Chapter Four
My God
The fourth name in Psalms 18:2 is, “MY GOD” which means “My own God”, all can talk about God but they cannot say, “He is my God” .It reminds me of one incidence. A God’s servant did not have any message on a particular day. The audience kept on singing one song after another. But he went on Praying God to give him a message. After sometime he had to stand and say something, but he was still blank and empty. Hence he cried out “My God my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” Feeling so much humiliated he came out and he told the other co-worker in the city, “My ministry has come to an end. From this place I must go somewhere else. I prayed so much. But the Lord did not give me any message.” And he went away to a far off place.
After some years a thought came to him ,” Let me go and see my old friends.” So he came back. He visited some old friends and some ladies who were very faithful for every meeting. When he came to one house he found that lady had died. But her daughter was there. She told, ” please sir, come inside; my mother had died; but I know you “ He went inside. That young girl said to him, “Sir do you remember your last message before you went away from here?” The man said, ‘yes, I have never forgotten. I was very much humiliated.’ She said “I also cannot forget that message. On the same day, the same morning when you said in tears ,’My God! My God!’ the Lord spoke to me. You called upon God as your God. That morning the Lord became my Savior. Now I can say, He is my Savior, my God and my Redeemer. ”
In that sense He is my God, my Lord and my Savior, who delivered me. If you show to a small child its father and say to the child, “He is my father.” the child will say emphatically, ‘No, he is my daddy!.’ The child can say with great love, “he is my own daddy”. A beggar may call you,” Father, father”, but you are not his father. The same way the Lord is our merciful Creator, and no doubt He answers our prayers at different times, but still you may not be able to say like the child with great love at close relation. “He is my God, my own God. ”
Before my conversion I prayed for many things and they were answered. I believed He is a living God, wonder-working God. But I could not say at that time, “He is my own God, my own Savior. ” Many years ago I was in England. One question was put to me by my friends, “which is the most beautiful part in India?” I told them very proudly and joyfully, “Kashmir!” They asked, “Now tell us something about Kashmir.” And I could talk about Kashmir hours together; “our Kashmir is wonderful, it is far more beautiful than your springs and valleys.” What all I said was true. I was saying with great pride and joy, our Kashmir is wonderful. But I had never been there. It is only when I came back from England, in 1935, for the first time I saw Kashmir. What a difference! It is one thing to go just by hearing and another to see for ourselves personally. The same way, our Lord is so great! He is so wonderful! He conquered death; He rose again; He loved everyone. It is all true. But has He become your personal living Savior? Do you know Him very intimately? Are you conscious of His presence whole day? Can you talk to Him as to a friend? Can you say He walks with you and talks with you? Is He living with you? Only then you will be able to say, “yes, I know He is my own Savior He is my God, my Lord.”
Even though David was a mighty man and had great zeal for God, yet he never knew God till after many years of his difficulties. When he was forsaken by his friends and relations, he called upon God for everything. Then only we read, god became very near to him. From that time he could talk to God very freely. Now David is saying by experience, “He is my Rock, my Fortress, my Deliverer, my God.” And he says, ”I love my God more than I love my father or brother or anybody else” It is because no body helped him in his difficulties. That is why when he came to the cave of Addullam he cried out to the living God. There he had a definite experience with the living God. There he found a new song of praise and victory. In all the circumstances he could praise God.
In the twentieth chapter of John’s Gospel we see that Mary Magdalene also could say truthfully, “ He is my God”. The wealthy Jews have a different way of burying their dead bodies. Jerusalem is situated in four hills. Hence they cannot dig graves. So wealthy people have their own sepulchers dug out in a rock for their own family. Inside the sepulcher they have place on the left side for the people to stand and look and on the right side for the body to be laid and covered with a slab. Outside the sepulcher they have a huge stone with grooves in the bottom and the top in which the door is made to slide. Going by the Jewish custom the dead body of the Lord Jesus Christ must be anointed with spices on the Easter day.
