Return to Me

I have tried really hard not to talk about the things that we all often think about: Politics, medicine, our popular culture, and our government. Everyone is talking about these things all the time, it seems, and so I wanted to create a way to rest, to become aware of our spiritual selves and to connect with God.

“But I AM connected to God,” you might think. “I pray. I read my Bible. I go to church.” And I would agree with you; I feel that way, too. But still, all this week, I keep thinking of the phrase, “Return to Me.” And so when I read the following verse today, I was amazed.

“Ever since the days of your ancestors, you have scorned my decrees and failed to obey them. Now return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. But you ask, ‘How can we return when we have never gone away?’” (Malachi 3:7 NLT)

That’s the same thing I was thinking! I don’t feel like I have gone astray. Later on, I read this verse.

“And so the Lord says, ‘These people say they are mine. They honor me with their lips but their hearts are far from me. And their worship of me is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote’.” (Isaiah 29:13 NLT)

That part about “man-made rules learned by rote” stuck hard. I went to a rather legalistic Christian school as a kid, and was taught very specific, man-made rules. I admit that as a child, I thought they were silly. But being silly wasn’t the problem. (Have you ever read the rules in an etiquette book?) The problem was that we were taught that those rules were based on ideas that came from God.

Legalism is a problem because it has nothing to do with the heart. You can follow any number of rules, made by men to “help” express God’s intention, but because these rules are made by men, they don’t have the same authority. And we don’t have any assurance that God will be pleased.

The passage above talks about worship of God that is made of nothing but “man-made rules learned by rote.” It sounds like God wants a different kind of worship than following the rules made by man. The Apostle Paul argues that if we are really dead in Christ to the things of this world, then we won’t be bound to follow the man-made religious rules, either.

“You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the spiritual powers of this world. So why do you keep on following the rules of the world, such as,“Don’t handle! Don’t taste! Don’t touch!”? Such rules are mere human teachings about things that deteriorate as we use them.These rules may seem wise because they require strong devotion, pious self-denial, and severe bodily discipline. But they provide no help in conquering a person’s evil desires.” (Colossians 2:20 – 23 NLT)

We have been given rules by God. He gave us the law, the original Ten Commandments. And Jesus summarized them into what we now call “The Golden Rule.”

“Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 7:12)

He says a similar thing later on, when asked by a Pharisee, which is the greatest commandment:

“Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 22:37 – 40)

There is nothing negative here. Jesus doesn’t tell us NOT to do anything; He simply ask us to love. And when our hearts are full of love and we are thinking of others, there are lots of things we won’t do because we don’t want to hurt others. But there are lots of good things we will be inspired to do, too!

God is love. But love isn’t always what we think it is.

See, “God gets us.” He sees how we twist concepts to shoehorn our own ideas into His mouth. The advertising slogan I just repeated is a great example of how we steal God’s authority to add weight to human ideas. That kind of stolen authority was exactly what was happening when Jesus was here on earth. But as Paul said in the above passage from Colossians, these man-made rules “provide no help in conquering a person’s evil desires.”

And so Jesus said, “Whatever you want men (people) to do to you, do also to them.” Every one of the Ten commandments falls under this principle. Do you want people to steal from you? To lie to you? To murder you? To covet your possessions for themselves? No, we want to be treated with dignity and respect. And Jesus is saying that we should treat others the way we would like to be treated.

And when we do wrong, the same thing applies. We would love it for others to be merciful, wouldn’t we? Or maybe we would be better off for others to hold us accountable. We have to engage and think through how to best obey the teachings of Jesus, because sometimes it isn’t straightforward. But the Holy Spirit will guide us to do His will.

And like Jesus’s teaching in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), his Golden Rule greatly expands our responsibility to obey. It’s not just what you do with your body; your thoughts matter, too. Jesus took it back to where it all begins, in the mind. He passionately proclaimed that God isn’t interested in fake followers. He wants the real thing: Changed hearts ruled by love, changed lives, and through that, a renewed world. He wants our lives to touch the lives of others in a transformative way. And only real love–His love–can do that.

So if we go back to Malachi 3:7, and replace “my decrees” with the “Golden Rule,“ you can ask yourself, “Am I scorning the Golden Rule and replacing it with man-made rules? Am I treating other people the way I would want to be treated if I were in their place?”

Now here is a hard one: “Am I treating God the way I would want to be treated if I were God?” After all He has done for us, are we loving God with everything we have? Are we honoring Him with all of our time, our money, our attention, our talents, our property, our love, our dreams, and our ideas?

