Pleading: Prostrate Before God For My Family

The children and I have set out on a great task.  We have decided to read through the bible in one year.  The decision was more coincidental than intentional.  At the beginning of the year I picked up my old MaCarthur Daily Bible and began reading to the kids for our family devotions.  After a week or so we realized that we could read the entire bible together in one year.  The kids got excited about it and that made me excited to do it.  Every morning we read a section of the Old Testament before school; right now that is Genesis.  In the evening before bedtime, we read a section of the Psalms, Proverbs, and a New Testament book; currently, we are going through Matthew.  

The other day, while we were reading, we came upon two passages that really struck me.  The first passage was Genesis 25:21.  Isaac is praying for his wife.  In the version we read, the text said that he was "pleading" for his wife.  Isaac had been married to Rachel for almost twenty years and she had not borne him any children.  In Isaac's time, childlessness was the greatest of misfortunes.  Children were a blessing from God.  To not be able to have children showed her to be deficient, culturally speaking, cursed by God, and potentially  undesirable to her husband.  It would have been totally appropriate for us to read that Rachel was pleading to God for a child.  However, we see that it is Isaac interceding for his wife.

The second passage was Matthew 9:18.  In this text a ruler's daughter had just died and he has come to Jesus with the hope that He could resurrect her.  The man was a public authority figure who was probably well known to the crowd.  That did not matter.  His daughter was in need of life and he knew the only person who could give it to her was Jesus.  Without any hesitation, he prostrates himself before the Lord and pleads for his daughter's life.

Directly speaking, these text have nothing to do with each other.  However, in the context of our family devotions, they spoke a loud clear message to me; Jason, plead for your family.  Isaac sought the Lord's favor for his wife.  She was probably hurting, feeling misplaced shame and humiliation.  She was inadequate as a wife and could not fulfill her duties.  Worst of all, she knew that God had promised that from Abraham a mighty nation would arise and that could only happen if Isaac had children.  Maybe she felt like God was disappointed with her.  Who knows?  But what we do know is that her husband went before the Lord and begged Him to grant them a child.  He did not just pray for his wife, he pleaded for her, begging God to do the impossible.  I believe this shows the tenderness Isaac had for his wife.

Many times we save pleading with God for times of immediate crisis.  Isaac and Rachel were married for almost twenty years for God granted them a child.  I do not believe this was Isaac's first time on his knees for his wife.  I pray for my wife often, but I do not plead for her.  Isaac was desperate before the Lord for Rachel.    He wanted God to do something that transformed her.  As her husband, I want God to do something that will transform Stacy, transform her into the image of His Son.  The text left me asking myself, "Am I desperate for my wife?"

The passage in Matthew 9:18 reminded me of the peril of my children.  God has blessed me with four adorable children who are at enmity with God (Romans 8:7-8).  All of them are in need of redemption.  As their father, God has commanded me (Deuteronomy 6:4-6; Psalm 78, Ephesians 6:1-3, Colossians 3:20-22) to faithfully live and proclaim the gospel in such a manner that they have every opportunity to genuinely know God, enjoy Him, and glorify Him forever.  In essence, I am to go to Jesus and say, "My children are dead. Only you can give them life.  I come before you and plead for you to grant them salvation."  The same desperation the ruler had, the same faith, the same worship, is what I need for my children in pleading for them.

All of this of course comes from a heart that is transformed by the gospel.  Isaac believed in God and His power, ability, mercy and compassion.  The ruler believed that Christ was divine and was capable of giving life.  A pleading heart comes from the overflow of a believing heart.  A heart that loves God and knows that God loves him.  Only through the love of God through Christ can I truly plead for my family.  This year I hope more fathers plead for their families before the Lord.  Maybe it is here we will see revival. 

Do you know Him?

By God's grace I have been asked to write a series of devotionals for a ministry that seeks to reach the people of India (We Go India).  I must provide some context, insight, application, and a prayer.  And oh ya, I must keep it under 300 words.  I am finding this incredibly difficult.  I have always heard great writers are able to communicate wonderful truths in small spaces.  Undertaking this opportunity is showing me that I am far from great.  With that said, I have posted my first devotional below.  I would love your feedback and help.  Please read the devotional and let me know what you think, the good, the bad, and the ugly.  I appreciate your time and input.  Be good and God bless.