So on the early Easter morning, along with some other women Mary went with love devotion to the sepulcher, to anoint the body of the Lord laid in such a grave. Watchmen were watching his grave and they had a seal upon it. The women had to face all the angry Jews and soldiers. They had to roll the stone away. With all these difficulties they came there. Through their faith the stone was rolled away by angels. Seeing the grave empty all other women went away. But Mary was weeping standing outside the grave.(vs.11). I myself saw that grave. It has a place to sit down on both the sides. She saw two men, one on the head side and the other on the feet side. They asked “ Woman why weepest thou?” She said “ Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid Him. ” (vs. 13). What a strong devotion and love she had for the Lord Jesus Christ! She was prepared to face all the angry Jews and the soldiers, she was willing even to carry the body of the Lord if they had kept it anywhere else. And she was alone. How could she carry the whole body? But she was willing!
Suddenly the Lord Himself appeared to her (vs.15). Knowing her love and devotion He appeared and spoke to her. First He called her, “woman”. Now He was calling her by her name, ”Mary” (vs.16). The moment she heard her name, all her tears dried out and straight away she wanted to touch the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a very common custom to show respect to the elders; they touch their feet, with that devotion she wanted to touch his feet. And the Lord was saying to her, ”Touch me not, for I am not yet ascended to my Father” (vs.17). After sometime our Lord appeared to the other women who were going from the grave. We find those words in Matt 28:9. “they….. held Him by the feet and worshipped Him.” both these instances happened on the same Easter morning with a gap of about one hour. They were coming back because they left Mary alone. On the way the Lord met them and said, “All hail.” Their Joy was so great that they held Him by feet. Then He allowed to touch His feet but to Mary He said, ”touch me not.”
Going by her devotion she did exceed all of them, even men disciples were hiding. But to such a woman the Lord was saying, “Touch me not.” Why? He Himself gave the answer. He said, ”for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father and your Father; and to my God and to your God” (John 20:17). This means, ‘Now my God becomes your God and my Father becomes your Father.’ This proves that before He appeared to the other women as in Matt. 28:9, He went up and came back. He fulfilled a very great and important ministry in going up and coming down to enable us to go to Him; to make us a part of Him. Now He was in immortal body by which He could be anywhere, any time, in any part of the heaven. It was a wonderful body, glorified body, immortal body. Thank God we also will be given the same kind of body when He comes the second time.
In 1 John 3:2, we find the purpose of His ascension. We are told in Heb 9:11,12 that He is our heavenly High Priest to greater heavenly Tabernacle. He entered into the heavenly Holy Place by His own Blood. Now see what happened in the Old Testament period. In Twenty-third chapter of Leviticus, we have the details of a very important feast, the feast of atonement. The Jews as a nation are going to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. That is the prophesy. Now imagine ,on the third day of atonement many people gather at the door of the Tabernacle, bringing sin offering and trespass offering. They cannot go inside, but confess their sins by laying their hands on the animal which is brought. On their behalf the animal is killed by the priest. The High Priest takes of his clothes and wears ordinary clothes and takes the blood and goes behind the veil into the most Holy Place. The blood is sprinkled on the mercy seat of the Lord, between the cherubims. Then comes the divine fire from heaven and consumes the blood. That means, the Holy God has accepted the sacrifice of those who brought it. Then comes the High Priest out side and tells all the people ”People, rejoice! Your God has forgiven your sins. On your behalf I went inside the Holy Place and offered the blood. I saw the holy fire coming down from heaven and the blood is consumed. That means God is satisfied and your sins are forgiven.” In the Old Testament period that was the happiest day for the whole nation. That used to happen once a year.
