unveiled faces

More than a dozen Muslim clerics at some of the biggest mosques in Britain have been caught on camera agreeing to marry off girls as young as 14. Undercover reporters filming a documentary about the prevalence of forced and underage marriage in Britain

"L'shanna Tovah Tikkitevu!" "Say what?" We are right in the middle of Rosh Hashanah or the Jewish New Year. The Shofar (horn) is blasted up to a hundred times to awake the soul into repentance. Todays traditions include singing songs of repentance , some tasty Challah bread in the shape of a crown, and apples dipped in honey. The Torah does not strictly say that this is the New Year but was a tradition later adopted. Leviticus 23:24 emphasizes the trumpet being blasted. The trumpet is the essential part of the holiday (Holy day) to give 10 days of repentance before Yom Kippur-The Day of Atonement.

In the ancient sacrificial system, the Day of Atonement was the one time of year that the High Priest would risk his life by entering the Holy of Holies. He would offer a prescribed sacrifice and risk making a mistake that would kill him in the presence of God. More than that the whole nation depended upon him for their atonement. And if the high priest was not killed the whole nation could breath a sigh of relief but only because their payment was deferred. But it was never paid. Like a massive student loan that only gave extensions but no acquittals. So what did that guy say again? "L'shanna tovah Tikkitevu!" Literally, "For a good year, may you be inscribed." This is referring to the book of life. Basically saying, if the year is good I hope you'll be in the book of life. This is a terrifying and shaky proposition. But the sacrificial system was designed to  be shaky and temporary like scaffolding. In order to show us our need for forgiveness but never fulfill it. We need to repent, we need to be forgiven, we must shutter if we are written in the book of the dead, we must long to be written in the book of life. But what assurance do we have? Under the old system their is none, the blood of bulls and goats cannot take away sin, not even for a year or a day. The trumpets of Rosh Hashanah are designed to awaken us for the need to repent and God's imminent judgement. And today they don't even offer sacrifices, there is nothing but empty prayers and instead of shedding blood we light a candle. A candle? Really? I've sinned against Almighty God and lighting a candle is going to fix all that? God hates rituals with no reality. So He gave us something real to really fix our sin. "The power of an indestructible life." The eternal hero who stooped from Heaven's throne to rescue us in darkness. The old system was designed to help us see the eternal merit and awesome redemptive value in the sacrifice that Jesus made. "For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God," (1 Peter 3:18). Jesus is better, Jesus is secure, Jesus is eternal, Jesus is everlasting, Jesus gave us the one thing that we need more than anything - access to God! "When He comes with trumpet sound, 

Oh may I then in Him be found,

Dressed in His righteousness alone,

Faultless to stand before the throne!"

"Holy Spirit, I surrender, take me where you want to go." Our worship leader played at church today for the last time. He stood with his shoulders wide under his suit jacket. His feet were stable with sweet sobriety. His guitar strap hung like a gentle vine. He led us in song before his  departure for further ministry overseas. He closed the time by playing a song close to his heart but common enough for everyone to join. 

In the midst of his fourth song, I had no idea the weight that would drop upon me or the hope that would follow. 

The final song and the sermon carried the theme of servanthood. David was a servant of the Lord (1 Samuel 23),  Jesus was a servant of the Lord, and we are called to joyfully enslave ourselves to a perfect Master. Every Christian knows the feeling of singing and praying for the Lord to use you however He pleases, even if it will sting. Servants are built for needs, and the Lord began to fill my mind with images of the needs.

I found myself plagued by images of those in slavery. Not the typical cargo and chain image of the past centuries but modern women and children across the world (30-200 million). Slaves who have been bought and sold in order to be violated up to 20 times a day. I could see women in Costa Rica trapped in high heels at some bar without hope and feeling like their only option for survival is at the whims of some foreign pervert. The poor children from Southeast Asia sold by their parents into brothels as young as five years old. Young women in Eastern Europe promised a job, beaten then exported into forced prostitution. Young women from India to Israel forced to live inside walls and basement cellars and only brought out for "services". I could feel the agony and the despair of child brides in Afghanistan that are willing to light themselves on fire to get away from their abusive 'husbands'.   I could see them longing for someone to come rescue them. I could see them wondering, "Where is God?" 

Outwardly, I was throbbing with pain and emotions. Not a clear thought was in my head - only hurting with the hurting. And then, it was as though the Holy Spirit sat next to me, and like a best friend brought these words to mind:  "In those days I will pour out my Spirit...and everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved." (Joel 2) A flood of hope poured in my heart: images of those in slavery calling upon the Lord. Not just to save them from sex trafficking but to save them from the slavery of sin and the wrath of God. I could almost hear the crying echoes from the prison of despair, but I know the throne in Heaven is looking down with compassion (cf. Psalm 102).  And now, the Master in Heaven is calling His slaves on Earth into service. Our joy must be to spend our lives for the rescue of others. We must be enslaved to fight slavery.

After sunset, descending from a peaceful mountaintop view over Canyon country my phone blinked with several text messages. They were sent while we were out of cellphone range, but I was asked to teach at His Way Korean Presbyterian Church again. I showed up with four good brothers in the Lord, and the leader of the youth group asked me to teach, but I didn't have much prepared because I was told that I was not needed for teaching earlier that day. 

I retreated to the restrooms and placed one knee down on the little white tiles and begged the Lord for help. I didn't know what to say, I had no notes, just a vague desire to talk about the glory of God with Moses in Exodus. And then the Holy Spirit stamped a verse from John's Gospel on my brain, "the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth." I came back into the room confident but nervous, the leader asked my companions to give brief testimonies. It was a joyful reminder and hard not to get distracted. The teaching began and for the ten or so students. With the Lord's help, I was able to give a concise summary of the book of Exodus which shows the value of God's glory. The glory that was lost. Especially, the events surrounding Mt. Sinai after Israel left Egypt. The smoking mount Sinai demonstrated that man had no access to God. And God was incessantly pursuing humanity, in order to restore them back to himself.

Despite many rebellious and hateful responses directed toward God, He still sought to make His glory known to man. "The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever."

All glory be to Christ! Our Good Shepherd has reached His saving arms to the heart of Saudi Arabia and rescued a single brother. He met a Christian friend through a Manga interest group, she directed him to read the bible and showed him genuine care and Christlike love. 

He read the Bible for himself online, the only version not blocked by the government was in English. He was floored by the words of Christ, "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." His eyes were opened and said, "Wow! Here is something special." He kept reading and read the whole Bible and came to the conclusion that Jesus was the only Savior and the only way to be saved was to believe in Him! And so he did, but the Saudi government demands beheading for any who convert from Islam to Christ. Our brother fled and is safe with us. He is seeking asylum and is getting baptized soon. Pray for his witness to his family, a good lawyer, and for him to get back on his feet financially.