and Lord of Lords. The greatest treasure belongs to those who choose to worship Him now.  Will you commit to do so?

Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has surfaced in your heart, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then we will sing once more.

Sing

Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond.  Until next time, be Resonant.

The post How to Be His People Between His Advents appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image Attributions
King in the Manger – https://pixabay.com/illustrations/jesus-christ-god-holy-spirit-4671798/
Lamb on the Throne – https://www.blockislandtimes.com/affiliate-post/lamb-upon-throne/30689#&gid=1&pid=1

Saints, before the altar bending,
Watching long in hope and fear;
Suddenly the Lord, descending,
In His temple shall appear.
Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn King.

Angels, from the Realms of Glory
By: James Montgomery, 1771-1854 (1816)

Listen to this simple piano version as you read, or watch the video complete with lyrics then read.  Please make certain to enjoy the video log below.

We continue our journey to Christmas and the celebration of the birth of our Savior.  This week we consider the saints who are bending their lives to the will of God at the altar of God.  Their role in the story shows us that God rewards those who earnestly seek Him. Let’s tune our hearts.

Simeon

Right after the shepherds in Luke 2 we are introduced to two other characters who for the purposes of our carol are the “saints”.  They are truly saints since they are effectively described as such.  They are people whose faith was in God, who had been waiting and watching for His appearing for a long time.

We are going to consider Simeon today and Anna Thursday.

You can read the entire passage about Simeon in Luke 2:25-35, or suffice it to say he was righteous and devout.

Simeon regularly bent his knee at the altar of God, so he had positioned himself to hear from God.  This posture of humility is essential if we truly want to hear.  It also allowed his life to be a welcome place to the Holy Spirit.

So welcome was the Spirit in Simeon’s life that he had received a beautiful promise from God.  He was told he would not see death before He would see the Lord’s Christ.  What an incredible promise!  We do not know how long He had held onto this promise.  It could have been years, even decades.  What we do know is that he was hopeful and watchful.

How do we know that?  He had come in the Spirit to the Temple.  He did not have to pray when He saw the child.  He knew it was the Lord’s salvation. When the Lord suddenly appeared in the Temple he was ready.

He had come again to worship with an expectant heart, and that expectancy was rewarded with an encounter with the Savior.

What an incredible story of a faithful life!  He was looking to God and that same God made Him an incredible promise.  Is there some promise you have been holding onto for some time?  Don’t let go.  Are you struggling to maintain a watchful, hopeful posture after a long wait?  Set your hope on God.  Are you alert and ready to identify the Lord when He does appear?  Stay alert.  Otherwise you could miss it.  Take a few moments and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the answers to these questions, and then press in to one of them as we consider the lessons we might learn from Simeon.

Learning from Simeon

It is beneficial to look at Simeon’s like and marvel at the goodness of God to reveal Himself to this seasoned saint.  It is far more profitable to consider how we may emulate his approach and replicate it in our lives.  Which will you choose, beneficial or profitable?  Both are good choices, but one is far better.

Let’s take the better course and examine our own lives around these three principles

1. Don’t Let Go
2. Set Your Hope on God
3. Stay Alert

Don’t Let Go – It can be heard to hold on when you believe God has said something to you and a long time has passed.  Many of us know just how difficult that can be.  What Simeon teaches us is that it is so worth it to hold on.  God is faithful, and He will do it.

What is that promise you are holding onto today?  Speak it out loud.  Is your grip loosening?  Maybe you have already let go.  But you can often just get another grip.  Ask God to strengthen your grasp own that promise and trust Him until you see it come to pass.

Set Your Hope on God – This can be tricky.  The Lord told Simeon he would see God’s salvation, but what would that look like. Simeon could easily have crafted his own idea of what form that salvation would take.  If he was mistaken he might have missed the moment.  Instead he put his hope in God and waited with open eyes and heart to see it.

What have you set your hope on?  Is it God, or something of your own making that resembles Him?  This can be so tricky as we pursue God’s best for us because we can shape it to our own likely, or weak faith when God may having something much better in mind.  Determine to clearly set your hope on Him, and you will never be disappointed.

