God’s purpose – The Words Of David C. Frampton

Be Thankful (Part One)

Colossians 3:15-17

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him (NIV).

What are some blessings that you highly value? Now what are some characteristics that you highly value in other people? God highly values thankfulness. Yet I do not think that we take this positive quality of godliness very seriously. Read through the letter to the Colossians carefully and see the emphasis on being thankful. Thanksgiving should be part of our lives everyday. We should deliberately build it into what we are. One of the signs of a heart alienated from God is a lack of thankfulness to the Lord God. For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened (Romans 1:21 NIV).

We offer thanksgiving through Jesus Christ (3:17). This is part of our larger life view. In everything we are to be Christ-focused. This approach honors the Triune God, because God designed this as the way to come to him and to honor him. First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world (Romans 1:8 ESV, my emphasis). An examination of the New Testament references to thanksgiving reveals an emphasis on the grace of God given to us in Christ Jesus. This is why, since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I never stop giving thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers (Ephesians 1:15-16 CSB; cf. 1 Corinthians 1:4; 2 Corinthians 8:9; 9:15; Philippians 1:3-6; Colossians 1:3-4; etc.)

Since Adam disobeyed God and ruined our race, God is building a new humanity in Jesus Christ, in whom we are restored to God’s purpose for us. When we are giving thanks through Jesus our Lord, we are functioning according to God’s will and as a byproduct, we feel right. We are in alignment with God’s intention for our humanness.

When we offer our thanks through Christ, we honor him as the mediator between God and mankind. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5 NIV). When we offer a sacrifice of praise through Jesus our great High Priest (cf. Hebrews 4:14), we display and develop humility before the living God. We are confessing our absolute need of Christ to consecrate everything to God concerning us, including our praise.

However, we do not want to think of this mechanically or ritually but personally. Offering thanks through Jesus recognizes our personal participation with him in worship. As new covenant priests (cf. 1 Peter 2:5), we join with him to glorify the Father. By faith we should have a lively sense of approaching the throne of grace with him as our leader.

To do this, we ought to prepare our hearts for worship. You might have to rush to get to the gathering of God’s people, because we live in a world where our best plans for getting ourselves and our family ready go astray. But there should be no rush in the inner persons of our hearts. “Oh no, now what am I doing?” Be calm; God knows what happens in your life, and your brothers and sisters in Christ need to accept that, too. Let’s have some holy deliberation in the way we live, and not act like we’re in some sort of panic or agitation.

Grace and peace, David

Intended for Good (Part Two)

Genesis 50:15-21

You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives (Genesis 50:20 NIV).

To restore relationships, we must act according to God’s word. To approach situations in conformity with God’s word, we must understand it. We need to be convinced that the leading person in the God’s plan is God himself, and not ourselves or the other person. This God-focus is often alien to how we act. But observe Joseph’s good and godly reply.

First, Joseph brought God into their problem. He directed them to replace their fear of retaliation with a fear of God. It is like Joseph said, “Make your peace with God, and then you will find it an easy matter to make your peace with me” (Henry). I think you will find that most believers will have a responsive heart to requests for forgiveness (Matthew 18:21-35), though granting forgiveness might not happen without an internal struggle. As a godly man, Joseph knew that vengeance belongs to the Lord, and he was content to leave that to God. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Romans 12:17-21 NIV). It is very tempting to want to even up the score a little, isn’t it? Even when you’re right, you must resist the desire for personal revenge.

Joseph had already forgiven them, but had they made things right with God? There is a scene from Chariots of Fire, which is almost certainly fictitious, and used by the script writer to express Eric’s inner struggles. Jenny said to Eric after he missed a service, “It’s not me you have offended.” God was in his thoughts. While it is good to seek a restoration of relationship with another human we have offended, we must seek God’s favor above all. Do not make an idol out of your relationship to another man.

Second, Joseph explained God’s providence to them. They had intended evil; they truly had sinned. Notice that Joseph didn’t minimize their sin. When you counsel someone, don’t minimize their sin, but maximize God’s grace. Yet, Joseph made it clear that God had intended good. He can use a bad situation to produce a good end. Remember Peter’s words. This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross (Acts 2:23 NIV). God and people can intend two contrary purposes in the same incident, but God’s ultimate purpose will prevail (cf. Proverbs 16:1, 9). Joseph also reflected God’s character to them. He promised to provide for them (cf. Matthew 5:44-47).

