Brown's Daily Word 3-16-10

Good morning,
Praise the Lord for this new day. The forecast for today indicates that it is going to be sunny and brilliant here in New York. Thank You, Jesus.
One of the profound and powerful prophecies regarding our Lord's suffering and resurrection has been recorded in Isaiah 53. When we read it we feel like it is an Eye Witness account of Christ's crucifixion. It declares that "by His stripes we are healed".
Max Lucado, in his book, "He Chose the Nails" wrote, “What would have happened to the Beast if the Beauty had not appeared? You know the story. There was a time when his face was handsome and his palace cheerful. But that was before the curse, before the shadows fell on the castle of the prince, before the shadows fell on the heart of the prince. And when the darkness fell, he hid. Secluded in his castle, he was left with glistening snout and curly tusks and a very bad mood.
"But all that changed when the girl came. What would have happened to the Beast if the Beauty had not appeared? Better yet, what would have happened if she had not cared? And who would have blamed her if she hadn’t? He was such a . . . beast. Hairy. Drooling. Roaring. Defying. Ill mannered. And she was such a beauty. Stunningly gorgeous. Contagiously kind. If ever two people lived up to their names, didn’t Beauty and the Beast? Who would have blamed her if she hadn’t cared? But she did. And because Beauty loved the Beast . . ."
The story is familiar, not just because it’s an exquisite fairy tale. It is also familiar, because it reminds us of ourselves. There is a beast within each of us, though it wasn’t always so. There was a time in human history when our faces were beautiful and our palace cheerful, but that was before the curse, before the shadows fell across Adam’s garden, before the shadows fell across Adam’s heart. Ever since that curse, we have been different. We have been beastly, ugly, defiant, angry, and ill-mannered. We do things we know we shouldn’t do, and then we wonder why we have done them.
Did you ever feel like saying, “I do not do what I want to do, and I do the things I hat.?” You are in good company if you do. The beast within was found in almost every person in the Bible. Abraham and Isaac lied, putting their wives at risk; Jacob stole his brother’s blessing; Shechem raped Dinah; Simeon and Levi murdered Shechem and his friends in retaliation; Moses murdered an Egyptian who killed a Hebrew; David stole another man’s wife and then murdered him; Solomon was seduced by his love for women more than by his love for God. In the New Testament one Herod murdered Bethlehem babies, and another Herod murdered John the Baptist. Disciples ran away when Jesus faced death. The Bible says, “He was wounded and crushed for our sins. He was beaten that we might have peace. He was whipped, and we were healed.” (Isaiah 53.5)
But there’s even more about wholeness, ultimate wholeness. Some time agoI read about a plaque in church elevator that said – “There are no wheelchairs in heaven,” and it’s dedicated to Ray Burton, who died a few years ago; he was in a wheelchair.”
Ray Burton had endured 18 surgeries, as vascular disease was eating his body away. His legs were gone so he had become a paraplegic. He was a simple man, embarrassed a bit by his smoking. Yet there was something about Ray Burton. Though his body was no longer whole, there was a wholeness in his spirit that was rare. He had tasted something. Ray was loved by this family. He was known as one of the sweetest, gentlest, most godly men that have ever been around. He kept a prayer journal, though folks in his church didn’t know about it until after he died. He was a bit embarrassed by it – parts typed, parts handwritten, scratches and misspellings – 50 pages single spaced, multiple columns of names – names of people he prayed for every day. He prayed every day for the visitors who came to his church. Four hours a day, five days a week, for twelve years he prayed for the people. He said, "there’s nothing else I can do, so I pray". His body was broken, but in another way Ray was more whole than any one else around..
I am reminded about another young man in our church, who was wheelchair bound. He loved the Lord. He loved the church. He never missed a Sunday. He was full of contagious laughter. He lived laughing. He served the Lord laughing. He went to be with Jesus laughing.
Real wholeness isn’t about a beautiful body, or a balanced budget, a beautiful wife and perfect kids, or an enviable social circle. Real wholeness isn’t about temporary things. Real wholeness isn’t found in things our world pursues so obsessively.
Jesus said, “I came that you might have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10.10) “My purpose is to give life in all its fullness.” “I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.” It is more than patching up our sins, giving us a better self image, and restoring our peace with God, though that’s plenty. It is about real love, real joy, real peace, and real purpose – the kind that will last, forever.
In Christ the Suffering Servant,
Brown

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eA5u9nwpMs