Always in season

“The New is in the Old concealed, the Old is in the New revealed.”

I found this quote written on the first page of the New Testament of my wife’s childhood Bible. It seems amazing to me that God would use not only words but events, actual history to reveal spiritual truths for people thousands of years in the future.

Here are two scriptures that I have always found curious. I believe they are connected and partially explained in the Old Testament.

The first I began to wonder about while I was lurking on an Atheist discussion website. One of the participants on this site who called himself “Vynn” asserted that there were many errors and inconsistencies in the Bible. He offered up the following verse as one example; John 7:38 “He who believes in me as the scripture said, ‘From his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water’” According to Vynn nowhere in the Old Testament does it say this and neither is there any concept like this. If it’s not in scripture Jesus is either lying or mistaken. God cannot lie or be wrong therefore Jesus isn’t God. Or so goes the argument...

With minimal searching I found the following scripture;

The man brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was flowing from the south side. - Ezekiel 47:1-2

Here's the second one...

And seeing at a distance a fig tree in leaf, (Jesus) went to see if perhaps He would find anything on it; and when He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. And He answered and said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again!” And His disciples were listening. – Mark 11:13-14

And as they were passing by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots up. – Mark 11:20

Wha… Hang on, he cursed the fig tree? He knew it wasn’t the season for figs, why would He blame the tree for not bearing fruit?

I think the answer is concealed in Ezekiel…

Then he led me back to the bank of the river. When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. He said to me, "This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, where it enters the Sea. When it empties into the Sea, the water there becomes fresh. Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds—like the fish of the Great Sea. But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt. Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing." – Ezekiel 47:7-12

The river that flowed from the temple watered the land and life flourished because of it, fish and trees and the trees bore fruit not just in season but every month.

Something happened between the time Jesus cursed the tree and when they returned to see it withered. He found the temple of God in disarray. A den of thieves in the heart of Israel.
If we believe Jesus, living water will flow from our hearts and we will bear the fruit of the Spirit perpetually not just when our circumstances are “in season”.

Dead to the world

Have you ever had a dream that seemed so real you weren't sure if you were awake or dreaming?

I have.

I recently experienced a dream that really affected me and I've been thinking about the meaning of the thing for days.

I woke up at about 1am and couldn't sleep. I tossed and turned until I finally drifted off to sleep again. While I was dreaming I had complete lucid control of my actions but the environment and other characters in my dream were completly out of my control. Then I woke up,... or so I thought and I dreamt almost the same dream a second time. After this dream I was sick for days.

I won't bore you with the details of the dream but one of the messages that I took from it was that although I hate the world I seem to be having an affair with the world at that same time.

If you've seen the Matrix one of the characters Cypher is so sick of the cold, hard reality of the real world that he wants to have his memory erased and be put back into the Matrix (a computer generated virtual reality that appears real to most people). He wants to experience all the pleasures of the world again. In his words... "I know it's not real... but ignorance is bliss"

The reality is once we've been saved we can't go back. Life can never be the same again. I can't roll with the same folks I did once. When they zig left I have to zag right. When they sit down I might be left standing all alone.

You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. - James 4:4

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. - 1 John 2:15

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will. - Romans 12:2

Man overboard

Last week, myself and a coworker were watching a small pod of Orcas swimming in Seymour Narrows south towards Campbell River. Suddenly, we heard a distress call being sent out over the Radio.

"Comox Coast Guard this is the Regent"

"Go ahead The Regent, this is Comox Coast Guard"

"We have a man overboard"

The man calling for help sounded pretty rattled. I listened for what came next knowing they would be calling for all boats in the vicinity to help them search. We were about 20min away from their position.

As we raced to help search I listened to the conversation between the Tug "The Regent" and the operator at Comox. A man was missing off the tug, presumed to have fallen overboard somewhere between century shoal and Cape Mudge and he'd been last seen an hour ago. They said he was wearing a black T-shirt and jeans.

"He didn't happen to be wearing a lifejacket did he", the operator asked

"Negative", came the reply.

Excluding the miraculous, I gave the man slim to none odds. The ocean temperature in March is around 7-8 degrees I think you've got about 20 minutes at that temperature before your muscles start to freeze up and you can't swim anymore, and without a lifejacket when that happens you sink.

On our way I prayed that this man would be saved. Even though the odds of finding him in the huge expanse of Georgia Strait where the tide divides and ebbs north and south were low, I knew God knew where he was and could save him.

"Comox coast guard this is the Pacific Faith, we can see him and he's waving his arms at us"

What a relief, and how cool. The Pacific Faith is a seine boat skippered by Harold Sewid who I know quite well from work.

Later I read about this episode in the paper and heard how the man had said he lost consciousness several times and woke up underwater. Each time he would struggle back to the surface and fight to stay alive. As the seiner loomed into view the word he saw clearly written across her hull was "Faith".

What strikes me about this story is how in life sometimes we fall overboard. We have lost control and cannot save ourselves. We have no idea how things will end. We don't know for sure who is trying to help us, or who is praying for us, or even hear the instructions being given by the Rescue Coordination Centre.

What is my strength, that I should wait? And what is my end, that I should endure? - Job 6:11

Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for Him. - Isaiah 64:4

Read about it by clicking here --> Miraculous