We ought to imitate Joseph’s excellent attitude and actions. Learn to return good when you have received evil. And so, Joseph spoke words of assurance and kindness (cf. 2 Corinthians 7:8-10). When we speak this way, we keep the instruction of the Lord Christ. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you (Ephesians 4:32 ESV).

Grace and peace, David

Providence Explained (Part Two)

Genesis 45:4-15

Yesterday, we viewed God’s good purpose (45:4-7). Next, we see God’s great action (45:8-11). So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt. Now hurry back to my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don’t delay. You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me—you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have. I will provide for you there, because five years of famine are still to come. Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute’” (NIV).

The Lord exalted Joseph as the governor of Egypt (45:8). Observe his repeated insistence that God had sent him to Egypt. Sometimes it takes a while for the message to get through to people.

We must reassert the truth of God’s sovereignty to a human-centered, naturalistic generation. God had the ability to place Joseph in a position of high authority (cf. Daniel 4:17), and he did.

“Are our leaders appointed by God?” Most surely. “But they’re so corrupt!” Then we ought to call on God to change their hearts or give us new leaders. There used to be a day when Christians would pray for those in authority over them. Listen to the apostle’s words. I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness (1 Timothy 2:1-2 NIV).

Joseph intended to use what God had given to him (45:9-11). He gave reassurance that he would care for them. Often the forgiver must reinforce that he or she loves those who are forgiven. This is what the Father has done through the new covenant ministry of the Spirit of adoption. Joseph knew this was necessary. God’s plan was to save their lives, and it included their relocation to Egypt. Observe how generous the Lord is. He paid for their moving expenses! God’s end includes God’s means to his end.

Lastly, Joseph conformed to God’s plan (45:12-15). He insisted that they bring his father down to Egypt. This also revealed his concern for his father’s well-being. And he wanted to be with his father again.

Joseph gave physical expression of his love for them. The repentant need to know that they are accepted again. If anyone has caused grief, he has not so much grieved me as he has grieved all of you to some extent—not to put it too severely. The punishment inflicted on him by the majority is sufficient. Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for him (cf. 2 Corinthians 2:5-8 NIV). Sometimes a hug or even a handshake can go a long way. Joseph was a good picture of Christ. He is never weary of speaking peace to his brothers. “How He is ever striving, by His word and Spirit, to reveal Himself to you, and to get you to see Him! How does He raise you from the dust and set you on a rock that you may sound His praise!” (Candlish, Commentary on Genesis) “These kisses were seals of love, comparable to the witness of the Spirit in believing men” (Spurgeon).

Grace and peace, David

What God Does in Our Lives

Romans 8:28-29

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters (NIV).

One day by grace, we heard Christ call us to follow him. Since that time, we have been on a spiritual journey in which God develops his purpose in us. He acts in us according to his will and good pleasure. Perhaps we don’t think often enough that he is active inside us by the Spirit and the word. He forms new thoughts, ideas, and attitudes; for example, the calmness of depending on him, as we walk through circumstances in which we can do little else. When you’re on the operating table right before emergency surgery, he teaches this quickly.

God is active in our lives, but what is he actively working for? Our text quoted above tells us that God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. We need to listen carefully at this point, because we all want to define what the good is. However, let’s walk away from our own desires (a.k.a. self-denial) and embrace what the Lord desires for his people. The Spirit tells us two aspects of his purpose.

First, God acts in all things that we will be conformed to the image of his Son. God wants Christ to be formed in us (Galatians 4:19). The Spirit forms us by the gospel and making the presence of Christ real to us, so that we have “Christ-structured” lives. For example, as you read the Gospels, you see Christ’s patience with people, both his disciples and his opponents. People failed to grasp what he said, and so he had to repeat, repeat, and repeat. The Spirit wants that same kind of character in us; therefore, he directs us in situations which require great patience from us. Will we fail? Yes, many times, and the Lord knows that we will fail. But the goal is Christ-likeness, not what we call perfect behavior. God does not seek a group of perfect little Pharisees, but people being formed into Christ-likeness.

