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Yesterday we focused on the word joy. We discussed the fact that Biblical joy is a joy that lasts. That joy comes only when we recognize we are in God's presence. God promises to never leave us. He says He will never forsake us. For that reason, we can expect that God's joy will be with us because His presence is always within our reach. Today we are going to see how joy is connected to peace.
Where the verse from Psalm 16 that we focused on yesterday deals with joy, the verse from Numbers had me focusing on the word peace.
Back on Day 226, we took a look at a presentation called "The Power of Let". In this talk we took a look at a verse on peace that had the words "let" and "rule" that was associated with peace. You might want to go back and check out that presentation again as it relates to what we are discussing today.
As I studied those words, I happened to look at the word “face” in the passage from Numbers we read today. As I studied the word “presence” from the Psalm passage I came across the Number's passage again. I was surprised to see that the word “presence” and the word “face” are the same word in the original language. That really caught my attention.
In the King James translation, the word presence was also translated as countenance. This is a word that I have used in the past but, frankly, I really couldn't tell you what it meant. I had to look it up in the dictionary. Countenance basically means a person’s facial expression. The face is the part of a person that we can “read”. That's why it is important to have what is called a "poker face" when playing cards of chance. Did you know that the face is also how we can “read” God? By stepping into the fullness of God’s Presence, we are able to experience joy and peace as we read the pleasure of a father's face beaming over His beloved children.
I’ll come back to that thought in a second. But first, check this out. God can also read us by our countenance. I find that fascinating - that the God of the universe would care enough to pay attention to our facial expressions and react to them. Check out today's Bible reading with me now.
So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the Lord of the fruit of the ground. Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and for his offering; but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard. So Cain became very angry and his countenance fell. Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? Genesis 4:3-6 (NASB)
This story has always bugged me. I have always seen this story as God favoring one brother over another. It actually says his face dropped because God didn’t look on favor at Cain’s offering. The work Cain did was frowned on by God, while the work Able did was pleasing to God. Other than the whole murder thing, I really connect with the pain that came with the sadness in Cain's life. There are times I feel like that all I do falls short. It is easy to believe that the favor of God is missing in my life because I’m not good enough. These are some of the same old tapes playing in my head that have been there Oh so long. What's even worse is that those old tapes seem to be supported by God’s own words! That's almost too much pressure to stand up under.
As I studied our verses from yesterday and today, I received what I think is a totally a different perspective. I remembered the purpose of the Old Testament. It is there to show us the hopelessness of relying on our own efforts to get what God wants to give us freely. Adam and Eve decided to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Do you know how hard it is to tell good from evil over things like honoring God? Without the fullness of the perspective from Heaven, it is so easy to be like a Cain and feel the fullness of rejection when our interpretation of good vs bad doesn't hit the mark from God's point of view.
What hit me was that God’s Old Testament response to Cain was what we all get when we allow our interpretation of what is good and what is bad in our life to be the foundation of coming into the presence of this God that loves us. Cain deduced that his offering was good. God didn’t! That conflict made Cain act out with terrible results. The first murder came to be as a result of letting the knowledge of good and bad be the filter used to come into contact with God. We feel the same effects in our lives when we allow our attempts at determining good and bad in our lives fall short as well.
This story was presented as a lesson to us all. We can’t “do” enough to get to this God. We can’t reason our way into the presence that brings joy and peace. That means we can’t be “good” enough in our lives to ever be worthy of being in the presence of God. That’s a BIG dilemma we will never be able to overcome. In steps God's plan through Jesus Christ!
The story of Cain, along with all the stories of the Old Testament, point us in the direction of needing a savior. At the root of all the hard to understand and, seemingly cruel ways God interacts with His people at times, is the fact that we try in our own way to turn our view of “good” be good enough when it comes to tapping into God’s Love. We are like Cain. We simply do not have the fullness of the ability required to tell good from bad in this world. We are wired to mess that up because we were never suppose to know good from bad - it wasn't to be part of who we are. How is it that we would even think about letting “good and bad” be our point of reference when it comes to God’s presence and all that presences has to offer?
With Jesus, we are able to step into that presence with boldness and authority. Even when our actions fall short, we don’t! That’s so powerful! That’s why there is such hope in the cross. Hope evaporates quickly when we tell God, by our actions, that we want our knowledge of good and evil to be how He judges us. It is when we accept that we are acceptable in Christ that the fruit of God’s presence (joy and peace among them) can begin to be recognized and lived out in our lives.
The story of Cain now speaks to me in a totally different way. It isn’t a, hard to please God making me guess whether my efforts will be enough to please Him that haunts me in this story. It is a God, bent on loving me, that is saying, “just give up trying to earn my love and let me give it to you!” It is a God that has done all the work to prove that I am good. It is a God that is showing me the futility of my own efforts to get to Him. It is a God that is saying, “just accept it - IT IS DONE!”
Back to the thought about receiving peace and joy by stepping into the presence of God. At first I filtered that thought through the old tapes of Cain. Feeling God's presence seems to be such a work based endeavor. Sometimes I just can’t seem to tell whether I’m feeling God's presence or not. Then the question comes to mind - "Am I doing enough to get that presence in my life?" It can feel like I have fallen short because I just can't feel His presence like I thought I would. Expectation can get in the way of how I’m able to experience peace and joy when I expect God’s presence to be something based on my interpretation of what is good and bad.
Where all this took me as I considered the Psalms and Numbers verses, is that it comes back to acceptance. You may be wondering how did I ever get there? Remember the word countenance? That’s how the King James translates the word that means presence in the Old Testament. When I looked up countenance in the dictionary, I saw that when this word is used as a verb, it basically means to “admit as acceptable”!
When it comes to peace and joy, countenance is the only action required. The action that makes peace and joy a possibility in our lives is to just accept! Accept that we are in God’s presence whether we feel it or not. Accept that joy is possible. Accept that peace is what is guiding my life. Accept that the situation I am in, or the challenges from the past that continue to haunt me, mean nothing with regards to walking in God’s presence. If all that be true, then peace and joy are mine all the time. Now that is a hope filled possibility that I want to accept more in my life.
The path of a victor is one that is willing and able to accept who they are. Working to prove some identity that they want or that the world thrusts on them is an exercise in victim thinking. Today can be a day filled with peace and joy irrespective of the circumstances that come your way. Make that peace and joy be all it can be by accepting that God's face is shining down on you. It is shining, not because of how good you are at making peace and joy be a part of you life. It is shining on you because you are the Child He so adores. Live in the place of that power and watch your victor status come alive today.
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