- This is part of a series on the theme of character. -

Think about the people you know and admire. Do you know any wise parents, mothers and fathers who demonstrate sound judgment in how they conduct their lives and raise their children? Do you know any grandparents who know when to cheer and when to rebuke, when to be tender and when to use force? Have you ever had a teacher who knew when to give advice and when to just listen, when to instruct and when to let life’s consequences be the teacher? Now try to put a value on those wise insights. How much are they worth?

We all esteem people who possess wisdom in their inward character. If we admire these quality people, how much more should we value the perfection of the living God from whom all wisdom, patience and discernment is derived?

When Moses asked God to reveal his glory to him, the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence” (Exodus 33:18-19). God had to shield Moses from the fullness of his glory by covering him in the cleft of a rock, and as he passed in front of Moses, God accompanied this awesome display by proclaiming the perfection of his own character:

And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.”

Exodus 34:6-7

• Learning to value the perfection of the living God from whom all wisdom, patience and discernment is derived.

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O Lord, give me the wisdom of spiritual remembrance so that I will never take the riches of Your grace and goodness for granted. Remind me to recall all of Your many benefits and blessings over the years and to realize frequently how much You have done for me. You have carried me through difficult passages. You have comforted me in times of despair. You have encouraged me when I was despondent. You have given me hope when all seemed lost. You have blessed me with freedoms, friends and opportunities that I never deserved. As I review Your benefits in the past, let me also reflect on Your process in my present and on Your prospects for my future. In light of all this, I can fully affirm that Your will for me is good and acceptable and perfect. May this gratitude of remembrance give me perspective and peace in the present moment.

• Develop the habit of recalling your benefits and blessings on a daily basis.

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God of glory and grace, when I reflect on the beauty and diversity of Your created order, I marvel at Your genius, Your creativity, Your personal care, Your exquisite aesthetics, Your glory and order and excellence. May I aspire to excellence in all that I do, in each arena of my influence, so that others would encounter the fragrance of Your manifest presence and lordship. Nothing less than my utmost for Your highness will do. Give me the wisdom to expose myself to those things that build up and nourish the soul rather than those things that denigrate and diminish. Let me be careful and prayerful about what I see, read and do, so that I will not be corrupted by that which is beneath Your vision for my life. Teach me, my God and King, in all things Thee to see, and what I do in anything to do it as for Thee.

• Attune yourself more to notice the beauties of the natural world, since it points to its Creator.

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God of Abraham and David, You have planted a profound longing deep within me that no earthly attainment or solace can satisfy. This aspiration is for Your manifest presence, and it draws me to see the world as You meant it to be. The brief Camelot of Solomon’s early reign, with its splendor and its far-reaching influence on the nations around Israel, gives me a hint of what You are planning for the future that will not be ephemeral, but will go on into eternity. When I come in contact with the innermost desires of my heart, I must openly admit that this present world is not enough. You have planted one of my feet in this age and the other in the glorious age to come. Keep me in touch with this hunger and thirst for what You plan to bring, so that I will see more clearly that nothing in this world is enough to satisfy this divinely given restlessness.

• Growing in the aspiration for the manifest presence.

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Lord, I ask for the humility and willingness to live out my life for the sake of others rather than for personal grain or reputation. You have called me to leave a legacy by building Your unbroken truth into the next generation. I want to invest all You have graciously given me in the lives of others so that I will live well and wisely, and not foolishly and selfishly. Let me view every day as if it were my last, knowing that I will either go to be with You or be alive on earth when You return. Let me live each day in light of that day and relish the opportunities You have given me today, investing my time and resources well. I want to abide in You in such a way that when You appear, I may have confidence and not shrink away from You in shame at Your coming.

• How can you grow in the skill of viewing each day as if it were your last?

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Father, I thank You that Your grace humbles me without degrading me and elevates me without inflating me. You have accorded me great dignity and worth, but without You I am nothing and have nothing. I am grateful that You have given me the holy invitation to participate in something that extends so far beyond me that I can only revel in Your kindness, grace, and compassion. I fully acknowledge that You can very well accomplish Your intentions without me, and yet You invite me to participate in what will last forever. I ask for a growing clarity about Your unique purposes for my life, so that I can live into those purposes by Your grace and become the person you created me to be, accomplishing the works you have prepared beforehand for me.

• The grace of God humbles us without degrading us, and elevates us without inflating us.