Second, God acts in all things that we will be part of many brothers and sisters of whom Christ is the firstborn. In other words, God’s purpose is for each follower of Jesus to be part of his spiritual family. The goal for an individual follower of Christ cannot be detached from the whole family of believers. You see, holiness is not an individual matter; it is a family matter. Consecration to God is what happens when we walk in love together toward God. In Pilgrim’s Progress, Bunyan paints a scene where Christian vaingloriously runs ahead of Faithful, and then in his pride falls. Christian cannot get up to continue the journey until Faithful comes and helps him to stand. In the same way, God has ordered that our destiny involves a spiritual journey with our brothers and sisters in Christ. So then, we must become Christ-like together.

Have you been attempting your spiritual journey toward glory by your own definition of good and in isolation from close fellowship with others? If so, please let this text redefine your journey. Submit to God’s purpose and seek partnership with other followers of Christ.

Grace and peace, David

The Bigger Story (Part Three)

Ruth 4:13-22

Our God and Father always works to fulfill purpose through Jesus Christ the Lord. God acts in our lives in many ways to bring about the true story of his glory. As the Spirit of God says, This is according to His eternal purpose accomplished in the Messiah, Jesus our Lord (Ephesians 3:11 HCSB). The end of the book of Ruth shows that it is much more than a little story about two struggling widows who needed a kinsman redeemer to set them free and provide for them. It is part of a bigger story, about God providing a king for Israel: David. And that bigger story is actually part of the biggest story, for David is the one of the top two people in the line of Jesus the Anointed (Matthew 1:1). All that happened in the story was controlled by God to lead up to David. In this story of Ruth, God was writing a much bigger story than any of the characters imagined.

There are ten names in the genealogy. Not everyone from generation to generation is recorded; instead, “father” means ancestor in some sense. Biblical genealogies are lists of significance; fifth and seventh names in such lists were held in special honor. In this list, the fifth is Nahshon, the tribal leader of Judah during the wilderness (cf. Numbers 1:7; 2:3; 7:12, 27), and the seventh is Boaz, the kinsman-redeemer, the man who acted with costly kindness and love.

God has a purpose he is working out in human history; he does this through people. God tells us selected names in his word to highlight his involvement with real people in human history. They are not “just a bunch of names”; no, they are people, like you and me. All of them had a significant part in the line of the Messiah.

God works within a covenant community. This list spans many centuries (seven or eight centuries!) in the old covenant era. The Lord’s purpose worked out gradually over a long time. God’s new covenant community stretches over twenty centuries now. We are part of a bigger story than our own lives. We can read of Christians of other times and places and realize that we are part of the story of God’s glory with them

Ruth had gone to Israel to seek refuge under God’s wings (2:12). Does God reward those who seek him (Hebrews 11:6)? Yes, he does! Who could have forecast such a destiny for this widow from an outcast, despised people group? The Lord did more for her than she could have asked or imagined (Ephesians 3:20-21), by putting this outcast widow into the line of the Messiah (Matthew 1:1-17)! As God’s worked out his purpose in this line of people, his goal was not a neat and tidy list, filled with “nice” people. Think of the not so nice people we read of in this genealogy. There is shrewd Abraham, self-centered Isaac, deceiving Jacob, and incestuous Judah and Tamar. Rahab was a prostitute, Ruth a childless widow, and David, oh David, for all God’s blessings on him was an adulterer and murderer. After David, the line continued with Solomon, who was sexually immoral, Rehoboam would not listen to wise counsel, Uzziah was filled with pride, and Manasseh was an idolater, who sacrificed his own children to idols.

Jesus came to save his people from their sins. Even his own family line was filled with sinners, yet he came to be the friend of sinners. Is Jesus your friend? Turn from your selfish ways and trust Jesus to save you; he is the sinner’s friend. God builds his church with outcasts (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:26-29). They have a place in God’s heart; do they have a place in ours?

We have reached the end of Ruth. I hope that you have profited from these articles. I especially pray that they are used by God to lead us all to bring glory to the God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Grace and peace, David

A New Home

Ruth 1:22

Sharon and I have moved much in our lives. We stayed in our previous two homes for fifteen and twenty years respectively. When we moved last December, it was a big event for us, one that included downsizing (and hopefully rightsizing) our possessions. Though getting rid of a lot of stuff was tiresome, we looked at the process with joy, since we were moving to a new home. (No, that’s not a picture of our present apartment building. But the view would be great!) We were on our way to a new place with new people to meet and new experiences to share. Though the move was over six months ago, our apartment still feels new to us, and we thank God our Father constantly for what he has given us. In saying this, we realize that some people find moving stressful and unpleasant. Naomi had decided to return to Israel, and her move brought stress to her.

