"THE WASH MACHINE"
By Barbara Mathews, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Barbara Mathews is the wife of Vau
ghn Mathews.
Vaughn and Barb have three children and five grandchildren and have pastored churches for 33 years.
I know this sounds like a crazy title for a Bible study, but I think it sums up a lot for us today in one simple appliance that we could not live without in our everyday lives. Most everyone today has this appliance and would not be without it in our homes. We feel for those who do not have a machine and must go elsewhere to wash their clothes. We all use these machines differently in our individual daily routines. Some wash one-load every day, some wash a couple of loads every day, or every other day. Some save up until it is "Laundry Day" and do all the laundry on one special day. How much laundry one has depends on how many are in the household, and for many young moms it seems like the laundry will never be done or you can never keep up. The opposite is true for those who live alone and feel they can't run a load of wash until they have a full load and it takes, for them, living alone, a few days to fill up the wash machine or the dishwasher. This wash machine is something insignificant to our list of important things to do and accomplish, but if your wash machine has ever broken down, it is a priority on your list to get it fixed ASAP or life and the daily routine is all messed up.
Today, all have been effected by what is happening in our world, country, and around the globe. The media has done a good job of letting us know where the economy is, the banks and mortgage closures, the stock market, unemployment rate, and the list could go on and on. If we are not careful, this can become our focus instead of what God has truly told us to keep our focus on.
In John 16, Jesus tells many things. In the NLT, 16:1 begins with; "I have told you these things so that you won't fall away" and goes on to share about being expelled from their synagogues and that some will want to kill believers and think that they are doing God a service. Jesus then goes on to explain He must go, but He would send the Holy Spirit as our Counselor, or Comforter or Encourager or Advocate or Paraclete, depending on what translation of the Bible you are using. Then at the end of that chapter John 16:29 reads like this:
"Then His disciples said, 'At last you are speaking plainly and not in parables. Now we understand that you know everything and don't need anyone to tell you anything. From this we believe that you came from God.' Jesus asked, 'Do you finally believe? But the time is coming-in fact, it is already here-when you will be scattered, each one going his own way, leaving me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me. I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world'" (NLT).
Take heart, Jesus has overcome the world!!!
Colossians 3:1-4 reads: "Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God's right hand in the place of honor and power. Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth. For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God" (NLT).
It all sounds so good as we read it in our Bibles, but how do we live this way? How do we live without getting bogged down with what we hear on the news and global economy and strife?
Colossians 1:17: "He (Christ) existed before everything else began, and He holds all creation together" (NLT).
Though we "say" our focus in on Christ, we "live" like other things are more important.
God says, "Let all the world look to me for salvation! For I am God, there is no other. I have sworn by my own name, and I will never go back on my word: Every knee will bow to me, and every tongue will confess allegiance to my name" (Isaiah 45:22, 23, NLT).
Look-looking does not take great effort, anyone can look, a man, a women, a child can even look. We look, but we look to ourselves, our country, our president, or jobs, our celebrities, the list goes on and on and when we look we are blinded by what we see. Do we see God?
It is amazing that God throughout all of Old Testament history has been shouting, prophesying, pointing, explaining and showing us the way, for our day today. What was said in the Old Testament foretold a time in which we now live and continues to point the way of our future and times yet to come. Just the fulfilled prophecies of Jesus alone confirm the powerful truth of the Word.
v Jesus born in Bethlehem-Micah 5:2 predicted 500 years before birth
v Jesus betrayed by a close friend-Psalm 41:9
v Betrayed for thirty pieces of silver-Zechariah 11:12
v Money used for a potter's field-Zechariah 11:13; Matthew 27:3-8; Jeremiah 32:6-9
v Jesus scorned-Psalm 22:6-8; Matthew 27:39, 43
v Jesus pierced-Isaiah 53:5, Zechariah 12:10; Psalm 22:16; John 19:34, 20:25-27; Acts 2:23
v No bones broken-Psalm 34:20; Exodus 12:46; John 19:33
If scripture of Jesus' death, written hundreds of years before they transpired, are evidence of the truth of Old Testament into the New Testament, how much more will God do what He said He would do?
God is not a man, that He should lie. He is not a human, that He should change His mind. Has He ever spoken and failed to act? Has He ever promised and not carried it through? (Numbers 23:19, NLT).
If we are unfaithful, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny himself (2 Timothy 2:13, NLT).
Powerful, powerful scriptures that speak to us in the day in which we live. Our day of broken promises, minds that change daily, unfaithfulness and the list goes on and on, but God's promises CANNOT be broken, His plans are being carried out in His church, His people and into the future of what is yet to come.
Coming back to the "Wash Machine"-wouldn't it be nice to put soap and water into the machine then gently place in the dirty clothes, close the lid and in a few minutes when the quiet cycle was over, out came clean garments? We know that in order to get the clothes clean, a form of agitation and a spin cycle is needed. Generations ago, clothes were slapped against rocks, rubbed raw with soap or pressed hard against a washboard. Even some of our wash machines are not quiet and rattle the whole house as they agitate and spin to get our clothes clean.
Our world is being agitated, shaken, changed and pressed hard against the washboard. For what purpose?
For A New Kingdom to Emerge!! "The whole world has now become the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever" (Revelation 11:15, NLT).
I can't wait!! I am not bogged down by the news, economy, or changing thoughts of man. I am not focused on broken promises or unfaithfulness around me. I am LOOKING and continue to LOOK at JESUS, who holds all creation together, who is the express image of God Himself who is merciful, slow to anger and whose love endures forever.
Thank You, Lord, for the truth of the Old Testament coming to pass in the New and in our world today. Keep our focus where it needs to be and we pray, "Let Your kingdom come and Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven!"