“All” is a little word with big implications. If we love God with all of our heart, for example, then how will we have enough for our spouse? Or our kids? Or our neighbor?

Man’s wisdom (psychology) says that each of us has a container within ourselves, and from that container, we “pour out” into other people. The idea with this model is that we can run out of resource, and we will have to be filled up before we can give more to others. This model tells us that when we are tired of giving, it’s because we are “empty,” and we need to take a break to “refill.” But this is not how it works with God.

A child of God is more like a funnel. God pours into us, as we pour into others. He gives us more than we need to be satisfied in His love; then we channel His love, comfort, forgiveness, and encouragement to other people. Because God is our source, we will never run out of what we can offer to others. We have an unlimited resource that continually fills us.

Jim works at a mission, and there are days when he comes home very tired. The summer heat is always hard for him, and then he has a very long commute each day. But if anything, the flame in his heart for the Lord is burning even brighter. That wouldn’t be possible without the support of God. He would run out of energy, enthusiasm, and desire. Instead, he is thriving.

But the need he sees is overwhelming. The work is sometimes dangerous, and usually heartbreaking. Any one of us could be in that same position; there are some among the homeless that have masters degrees. But somewhere along the way, their lives broke, and now they are in the best position to receive.

But for those who take hold, the mission is a temporary place. It provides a firm foundation on which to stand, giving food at regular times, and a place to sleep. Some are able to receive training in a new career, or learn how to read, and so the mission provides a way to grab hold and climb (back) in to a productive life.

Jim reports that it is so gratifying to give water to someone who is thirsty; so fulfilling to encourage a depressed person. And how wonderful it must be to work on the front lines, so to speak, providing actual help and making a real difference! As Jesus said, “Freely you have received, freely give.” (Matthew 10:8)

Not everyone works in a mission, but for the rest of us, the whole world is our mission. Everywhere around you, every day, there are people in need. Maybe they just need a smile of reassurance, or perhaps they are stranded somewhere and need to borrow a phone or get a ride. If the Spirit moves you to compassion, stop and check on people. You never know how you can be used by God to meet someone’s need.

When we give God our “all,” that means we live our lives in obedience to God, reverencing him by the way that we conduct ourselves, and considering Him in all we do. We know from His word that He wants us to be careful with how we live. He wants us to love our neighbor, and that is part of the way we show our love to Him. There can be no conflict, where we “run out of love,” or have a limited store and have to split it up among all of the people we need to love.

Giving God our “all” means that we remain in a close relationship with Him. We make decisions based on what we believe will please Him, based on His written word, and also on the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We act as though He were in the room with us at all times, watching us. (‘Cause He is.)

God is our life. So thinking that you want a break from God is like wishing you could take a break from breathing. He is in you. He keeps you alive. We are utterly dependent upon Him. He loves us so much that He died for us, and He is good. There is no “us” apart from Him, there are just things that lead us toward Him and things that lead us away from Him. When we feel “dry,” we need to go back to the source and ask for the living water.

“The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.” (Zephaniah 3:17 ESV)

I am sorry that sometimes I disobey God. It usually happens when I am relying on my own resources, or thinking about things from man’s point of view. I might think to myself, “I can’t do this that the Lord is asking be to do, because if I do, this bad thing will happen.”

But I have to reassure myself that God knows the future. From where He sits, He sees the end of all things and what comes after that. If He has asked me to do something, then it’s all part of the plan. And I don’t have to worry about the outcome. If I obey, it will bring a blessing. And the instant I move to obey, I know from experience that His strength will come to help me do it.

Return to me, the Lord of Hosts says. He just wants us to pay attention, and to love Him. And when we are focused on Him, He will bless us. And then He will work though us to bless other people.

“O Israel, return to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity.” (Hosea 14:1)

“My wayward children,” says the Lord, “come back to me, and I will heal your wayward hearts.” “Yes, we’re coming,” the people reply, “for you are the Lord our God. (Jeremiah 3:22 NLT)

“Then I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart.” (Jeremiah 24:7)

“If you return to me, I will restore you so you can continue to serve Me. If you speak good words rather than worthless ones, you will be My spokesman. You must influence them; do not let them influence you! (Jeremiah 15:19 NLT)

When I am quiet in my heart and mind, I can feel His yearning. “Return to Me,” He whispers. It’s so easy to become distracted, but we must guard our heart. Create a quiet place to celebrate God. Return to a full life of promise; rest in His love and find what you need. When you are discouraged, just turn; turn around, and go to Him.