Stay Alert – We do not know the particulars of the arrival of Mary and Joseph at the Temple for the dedication of Jesus, but there were likely many people in and out for various reasons.  Simeon could have easily missed this little family, but he did not.  Certainly the Holy Spirit prompted him, but he had to stay alert.

What are you waiting to see?  Have you grown weary in your waiting?  It is difficult to maintain the kind of focus required to stay focused on one thing when there are many things moving around you.  And Simeon was old.  Still, he was ready when the what he was longing for suddenly appeared.  Can the same be said of you?  Are you alert today and watching for the thing you are hoping for?

Lok back over those three lessons and determine to address one of them today.  That kind of reflection and discipline may be the very thing that positioned Simeon to experience the promise of God.  Position yourself in a similar position today.

Holy Spirit, You came upon Simeon, but I believe your dwell in me.  Show me what may be keeping me from listening to You the way he did.   Then give me the courage to act on what you show me so I can be one the saints that sees You when You move in my life.  In Jesus name.  Amen!

Watchful Tuning!

Keep coming back and we will work help you remove the things that may hinder your longing for His return by cultivating an awareness of God’s presence.   We will help you tune your heart to live out your worship by providing resources like this to help you acknowledge the greatness of God as you become more Resonant, 7 days a week.

Like what you finding here?  Fill out the form to the right to get an email with each fresh post and updates of new tools to help you be Resonant.

Please comment below and share if you have found this helpful in your journey of being more resonant.

Below is content always available to Subscribers, often to Free Members, and sometimes everyone.  Want to learn more about accessing all the additional material in the Subscriber Content Library, click here, or the Free Member Content Library with some examples of the complete Subscribers content, click here.

Everyone enjoy this video, and the transcript below.

Video 12.4 Transcript

Welcome to Tuesday Tunings at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s tune our hearts.

Saints, before the altar bending,
Watching long in hope and fear;
Suddenly the Lord, descending,
In His temple shall appear.
Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn King.

If you have not seen yourself in the story yet, hopefully you do here.  I think this has a dual meaning, for the saints in that day, and for all who came after them.  We humble ourselves at the place where we meet God. We depend on His work to make us holy. Then and now.

Saints are simply those who are looking to God for the fulfillment of their hope.  The fear is evoked by a right understanding of the majesty of God. Are you watching for the coming of our Lord?  He came once. He will come again. Are you ready?

Though they were waiting and we wait now, they were surprised as we will be when He makes His final appearance.  He will come down again, not as a baby, but as the Lord of all. Even before then, He wants to come down upon us to make His glory known.  Welcome Him.

Mary and Joseph brought newborn Jesus to the Temple as instructed by the law, and Simeon and Anna welcomed Him.  Jesus comes to us as well and desires a similar welcome. Will He receive it when He comes to you?

Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has surfaced in your heart, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then we will sing once more.

Sing

Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond.  Until next time, be Resonant.

The post What Can the Saints Teach Us? appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image Attributions
Simeon’s Moment – by Ron DiCianni – http://www.burrowdesigns.com/advent-simeon/
Learning from Simeon – https://pixabay.com/photos/climb-knot-hand-partner-check-517053/

Sages, leave your contemplations,
Brighter visions beam afar;
Seek the great Desire of nations;
Ye have seen His natal star.
Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn King.

Angels, from the Realms of Glory
By: James Montgomery, 1771-1854 (1816)

Listen to this simple piano version as you read, or watch the video complete with lyrics then read.  Please make certain to enjoy the video log below.

We continue our journey to Christmas and the celebration of the birth of our Savior.  This week we consider the ones who rather than hearing angels sing, saw the star which announced the birth of the King of kings.  Their role in the story shows us that God welcomes all who pursue Him with humility.  Let’s tune our hearts.

Sages, Wise Men, Magi, They Were

Of all the things that could be said to introduce these strangers from the east, they are introduced as wise men.  The hymn calls them sages, and the other common term is Magi.  This term indicates that they would have been famed for their wisdom, even venerated for the the possession of wisdom, judgment and experience.  If men of this caliber make the decision to make a long and perilous journey, not to mention with expensive gifts.  We should take note.