However, someone else besides Naomi came home in this passage (1:22). Her name was Ruth. This verse has a difficult structure, but the word “return” is used of both Naomi and Ruth. So Naomi returned, and with her Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, who returned from the land of Moab. And they came to Bethlehem at the beginning of barley harvest (NASV).

In Naomi’s previous words, we heard her say nothing about her daughter-in-law. Naomi had complained in the singular. However, hadn’t Ruth lost her husband, too? Wasn’t Ruth also childless? Wasn’t Ruth also facing a grim future? If Naomi had been brought back empty, then what can be said about Ruth, who was now empty in a foreign land?

Suffering can produce a self-centered outlook. Others are forgotten. What matters are my pain and my anguish and my troubles and my loneliness and my heartache! Yes, Naomi was suffering, and we reach out to others in our grief. But surely she should not have overlooked Ruth, but spoke in the plural, and talked about how Ruth needed friends and help!

However, the Holy Spirit who inspired the writer of this portion of Scripture has not forgotten Ruth! He points out that Ruth the Moabitess had returned. How can this be called a return, since Ruth had not left Bethlehem in the first place? The Spirit of God wants us to know that Ruth has returned to the living God.

By calling her a Moabitess, the Holy Spirit wants us to sense the wonder of her conversion. In this Old Testament book, he reminds of God’s greater purpose. God had said that all peoples on earth would be blessed through Abraham (Genesis 12:3), and he had invited the nations to rejoice with his people in the great song of Moses (Deuteronomy 32:43). So then, in the Torah, the old covenant law had excluded the nations from the people, while God also revealed his purpose to include them among his people. It was very unclear to people under the law how those two truths could agree, if they even thought about them. It was a mystery whose solution could only be found in Christ (Ephesians 3:1-13). Ruth stands as one of the firstfruits of that worldwide vision. As God gave more revelation in the Old Testament Scriptures, he would affirm the purpose that would be fulfilled in the Lord Jesus. So then, Ruth the Moabitess returned to God and his people! Naomi had not returned empty, because Ruth the Moabitess went home with her! To sum up the story to this point, “when God is at work, bitter hopelessness can be the beginning of some surprising good” (Hubbard).

How can you know that God is at work for your good (Romans 8:28)? You can only know it when you trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for forgiveness and righteousness with God. Only then can you know the love of God from which nothing, absolutely nothing, can separate you.

Grace and peace, David

A God-initiated Relationship

Exodus 5:22-6:12

God knows what happens in our world. He knows the joy and the sorrow of every person. God also remembers the promises he has made to people. God had made a covenant with the Patriarchs of the Hebrew people to give them the land of Canaan (6:4). He had also told Abraham that they would not gain the land for four hundred years, during which time the people would be enslaved and mistreated (Genesis 15:13-14). God told Moses that the time had arrived for the Lord to remember his covenant promise. We can only understand God’s plan when we take the position of learners and confess that his way is best because he is God. It’s not about us, but about him. When faced with hardship, this can be a very troubling truth, until we grasp that the Lord also works through our adversity for our greater good. This good purpose involves a God-initiated relationship. Here is the way that the Lord would act to make the descendants of the Patriarchs his people.