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Lord God, I so often try to persuade You that my plans and hopes are in my best interests and then ask You to bless them. But when I really think about it, how can I know what is really best for me? I can only judge by appearances, but You look ahead to the outcomes. Only You see and hold the future, and I want to confess that only You know what is truly best for me. Grant that I would become increasingly willing to let loose of my fond aspirations and embrace what You know is really in my best interests. I know I will have to wrestle with this all my life, because I often struggle with what You bring into my life and tell me to do. It is only when I embrace Your goodness and wisdom that I can stop wrestling with Your good plans and purposes.

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God of Glory, the narrative of Your extraordinary and creative program of redemption that is revealed in the pages of Your Holy Word boggles the mind and transcends our imagination. In Your sovereign power and wisdom, you transmute evil into good. What people mean for evil, You turn to ultimate good, and all this without violating the dignity of freedom You have given us as moral beings who, though fallen, are nevertheless created in Your image. You have progressively revealed Your nature and purposes in the history of Your people and in the pages of Scripture. You accomplish Your loving intentions through the obedience of Your people and in spite of their frequent disobedience. I ask that I would be used by You as a willing part of Your purposes, so that I can participate in what You are about.

• Reflect on the truth that what people mean for evil, God turns to ultimate good.

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This is another installment in a series that has been adapted from my 11-part CD teaching series on A. W. Tozer’s spiritual classic, The Pursuit of God.

It is the Holy Spirit who brings about this “experiential” aspect. The parable of “The  Prodigal Son” is a perfect example of the difference between the “experiential” and the “judicial” relationship. The parable centers around one older man and two younger men. The older man is the father and the two younger men are his sons. This father/son relationship had a “judicial” foundation in reality by virtue of birth. That is, they already were sons and didn’t have to do anything to become sons.

One day, the younger son leaves home, abandoning his relationship with his father, and squanders all the financial resources he had demanded from his dad. In time, this led the younger son into virtual slavery and total corruption. It is only at this point that the young man comes to his senses. This is an extremely important phrase in that text as well as a crossroad moment in the story. When someone “comes to their senses,” it means that they are forced to ask critical questions: “What on earth am I doing?” “What was I thinking?” “What is my future if I continue following this course of action?” Clearly something brought him to this realization and I suggest that that something was the young man’s pain. His decision had led to certain consequences and those consequences led to certain pain. Fortunately, that pain drove him to his knees.

On his knees he admits that his life doesn’t work well apart from his father and his home. So, he decides to return to his father’s house, reasoning that he would be better off as a slave within his father’s estate than a free man in the world in which he now finds himself. However, before he returns he rehearses a speech he wants to give to his father, in hope of finding his favor. The speech is basic: “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men” (Luke 15: 18-19).

But he doesn’t get a chance to deliver the punch line. His father, who had been anxiously waiting for his return, spies him from afar and runs to him, embracing him with kisses. He immediately begins to recite his carefully rehearsed lines, but finds that his father isn’t listening. He is too busy preparing for the feast, a feast proclaiming that he who “was lost” has “been found.” In the end we observe that while leaving home never jeopardized the son’s “judicial” relationship with his father, it did sever his “experiential” relationship. That is, legally he never ceased being his father’s son, but relationally he had ceased enjoying the benefits of being a son.

The parable teaches us a couple of very important lessons: (1) Our legal standing as sons and daughters of our heavenly Father is independent of our behavior, even in the face of defiant rebellion; but (2) Our relational intimacy with our heavenly Father is completely dependent upon our willingness to remain with him in obedient fellowship. In order to enjoy the perks of being in God’s family, we must make him the fixed point around which we order everything else in our lives.

• What is the difference between the “experiential” and the “judicial” relationship?

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Dear Father, grant me a childlike enthusiasm and wonder at all that You are and all that You have done in heaven above and earth below. Let me revel in Your many deliverances and kindnesses that You have imparted to me. You have given me vitality, hope and purpose, and I acknowledge that all of life is gift and grace. I ask that I would not merely live on the surface of life, but that I would sink my roots deep into the soil of Your love and draw my vitality from the water of Your Word. May I be rooted and grounded in Your love, and may I take the time I need for reflection, renewal and rest, so that I will know You better and become increasingly like You. Then I will be a contemplative in action, a person of depth and breadth, and one who has learned the secret of living from the inside out.

• How often do you reflect on God’s deliverances and kindnesses in your life?

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