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, Matthew 2:1-2 ESV 

The hymn, ever an invitation to come and worship, encourages the wise men of the story, and all who will follow their lead, to leave their contemplations.  This is no small task, for someone esteemed for wisdom achieves such notoreity through careful examination and diligent pursuit.  To encourage people to leave behind the very thing by which they have attained their status could be seen as foolish.

But we must consider these wise men, and learn from their example.

They add weight to the plea offered to all who will come after them.  We will examine the why of their indubitably thoughtful response below, but here just acknowledge the fact that they came.  And in so doing had to leave something behind.  For them it was contemplations, the kind at which they obviously excelled and had set them apart.  It may be something less profound for you, but no less difficult.

What might you have to leave to be marked by a similar wisdom?  What thing that marks your life, maybe even something you find great value in and enjoy being associated with, must you leave in order to worship the Christ of Christmas?  Can you identify it today?  If not, are you willing to consider the possibility that such a thing may exist?  Something that is good, but may be holding you back from the best.  Take a few moments and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal if such a thing is present in your life.

Worshippers, They Became

So why would such men, venerated for their wisdom, leave those pursuits behind to become worshippers? What could compel them to a different endeavor?  It would have to be something they deemed worthwhile, and because of there collective wisdom it should be assumed it was.  But it was the culmination of their journey that demonstrated their willingness to respond to God’s invitation.

Saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” Matthew 2:2 ESV

They were still wise men, but they became worshippers.

They saw the star when it rose at His birth.  They recognized Him as a king.  They had even determined that they would worship Him.  Why?  Because from a distance they had seen a brighter more compelling vision than any they had previously discovered.

It was one thing to leave behind their lofty contemplations.  It was another thing altogether to embrace humble worship.

The invitation rings to all those who have ears to hear and eyes to see that brighter vision.  That life of surrender to the King that transforms every rebellious heart into a worshipping one.  We know nothing of their worship prior to or after this encounter, except for their willingness to heed to warning of an angelic being, but this snapshot captures their response to the newborn Christ.

So what shall you learn from their example and the transformation it produced?  Do you have a clear mental picture or vision of something brighter than your current experience?  Is God inviting you into something grander, bigger, better?  Will you humble yourself and pursue it?  If you are not sure, why not take a few moments to ask Him what that might be, and what your response should be?  You will never regret choosing to worship.

Almighty God, thank You for revealing Your invitation to worship to those wise men.   Thank You for prompting them to follow, and giving them the courage to do so.  Thank You for their example.  Help me to be willing to emulate it in my life today. In Jesus name.  Amen!

Wise Tuning!

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Everyone enjoy this video, and the transcript below.

Video 12.3 Transcript

Welcome to Tuesday Tunings at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s tune our hearts.

Sages, leave your contemplations,
Brighter visions beam afar;
Seek the great Desire of nations;
Ye have seen His natal star.
Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn King.

From the lowly to the learned, the call continues.  The wise men were invited to leave the contemplations that had led them to the star, and we likewise are welcomed to move past what we know in search of more. Is there anything, even good things, you may need to leave behind?

They had seen the star, but the call that came to them and comes to us is that there is more.  How often we become content with less than all God wants to show us. Ask God to show you more of Himself in this season that your worship may be more complete?

The magi also represent all the non-Jewish or Gentile worshippers, which is good news for most of the world.  Jesus is the fulfillment of desire of all nations, not just Israel, and we are encouraged to seek Him. Commit to seek Him this Christmas season.

Though a new star appearing was remarkable, the fact that it announced a baby’s birth set these scholars on an incredible journey.  Some might say it ended when they bowed their knees to the child years later, but I believe it continued all their days. May the same be true of us.

Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has surfaced in your heart, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then we will sing once more.

Sing

Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond.  Until next time, be Resonant.

The post God With Us appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image Attributions
Sages – https://pixabay.com/photos/magi-christmas-night-shooting-star-3795282/
Wise Men – https://pixabay.com/vectors/wisemen-wise-men-jesus-birth-story-2948680/