Beauty for Ashes
When the Neptune Society called two weeks ago and told Pete that he needed to pick up his wife’s ashes after 11 months, Pete realized that he needed an “attitude adjustment.” He had to acknowledge that he had developed a “heathen” attitude to avoid painful memories of losing Suzan. God led him to Ecclesiastes Chapters 3 and 12. These words of wisdom are from King Solomon. According to Ecclesiastes 3, our bodies are “ashes to ashes and dust to dust.” Ecclesiastes 12:6-7, speaking about death says, “Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.
Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.”
Pete prayed and then wrote these words as God’s response to his prayer: Suzan’s ashes are remnants of her physical body. She’s with me now in eternity…I have redeemed her and have given her beauty for ashes.
Pete recalled Isaiah’s prophesy about the coming Messiah in Isaiah 61:1-3. Jesus quoted this passage at the beginning of his ministry as fulfillment of this prophecy: “THE Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.”
Our God gives us beauty for ashes. He does not reward us according to our sin but according to his grace and mercy. Not because of who we are but because of who he is. This is the unconditional supernatural love of God. He loves us despite our fallen nature. He loves us because of his nature, not ours.
God will not spare us heartache and tribulation. However, through the trials of life we will come to know the depth of his love for us. Trials feel like ashes and dust. However, in God’s perspective, there’s a silver lining in every storm. No pit is so deep but that God’s love, kindness, and purpose is deeper still.
God reminded Pete that Suzan’s ashes are temporary, but her holy spirit created in Christ Jesus is eternal. God doesn’t leave us in the dust and ashes… He lifts us from the miry clay and seats us in heavenly places. Ashes symbolize grief, repentance, and humiliation. In the Old Testament when they covered their heads with ashes, they grieved that “in my flesh dwelleth no good thing.” In the ashes of sin and death is the seed of repentance. Repentance means to “change your mind”… To change direction.
In the Garden of Eden, God asked Adam, “Why are you hiding from me?” Adam replied, “Because I was naked.” God asked, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten the forbidden fruit?” Adam said, “the woman you gave me, gave me to eat of the forbidden fruit and I ate it.” When Adam and Eve disobeyed God by eating of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they died spiritually that day. Without God’s spirit, they came to know separation from God, guilt, shame, evil and death.
God allows attacks so that we can realize that “in my flesh dwelleth no good thing.” Jesus said, “if they compel you to go one mile, go the second mile.” God is glorified when we’re crucified with Christ…when we turn the other cheek. These are the times when thy strength is made perfect in my weakness, thy grace is sufficient for me. For I was crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live yet not I but Christ liveth in me. And the life that I now live I live in the flesh I live by faith in the son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.
The devil uses Divisions and destruction of the family to unravel cultures and nations. The fastest growing religion in America is the “nones” who don’t identify with any religion. Jesus Came to fulfill the prophecy in Isaiah 61: To set the captives free, to release them from the snare of the devil who holds them captive against their wills.
We’re carried by the prayers of those who “make intercession for us.” God himself demonstrated his love for us, for while we were yet sinners, Christ died for the ungodly. For God so loved the word that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.
Men are prone to wallow in guilt and shame…to throw ashes on themselves. Pete recalls a dream where he walked into a gym and joined in kicking a guy on the floor who was being punished. Then Pete asked, “who are we kicking?” When he looked down, he realized that he was kicking himself. Guilt and shame are the devil’s ploy to keep us in ashes. However, our loving Heavenly Father exchanges beauty for ashes.
God delivered Job when he stopped looking at his own distress and started praying for his friends. Jesus said, “come unto me all ye who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” There is no rest from worry, fear, doubt, anxiety and guilt in a fallen world. Jesus said, “I am come to deliver the broken hearted, to set at Liberty them that are bruised, to open the eyes of the blind…to proclaim the acceptable day of the Lord.”
Sin entered through Adam. Ashes to ashes and dust to dust are the consequences of Adam’s disobedience. However according to Romans 5, Jesus Christ is the second Adam. He came to deliver us from the power of eternal death. The good news is that he has said, “Come unto me all ye who are heavy laden from the burdens of this world.” Our rest is in him, for he said, “my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” When we’re yoked together with him as fellow Laborers, his strength is made perfect in my weakness.
This is Jesus’ purpose According to the benediction in Isaiah 61:3: to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.
May we ever live to the praise of the glory of his grace!
Your brother in Christ,
Michael