So what's the point? The testimony of Tamar & the whole Old Testament is, If God didn't use sinners & overrule sin, He would have nothing in human history to work with!! Lo and behold, Boaz's offspring even exceeded that of Perez, the bastard offspring of Judah and Tamar, for according to this genealogy, the Offspring is Jesus whose seed is as the sand of the sea and the stars of the sky!! We need to put off the "Sunday fancy dress" of our religious profession & practice and admit we are undone sinners & our Jesus & His Righteousness is our only Hope!! As the old hymn says, "I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but WHOLLY lean on Jesus' Name. On Christ the Solid Rock I stand!!!"
The story of Tamar, in Genesis 38, seems such a sordid story. And yet, the Holy Spirit devotes a whole chapter to it. I'm sure all kinds of applications, good moral lessons, could be drawn from it. But in so doing, we miss perhaps the key point. This sin of Judah with his daughter-in-law was akin to that condemned by Paul in the Corinthian church. And yet, we arrive at Ruth 4:12, and find the elders at the gate blessing Boaz with an abundance of offspring "like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah". Gasp!! We would hide such a scandalous part of our history in the dark recesses of the family tree, and yet here it laid out for anyone to explore. And horror of horrors, the genealogy that introduces us to our Glorious Redeemer, Matthew records that, "Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar"!!
So what's the point? The testimony of Tamar & the whole Old Testament is, If God didn't use sinners & overrule sin, He would have nothing in human history to work with!! Lo and behold, Boaz's offspring even exceeded that of Perez, the bastard offspring of Judah and Tamar, for according to this genealogy, the Offspring is Jesus whose seed is as the sand of the sea and the stars of the sky!! We need to put off the "Sunday fancy dress" of our religious profession & practice and admit we are undone sinners & our Jesus & His Righteousness is our only Hope!! As the old hymn says, "I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but WHOLLY lean on Jesus' Name. On Christ the Solid Rock I stand!!!"
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Found this in "drafts" never published. Though the date was a year ago, the heart issues, both spiritual and physical still remain. I believe in, what the old saints used to call, "experimental faith". True faith in the Son of God brings His Spirit into our innermost being. Hebrews 4:12-13 speaks of His continual work of recreating the new man in Christ Jesus. I often refer to this first work as His surgical work. He uses the scalpel of the Word to slice & dice the flesh and expose the gangrenous pus that we have coddled so long as "normal". I continue under His Heart Surgery to this day! I've found that arrogance isn't just a part of my "total depravity" filed neatly under my theological understanding. Arrogance is the foundational fruit of my ultimate idolatry--I would be as God!!!
Revelation 2:23 ."....And all the churches shall know that I Am He Who examines the minds and HEARTS. And I will give to each one of you according to your work." Physical heart surgery is "duck soup" compared to spiritual heart surgery. Throughout my open heart surgery and 8 weeks of , things have gone amazingly well. However, the heart monitor I wore for a month revealed concerning heart rhythm issues. This means further tests with possible heart ablation or, worse case scenario, I will need a pacemaker. Prior to any physical heart concerns, the "examination of the Spirit" unveiled to me my arrogance! You may prefer pride, but I prefer arrogance. "Pride" may be used in a good way. Arrogance cannot. This latest heart issue has revealed my spiritual heart issue as arrogance on steroids. Growth in Grace is manifested as our wrestling with the Lord in our sins grows into a wrestling IN the Lord with our sins! This is "Throne of Grace" wrestling. Having learned that we have no strength in ourselves to subdue our sins, most always learned the hard way, to put to death the deeds of the body, we learn to live at the foot of the Throne of Grace, the Throne of the Power of God, where our Precious Jesus sits & intercedes and mediates His glorious Blood Bought Mercy and Grace. This is Habakkuk 3:17-19 faith. This is David's faith in 2 Samuel 15:26. There must be fingernail scratches on the Throne of Grace!! We must obtain "new every morning Mercy" for we are such weak sinners, and we must find always undeserved Grace to help in the continual time of our desperate need! Only the fresh revelations of our Redeemer King/Priest's resources can bring strength and comfort over our sins. STARE AT MY SIN AND I AM DOOMED! LOOK UNTO MY JESUS AND MY HOPE HAS NO SHAME!!!
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AuthorWhile I have been a pastor and Christian bookstore owner for 30 years, my only credentials are that of an old saint who followed his signature with S.S., Sinner Saved! Archives
December 2023
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