John 7:1-9

“For not even His brothers believed Him.”

The “Feast of Booths” was a time when Israel would live in leafy shelters in remembrance of God’s faithfulness to their forefathers in the wilderness at the time of the Exodus.  Many Jews came to celebrate and give thanks to God for the harvest.  This festival would be another great opportunity for Jesus to marvel the crowd with his power and ability; at least that is what his brothers believed.

I believe many in the church today are a lot like Jesus’s brothers.  James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas (not Iscariot) (Matt 13:55) knew Jesus very well.  They lived their whole lives in community with him; eating, sleeping, working, playing, etc.  They were aware of his power to perform miracles (v 3-4).  Jesus’s brothers knew he was a great man, but they did not believe he was the promised Messiah.  Jesus affirms this by telling them that they were of the world (v6).

 How many of our churches are filled with people who believe that Jesus was a great man, but not the Son of God?  It is one thing to know about Jesus.  It is something altogether different to be known by him as Lord, Savior, and Treasure.  In the last day Jesus will say to many, “I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil.” (Luke 13:27)  Many of these people will have spent much of their life in the church, serving with great fervency alongside many of Christ’s true brothers and sisters.  Today I ask you, “Are like Jesus’s brother, or are you his brother?”

Father, I ask that you reveal your Son to me more and more every day.  Lord, I believe, help my unbelief! 

Four Joys of Adoption

4But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" 7So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

                                                                                                                                Galatians 4:4-6

I believe adoption is the gospel manifested in the world for God’s glory and the hope of the nations.   Adoption shows what happens when love pursues the unwanted and showers them with grace.  Adoption helps the unknowable have a legitimate and lasting identity.  In this text, there are four joys that help us better grasp the beauty of our adoption into God's family; what it cost, what it does for us, and how the world is changed.  

The Cost

First, our adoption was costly.  John Piper points out that to redeem something is to set free by paying a price.^[1]  Redemption denotes ransoming someone from captivity or from slavery.^[2]  We are dead in our trespasses and held captive by our sin.  If left on our own we would simply perish.  Nevertheless, God sent his Son into the world not to be exalted or served as He deserved to be, but he was sent to give His life as a ransom for many (Matthew 20:28; Mark 10:45; 1 Timothy 4:6).  Adoption is costly. 

The Change

Second, our adoption transferred us from “sons of disobedience” to “sons of God.”  The life, death, and resurrection of Christ not only satisfied God’s wrath for our sin, but also made us righteous in His sight.  1 Corinthians 5:21 says that he became sin that we would become his righteousness.  We are unified in the Son.  When God looks on us He sees the beauty of Christ, not out our total depravity.  Our adoption was legally secured through the blood of Christ and our debt was paid.  “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death… [and] you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!"’ (Romans 8:1, 15)

The Validity 

Third, the Spirit testifies of the legitimacy of our adoption.    The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are his children.  It testifies to the world that we are set apart and are loved by God, our Father.  Moreover, God in His mercy, pours out His Spirit to comfort and counsel us in the world.  The Spirit of His Son grants us to feel the affections of belonging to the very family of God. [3]  When we cry out "Abba Father," it both confirms our identity and comforts our souls.  In this we have much to rejoice in.

The Value

 Fourth, our adoption makes us heirs to the kingdom of God.  It is fitting to revisit our definition at this point.  Simply, our adoption is God’s distinct act of grace, different and additional to justification, that created a permanent relationship between the Father and the sinner, in which the sinner is graphed into the family of God legally, socially, and emotionally; enjoying all rights and privileges as a son or daughter in the warmth, love, and gladness of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  As sons and daughters we have been given all legal, social, and emotional privileges as Christ Himself.  We are in the warmth, love, and joy of the Father.  The Father has seen fit to give His kingdom to His children.  We are Christ brothers and sisters and will inherit our Fathers kingdom as fully legal and familial heirs.   