According to ninth chapter of the Hebrews, the Lord Jesus Christ took His own blood in to the heavenly place. As prophesied in Psa 16:10, ”Thou will not leave my soul in hell; neither will Thou allow Thine Holy One to see corruption.” Our Lords blood never stank. Howsoever strong we may be, the very moment our hearts stop beating, our bodies start stinking. That is why they use ice to preserve the dead body for a long time. But the body of our Lord Jesus Christ never saw corruption. He was perfectly holy. He was born by the Holy Spirit, Holy blood. When He was scourged by the steel scourges, the blood came out. When they laid the crown of thorns on His head, blood came out. When His hands and feet were pierced, blood came out. When the soldiers pierced His side, blood came out. When He prayed in Gethsemane ,blood came out. Where did this blood go? It saw no corruption, it is pure blood. It has gone to heaven! From there the blood has to be sprinkled to purify us.
God’s word says in Romans 4:25, “He was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification”. That means the very same life, by which he rose again, has to be poured into our hearts. Don’t think that just by confessing and repenting our sins will be removed. It is only by the power of resurrection we become righteous. It is the most holy power to be received only in purified spirit. As sinners all of us have guilty, defiled spirit. Whatever sin we commit by our thought or word or deed, it is engraven in our hearts. Now-a-days tape recorders are used to record whatever sound we make or whatever words we say. Even cough is recorded. We cannot hear it then, but afterwards all sounds are heard. Like the tape recorders whatever we think or tell or do, all is written on our spirit. We are being defiled constantly every moment and because of this defilement the life of God cannot come into us. Without that life we cannot call Him “My God”.
We call God “My Father”, because we are born through Him. His life has come into us. We cannot call our uncles our fathers, nor can we call our neighbors our fathers. The man through whom we are born, we call him father. Unless we receive the life of God we cannot call Him “Our God.” His life is the power of resurrection. He is holy God. He cannot pour His life into us unless we are purified. No other earthly power can cleanse us from our inward defiled nature. But the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ has power to cleanse us wash us and purge us By His blood we are cleansed (1 John 1:7). By His blood we are washed (Rev 1:5b) and we are purged (Heb 9:14). If there is ordinary dirt on clothes that stain won’t go easily. You require strong chemical. That is purging. That is how our Lord will cleanse us by His blood and wash us thoroughly from inside.
The Lord was saying to Mary, “Mary I have not only risen again for you sake, but also conquered death for all those who come unto me. I want them to be a part of me. They can live for eternity. I want to be with you forever. Before that I must wash you, cleanse you and purge you with my blood. Then you can talk to me constantly saying ‘my God, my Father’. ‘You can come to boldly as a child. But first of all I must ascend to heaven as the heavenly High Priest and offer my own blood for cleansing, washing and purging.’
From the heavenly place the Lord pours the blood on the souls of the repenting sinners. The disciples saw his miracles they did live with him but they had not received the power of resurrection. Only after resurrection, when the Lord Jesus Christ ascended with His own blood, they were cleansed and straightaway they received the power of resurrection. God’s word says, we cannot become righteous by confessing or repentance or will-power or by reading Bible or seeing miracles. Only by the power of resurrection we are made righteous and that power is working in a three fold way. First of all we become righteous, secondly we go on conquering in our earthly trials and afflictions as Paul says in Philippians 3:10, 11; 4:13. Thirdly one day we shall be given immortal bodies (Romans 8:11).
Then we can say, “I belong to him for eternity. He is my God, my heavenly Father. I am His child. I belong to Him for eternity, and shall be with Him forever. I shall be His co-worker and partner.’ After the resurrection the disciples became children but till then they were His servants, His apostles. That is why they became so bold afterwards. Before that they were hiding in the upper room. But afterwards they could shake the whole world (Acts 4:12,13). All their guilty stains were washed, cleansed, purged by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. And by the very same blood we can enter into the most holy place as children of God (Hebrews 10:9). When children come home they do not say ‘May I come in Sir?’ they come boldly into any part of the house. They are your children; they have personal claim over their parents. The same you we have boldness before His presence through His blood. Then we can say, “He is my God, my Father. He will carry me through dark valley and give me my share in the heavenly places and make me king for eternity in His kingdom.” Now please tell me in that sense, are you a child of God? How do you talk to Him? Do you have liberty to go to Him and talk to Him, or do you go as a beggar for crumbs? Can you say, “He is my God?” May our Lord give us all such experience.