The Lord promised to bring them “out from under the yoke of the Egyptians” (6:6). The Egyptians were using the people of Israel like yoked oxen. God would end that oppression that had brought much suffering to them. In our time we see many of the people of God under tyrannical regimes. God will rescue them at his appointed hour, as he rescued Israel.
The Lord presented the method of deliverance (6:6). The method was to set them free from “being slaves to them” and to redeem them “with an outstretched arm and mighty acts of judgment.” To redeem means “to set free by the payment of a ransom”. In this case the focus is on the idea of setting the people free from slavery in Egypt. God used this act to set up a pattern that would teach us about our redemption from sin. Notice how the redemption would be accomplished. God would act with power and judgment against those who had oppressed his people. Here is the justice of God, bringing judgment on those who had done evil. God will judge all evildoers with justice at the last day (Matthew 25:31-36; Revelation 20:11-15).
The Lord procured the suffering slaves as his people (6:7). Though very great and majestic, God is “gentle and humble in heart”, as Jesus made known God’s character (John 14:7; Matthew 11:29). So the infinite God was willing to take the weak and lowly and the despised (1 Corinthians 1:27-28) as his own people. He did not need great people to validate him as a great God; instead, he sought out those who were assumed to be nothing, slaves, to transform them into his free people. In this way he would demonstrate his greatness, and in this way they people would “know that I am the Lord your God”.
The Lord pointed out the goal, which was to bring them to the land he had sworn by covenant oath to the Patriarchs (6:8). Observe how the Lord says twice that he would give them the land. It would be their gift from him. This was his grace to the old covenant people, and it is clearly shown to be by grace and not works, because of their constant rebellion against them before they went into the land.

So then, God took the initiative to make them his people and to provide for them. And Moses told them the message that the Lord had told him to tell them (6:6, 9). However, they failed to listen to God’s words, because of their discouragement and experience of cruel bondage. An assessment of Moses’ situation from a worldly perspective was bleak, as he well understood. This made the whole conversation rather dissatisfying to Moses. If a message with great promises could not convince Israel that God was soon to help them, how could a bare command to a cruel monarch persuade him to let Israel go?

This is the reason we need to have faith in God and his words, especially when everything seems to be against us. How is your faith in God? Does it fill you with hope? Or can you see no further than your present dissatisfaction with what God is doing now? Trust in God.

Grace and peace, David

Paradise Regained: Now and Next

1 Corinthians 15:20-28

When Jesus came, he announced that the kingdom of God, God’s saving reign, had arrived (Mark 1:15). As we saw in our last article on Paradise Regained, the power of this kingdom is connected with the resurrection of the Lord Jesus from the dead. His resurrection changes everything! What we should think on now is that God’s kingdom is presently active (15:25). “For he must reign until he has put all enemies under his feet” (cf. Psalm 110:1).

Christ is presently reigning. His reign began through the events of his resurrection and ascension. Listen to Peter’s confident words on Pentecost (Acts 2:29-36 ESV): “Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.’ Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified” (my emphasis).

Christ’s reign involves an increasing spread of his authority (Isaiah 9:6-7; 42:1-9; 49:5-7; Luke 1:31-33; Acts 1:8). People from across the globe will come under his gracious authority (Revelation 5:9-10). Jesus Christ will reign until he puts all his enemies under his feet. The enemies include the operation of sin or rebellion against God, and the ruin of creation operating through sin, but especially the force of death. Having secured eternal redemption, Jesus the Messiah rules to apply what he has purchased. Notice that Christ is actively putting his enemies under his feet. He does this through the Spirit, who takes the truth that is in Jesus and makes a new humanity under his rule (Ephesians 4:20-5:7).

We have seen the “now”, but we also need to pay careful attention to the “next”. God’s kingdom will surely triumph in this world (15:26-28). All the words of Jesus proclaim this confident expectation. If you’re not sure, I challenge you to read the Four Gospels carefully.

When Paradise was lost when man sinned, sin began to reign in death (cf. Romans 5:12-14, 21). Because of human sin, death has been a great enemy, destroying billions of human lives. Our world is one vast cemetery; a grim memorial park to this terrible foe. Through his crucifixion, our Lord dealt with the problem of sin, and in his resurrection, he dealt with the evil of death. When people come to know the Lord by grace through faith, they enter into the victory of Jesus over sin and death. As Paul says in verse 26, “The last enemy, death, is being destroyed.” Christ’s reign continues until God’s purpose in his Son is fulfilled (15:27-28). God’s plan is to show his great glory in the exaltation of Jesus, the Son of God (cf. Philippians 2:9-11). Obviously, God the Father who designed the plan and sent his Son is not subject to him. But the Son’s great desire is to bring everything subject to God, and his reign pursues that purpose. The final destiny is God glorified and his people enjoying God’s glory forever with him. This is the hope (confident expectation) that all believers share in. In the trials and struggles of life, we can look forward boldly and anticipate the time when Christ’s kingdom is fully extended over a new earth, where we will be forever with God.

Grace and peace, David