3/30/13

From Gary... BYOR (Bring your own rainbow)


It is obvious to anyone who has read this blog for any length of time that I am fascinated with rainbows. I probably have done fifteen or twenty posts about "rainbows"  since I started this blog about five years ago.  When I started, I had no idea how many kinds there were, but they all seem to have something in common - until today, that is.  The one in the picture is man-made.  High above the Earth, it proclaims the technological supremacy that man has attained and is a testament to his ingenuity!!!!  The plane promises a safe journey to all who board it and the fact that its jet engines are functioning properly is revealed by the contrails and that beautiful rainbow it leaves in its wake.  A safe journey is quite a promise, especially when you consider this jet is probably flying at 30,000 feet or more above Terra firma.  After thinking about it a bit, I realize that we all make promises, from mundane things like "I'll be home on time tonight, honey" to the more significant ones like "I do"!!!  God makes promises too- and for most of us, the promise of the rainbow (Genesis, chapter 9 below) is the first thing that comes to mind.  But, what other promises God has made?  If I were to list them all, I would make this post so long that very few would bother to read all of them, so lets just talk about the most significant...

Genesis, Chapter 9
8  God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying,  9 “As for me, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your offspring after you,  10 and with every living creature that is with you: the birds, the livestock, and every animal of the earth with you, of all that go out of the ship, even every animal of the earth.  11 I will establish my covenant with you: All flesh will not be cut off any more by the waters of the flood, neither will there ever again be a flood to destroy the earth.”  12 God said, “This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations:  13 I set my rainbow in the cloud, and it will be a sign of a covenant between me and the earth.  14 When I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow will be seen in the cloud,  15 and I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh, and the waters will no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.  16 The rainbow will be in the cloud. I will look at it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.”  17 God said to Noah, “This is the token of the covenant which I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.” 


Luke, Chapter 24
 45  Then he opened their minds, that they might understand the Scriptures.  46 He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day,   47  and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem.   48  You are witnesses of these things.   49  Behold, I send out the promise of my Father on you. But wait in the city of Jerusalem until you are clothed with power from on high.” 

Acts, Chapter 2

 1 Now when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all with one accord in one place.  2 Suddenly there came from the sky a sound like the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.  3 Tongues like fire appeared and were distributed to them, and one sat on each of them.  4 They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other languages, as the Spirit gave them the ability to speak.  5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under the sky.  6 When this sound was heard, the multitude came together, and were bewildered, because everyone heard them speaking in his own language.  7 They were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Behold, aren’t all these who speak Galileans?  8 How do we hear, everyone in our own native language?  9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia,  10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, the parts of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,  11 Cretans and Arabians: we hear them speaking in our languages the mighty works of God!”  12 They were all amazed, and were perplexed, saying one to another, “What does this mean?” 13 Others, mocking, said, “They are filled with new wine.” 

  14  But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and spoke out to them, “You men of Judea, and all you who dwell at Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to my words.  15 For these aren’t drunken, as you suppose, seeing it is only the third hour of the day.  16 But this is what has been spoken through the prophet Joel: 
  17 ‘It will be in the last days, says God,
that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh.
Your sons and your daughters will prophesy.
Your young men will see visions.
Your old men will dream dreams.
  18 Yes, and on my servants and on my handmaidens in those days,
I will pour out my Spirit, and they will prophesy.
  19 I will show wonders in the sky above,
and signs on the earth beneath;
blood, and fire, and billows of smoke.
  20 The sun will be turned into darkness,
and the moon into blood,
before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.
  21 It will be, that whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

  22  “Men of Israel, hear these words! Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved by God to you by mighty works and wonders and signs which God did by him in your midst, even as you yourselves know,  23 him, being delivered up by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by the hand of lawless men, crucified and killed;  24 whom God raised up, having freed him from the agony of death, because it was not possible that he should be held by it.  25 For David says concerning him,
‘I saw the Lord always before my face,
For he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved.
  26 Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced.
Moreover my flesh also will dwell in hope;
  27 because you will not leave my soul in Hades,
neither will you allow your Holy One to see decay.
  28 You made known to me the ways of life.
You will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

  29  “Brothers, I may tell you freely of the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.  30 Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, he would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne,  31 he foreseeing this spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that neither was his soul left in Hades, nor did his flesh see decay.  32 This Jesus God raised up, to which we all are witnesses.  33 Being therefore exalted by the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this, which you now see and hear.  34 For David didn’t ascend into the heavens, but he says himself, 
‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit by my right hand,
  35 until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’

  36  “Let all the house of Israel therefore know certainly that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” 

  37  Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 

  38  Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  39 For the promise is to you, and to your children, and to all who are far off, even as many as the Lord our God will call to himself.”  40 With many other words he testified, and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!” 


2 Corinthians, Chapter 1
 18 But as God is faithful, our word toward you was not “Yes and no.”  19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us, by me, Silvanus, and Timothy, was not “Yes and no,” but in him is “Yes.”  20 For however many are the promises of God, in him is the “Yes.” Therefore also through him is the “Amen”, to the glory of God through us. 

Ephesians, Chapter 1
 3  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ;  4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and without defect before him in love;  5 having predestined us for adoption as children through Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his desire,  6 to the praise of the glory of his grace, by which he freely bestowed favor on us in the Beloved,  7 in whom we have our redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence,  9 making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him  10 to an administration of the fullness of the times, to sum up all things in Christ, the things in the heavens, and the things on the earth, in him;  11 in whom also we were assigned an inheritance, having been foreordained according to the purpose of him who works all things after the counsel of his will;  12 to the end that we should be to the praise of his glory, we who had before hoped in Christ:  13 in whom you also, having heard the word of the truth, the Good News of your salvation—in whom, having also believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,  14 who is a pledge of our inheritance, to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of his glory.

The Bible is the story of beginnings and endings.  From purity in creation to sin and separation from God.  It is also the narration of God's working with his creatures to bring them back into good fellowship with him - without sin!!!  First and foremost it is the revelation of the completed promise; that is, "the promise" that God would provide a way to do this!!!  So, we have the above passages of Scripture.  God miraculously exhibits his power (Acts, Chapter 2) and gives of himself (HIS HOLY SPIRIT) as a seal of approval to those who repent and do his will.  Better than any wondrous rainbow you or I could imagine, The Holy Spirit is God's pledge of his most important promise to us!!!  We are "living rainbows" and THE promise given to us is not just something beautiful in the sky, but God's own seal.  Question: do YOU WANT THAT FOR YOUR LIFE?  Read Acts, Chapter two, verses 14 and following once again and do what you are commanded to do!!!  Humm, I wonder what kind of rainbow, YOU WILL BE????