How does this affect us as individual believers?

As individual believers we can have a tremendous amount of peace and hope knowing that God has purposely and joyfully welcomed us into all satisfying communion of the Trinity.  And this communion will never end because it was willed by God, purchased in Christ, and secured in the Holy Spirit.  You will never be an orphan.  Though your earthly parents will die, you will never be without the love of the triune communion.

This frees us to go forth and make disciple of every nation (Matt 28:18-19); particularly through adoption.  Earthly adoption is a manifestation of the gospel.  It outwardly shows the world the reality of God’s love and pursuit of us.  Jason Kovacs explains this wonderfully in his piece called Adoption and Missional Living,  he says,

 “Adoption and our care for the fatherless provide a visible demonstration of the gospel.  Our adoption of children serves as a window into Christ’s rescue of us.  Adoption displays gospel justice.  Adoption displays the patience pursuit and sovereign choice of God for us.  Adoption displays the heart of God rescuing a people from every nation, tribe, and tongue.  Because of what God has done for us in Christ, adoption and orphan care are signs that God’s kingdom and rule are present in our world and will one day come in all their fullness.”^[4] 

God, through our adoption through Christ, has made the believer a living conduit of His grace to orphans and the nations.  God’s adoption of us should in effect cause every believer to pause, and at the very least consider, adoption as a means of growing their family and God’s kingdom.  If adoption is not where God is moving you then supporting families who are adopting or are doing orphan care on the mission field is just as supportive. 

How does this affect the church?

Here are some basic facts about adoption and foster care in America and around the world.  Currently, there are approximately 500,000 children in foster care in America alone.  Almost 130,000 of these children have been deemed orphans and are available for adoption.  There are approximately 163 million orphans globally.^[5]  Forty-million of these children are of unreached people groups.  Jason Kovacs points out that if there are roughly 130,000 children waiting to be adopted, then the United States has more evangelical churches than it does waiting children.^[6]

In light of the above information and what we know about adoption, the church should be a beacon of hope to every orphan of the world.  Caring for orphans (adoption, foster care, or meeting physical and emotional needs) should not just be a program among programs in the church.  For it to be  effective, it needs to be interwoven in the very DNA of the missional philosophy of the church.  Because the church is formed and transformed by vertical adoption, the world can taste and see that the Lord is good through horizontal adoption.  

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[1] Piper, John. "Adoption: The Heart of the Gospel." In Reclaiming Adoption: Missional Living Through the Rediscovery of Abba Father, by Dan Curver, edited by Dan Curver, 95-107. Adelphia, MD: CruciformPress, 2011.

[2] Baugh, S.M. "ESV Study Bible." In Ephesians Commentary Notes, edited by Justin Taylor, Bill Deckard, Sherah Grose Dennis T. Lane, 2262-2263. Wheaton, IL: CrossWay Bibles, 2008.

Burke, Trevor. Adopted into God's Family: Exploring a Pauline Metaphor. Edited by D.A. Carson. Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2006.

[3] Piper, John. "Adoption: The Heart of the Gospel." In Reclaiming Adoption: Missional Living Through the Rediscovery of Abba Father, by Dan Cruver, edited by Dan Cruver, 95-107. Adelphia, MD: CruciformPress, 2011.

[4] Kovacs, Jason. "Adoption and Missional Living." In Reclaiming Adoption: Missional Living Through the Rediscovery of Abba Father, by Dan Cruver, 83-94. Adelphia, MD: CruciformPress, 2011.

[5] Kovacs, Jason. "Adoption and Missional Living." In Reclaiming Adoption: Missional Living Through the Rediscovery of Abba Father, by Dan Cruver, 83-94. Adelphia, MD: CruciformPress, 2011.

The statistics are taken from Kovacs section of the book pages 89 & 91.  He provides no other sources for this information.

[6] Kovacs, Jason. "Adoption and Missional Living." In Reclaiming Adoption: Missional Living Through the Rediscovery of Abba Father, by Dan Cruver, 83-94. Adelphia, MD: CruciformPress, 2011.