SEEKING BETTER THINGS

"By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament. . . . But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also He is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises." (Hebrews 7:22; 8:6)

Devotion 10 of 26

BETTERNESS IN ABUNDANCE

One glorious circumstance of our situation in Christ is the ABUNDANCE of "better things" we have received. Little wonder the Psalmist exclaimed, "And [Thou] hast not shut me up into the hand of the enemy: Thou hast set my feet in a LARGE room" (Psa 31:8). Again he wrote, "He brought me forth also into a large place" (Psa 18:19). There is plenty of room to navigate in the Spirit, and yet we are not in "wide open spaces." The large area into which grace brings us is filled with "good things."

Again the Psalmist shouted, "Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah" (Psa 68:19). The NIV translates this verse, "who daily bears our burdens." The word "benefits," we are told, is not found in the original text. Thus, some say it should read "Who daily burdens us." The translators certainly brought no clarity to the text with that expression.

One view is that the burdens referred to are lifted (NIV). The other view is that the burden consists of divine benefits--something like Christ's burden; i.e., "my burden is light" (Matt 11:30), or Paul's "weight of glory" (2 Cor 4:17). I choose the latter view- that of spiritual abundance. That seems to be more befitting of "the God of our salvation" than the mere lifting of burdens.

While it is true, the Lord lifts the burden of sin and sorrow from us, that is not His primary work. It is preparatory for the major work. The provision of required benefits enables us to finish the race, not merely to relieve us of our burden. It also clears the way for the reception of "better things" to attend us in our journey to glory.

Jesus Christ has introduced a Divine exchange program. What is taken from us is replaced by "better things." In fact, without those "better things," there is no point to the removal of the burdens. Those who only want their troubles resolved, yet are not ready to receive the blessing of the Lord, are not pointed in the right direction.

When Jesus declared His manifesto in His hometown, He announced that the Spirit of God was upon Him. He confessed, "because He hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; He hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised" (Lk 4:18).

The prophecy He read was from the sixty-first chapter of Isaiah. The Divine exchange program was announced in verses three and four of that grand chapter. "To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He might be glorified. And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations" (Isa 61:3-4). There is a declaration of an era of "better things."

A Divine appointment is made in Jesus--an appointment that cannot be negated by Satan, or successfully neutralized by our enemies. The ashes of penitence and sorrow are exchanged for the "beauty of holiness" (Psa 29:2). There is a comeliness brought to us in the Savior that produces great confidence and profitability.

The "mourning" produced by deep contrition of heart and the troubles of this world is exchanged for "the oil of joy." A sense of the blessing of the Lord becomes so dominant in their hearts and minds that believers are able to "rejoice in the Lord always" (Phil 4:4).

The "spirit of heaviness," brought on by the conviction of sin and the weight discouragement, is exchanged for the "garment of praise." A sense of blessing and familiarity with God so impregnates the spirit of the redeemed that they offer the sacrifice of praise "continually" (Heb 13:15).

Wasted and desolate lives, once like a vast and arid desert, are rebuilt to the glory of God. The desolation of many generations gives way to teeming and productive life. Praise the Lord for such a grand exchange program!

This is the language of abundance--of a richness of life that increases rather than dissipates. Rejoicing is abundant (Phil 1:26). Faith and love are abundant (1 Tim 1:14). The mercy of God is abundant (1 Pet 1:3). Life is "more abundantly" (John 10:10). The Holy Spirit is lavished upon us abundantly (Tit 3:5-6). Grace is given to us in abundance (Rom 5:17). Peace is experienced in abundance (Psa 37:11). Truth is given in abundance (Jer 33:6).

Truly, God has "ABOUNDED toward us in all wisdom and prudence" (Eph 1:8), lavishing upon us a rich abundance of "better things."

PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Your Son, I ask for grace to live with a consistent and lively awareness of the abundance of "better things" You have provided to me in Jesus Christ.

-- Tomorrow: BETTER TO DEPART --