A spirit glided past my face, and the hair on my body stood on end. It stopped, but I could not tell what it was. A form stood before my eyes, and I heard a hushed voice: “Can a mortal be more righteous than God? Can a man be more pure than his Maker?” Job 4:15-17.

That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us. John 17:21.

Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble…A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, 12.

And continuing our 351 Old Testament prophecie, promises of God, fulfilled in Jesus Christ, we come to number 38: The serpent on a pole – Christ lifted up. Numbers 21:9: And Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived. And, John 3:14-18; 12:32: As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.”

This morning in our Friday Zoom Retreat, we listened to a video by John Ortberg about praying the Psalms. That, as Thomas Merton said, “We will begin to know God as we ought.” From Psalm 19:14: “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer.” From Psalm 1: “How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked; nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night.” As Ortberg said, the Law of the Lord is not just rules and regulations and statutes. The law of God is the story of God, the goodness of God, the will of God! And that if we read the words “the wicked”, or “the righteous”, they speak of each one of us because we share both descriptors when we are honest with ourselves. Do we know God as we ought? Do we truly love Him and His story? This incredible journey we are on in this life has meaning and purpose because it is Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit, who began everything.

Something essential opens up in us as we turn to God. Gratitude. Relationship. Help. Understanding. Comfort. Companionship with God and one another and with those who came before and penned words so beautifully inspired by God and shared with us to help in our own time of great need. When, in this life, is there not a time of great need? If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. 1 Corinthians 15:19. What if in this life only – we don’t know Christ? We have but to hear the words that come out of peoples mouths today to see how desolate we are without knowing God’s love for all of us. Reminder and repetition is all throughout Scripture for a good and needed reason. Can we think about these words, and where is any fault in them: The Law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether. They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them Your servant is warned; in keeping them there is great reward. Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults. Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins; let them not rule over me; then I will be blameless, and I shall be acquitted of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer! Psalm 19:7-14. Because they beg the question, Can a mortal be more righteous than God? Can a man be more pure than his Maker? A worthy question. A needed meditation. Do we want to know God as we ought?